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Pentateuch · WORLD ENGLISH BIBLE

Deuteronomy 18

Moses renews the covenant and calls Israel to remember, love, and obey God.

Old Testament

Deuteronomy 18

1The priests and the Levites—all the tribe of Levi—shall have no portion nor inheritance with Israel. They shall eat the offerings of the LORD made by fire and his portion.

2They shall have no inheritance among their brothers. The LORD is their inheritance, as he has spoken to them.

3This shall be the priests’ due from the people, from those who offer a sacrifice, whether it be ox or sheep, that they shall give to the priest: the shoulder, the two cheeks, and the inner parts.

4You shall give him the first fruits of your grain, of your new wine, and of your oil, and the first of the fleece of your sheep.

5For the LORD your God has chosen him out of all your tribes to stand to minister in the LORD’s name, him and his sons forever.

6If a Levite comes from any of your gates out of all Israel where he lives, and comes with all the desire of his soul to the place which the LORD shall choose,

7then he shall minister in the name of the LORD his God, as all his brothers the Levites do, who stand there before the LORD.

8They shall have like portions to eat, in addition to that which comes from the sale of his family possessions.

9When you have come into the land which the LORD your God gives you, you shall not learn to imitate the abominations of those nations.

10There shall not be found with you anyone who makes his son or his daughter to pass through the fire, one who uses divination, one who tells fortunes, or an enchanter, or a sorcerer,

11or a charmer, or someone who consults with a familiar spirit, or a wizard, or a necromancer.

12For whoever does these things is an abomination to the LORD. Because of these abominations, the LORD your God drives them out from before you.

13You shall be blameless with the LORD your God.

14For these nations that you shall dispossess listen to those who practice sorcery and to diviners; but as for you, the LORD your God has not allowed you so to do.

15The LORD your God will raise up to you a prophet from among you, of your brothers, like me. You shall listen to him.

16This is according to all that you desired of the LORD your God in Horeb in the day of the assembly, saying, “Let me not hear again the LORD my God’s voice, neither let me see this great fire any more, that I not die.”

17The LORD said to me, “They have well said that which they have spoken.

18I will raise them up a prophet from among their brothers, like you. I will put my words in his mouth, and he shall speak to them all that I shall command him.

19It shall happen, that whoever will not listen to my words which he shall speak in my name, I will require it of him.

20But the prophet who speaks a word presumptuously in my name, which I have not commanded him to speak, or who speaks in the name of other gods, that same prophet shall die.”

21You may say in your heart, “How shall we know the word which the LORD has not spoken?”

22When a prophet speaks in the LORD’s name, if the thing doesn’t follow, nor happen, that is the thing which the LORD has not spoken. The prophet has spoken it presumptuously. You shall not be afraid of him.

READ IN CONTEXT

Before applying this chapter

Moses renews the covenant and calls Israel to remember, love, and obey God. Read Deuteronomy 18 within the complete Deuteronomy overview, and use the contextual Bible reading guide before forming a personal application. Chapter divisions aid navigation, but the literary unit may begin earlier or continue into the next chapter.

Observe first

Mark repeated words, changes of speaker, commands, promises, contrasts, questions, and the relationship between paragraphs.

Apply responsibly

Distinguish description from command and immediate audience from later readers before forming a personal application.

TEXT-DERIVED READING NOTES

What to notice in Deuteronomy 18

Deuteronomy 18 contains 22 verses and about 572 words in this translation. These observations come from the chapter itself; they are prompts for close reading, not claims about its only possible meaning.

The opening movement

Verse 1 begins: “The priests and the Levites—all the tribe of Levi—shall have no portion nor inheritance with Israel. They shall eat the offerings of the LORD made by fire and his…” Ask what situation, voice, image, or argument this opening establishes for everything that follows.

The closing movement

Verse 22 closes: “When a prophet speaks in the LORD’s name, if the thing doesn’t follow, nor happen, that is the thing which the LORD has not spoken. The prophet has spoken it…” Compare the ending with the opening and note what changed, resolved, intensified, or remained open.

Vocabulary worth tracing

Recurring or prominent content words include name, prophet, spoken, will, brothers, inheritance. Follow where each word appears and whether its meaning shifts with the speaker or setting.

COMMON QUESTIONS

About Deuteronomy 18

Which Bible translation is shown here?+

This page reproduces the World English Bible Protestant edition (WEBP), a modern-English translation dedicated to the public domain.

How should I cite a specific verse?+

Use the book, chapter, and verse—for example, Deuteronomy 18:1—and name the World English Bible if the wording matters. Each verse number above is a direct anchor link.

Does the chapter number define the complete literary unit?+

Not always. Chapter and verse numbers were added for navigation. Check the paragraphs, scenes, poetic stanzas, or argument before and after this chapter.

A SMALL NEXT STEP

You do not have to have everything figured out.

Begin with one honest question, one passage read carefully, and one faithful next step.

Start with prayer