2 and the sign or the wonder come to pass that he told unto thee, when he said, Let us go after other gods, whom thou hast not known, and let us serve them, 3 —thou shalt not hearken unto the words of that prophet, or that dreamer of dreams; for Jehovah your God proveth you, to know whether ye love Jehovah your God with all your heart and with all your soul. 4 Ye shall walk after Jehovah your God, and ye shall fear him, and his commandments shall ye keep, and his voice shall ye hear; and ye shall serve him, and unto him shall ye cleave. 5 And that prophet, or that dreamer of dreams, shall be put to death; for he hath spoken revolt against Jehovah your God who brought you out of the land of Egypt, and redeemed you out of the house of bondage,—to draw thee out of the way that Jehovah thy God commanded thee to walk in; and thou shalt put evil away from thy midst.
6 If thy brother, the son of thy mother, or thy son, or thy daughter, or the wife of thy bosom, or thy friend, who is to thee as thy soul, entice thee secretly, saying, Let us go and serve other gods (whom thou hast not known, thou, nor thy fathers; 7 of the gods of the peoples which are round about you, near unto thee, or far from thee, from one end of the earth even unto the other end of the earth), 8 thou shalt not consent unto him, nor hearken unto him; neither shall thine eye spare him, neither shalt thou pity him, neither shalt thou screen him, 9 but thou shalt in any case kill him: thy hand shall be the first against him to put him to death, and afterwards the hands of all the people; 10 and thou shalt stone him with stones, that he die; for he hath sought to draw thee away from Jehovah thy God who brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage;
Matthew Henry's Commentary on Deuteronomy 13:2-10
Commentary on Deuteronomy 13:1-5
(Read Deuteronomy 13:1-5)
Moses had cautioned against the peril that might arise from the Canaanites. Here he cautions against the rise of idolatry among themselves. It is needful for us to be well acquainted with the truths and precepts of the Bible; for we may expect to be proved by temptations of evil under the appearance of good, of error in the guise of truth; nor can any thing rightly oppose such temptations, but the plain, express testimony of God's word to the contrary. And it would be a proof of sincere affection for God, that, notwithstanding specious pretences, they should not be wrought upon the forsake God, and follow other gods to serve them.
Commentary on Deuteronomy 13:6-11
(Read Deuteronomy 13:6-11)
It is the policy of Satan to try to lead us to evil by those whom we love, whom we least suspect of any ill design, and whom we are desirous to please, and apt to conform to. The enticement here is supposed to come from a brother or child, who are near by nature; from a wife or friend, who are near by choice, and are to us as our souls. But it is our duty to prefer God and religion, before the nearest and dearest friends we have in the world. We must not, to please our friends, break God's law. Thou shalt not consent to him, nor go with him, not for company, or curiosity, not to gain his affections. It is a general rule, If sinners entice thee, consent thou not, Proverbs 1:10. And we must not hinder the course of God's justice.