דברים י״ח:ט׳-כ״ב

לא תלמד לעשות. אֲבָל אַתָּה לָמֵד לְהָבִין וּלְהוֹרוֹת, כְּלוֹמַר לְהָבִין מַעֲשֵׂיהֶם כַּמָּה הֵם מְקֻלְקָלִים, וּלְהוֹרוֹת לְבָנֶיךָ לֹא תַעֲשֶׂה כָךְ וְכָךְ, שֶׁזֶּה הוּא חֹק הַגּוֹיִם (ספרי; סנהדרין ס"ח):

Do not learn to perpetrate. ‘But you may learn to understand and instruct.’ This means, to understand how corrupt their activities are, and to instruct your children, ‘Do not do this, as this is the custom of the Gentiles.’

מעביר בנו ובתו באש. הִיא עֲבוֹדַת הַמֹּלֶךְ, עוֹשֶׂה מְדוּרוֹת אֵשׁ מִכָּאן וּמִכָּאן וּמַעֲבִירוֹ בֵין שְׁתֵּיהֶם (עי' סנהדרין ס"ד):

Anyone who passes his son or daughter through fire. This is the way “Molech” was worshipped. They would build a fire on either side, and then pass the child between both of them.

קסם קסמים. אֵי זֶהוּ קוֹסֵם? הָאוֹחֵז אֶת מַקְלוֹ וְאוֹמֵר אִם אֵלֵךְ אִם לֹא אֵלֵךְ, וכֵן הוּא אוֹמֵר (הושע ד') עַמִּי בְּעֵצוֹ יִשְׁאָל וּמַקְלוֹ יַגִּיד לוֹ (ספרי):

Who practices the kosem-occult. What is the kosem? One who grasps his divining rod and asks, ‘Shall I go, or not’? Concerning this it is said, “My people petition their sticks, their rods counsel them”!

מעונן. רַבִּי עֲקִיבָא אוֹמֵר אֵלּוּ נוֹתְנֵי עוֹנוֹת – שֶׁאוֹמְרִים עוֹנָה פְּלוֹנִית יָפָה לְהַתְחִיל, וַחֲכָמִים אוֹמְרִים אֵלּוּ אוֹחֲזֵי הָעֵינַיִם:

Who practices time-frame- occult. R’ Akiva said that this refers to those who divine the times, declaring that certain times are propitous for beginnings. The Rabbis said, that this refers to sleight of hand magicians.

מנחש. פִּתּוֹ נָפְלָה מִפִּיו, צְבִי הִפְסִיקוֹ בַדֶּרֶךְ, מַקְלוֹ נָפַל מִיָּדוֹ (ספרי; סנהדרין ס"ה):

Who divines portentuous events. [As when] bread drops from his mouth, a deer crosses his path, or his staff falls from his hand.

וחבר חבר. שֶׁמְּצָרֵף נְחָשִׁים אוֹ עַקְרַבִּים אוֹ שְׁאָר חַיּוֹת לְמָקוֹם אֶחָד:

Or a snake charmer. Who gathers flocks of snakes and scorpions or other wild animals into one area.

ושאל אוב. זֶה מְכַשְּׁפוּת שֶׁשְּׁמוֹ פִּיתוֹם וּמְדַבֵּר מִשִּׁחְיוֹ וּמַעֲלֶה אֶת הַמֵּת בְּבֵית הַשֶּׁחִי שֶׁלּוֹ:

One who invokes the spirit of Ov. This refers to sorcery entitled “Pisom”: A voice emanates from the armpit, and summons the dead onto the armpit.

וידעני. מַכְנִיס עֶצֶם חַיָּה שֶׁשְּׁמָהּ יַדּוּעַ לְתוֹךְ פִּיו וּמְדַבֵּר הָעֶצֶם עַל יְדֵי מְכַשְּׁפוּת (שם):

Or yidoni. He places the bone of an animal called yedoa into his mouth, and the bone speaks through magical powers.

ודרש אל המתים. כְּגוֹן הַמַּעֲלֶה בְזַכְרוּתוֹ וְהַנִּשְׁאָל בְּגֻלְגֹּלֶת (שם):

Or communicates with the dead. For example, someone who conjures up [the dead] onto his male organ, or communicates with a skull.

כל עשה אלה. עֹשֶׂה כָּל אֵלֶּה לֹא נֶאֱמַר, אֶלָּא כָל עֹשֵׂה אֵלֶּה, אֲפִלּוּ אַחַת מֵהֶן (ספרי):

Anyone perpetrating this. ‘One perpetrating all this’ is not said, but ‘anyone perpetrating this’ — even one of them.

תמים תהיה עם ה' אלהיך. הִתְהַלֵּךְ עִמּוֹ בִתְמִימוּת, וּתְצַפֶּה לוֹ, וְלֹא תַחֲקֹר אַחַר הָעֲתִידוֹת, אֶלָּא כָּל מַה שֶּׁיָּבֹא עָלֶיךָ קַבֵּל בִּתְמִימוּת וְאָז תִּהְיֶה עִמּוֹ וּלְחֶלְקוֹ:

Walk in perfect trust with Adonoy, your God. Walk with Him in utter trust, in anticipation of Him. Do not explore the future, rather, whatever befalls you accept with perfect trust. Then, you will be with Him, [He will take you] as His portion.

לא כן נתן לך ה' אלהיך. לִשְׁמֹעַ אֶל מְעוֹנְנִים וְאֶל קוֹסְמִים, שֶׁהֲרֵי הִשְׁרָה שְׁכִינָה עַל הַנְּבִיאִים וְאוּרִים וְתֻמִּים:

Adonoy, your God, has not given you their status. Whereby they listen to augurers or sorcerers, for He visited the Divine Presence on the prophets, and the urim vetumim oracle.

מקרבך מאחיך כמני. כְּמוֹ שֶׁאֲנִי מִקִּרְבְּךָ מֵאַחֶיךָ, יקים לך תַּחְתַּי, וְכֵן מִנָּבִיא לְנָבִיא:

From your midst, of your brethren, like me. Just as I am in your midst and of your brethren. He shall ordain [a prophet] for you in place of me. Similarly, from prophet to prophet.

אשר לא צויתיו לדבר. אֲבָל צִוִּיתִיו לַחֲבֵרוֹ:

Which I did not instruct him to say. However, I did instruct his fellow.

ואשר ידבר בשם אלהים אחרים. אֲפִלּוּ כִוֵּן אֶת הַהֲלָכָה לֶאֱסֹר אֶת הָאָסוּר וּלְהַתִּיר אֶת הַמֻּתָּר (סנהדרין פ"ט):

Which he says in the name of foreign gods. Even if he is halachically correct, by prohibiting what is actually prohibited, and permitting what is permitted.

ומת. בְּחֶנֶק. ג' מִיתָתָן בִּידֵי אָדָם – הַמִּתְנַבֵּא מַה שֶּׁלֹּא שָׁמַע, וּמַה שֶּׁלֹּא נֶאֱמַר לוֹ וְנֶאֱמַר לַחֲבֵרוֹ, וְהַמִּתְנַבֵּא בְּשֵׁם עֲ"זָ. אֲבָל הַכּוֹבֵשׁ אֶת נְבוּאָתוֹ וְהָעוֹבֵר עַל דִּבְרֵי נָבִיא וְהָעוֹבֵר עַל דִּבְרֵי עַצְמוֹ – מִיתָתָן בִּידֵי שָׁמַיִם, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר (פסוק י"ט) אָנֹכִי אֶדְרֹשׁ מֵעִמּוֹ (סנהדרין פ"ט):

He must die. By asphyxiation. With three, execution is carried out by mortals: with someone who fabricates a prophetic message he did not hear; one who delivers a prophecy which was not revealed to him, but to his fellow; and one who prophesies in the name of an idol. However, one who withholds his prophecy, violates a prophet’s instructions, or violates his own prophecy is punished by Heavenly execution, as it is said, “I shall prosecute [the matter] with him.”

וכי תאמר בלבבך. עֲתִידִין אַתֶּם לוֹמַר כְּשֶׁיָּבֹא חֲנַנְיָה בֶּן עַזּוּר וּמִתְנַבֵּא "הִנֵּה כְלֵי בֵית ה' מוּשָׁבִים מִבָּבֶלָה עַתָּה מְהֵרָה" (ירמיהו כ"ז), וְיִרְמְיָהוּ עוֹמֵד וְצוֹוֵחַ "אֶל הָעַמֻּדִים וְעַל הַיָּם וְעַל יֶתֶר הַכֵּלִים" שֶׁלֹּא גָּלוּ עִם יְכָנְיָה, "בָּבֶלָה יוּבָאוּ" עִם גָּלוּת צִדְקִיָּהוּ (שם):

If you should say to yourself. You are destined to say this, when Chananiah ben Azor will appear and prophesy, “Behold, the Sanctuary vessels will be returned from Babylon now, immediately,” while Yirmiyahu will stand and cry out, ”Concerning the columns and the basin, etc., concerning the remaining vessels” which were not exiled with Yechaniah — “they shall be transported to Babylon” with Zidkiyahu’s exile!

אשר ידבר הנביא. וְיֹאמַר דָּבָר זֶה עָתִיד לָבֹא עֲלֵיכֶם וְתִרְאוּ שֶׁלֹּא יָבֹא, הוא הדבר אשר לא דברו ה' וַהֲרֹג אוֹתוֹ. וְאִם תֹּאמַר זוֹ בְמִתְנַבֵּא עַל הָעֲתִידוֹת, הֲרֵי שֶׁבָּא וְאָמַר עֲשׂוּ כָךְ וְכָךְ וּמִפִּי הַקָּבָּ"ה אֲנִי אוֹמֵר? כְּבָר נִצְטַוּוּ שֶׁאִם בָּא לְהַדִּיחֲךָ מֵאַחַת מִכָּל הַמִּצְווֹת לֹא תִשְׁמַע לוֹ (דברים י"ג) אֶלָּא אִם כֵּן מֻמְחֶה הוּא לְךָ שֶׁהוּא צַדִּיק גָּמוּר, כְּגוֹן אֵלִיָּהוּ בְהַר הַכַּרְמֶל שֶׁהִקְרִיב בְּבָמָה בִּשְׁעַת אִסּוּר הַבָּמוֹת, כְּדֵי לִגְדֹּר אֶת יִשְׂרָאֵל, הַכֹּל לְפִי צֹרֶךְ שָׁעָה וּסְיָג הַפִּרְצָה, לְכָךְ נֶאֱמַר (פסוק ט"ו) אֵלָיו תִּשְׁמָעוּן (סנהדרין פ"ט):

Should the prophet speak. And say, ‘The following is destined to befall them,’ and you observe that it does not occur — This is something Adonoy did not say, and you must kill him. But you may ask, this applies with a prophet who foretells the future. What if he appears and says ‘You must do the following. I speak by the word of God!’? They have already been instructed: If he attempts to divert you from any one of the commandments, “Do not listen to him”; unless he has been established in your estimation as a perfect saint, as, for example, Eliyahu on Mount Carmel, who offered a sacrifice on an extra-Sanctuary altar when such altars were prohibited, in order to create a restrictive enclosure around Yisroel — strictly as befitting the need of the moment, so that the breach [in Torah observance] may be contained. This is why it is stated, “You shall obey him.”

לא תגור ממנו. לֹא תִמְנַע עַצְמְךָ מִלְּלַמֵּד עָלָיו חוֹבָה (ספרי), וְלֹא תִירָא לֵעָנֵשׁ עָלָיו:

Do not fear him. Do not refrain from finding him guilty. Do not fear punishment because of him.