Deuteronomy 18:9-22

9When you go into the land that the Lord your God is giving you, be careful! Do not learn to do the evil things that the nations who live there are doing.

10Nobody among you must ever burn your child in a fire, as an offering. Nobody must use magic or other things to learn about future times. There must not be any magicians or diviners.

11Never use magic to curse anyone. Never try to speak to the spirits of dead people or other spirits.

12The Lord hates anyone who does these things. It is because of those evil things that the Lord will chase the other nations out of the land as you move in.

13You must live in a completely right way that pleases the Lord your God.

14The people of the nations that you will chase away get help from magicians and diviners. But the Lord your God has commanded you not to do those things.

15One day, the Lord your God will send to you a prophet like me. He will come from among your own people. You must listen to him.

16Remember what happened when you all met together at Sinai mountain. You said to the Lord your God, ‘Please do not let us hear your voice again. Do not let us see this great fire again. If we do, we will die!’

17Then the Lord said to me, ‘The people have said the right thing.

18I will send them a prophet who will be like you. He will be an Israelite. I will tell him what to say. Then he will tell the people everything that I command him to say.

19He will speak on my behalf, so I myself will punish anyone who does not listen to his message.

20A false prophet may say that he speaks with my authority when that is not true. Or he may say that he has a message from another god. You must punish a false prophet with death.’

21You may say to yourselves, ‘How can we know when a message has not come from the Lord?’

22A prophet may say that he speaks with my authority, and he may say what will happen. But if it does not happen, you will know that his message has not come from me. He has not spoken my message. That prophet has spoken his own ideas. So do not be afraid of him!