Ulangan 13:1

13:1 Suppose a prophet or one who foretells by dreams ¹  should appear among you and show you a sign or wonder, ² 

Ulangan 25:3

25:3 The judge ³  may sentence him to forty blows, ⁴  but no more. If he is struck with more than these, you might view your fellow Israelite ⁵  with contempt.

Ulangan 31:11

31:11 when all Israel comes to appear before the Lord your God in the place he chooses, you must read this law before them ⁶  within their hearing.

[13:1]  ¹ tn Heb “or a dreamer of dreams” (so KJV, ASV, NASB). The difference between a prophet (נָבִיא, navi’) and one who foretells by dreams (חֹלֵם אוֹ, ’o kholem) was not so much one of office – for both received revelation by dreams (cf. Num 12:6) – as it was of function or emphasis. The prophet was more a proclaimer and interpreter of revelation whereas the one who foretold by dreams was a receiver of revelation. In later times the role of the one who foretold by dreams was abused and thus denigrated as compared to that of the prophet (cf. Jer 23:28).

[13:1]  ² tn The expression אוֹת אוֹ מוֹפֵת (’ot ’o mofet) became a formulaic way of speaking of ways of authenticating prophetic messages or other works of God (cf. Deut 28:46; Isa 20:3). The NT equivalent is the Greek term σημεῖον (shmeion), a sign performed (used frequently in the Gospel of John, cf. 2:11, 18; 20:30-31). They could, however, be counterfeited or (as here) permitted to false prophets by the Lord as a means of testing his people.

[25:3]  ³ tn Heb “he”; the referent (the judge) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[25:3]  ⁴ tn Heb “Forty blows he may strike him”; however, since the judge is to witness the punishment (v. 2) it is unlikely the judge himself administered it.

[25:3]  ⁵ tn Heb “your brothers” but not limited only to an actual sibling; cf. NAB) “your kinsman”; NRSV, NLT “your neighbor.”

[31:11]  ⁶ tn Heb “before all Israel.”