But never put a person to death on the testimony of only one witness. There must always be two or three witnesses.
Parallel translations
- WEB At the mouth of two witnesses, or three witnesses, he who is to die shall be put to death. At the mouth of one witness he shall not be put to death.
- KJV At the mouth of two witnesses, or three witnesses, shall he that is worthy of death be put to death; but at the mouth of one witness he shall not be put to death.
- BSB On the testimony of two or three witnesses a man shall be put to death, but he shall not be executed on the testimony of a lone witness.
- NKJV Whoever is deserving of death shall be put to death on the testimony of two or three witnesses; he shall not be put to death on the testimony of one witness.
- NASB On the testimony of two witnesses or three witnesses, the condemned shall be put to death; he shall not be put to death on the testimony of only one witness.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
No one could be put to death on a single witness; two or three were required. God's law demanded reliable evidence to protect the innocent.
Overview
Capital cases required corroboration by multiple witnesses, safeguarding against false or malicious testimony. This principle of established truth runs throughout Scripture. Jesus and the apostles apply the two-or-three-witness rule to church discipline, and it underlies the careful, truthful establishing of every important matter.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 7
- Num 35:30“‘Whoever kills any person, the murderer shall be slain at the mouth of witnesses; but one witness shall not testify against any person that he die.
- Heb 10:28A man who disregards Moses’ law dies without compassion on the word of two or three witnesses.
- Deut 19:15One witness shall not rise up against a man for any iniquity, or for any sin, in any sin that he sins. At the mouth of two witnesses, or at the mouth of three witnesses, shall a matter be established.
- Matt 18:16But if he doesn’t listen, take one or two more with you, that at the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established.
- 1 Tim 5:19Don’t receive an accusation against an elder, except at the word of two or three witnesses.
- John 8:17–18It’s also written in your law that the testimony of two people is valid.
- 2 Cor 13:1This is the third time I am coming to you. “At the mouth of two or three witnesses shall every word be established.”
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
Moses promised a Prophet like himself to whom Israel must listen (18:15); Jesus is that Prophet, the one who keeps the covenant we broke and becomes the curse for us by hanging on a tree (Gal 3:13).
How Deuteronomy 17:6 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.