Neville Goddard on Deuteronomy 13:11-18 - Mystical Bible Interpretation

Read Deuteronomy 13 in context

Scripture Focus

11And all Israel shall hear, and fear, and shall do no more any such wickedness as this is among you.

12If thou shalt hear say in one of thy cities, which the LORD thy God hath given thee to dwell there, saying,

13Certain men, the children of Belial, are gone out from among you, and have withdrawn the inhabitants of their city, saying, Let us go and serve other gods, which ye have not known;

14Then shalt thou enquire, and make search, and ask diligently; and, behold, if it be truth, and the thing certain, that such abomination is wrought among you;

15Thou shalt surely smite the inhabitants of that city with the edge of the sword, destroying it utterly, and all that is therein, and the cattle thereof, with the edge of the sword.

16And thou shalt gather all the spoil of it into the midst of the street thereof, and shalt burn with fire the city, and all the spoil thereof every whit, for the LORD thy God: and it shall be an heap for ever; it shall not be built again.

17And there shall cleave nought of the cursed thing to thine hand: that the LORD may turn from the fierceness of his anger, and shew thee mercy, and have compassion upon thee, and multiply thee, as he hath sworn unto thy fathers;

18When thou shalt hearken to the voice of the LORD thy God, to keep all his commandments which I command thee this day, to do that which is right in the eyes of the LORD thy God.

Deuteronomy 13:11-18

Biblical Context

The passage commands the community to investigate reports of idol worship, destroy the city and its spoil, and keep the Lord's commandments to remain in His mercy.

Neville's Inner Vision

I hear in this ancient decree the inner law of my own mind. When a picture or habit arises that claims to rule me—idols in the heart—I recognize it as a movement within the city of consciousness. The instruction to inquire, search, and verify truth becomes the discipline of the I AM: I turn attention inward and question what is real for the living God within. If such an abomination has taken root, I do not curse it; I dissolve it by removing its allegiance and by 'burning' the memory of it in imagination, letting the old idol perish. The spoil is the old belief system, which I cast aside so the space is cleared for mercy, compassion, and the true multiplication of life in God. When I hearken to the voice of the Lord thy God, keeping His commandments, I align with the order of Being, and the inner city is restored to peace and power. The act is not punishment but purification: a return to the original, radiant state of the I AM, through which mercy flows to all my related thoughts and days.

Practice This Now

Imaginative act: Assume the inner city is purified; in a brief, focused scene, see the idol belief exposed, removed, and burned by the flame of awareness, then feel the mercy and abundance that follow.