Neville Goddard on Deuteronomy 13:15-18 - Mystical Bible Interpretation

Read Deuteronomy 13 in context

Scripture Focus

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 13:15-18

Biblical Context

The passage commands the destruction of a city and all its wealth, and the rejection of anything cursed. Mercy follows when you heed the Lord's commandments and choose obedience.

Neville's Inner Vision

Here the outer command reveals an inner discipline. The city stands for a fixed pattern of thought, the inhabitants are your beliefs about yourself that would wage war against new life. The edge of the sword is not a weapon against others but a decisive cutting away of thoughts and habits that keep you bound to fear. The spoil gathered in the street is the fragments you once prized as 'me' and 'mine,' now to be reassessed and redirected. The burning of the city is the imaginative act of letting go—burn away the old self-impressions until only the flame of your true nature remains. The cursed thing—anything that defiles your alignment with the divine—must not cling to your hand, so that the Lord may turn from anger and pour mercy upon you, multiplying you as promise to your ancestors. When you listen to the voice within, you do what is right in the eyes of the Lord thy God, and the inner world reorganizes to reflect that obedience as peace, abundance, and mercy.

Practice This Now

Close your eyes and imagine you have already performed this inner work: you have cut away the old beliefs, burned away attachment, and now live in mercy. In a moment of quiet, envision the inner city gone and blessing remaining.