Devarim 12
12
1These are the chukkim and mishpatim over which ye shall be shomer to do in ha'aretz, which Hashem Elohei Avoteicha giveth thee to possess it, kol hayamim that ye live upon ha'adamah.
2Ye shall utterly destroy all the places, wherein the Goyim which ye shall possess served their elohim, upon the high mountains, and upon the hills, and under every green tree;
3And ye shall overthrow their mizbechot, and break their matzeivot, and burn their Asherim with eish; and ye shall hew down peselim of their elohim, and destroy the names of them out of that place.
4Ye shall not do so unto Hashem Eloheichem.
5But unto the place which Hashem Eloheichem shall choose out of all your shevatim to put Shmo there, even unto His habitation shall ye seek, and thither thou shalt come:
6And thither ye shall bring your olot, and your zevakhim, and your ma'aseros (tithes), and terumot (heave offerings) of your hand, and your nedarim (vows), and your nedavot (freewill offerings), and the bekhorot (firstlings) of your herds and of your flocks;
7And there ye shall eat before Hashem Eloheichem, and ye shall rejoice in all that ye put your hand unto, ye and your households, wherein Hashem Eloheicha hath blessed thee.
8Ye shall not do after all the things that we do here today, ish koh hayashar be'einav (every man whatsoever is right in his own eyes).
9For ye are not as yet come to the menuchah (resting place) and to the nachalah, which Hashem Eloheicha giveth you.
10But when ye go over Yarden, and dwell in ha'aretz which Hashem Eloheichem giveth you to inherit, and when He giveth you rest from all your enemies round about, so that ye dwell in safety;
11Then there shall be a place which Hashem Eloheichem shall choose to cause Shmo to dwell there; thither shall ye bring all that I command you; your olot, and your zevakhim, your ma'aseros (tithes), and the terumah (heave offering) of your hand, and all your choice nedarim (vows) which ye vow unto Hashem;
12And ye shall rejoice before Hashem Eloheichem, ye, and your banim, and your banot, and your avadim, and your maidservants, and the Levi that is within your she'arim; forasmuch as he hath no chelek nor nachalah with you.
13Take heed to thyself that thou offer not thy olot in every place that thou seest;
14But in the place which Hashem shall choose in one of thy shevatim, there thou shalt offer thy olot, and there thou shalt do all that I command thee.
15Notwithstanding, thou mayest kill and eat basar in all thy she'arim, whatsoever thy nefesh desireth, according to the birkat Hashem Eloheicha which He hath given thee; hatameh (the unclean) and hatahor (the clean) may eat thereof, as if it were gazelle or deer.
16Only ye shall not eat the dahm; ye shall pour it upon ha'aretz as mayim.
17Thou mayest not eat within thy she'arim the ma'aser (tithe) of thy dagan (grain), or of thy tirosh (new wine), or of thy yitzhar (fresh oil), or the bekhorot (firstlings) of thy herds or of thy flock, nor any of thy nedarim (vows) which thou vowest, nor thy nedavot (freewill offerings), or terumah (heave offering) of thine hand;
18But thou must eat them before Hashem Eloheicha in the place which Hashem Eloheicha shall choose, thou, and thy ben, and thy bat, and thy eved, and thy amah, and the Levi that is within thy she'arim; and thou shalt rejoice before Hashem Eloheicha in all that thou puttest thine hands unto.
19Be shomer to thyself that thou forsake not the Levi as long as thou livest upon ha'adamah.
20When Hashem Eloheicha shall enlarge thy border, as He hath promised thee, and thou shalt say, I will eat basar, because thy nefesh longeth to eat basar; thou mayest eat basar, whatsoever thy nefesh desireth after.
21If the place which Hashem Eloheicha hath chosen to put Shmo there be too far from thee, then thou shalt kill of thy herd and of thy flock, which Hashem hath given thee, as I have commanded thee, and thou shalt eat in thy she'arim whatsoever thy nefesh desireth after.
22Even as the gazelle and the deer is eaten, so thou shalt eat them; the tameh (unclean) and the tahor (clean) shall eat of them alike.
23Only be sure that thou eat not the dahm; for the dahm is the nefesh; and thou mayest not eat the nefesh with the basar.
24Thou shalt not eat it; thou shalt pour it upon ha'aretz as mayim.
25Thou shalt not eat it; that it may go well with thee, and with thy banim after thee, when thou shalt do that which is yashar in the sight of Hashem.
26Only thy kadashim (holy things) which thou hast, and thy nedarim (vows), thou shalt take, and go unto the place which Hashem shall choose;
27And thou shalt offer thy olot, the basar and the dahm, upon the Mizbe'ach of Hashem Eloheicha; and the dahm of thy zevakhim (sacrifices) shall be poured out upon the mizbe'ach of Hashem Eloheicha, and thou shalt eat the basar.
28Be shomer and heed all these devarim which I command thee, that it may go well with thee, and with thy banim after thee ad olam, when thou doest that which is tov and yashar in the sight of Hashem Eloheicha.
29When Hashem Eloheicha shall cut off the Goyim from before thee, whither thou goest to possess them, and thou displace them, and dwellest in their land;
30Be shomer to thyself that thou be not ensnared to follow them, after that they be destroyed from before thee; and that thou inquire not after their elohim, saying, How did these Goyim serve their elohim? Even so will I do likewise.
31Thou shalt not do so unto Hashem Eloheicha; for kol to'avat Hashem (every abomination to Hashem), which He hateth, have they done unto their elohim; for even their banim and their banot they have burned in the eish to their elohim.
32 What thing soever I command you, be shomer to do it; thou shalt not add thereto, nor take away or diminish from it.
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Devarim 12: TOJB2011
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THE ORTHODOX JEWISH BIBLE
FOURTH EDITION © Artists For Israel Intl Inc., 2002-2011, 2021.
Deuteronomy 12
12
The Proper Place to Worship
1Here are the laws and rules you must faithfully obey in the land that the Lord God of your ancestors is giving you as your own. You must obey them as long as you live in the land.
2Completely destroy all the worship sites on the high mountains, on the hills, and under every large tree. The people you’re forcing out worship their gods in these places. 3Tear down their altars, crush their sacred stones, burn their poles dedicated to the goddess Asherah, cut down their idols, and wipe out the names of their gods from those places.
4Never worship the Lord your God in the way they worship their gods. 5The Lord your God will choose a place out of all your tribes to live and put his name. Go there and worship him. 6Bring him your burnt offerings, your sacrifices, one-tenth of your income, your contributions, the offerings you vow to bring, your freewill offerings, and the firstborn of your cattle, sheep, and goats. 7There, in the presence of the Lord your God, you and your families will eat and enjoy everything you’ve worked for, because the Lord your God has blessed you.
8Never worship in the way that it’s being done here today, where everyone does whatever he considers right. 9Up until now you haven’t come to your place of rest, the property the Lord your God is giving you. 10But you will cross the Jordan River and settle in the land the Lord your God is giving you as your own property. He will give you peace from all your enemies around you so that you will live securely. 11Then the Lord your God will choose a place where his name will live. You must bring everything I command you to that place. Bring your burnt offerings, your sacrifices, one-tenth of your income, your contributions, and all the best offerings you vow to bring to the Lord. 12Enjoy yourselves in the presence of the Lord your God along with your sons, daughters, male and female slaves, and the Levites. (The Levites live in your cities because they have no land of their own as you have.) 13Be careful that you don’t sacrifice your burnt offerings wherever you want. 14Instead, sacrifice them ⌞only⌟ at the place that the Lord will choose in one of your tribes. There you must do everything I command you.
15In whatever city you live, you may slaughter and eat as much meat as you want from what the Lord your God has blessed you with. Clean and unclean #12:15 “Clean” refers to anything that is presentable to God. “Unclean” refers to anything that is not presentable to God. people may eat it as if they were eating a gazelle or a deer. 16But never eat the blood. Pour it on the ground like water. 17You may not eat ⌞the Lord’s offerings⌟ in your cities. Those offerings are: one-tenth of your grain, new wine, and olive oil; the firstborn of your cattle, sheep, or goats; the offerings you vow to bring; your freewill offerings; and your contributions. 18Instead, you, your sons and daughters, male and female slaves, and the Levites who live in your cities must eat these in the presence of the Lord your God at the place he will choose. There in the presence of the Lord your God enjoy everything you’ve worked for. 19Don’t forget to take care of the Levites as long as you live in your land.
20The Lord your God will expand your ⌞country’s⌟ borders as he promised. You will say, “I’m hungry for meat.” Then eat as much meat as you want. 21If the place the Lord your God chooses to put his name is too far away from you, you may slaughter an animal from the herds or flocks that the Lord has given you. Eat as much as you want in your city. I have commanded you to do this. 22Eat it as you would eat a gazelle or a deer: Clean and unclean people may eat it together. 23However, be sure you never eat blood, because blood contains life. Never eat the life with the meat. 24Never eat blood. Pour it on the ground like water. 25If you don’t eat blood, things will go well for you and your descendants. You will be doing what the Lord considers right.
26Take the holy things and the offerings you have vowed to bring, and go to the place the Lord will choose. 27Sacrifice the meat and the blood of your burnt offerings on the altar of the Lord your God. The blood of your sacrifices is to be poured out beside the altar of the Lord your God, but you may eat the meat. 28Be sure you obey all these instructions I’m giving you. Then things will always go well for you and your descendants because you will be doing what the Lord your God considers good and right.
29The Lord your God will destroy the nations where you’re going and force them out of your way. You will take possession of their land and live there. 30After they’ve been destroyed, be careful you aren’t tempted to follow their customs. Don’t even ask about their gods and say, “How did these people worship their gods? We want to do what they did.” 31Never worship the Lord your God in the way they worship their gods, because everything they do for their gods is disgusting to the Lord. He hates it! They even burn their sons and daughters as sacrifices to their gods.#12:31 Deuteronomy 12:32 in English Bibles is Deuteronomy 13:1 in the Hebrew Bible.
32Be sure to do everything I command you. Never add anything to it or take anything away from it.
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GOD'S WORD® Translation ©1995, 2003, 2013, 2014, 2019, 2020 by God's Word to the Nations Mission Society. All rights reserved.