Deuteronomy 12
12
Only One Place of Worship
1These are the statutes and judgments, which ye shall observe to do in the land, which the Lord God of thy fathers giveth thee to possess it, all the days that ye live upon the earth. 2Ye shall utterly destroy all the places, wherein the nations which ye shall possess served their gods, upon the high mountains, and upon the hills, and under every green tree: 3#Deut 7.5. and ye shall overthrow their altars, and break their pillars, and burn their groves with fire; and ye shall hew down the graven images of their gods, and destroy the names of them out of that place. 4Ye shall not do so unto the Lord your God. 5But unto the place which the Lord your God shall choose out of all your tribes to put his name there, even unto his habitation shall ye seek, and thither thou shalt come: 6and thither ye shall bring your burnt offerings, and your sacrifices, and your tithes, and heave offerings of your hand, and your vows, and your freewill offerings, and the firstlings of your herds and of your flocks: 7and there ye shall eat before the Lord your God, and ye shall rejoice in all that ye put your hand unto, ye and your households, wherein the Lord thy God hath blessed thee. 8Ye shall not do after all the things that we do here this day, every man whatsoever is right in his own eyes. 9For ye are not as yet come to the rest and to the inheritance, which the Lord your God giveth you. 10But when ye go over Jordan, and dwell in the land which the Lord your God 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 the Lord your God shall choose to cause his name to dwell there; thither shall ye bring all that I command you; your burnt offerings, and your sacrifices, your tithes, and the heave offering of your hand, and all your choice vows which ye vow unto the Lord: 12and ye shall rejoice before the Lord your God, ye, and your sons, and your daughters, and your menservants, and your maidservants, and the Levite that is within your gates; forasmuch as he hath no part nor inheritance with you. 13Take heed to thyself that thou offer not thy burnt offerings in every place that thou seest: 14but in the place which the Lord shall choose in one of thy tribes, there thou shalt offer thy burnt offerings, and there thou shalt do all that I command thee.
15Notwithstanding, thou mayest kill and eat flesh in all thy gates, whatsoever thy soul lusteth after, according to the blessing of the Lord thy God which he hath given thee: the unclean and the clean may eat thereof, as of the roebuck, and as of the hart. 16#Gen 9.4; Lev 7.26,27; 17.10-14; 19.26; Deut 15.23. Only ye shall not eat the blood; ye shall pour it upon the earth as water. 17Thou mayest not eat within thy gates the tithe of thy corn, or of thy wine, or of thy oil, or the firstlings of thy herds or of thy flock, nor any of thy vows which thou vowest, nor thy freewill offerings, or heave offering of thine hand: 18but thou must eat them before the Lord thy God in the place which the Lord thy God shall choose, thou, and thy son, and thy daughter, and thy manservant, and thy maidservant, and the Levite that is within thy gates: and thou shalt rejoice before the Lord thy God in all that thou puttest thine hands unto. 19Take heed to thyself that thou forsake not the Levite as long as thou livest upon the earth.
20When the Lord thy God shall enlarge thy border, as he hath promised thee, and thou shalt say, I will eat flesh, because thy soul longeth to eat flesh; thou mayest eat flesh, whatsoever thy soul lusteth after. 21If the place which the Lord thy God hath chosen to put his name there be too far from thee, then thou shalt kill of thy herd and of thy flock, which the Lord hath given thee, as I have commanded thee, and thou shalt eat in thy gates whatsoever thy soul lusteth after. 22Even as the roebuck and the hart is eaten, so thou shalt eat them: the unclean and the clean shall eat of them alike. 23#Lev 17.10-14. Only be sure that thou eat not the blood: for the blood is the life; and thou mayest not eat the life with the flesh. 24Thou shalt not eat it; thou shalt pour it upon the earth as water. 25Thou shalt not eat it; that it may go well with thee, and with thy children after thee, when thou shalt do that which is right in the sight of the Lord. 26Only thy holy things which thou hast, and thy vows, thou shalt take, and go unto the place which the Lord shall choose: 27and thou shalt offer thy burnt offerings, the flesh and the blood, upon the altar of the Lord thy God: and the blood of thy sacrifices shall be poured out upon the altar of the Lord thy God, and thou shalt eat the flesh. 28Observe and hear all these words which I command thee, that it may go well with thee, and with thy children after thee for ever, when thou doest that which is good and right in the sight of the Lord thy God.
Warning against Idolatry
29When the Lord thy God shall cut off the nations from before thee, whither thou goest to possess them, and thou succeedest them, and dwellest in their land; 30take heed to thyself that thou be not snared by following them, after that they be destroyed from before thee; and that thou inquire not after their gods, saying, How did these nations serve their gods? even so will I do likewise. 31Thou shalt not do so unto the Lord thy God: for every abomination to the Lord which he hateth have they done unto their gods; for even their sons and their daughters they have burnt in the fire to their gods.
32 #
Deut 4.2; Rev 22.18,19. What thing soever I command you, observe to do it: thou shalt not add thereto, nor diminish from it.
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Deuteronomy 12: KJVAE
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King James Version 1611, spelling, punctuation and text formatting modernized by ABS in 1962; typesetting © 2010 American Bible Society.
Deuteronomy 12
12
Detailed Stipulations: Purity and Unity
1“These are the rules and the regulations that you must diligently observe#Literally “that you must observe to do” in the land that Yahweh, the God of your ancestors,#Or “fathers” has given to you to take possession of it, during all the days that you are living on the land.
2You must completely demolish all of the places there where they served their gods, that is, the nations whom you are about to dispossess, on the high mountains, and on the hills and under each leafy green tree.#Or “spreading tree” 3And you shall break down their altars, and you shall smash their stone pillars, and their Asherah poles you must burn with fire, and the images of their gods you shall hew down, and you shall blot out their names from that place. 4You shall not worship Yahweh your God like this. 5But only#Literally “But if” to the place that Yahweh your God will choose from all of your tribes to place his name there as his dwelling shall you seek, and there you shall go. 6And you shall bring there your burnt offerings and your sacrifices and your tithes and your donations#Literally “the contributions of your hand” and your votive gifts and your freewill offerings and the firstling of your herd and your flock. 7And you shall eat there before#Literally “before the faces of” Yahweh your God, and you shall rejoice in all your endeavors,#Literally “in all of the sending of your hand” you and your family in which Yahweh your God has blessed you.
8“You must not do just as we are doing here today,#Literally “the day” each according to all that is right in his eyes.#Literally “each man all of the right in his eyes” 9For you have not come up to now to the resting place and to the inheritance that Yahweh your God is giving to you. 10But you will cross the Jordan, and you will settle in the land that Yahweh your God is giving you as an inheritance, and he will give rest to you from all your enemies from all around, and you will live securely, 11and then#Literally “and it will happen” at the place that Yahweh your God will choose, to let his name dwell there, there you shall bring all the things I am commanding you, your burnt offerings and your sacrifices, your tithes and your donations,#Literally “the contribution of your hand” and all of the choice things, your votive gifts that you vow to Yahweh. 12And you shall rejoice before#Literally “the face of” Yahweh your God, you and your sons and your daughters and your slaves and your slave women and the Levite who is in your towns,#Literally “gates” because there is not for him a plot of ground and an inheritance with you.
13“Take care for yourself so that you do not offer your burnt offerings at just any place that you happen to see, 14but only#Literally “but only if” at the place that Yahweh will choose among one of your tribes; there you shall offer your burnt offerings, and there you shall do all the things that I am commanding you.
15“But whenever you desire#Literally “in all the wanting of your soul/inner self” you may slaughter, and you may eat meat according to the blessing of Yahweh your God that he has given to you in all of your towns;#Literally “gates” the unclean and the clean may eat it just as they would the gazelle and as the deer. 16Only the blood you must not eat, but on the ground you must pour it like water. 17You are not allowed to eat in your towns#Literally “gates” the tithe of your grain and your wine and your olive oil and the firstborn of your herd and your flock and all of your votive gifts that you vowed and your freewill offering and your donations.#Literally “the contribution of your hand” 18But only before#Literally “before the face of” Yahweh your God you shall eat it, at the place that Yahweh your God will choose,#Hebrew “choose it” you and your son and your daughter and your slave and your slave woman and the Levite who is in your towns,#Literally “gate” and you must rejoice before#Literally “before the face of” your God in all your undertakings.#Literally “in all of the sending of your hand” 19Take care#Literally “Watch for yourself” so that you do not neglect the Levite all of your days on your land.
20“When Yahweh your God enlarges your territory just as he has promised#Literally “spoken” to you, and you say ‘I want to eat some meat,’ because you want it,#Literally “because your soul/inner self desires it” whenever you desire#Literally “at/in all the wanting of your soul/inner self” you may eat meat. 21If the place that#Or “where” Yahweh your God will choose to put his name there is too far from you, and you slaughter any of your herd and any of your flock that Yahweh has given to you just as I have commanded you, then you may eat whenever you desire in your towns.#Literally “gates” 22Surely just as the gazelle and the deer is eaten, so both the unclean and the clean together may eat it. 23Only, be sure not to eat the blood, because the blood is the life, and you shall not eat the life with the meat. 24You shall not eat it, but on the ground you shall pour it out like water. 25You shall not eat it, so that it will go well#Literally “it/he is good” for you and your children after you, because then you will be doing what is#Hebrew “the” right in the eyes of Yahweh. 26Only your holy objects that are yours#Literally “that are for you” and your votive gifts you must carry and you must bring to the place that Yahweh will choose. 27And you shall offer your burnt offerings, the flesh and the blood on the altar of Yahweh your God, and the blood of your sacrifices you shall pour out on the altar of Yahweh your God, but the meat you may eat. 28Be careful to obey#Literally “Watch carefully and listen” all these things that I am commanding you, so that it will go well#Literally “he/it is good” for you and for your children after you forever,#Literally “until ever” because then you will be doing what is#Hebrew “the” good and right#Hebrew “the right” in the eyes of Yahweh your God.
29“When Yahweh your God has cut off the nations whom you are about to go to,#Literally “about to go to there” to dispossess them before you,#Literally “from the face of you” and you have dispossessed them, and you live in their land, 30take care#Literally “Watch for yourself” so that you are not ensnared into imitating them#Literally “after them” after their being destroyed from before you,#Literally “from the face of you” and so that you not enquire concerning their gods, saying,#Literally “to say” ‘How did these nations serve their gods, and thus I myself#Emphatic use of the pronoun want to do also.’ 31You must not do so toward Yahweh your God, because of every detestable thing they have done for their gods Yahweh hates, for even their sons and their daughters they would burn in the fire to their gods. 32#Deuteronomy 12:32–13:18 in the English Bible is 13:1–19 in the Hebrew Bible All of the things#Hebrew “thing” that I am commanding you, you must diligently observe;#Literally “you must observe to do it” you shall not add to it, and you shall not take away from it.”
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