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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Deuteronomy 12: LEB
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Deuteronomy 12
12
1 THESE ARE the statutes and ordinances which you shall be watchful to do in the land which the Lord, the God of your fathers, gives you to possess all the days you live on the earth.
2 You shall surely destroy all the places where the nations you dispossess served their gods, upon the high mountains and the hills and under every green tree.
3 You shall break down their altars and dash in pieces their pillars and burn their Asherim with fire; you shall hew down the graven images of their gods and destroy their name out of that place.
4 You shall not behave so toward the Lord your God.
5 But you shall seek the place which the Lord your God shall choose out of all your tribes to put His Name and make His dwelling place, and there shall you come;
6 And there you shall bring your burnt offerings and your sacrifices, your tithes and the offering of your hands, and your vows and your freewill offerings, and the firstlings of your herd and of your flock.
7 And there you shall eat before the Lord your God, and you shall rejoice in all to which you put your hand, you and your households, in which the Lord your God has blessed you.
8 You shall not do according to all we do here [in the camp] this day, every man doing whatever looks right in his own eyes.
9 For you have not yet come to the rest and to the inheritance which the Lord your God gives you.
10 But when you go over the Jordan and dwell in the land which the Lord your God causes you to inherit, and He gives you rest from all your enemies round about so that you dwell in safety,
11 Then there shall be a place which the Lord your God shall choose to cause His Name [and His Presence] to dwell there; to it you shall bring all that I command you: your burnt offerings, your sacrifices, your tithes and what the hand presents [as a first gift from the fruits of the ground], and all your choicest offerings which you vow to the Lord.
12 And you shall rejoice before the Lord your God, you and your sons and your daughters, and your menservants and your maidservants, and the Levite that is within your towns, since he has no part or inheritance with you.
13 Be watchful not to offer your burnt offerings in every place you see.
14 But in the place which the Lord shall choose in one of your tribes, there you shall offer your burnt offerings, and there you shall do all I command you.
15 However, you may kill and eat flesh in any of your towns whenever you desire, according to the provision for the support of life with which the Lord your God has blessed you; those [ceremonially] unclean and the clean may eat of it, as of the gazelle and the hart.
16 Only you shall not eat the blood; you shall pour it upon the ground as water.
17 You may not eat within your towns the tithe of your grain or of your new wine or of your oil, or the firstlings of your herd or flock, or anything you have vowed, or your freewill offerings, or the offerings from your hand [of garden products].
18 But you shall eat them before the Lord your God in the place which the Lord your God shall choose, you and your son and your daughter, your manservant and your maidservant, and the Levite that is within your towns; and you shall rejoice before the Lord your God in all that you undertake.
19 Take heed not to forsake or neglect the Levite [God's minister] as long as you live in your land.
20 When the Lord your God enlarges your territory, as He promised you, and you say, I will eat flesh, because you crave flesh, you may eat flesh whenever you desire.
21 If the place where the Lord your God has chosen to put His Name [and Presence] is too far from you, then you shall kill from your herd or flock which the Lord has given you, as I [Moses] have commanded you; eat in your towns as much as you desire.
22 Just as the roebuck and the hart is eaten, so you may eat of it [but not offer it]; the unclean and the clean alike may eat of it.
23 Only be sure that you do not eat the blood, for the blood is the life, and you may not eat the life with the flesh.
24 You shall not eat it; you shall pour it out on the earth like water.
25 You shall not eat it, that all may go well with you and with your children after you, when you do what is right in the sight of the Lord.
26 Only your holy things which you have [to offer] and what you have vowed you shall take, and go to the place [before the sanctuary] which the Lord shall choose.
27 And offer your burnt offerings, the flesh and the blood, upon the altar of the Lord your God; and the blood of your sacrifices shall be poured out on the altar of the Lord your God, and you may eat the flesh.
28 Be watchful and obey all these words which I command you, that it may go well with you and with your children after you forever, when you do what is good and right in the sight of the Lord your God.
29 When the Lord your God cuts off before you the nations whom you go to dispossess, and you dispossess them and live in their land,
30 Be watchful that you are not ensnared into following them after they have been destroyed before you and that you do not inquire after their gods, saying, How did these nations serve their gods? We will do likewise.
31 You shall not do so to the Lord your God, for every abominable thing which the Lord hates they have done for their gods. For even their sons and their daughters they have burned in the fire to their gods.
32 Whatever I command you, be watchful to do it; you shall not add to it or diminish it.
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