Deuteronomy 12

1 These are the ordinances and the lawes, which ye shall obserue and doe in the lande (which the Lord God of thy fathers giueth thee to possesse it) as long as yee liue vpon the earth.

These are the statutes and the decrees that you will keep in the land that Yahweh, the God of your fathers, has given you to possess, all the days that you live on the earth.

2 Yee shall vtterly destroy all the places wherein the nations which ye shall possesse, serued their gods vpon the hie mountaines and vpon the hilles, and vnder euery greene tree.

You will surely destroy all the places where the nations that you will dispossess worshiped their gods, on the high mountains, on the hills, and under every green tree.

3 Also ye shall ouerthrowe their altars, and breake downe their pillars, and burne their groues with fire: and ye shall hew downe ye grauen images of their gods, and abolish their names out of that place.

You must break down their altars, dash in pieces their stone pillars, and burn their Asherah poles. You must cut down the carved figures of their gods and destroy their name out of that place.

4 Ye shall not do so vnto ye Lord your God,

You will not worship Yahweh your God like that.

5 But ye shall seeke the place which the Lord your God shall chose out of all your tribes, to put his Name there, and there to dwell, and thither thou shalt come,

But to the place that Yahweh your God will choose out of all your tribes to put his name, that will be the place where he lives, and it is there that you will go.

6 And ye shall bring thither your burnt offerings, and your sacrifices, and your tithes, and the offring of your hands, and your vowes, and your free offrings, and the first borne of your kine and of your sheepe.

It is there that you will bring your burnt offerings, your sacrifices, your tithes, and the offerings presented by your hand, your offerings for vows, your freewill offerings, and the firstborn of your herds and flocks.

7 And there ye shall eate before the Lord your God, and ye shall reioyce in all that yee put your hand vnto, both ye, and your housholdes, because the Lord thy God hath blessed thee.

It is there that you will eat before Yahweh your God and rejoice about everything that you have put your hand to, you and your households, where Yahweh your God has blessed you.

8 Ye shall not doe after all these things that we doe here this day: that is, euery man whatsoeuer seemeth him good in his owne eyes.

You will not do all the things that we are doing here today; now everyone is doing whatever is right in his own eyes;

9 For ye are not yet come to rest, and to the inheritance which the Lord thy God giueth thee.

for you have not yet come to the rest, to the inheritance that Yahweh your God is giving you.

10 But when ye goe ouer Iorden, and dwell in ye land, which the Lord your God hath giuen you to inherit, and when he hath giue you rest from al your enemies round about, and yee dwel in safetie,

But when you go over the Jordan and live in the land that Yahweh your God is causing you to inherit, and he will give you rest from all your enemies round about, so that you live in safety.

11 When there shalbe a place which the Lord your God shall chose, to cause his name to dwell there, thither shall yee bring all that I commaund you: your burnt offrings, and your sacrifices, your tithes, and the offring of your hands, and all your speciall vowes which ye vowe vnto the Lord:

Then to the place where Yahweh your God will choose to cause his name to live there—there you will bring everything I command you: your burnt offerings, your sacrifices, your tithes, and the offerings presented by your hand, and all your choice offerings for vows that you will vow to Yahweh.

12 And ye shall reioyce before the Lord your God, yee, and your sonnes and your daughters, and your seruaunts, and your maidens, and the Leuite that is within your gates: for hee hath no part nor inheritance with you.

You will rejoice before Yahweh your God—you, your sons, your daughters, your male servants, your female servants, and the Levites who are within your gate, because he has no portion or inheritance among you.

13 Take heede that thou offer not thy burnt offrings in euery place that thou seest:

Pay attention to yourself that you do not offer your burnt offerings at every place that you see;

14 But in ye place which the Lord shall chose in one of thy tribes, there thou shalt offer thy burnt offrings, and there thou shalt doe all that I commaund thee.

but it is at the place that Yahweh will choose among one of your tribes that you will offer your burnt offerings, and there you will do everything that I command you.

15 Notwithstanding thou maiest kill and eate flesh in all thy gates, whatsoeuer thine heart desireth, according to the blessing of the Lord thy God which he hath giuen thee: both the vncleane and the cleane may eate thereof, as of the roe bucke, and of the hart.

However, you may kill and eat animals within all your gates, as you wish, receiving the blessing of Yahweh your God for all that he has given you; the unclean and the clean persons both may eat of it, animals such as the gazelle and the deer.

16 Onely ye shall not eat the blood, but powre it vpon the earth as water.

But you will not eat the blood; you will pour it out on the earth like water.

17 Thou maist nor eat within thy gates the tithe of thy corne, nor of thy wine, nor of thine oyle, nor the first borne of thy kine, nor of thy sheep, neither any of thy vowes which thou vowest, nor thy free offerings, nor the offering of thine hands,

You may not eat within your gates from the tithe of your grain, your new wine, your oil, or the firstborn of your herd or flock; and you may not eat any of the meat you sacrifice along with any of your vows that you make, nor that of your freewill offerings, nor that of the offering you present with your hand.

18 But thou shalt eate it before the Lord thy God, in the place which the Lord thy God shall chuse, thou, and thy sonne, and thy daughter, and thy seruat, and thy maid, and the Leuite that is within thy gates: and thou shalt reioyce before the Lord thy God, in all that thou puttest thine hand to.

Instead, you will eat them before Yahweh your God in the place that Yahweh your God will choose—you, your son, your daughter, your male servant, your female servant, and the Levite who is within your gates; you will rejoice before Yahweh your God about everything to which you put your hand.

19 Beware, that thou forsake not the Leuite, as long as thou liuest vpon the earth.

Pay attention to yourself so that you do not forsake the Levite as long as you live on your land.

20 When the Lord thy God shall enlarge thy border, as hee hath promised thee, and thou shalt say, I wil eate flesh, (because thine heart longeth to eate flesh) thou maiest eate flesh, whatsoeuer thine heart desireth.

When Yahweh your God enlarges your borders, as he has promised you, and you say, 'I will eat flesh,' because of your desire to eat meat, you may eat meat, as your soul desires.

21 If the place which the Lord thy God hath chosen to put his Name there, be farre from thee, then thou shalt kill of thy bullockes, and of thy sheepe which the Lord hath giuen thee, as I haue commanded thee, and thou shalt eat in thy gates, whatsoeuer thine heart desireth.

If the place that Yahweh your God chooses to put his name is too far from you, then you will kill some of your herd and your flock that Yahweh has given you, as I have commanded you; you may eat within your gates, as your soul desires.

22 Euen as the roe bucke, and the hart is eaten, so shalt thou eat them. both the vncleane and the cleane shall eate of them alike.

Like the gazelle and the deer are eaten, so you will eat of it; the unclean and the clean persons may eat of it alike.

23 Onely bee sure that thou eate not the blood: for the blood is the life, and thou maiest not eate the life with the flesh.

Only be sure that you do not consume the blood, for the blood is the life; you will not eat the life with the meat.

24 Therefore thou shalt not eat it, but powre it vpon the earth as water.

You will not eat it; you will pour it out on the earth like water.

25 Thou shalt not eat it, that it may go well with thee; and with thy children after thee, when thou shalt doe that which is right in the sight of the Lord:

You will not eat it, so that it may go well with you, and with your children after you, when you will do what is right in the eyes of Yahweh.

26 But thine holy things which thou hast, and thy vowes thou shalt take vp, and come vnto the place which the Lord shall chuse.

But the things that belong to Yahweh that you have and the offerings for your vows—you will take these and go to the place that Yahweh chooses.

27 And thou shalt make thy burnt offerings of the flesh, and of the blood vpon the altar of the Lord thy God, and the blood of thine offerings shall bee powred vpon the altar of the Lord thy God, and thou shalt eate the flesh.

There you will offer your burnt offerings, the meat and the blood, on the altar of Yahweh your God; the blood of your sacrifices will be poured out on the altar of Yahweh your God, and you will eat the flesh.

28 Take heede, and heare all these woordes which I commaund thee, that it may goe well with thee, and with thy children after thee for euer, when thou doest that which is good and right in the sight of the Lord thy God.

Observe and listen to all these words that 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 eyes of Yahweh your God.

29 When the Lord thy God shall destroy the nations before thee, whither thou goest to possesse them, and thou shalt possesse them and dwell in their lande,

When Yahweh your God cuts off the nations from before you, when you go in to dispossess them, and you dispossess them, and live in their land,

30 Beware, lest thou be taken in a snare after them, after that they be destroied before thee, and lest thou aske after their gods, saying, Howe did these nations serue their gods, that I may doe so likewise?

pay attention to yourself that you are not trapped into following them, after they are destroyed from before you—trapped into investigating their gods, into asking, 'How do these nations worship their gods? I will do the same.'

31 Thou shalt not doe so vnto the Lord thy God: for al abomination, which the Lord hateth, haue they done vnto their gods: for they haue burned both their sonnes and their daughters with fire to their gods.

You must not worship Yahweh your God in that way, for everything that is an abomination to Yahweh, things that he hates—they have done these with their gods; they even burn their sons and their daughters in fire for their gods.

32 Therefore whatsoeuer I command you, take heede you doe it: thou shalt put nothing thereto, nor take ought therefrom.

Whatever I command you, observe it. Do not add to it or take away from it.