Deuteronomy 12

1 These are the statutes and judgments, which you shall observe to do in the land, which the LORD God of your fathers gives you to possess it, all the days that you live on the earth.

'These [are] the statutes and the judgments which ye observe to do in the land which Jehovah, God of thy fathers, hath given to thee to possess it, all the days that ye are living on the ground:

2 You shall utterly destroy all the places, wherein the nations which you shall possess served their gods, on the high mountains, and on the hills, and under every green tree:

ye do utterly destroy all the places where the nations which ye are dispossessing served their gods, on the high mountains, and on the heights, and under every green tree;

3 And you shall overthrow their altars, and break their pillars, and burn their groves with fire; and you shall hew down the graven images of their gods, and destroy the names of them out of that place.

and ye have broken down their altars, and shivered their standing pillars, and their shrines ye burn with fire, and graven images of their gods ye cut down, and have destroyed their name out of that place.

4 You shall not do so to the LORD your God.

'Ye do not do so to Jehovah your God;

5 But to the place which the LORD your God shall choose out of all your tribes to put his name there, even to his habitation shall you seek, and thither you shall come:

but unto the place which Jehovah your God doth choose out of all your tribes to put His name there, to His tabernacle ye seek, and thou hast entered thither,

6 And thither you 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 firstborn of your herds and of your flocks:

and hast brought in thither your burnt-offerings, and your sacrifices, and your tithes, and the heave-offering of your hand, and your vows, and your free-will 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 that you put your hand to, you and your households, wherein the LORD your God has blessed you.

and ye have eaten there before Jehovah your God, and have rejoiced in every putting forth of your hand, ye and your households, with which Jehovah thy God hath blessed thee.

8 You shall not do after all the things that we do here this day, every man whatever is right in his own eyes.

'Ye do not do according to all that we are doing here to-day, each anything that is right in his own eyes,

9 For you are not as yet come to the rest and to the inheritance, which the LORD your God gives you.

for ye have not come in hitherto unto the rest, and unto the inheritance, which Jehovah thy God is giving to thee;

10 But when you go over Jordan, and dwell in the land which the LORD your God gives you to inherit, and when he gives you rest from all your enemies round about, so that you dwell in safety;

and ye have passed over the Jordan, and have dwelt in the land which Jehovah your God is causing you to inherit, and He hath given rest to you from all your enemies round about, and ye have dwelt confidently:

11 Then there shall be a place which the LORD your God shall choose to cause his name to dwell there; thither shall you 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 you vow to the LORD:

'And it hath been, the place on which Jehovah your God doth fix to cause His name to tabernacle there, thither ye bring in all that which I am commanding you, your burnt-offerings, and your sacrifices, your tithes, and the heave-offering of your hand, and all the choice of your vows which ye vow to Jehovah;

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 gates; for as much as he has no part nor inheritance with you.

and ye have rejoiced before Jehovah your God, ye, and your sons, and your daughters, and your men-servants, and your handmaids, and the Levite who [is] within your gates, for he hath no part and inheritance with you.

13 Take heed to yourself that you offer not your burnt offerings in every place that you see:

'Take heed to thee, lest thou cause thy burnt-offerings to ascend in any place which thou seest,

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 that I command you.

except in the place which Jehovah doth choose in one of thy tribes, there thou dost cause thy burnt-offerings to ascend, and there thou dost do all that which I am commanding thee.

15 Notwithstanding you may kill and eat flesh in all your gates, whatever your soul lusts after, according to the blessing of the LORD your God which he has given you: the unclean and the clean may eat thereof, as of the roebuck, and as of the hart.

'Only, with all the desire of thy soul thou dost sacrifice, and hast eaten flesh according to the blessing of Jehovah thy God which He hath given to thee, in all thy gates; the unclean and the clean do eat it, as of the roe, and as of the hart.

16 Only you shall not eat the blood; you shall pour it on the earth as water.

'Only, the blood ye do not eat — on the earth thou dost pour it as water;

17 You may not eat within your gates the tithe of your corn, or of your wine, or of your oil, or the firstborn of your herds or of your flock, nor any of your vows which you vow, nor your freewill offerings, or heave offering of your hand:

thou art not able to eat within thy gates the tithe of thy corn, and of thy new wine, and thine oil, and the firstlings of thy herd and of thy flock, and any of thy vows which thou vowest, and thy free-will offerings, and heave-offering of thy hand;

18 But you must eat them before the LORD your God in the place which the LORD your God shall choose, you, and your son, and your daughter, and your manservant, and your maidservant, and the Levite that is within your gates: and you shall rejoice before the LORD your God in all that you put your hands to.

but before Jehovah thy God thou dost eat it, in the place which Jehovah thy God doth fix on, thou, and thy son, and thy daughter, and thy man-servant, and thy handmaid, and the Levite who [is] within thy gates, and thou hast rejoiced before Jehovah thy God in every putting forth of thy hand;

19 Take heed to yourself that you forsake not the Levite as long as you live on the earth.

take heed to thee lest thou forsake the Levite all thy days on thy ground.

20 When the LORD your God shall enlarge your border, as he has promised you, and you shall say, I will eat flesh, because your soul longs to eat flesh; you may eat flesh, whatever your soul lusts after.

'When Jehovah thy God doth enlarge thy border, as He hath spoken to thee, and thou hast said, Let me eat flesh — for thy soul desireth to eat flesh — of all the desire of thy soul thou dost eat flesh.

21 If the place which the LORD your God has chosen to put his name there be too far from you, then you shall kill of your herd and of your flock, which the LORD has given you, as I have commanded you, and you shall eat in your gates whatever your soul lusts after.

'When the place is far from thee which Jehovah thy God doth choose to put His name there, then thou hast sacrificed of thy herd and of thy flock which Jehovah hath given to thee, as I have commanded thee, and hast eaten within thy gates, of all the desire of thy soul;

22 Even as the roebuck and the hart is eaten, so you shall eat them: the unclean and the clean shall eat of them alike.

only, as the roe and the hart is eaten, so dost thou eat it; the unclean and the clean doth alike eat it.

23 Only be sure that you eat not the blood: for the blood is the life; and you may not eat the life with the flesh.

'Only, be sure not to eat the blood, for the blood [is] the life, and thou dost not eat the life with the flesh;

24 You shall not eat it; you shall pour it on the earth as water.

thou dost not eat it, on the earth thou dost pour it as water;

25 You shall not eat it; that it may go well with you, and with your children after you, when you shall do that which is right in the sight of the LORD.

thou dost not eat it, in order that it may be well with thee, and with thy sons after thee, when thou dost that which [is] right in the eyes of Jehovah.

26 Only your holy things which you have, and your vows, you shall take, and go to the place which the LORD shall choose:

'Only, thy holy things which thou hast, and thy vows, thou dost take up, and hast gone in unto the place which Jehovah doth choose,

27 And you shall offer your burnt offerings, the flesh and the blood, on 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 shall eat the flesh.

and thou hast made thy burnt-offerings — the flesh and the blood — on the altar of Jehovah thy God; and the blood of thy sacrifices is poured out by the altar of Jehovah thy God, and the flesh thou dost eat.

28 Observe and hear all these words which I command you, that it may go well with you, and with your children after you for ever, when you do that which is good and right in the sight of the LORD your God.

Observe, and thou hast obeyed all these words which I am commanding thee, in order that it may be well with thee and with thy sons after thee — to the age, when thou dost that which [is] good and right in the eyes of Jehovah thy God.

29 When the LORD your God shall cut off the nations from before you, where you go to possess them, and you succeed them, and dwell in their land;

'When Jehovah thy God doth cut off the nations — whither thou art going in to possess them — from thy presence, and thou hast possessed them, and hast dwelt in their land —

30 Take heed to yourself that you be not snared by following them, after that they be destroyed from before you; and that you inquire not after their gods, saying, How did these nations serve their gods? even so will I do likewise.

take heed to thee, lest thou be snared after them, after their being destroyed out of thy presence, and lest thou enquire about their gods, saying, How do these nations serve their gods, and I do so — even I?

31 You shall not do so to the LORD your God: for every abomination to the LORD, which he hates, have they done to their gods; for even their sons and their daughters they have burnt in the fire to their gods.

'Thou dost not do so to Jehovah thy God; for every abomination of Jehovah which He is hating they have done to their gods, for even their sons and their daughters they burn with fire to their gods.

32 What thing soever I command you, observe to do it: you shall not add thereto, nor diminish from it.

The whole thing which I am commanding you — it ye observe to do; thou dost not add unto it, nor diminish from it.