Deuteronomy 12

1 These are the statutes and ordinances, which ye shall observe to do, in the land which the Lord, the God of thy fathers, giveth unto thee to possess it, and all the days that ye live upon the earth.

2 Ye shall utterly destroy all the places whereon the nations which ye are about to drive out served their gods, upon the high mountains, and upon the hills, and under every green tree;

3 And ye shall overthrow their altars, and break their statues, and their groves shall ye burn with fire; and the graven images of their gods shall ye hew down; and ye shall destroy their name out of the same place.

4 Ye shall not do so unto the Lord your God;

5 But unto the place which the Lord your God may choose out of all your tribes to put his name there, even unto his habitation shall ye repair, and thither shalt thou come;

6 And ye shall bring thither your burnt-offerings, and your sacrifices, and your tithes, and the heave-offering of your hand, and your vows, and your freewill-offerings, and the first-born of your herds and of your flocks;

7 And ye shall eat there before the Lord your God, and ye shall rejoice with all the acquisition of your hand, ye and your households, wherewith the Lord thy God may have blessed thee.

8 Ye shall not do after all the manner that we do here this day, every one whatsoever is right in his own eyes.

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

10 But ye will go over the Jordan, and dwell in the land which the Lord your God causeth you to inherit, and he will give you rest from all your enemies round about, so that ye may dwell in safety.

11 And then shall it be, that the place which the Lord your God will choose to cause his name to dwell there, —[even] 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 may vow unto the Lord;

12 And ye shall rejoice before the Lord your God, ye, and your sons, and your daughters, and your men-servants, and your maid-servants, and the Levite who is within your gates; because he hath not any portion nor inheritance with you.

13 Take heed to thyself that thou offer not thy burnt-offerings in every place which thou mayest see;

14 But in the place which the Lord will choose in one of thy tribes, there shalt thou offer thy burnt-offerings, and there shalt thou do all that I command thee.

15 Notwithstanding, according to all the longing of thy soul, mayest thou kill and eat flesh, according to the blessing of the Lord thy God which he hath given thee, in all thy gates: the unclean and the clean may eat thereof, as of the roebuck, and as of the hart.

16 Only the blood shall ye not eat: upon the earth shall ye pour it out as water.

17 Thou mayest not eat within thy gates the tithe of thy corn, or of thy wine, or of thy oil, nor the first-born of thy herds or of thy flocks, nor any of thy vows which thou mayest vow, nor thy freewill-offerings, and the heave-offering of thy hand;

18 But before the Lord thy God must thou eat them in the place which the Lord thy God may choose, thou, and thy son, and thy daughter, and thy man-servant, and thy maid-servant, and the Levite who is within thy gates; and thou shalt rejoice before the Lord thy God with all the acquisition of thy hand.

19 Take heed to thyself that thou forsake not the Levite as long as thou livest upon thy land.

20 When the Lord thy God will enlarge thy border, as he hath spoken unto thee, and thou dost say, I wish to eat flesh, because thy soul longeth to eat flesh: then mayest thou, according to all the longing of thy soul, eat flesh.

21 If the place which the Lord thy God may choose to put his name there be too far for thee: then mayest thou kill of thy herds and of thy flocks, which the Lord hath given thee, as I have commanded thee; and thou shalt eat in thy gates according to all the longing of thy soul.

22 But as the roebuck and the hart are eaten, so shalt thou eat the same: the unclean and the clean may eat thereof together.

23 Only be firm so as not to eat the blood; for the blood is the life; and thou shalt not eat the life with the flesh.

24 Thou shalt not eat it: upon the earth shalt thou pour it out like water.

25 Thou shalt not eat it; in order that it may go well with thee, and with thy children after thee, when thou wilt do what is right in the eyes of the Lord.

26 Nevertheless thy holy things which thou mayest have, and thy vows, shalt thou take, and go unto the place which the Lord may choose:

27 And 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 the flesh shalt thou eat.

28 Observe and hear all these words which I command thee; in order that it may go well with thee, and with thy children after thee for ever, when thou wilt do what is good and right in the eyes of the Lord thy God.

29 When the Lord thy God will cut off the nations, whither thou goest to drive them out from before thee, and thou succeedest them, and dwellest in their land:

30 Then take heed to thyself that thou be not snared by following them, after they have been 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.

31 Thou 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 have they burnt in the fire to their gods.

32 What thing soever I command you, even that shall ye observe to do: thou shalt not add thereto, and thou shalt not diminish therefrom.