Deuteronomy 12

1 And these [are] the ordinances and the judgments, which you shall observe to do in the land, which the Lord God of your fathers gives you for an inheritance, all the days which you live upon the land.

These are the laws and the decisions which you are to keep with care in the land which the Lord, the God of your fathers, has given you to be your heritage all the days of your life on earth.

2 You shall utterly destroy all the places in which they served their gods, whose [land] you inherit, on the high mountains and on the hills, and under the thick tree.

You are to give up to the curse all those places where the nations, whom you are driving out, gave worship to their gods, on the high mountains and the hills and under every green tree:

3 And you shall destroy their altars, and break in pieces their pillars, and you shall cut down their groves, and you shall burn with fire the graven images of their gods, and you shall abolish their name out of that place.

Their altars and their pillars are to be broken down, and their holy trees burned with fire, and the images of their gods cut down; you are to take away their names out of that place.

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

Do not so to the Lord your God.

5 But in the place which the Lord your God shall choose in one of your cities to name his name there, and to be called upon, you shall even seek [him] out and go there.

But let your hearts be turned to the place which will be marked out by the Lord your God, among your tribes, to put his name there;

6 And you shall carry there your whole burnt offerings, and your sacrifices, and your first fruits, and your vowed-offerings, and your free will offerings, and your offerings of thanksgiving, the firstborn of your herds, and of your flocks.

And there you are to take your burned offerings and other offerings, and the tenth part of your goods, and the offerings to be lifted up to the Lord, and the offerings of your oaths, and those which you give freely from the impulse of your hearts, and the first births among your herds and your flocks;

7 And you shall eat there before the Lord your God, and you shall rejoice in all the things on which you shall lay your hand, you and your houses, as the Lord your God has blessed you.

There you and all your families are to make a feast before the Lord your God, with joy in everything to which you put your hand, because the Lord has given you his blessing.

8 You shall not do altogether as we do here today, every man that which is pleasing in his own sight.

You are not to do things then in the way in which we now do them here, every man as it seems right to him:

9 For hitherto you have not arrived at the rest and the inheritance, which the Lord our God gives you.

For you have not come to the rest and the heritage which the Lord your God is giving you.

10 And you shall go over Jordan, and shall dwell in the land, which the Lord our God takes as an inheritance for you; and he shall give you rest from all your enemies round about, and you shall dwell safely.

But when you have gone over Jordan and are living in the land which the Lord your God is giving you as your heritage, and when he has given you rest from all those on every side who are fighting against you, and you are living there safely;

11 And there shall be a place which the Lord your God shall choose for his name to be called there, there shall you bring all things that I order you today; your whole burnt offerings, and your sacrifices, and your tithes, and the first fruits of your hands, and every choice gift of yours, whatever you shall vow to the Lord your God.

Then there will be a place marked out by the Lord your God as the resting-place for his name, and there you will take all the things which I give you orders to take: your burned offerings and other offerings, and the tenth part of your goods, and the offerings to be lifted up, and the offerings of your oaths which you make 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 at your gates; because he has no portion or inheritance with you.

And you will be glad before the Lord your God, you and your sons and your daughters, and your men-servants and your women-servants, and the Levite who is with you in your house, because he has no part or heritage among you.

13 Take heed to yourself that you offer not your whole burnt offerings in any place which you shall see;

Take care that you do not make your burned offerings in any place you see:

14 save in the place which the Lord your God shall choose, in one of your tribes, there shall you offer your whole burnt offerings, and there shall you do all things whatever I charge you this day.

But in the place marked out by the Lord in one of your tribes, there let your burned offerings be offered, and there do what I have given you orders to do.

15 But you shall kill according to all your desire, and shall eat flesh according to the blessing of the Lord your God, which he has given you in every city; the unclean that is within you and the clean shall eat it on equal terms, as the doe or the stag.

Only you may put to death animals, such as the gazelle or the roe, for your food in any of your towns, at the desire of your soul, in keeping with the blessing of the Lord your God which he has given you: the unclean and the clean may take of it.

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

But you may not take the blood for food, it is to be drained out on the earth like water.

17 You shall not be able to eat in your cities the tithe of your corn, and of your wine, and of your oil, the firstborn of your herd and of your flock, and all [your] vows as many as you shall have vowed, and your thank-offerings, and the first fruits of your hands.

In your towns you are not to take as food the tenth part of your grain, or of your wine or your oil, or the first births of your herds or of your flocks, or anything offered under an oath, or freely offered to the Lord, or given as a lifted offering;

18 But before the Lord your God you shall eat it, in the place which the Lord your God shall choose for himself, you, and your son, and your daughter, your man-servant, and your maidservant, and the stranger that is within your gates; and you shall rejoice before the Lord your God, on whatever you shall lay your hand.

But they will be your food before the Lord your God in the place of his selection, where you may make a feast of them, with your son and your daughter, and your man-servant and your woman-servant, and the Levite who is living with you: and you will have joy before the Lord your God in everything to which you put your hand.

19 Take heed to yourself that you do not desert the Levite all the time that you live upon the earth.

See that you do not give up caring for the Levite as long as you are living in your land.

20 And if the Lord your God shall enlarge your borders, as he said to you, and you shall say, I will eat flesh; if your soul should desire to eat flesh, you shall eat flesh according to all the desire of your soul.

When the Lord your God makes wide the limit of your land, as he has said, and you say, I will take flesh for my food, because you have a desire for it; then you may take whatever flesh you have a desire for.

21 And if the place be far from you, which the Lord your God shall choose for himself, that his name be called upon it, then you shall kill of your herd and of your flock which God shall have given you, even as I commanded you, and you shall eat in your cities according to the desire of your soul.

If the place marked out by the Lord your God as the resting-place for his name is far away from you, then take from your herds and from your flocks which the Lord has given you, as I have said, and have a meal of it in the towns where you may be living.

22 As the doe and the stag are eaten, so shall you eat it; the unclean in you and the clean shall eat it in like manner.

It will be your food, like the gazelle and the roe; the unclean and the clean may take of it.

23 Take diligent heed that you eat no blood, for blood [is] the life of it; the life shall not be eaten with the flesh.

But see that you do not take the blood for food; for the blood is the life; and you may not make use of the life as food with the flesh.

24 You shall not eat [it]; you shall pour it out on the ground as water.

Do not take it for food but let it be drained out on the earth like water.

25 You shall not eat it, that it may be well with you and with your sons after you, if you shall do that which is good and pleasing before the Lord your God.

Do not take it for food; so that it may be well for you and for your children after you, while you do what is right in the eyes of the Lord.

26 But you shall take your holy things, if you have any, and your vowed-offerings, and come to the place which the Lord your God shall choose to have his name named upon it.

But the holy things which you have, and the offerings of your oaths, you are to take to the place which will be marked out by the Lord:

27 And you shall sacrifice your whole burnt offerings, you shall offer the flesh upon the altar of the Lord your God; but the blood of your sacrifices you shall pour out at the foot of the altar of the Lord your God, but the flesh you shall eat.

Offering the flesh and the blood of your burned offerings on the altar of the Lord your God; and the blood of your offerings is to be drained out on the altar of the Lord your God, and the flesh will be your food.

28 Beware and listen, and you shall do all the commands which I charge you, that it may be well with you and with your sons for ever, if you shall do that which is pleasing and good before the Lord your God.

Take note of all these orders I am giving you and give attention to them, so that it may be well for you and for your children after you for ever, while you do what is good and right in the eyes of the Lord your God.

29 And if the Lord your God shall utterly destroy the nations, to whom you go in there to inherit their land, from before you, and you shall inherit it, and dwell in their land;

When the people of the land where you are going have been cut off before you by the Lord your God, and you have taken their land and are living in it;

30 take heed to yourself that you seek not to follow them after they are destroyed before you, saying, How do these nations act towards their gods? I will do likewise.

After their destruction take care that you do not go in their ways, and that you do not give thought to their gods, saying, How did these nations give worship to their gods? I will do as they did.

31 You shall not do so to your God; for they have sacrificed to their gods the abominations of the Lord which he hates, for they burn their sons and their daughters in fire to their gods.

Do not so to the Lord your God: for everything which is disgusting to the Lord and hated by him they have done in honour of their gods: even burning their sons and daughters in the fire to their gods.

32 Every word that I command you this day, it shall you observe to do: you shall not add to it, nor diminish from it.

You are to keep with care all the words I give you, making no addition to them and taking nothing from them.