Deuteronomy 12:4

4 Ye shall not do so unto the LORD your God.

Deuteronomy 12:4 Meaning and Commentary

Deuteronomy 12:4

Ye shall not do so unto the Lord your God.
] Not sacrifice to him on hills and mountains, and under green trees; though the Jews commonly refer this to the destruction of the names of God, and of any thing appertaining to the temple; that though the temples and the altars of the Heathens were to be overthrown, yet not a stone was to be taken from the house of God, or that belonged to it, nor any of his names to be blotted out; so the Targum of Jonathan and Maimonides ^F26, who also observes ^F1, that whoever removes a stone by way of destruction from the altar, or from the temple, or from the court, is to be beaten; so he that burns the holy wood.

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FOOTNOTES:

F26 Yesode Hattorah, c. 6. sect. 7, 9.
F1 Ibid. sect. 8.

Deuteronomy 12:4 In-Context

2 Ye shall utterly destroy all the places, upon which the Gentiles, of whom ye shall inherit, 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 images and burn their groves with fire; and ye shall hew down the statues of their gods and destroy the names of them out of that place.

4 Ye shall not do so unto the LORD your God.

5 But ye shall seek the place which the LORD your God shall choose out of all your tribes to put his name there for his habitation, and thou shalt go there.

6 And there ye shall bring your burnt offerings and your sacrifices and your tithes and the offerings of your hand and your vows and your freewill offerings and the firstborn of your cows and of your sheep;