Deuteronomy 12:1-27

Laws of the Sanctuary

1 "These are the statutes and the judgments which you shall carefully observe in the land which the LORD, the God of your fathers, has given you to possess ¹as long * as you live on the earth.

2 "You shall utterly destroy all the places where * the nations whom you shall dispossess serve their gods, on the ²high mountains and on the hills and under every green tree.

3 "³You shall tear down their altars and smash their sacred pillars and burn their Asherim with fire, and you shall cut down the engraved images of their gods and ⁴obliterate their name from that place.

4 "You shall not act like this toward the LORD your God.

5 "⁵But you shall seek the LORD at the place which the LORD your God will choose from all your tribes, to establish His name there for His dwelling, and there you shall come.

6 "There you shall bring your burnt offerings, your sacrifices, ⁶your tithes, the contribution of your hand, your votive offerings, your freewill offerings, and the firstborn of your herd and of your flock.

7 "There also you and your households shall eat before the LORD your God, and ⁷rejoice in all your undertakings in which the LORD your God has blessed you.

8 "You shall not do at all what we are doing here today, every man doing whatever is right in his own eyes;

9 for you have not as yet come to ⁸the resting place and the ⁹inheritance which the LORD your God is giving you.

10 "When you cross the Jordan and live in the land which the LORD your God is giving you to inherit, and ¹⁰He gives you rest from all your enemies around you so that you live in security,

11 ¹¹then it shall come about that the place in which the LORD your God will choose for His name to dwell, there you shall bring all that I command you: your burnt offerings and your sacrifices, your tithes and the contribution of your hand, and all your choice votive offerings which you will vow to the LORD.

12 "And you shall ¹²rejoice before the LORD your God, you and your sons and daughters, your male and female servants *, and the ¹³Levite who is within your gates, since ¹⁴he has no portion or inheritance with you.

13 "¹⁵Be careful that you do not offer your burnt offerings in every cultic place you see,

14 but in the place which the LORD chooses in one of your tribes, there you shall offer your burnt offerings, and there you shall do all that I command you.

15 "¹⁶However, you may slaughter and eat meat within any of your gates, whatever you desire, according to the blessing of the LORD your God which He has given you; the unclean and the clean may eat of it, as of ¹⁷the gazelle and the deer.

16 "¹⁸Only you shall not eat the blood; ¹⁹you are to pour it out on the ground like water.

17 "²⁰You are not allowed to eat within your gates the tithe of your grain or new wine or oil, or the firstborn of your herd or flock, or any of your votive offerings which you vow, or your freewill offerings, or the contribution of your hand.

18 "But ²¹you shall eat them before the LORD your God in ²²the place which the LORD your God will choose, you and your son and daughter, and your male and female servants *, and the ²³Levite who is within your gates; and you shall ²⁴rejoice before the LORD your God in all your undertakings.

19 "²⁵Be careful that you do not forsake the Levite as long * as you live in your land.

20 "When the LORD your God extends your border ²⁶as He has promised you, and you say, 'I will eat meat,' because you desire to eat meat, then you may eat meat, whatever you desire.

21 "If the place which the LORD your God chooses to put His name is too far from you, then you may slaughter of your herd and flock which the LORD has given you, as I have commanded you; and you may eat within your gates whatever you desire.

22 "Just as a gazelle or a deer is eaten, so you will eat it; the unclean and the clean alike may eat of it.

23 "Only be sure ²⁷not to eat the blood, for the blood is the life, and you shall not eat the life with the flesh.

24 "You shall not eat it; you shall pour it out on the ground like water.

25 "You shall not eat it, so that ²⁸it may be well with you and your sons after you, for ²⁹you will be doing what is right in the sight of the LORD.

26 "³⁰Only your holy things which you may have and your votive offerings, you shall take and go to the place which the LORD chooses.

27 "And ³¹you 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 ³²you shall eat the flesh.

Deuteronomy 12:1-27 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO DEUTERONOMY 12

In this chapter orders are given to destroy all altars, pillars, groves, and images, made for the worship of idols in the land of Canaan, De 12:1-3 and to bring all sacrifices and holy things unto the place which the Lord should choose for his habitation, and not do as they then did, not being come to their rest, De 12:4-14, flesh for their common food might be killed and eaten in their own houses, provided they did not eat the blood, but poured it out upon the earth, De 12:15-25, tithes, vows, and freewill offerings, were to be eaten in the holy place, De 12:17-19 and burnt offerings to be offered on the altar of the Lord and the blood of them to be poured out upon the altar, De 12:26-28, all which they were carefully to observe, De 12:29, and they are cautioned against idolatry, and inquiring after the manner of it, as practised by the old inhabitants of the land, and introducing their customs into the service of God, De 12:30-32.

Cross References

• 1. Deuteronomy 4:9, 10; 1 Kings 8:40
• 2. 2 Kings 16:4; 2 Kings 17:10, 11
• 3. Numbers 33:52; Deuteronomy 7:5; Judges 2:2
• 4. Exodus 23:13; Psalms 16:4; Zechariah 13:2
• 5. Exodus 20:24; Deuteronomy 12:11, 13; 2 Chronicles 7:12; Psalms 78:68
• 6. Deuteronomy 14:22
• 7. Leviticus 23:40; Deuteronomy 12:12, 18; Deuteronomy 14:26; Deuteronomy 28:47; Ecclesiastes 3:12, 13; Ecclesiastes 5:18-20
• 8. Deuteronomy 3:20; Deuteronomy 25:19; Psalms 95:11
• 9. Deuteronomy 4:21
• 10. Joshua 11:23
• 11. Deuteronomy 12:5; Deuteronomy 15:20; Deuteronomy 16:2; Deuteronomy 17:8; Deuteronomy 18:6
• 12. Deuteronomy 12:7
• 13. Deuteronomy 12:18, 19; Deuteronomy 26:11-13
• 14. Deuteronomy 10:9; Deuteronomy 14:29
• 15. Deuteronomy 12:5, 11
• 16. Deuteronomy 12:20-23
• 17. Deuteronomy 12:22; Deuteronomy 14:5; Deuteronomy 15:22
• 18. Genesis 9:4; Leviticus 7:26; Leviticus 17:10-12; 1 Samuel 14:33; Acts 15:20, 29
• 19. Deuteronomy 15:23
• 20. Deuteronomy 12:26
• 21. Deuteronomy 14:23
• 22. Deuteronomy 12:5
• 23. Deuteronomy 12:12
• 24. Deuteronomy 12:7; Ecclesiastes 3:12; Ecclesiastes 5:18-20
• 25. Deuteronomy 14:27
• 26. Genesis 15:18; Deuteronomy 11:24; Deuteronomy 19:8
• 27. Genesis 9:4; Leviticus 17:10-14; Deuteronomy 12:16
• 28. Deuteronomy 4:40; Isaiah 3:10
• 29. Exodus 15:26; 1 Kings 11:38
• 30. Numbers 5:9; Numbers 18:19; Deuteronomy 12:17
• 31. Leviticus 1:9, 13
• 32. Leviticus 3:1-17

Footnotes

• [a]. Lit "all the days"
• [b]. Lit "ground"
• [c]. I.e. wooden symbols of a female deity
• [d]. Or "heave offering"
• [e]. Lit "the putting forth of your hand"
• [f]. Or "heave offering"
• [g]. Lit "in every desire of your soul"
• [h]. Lit "heave offering"
• [i]. Lit "the putting forth of your hand"
• [j]. Lit "all your days upon your land"
• [k]. Lit "your soul desires"
• [l]. Lit "in every desire of your soul"
• [m]. Lit "in every desire of your soul"
• [n]. Lit "soul"
• [o]. Lit "soul"