Deuteronomy 12:1-7

1 These are the statutes and rights which ye shall keep to do them in the land which the LORD God of thy fathers gives thee to inherit all the days that ye live upon the land.

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;

7 and there ye shall eat before the LORD your God, and ye and your households shall rejoice in every work of your hands in which the LORD thy God has blessed thee.

Deuteronomy 12:1-7 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.