| Christian Standard Bible | Berean Study Bible |
| 1"Be careful to follow these statutes and ordinances in the land that the LORD, the God of your fathers, has given you to possess all the days you live on the earth. | 1These are the statutes and ordinances you must be careful to follow all the days you live in the land that the LORD, the God of your fathers, has given you to possess. |
| 2Destroy completely all the places where the nations that you are driving out worship their gods--on the high mountains, on the hills, and under every green tree. | 2Destroy completely all the places where the nations you are dispossessing have served their gods—atop the high mountains, on the hills, and under every green tree. |
| 3Tear down their altars, smash their sacred pillars, burn their Asherah poles, cut down the carved images of their gods, and wipe out their names from every place. | 3Tear down their altars, smash their sacred pillars, burn up their Asherah poles, cut down the idols of their gods, and wipe out their names from every place. |
| 4Don't worship the LORD your God this way. | 4You shall not worship the LORD your God in this way. |
| 5Instead, turn to the place the LORD your God chooses from all your tribes to put his name for his dwelling and go there. | 5Instead, you must seek the place the LORD your God will choose from among all your tribes to establish as a dwelling for His Name, and there you must go. |
| 6You are to bring there your burnt offerings and sacrifices, your tenths and personal contributions, your vow offerings and freewill offerings, and the firstborn of your herds and flocks. | 6To that place you are to bring your burnt offerings and sacrifices, your tithes and heave offerings, your vow offerings and freewill offerings, as well as the firstborn of your herds and flocks. |
| 7You will eat there in the presence of the LORD your God and rejoice with your household in everything you do, because the LORD your God has blessed you. | 7There, in the presence of the LORD your God, you and your households shall eat and rejoice in all you do, because the LORD your God has blessed you. |
| 8"You are not to do as we are doing here today; everyone is doing whatever seems right in his own sight. | 8You are not to do as we are doing here today, where everyone does what seems right in his own eyes. |
| 9Indeed, you have not yet come into the resting place and the inheritance the LORD your God is giving you. | 9For you have not yet come to the resting place and the inheritance that the LORD your God is giving you. |
| 10When you cross the Jordan and live in the land the LORD your God is giving you to inherit, and he gives you rest from all the enemies around you and you live in security, | 10When you cross the Jordan and live in the land that the LORD your God is giving you as an inheritance, and He gives you rest from all the enemies around you and you dwell securely, |
| 11then the LORD your God will choose the place to have his name dwell. Bring there everything I command you: your burnt offerings, sacrifices, offerings of the tenth, personal contributions, and all your choice offerings you vow to the LORD. | 11then the LORD your God will choose a dwelling for His Name. And there you are to bring everything I command you: your burnt offerings and sacrifices, your tithes and special gifts, and all the choice offerings you vow to the LORD. |
| 12You will rejoice before the LORD your God--you, your sons and daughters, your male and female slaves, and the Levite who is within your city gates, since he has no portion or inheritance among you. | 12And you shall rejoice before the LORD your God—you, your sons and daughters, your menservants and maidservants, and the Levite within your gates, since he has no portion or inheritance among you. |
| 13Be careful not to offer your burnt offerings in all the sacred places you see. | 13Be careful not to offer your burnt offerings in just any place you see; |
| 14You must offer your burnt offerings only in the place the LORD chooses in one of your tribes, and there you must do everything I command you. | 14you must offer them only in the place the LORD will choose in one of your tribal territories, and there you shall do all that I command you. |
| 15"But whenever you want, you may slaughter and eat meat within any of your city gates, according to the blessing the LORD your God has given you. Those who are clean or unclean may eat it, as they would a gazelle or deer, | 15But whenever you want, you may slaughter and eat meat within any of your gates, according to the blessing the LORD your God has given you. Both the ceremonially clean and unclean may eat it as they would a gazelle or deer, |
| 16but you must not eat the blood; pour it on the ground like water. | 16but you must not eat the blood; pour it on the ground like water. |
| 17Within your city gates you may not eat the tenth of your grain, new wine, or fresh oil; the firstborn of your herd or flock; any of your vow offerings that you pledge; your freewill offerings; or your personal contributions. | 17Within your gates you must not eat the tithe of your grain or new wine or oil, the firstborn of your herds or flocks, any of the offerings that you have vowed to give, or your freewill offerings or special gifts. |
| 18You are to eat them in the presence of the LORD your God at the place the LORD your God chooses--you, your son and daughter, your male and female slave, and the Levite who is within your city gates. Rejoice before the LORD your God in everything you do, | 18Instead, you must eat them in the presence of the LORD your God at the place the LORD your God will choose—you, your sons and daughters, your menservants and maidservants, and the Levite within your gates. Rejoice before the LORD your God in all you do, |
| 19and be careful not to neglect the Levite, as long as you live in your land. | 19and be careful not to neglect the Levites as long as you live in your land. |
| 20"When the LORD your God enlarges your territory as he has promised you, and you say, 'I want to eat meat' because you have a strong desire to eat meat, you may eat it whenever you want. | 20When the LORD your God expands your territory as He has promised, and you crave meat and say, “I want to eat meat,” you may eat it whenever you want. |
| 21If the place where the LORD your God chooses to put his name is too far from you, you may slaughter any of your herd or flock he has given you, as I have commanded you, and you may eat it within your city gates whenever you want. | 21If the place where the LORD your God chooses to put His Name is too far from you, then you may slaughter any of the herd or flock He has given you, as I have commanded you, and you may eat it within your gates whenever you want. |
| 22Indeed, you may eat it as the gazelle and deer are eaten; both the clean and the unclean may eat it. | 22Indeed, you may eat it as you would eat a gazelle or deer; both the ceremonially unclean and the clean may eat it. |
| 23But don't eat the blood, since the blood is the life, and you must not eat the life with the meat. | 23Only be sure not to eat the blood, because the blood is the life, and you must not eat the life with the meat. |
| 24Do not eat blood; pour it on the ground like water. | 24You must not eat the blood; pour it on the ground like water. |
| 25Do not eat it, so that you and your children after you will prosper, because you will be doing what is right in the LORD's sight. | 25Do not eat it, so that it may go well with you and your children after you, because you will be doing what is right in the eyes of the LORD. |
| 26"But you are to take the holy offerings you have and your vow offerings and go to the place the LORD chooses. | 26But you are to take your holy things and your vow offerings and go to the place the LORD will choose. |
| 27Present the meat and blood of your burnt offerings on the altar of the LORD your God. The blood of your other sacrifices is to be poured out beside the altar of the LORD your God, but you may eat the meat. | 27Present the meat and blood of your burnt offerings on the altar of the LORD your God. The blood of your other sacrifices must be poured out beside the altar of the LORD your God, but you may eat the meat. |
| 28Be careful to obey all these things I command you, so that you and your children after you may prosper forever, because you will be doing what is good and right in the sight of the LORD your God. | 28Be careful to obey all these things I command you, so that it may always go well with you and your children after you, because you will be doing what is good and right in the eyes of the LORD your God. |
| 29"When the LORD your God annihilates the nations before you, which you are entering to take possession of, and you drive them out and live in their land, | 29When the LORD your God cuts off before you the nations you are entering to dispossess, and you drive them out and live in their land, |
| 30be careful not to be ensnared by their ways after they have been destroyed before you. Do not inquire about their gods, asking, 'How did these nations worship their gods? I'll also do the same.' | 30be careful not to be ensnared by their ways after they have been destroyed before you. Do not inquire about their gods, asking, “How do these nations serve their gods? I will do likewise.” |
| 31You must not do the same to the LORD your God, because they practice every detestable act, which the LORD hates, for their gods. They even burn their sons and daughters in the fire to their gods. | 31You must not worship the LORD your God in this way, because they practice for their gods every abomination which the LORD hates. They even burn their sons and daughters in the fire as sacrifices to their gods. |
| 32Be careful to do everything I command you; do not add anything to it or take anything away from it. | 32See that you do everything I command you; do not add to it or subtract from it. |
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