NET Bible

New American Standard Bible 1995

1These are the statutes and ordinances you must be careful to obey as long as you live in the land the LORD, the God of your ancestors, has given you to possess.

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 as long as you live on the earth.

2You must by all means destroy all the places where the nations you are about to dispossess worship their gods--on the high mountains and hills and under every leafy tree.

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

3You must tear down their altars, shatter their sacred pillars, burn up their sacred Asherah poles, and cut down the images of their gods; you must eliminate their very memory from that place.

3"You 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 obliterate their name from that place.

4You must not worship the LORD your God the way they worship.

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

5But you must seek only the place he chooses from all your tribes to establish his name as his place of residence, and you must go there.

5"But 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.

6And there you must take your burnt offerings, your sacrifices, your tithes, the personal offerings you have prepared, your votive offerings, your freewill offerings, and the firstborn of your herds and flocks.

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

7Both you and your families must feast there before the LORD your God and rejoice in all the output of your labor with which he has blessed you.

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

8You must not do like we are doing here today, with everyone doing what seems best to him,

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

9for you have not yet come to the final stop and inheritance the LORD your God is giving you.

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

10When you do go across the Jordan River and settle in the land he is granting you as an inheritance and you find relief from all the enemies who surround you, you will live in safety.

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

11Then you must come to the place the LORD your God chooses for his name to reside, bringing everything I am commanding you--your burnt offerings, sacrifices, tithes, the personal offerings you have prepared, and all your choice votive offerings which you devote to him.

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.

12You shall rejoice in the presence of the LORD your God, along with your sons, daughters, male and female servants, and the Levites in your villages (since they have no allotment or inheritance with you).

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

13Make sure you do not offer burnt offerings in any place you wish,

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

14for you may do so only in the place the LORD chooses in one of your tribal areas--there you may do everything I am commanding you.

14but 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.

15On the other hand, you may slaughter and eat meat as you please when the LORD your God blesses you in all your villages. Both the ritually pure and impure may eat it, whether it is a gazelle or an ibex.

15"However, 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 the gazelle and the deer.

16However, you must not eat blood--pour it out on the ground like water.

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

17You will not be allowed to eat in your villages your tithe of grain, new wine, olive oil, the firstborn of your herd and flock, any votive offerings you have vowed, or your freewill and personal offerings.

17"You 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.

18Only in the presence of the LORD your God may you eat these, in the place he chooses. This applies to you, your son, your daughter, your male and female servants, and the Levites in your villages. In that place you will rejoice before the LORD your God in all the output of your labor.

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

19Be careful not to overlook the Levites as long as you live in the land.

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

20When the LORD your God extends your borders as he said he would do and you say, "I want to eat meat just as I please," you may do so as you wish.

20"When the LORD your God extends your border as 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.

21If the place he chooses to locate his name is too far for you, you may slaughter any of your herd and flock he has given you just as I have stipulated; you may eat them in your villages just as you wish.

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.

22Like you eat the gazelle or ibex, so you may eat these; the ritually impure and pure alike may eat them.

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.

23However, by no means eat the blood, for the blood is life itself--you must not eat the life with the meat!

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

24You must not eat it! You must pour it out on the ground like water.

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

25You must not eat it so that it may go well with you and your children after you; you will be doing what is right in the LORD's sight.

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

26Only the holy things and votive offerings that belong to you, you must pick up and take to the place the LORD will choose.

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

27You must offer your burnt offerings, both meat and blood, on the altar of the LORD your God; the blood of your other sacrifices you must pour out on his altar while you eat the meat.

27"And you 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 you shall eat the flesh.

28Pay careful attention to all these things I am commanding you so that it may always go well with you and your children after you when you do what is good and right in the sight of the LORD your God.

28"Be careful to listen to all these words which I command you, so that it may be well with you and your sons after you forever, for you will be doing what is good and right in the sight of the LORD your God.

29When the LORD your God eliminates the nations from the place where you are headed and you dispossess them, you will settle down in their land.

29"When the LORD your God cuts off before you the nations which you are going in to dispossess, and you dispossess them and dwell in their land,

30After they have been destroyed from your presence, be careful not to be ensnared like they are; do not pursue their gods and say, "How do these nations serve their gods? I will do the same."

30beware that you are not ensnared to follow them, after they are destroyed before you, and that you do not inquire after their gods, saying, 'How do these nations serve their gods, that I also may do likewise?'

31You must not worship the LORD your God the way they do! For everything that is abhorrent to him, everything he hates, they have done when worshiping their gods. They even burn up their sons and daughters before their gods!

31"You shall not behave thus toward the LORD your God, for every abominable act which the LORD hates they have done for their gods; for they even burn their sons and daughters in the fire to their gods.

32You must be careful to do everything I am commanding you. Do not add to it or subtract from it!

32"Whatever I command you, you shall be careful to do; you shall not add to nor take away from it.

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