One Place for Worship 1 AKJV These are the statutes and judgments, which you shall observe to do in the land, which the LORD God of your fathers gives you to possess it, all the days that you live on the earth. BSB BSB: These 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.
2 AKJV You shall utterly destroy all the places, wherein the nations which you shall possess served their gods, on the high mountains, and on the hills, and under every green tree: BSB BSB: Destroy 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.
3 AKJV And you shall overthrow their altars, and break their pillars, and burn their groves with fire; and you shall hew down the graven images of their gods, and destroy the names of them out of that place. BSB BSB: Tear 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.
4 AKJV You shall not do so to the LORD your God. BSB BSB: You shall not worship the LORD your God in this way.
5 AKJV But to the place which the LORD your God shall choose out of all your tribes to put his name there, even to his habitation shall you seek, and thither you shall come: BSB BSB: Instead, 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.
6 AKJV And thither you shall bring your burnt offerings, and your sacrifices, and your tithes, and heave offerings of your hand, and your vows, and your freewill offerings, and the firstborn of your herds and of your flocks: BSB BSB: To 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.
7 AKJV And there you shall eat before the LORD your God, and you shall rejoice in all that you put your hand to, you and your households, wherein the LORD your God has blessed you. BSB BSB: There, 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 AKJV You shall not do after all the things that we do here this day, every man whatever is right in his own eyes. BSB BSB: You are not to do as we are doing here today, where everyone does what seems right in his own eyes.
9 AKJV For you are not as yet come to the rest and to the inheritance, which the LORD your God gives you. BSB BSB: For you have not yet come to the resting place and the inheritance that the LORD your God is giving you.
10 AKJV But when you go over Jordan, and dwell in the land which the LORD your God gives you to inherit, and when he gives you rest from all your enemies round about, so that you dwell in safety; BSB BSB: When 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,
11 AKJV Then there shall be a place which the LORD your God shall choose to cause his name to dwell there; thither shall you bring all that I command you; your burnt offerings, and your sacrifices, your tithes, and the heave offering of your hand, and all your choice vows which you vow to the LORD: BSB BSB: then 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.
12 AKJV And you shall rejoice before the LORD your God, you, and your sons, and your daughters, and your menservants, and your maidservants, and the Levite that is within your gates; for as much as he has no part nor inheritance with you. BSB BSB: And 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.
13 AKJV Take heed to yourself that you offer not your burnt offerings in every place that you see: BSB BSB: Be careful not to offer your burnt offerings in just any place you see;
14 AKJV But in the place which the LORD shall choose in one of your tribes, there you shall offer your burnt offerings, and there you shall do all that I command you. BSB BSB: you 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 AKJV Notwithstanding you may kill and eat flesh in all your gates, whatever your soul lusts after, according to the blessing of the LORD your God which he has given you: the unclean and the clean may eat thereof, as of the roebuck, and as of the hart. BSB BSB: But 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,
16 AKJV Only you shall not eat the blood; you shall pour it on the earth as water. BSB BSB: but you must not eat the blood; pour it on the ground like water.
17 AKJV You may not eat within your gates the tithe of your corn, or of your wine, or of your oil, or the firstborn of your herds or of your flock, nor any of your vows which you vow, nor your freewill offerings, or heave offering of your hand: BSB BSB: Within 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.
18 AKJV But you must eat them before the LORD your God in the place which the LORD your God shall choose, you, and your son, and your daughter, and your manservant, and your maidservant, and the Levite that is within your gates: and you shall rejoice before the LORD your God in all that you put your hands to. BSB BSB: Instead, 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,
19 AKJV Take heed to yourself that you forsake not the Levite as long as you live on the earth. BSB BSB: and be careful not to neglect the Levites as long as you live in your land.
20 AKJV When the LORD your God shall enlarge your border, as he has promised you, and you shall say, I will eat flesh, because your soul longs to eat flesh; you may eat flesh, whatever your soul lusts after. BSB BSB: When 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.
21 AKJV If the place which the LORD your God has chosen to put his name there be too far from you, then you shall kill of your herd and of your flock, which the LORD has given you, as I have commanded you, and you shall eat in your gates whatever your soul lusts after. BSB BSB: If 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.
22 AKJV Even as the roebuck and the hart is eaten, so you shall eat them: the unclean and the clean shall eat of them alike. BSB BSB: Indeed, you may eat it as you would eat a gazelle or deer; both the ceremonially unclean and the clean may eat it.
23 AKJV Only be sure that you eat not the blood: for the blood is the life; and you may not eat the life with the flesh. BSB BSB: Only be sure not to eat the blood, because the blood is the life, and you must not eat the life with the meat.
24 AKJV You shall not eat it; you shall pour it on the earth as water. BSB BSB: You must not eat the blood; pour it on the ground like water.
25 AKJV You shall not eat it; that it may go well with you, and with your children after you, when you shall do that which is right in the sight of the LORD. BSB BSB: Do 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 AKJV Only your holy things which you have, and your vows, you shall take, and go to the place which the LORD shall choose: BSB BSB: But you are to take your holy things and your vow offerings and go to the place the LORD will choose.
27 AKJV 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. BSB BSB: Present 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.
28 AKJV Observe and hear all these words which I command you, that it may go well with you, and with your children after you for ever, when you do that which is good and right in the sight of the LORD your God. BSB BSB: Be 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.
A Warning against Idolatry (Deuteronomy 4:15–31; Ezekiel 6:1–7)
29 AKJV When the LORD your God shall cut off the nations from before you, where you go to possess them, and you succeed them, and dwell in their land; BSB BSB: When 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,
30 AKJV Take heed to yourself that you be not snared by following them, after that they be destroyed from before you; and that you inquire not after their gods, saying, How did these nations serve their gods? even so will I do likewise. BSB BSB: be 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.”
32 AKJV What thing soever I command you, observe to do it: you shall not add thereto, nor diminish from it. BSB BSB: See that you do everything I command you; do not add to it or subtract from it.