1  Therefore thou shalt love YHWH thy God, and keep His charge, and His statutes, and His ordinances, and His commandments, alway.

1  “And so, love the Lord your God, and observe his precepts and ceremonies, his judgments and commandments, at all times.

1  THEREFORE you shall love the LORD your God, and keep his precepts, his statutes, his judgments, and his commandments, always.

2  And know ye this day; for I speak not with your children that have not known, and that have not seen the chastisement of YHWH your God, His greatness, His mighty hand, and His outstretched arm,

2  And ye shall know this day; for I speak not to your children, who know not and have not seen the discipline of the Lord thy God, and his wonderful works, and his strong hand, and his high arm,

2  Acknowledge, on this day, the things that your sons did not know. For they did not see the chastisements of the Lord your God, his great acts, and powerful hand, and outstretched arm,

3  and His signs, and His works, which He did in the midst of Egypt unto Pharaoh the king of Egypt, and unto all his land;

3  the signs and works that he did in the midst of Egypt, to Pharaoh, the king, and to his entire land,

4  and what He did unto the army of Egypt, unto their horses, and to their chariots; how He made the water of the Red Sea to overflow them as they pursued after you, and how YHWH hath destroyed them unto this day;

4  and to the entire army of the Egyptians, and to their horses and chariots: how the waters of the Red Sea covered them as they were pursuing you, and how the Lord wiped them away, even to the present day;

5  and what He did unto you in the wilderness, until ye came unto this place;

5  and all the things which he did to you in the wilderness until ye came into this place;

5  and the things that he accomplished for you in the wilderness, until you arrived at this place;

6  and what He did unto Dathan and Abiram, the sons of Eliab, the son of Reuben; how the earth opened her mouth, and swallowed them up, and their households, and their tents, and every living substance that followed them, in the midst of all Israel;

6  and all the things that he did to Dathan and Abiron the sons of Eliab the son of Ruben, whom the earth opening her mouth swallowed up, and their houses, and their tents, and all their substance that was with them, in the midst of all Israel

6  and to Dathan and Abiram, sons of Eliab, who was the son of Reuben, those whom the earth, opening its mouth, engulfed with their households and tents, and with their entire substance which they had in the midst of Israel.

7  but your eyes have seen all the great work of YHWH which He did.

7  for your eyes have seen all the mighty works of the Lord, which he wrought among you to-day.

7  Your eyes have seen all the great works of the Lord, which he has accomplished,

8  Therefore shall ye keep all the commandment which I command thee this day, that ye may be strong, and go in and possess the land, whither ye go over to possess it;

8  And ye shall keep all his commandments, as many as I command thee to-day, that ye may live, and be multiplied, and that ye may go in and inherit the land, into which ye go across Jordan to inherit it

8  so that you would keep all his commandments, which I entrust to you this day, and so that you would be able to enter and possess the land, toward which you are advancing,

9  and that ye may prolong your days upon the land, which YHWH swore unto your fathers to give unto them and to their seed, a land flowing with milk and honey.

9  that ye may live long upon the land, which the Lord sware to your fathers to give to them, and to their seed after them, a land flowing with milk and honey.

9  and so that you may live, for a long time, in the land which the Lord promised under oath to your fathers, and to their offspring, a land flowing with milk and honey.

10  For the land, whither thou goest in to possess it, is not as the land of Egypt, from whence ye came out, where thou didst sow thy seed, and didst water it with thy foot, as a garden of herbs;

10  For the land, which you shall enter and possess, is not like the land of Egypt, from which you departed, where, when seed has been sown, waters are brought in by irrigation, in the manner of gardens.

10  For the land into which you are entering to possess it is not like the land of Egypt, from which you came out, where you sowed your seed and watered it with your feet, like a vegetable garden;

11  but the land, whither ye go over to possess it, is a land of hills and valleys, and drinketh water as the rain of heaven cometh down;

11  but the land into which thou goest to inherit it, is a land of mountains and plains; it shall drink water of the rain of heaven.

11  Rather, it has mountainous regions and plains, which lay waiting for rain from heaven.

12  a land which YHWH thy God careth for; the eyes of the YHWH thy God are always upon it, from the beginning of the year even unto the end of the year.

12  And the Lord your God always visits it, and his eyes are upon it, from the beginning of the year, all the way to its end.

13  And it shall come to pass, if ye shall hearken diligently unto My commandments which I command you this day, to love YHWH your God, and to serve Him with all your heart and with all your soul,

13  Now if ye will indeed hearken to all the commands which I charge thee this day, to love the Lord thy God, and to serve him with all thy heart, and with all thy soul,

13  So then, if you obey my commandments, which I am instructing to you this day, so that you love the Lord your God, and serve him with your whole heart and your whole soul,

14  that I will give the rain of your land in its season, the former rain and the latter rain, that thou mayest gather in thy corn, and thy wine, and thine oil.

14  then he shall give to thy land the early and latter rain in its season, and thou shalt bring in thy corn, and thy wine, and thine oil.

14  he will give to your land the early rain and the late rain, so that you may gather your grain, and your wine, and your oil,

15  And I will give grass in thy fields for thy cattle, and thou shalt eat and be satisfied.

15  and your hay from the fields in order to feed your cattle, and so that you yourselves may eat and be satisfied.

16  Take heed to yourselves, lest your heart be deceived, and ye turn aside, and serve other gods, and worship them;

16  take heed to thyself that thy heart be not puffed up, and ye transgress, and serve other gods, and worship them

16  Be careful, lest perhaps your heart may be deceived, and you might withdraw from the Lord, and serve strange gods, and adore them.

17  and the anger of YHWH be kindled against you, and He shut up the heaven, so that there shall be no rain, and the ground shall not yield her fruit; and ye perish quickly from off the good land which the YHWH giveth you.

17  and the Lord be angry with you, and restrain the heaven; and there shall not be rain, and the earth shall not yield its fruit, and ye shall perish quickly from off the good land, which the Lord has given you.

17  And the Lord, becoming angry, might close up heaven, so that the rain would not descend, nor would the earth produce her seedlings, and then you would quickly perish from the excellent land, which the Lord will give to you.

18  Therefore shall ye lay up these My words in your heart and in your soul; and ye shall bind them for a sign upon your hand, and they shall be for frontlets between your eyes.

18  And ye shall store these words in your heart and in your soul, and ye shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and it shall be fixed before your eyes.

18  Place these words of mine in your hearts and minds, and hang them as a sign on your hands, and arrange them between your eyes.

19  And ye shall teach them your children, talking of them, when thou sittest in thy house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up.

19  Teach your sons to meditate on them, when you sit in your house, and when you walk along the way, and when you lie down or rise up.

19  And you shall teach them to your children, that they may talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up.

20  And thou shalt write them upon the door-posts of thy house, and upon thy gates;

20  And ye shall write them on the lintels of your houses, and on your gates;

20  You shall write them upon the doorposts and the gates of your house,

21  that your days may be multiplied, and the days of your children, upon the land which YHWH swore unto your fathers to give them, as the days of the heavens above the earth.

21  so that your days may be multiplied, and the days of your sons, in the land which the Lord swore to your fathers, that he would give it to them for as long as heaven is suspended above the earth.

22  For if ye shall diligently keep all this commandment which I command you, to do it, to love YHWH your God, to walk in all His ways, and to cleave unto Him,

22  And it shall come to pass that if ye will indeed hearken to all these commands, which I charge thee to observe this day, to love the Lord our God, and to walk in all his ways, and to cleave close to him;

22  For if you shall diligently keep all these commandments which I command you this day, and do them, and love the LORD your God, and walk in all his ways, and cleave to him;

23  then will YHWH drive out all these nations from before you, and ye shall dispossess nations greater and mightier than yourselves.

23  then the Lord shall cast out all these nations before you, and ye shall inherit great nations and stronger than yourselves.

23  the Lord will scatter all these nations before your face, and you shall possess them, though they are greater and stronger than you.

24  Every place whereon the sole of your foot shall tread shall be yours: from the wilderness, and Lebanon, from the river, the river Euphrates, even unto the hinder sea shall be your border.

25  There shall no man be able to stand against you: YHWH your God shall lay the fear of you and the dread of you upon all the land that ye shall tread upon, as He hath spoken unto you.

25  No one shall stand before you; and the Lord your God will put the fear of you and the dread of you on the face of all the land, on which ye shall tread, as he told you.

25  No one will stand against you. The Lord your God will spread the terror and dread of you over all the land upon which you shall tread, just as he has spoken to you.

26  Behold, I set before you this day a blessing and a curse

27  the blessing, if ye shall hearken unto the commandments of YHWH your God, which I command you this day;

27  It will be a blessing, if you obey the commandments of the Lord your God, which I am instructing to you this day.

27  Blessings, if you obey the commandments of the LORD your God which I am commanding you this day

28  and the curse, if ye shall not hearken unto the commandments of YHWH your God, but turn aside out of the way which I command you this day, to go after other gods, which ye have not known.

28  It will be a curse, if you do not obey the commandments of the Lord your God, but instead you withdraw from the way, which I am revealing to you now, and you walk after foreign gods that you have not known.

29  And it shall come to pass, when YHWH thy God shall bring thee into the land whither thou goest to possess it, that thou shalt set the blessing upon mount Gerizim, and the curse upon mount Ebal.

29  Yet truly, when the Lord your God will have led you into the land, to which you are traveling for a habitation, you shall place the blessing upon Mount Gerizim, the curse upon Mount Ebal,

30  Are they not beyond the Jordan, behind the way of the going down of the sun, in the land of the Canaanites that dwell in the Arabah, over against Gilgal, beside the terebinths of Moreh?

30  Lo! are not these beyond Jordan, behind, westward in the land of Chanaan, which lies westward near Golgol, by the high oak?

30  which are across the Jordan, behind the way which slopes toward the setting of the sun, in the land of the Canaanite, who lives in the plains opposite Gilgal, which is near the valley extending toward and entering a distant place.

31  For ye are to pass over the Jordan to go in to possess the land which YHWH your God giveth you, and ye shall possess it, and dwell therein.

32  And ye shall observe to do all the statutes and the ordinances which I set before you this day.

32  And ye shall take heed to do all his ordinances, and these judgements, as many as I set before you to-day.

32  Therefore, see to it that you fulfill the ceremonies and judgments, which I am placing in your sight this day.”

12:1  These are the statutes and the ordinances, which ye shall observe to do in the land which YHWH, the God of thy fathers, hath given thee to possess it, all the days that ye live upon the earth.

1  And these are the ordinances and the judgements, which ye shall observe to do in the land, which the Lord God of your fathers gives you for an inheritance, all the days which ye live upon the land.

1  “These are the precepts and judgments which you must do in the land which the Lord, the God of your fathers, will give to you, so that you may possess it during all the days that you shall walk upon the soil.

12:2  Ye shall surely destroy all the places, wherein the nations that ye are to dispossess served their gods, upon the high mountains, and upon the hills, and under every leafy tree.

2  Overturn all the places where the nations, which you will possess, worshipped their gods on lofty mountains, and on hills, and under every leafy tree.

12:3  And ye shall break down their altars, and dash in pieces their pillars, and burn their Asherim with fire; and ye shall hew down the graven images of their gods; and ye shall destroy their name out of that place.

3  Scatter their altars and break their statues. Burn their sacred groves with fire and crush their idols. Abolish their names from those places.

3  And you shall tear down their altars and break their statues and burn their graven images with fire; and break the graven images of their gods, and destroy the names of them out of that place.

12:4  Ye shall not do so unto YHWH your God.

4  But you shall not do the same to the Lord your God.

4  You shall not do so to the LORD your God.

12:5  But unto the place which YHWH your God shall choose out of all your tribes to put His name there, even unto His habitation shall ye seek, and thither thou shalt come;

5  Instead, you shall approach the place which the Lord your God will choose among all your tribes, so that he may set his name there, and may dwell in that place.

12:6  and thither ye shall bring your burnt-offerings, and your sacrifices, and your tithes, and the offering of your hand, and your vows, and your freewill-offerings, and the firstlings of your herd and of your flock;

6  And ye shall carry thither your whole-burnt-offerings, and your sacrifices, and your first-fruits, and your vowed-offerings, and your freewill-offerings, and your offerings of thanksgiving, the first-born of your herds, and of your flocks.

6  And you shall offer, in that place, your holocausts and victims, the tithes and first-fruits of your hands, and your vows and gifts, the firstborn of the cattle and of the sheep.

12:7  and there ye shall eat before YHWH your God, and ye shall rejoice in all that ye put your hand unto, ye and your households, wherein the YHWH thy God hath blessed thee.

7  And you shall eat it there, in the sight of the Lord your God. And you shall rejoice in all the things to which you shall set your hand: you and your household, which the Lord your God has blessed for you.

12:8  Ye shall not do after all that we do here this day, every man whatsoever is right in his own eyes;

8  You shall not do there the things that we are doing here today: each one doing what seems good to himself.

8  You shall not do according to all the things that we are doing here this day, every man whatever is right in his own eyes.

12:9  for ye are not as yet come to the rest and to the inheritance, which YHWH your God giveth thee.

9  For hitherto ye have not arrived at the rest and the inheritance, which the Lord our God gives you.

9  For even until the present time, you did not arrive at the rest and the possession, which the Lord your God will give to you.

12:10  But when ye go over the Jordan, and dwell in the land which YHWH your God causeth you to inherit, and He giveth you rest from all your enemies round about, so that ye dwell in safety;

10  And ye shall go over Jordan, and shall dwell in the land, which the Lord our God takes as an inheritance for you; and he shall give you rest from all your enemies round about, and ye shall dwell safely.

10  You shall cross over the Jordan, and you shall live in the land which the Lord your God will give to you, so that you may have rest from all the surrounding enemies, and so that you may live without any fear,

12:11  then it shall come to pass that the place which YHWH your God shall choose to cause His name to dwell there, thither shall ye bring all that I command you: your burnt-offerings, and your sacrifices, your tithes, and the offering of your hand, and all your choice vows which ye vow unto the YHWH.

11  And there shall be a place which the Lord thy God shall choose for his name to be called there, thither shall ye bring all things that I order you to-day; your whole-burnt-offerings, and your sacrifices, and your tithes, and the first-fruits of your hands, and every choice gift of yours, whatsoever ye shall vow to the Lord your God.

12:12  And ye shall rejoice before YHWH your God, ye, and your sons, and your daughters, and your men-servants, and your maid- servants, and the Levite that is within your gates, forasmuch as he hath no portion nor inheritance with you.

12  In that place, you shall feast before the Lord your God: you, and your sons and daughters, your men and women servants, as well as the Levite who dwells in your cities. For he has no other portion or possession among you.

12  And you shall rejoice before the LORD your God, you and your sons and your daughters and your men-servants and your maidservants and the Levites that are living within your towns; because they have no portion nor inheritance with you.

12:13  Take heed to thyself that thou offer not thy burnt-offerings in every place that thou seest;

13  Take care that you do not offer your holocausts in any place that you see.

12:14  but in the place which YHWH shall choose in one of thy tribes, there thou shalt offer thy burnt-offerings, and there thou shalt do all that I command thee.

14  save in the place which the Lord thy God shall choose, in one of thy tribes, there shall ye offer your whole-burnt-offerings, and there shalt thou do all things whatsoever I charge thee this day.

14  Instead, you shall offer sacrifices in the place which the Lord will choose within one of your tribes, and you shall do whatsoever I instruct you.

12:15  Notwithstanding thou mayest kill and eat flesh within all thy gates, after all the desire of thy soul, according to the blessing of YHWH thy God which He hath given thee; the unclean and the clean may eat thereof, as of the gazelle, and as of the hart.

15  So, if you wish to eat, and if the eating of flesh pleases you, then kill and eat according to the blessing of the Lord your God, which he has given to you, in your cities: you may eat it whether it is unclean, that is, having blemish or defect, or whether it is clean, that is, whole and without blemish, of the kind which is permitted to be offered, such as the roe deer and the stag.

12:16  Only ye shall not eat the blood; thou shalt pour it out upon the earth as water.

16  Only the blood you shall not eat. Instead, you shall pour it upon the ground like water.

12:17  Thou mayest not eat within thy gates the tithe of thy corn, or of thy wine, or of thine oil, or the firstlings of thy herd or of thy flock, nor any of thy vows which thou vowest, nor thy freewill-offerings, nor the offering of thy hand;

17  You may not eat in your towns the tithes of your crops, and your wine and oil, the firstborn of your herds and your flocks, nor anything which you will vow, or which you will offer spontaneously, nor the first-fruits of your hands.

12:18  but thou shalt eat them before YHWH thy God in the place which the YHWH thy God shall choose, thou, and thy son, and thy daughter, and thy man-servant, and thy maid-servant, and the Levite that is within thy gates; and thou shalt rejoice before the LORD thy God in all that thou puttest thy hand unto.

18  But you shall eat these before the Lord your God, in the place which the Lord your God will choose: you, and your son, and your daughter, and your man servant and woman servant, and the Levite who dwells in your cities. And you shall rejoice and be refreshed in the sight of the Lord your God by all the things to which you will extend your hand.

18  But you must eat them before the LORD your God yearly at 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 towns; and you shall rejoice before the LORD your God in all that you put your hand to.

12:19  Take heed to thyself that thou forsake not the Levite as long as thou livest upon thy land.

19  Be careful, lest you abandon the Levite, at anytime while you are living in the land.

12:20  When YHWH thy God shall enlarge thy border, as He hath promised thee, and thou shalt say: 'I will eat flesh', because thy soul desireth to eat flesh; thou mayest eat flesh, after all the desire of thy soul.

20  When the Lord your God will have enlarged your borders, just as he has spoken to you, and when you would eat the flesh that your soul desires,

12:21  If the place which YHWH thy God shall choose to put His name there be too far from thee, then thou shalt kill of thy herd and of thy flock, which the YHWH hath given thee, as I have commanded thee, and thou shalt eat within thy gates, after all the desire of thy soul.

21  but if the place which the Lord your God will choose, so that his name may be there, is far away, you may kill, from your herds and your flocks which you will have, in the manner I have instructed to you, and you may eat in your towns, as it pleases you.

12:22  Howbeit as the gazelle and as the hart is eaten, so thou shalt eat thereof; the unclean and the clean may eat thereof alike.

22  Just as the roe deer and the stag may be eaten, so also may you eat these: you may eat both the clean and the unclean alike.

12:23  Only be stedfast in not eating the blood; for the blood is the life; and thou shalt not eat the life with the flesh.

23  Only beware of this: you may not eat the blood. For their blood is for the soul. And because of this, you must not eat the soul with the flesh.

12:24  Thou shalt not eat it; thou shalt pour it out upon the earth as water.

24  Instead, you shall pour it upon the ground like water,

12:25  Thou shalt not eat it; that it may go well with thee, and with thy children after thee, when thou shalt do that which is right in the eyes of YHWH.

25  so that it may be well with you, and with your sons after you, when you will do what is pleasing in the sight of the Lord.

25  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 your God.

12:26  Only thy holy things which thou hast, and thy vows, thou shalt take, and go unto the place which YHWH shall choose;

26  But thou shalt take thy holy things, if thou hast any, and thy vowed-offerings, and come to the place which the Lord thy God shall choose to have his name named upon it.

26  But the things that you have sanctified and vowed to the Lord, you shall take up and bring to the place which the Lord will choose.

12:27  and thou shalt offer thy burnt-offerings, the flesh and the blood, upon the altar of YHWH thy God; and the blood of thy sacrifices shall be poured out against the altar of the YHWH thy God, and thou shalt eat the flesh.

27  And thou shalt sacrifice thy whole-burnt-offerings, thou shalt offer the flesh upon the altar of the Lord thy God; but the blood of thy sacrifices thou shalt pour out at the foot of the altar of the Lord thy God, but the flesh thou shalt eat.

27  And you shall offer your oblations of flesh and of blood upon the altar of the Lord your God. You shall poor out the blood of your victims upon the altar. And you yourself shall eat the flesh.

12:28  Observe and hear all these words which I command thee, that it may go well with thee, and with thy children after thee for ever, when thou doest that which is good and right in the eyes of YHWH thy God.

28  Observe and heed all the things that I instruct to you, so that it may be well with you, and with your sons after you, continually, when you will do what is good and pleasing in the sight of the Lord your God.

12:29  When YHWH thy God shall cut off the nations from before thee, whither thou goest in to dispossess them, and thou dispossessest them, and dwellest in their land;

29  And if the Lord thy God shall utterly destroy the nations, to whom thou goest in thither to inherit their land, from before thee, and thou shalt inherit it, and dwell in their land;

29  When the Lord your God will have abolished before your face the nations, which you shall enter so as to possess them, and when you will possess them and live in their land,

12:30  take heed to thyself that thou be not ensnared to follow them, after that they are destroyed from before thee; and that thou inquire not after their gods, saying: 'How used these nations to serve their gods? even so will I do likewise.'

30  be careful that you do not imitate them, after they have been overturned at your arrival, and that you do not seek their ceremonies, saying: ‘Just as these nations have worshipped their gods, so also will I worship.’

12:31  Thou shalt not do so unto YHWH thy God; for every abomination to the YHWH, which He hateth, have they done unto their gods; for even their sons and their daughters do they burn in the fire to their gods.

31  You shall not act in like manner toward the Lord your God. For they have done to their gods all the abominations that the Lord spurns, offering their sons and daughters, and burning them with fire.

12:32  All this word which I command you, that shall ye observe to do; thou shalt not add thereto, nor diminish from it.

32  What I command to you, this only shall you do, for the Lord. You may neither add nor subtract anything.”