Be careful that you don’t offer your burnt offerings in every place that you see; but in the place which Yahweh chooses in one of your tribes, there you shall offer your burnt offerings, and there you shall do all that I command you.
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Deuteronomy 12:13-14 sits inside this longer paragraph.
These are the statutes and the ordinances which you shall observe to do in the land which Yahweh, the God of your fathers, has given you to possess all the days that you live on the earth. You shall surely destroy all the places in which the nations that you shall dispossess served their gods: on the high mountains, and on the hills, and under every green tree. You shall break down their altars, dash their pillars in pieces, and burn their Asherah poles with fire. You shall cut down the engraved images of their gods. You shall destroy their name out of that place. You shall not do so to Yahweh your God. But to the place which Yahweh your God shall choose out of all your tribes, to put his name there, you shall seek his habitation, and you shall come there. You shall bring your burnt offerings, your sacrifices, your tithes, the wave offering of your hand, your vows, your free will offerings, and the firstborn of your herd and of your flock there. There you shall eat before Yahweh your God, and you shall rejoice in all that you put your hand to, you and your households, in which Yahweh your God has blessed you. You shall not do all the things that we do here today, every man whatever is right in his own eyes; for you haven’t yet come to the rest and to the inheritance which Yahweh your God gives you. But when you go over the Jordan and dwell in the land which Yahweh your God causes you to inherit, and he gives you rest from all your enemies around you, so that you dwell in safety, then it shall happen that to the place which Yahweh your God shall choose, to cause his name to dwell there, there you shall bring all that I command you: your burnt offerings, your sacrifices, your tithes, the wave offering of your hand, and all your choice vows which you vow to Yahweh. You shall rejoice before Yahweh your God—you, and your sons, your daughters, your male servants, your female servants, and the Levite who is within your gates, because he has no portion nor inheritance with you. Be careful that you don’t offer your burnt offerings in every place that you see; but in the place which Yahweh chooses in one of your tribes, there you shall offer your burnt offerings, and there you shall do all that I command you.
Parallel Translations
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Be careful that you don’t offer your burnt offerings in every place that you see;
but in the place which Yahweh chooses in one of your tribes, there you shall offer your burnt offerings, and there you shall do all that I command you.
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Take heed to thyself that thou offer not thy burnt offerings in every place that thou seest:
But in the place which the LORD shall choose in one of thy tribes, there thou shalt offer thy burnt offerings, and there thou shalt do all that I command thee.
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Take heed to thyself that thou offer not thy burnt-offerings in every place that thou seest;
but in the place which the LORD shall choose in one of thy tribes, there thou shalt offer thy burnt-offerings, and there thou shalt do all that I command thee.
Examined in Scripture Analysis
Commandments (1)
The laws of the Torah, each cited and shown as a primary source.
Cross-references (12)
- Deuteronomy 12:5 (v14) But to the place which Yahweh your God shall choose out of all your tribes, to put his name there, you shall seek his habitation, and you…
- Deuteronomy 12:11 (v14) then it shall happen that to the place which Yahweh your God shall choose, to cause his name to dwell there, there you shall bring all that…
- 2 Corinthians 5:19 (v14) namely, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to himself, not reckoning to them their trespasses, and having committed to us the…
- Leviticus 17:2-5 (v13) “Speak to Aaron, and to his sons, and to all the children of Israel, and say to them, ‘This is the thing which Yahweh has commanded:…
- Deuteronomy 12:6 (v13) You shall bring your burnt offerings, your sacrifices, your tithes, the wave offering of your hand, your vows, your free will offerings,…
Show all 12 cross-references
- 1 Kings 12:28-32 (v13) So the king took counsel, and made two calves of gold; and he said to them, “It is too much for you to go up to Jerusalem. Look and behold…
- 1 Kings 15:34 (v13) He did that which was evil in Yahweh’s sight, and walked in the way of Jeroboam, and in his sin with which he made Israel to sin.
- 2 Chronicles 15:17 (v13) But the high places were not taken away out of Israel; nevertheless the heart of Asa was perfect all his days.
- Psalms 5:7 (v14) But as for me, in the abundance of your loving kindness I will come into your house. I will bow toward your holy temple in reverence of you.
- Psalms 9:11 (v14) Sing praises to Yahweh, who dwells in Zion, and declare among the people what he has done.
- Hebrews 10:19-22 (v14) Having therefore, brothers, boldness to enter into the holy place by the blood of Jesus, by the way which he dedicated for us, a new and…
- Hebrews 13:15 (v14) Through him, then, let’s offer up a sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of lips which proclaim allegiance to his…
Cross-references from openbible.info (CC BY 4.0)
Explain this passage (12 sources)
Historical commentary, presented as a primary source — not an endorsement.
Private notes
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Geneva Bible translators 1599 · Public Domain On v14 As was declared ever by the placing of the…
As was declared ever by the placing of the Ark, as in Shiloh 243 years, or as some write more than 300 years, and in other places till the temple was built.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain On vv13–14 Deu 12:13 Take heed to thyself that thou offer…
Deu 12:13 Take heed to thyself that thou offer not thy burnt offerings in every place that thou seest:
Ver. 13. Take heed.] See Deu 11:16 Lev 17:4.
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain On v13 Nor the other things mentioned above, this one and…
Nor the other things mentioned above, this one and most eminent kind being put for all the rest, as is usual; for being all expressed before, it was needless to repeat them again.
In every place that thou seest, to wit, with complacency and approbation, which thou thinkest very fit and proper for such a work, as one might possibly judge of some high places, or groves, or gardens.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain On vv13–14 Take heed to thyself, that thou offer not thy…
Take heed to thyself, that thou offer not thy burnt offerings,.... And so any other, this is put for all the rest:
in every place that thou seest; which might take with their fancy, seem pleasant, and so a proper and suitable place to sacrifice in, as on high places, and under green trees; but they were not to indulge their own fancies and imaginations, or follow the customs of others, but keep to the rules prescribed them by the Lord, and to the place fixed by him for his worship.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain On v13 Thy burnt-offerings - Nor the other things mentioned above,…
Thy burnt-offerings - Nor the other things mentioned above, this one and most eminent kind being put for all the rest.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain On v14 Verse 14. The place which the Lord shall choose]…
Verse 14. The place which the Lord shall choose] To prevent idolatry and bring about a perfect uniformity in the Divine worship, which at that time was essentially necessary; because every rite and ceremony had a determinate meaning, and pointed out the good things which were to come, therefore one place must be established where those rites and ceremonies should be carefully and punctually observed. Had it not been so, every man would have formed his worship according to his own mind, and the whole beauty and importance of the grand representative system would have been destroyed, and the Messiah and the glories of his kingdom could not have been seen through the medium of the Jewish ritual. For uniformity in every part of the Divine worship the same necessity does not now exist; because that which was typified is come, and the shadows have all fled away. Yet, when it can be obtained, how desirable is it that all sincere Christians should with one mouth, as well as with one heart, glorify their common Lord and Saviour!
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Joseph Benson 1811 · Public Domain On v13 Deu 12:13. Thy burnt-offerings — Nor the other things…
Deu 12:13. Thy burnt-offerings — Nor the other things mentioned above, this one and most eminent kind being put for all the rest.
Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary 1859 · Public Domain On v13 See. On the high places, &c., as the heathens…
See. On the high places, &c., as the heathens did, (ver. 2,) or in any other place but that which God appointed.
George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain On v13 13–19. Third Statement of the Law of the One…
13–19. Third Statement of the Law of the One Sanctuary
In the Sg. address and with phrases characteristic of that form. In substance much the same as the two previous statements, the zebaḥim being curiously omitted from the list of offerings. Deu_12:15 f. are clearly a later insertion. We see from this statement how a law tended in the hands of the deuteronomists to grow both in content and form.
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Deu_12:13. Take heed to thyself] See on Deu_6:12.
burnt offerings] ‘Olôth alone without zebaḥim. This may have been the original form of the law. Contrast Deu_12:6; Deu_12:11.
in every place that thou seest] Peculiar to this statement: i.e. every sacred place used as such by the Canaanites on the conspicuous positions described in Deu_12:2. Thou seest, cp. Eze_20:28, when I had brought them into the land … then they saw (or looked out for) every high hill and every thick tree and offered there, etc.
Deu_12:14. See on Deu_12:5 : here in one of thy tribes instead of out of all thy tribes.
Deu_12:15-16. Notwithstanding … Only] Both = Heb. raḳ, used to introduce exceptions or qualifications to the laws, 10 times, and 10 more in the rest of the book (see on Deu_10:15). On the contents of these verses see Deu_12:20-25 which they anticipate, disturbing at the same time the list of offerings begun in Deu_12:13-14 and continued in Deu_12:17. The immediate connection of Deu_12:17 with Deu_12:14 is clear. On these grounds Deu_12:15-16 are generally taken as a later insertion. Note, too, the Pl. ye shall not eat in 16. The Pl. does not occur in the rest of this statement of the law and may well be due to the hand that has made this addition; as so many of these sporadic changes of address are found in editorial additions. The LXX confirms the Pl. here: the Sam. Sg. may be due to harmonising.
Deu_12:17. Direct continuation of Deu_12:13-14, completing the list of offerings to be brought to the one altar. On the contents see on Deu_12:6; Deu_12:11 : the phraseology is however, characteristic of the Sg. passages.
Thou mayest not] Heb., lit. thou shalt not be able: in the sense thou must or darest not only in Sg. passages: here, Deu_16:5, Deu_17:15, Deu_22:3, or with he, Deu_21:16; Deu_22:19; Deu_22:29; Deu_24:4.
within thy gates] Thy homestead or town of residence: used almost exclusively with Sg. (Deu_5:14, Deu_12:17 f., 21, Deu_14:21; Deu_14:27-29, Deu_15:22, Deu_16:11; Deu_16:14, Deu_17:8, Deu_24:14, Deu_26:12, Deu_31:12, cp. Deu_28:57). Only one Pl. passage has it, Deu_12:12.
Deu_12:18. See on Deu_12:5; Deu_12:7; Deu_12:12.
Deu_12:19. Take heed, etc.] See on Deu_6:12.
thou forsake not the Levite, etc.] So Deu_14:27.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain On v13 (13, 14) Take heed to thyself that thou offer…
(13, 14) Take heed to thyself that thou offer not thy burnt offerings in every place that thou seest: But in the place which the Lord shall choose.—An attempt is made by some modern writers to establish a contradiction between this precept and the one in Exo_20:24 : “In all places where I record my name I will come unto thee, and I will bless thee.” But they are not really contradictory. The choice of Jehovah makes the place of acceptance. He need not always choose the same spot-Either this law in Deuteronomy was written by Moses or it was not. If it was, it must be taken in the same sense as Exo_20:24. If it was the work of later times, the writer must have known perfectly that Jehovah had varied His choice from time to time, and therefore the injunction must still have the same sense. Rashi remarks upon the words “Take heed that thou offer not . . . in every place that thou seest”—i.e. which comes into thy mind—“but thou must offer at the command of a prophet, as, for instance, Elijah on Mount Carmel.” It seems clear that the general principle inculcated here is the same with that of Exodus 20 and of Leviticus 17. The choice of Jehovah makes the place of worship. Details may safely be left to the direction of the authorised Divine representatives at any given time. If the Jews themselves saw no difficulty or discrepancy in these Scriptures, is it any proof of wisdom for us to make difficulties? Do we not rather prove the imperfection of our own understanding?
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain On v13 Vers. 13-16. They were to beware of offering sacrifice…
Vers. 13-16. They were to beware of offering sacrifice in any place that might seem to them best; their offerings were to be presented only in that place which God should choose. But this did not imply that they were not to kill and eat in their own abodes whatever they desired for food, according to the blessing of Jehovah their God. Only they were to abstain from eating of blood (cf. Gen_9:4; Lev_7:26) that they were to pour on the earth as if it were water. Burnt offering; this is named instar omnium, as the principal offering. Whatsoever thy soul lusteth after. To "lust," in old English, means simply to will, choose, desire; it is the same word as "list," or, as it is sometimes spelt, "lest," and does not, as now, imply anything evil. As of the roebuck, and as of the hart; probably the gazelle and fallow deer. As these were animals that could not be offered in sacrifice, the distinction between clean and unclean, on the part of the eaters, did not come into consideration.
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On v13 General Information:
General Information:
Moses continues speaking to the people of Israel.
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Pay attention to yourself
"Be careful"
every place that you see
"any place that pleases you" or "wherever you want"
but it is at the place that Yahweh will choose
The burnt offerings are to be made at the tabernacle. Yahweh himself would choose where the tabernacle would be located.
translationWords
burnt offering
tribe
command
unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.