Deuteronomy 12:5

Contemporary English Version

Soon you will cross the Jordan, and the Lord will help you conquer your enemies and let you live in peace, there in the land he has given you. But after you are settled, life will be different. You must not offer sacrifices just anywhere you want to. Instead, the Lord will choose a place somewhere in Israel where you must go to worship him. All of your sacrifices and offerings must be taken there, including sacrifices to please the Lord and any gift you promise or voluntarily give him. That's where you must also take one tenth of your grain, wine, and olive oil, as well as the first-born of your cattle, sheep, and goats. You and your family and servants will eat your gifts and sacrifices and celebrate there at the place of worship, because the Lord your God has made you successful in everything you have done. And since Levites will not have any land of their own, you must ask some of them to come along and celebrate with you. Sometimes you may want to kill an animal for food and not as a sacrifice. If the Lord has blessed you and given you enough cows or sheep or goats, then you can butcher one of them where you live. You can eat it just like the meat from a deer or gazelle that you kill when you go hunting. And even those people who are unclean and unfit for worship can have some of the meat. But you must not eat the blood of any animal—let the blood drain out on the ground.

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
Instead, turn to the place the Lord your God chooses from all your tribes to put his name for his dwelling and go there.

Hebrew Names Version
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 there you shall come;

King James Version
But unto the place which the Lord 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:

Lexham English Bible
But only to the place that Yahweh your God will choose from all of your tribes to place his name there as his dwelling shall you seek, and there you shall go.

English Standard Version
But you shall seek the place that the Lord your God will choose out of all your tribes to put his name and make his habitation there. There you shall go,

New Century Version
but look for the place the Lord your God will choose—a place among your tribes where he is to be worshiped. Go there,

New English Translation
But 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.

Amplified Bible
"But you shall seek the LORD at the place which the LORD your God will choose out of all your tribes to establish His Name there for His dwelling [place], and there you shall come [to worship Him].

New American Standard Bible
"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 you shall come there.

Geneva Bible (1587)
But ye shal seeke the place which the Lord your God shall chose out of all your tribes, to put his Name there, and there to dwell, and thither thou shalt come,

Legacy Standard Bible
But you shall seek Yahweh at the place which Yahweh your God will choose from all your tribes, to establish His name there for His dwelling, and there you shall come.

Complete Jewish Bible
Rather, you are to come to the place where Adonai your God will put his name. He will choose it from all your tribes; and you will seek out that place, which is where he will live, and go there.

Darby Translation
but unto the place which Jehovah your God will choose out of all your tribes to set his name there, his habitation shall ye seek, and thither thou shalt come;

Easy-to-Read Version
The Lord your God will choose a special place among your tribes. That will be the home for his name. You must go to that place to worship him.

George Lamsa Translation
But to the place which the LORD your God shall choose out of all your tribes to put his name there, his habitation shall you seek, and thither you shall go;

Good News Translation
Out of the territory of all your tribes the Lord will choose the one place where the people are to come into his presence and worship him.

Literal Translation
But you shall seek to the place which Jehovah your God shall choose out of all your tribes; for you shall seek His dwelling, to put His name there. And you shall go there.

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
but the place which ye LORDE youre God shal chose out of all yor trybes (that he maye let his name dwell there) shal ye seke,

American Standard Version
But unto the place which Jehovah 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;

Bible in Basic English
But let your hearts be turned to the place which will be marked out by the Lord your God, among your tribes, to put his name there;

Bishop's Bible (1568)
But ye shall seeke the place which the Lorde your God shall choose out of all your tribes, to put his name there, and there to dwell, and thyther thou shalt come:

JPS Old Testament (1917)
But unto the place which the LORD 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;

King James Version (1611)
But vnto the place which the Lord your God shall chuse out of all your tribes, to put his name there, euen vnto his habitation shall yee seeke, and thither thou shalt come:

Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
But in the place which the Lord thy God shall choose in one of your cities to name his name there, and to be called upon, ye shall even seek him out and go thither.

English Revised Version
But unto the place which the LORD 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:

Berean Standard Bible
Instead, you must seek the place that the LORD your God will choose from among all your tribes to establish as a dwelling for His Name, and there you must go.

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
but ye schulen come to the place which youre Lord God chees of alle youre lynagis, that he putte his name there, and dwelle therynne;

Young's Literal Translation
but unto the place which Jehovah your God doth choose out of all your tribes to put His name there, to His tabernacle ye seek, and thou hast entered thither,

Update Bible Version
But to the place which Yahweh your God shall choose out of all your tribes, to put his name there, even to his habitation you shall seek, and there you shall come;

Webster's Bible Translation
But the place which the LORD your God shall choose out of all your tribes to put his name there, [even] his habitation shall ye seek, and thither thou shalt come:

World English Bible
But to the place which Yahweh your God shall choose out of all your tribes, to put his name there, even to his habitation shall you seek, and there you shall come;

New King James Version
"But you shall seek the place where the LORD your God chooses, out of all your tribes, to put His name for His dwelling place; and there you shall go.

New Living Translation
Rather, you must seek the Lord your God at the place of worship he himself will choose from among all the tribes—the place where his name will be honored.

New Life Bible
Look for the Lord at the place which the Lord your God will choose from all your family groups. There He will make His name known, and make His home there, and there you will come.

New Revised Standard
But you shall seek the place that the Lord your God will choose out of all your tribes as his habitation to put his name there. You shall go there,

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
but, unto the place which Yahweh your God shall choose out of all your tribes, to put his name there, - as his habitation, shall ye ask your way, and come in thither;

Douay-Rheims Bible
But you shall come to the place, which the Lord your God shall choose out of all your tribes, to put his name there, and to dwell in it:

Revised Standard Version
But you shall seek the place which the LORD your God will choose out of all your tribes to put his name and make his habitation there; thither you shall go,

THE MESSAGE
Instead find the site that God , your God, will choose and mark it with his name as a common center for all the tribes of Israel. Assemble there. Bring to that place your Absolution-Offerings and sacrifices, your tithes and Tribute-Offerings, your Vow-Offerings, your Freewill-Offerings, and the firstborn of your herds and flocks. Feast there in the Presence of God , your God. Celebrate everything that you and your families have accomplished under the blessing of God , your God.

New American Standard Bible (1995)
"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.

Contextual Overview

⁵Soon you will cross the Jordan, and the Lord will help you conquer your enemies and let you live in peace, there in the land he has given you. But after you are settled, life will be different. You must not offer sacrifices just anywhere you want to. Instead, the Lord will choose a place somewhere in Israel where you must go to worship him. All of your sacrifices and offerings must be taken there, including sacrifices to please the Lord and any gift you promise or voluntarily give him. That's where you must also take one tenth of your grain, wine, and olive oil, as well as the first-born of your cattle, sheep, and goats. You and your family and servants will eat your gifts and sacrifices and celebrate there at the place of worship, because the Lord your God has made you successful in everything you have done. And since Levites will not have any land of their own, you must ask some of them to come along and celebrate with you. Sometimes you may want to kill an animal for food and not as a sacrifice. If the Lord has blessed you and given you enough cows or sheep or goats, then you can butcher one of them where you live. You can eat it just like the meat from a deer or gazelle that you kill when you go hunting. And even those people who are unclean and unfit for worship can have some of the meat. But you must not eat the blood of any animal—let the blood drain out on the ground. ²⁰The Lord has promised that later on he will give Israel more land, and some of you may not be able to travel all the way from your homes to the place of worship each time you are hungry for meat. But the Lord will give you cattle, sheep, and goats, and you can butcher any of those animals at home and eat as much as you want. ²² It is the same as eating the meat from a deer or a gazelle that you kill when you go hunting. And in this way, anyone who is unclean and unfit for worship can have some of the meat. ²³But don't eat the blood. It is the life of the animal, so let it drain out on the ground before you eat the meat. ²⁵ Do you want the Lord to make you successful? Do you want your children to be successful even after you are gone? Then do what pleases the Lord and don't eat blood. ²⁶All sacrifices and offerings to the Lord must be taken to the place where he chooses to be worshiped. If you offer a sacrifice to please the Lord , all of its meat must be burned on the altar. You can eat the meat from certain kinds of sacrifices, but you must always pour out the animal's blood on the altar. ²⁸ If you obey these laws, you will be doing what the Lord your God says is right and good. Then he will help you and your descendants be successful. ²⁹ Moses said: Israel, as you go into the land and attack the nations that are there, the Lord will get rid of them, and you can have their land. ³⁰ But that's when you must be especially careful not to ask, "How did those nations worship their gods? Shouldn't we worship the Lord in the same way?" ³¹ No, you should not! The Lord hates the disgusting way those nations worship their gods, because they even burn their sons and daughters as sacrifices.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

But unto: Deuteronomy 12:11, Deuteronomy 16:2, Deuteronomy 26:2, Joshua 9:27, Joshua 18:1, 1 Kings 8:16, 1 Kings 8:20, 1 Kings 8:29, 1 Kings 14:21, 1 Chronicles 22:1, 2 Chronicles 7:12, Psalms 78:68, Psalms 87:2, Psalms 87:3, John 4:20-22, Hebrews 12:22, Revelation 14:1

habitation: Exodus 15:2, Exodus 25:22, Numbers 7:89, 1 Kings 8:27, Psalms 132:13, Psalms 132:14, Isaiah 66:1, Isaiah 66:2, Acts 7:48-50, Ephesians 2:20-22, Colossians 2:9

Reciprocal: Exodus 20:24 - in all places Exodus 23:17 - General Exodus 23:19 - first of the Leviticus 1:3 - at the Leviticus 5:15 - in the Leviticus 17:3 - that killeth an Leviticus 17:4 - bringeth Leviticus 27:30 - General Deuteronomy 12:14 - General Deuteronomy 12:21 - to put Deuteronomy 14:23 - eat before Deuteronomy 14:24 - which Deuteronomy 15:19 - thou shalt do Deuteronomy 15:20 - General Deuteronomy 16:5 - sacrifice Deuteronomy 17:8 - get thee up Deuteronomy 18:6 - unto the place Deuteronomy 31:11 - in the place Joshua 22:11 - heard Joshua 22:19 - wherein Joshua 22:27 - that we Judges 8:27 - Ophrah 1 Samuel 1:3 - to worship 1 Samuel 1:4 - offered 1 Samuel 1:24 - she took 1 Samuel 2:29 - habitation 1 Kings 9:3 - to put 1 Kings 11:13 - for Jerusalem's 1 Kings 12:27 - go up 2 Kings 17:36 - him shall ye fear 2 Kings 21:4 - In Jerusalem 1 Chronicles 22:7 - unto the name 2 Chronicles 2:1 - for the name 2 Chronicles 2:6 - save only 2 Chronicles 6:5 - my name 2 Chronicles 11:16 - to sacrifice 2 Chronicles 12:13 - to put Ezra 3:2 - as it is written Ezra 6:3 - the place Ezra 6:12 - caused Ezra 7:17 - offer them Nehemiah 1:9 - the place Psalms 68:16 - the hill Psalms 74:7 - dwelling Psalms 122:4 - Whither Song of Solomon 4:6 - the mountain Isaiah 33:20 - the city Jeremiah 7:12 - where Luke 2:41 - went

Cross-References

Genesis 11:31
Terah decided to move from Ur to the land of Canaan. He took along Abram and Sarai and his grandson Lot, the son of Haran. But when they came to the city of Haran, they decided to settle there instead.

Genesis 12:8
Abram traveled to the hill country east of Bethel and camped between Bethel and Ai, where he built another altar and worshiped the Lord .

Genesis 12:9
Later, Abram started out toward the Southern Desert.

Genesis 14:14
that his nephew Lot had been taken away. Three hundred eighteen of Abram's servants were fighting men, so he took them and followed the enemy as far north as the city of Dan.

Genesis 14:21
The king of Sodom said to Abram, "All I want are my people. You can keep everything else."

Acts 7:4
Then Abraham left the land of the Chaldeans and settled in Haran. After his father died, Abraham came and settled in this land where you now live.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

But unto the place which the Lord your God,.... The Targum of Jonathan is, that the Word of the Lord your God:

shall choose out of all your tribes to put his name there; to place his tabernacle, set up his worship, take up his residence, and cause the Shechinah, or his divine Majesty, to dwell there, as the next clause explains it; out of what tribe it should be chosen, and where it should be, is not said. Maimomides b gives three reasons for it; he says there are three great mysteries why the place is not clearly, but obscurely mentioned;

1) lest the Gentiles should seize upon it, and make war for the sake of it, supposing this place to be the end of the law; 2) lest they in whose hands the place then was should by all means waste and destroy it; 3) which is the chief, lest every tribe should desire to have it in its own lot and jurisdiction; and so strifes might arise among them on account of it, as happened to the priesthood:

[even] unto his habitation shall ye seek; the temple at Jerusalem is meant, where the Lord took up his dwelling, and whither men were to come and seek unto him by prayer and supplication for whatsoever they needed, and to inquire of him in matters doubtful, and they wanted counsel in:

and thither thou shall come: with sacrifices of every sort, where they were to be slain and offered to the Lord, and become acceptable to him, as is more largely declared in the following part of this chapter.

b Moreh Nevochim, par. 3. c. 45. p. 475.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

“To put his name there” means to manifest to men His divine presence. The Targumists rightly refer to the Shechinah; but the expression comprehends all the various modes in which God vouchsafed to reveal Himself and His attributes to men.

The purpose of the command of the text is to secure the unity, and through unity the purity of the worship of God. That there should be one national center for the religion of the people was obviously essential to the great ends of the whole dispensation. Corruption began as soon as the precepts of the text were relaxed or neglected: Compare the case of Gideon, Judges 8:27; of Micah, Judges 18:0; of Jeroboam, 1 Kings 12:26 ff.

The words “the place which the Lord shall choose to put His Name there” suggest Jerusalem and Solomon’s temple to our minds. But though spoken as they were by a prophet, and interpreted as they are by the Psalms (e. g. Psalms 78:67-69), they have a proper application to the temple, yet they must not be referred exclusively to it. The text does not import that God would always from the first choose one and the same locality “to put His Name there,” but that there would always be a locality so chosen by Him; and that there the people must bring their sacrifices, and not offer them at their pleasure or convenience elsewhere. Neither does the text forbid the offering of sacrifices to God at other places than the one chosen by Him “to put His Name there” on proper occasions and by proper authority (compare Deuteronomy 27:5-6; Judges 6:24; Judges 13:16; 1 Kings 3:4; 1 Kings 18:31). The text simply prohibits sacrifices at any other locality than that which should be appointed or permitted by God for the purpose.