Deuteronomy 12:21

Deuteronomy 12:21 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)If the place which the Lord thy God hath chosen to put his name there be too far from thee, then thou shalt kill of thy herd and of thy flock, which the Lord hath given thee, as I have commanded thee, and thou shalt eat in thy gates whatsoever thy soul lusteth after.
• New International Version (NIV)If the place where the Lord your God chooses to put his Name is too far away from you, you may slaughter animals from the herds and flocks the Lord has given you, as I have commanded you, and in your own towns you may eat as much of them as you want.
• English Standard Version (ESV)If the place that the Lord your God will choose to put his name there is too far from you, then you may kill any of your herd or your flock, which the Lord has given you, as I have commanded you, and you may eat within your towns whenever you desire.
• New King James Version (NKJV)If the place where the Lord your God chooses to put His name is too far from you, then you may slaughter from your herd and from your flock which the Lord has given you, just as I have commanded you, and you may eat within your gates as much as your heart desires.

Context of Deuteronomy 12:21

19Be careful not to overlook the Levites as long as you live in the 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. If 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. 22Like you eat the gazelle or ibex, so you may eat these; the ritually impure and pure alike may eat them. 23However, by no means eat the blood, for the blood is life itself – you must not eat the life with the meat!

Deuteronomy 12:21 word by word

כִּֽי־יִרְחַ֨ק מִמְּךָ֜ הַמָּק֗וֹם אֲשֶׁ֨ר יִבְחַ֜ר יְהוָ֣ה אֱלֹהֶיךָ֮ לָשׂ֣וּם שְׁמ֣וֹ שָׁם֒ וְזָבַחְתָּ֞ מִבְּקָרְךָ֣ וּמִצֹּֽאנְךָ֗ אֲשֶׁ֨ר נָתַ֤ן יְהוָה֙ לְךָ֔ כַּאֲשֶׁ֖ר צִוִּיתִ֑ךָ וְאָֽכַלְתָּ֙ בִּשְׁעָרֶ֔יךָ בְּכֹ֖ל אַוַּ֥ת נַפְשֶֽׁךָ׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• If the placeמָקוֹםmâqôm mâqôm meqômâh meqômâh · placeH4725
• which the Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
• thy Godאֱלֹהִים'ĕlôhîym · GodH430
• hath chosenבָּחַרbâchar · to chooseH977
• to putשׂוּםώûm ώîym · to set: putH7760
• his nameשֵׁםshêm · nameH8034
• there be too farרָחַקrâchaq · to removeH7368
• from thee, then thou shalt killזָבַחzâbach · to sacrificeH2076
• of thy herdבָּקָרbâqâr · cattleH1241
• and of thy flockצֹאןtsô'n tse'ôn · flockH6629
• hath givenנָתַןnâthan · to give: giveH5414
• thee, as I have commandedצָוָהtsâvâh · to commandH6680
• thee, and thou shalt eatאָכַל'âkal · to eatH398
• in thy gatesשַׁ֫עַרsha‛ar · gate: townH8179
• whatsoever thy soulנֶ֫פֶשׁnephesh · soul: myselfH5315
• lusteth afterאַוָּה'avvâh · desireH185

Cross-references for Deuteronomy 12:21

• Deuteronomy 12:5But 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.
• Deuteronomy 14:23In the presence of the Lord your God you must eat from the tithe of your grain, your new wine, your olive oil, and the firstborn of your herds and flocks in the place he chooses to locate his name, so that you may learn to revere the Lord your God always.
• Deuteronomy 16:6but you must sacrifice it in the evening in the place where he chooses to locate his name, at sunset, the time of day you came out of Egypt.
• Deuteronomy 26:2you must take the first of all the ground’s produce you harvest from the land the Lord your God is giving you, place it in a basket, and go to the place where he chooses to locate his name.
• Exodus 20:24‘You must make for me an altar made of earth, and you will sacrifice on it your burnt offerings and your peace offerings, your sheep and your cattle. In every place where I cause my name to be honored I will come to you and I will bless you.
• 1 Kings 14:21Now Rehoboam son of Solomon ruled in Judah. He was forty-one years old when he became king and he ruled for seventeen years in Jerusalem, the city the Lord chose from all the tribes of Israel to be his home. His mother was an Ammonite woman named Naamah.
• 2 Chronicles 12:13King Rehoboam solidified his rule in Jerusalem; he was forty-one years old when he became king and he ruled for seventeen years in Jerusalem, the city the Lord chose from all the tribes of Israel to be his home. Rehoboam’s mother was an Ammonite named Naamah.
• Ezra 6:12May God who makes his name to reside there overthrow any king or nation who reaches out to cause such change so as to destroy this temple of God in Jerusalem. I, Darius, have given orders. Let them be carried out with precision!”

Commentaries on Deuteronomy 12:21

• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 21If the place … - Rather, “Because, or since, the place will be too far from thee.” The permission given in Deuteronomy 12:15-16 is repeated, and the reason of it assigned.Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 5-32Verses 5-32 The command to bring ALL the sacrifices to the door of the tabernacle, was now explained with reference to the promised land. As to moral service, then, as now, men might pray and worship every where, as they did in their synagogues. The place which God would choose, is said to be the place where he would put his name. It was to be his habitation, where, as King of Israel, he would be found by all who reverently sought him. Now, under the…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 21you may slaughter: Because an animal’s blood was considered holy (see Genesis 9:4–6), meat for eating had to be slaughtered at the central place of worship whenever possible (compare Leviticus 17:8–9). If it was not possible to go to the central location, the animal could be sacrificed locally. Even then, the blood had to be handled and disposed of in a way that followed God’s instructions (Deuteronomy 12:23–25; compare Leviticus 17:10–12).Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 16-2516. ye shall not eat the blood; ye shall pour it upon the earth as water--The prohibition against eating or drinking blood as an unnatural custom accompanied the announcement of the divine grant of animal flesh for food (Ge 9:4), and the prohibition was repeatedly renewed by Moses with reference to the great objects of the law (Le 17:12), the prevention of idolatry, and the consecration of the sacrificial blood to God. In regard, however, to the blood of…Read the comment

Topics related to Deuteronomy 12:21

• Sanitation

In the dictionaries

• God
• god, false god, goddess, idol, idolater, idolatrous, idolatry
• Cattle
• High place
• Lust
• Rest
• Atonement, Day of
• Criticism
• Exodus, the Book of
• Genesis

Commentaries on Deuteronomy 12

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Rashi on Tanakh
• Calvin’s Commentaries
• Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings