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 Living Translation (NLT)It might happen that the designated place of worship—the place the Lord your God chooses for his name to be honored—is a long way from your home. If so, you may butcher any of the cattle, sheep, or goats the Lord has given you, and you may freely eat the meat in your hometown, as I have commanded you.

Context of Deuteronomy 12:21

19Take heed to yourself that you do not forsake the Levite as long as you live in your land. 20“When the Lord your God enlarges your border as He has promised you, and you say, ‘Let me eat meat,’ because you long to eat meat, you may eat as much meat as your heart desires. 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. 22Just as the gazelle and the deer are eaten, so you may eat them; the unclean and the clean alike may eat them. 23Only be sure that you do not eat the blood, for the blood is the life; you may 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 12:5“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.
• Deuteronomy 14:23And you shall eat before the Lord your God, in the place where He chooses to make His name abide, the tithe of your grain and your new wine and your oil, of the firstborn of your herds and your flocks, that you may learn to fear the Lord your God always.
• Deuteronomy 16:6but at the place where the Lord your God chooses to make His name abide, there you shall sacrifice the Passover at twilight, at the going down of the sun, at the time you came out of Egypt.
• Deuteronomy 26:2that you shall take some of the first of all the produce of the ground, which you shall bring from your land that the Lord your God is giving you, and put it in a basket and go to the place where the Lord your God chooses to make His name abide.
• Exodus 20:24An altar of earth you shall make for Me, and you shall sacrifice on it your burnt offerings and your peace offerings, your sheep and your oxen. In every place where I record My name I will come to you, and I will bless you.
• 1 Kings 14:21And Rehoboam the son of Solomon reigned in Judah. Rehoboam was forty-one years old when he became king. He reigned seventeen years in Jerusalem, the city which the Lord had chosen out of all the tribes of Israel, to put His name there. His mother’s name was Naamah, an Ammonitess.
• 2 Chronicles 12:13Thus King Rehoboam strengthened himself in Jerusalem and reigned. Now Rehoboam was forty-one years old when he became king; and he reigned seventeen years in Jerusalem, the city which the Lord had chosen out of all the tribes of Israel, to put His name there. His mother’s name was Naamah, an Ammonitess.
• Ezra 6:12And may the God who causes His name to dwell there destroy any king or people who put their hand to alter it, or to destroy this house of God which is in Jerusalem. I Darius issue a decree; let it be done diligently.

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
• Cattle
• High place
• Lust
• Rest
• Atonement, Day of
• Criticism
• Exodus, the Book of
• Genesis
• Law in the Old Testament

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