1ESTOS son los estatutos y las leyes que guardaréis a fin de cumplirlos, en la tierra que Jehová, el Dios de vuestros padres, os habrá dado a poseer, todos los días que viviereis sobre la tierra: 2Destruiréis completamente los lugares en que las naciones que habéis de desposeer han servido a sus dioses, sobre los montes altos y sobre las colinas, y debajo de todo árbol frondoso. 3Derribaréis también sus altares, y haréis pedazos sus columnas, y quemaréis a fuego sus Asheras, y cortaréis las esculturas de sus dioses; y haréis perecer sus nombres de aquel lugar. 4¶No habéis de servir a Jehová vuestro Dios de esta manera; 5sino que al lugar que Jehová vuestro Dios escogiere de entre todas vuestras tribus para poner allí su nombre, es decir, a su habitación, acudiréis, yendo allí, 6y llevando allí vuestros holocaustos y vuestros sacrificios, y vuestros diezmos, y las ofrendas alzadas de vuestra mano, y vuestros votos, y vuestras ofrendas voluntarias, y los primerizos de vuestras vacadas y de vuestros rebaños; 7y los comeréis allí delante de Jehová vuestro Dios; y os regocijaréis vosotros y vuestras familias en toda empresa de vuestra mano, en que os habrá bendecido Jehová vuestro Dios. 8¶No habéis de hacer según todo lo que nosotros hacemos aquí el día de hoy, cada cual todo lo que sea recto a sus propios ojos; 9pues hasta ahora no habéis llegado al descanso y a la herencia que Jehová tu Dios te da. 10Mas cuando paséis el Jordán, y habitéis en la tierra que Jehová vuestro Dios os hace heredar; y cuando él os haya dado descanso de todos vuestros enemigos al rededor, de modo que habitéis seguros; 11entonces habrá cierto lugar que Jehová vuestro Dios escogerá para hacer habitar en él su Nombre; allí llevaréis todo lo que yo os mando, vuestros holocaustos, y vuestros sacrificios, y vuestros diezmos, y las ofrendas alzadas de vuestras manos, y todo lo más escogido de los votos que hubiereis prometido a Jehová; 12y os regocijaréis allí delante de Jehová vuestro Dios, vosotros, y vuestros hijos, y vuestras hijas, y vuestros siervos, y vuestras siervas, y el levita que habita dentro de vuestras puertas; pues él no tiene parte ni herencia entre vosotros. 13¶Guárdate de ofrecer tus holocaustos en cualquier lugar que vieres conveniente para esto; 14sino que en el lugar que escogiere Jehová en una de tus tribus, allí ofrecerás tus holocaustos, y allí harás todo lo que yo te mando. 15Esto no obstante, según todo el deseo de tu alma podrás degollar animales y comer su carne en todas tus ciudades, conforme a la bendición de Jehová tu Dios que él te hubiere dado; el inmundo lo mismo que el limpio podrá comerla, del mismo modo que la de la gacela y del ciervo; 16tan sólo que no comas la sangre; sobre la tierra la derramarás como agua. 17¶No podrás comer dentro de tus puertas el diezmo de tu trigo y de tu vino y de tu aceite, ni los primerizos de tus vacadas y de tus rebaños, ni ninguno de los votos que hubieres prometido, ni tus ofrendas voluntarias, ni las ofrendas alzadas de tu mano; 18sino que delante de Jehová tu Dios los comerás en el lugar que escogiere Jehová tu Dios, tú, y tu hijo, y tu hija, y tu siervo, y tu sierva, y el levita que mora dentro de tus puertas; y te regocijarás delante de Jehová tu Dios, en toda empresa de tus manos. 19Guárdate de desamparar al levita mientras vivieres sobre la tierra. 20¶Cuando Jehová tu Dios ensanchare tus términos, según te tiene prometido, y tú dijeres: Voy a comer carne, porque mi alma tiene gana de comer carne; según todo el deseo de tu alma bien podrás comer carne. 21Si estuviere lejos de ti el lugar que escogiere Jehová tu Dios para poner allí su nombre, entonces podrás degollar de tu vacada y de tu rebaño que te diere Jehová tu Dios, de acuerdo con lo que te tengo mandado, y comerás dentro de tus puertas según todo el deseo de tu alma. 22Lo mismo que se come de la gacela y del ciervo, podrás comer de ella; el inmundo y el limpio igualmente podrán comerla: 23solamente que te guardes escrupulosamente de comer la sangre; porque la sangre es la vida, y no comerás la vida juntamente con la carne. 24No la comerás; sobre la tierra la derramarás como agua. 25No la comerás, para que te vaya bien a ti y a tus hijos después de ti, cuando hicieres lo que es recto a los ojos de Jehová. 26Empero las cosas santificadas que tuvieres y tus votos los tomarás, e irás al lugar que escogiere Jehová, 27y ofrecerás tus holocaustos (la sangre juntamente con la carne) sobre el altar de Jehová tu Dios; también la sangre de tus demás sacrificios será derramada sobre el altar de Jehová tu Dios; pero tú comerás la carne. 28Guarda pues, y obedece todo lo que te mando, a fin de que te vaya bien a ti y a tus hijos después de ti para siempre, cuando hicieres lo que es bueno y recto a los ojos de Jehová tu Dios. 29¶Y Cuando Jehová tu Dios hubiere exterminado delante de ti las naciones adonde vas a fin de desposeerlas, y las hubieres en efecto desposeído, y habitares en su tierra, 30ten cuidado que no caigas en un lazo, siguiendo en pos de ellas, aun después de destruídas delante de ti; y que no inquieras respecto de sus dioses, diciendo: ¿Cómo servían estas naciones a sus dioses? pues así haré yo también. 31No lo harás así con Jehová tu Dios; porque toda suerte de abominaciones, las cuales aborrece Jehová, han hecho ellos en culto a sus dioses; pues hasta a sus mismos hijos y sus hijas suelen ellos quemar en fuego a sus dioses. 32Cuidarás de hacer todo cuanto te mando; no añadirás a ello, ni quitarás de ello.
Jamieson Fausset Brown Bible Commentary 1 MONUMENTS OF IDOLATRY TO BE DESTROYED. (
Deut 12:1-
Deut 12:15)
These are the statutes and judgments, which ye shall observe--Having in the preceding chapter inculcated upon the Israelites the general obligation to fear and love God, Moses here enters into a detail of some special duties they were to practise on their obtaining possession of the promised land.
2 Ye shall utterly destroy all the places, wherein the nations which ye shall possess served their gods--This divine command was founded on the tendencies of human nature; for to remove out of sight everything that had been associated with idolatry, that it might never be spoken of and no vestige of it remain, was the only effectual way to keep the Israelites from temptations to it. It is observable that Moses does not make any mention of temples, for such buildings were not in existence at that early period. The "places" chosen as the scene of heathen worship were situated either on the summit of a lofty mountain, or on some artificial mound, or in a grove, planted with particular trees, such as oaks, poplars, and elms (
Isa 57:5-
Isa 57:7;
Hos 4:13). The reason for the selection of such sites was both to secure retirement and to direct the attention upward to heaven; and the "place" was nothing else than a consecrated enclosure, or at most, a canopy or screen from the weather.
3 And ye shall overthrow their altars--piles of turf or small stones.
and break their pillars--Before the art of sculpture was known, the statues of idols were only rude blocks of colored stones.
5 unto the place which the Lord your God shall choose . . . to put his name there . . . thou shalt come--They were forbidden to worship either in the impure superstitious manner of the heathen, or in any of the places frequented by them. A particular place for the general rendezvous of all the tribes would be chosen by God Himself; and the choice of one common place for the solemn rites of religion was an act of divine wisdom, for the security of the true religion. It was admirably calculated to prevent the corruption which would otherwise have crept in from their frequenting groves and high hills--to preserve uniformity of worship and keep alive their faith in Him to whom all their sacrifices pointed. The place was successively Mizpeh, Shiloh, and especially Jerusalem. But in all the references made to it by Moses, the name is never mentioned. This studied silence was maintained partly lest the Canaanites within whose territories it lay might have concentrated their forces to frustrate all hopes of obtaining it; partly lest the desire of possessing a place of such importance might have become a cause of strife or rivalry amongst the Hebrew tribes, as about the appointment to the priesthood (Num. 16:1-30).
7 there ye shall eat before the Lord--of the things mentioned (
Deut 12:6); but of course, none of the parts assigned to the priests before the Lord--in the place where the sanctuary should be established, and in those parts of the Holy City which the people were at liberty to frequent and inhabit.
12 ye shall rejoice before the Lord your God, ye, and your sons, and your daughters, &c.--Hence it appears that, although males only were commanded to appear before God at the annual solemn feasts (
Exod 23:17), the women were allowed to accompany them (1Sa. 1:3-23).
15 Notwithstanding thou mayest kill and eat flesh in all thy gates--Every animal designed for food, whether ox, goat, or lamb, was during the abode in the wilderness ordered to be slain as a peace offering at the door of the tabernacle; its blood to be sprinkled, and its fat burnt upon the altar by the priest. The encampment, being then round about the altar, made this practice, appointed to prevent idolatry, easy and practicable. But on the settlement in the promised land, the obligation to slay at the tabernacle was dispensed with. The people were left at liberty to prepare their meat in their cities or homes.
according to the blessing of the Lord thy God which he hath given thee--The style of living should be accommodated to one's condition and means--profuse and riotous indulgence can never secure the divine blessing.
the unclean and the clean may eat thereof--The unclean here are those who were under some slight defilement, which, without excluding them from society, yet debarred them from eating any of the sacred meats (
Lev 7:20). They were at liberty freely to partake of common articles of food.
of the roebuck--the gazelle.
and as of the hart--The Syrian deer (Cervus barbatus) is a species between our red and fallow deer, distinguished by the want of a bis-antler, or second branch on the horns, reckoning from below, and for a spotted livery which is effaced only in the third or fourth year.
16 BLOOD PROHIBITED. (
Deut 12:16-
Deut 12:25)
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 (
Gen 9:4), and the prohibition was repeatedly renewed by Moses with reference to the great objects of the law (
Lev 17:12), the prevention of idolatry, and the consecration of the sacrificial blood to God. In regard, however, to the blood of animals slain for food, it might be shed without ceremony and poured on the ground as a common thing like water--only for the sake of decency, as well as for preventing all risk of idolatry, it was to be covered over with earth (
Lev 17:13), in opposition to the practice of heathen sportsmen, who left it exposed as an offering to the god of the chase.
22 Even as the roebuck and the hart is eaten, so shalt thou eat them, &c.--Game when procured in the wilderness had not been required to be brought to the door of the tabernacle. The people were now to be as free in the killing of domestic cattle as of wild animals. The permission to hunt and use venison for food was doubtless a great boon to the Israelites, not only in the wilderness, but on their settlement in Canaan, as the mountainous ranges of Lebanon, Carmel, and Gilead, on which deer abounded in vast numbers, would thus furnish them with a plentiful and luxuriant repast.
26 HOLY THINGS TO BE EATEN IN THE HOLY PLACE. (
Deut 12:26-
Deut 12:32)
Only thy holy things which thou hast--The tithes mentioned (
Deut 12:17) are not to be considered ordinary tithes, which belonged to the Levites, and of which private Israelites had a right to eat; but they are other extraordinary tithes or gifts, which the people carried to the sanctuary to be presented as peace offerings, and on which, after being offered and the allotted portion given to the priest, they feasted with their families and friends (
Lev 27:30).
29 Take heed to thyself that thou be not snared by following them . . . saying, How did these nations serve their gods?--The Israelites, influenced by superstitious fear, too often endeavored to propitiate the deities of Canaan. Their Egyptian education had early impressed that bugbear notion of a set of local deities, who expected their dues of all who came to inhabit the country which they honored with their protection, and severely resented the neglect of payment in all newcomers [WARBURTON]. Taking into consideration the prevalence of this idea among them, we see that against an Egyptian influence was directed the full force of the wholesome caution with which this chapter closes.