1These are the laws and rules you must obey in the land that Yahweh, the God of your ancestors, is giving you to own. You must follow them as long as you live in that land.
2You must completely destroy all the places where the nations you are getting rid of worshipped their gods—on high mountains, on hills, and under every green tree.
3You must tear down their altars, smash their sacred pillars, and burn their Asherah poles. You must cut down the carved images of their gods and erase their names from those places.
4But you must not do this to Yahweh your God.
5Instead, you must go to the place Yahweh your God will choose from all your tribes to establish his presence, and that is where you must worship.
6There you must bring your burnt offerings, your sacrifices, your tithes, the special gifts you present, your vowed offerings, your freewill offerings, and the firstborn male animals from your herds and flocks.
7There, in the presence of Yahweh your God, you and your households will eat and celebrate everything you have worked for, because Yahweh your God has blessed you.
8You must not do things the way we are doing them here today, where everyone does whatever they think is right,
9because you have not yet reached the place of rest and the inheritance that Yahweh your God is giving you.
10But when you cross the Jordan River and settle in the land Yahweh your God is giving you to own, and when he gives you relief from all your enemies around you so you can live in safety,
11then you must bring everything I command you—your burnt offerings, your sacrifices, your tithes, the special gifts you present, and all your special offerings that you vow to Yahweh—to the place Yahweh your God will choose to establish his presence.
12You, your sons, your daughters, your male servants, your female servants, and the Levites who live in your towns must all celebrate in the presence of Yahweh your God, because the Levites do not have their own land or inheritance among you.
13Be careful not to offer your burnt offerings in just any place you see.
14Instead, you must offer your burnt offerings only in the place Yahweh chooses in one of your tribes, and there you must do everything I command you.
15However, you may kill and eat meat within any of your towns whenever you want, according to the blessing Yahweh your God has given you. Both clean and unclean people may eat it, just like gazelles or deer.
16Only be sure not to eat the blood. You must pour it out on the ground like water.
17You are not allowed to eat within your towns the tithe of your grain, new wine, or olive oil, or the firstborn male animals from your herds or flocks, or any of your vowed offerings, freewill offerings, or your special gifts.
18Instead, you must eat them in the presence of Yahweh your God in the place Yahweh your God chooses—you, your son, your daughter, your male servant, your female servant, and the Levite who lives in your towns. You must celebrate in the presence of Yahweh your God in all that you work for.
19Be careful not to neglect the Levites as long as you live in your land.
20When Yahweh your God expands your territory, as he promised you, and you say, "I want to eat meat," because you have a strong desire to eat meat, then you may eat meat whenever you want.
21If the place Yahweh your God chooses to establish his presence is too far from you, then you may kill animals from your herds and flocks, which Yahweh has given you, as I have commanded you. You may eat meat within your towns whenever you want.
22You may eat it just like gazelle or deer meat. Both clean and unclean people may eat it together.
23However, be absolutely sure not to eat the blood, because the blood is the life. You must not eat the life along with the meat.
24You must not eat it; you must pour it out on the ground like water.
25You must not eat it. If you obey, things will go well for you and your children after you, when you do what is right in Yahweh's eyes.
26You must take only your holy things and your promised offerings, and go to the place Yahweh chooses.
27You are to offer your burnt offerings, the meat and the blood, on the altar of Yahweh your God. The blood from your sacrifices must be poured out on the altar of Yahweh your God, and you may eat the meat.
28Be careful to obey all these words I am commanding you. Then things will go well for you and your children forever, when you do what is good and right in the eyes of Yahweh your God.
29When Yahweh your God removes the nations in front of you, and you go in, take their land, and live in it,
30be careful not to be trapped into following their ways after they have been destroyed from before you. Do not ask about their gods, saying, "How did these nations serve their gods? I will do the same."
31You must not do that to Yahweh your God, because they have done every detestable and hateful thing to Yahweh for their gods. They even burn their sons and daughters in fire as sacrifices to their gods.
32Whatever I command you, you must be careful to do. Do not add to it or take away from it.