Deuteronomy 11 - 12

Love and Serve Yahweh

“You shall therefore love Yahweh your God, and keep His charge, His statutes, His judgments, and His commandments all your days. 2 So know this day that I am not speaking with your sons who have not known and who have not seen the discipline of Yahweh your God—His greatness, His strong hand and His outstretched arm, 3 and His signs and His works which He did in the midst of Egypt to Pharaoh the king of Egypt and to all his land; 4 and what He did to Egypt’s army, to its horses and its chariots, when He made the water of the Red Sea to engulf them while they were pursuing you, and Yahweh made them perish utterly; 5 and what He did to you in the wilderness until you came to this place; 6 and what He did to Dathan and Abiram, the sons of Eliab, the son of Reuben, when the earth opened its mouth and swallowed them, their households, their tents, and every living thing that followed them, among all Israel— 7 but your own eyes have seen all the great work of Yahweh which He did. 8 “You shall therefore keep every commandment which I am commanding you today, so that you may be strong and go in and possess the land into which you are about to cross to possess it; 9 so that you may prolong your days on the land which Yahweh swore to your fathers to give to them and to their seed, a land flowing with milk and honey. 10 For the land, into which you are entering to possess it, is not like the land of Egypt from which you came out, where you used to sow your seed and water it with your foot like a vegetable garden. 11 But the land into which you are about to cross to possess it, a land of hills and valleys, drinks water from the rain of heaven, 12 a land for which Yahweh your God cares; the eyes of Yahweh your God are always on it, from the beginning even to the end of the year. 13 “And it will be that, if you listen obediently to my commandments which I am commanding you today, to love Yahweh your God and to serve Him with all your heart and all your soul, 14 that I, Yahweh, will give the rain for your land in its season, the early and late rains, that you may gather in your grain and your new wine and your oil. 15 And I will give grass in your fields for your cattle, and you will eat and be satisfied. 16 Beware lest your hearts be deceived, and you turn away and serve other gods and worship them, 17 and the anger of Yahweh will be kindled against you, and He will shut up the heavens so that there will be no rain and the ground will not yield its fruit; and you will perish quickly from the good land which Yahweh is giving you. 18 “You shall therefore place these words of mine on your heart and on your soul; and you shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as phylacteries between your eyes. 19 And you shall teach them to your sons, speaking of them when you sit in your house and when you walk along the road and when you lie down and when you rise up. 20 And you shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates, 21 so that your days and the days of your sons may be multiplied on the land which Yahweh swore to your fathers to give them, as long as the heavens remain above the earth. 22 For if you are careful to keep this entire commandment which I am commanding you to do, to love Yahweh your God, to walk in all His ways, and to cling to Him, 23 then Yahweh will dispossess all these nations from before you, and you will dispossess nations greater and mightier than you. 24 Every place on which the sole of your foot treads shall be yours; your border will be from the wilderness to Lebanon, and from the river, the river Euphrates, as far as the western sea. 25 No man will be able to stand before you; Yahweh your God will put the dread of you and the fear of you on all the land on which you set foot, as He has spoken to you.

A Blessing and a Curse

26 “See, I am setting before you today a blessing and a curse: 27 the blessing, if you listen to the commandments of Yahweh your God, which I am commanding you today; 28 and the curse, if you do not listen to the commandments of Yahweh your God, but turn aside from the way which I am commanding you today, by walking after other gods which you have not known. 29 “And it will be, when Yahweh your God brings you into the land where you are entering to possess it, that you shall set the blessing on Mount Gerizim and the curse on Mount Ebal. 30 Are they not across the Jordan, west of the way toward the sunset, in the land of the Canaanites who live in the Arabah, opposite Gilgal, beside the oaks of Moreh? 31 For you are about to cross the Jordan to go in to possess the land which Yahweh your God is giving you, and you shall possess it and live in it, 32 and you shall be careful to do all the statutes and the judgments which I am setting before you today.

Yahweh’s Chosen Place of Worship

“These are the statutes and the judgments which you shall be careful to do in the land which Yahweh, the God of your fathers, has given you to possess all the days you live on the earth. 2 You shall utterly destroy all the places where the nations whom you shall dispossess serve their gods, on the high mountains and on the hills and under every green tree. 3 And you shall tear down their altars and shatter their sacred pillars and burn their Asherim with fire, and you shall cut the graven images of their gods in pieces and destroy their name from that place. 4 You shall not do thus toward Yahweh your God. 5 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. 6 And there you shall bring your burnt offerings, your sacrifices, your tithes, the contribution of your hand, your votive offerings, your freewill offerings, and the firstborn of your herd and of your flock. 7 There also you and your households shall eat before Yahweh your God, and be glad in all that you send forth your hand to do, in which Yahweh your God has blessed you. 8 “You shall not do at all what we are doing here today, every man doing whatever is right in his own eyes; 9 for you have not as yet come to the resting place and the inheritance which Yahweh your God is giving you. 10 Now you will cross the Jordan and live in the land which Yahweh your God is giving you to inherit. And He will give you rest from all your enemies around you so that you live in security. 11 Then it will be that the place in which Yahweh your God will choose for His name to dwell, there you shall bring all that I am commanding you: your burnt offerings and your sacrifices, your tithes and the contribution of your hand, and all your choice votive offerings which you will vow to Yahweh. 12 And you shall be glad before Yahweh your God, you and your sons and daughters, your male and female slaves, and the Levite who is within your gates, since he has no portion or inheritance with you. 13 “Beware, lest you offer your burnt offerings in every cultic place you see, 14 but in the place which Yahweh chooses in one of your tribes, there you shall offer your burnt offerings, and there you shall do all that I am commanding you. 15 “However, you may sacrifice and eat meat within any of your gates, whatever you desire, according to the blessing of Yahweh your God which He has given you; the unclean and the clean may eat of it, as of the gazelle and the deer. 16 Only you shall not eat the blood; you are to pour it out on the ground like water. 17 You are not allowed to eat within your gates the tithe of your grain or new wine or oil, or the firstborn of your herd or flock, or any of your votive offerings which you vow, or your freewill offerings, or the contribution of your hand. 18 But you shall eat them before Yahweh your God in the place which Yahweh your God will choose, you and your son and daughter, and your male and female slaves, and the Levite who is within your gates; and you shall be glad before Yahweh your God in all that you send forth your hand to do. 19 Beware lest you forsake the Levite all your days upon your land. 20 “When Yahweh your God enlarges your territory as He has promised you, and you say, ‘I will eat meat,’ because you desire to eat meat, then you may eat meat, whatever you desire. 21 If the place where Yahweh your God chooses to set His name is too far away from you, then you may sacrifice of your herd and flock which Yahweh has given you, as I have commanded you; and you may eat within your gates whatever you desire. 22 Just as a gazelle or a deer is eaten, so you will eat it; the unclean and the clean alike may eat of it. 23 Only be strong in yourselves not to eat the blood, for the blood is the life, and you shall not eat the life with the flesh. 24 You shall not eat it; you shall pour it out on the ground like water. 25 You shall not eat it, so that it may be well with you and your sons after you, for you will be doing what is right in the sight of Yahweh. 26 Only your holy things which you may have and your votive offerings, you shall take and go to the place which Yahweh chooses. 27 And you shall offer your burnt offerings, the flesh and the blood, on the altar of Yahweh your God; and the blood of your sacrifices shall be poured out on the altar of Yahweh your God, and you shall eat the flesh. 28 “Be careful to listen to all these words which I command you, so that it may be well with you and your sons after you forever, for you will be doing what is good and right in the sight of Yahweh your God. 29 “When Yahweh your God cuts off before you the nations which you are going in to dispossess, and you dispossess them and inhabit their land, 30 beware lest you be ensnared to follow them, after they are destroyed before you, and lest you inquire after their gods, saying, ‘How do these nations serve their gods, that I also may do likewise?’ 31 You shall not do thus toward Yahweh your God, for every abominable act which Yahweh hates they have done for their gods; for they even burn their sons and daughters in the fire to their gods. 32 “Whatever I am commanding you, you shall be careful to do; you shall not add to nor take away from it.