The One Place of Worship
1These are the decrees and laws you must be careful to follow in the land that the Lord, the God of your ancestors, has given you to possess—as long as you live in the land. 2Destroy completely all the places on the high mountains, on the hills and under every spreading tree, where the nations you are dispossessing worship their gods. 3Break down their altars, smash their sacred stones and burn their Asherah poles in the fire; cut down the idols of their gods and wipe out their names from those places.
4You must not worship the Lord your God in their way. 5But you are to seek the place the Lord your God will choose from among all your tribes to put his Name there for his dwelling. To that place you must go; 6there bring your burnt offerings and sacrifices, your tithes and special gifts, what you have vowed to give and your freewill offerings, and the firstborn of your herds and flocks. 7There, in the presence of the Lord your God, you and your families shall eat and shall rejoice in everything you have put your hand to, because the Lord your God has blessed you.
8You are not to do as we do here today, everyone doing as they see fit, 9since you have not yet reached the resting place and the inheritance the Lord your God is giving you. 10But you will cross the Jordan and settle in the land the Lord your God is giving you as an inheritance, and he will give you rest from all your enemies around you so that you will live in safety. 11Then to the place the Lord your God will choose as a dwelling for his Name—there you are to bring everything I command you: your burnt offerings and sacrifices, your tithes and special gifts, and all the choice possessions you have vowed to the Lord. 12And there rejoice before the Lord your God—you, your sons and daughters, your male and female servants, and the Levites from your towns who have no allotment or inheritance of their own. 13Be careful not to sacrifice your burnt offerings anywhere you please. 14Offer them only at the place the Lord will choose in one of your tribes, and there observe everything I command you.
15Nevertheless, you may slaughter your animals in any of your towns and eat as much of the meat as you want, as if it were gazelle or deer, according to the blessing the Lord your God gives you. Both the ceremonially unclean and the clean may eat it. 16But you must not eat the blood; pour it out on the ground like water. 17You must not eat in your own towns the tithe of your grain and new wine and olive oil, or the firstborn of your herds and flocks, or whatever you have vowed to give, or your freewill offerings or special gifts. 18Instead, you are to eat them in the presence of the Lord your God at the place the Lord your God will choose—you, your sons and daughters, your male and female servants, and the Levites from your towns—and you are to rejoice before the Lord your God in everything you put your hand to. 19Be careful not to neglect the Levites as long as you live in your land.
20When the Lord your God has enlarged your territory as he promised you, and you crave meat and say, “I would like some meat,” then you may eat as much of it as you want. 21If 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. 22Eat them as you would gazelle or deer. Both the ceremonially unclean and the clean may eat. 23But be sure you do not eat the blood, because the blood is the life, and you must not eat the life with the meat. 24You must not eat the blood; pour it out on the ground like water. 25Do not eat it, so that it may go well with you and your children after you, because you will be doing what is right in the eyes of the Lord.
26But take your consecrated things and whatever you have vowed to give, and go to the place the Lord will choose. 27Present your burnt offerings on the altar of the Lord your God, both the meat and the blood. The blood of your sacrifices must be poured beside the altar of the Lord your God, but you may eat the meat. 28Be careful to obey all these regulations I am giving you, so that it may always go well with you and your children after you, because you will be doing what is good and right in the eyes of the Lord your God.
29The Lord your God will cut off before you the nations you are about to invade and dispossess. But when you have driven them out and settled in their land, 30and after they have been destroyed before you, be careful not to be ensnared by inquiring about their gods, saying, “How do these nations serve their gods? We will do the same.” 31You must not worship the Lord your God in their way, because in worshiping their gods, they do all kinds of detestable things the Lord hates. They even burn their sons and daughters in the fire as sacrifices to their gods.
32See that you do all I command you; do not add to it or take away from it.12:32 In Hebrew texts this verse (12:32) is numbered 13:1.
Malo Amodzi Opembedzera
1Awa ndi malangizo ndi malamulo amene muyenera kusamalitsanso kuti muwatsatire mʼdziko limene Yehova Mulungu wa makolo anu wakupatsani kuti mutenge pa nthawi yonse imene muti mudzakhale mʼdzikomo. 2Muwonongeretu kwathunthu malo onse a pamwamba pa mapiri ataliatali ndi pa mapiri angʼonoangʼono ndi pansi pa mtengo uliwonse wotambalala pamene mitundu imene muyilande dzikolo ankapembedzerapo milungu yawo. 3Mugumule maguwa awo ansembe, ndi kuphwanya miyala yawo yachipembedzo ndipo mutenthe pa moto mafano awo a Asera: mugwetse mafano a milungu yawo ndi kufafaniza mayina awo mʼmalo amenewo.
4Musapembedze Yehova Mulungu wanu monga mmene amachitira iwowa. 5Koma inu muzifunafuna kumalo kumene Yehova Mulungu wanu adzasankhe pakati pa mafuko anu kuti ayikeko dzina lake ndi kukhalako. Ku malo amenewa muyenera kupitako. 6Kumeneko muzipititsako zopereka zanu ndi nsembe zanu zopsereza, ndi chakhumi chanu ndi mphatso zapadera zimene munalonjeza kupereka ndi zopereka zanu zaufulu ndi ana oyamba a ngʼombe zanu ndi nkhosa zanu. 7Kumeneko, pamaso pa Yehova Mulungu wanu, inu ndi mabanja anu mudzadya ndi kusangalalako pa china chilichonse chimene mudzakhudza, chifukwa Yehova Mulungu wanu wakudalitsani.
8Musadzachite monga tikuchitira lero lino, aliyense kumachita zimene akuona kuti ndi zoyenera, 9pakuti simunafike ku malo opumulirako ndi ku cholowa chimene Yehova Mulungu wanu akukupatsani. 10Koma mudzawoloka Yorodani ndi kukhazikika mʼdziko limene Yehova Mulungu wanu akukupatsani ngati cholowa chanu, ndipo Iye adzakupatsani inu mpumulo ku adani anu okuzungulirani kuti mukhale motchinjirizidwa. 11Tsono kumalo kumene Yehova Mulungu wanu adzasankhe kuti azikhalako muzikabweretsako chilichonse chimene ndikulamulirani inu: zopereka ndi nsembe zanu zopsereza, chakhumi chanu ndi mphatso zapadera, ndi chuma chanu chonse chosankhika chimene munalonjeza kwa Yehova. 12Ndipo kumeneko inu mukasangalale pamaso pa Yehova Mulungu wanu pamodzi ndi ana anu aamuna ndi ana anu aakazi, antchito anu aamuna ndi adzakazi anu, ndi Alevi a mʼmidzi yanu, amene alibe gawo kapena cholowa chawochawo. 13Musamalitse kuti musakaphere nsembe zanu zopsereza paliponse pamene mungafune. 14Mukaphere pa malo okhawo amene Yehova adzawasankhe mwa limodzi la mafuko anu, ndipo kumeneko mukasunge chilichonse chimene ndikulamulireni.
15Koma mukhoza kumapha ziweto zanu mʼmizinda iliyonse ndi kudya nyama yake mmene mungafunire, ngati kuti ndi agwape kapena mbawala, monga mwadalitso limene Yehova Mulungu wanu akukupatsani. Woyeretsedwa ndi wosayeretsedwa akhoza kuyidya. 16Koma musamadye magazi. Muziwathira pansi ngati madzi. 17Musamadyere mʼmizinda yanu chakhumi cha tirigu wanu ndi vinyo watsopano ndi mafuta, kapena za ana oyamba kubadwa a ngʼombe zanu ndi nkhosa zanu, kapena chilichonse chimene mwalonjeza kuchipereka, nsembe zanu zaufulu, kapena mphatso zapadera, 18mʼmalo mwake, muzidya pamaso pa Yehova Mulungu wanu, kumalo kumene Yehova Mulungu wanu adzasankhira inu, ana anu aamuna ndi aakazi, antchito anu aamuna ndi adzakazi anu, ndi Alevi ochokera mʼmizinda yanu, ndipo mudzasangalale pamaso pa Yehova Mulungu wanu pa chilichonse chimene mudzachikhudza. 19Muonetsetse kuti musawataye Alevi pa masiku onse amene mukhale mʼdziko lanumo.
20Yehova Mulungu wanu akadzakulitsa dziko lanu monga anakulonjezerani, ndipo mukapukwa nyama mumanena kuti, “Ndikufuna nyama,” pamenepo mudzadya mmene mungafunire. 21Ngati malo amene Yehova Mulungu wanu awasankha kuti ayike Dzina lake ali kutali kwambiri ndi inu, mukhoza kupha ziweto pakati pa ngʼombe ndi nkhosa zimene Yehova wakupatsani, monga ndinakulamulani, ndipo mʼmizinda yanuyanu mukhoza kuzidya mmene mungafunire. 22Muzidye ngati mukudya gwape kapena mbawala. Onse oyeretsedwa monga mwa mwambo ndi osayeretsedwa omwe akhoza kudya. 23Koma muonetsetse kuti musadye magazi, chifukwa magazi ndi moyo, ndipo musamadye moyo pamodzi ndi nyama. 24Inu musamadye magazi, muziwathira pansi ngati madzi. 25Musamadye magazi kuti zikuyendereni bwino inu pamodzi ndi ana anu a pambuyo panu, popeza mudzakhala mukuchita zoyenera pamaso pa Mulungu.
26Koma mutenge zinthu zanu zoyeretsedwa ndi china chilichonse chimene munalumbira kupereka, ndi kupita kumalo kumene Yehova adzasankhe. 27Mupereke nsembe zanu zopsereza pa guwa lansembe la Yehova Mulungu wanu, nyama pamodzi ndi magazi omwe. Magazi a nsembe zanu athiridwe pambali pa guwa lansembe la Yehova Mulungu wanu, koma nyamayo mukhoza kudya. 28Onetsetsani kuti muzimvera mawu onsewa amene ndikukupatsani kuti zinthu zizikuyenderani bwino nthawi zonse inu ndi ana anu chifukwa mudzakhala mukuchita zabwino ndi zoyenera pamaso pa Yehova Mulungu wanu.
29Yehova Mulungu wanu adzachotsa pamaso panu mitundu ya anthu amene mukufuna kuwathira nkhondo ndi kuwalanda dzikolo. Koma mukawapirikitsa ndi kukhazikika mʼdziko lawo, 30ndipo pamene iwo awonongeka pamaso panu, samalirani kuti musakodwe mu msampha pa kufufuza za milungu yawo, nʼkumati, “Kodi anthu a mitunduwa amatumikira bwanji milungu yawo? Ifenso tichita momwemo.” 31Musapembedze Yehova Mulungu wanu momwe amachitira iwowo, chifukwa popembedza milungu yawoyo amachita zonyansa zamitundumitundu zimene Yehova amadana nazo. Amatentha ngakhale ana awo aamuna ndi aakazi pa moto ngati nsembe za kwa milungu yawo.
32Onetsetsani kuti mukuchita zimene ndikukulamulirani. Musawonjezerepo kapena kuchotserapo.
