Only thy holy things which thou hast ,.... Which the Targums of Onkelos and Jonathan interpret of the tithe of their holy things, and Aben Ezra of their burnt offerings and peace offerings; they seem to include all in Deuteronomy 12:17 . and thy vows thou shalt take, and go unto the place which the Lord shall choose ; so often referred to, but not named; see Deuteronomy 12:5 . read more
And thou shalt offer thy burnt offerings, the flesh and the blood, upon the altar of the Lord thy God ,.... And on that only, even the altar of burnt offering: and the blood of thy sacrifices ; one as well as another, not only of the burnt offerings, but of the sin offerings, trespass offerings, and peace offerings: shall be poured out upon the altar of the Lord thy God : either sprinkled on it, or poured out at the bottom of it; see Leviticus 1:1 , and thou shalt eat the flesh ... read more
Observe and hear all these words which I command thee ,.... Respecting the demolition of all monuments of idolatry, and bringing all holy things to the place the Lord should choose to dwell in; and eating common flesh in their own houses, only to be careful not to eat blood: that it may go well with thee, and with thy children after thee for ever ; for, as has been often observed, their continuance in the land of Canaan, and enjoyment of all good things in it, depended upon their... read more
Verse 26 26Only thy holy things. This passage more clearly explains what was meant by the foregoing precepts, viz., that but one place was set apart for the performance of their sacred rites, lest, if each should offer wherever it pleased him, religion should be corrupted, and by degrees the various altars should beget as many gods. He therefore commands that all the victims should be sacrificed on one altar, with a provision that the blood should be poured out. read more
Verse 28 Here, again, God invites the obedience of the people by the promise of reward; not that the hope of reward at all avails in itself to arouse men, but because He would thus keep all under the conviction of their just condemnation: for how will it help them to answer that they are not sufficient to perform what God requires, when it appears that they are thus wretched through their own fault? But, as has been said before, it is profitable by indulgence to believers that the reward of... read more
EXPOSITION Deuteronomy 12:1-32 . PLACES AND MONUMENTS OF IDOLATRY TO BE DESTROYED ; JEHOVAH TO BE WORSHIPPED IN THE ONE PLACE WHICH HE SHALL CHOOSE ; INSTRUCTIONS AS TO THE USE OF FLESH FOR FOOD ; AND CAUTIONS AGAINST BEING ENSNARED INTO FOLLOWING THE HEATHEN IN THEIR MANNER OF SERVICE . read more
Regulations for Divine worship: specific rules embodying permanent principles. With this twelfth chapter an entirely new set of instructions begins. Up to this point the exhortations have been for the most part moral: now they are positive. Hitherto the precepts have been, speaking generally, concerning duties which God commanded because they were right; but from this point they concern duties which became right because God had commanded them. Of all specific directions which Moses gave to... read more
Characteristic signs of Jehovah's worship. All the religious institutions of Moses were bulwarks against the idolatry of the period, and were admirably suited to the intellectual and moral condition of the people. The worship of the true God was characterized by— I. A SINGLE , GOD - SELECTED SHRINE . As the heathen had gods many, they had plurality of temples, altars, and shrines. The single, central temple of Jehovah promoted at least two worthy objects. 1. It kept alive... read more
The central sanctuary. There are difficulties connected with this law from which conclusions have been drawn adverse to the Mosaic authorship of Deuteronomy. These arise: 1. From the lack of evidence that the law was in force in the days of the judges and earlier kings. 2. From the practice of judges, kings, prophets, and other good men in offering sacrifices elsewhere than at the prescribed center. 3. From the mention of other sanctuaries in the history ( e . g . Joshua... read more
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Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - Deuteronomy 12:5-32
There is not any one particular precept (as I remember) in all the law of Moses so largely pressed and inculcated as this, by which they are all tied to bring their sacrifices to that one altar which was set up in the court of the tabernacle, and there to perform all the rituals of their religion; for, as to moral services, then, no doubt, as now, men might pray every where, as they did in their synagogues. The command to do this, and the prohibition of the contrary, are here repeated again... read more