Deuteronomy 12 · Verse 5

Deuteronomy 12:5

But unto the place which the Lord your God shall choose out of all your tribes to put his name there, even unto his habitation shall ye seek, and thither thou shalt come:

Deuteronomy 12:5, King James Version

Deuteronomy 12:5 in other translations

BSB	Instead, you must seek the place the LORD your God will choose from among all your tribes to establish as a dwelling for His Name, and there you must go.
WEB	But to the place which the LORD your God shall choose out of all your tribes, to put his name there, you shall seek his habitation, and you shall come there.
ASV	But unto the place which Jehovah your God shall choose out of all your tribes, to put his name there, even unto his habitation shall ye seek, and thither thou shalt come;
YLT	but unto the place which Jehovah your God doth choose out of all your tribes to put His name there, to His tabernacle ye seek, and thou hast entered thither,
DARBY	but unto the place which Jehovah your God will choose out of all your tribes to set his name there, his habitation shall ye seek, and thither thou shalt come;
BBE	But let your hearts be turned to the place which will be marked out by the Lord your God, among your tribes, to put his name there;
Webster	But the place which the LORD your God shall choose out of all your tribes to put his name there, even his habitation shall ye seek, and thither thou shalt come:

What does Deuteronomy 12:5 mean?

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown

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 (Nu 16:1-30).

Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown, 1871 · public domain

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on Deuteronomy 12:5-32

The command to bring ALL the sacrifices to the door of the tabernacle, was now explained with reference to the promised land. As to moral service, then, as now, men might pray and worship every where, as they did in their synagogues. The place which God would choose, is said to be the place where he would put his name. It was to be his habitation, where, as King of Israel, he would be found by all who reverently sought him. Now, under the gospel, we have no temple or altar that sanctifies the gift but Christ only: and as to the places of worship, the prophets foretold that in every place the spiritual incense should be offered, Mal 1:11. Our Saviour declared, that those are accepted as true worshippers, who worship God in sincerity and truth, without regard either to this mountain or Jerusalem, Joh 4:21. And a devout Israelite might honour God, keep up communion with him, and obtain mercy from him, though he had no opportunity of bringing a sacrifice to his altar. Work for God should be done with holy joy and cheerfulness. Even children and servants must rejoice before God; the services of religion are to be a pleasure, and not a task or drudgery. It is the duty of people to be kind to their ministers, who teach them well, and set them good examples. As long as we live, we need their assistance, till we come to that world where ordinances will not be needed. Whether we eat or drink, or whatever we do, we are commanded to do all to the glory of God. And we must do all in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, giving thanks to the Father through him. They must not even inquire into the modes and forms of idolatrous worship. What good would it do them to know those depths of Satan? And our inward satisfaction will be more and more, as we abound in love and good works, which spring from faith and the in-dwelling Spirit of Christ.

Matthew Henry, 1706 · public domain

Deuteronomy 12:5 in the original Hebrew

Word-by-word with transliteration, English gloss and Strong's number. Tap a number for the full definition and every place the word is used.

כִּ֠יkithatH3588

אִֽם\־'im-exceptH518

אֶל\־'el-toH413

הַמָּק֞וֹםha.ma.Komthe placeH4725

אֲשֶׁר\־'a.Sher-whereH834

יִבְחַ֨רyiv.Charhe will chooseH977

יְהוָ֤הYah.wehYahwehH3068

אֱלֹֽהֵיכֶם֙'e.lo.hei.KhemGod yourH430

מִכָּל\־mi.kolfrom allH3605

שִׁבְטֵיכֶ֔םshiv.tei.Khemtribes yourH7626

לָשׂ֥וּםla.Sumto putH7760

אֶת\־'et-<obj.>H853

שְׁמ֖וֹshe.Moname hisH8034

שָׁ֑םShamthereH8033

לְשִׁכְנ֥וֹle.shikh.Noto dwelling itsH7931

תִדְרְשׁ֖וּtid.re.Shuyou will resortH1875

וּבָ֥אתָu.Va.taand you will goH935

שָֽׁמָּה\׃Sha.mahthere towardsH8033

Source: STEPBible TAHOT/TAGNT (Tyndale House, CC BY 4.0).

Cross references for Deuteronomy 12:5

Deuteronomy 12:11
Then there shall be a place which the Lord your God shall choose to cause his name to dwell there; thither shall ye bring all that I command you; your burnt offerings, and your sacrifices, your tithes, and the heave offering of your hand, and all your choice vows which ye vow unto the Lord:
2 Chronicles 7:12
And the Lord appeared to Solomon by night, and said unto him, I have heard thy prayer, and have chosen this place to myself for an house of sacrifice.
Deuteronomy 26:2
That thou shalt take of the first of all the fruit of the earth, which thou shalt bring of thy land that the Lord thy God giveth thee, and shalt put it in a basket, and shalt go unto the place which the Lord thy God shall choose to place his name there.
Deuteronomy 16:2
Thou shalt therefore sacrifice the passover unto the Lord thy God, of the flock and the herd, in the place which the Lord shall choose to place his name there.
1 Kings 8:29
That thine eyes may be open toward this house night and day, even toward the place of which thou hast said, My name shall be there: that thou mayest hearken unto the prayer which thy servant shall make toward this place.
Psalms 78:68
But chose the tribe of Judah, the mount Zion which he loved.
Psalms 132:13-14
For the Lord hath chosen Zion; he hath desired it for his habitation. This is my rest for ever: here will I dwell; for I have desired it.
Deuteronomy 12:13
Take heed to thyself that thou offer not thy burnt offerings in every place that thou seest:
Isaiah 66:1-2
Thus saith the Lord, The heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool: where is the house that ye build unto me? and where is the place of my rest? For all those things hath mine hand made, and all those things have been, saith the Lord: but to this man will I look, even to him that is poor and of a contrite spirit, and trembleth at my word.
Psalms 87:2-3
The Lord loveth the gates of Zion more than all the dwellings of Jacob. Glorious things are spoken of thee, O city of God. Selah.
1 Kings 8:20
And the Lord hath performed his word that he spake, and I am risen up in the room of David my father, and sit on the throne of Israel, as the Lord promised, and have built an house for the name of the Lord God of Israel.
1 Kings 8:16
Since the day that I brought forth my people Israel out of Egypt, I chose no city out of all the tribes of Israel to build an house, that my name might be therein; but I chose David to be over my people Israel.

Ranked by reader votes · OpenBible.info cross references (CC BY).

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge

But unto.
11; 16:2; 26:2; Jos 9:27; 18:1; 1Ki 8:16,20,29; 14:21; 1Ch 22:1
2Ch 7:12; Ps 78:68; 87:2,3; Joh 4:20-22; Heb 12:22; Re 14:1
habitation.
Ex 15:2; 25:22; Nu 7:89; 1Ki 8:27; Ps 132:13,14; Isa 66:1,2
Ac 7:48-50; Eph 2:20-22; Col 2:9

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (Samuel Bagster, c. 1836) · public domain

Context

Deuteronomy 12:4
Ye shall not do so unto the Lord your God.
Deuteronomy 12:5
But unto the place which the Lord your God shall choose out of all your tribes to put his name there, even unto his habitation shall ye seek, and thither thou shalt come:
Deuteronomy 12:6
And thither ye shall bring your burnt offerings, and your sacrifices, and your tithes, and heave offerings of your hand, and your vows, and your freewill offerings, and the firstlings of your herds and of your flocks:

Read all of Deuteronomy 12

Deuteronomy 12:5 in other languages

Spanish Reina-Valera 1909	Mas el lugar que Jehová vuestro Dios escogiere de todas vuestras tribus, para poner allí su nombre para su habitación, ése buscaréis, y allá iréis:
French Bible J.N. Darby 1885	mais vous chercherez le lieu que l’ Éternel, votre Dieu, choisira d’entre toutes vos tribus pour y mettre son nom, le lieu où il habitera, et vous y viendrez;
German Elberfelder 1871	sondern den Ort sollt ihr aufsuchen, welchen Jehova, euer Gott, aus allen euren Stämmen erwählen wird, um seinen Namen dahin zu setzen, daß er dort wohne, und dahin sollst du kommen.
Latin Clementine Vulgate	sed ad locum, quem elegerit Dominus Deus vester de cunctis tribubus vestris, ut ponat nomen suum ibi, et habitet in eo, venietis: