Deuteronomy 12:20

Deuteronomy 12:20-21 . Enlarge thy border — Which will make it impossible to bring all the cattle thou usest to the tabernacle. If the place be too far — Being obliged to carry their sacrifices to the place of worship, they might think themselves obliged to carry their other cattle thither to be killed. They are therefore released from all such obligations, and left at liberty to kill them at home whether they lived nearer that place, or farther from it; only the latter is here mentioned, as being the matter of the scruple. As I have commanded — In such a manner as the blood may be poured forth.

(20) When the Lord thy God shall enlarge thy border. . . .— This and the following verses (20-25) are perfectly intelligible as an expansion of Deuteronomy 12:15-16 , and a modification of the strict rule introduced in Leviticus 18:2 , &c. The distance from the central place of worship to the borders of the land would be manifestly too great for all feasting to be limited to that one spot.

When the Lord shall enlarge thy border, which will make it inconvenient and impossible to do what now thou dost, and because of the narrow bounds of thy camp canst conveniently do, to wit, to bring all the cattle thou usest to the tabernacle, which it seems probable they did, to prevent their eating of blood. Compare Leviticus 17:3 1 Samuel 14:34 .

While a stringent injunction is laid down that the old rule (compare Leviticus 17:3 , etc.) must be adhered to as regards animals slain in sacrifice, yet permission is now given to slaughter at home what was necessary for the table. The ceremonial distinctions did not apply in such cases, anymore than to "the roebuck" (or gazelle) "and hart," animals allowed for food but not for sacrifice.

De 12:16-25. Blood Prohibited. 16. ye shall not eat the blood; ye shall pour it upon the earth as water—The prohibition against eating or drinking blood as an unnatural custom accompanied the announcement of the divine grant of animal flesh for food (Ge 9:4), and the prohibition was repeatedly renewed by Moses with reference to the great objects of the law (Le 17:12), the prevention of idolatry, and the consecration of the sacrificial blood to God. In regard, however, to the blood of animals slain for food, it might be shed without ceremony and poured on the ground as a common thing like water—only for the sake of decency, as well as for preventing all risk of idolatry, it was to be covered over with earth (Le 17:13), in opposition to the practice of heathen sportsmen, who left it exposed as an offering to the god of the chase.

20–28. Practical Corollary to the Law of the One Altar Originally among the Semites as among some other races all slaughter of domestic animals was sacramental1[132]: cp. the Heb. and Arab. word ‘for altar, lit. slaughter-place (see on Deuteronomy 12:3 ). But if this law was still to prevail when sacrifice was limited to one altar the flesh of these animals could only be enjoyed at it, and the lawful or ‘clean’ enjoyment of flesh became impossible to all who lived out of reach of the altar. Compare the analogy in Hosea 9:3 f. where it is said that when Israel are exiled and cease to dwell in Jehovah’s land, where alone sacrifice is legal for them, they must eat unclean food, and become polluted for their food has not first come into a house of Jehovah (cp. Amos 7:17 ). The confinement of sacrifice to one place therefore rendered it necessary to sanction non-ritual slaughter and eating of animals. This is done in the following verses but on two conditions, (1) that God shall have enlarged Israel’s territory, and (2) that the eaters do not live in the neighbourhood of the altar. On these conditions the eating of domestic animals shall be as that of game, in need of no ritual sanction ( Deuteronomy 12:22 ). Only their blood must be poured on the ground ( Deuteronomy 12:23-25 ). And all holy things , specially consecrated, must be brought to the one altar, and the ‘olôth and the blood of the zebaḥim put upon it ( Deuteronomy 12:26 f.).

The section closes with a general injunction of obedience ( Deuteronomy 12:28 ).—There appears no reason to doubt the unity of this supplement to the law of the one sanctuary (apart from small, possibly editorial, insertions). It is throughout in the Sg. address, and logical in its arrangement. The return to the keynote of the law is natural. Note the religious advance which it involves. By separating the enjoyment of animal food from religious rites (as well as by directing the blood of the animals to be poured on the ground), the law cut off the ancient primitive superstitions of the physical kinship of a tribe and their god with their animals, and rendered less possible the animal idolatry which these engendered. [132] For the argument that this practice was due to belief in the kinship of the tribe (and its god) with its animals and that in consequence these were too sacred to be slain except with solemn rites and in the presence and with the consent of the whole family, clan or tribe, who all partook of the flesh and set apart certain portions and the blood for their god, see W. R. Smith, Rel. Sem. Lects. viii., ix. Deuteronomy 12:20 . shall enlarge thy border ] So Deuteronomy 19:8 , also Exodus 34:24 , probably editorial. as he hath promised thee ] Heb. has said . To regard this as an editorial addition, on the ground that it anticipates 21 b (Steuern., Berth.), is precarious. The spirit of such a promise is in several previous passages: e.g.