"But you shall seek[the LORD] at the placewhichthe LORDyour Godwill choosefrom allyour tribes,to establishHis nametherefor His dwelling,and thereyou shall come.
"Ifthispeoplegoup to offersacrificesin the houseof the LORDat Jerusalem,then the heartof thispeoplewill returnto their lord,[even] to Rehoboamkingof Judah;and they will killme and returnto Rehoboamkingof Judah."
Now Rehoboamthe sonof Solomonreignedin Judah.Rehoboamwas forty-oneyearsoldwhen he becameking,and he reignedseventeenyearsin Jerusalem,the citywhichthe LORDhad chosenfrom allthe tribesof Israelto putHis namethere.And his mother'snamewas Naamahthe Ammonitess.
Sincethe daythat I broughtMy peopleIsraelfrom Egypt,I did not choosea cityout of allthe tribesof Israel[in which] to builda housethat My namemight be there,but I choseDavidto be overMy peopleIsrael.'
"Now the LORDhas fulfilledHis wordwhichHe spoke;for I have risenin placeof my fatherDavidand siton the throneof Israel,as the LORDpromised,and have builtthe housefor the nameof the LORD,the Godof Israel.
"But will Godindeeddwellon the earth?Behold,heavenand the highestheavencannotcontainYou, howmuchlessthishousewhichI have built!
that Your eyesmay be opentowardthishousenightand day,towardthe placeof whichYou have said,'My nameshall be there,'to listento the prayerwhichYour servantshall praytowardthisplace.
"But ifyou sayto me, 'We trustin the LORDour God,'is it not He whosehighplacesand whose altarsHezekiahhas takenaway,and has saidto Judahand to Jerusalem,'You shall worshipbeforethisaltarin Jerusalem'?
Then Davidsaid,"Thisis the houseof the LORDGod,and thisis the altarof burntofferingfor Israel."
Then the LORDappearedto Solomonat nightand saidto him, "I have heardyour prayerand have chosenthisplacefor Myself as a houseof sacrifice.
Then Jeshuathe sonof Jozadakand his brothersthe priests,and Zerubbabelthe sonof Shealtieland his brothersaroseand builtthe altarof the Godof Israelto offerburntofferingson it, as it is writtenin the lawof Moses,the manof God.
"May the Godwhohas caused His nameto dwellthereoverthrowanykingor peoplewhoattemptsto change[it], so as to destroythishouseof Godin Jerusalem.I, Darius,have issued[this] decree,let [it] be carriedout with alldiligence!"
with thismoney,therefore,you shall diligentlybuybulls,ramsand lambs,with their grain offeringsand their drinkofferingsand offerthem on the altarof the houseof your Godwhichis in Jerusalem.
but [if] you returnto Me and keepMy commandmentsand dothem, thoughthose of you who have been scatteredwere in the mostremotepartof the heavens,I will gatherthem from thereand will bringthem to the placewhereI have chosento cause My nameto dwell.'
But chosethe tribeof Judah,MountZionwhichHe loved.
"The LORDis my strengthand song,And He has becomemy salvation;Thisis my God,and I will praiseHim; My father'sGod,and I will extolHim.
You shall makean altarof earthfor Me, and you shall sacrificeon it your burntofferingsand your peaceofferings,your sheepand your oxen;in everyplacewhereI cause My nameto be remembered,I will cometo you and blessyou.
"ThereI will meetwith you; and from abovethe mercyseat,from betweenthe twocherubimwhichare upon the arkof the testimony,I will speakto you about allthat I will giveyou in commandmentfor the sonsof Israel.
"Thussaysthe LORD,Standin the courtof the LORD'Shouse,and speakto allthe citiesof Judahwho have cometo worship[in] the LORD'Shouseallthe wordsthat I have commandedyou to speakto them. Do not omita word!
"But gonowto My placewhichwas in Shiloh,whereI made My namedwellat the first,and seewhatI didto it becauseof the wickednessof My peopleIsrael.
therefore, I will doto the housewhichis calledby My name,in whichyou trust,and to the placewhichI gaveyou and your fathers,as I didto Shiloh.
and has not broughtit to the doorwayof the tentof meetingto present[it] as an offeringto the LORDbeforethe tabernacleof the LORD,bloodguiltinessis to be reckonedto that man.He has shedbloodand that manshall be cutofffrom amonghis people.
Now when Moseswentinto the tentof meetingto speakwith Him, he heardthe voicespeakingto him from abovethe mercyseatthat was on the arkof the testimony,from betweenthe twocherubim,so He spoketo him.
then it shall comeabout that the placein whichthe LORDyour Godwill choosefor His nameto dwell,thereyou shall bringallthat I commandyou: your burntofferingsand your sacrifices,your tithesand the contributionof your hand,and allyour choicevotiveofferingswhichyou will vowto the LORD.
"Be carefulthat you do not offeryour burntofferingsin every[cultic] placeyou see,
"But you shall eatthem beforethe LORDyour Godin the placewhichthe LORDyour Godwill choose,you and your sonand daughter,and your maleand femaleservants,and the Levitewhois within your gates;and you shall rejoicebeforethe LORDyour Godin allyour undertakings.
"You shall not actlikethistoward the LORDyour God.
"You shall eatin the presenceof the LORDyour God,at the placewhereHe choosesto establishHis name,the titheof your grain,your newwine,your oil,and the firstbornof your herdand your flock,sothat you may learnto fearthe LORDyour Godalways.
"Ifthe distanceis so greatfor you that you are not ableto bring[the tithe], sincethe placewherethe LORDyour Godchoosesto setHis nameis too faraway from you whenthe LORDyour Godblessesyou,
"You and your householdshall eatit everyyearbeforethe LORDyour Godin the placewhichthe LORDchooses.
and you shall rejoicebeforethe LORDyour God,you and your sonand your daughterand your maleand femaleservantsand the Levitewhois in your town,and the strangerand the orphanand the widowwhoare in your midst,in the placewherethe LORDyour Godchoosesto establishHis name.
"Sevendaysyou shall celebratea feastto the LORDyour Godin the placewhichthe LORDchooses,becausethe LORDyour Godwill blessyou in allyour produceand in allthe workof your hands,so that you will be altogetherjoyful.
"You shall sacrificethe Passoverto the LORDyour Godfrom the flockand the herd,in the placewherethe LORDchoosesto establishHis name.
but at the placewherethe LORDyour Godchoosesto establishHis name,you shall sacrificethe Passoverin the eveningat sunset,at the timethat you cameout of Egypt.
"You shall cookand eat[it] in the placewhichthe LORDyour Godchooses.In the morningyou are to returnto your tents.
"Ifany caseis toodifficultfor you to decide,betweenone kind of homicideor another,betweenone kind of lawsuitor another,and betweenone kind of assaultor another,being casesof disputein your courts,then you shall ariseand goup to the placewhichthe LORDyour Godchooses.
"Now ifa Levitecomesfrom anyof your townsthroughoutIsraelwherehe resides,and comeswheneverhe desiresto the placewhichthe LORDchooses,
that you shall takesomeof the firstof allthe produceof the groundwhichyou bringin from your landthat the LORDyour Godgivesyou, and you shall put[it] in a basketand goto the placewherethe LORDyour Godchoosesto establishHis name.
when allIsraelcomesto appearbeforethe LORDyour Godat the placewhichHe will choose,you shall readthislawin frontof allIsraelin their hearing.
For in Him allthe fullnessof Deitydwellsin bodily form,
But you have cometo MountZionand to the cityof the livingGod,the heavenlyJerusalem,and to myriadsof angels,
Then the wholecongregationof the sonsof Israelassembledthemselves at Shiloh,and setup the tentof meetingthere;and the landwas subduedbeforethem.
And the sonsof Israelheard[it] said,"Behold,the sonsof Reubenand the sonsof Gadand the half-tribeof Manassehhave builtan altarat the frontierof the landof Canaan,in the regionof the Jordan,on the side[belonging to] the sonsof Israel."
But Joshuamadethem that dayhewersof woodand drawersof waterfor the congregationand for the altarof the LORD,to thisday,in the placewhichHe would choose.
ThenI looked,and behold,the Lamb[was] standingon MountZion,and with Him one hundredand forty-fourthousand,havingHis nameand the nameof His Fatherwrittenon their foreheads.
