Deuteronomy 16:5
in Deuteronomy 16You are not to sacrifice the Passover animal in any of the towns that the LORD your God is giving you.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
Thou mayest not sacrifice the passover within any of thy gates, which Jehovah thy God giveth thee;
KJV
Thou mayest not sacrifice the passover within any of thy gates, which the Lord thy God giveth thee:
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This verse in Deuteronomy 16
Commentary
4 notes on this verseThis site's exposition
You are not to sacrifice the Passover animal in any of the towns
on Deuteronomy 16:5-7
Exodus 12 kept the Passover in the houses with blood on the doorposts, and here it may not be killed “in any of the towns”. Albert Barnes takes this gathering of worship to one sanctuary as the chapter's point.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening3 voices
The feast of pentecost, ver. 9-12 That of tabernacles, ver. 13-15. All the males are to attend them, ver. 16, 17. An appointment of Judges and officers, ver. 18-20.
quarantine:anchor (2026-07-29) — cites-ver-13/16/18-anchored-1-8
The passover was itself a sacrifice; hence Christ, as our passover, is said to be sacrificed for us ( 1 Cor. v. 7 ), and many other sacrifices were offered during the seven days of the feast ( Num. xxviii.
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — unbalanced-parens
Thou mayest not sacrifice the passover within any of thy gates,.... Or cities, as the Targum of Jonathan, so called because they usually had gates to them, in which public affairs were transacted; but in none of these, only in the city of Jerusalem, the place the Lord chose, might they kill the passover and eat it, and other passover offerings: which the Lord thy God giveth thee; in the land of Canaan, and which land was given them of God.
How the passage was read
On Deuteronomy 16:1-17On Deuteronomy 16:1-17
Three times a year, on the road
This passage sets the rhythm behind half the New Testament's travel scenes: three times a year (Passover, Weeks, Tabernacles) every Israelite male was to appear “before the LORD” at the one chosen place, which became Jerusalem. That is pilgrimage: whole families and villages walking or riding for days, camping, filling the city to bursting. It is why the boy Jesus is in Jerusalem in Luke 2, why the city is crowded at the crucifixion, and why devout Jews “from every nation” are there at Pentecost in Acts 2.
The Mishnah opens its tractate on the festival visit by asking exactly who is obligated to make the trip (Chagigah 1:1): men were bound; women and children came freely, as Mary did.
This section is reception history: how the passage was read and kept in the Jewish tradition. Where a reading parts from an essential of the Christian faith, the section says so at that point.
Sources: Mishnah Chagigah 1:1 (who must appear) · Luke 2:41 (the family's yearly pilgrimage)
The words behind it
12 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| לֹ֥א | lo' | not | H3808 → | 5168 times |
| תוּכַ֖ל | tukhal | you will be able | H3201 → | 194 times |
| לִזְבֹּ֣חַ | lizboach | to sacrifice | H2076 → | 134 times |
| אֶת־ | ʾet- | <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| הַפָּ֑סַח | hapasach | the passover | H6453 → | 49 times |
| בְּאַחַ֣ד | beachad | in one of | H259 → | 971 times |
| שְׁעָרֶ֔יךָ | sheareikha | gates your | H8179 → | 374 times |
| אֲשֶׁר־ | ʾasher- | which | H834 → | 5497 times |
| יְהוָ֥ה | yahweh | Yahweh | H3068 → | 6520 times |
| אֱלֹהֶ֖יךָ | ʾeloheikha | God your | H430 → | 2601 times |
| נֹתֵ֥ן | noten | [is] about to give | H5414 → | 2011 times |
| לָֽךְ׃ | lakh | to you |
לֹ֥אnot
lo'H3808 →5168 times
תוּכַ֖לyou will be able
tukhalH3201 →194 times
לִזְבֹּ֣חַto sacrifice
lizboachH2076 →134 times
אֶת־<obj.>
ʾet-H853 →10935 times
הַפָּ֑סַחthe passover
hapasachH6453 →49 times
בְּאַחַ֣דin one of
beachadH259 →971 times
שְׁעָרֶ֔יךָgates your
sheareikhaH8179 →374 times
אֲשֶׁר־which
ʾasher-H834 →5497 times
יְהוָ֥הYahweh
yahwehH3068 →6520 times
אֱלֹהֶ֖יךָGod your
ʾeloheikhaH430 →2601 times
נֹתֵ֥ן[is] about to give
notenH5414 →2011 times
לָֽךְ׃to you
lakh
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
5 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Deuteronomy 16:2You are to offer to the LORD your God the Passover sacrifice from the herd or flock in the place the LORD will choose as a dwelling for His Name.
it leads to
- Deuteronomy 12:5
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.
- Deuteronomy 12:26
But you are to take your holy things and your vow offerings and go to the place the LORD will choose.
- Luke 22:15
And He said to them, “I have eagerly desired to eat this Passover with you before My suffering.
- 1 Corinthians 5:7
Get rid of the old leaven, that you may be a new unleavened batch, as you really are. For Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed.
- Luke 22:8
Jesus sent Peter and John, saying, “Go and prepare for us to eat the Passover.”
- Deuteronomy 12:5
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies5
About Deuteronomy
This page draws on Albert Barnes, Notes on the Old Testament; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament; Keil and Delitzsch, Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament: The Pentateuch and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.