The thought or presupposition underlying this command is that the act of slaughtering animals at home, and not at the central sanctuary, is not a religious act, but a purely secular act. So the ritual rules do not apply. Everyone, whether ritually pure or impure, is free to eat the meat of these animals.

You may slaughter and eat flesh within any of your towns: this refers to domestic animals, not wild game. Good News Translation is very clear: “But you are to kill and eat your animals wherever you live.”

As of the gazelle … the hart: being wild animals, deers and antelopes (Good News Translation) were not subject to the ritual rules that applied to sacrificial animals, and everyone could eat their meat. In cultures where these animals are unknown, we may use a more general translation, as the actual animals are unimportant: “just as you would eat the meat of wild animals [or, animals of the forest, or jungle].”

As much as you desire: this is meant to say “as often as you wish” (New Revised Standard Version “whenever you desire”).

According to the blessing of the LORD your God which he has given you: this means, depending on the number of animals that God has blessed them with. Their prosperity is due to God’s blessing. Good News Translation has “as many as the LORD gives you.” For the LORD your God see 1.6.

The unclean and the clean: this means people who are ritually impure and pure; it does not mean actual bodily filth. The main effect on a person who became ritually impure was that such a person could not take part in community worship until the proper ritual had been performed to remove that person’s impurity. This was ritual impurity, not a moral lapse. In some languages a lot of information understood by the original readers of the text must be included in order to allow the reader to understand the meaning of these terms. For unclean Good News Translation has “ritually impure,” while Contemporary English Version has “all those people who are unclean and unfit for worship.” Another way to express unclean is “religiously impure [or, unacceptable].” Some languages will render the unclean and the clean as “people with bad taboo and those with good taboo.” Most translators will need to provide a detailed note in the Glossary on these terms.

The gazelle … the hart: in more modern terms, “the meat of deer or antelope” (Good News Translation).

Quoted with permission from Bratcher, Robert G. and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on Deuteronomy. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2000. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .