²⁸ Be careful to obey all these regulations I am giving you, so that it may always go well^(A) with you and your children after you, because you will be doing what is good and right in the eyes of the Lord your God.

²⁹ The Lord your God will cut off^(B) before you the nations you are about to invade and dispossess. But when you have driven them out and settled in their land,^{(C) 30} and after they have been destroyed before you, be careful not to be ensnared^(D) by inquiring about their gods, saying, “How do these nations serve their gods? We will do the same.”^{(E) 31} You must not worship the Lord your God in their way, because in worshiping their gods, they do all kinds of detestable things the Lord hates.^(F) They even burn their sons^(G) and daughters in the fire as sacrifices to their gods.^(H)

³² See that you do all I command you; do not add^(I) to it or take away from it.^[a]

³ Moses then said to Aaron, “This is what the Lord spoke of when he said:

Aaron remained silent.

⁷ You hypocrites! Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you:

Freedom From Human Rules

¹⁶ Therefore do not let anyone judge you^(A) by what you eat or drink,^(B) or with regard to a religious festival,^(C) a New Moon celebration^(D) or a Sabbath day.^{(E) 17} These are a shadow of the things that were to come;^(F) the reality, however, is found in Christ. ¹⁸ Do not let anyone who delights in false humility^(G) and the worship of angels disqualify you.^(H) Such a person also goes into great detail about what they have seen; they are puffed up with idle notions by their unspiritual mind. ¹⁹ They have lost connection with the head,^(I) from whom the whole body,^(J) supported and held together by its ligaments and sinews, grows as God causes it to grow.^(K)

²⁰ Since you died with Christ^(L) to the elemental spiritual forces of this world,^(M) why, as though you still belonged to the world, do you submit to its rules:^{(N) 21} “Do not handle! Do not taste! Do not touch!”? ²² These rules, which have to do with things that are all destined to perish^(O) with use, are based on merely human commands and teachings.^{(P) 23} Such regulations indeed have an appearance of wisdom, with their self-imposed worship, their false humility^(Q) and their harsh treatment of the body, but they lack any value in restraining sensual indulgence.