Samaritan Torah, פַּרְשַׁת וָאֶתְחַנַּן

In the MT, Deut. 5:5 reads:

I stood between the Lord and you at that time, to tell you the word of the Lord: for you were afraid because of the fire, and you did not ascend the mountain; saying:

אָנֹכִי עֹמֵד בֵּין־ה׳ וּבֵינֵיכֶם בָּעֵת הַהִוא לְהַגִּיד לָכֶם אֶת־דְּבַר ה׳ כִּי יְרֵאתֶם מִפְּנֵי הָאֵשׁ וְלֹא־עֲלִיתֶם בָּהָר לֵאמֹר׃

The first word, אָנֹכִי "I" reads ראנכי in the Samaritan text. I don't know whether this is a transcription error in my Samaritan chumash or what, but it's strange.

Deut. 5:17, part of the Ten Commandments, reads in the MT:

Never desire your fellow's wife, nor covet your fellow's house, his field, or his slave, or his maidservant, his ox, or his ass, or any thing that is your fellow's.

וְלֹא תַחְמֹד אֵשֶׁת רֵעֶךָ וְלֹא תִתְאַוֶּה בֵּית רֵעֶךָ שָׂדֵהוּ וְעַבְדּוֹ וַאֲמָתוֹ שׁוֹרוֹ וַחֲמֹרוֹ וְכֹל אֲשֶׁר לְרֵעֶךָ׃

The Samaritan Text resolves the contradiction with the account in Exodus in favour of the Exodus text (unlike the Fourth Commandment, which went the other way):

Never desire your fellow's house, nor desire your fellow's wife, his field, his slave, or his maidservant, his ox, his ass, or any thing that is your fellow's.

לֹא תַחְמֹד בֵּית רֵעֶךָ וְלֹא תַחְמֹד אֵשֶׁת רֵעֶךָ שָׂדֵהוּ עַבְדּוֹ וַאֲמָתוֹ שׁוֹרוֹ וַחֲמוֹרוֹ וְכֹל אֲשֶׁר לְרֵעֶךָ׃

I have followed the traditional translation for חמד here (though ignored that for רְעֵה, which has nothing to do with living next door, and followed Weingreen's (IIRC) interpretation of לֹא as introducing a permanent prohibition, as opposed to a temporary one introduced with אַל), but should point out that Joel Hoffman argues in And God Said: How Translations Conceal the Bible's Original Meaning that uses elsewhere imply it must have the meaning of actually putting the thought of seizing one's fellow's property into action, not simply desiring it.

The Samaritan text at this point introduces the first half of Deut. 11:29, followed by a modified version of Deut. 27:2 (second half) and 27:4–7 and an extra passage on the end:

When the Lord your God brings you into the land of the Canaanite, which you are coming into to inherit, erect great stones, plaster them with plaster, and write on the stones all the words of this law. Therefore when you have crossed the Jordan, set up these stones, which I command you this day, on Mount Gerizim. There build an altar to the Lord your God, an altar of stones: lift up no iron tool upon them. Build the altar of the Lord your God using whole stones; and offer burnt offerings on it unto the LORD your God. You shall offer peace offerings, and eat there, and rejoice before the LORD your God, after the way of the sunset in the land of the Canaanite who lives in the Aravah in front of Gilgal by the plains of Moreh, in front of Shechem.

וְהָיָה כִּי יְבִיאֲךָ ה׳ אֱלֹהֶיךָ אֶל־הָאָרֶץ אֲשֶׁר־אַתָּה בָא־שָׁמָּה לְרִשְׁתָּהּ וַהֲקֵמֹתָ לְךָ אֲבָנִים גְּדֹלוֹת וְשַׂדְתָּ אֹתָם בַּשִּׂיד׃ וְכָתַבְתָּ עַל הָאֲבָנִים אֶת־כָּל־דִּבְרֵי הַתּוֹרָה הַזֹּאת וְהָיָה בְּעָבְרְכֶם אֶת־הַיַּרְדֵּן תָּקִימוּ אֶת־הָאֲבָנִים הָאֵלֶּה אֲשֶׁר אָנֹכִי מְצַוֶּה אֶתְכֶם הַיּוֹם בְּהַרְגְרִיזִים׃ וּבָנִיתָ שָּׁם מִזְבֵּחַ לַה׳ אֱלֹהֶיךָ מִזְבַּח אֲבָנִים לֹא־תָנִיף עֲלֵיהֶם בַּרְזֶל׃ אֲבָנִים שְׁלֵמוֹת תִּבְנֶה אֶת־מִזְבַּח ה׳ אֱלֹהֶיךָ וְהַעֲלִיתָ עָלָיו עֹלוֹת לַה׳ אֱלֹהֶיךָ׃ וְזָבַחְתָּ שְׁלָמִים וְאָכַלְתָּ שָּׁם וְשָׂמַחְתָּ לִפְנֵי ה׳ אֱלֹהֶיךָ׃ הָהָר הַהוּא בְּעֵבֶר הַיַּרְדֵּן אַחֲרֵי דֶרֶךְ מָבוֹא הַשֶׁמֶשׁ בְּאֶרֶץ הַכְּנַעֲנִי הַיֹשֵׁב בְּעַרָבָה מוּל הַגִּלְגַל אֵצֶל אֵלוֹן מוֹרֵא מוּל שְׁכֶם׃

This is pivotal to the Samaritan worldview. In the MT, the place where the altar is to be built is not named; the rest of Deuteronomy refers frequently to the place which God will choose, e.g. Deut. 12:5-7:

You shall seek the place which the Lord your God will choose out of all your tribes to put His name there, for His habitation, and come there: There shall you bring your sacrifices [of various kinds], and your vows, and the firstlings of your herds and of your flocks. There you shall eat before the Lord your God, and you shall rejoice in all that you put your hand to, you and your households, in which the Lord your God has blessed you.

כִּי אִם־אֶל־הַמָּקוֹם אֲשֶׁר־יִבְחַר ה׳ אֱלֹהֵיכֶם מִכָּל־שִׁבְטֵיכֶם לָשׂוּם אֶת־שְׁמוֹ שָׁם לְשִׁכְנוֹ תִדְרְשׁוּ וּבָאתָ שָּׁמָּה׃ וַהֲבֵאתֶם שָׁמָּה עֹלֹתֵיכֶם וְזִבְחֵיכֶם וְאֵת מַעְשְׂרֹתֵיכֶם וְאֵת תְּרוּמַת יֶדְכֶם וְנִדְרֵיכֶם וְנִדְבֹתֵיכֶם וּבְכֹרֹת בְּקַרְכֶם וְצֹאנְכֶם׃ וַאֲכַלְתֶּם־שָׁם לִפְנֵי ה׳ אֱלֹהֵיכֶם וּשְׂמַחְתֶּם בְּכֹל מִשְׁלַח יֶדְכֶם אַתֶּם וּבָתֵּיכֶם אֲשֶׁר בֵּרַכְךָ ה׳ אֱלֹהֶיךָ׃

In the Samaritan text, הַמָּקוֹם אֲשֶׁר־יִבְחַר ה׳ אֱלֹהֵיכֶם, which the Jewish tradition interprets to mean Jerusalem, reads instead in every occurrence הַמָּקוֹם אֲשֶׁר־בָּחַר ה׳ אֱלֹהֵיכֶם, "the place which the Lord your God has chosen", and, as the addendum to the Ten Commandment makes clear, refers, due to the conflating of texts from Deut. 11 and Deut. 27., to Mt Gerizim (spelled, for some reason, as one word). (Note: The Masoretic Text has the facing mountain, Mt Ebal, here instead. It is noteworthy that in the blessings and curses ceremony, the blessings are given on Mt Gerizim and the curses on Mt Ebal. AIUI Mt Ebal, moreover, is bare and lacks the vegetation of Mt Gerizim.) Consequently, it is at Mt Gerizim that the Samaritans, since time immemorial, have been offering their sacrifices, and where their temple once stood (until it was destroyed by the Hasmoneans). Jerusalem means nothing to them, and Solomon's Temple at Jerusalem was founded, according to them, after the split with the Jews.

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