Leviticus 7
7
The Guilt Offering
1 “‘This is the law of the guilt offering. It is most holy. 2 In the place where they slaughter the burnt offering they must slaughter the guilt offering, and the officiating priest#tn Heb “he”; the referent (the officiating priest) has been specified in the translation for clarity. This priest was responsible for any actions involving direct contact with the altar (e.g., the splashing of the blood). must splash#tn See the note on Lev 1:5. the blood against the altar’s sides. 3 Then the one making the offering#tn Heb “then he.” This pronoun refers to the offerer, who was responsible for slaughtering the animal. Contrast v. 2 above and v. 5 below. must present all its fat: the fatty tail, the fat covering the entrails, 4 the two kidneys and the fat on their sinews, and the protruding lobe on the liver (which he must remove along with the kidneys).#tn See the notes on Lev 3:3-4. 5 Then the priest must offer them up in smoke on the altar#tn See the note on Lev 1:9 above. as a gift to the Lord. It is a guilt offering. 6 Any male among the priests may eat it. It must be eaten in a holy place. It is most holy.#tn Heb “holiness of holinesses [or holy of holies] it is”; NAB “most sacred”; TEV “very holy.” 7 The law is the same for the sin offering and the guilt offering;#tn Heb “like the sin offering like the guilt offering, one law to them.” it belongs to the priest who makes atonement with it.
Priestly Portions of Burnt and Grain Offerings
8 “‘As for the priest who presents someone’s burnt offering, the hide of that burnt offering which he presented belongs to him. 9 Every grain offering which is baked in the oven or#tn Heb “and” rather than “or” (cf. also the next “or”). made in the pan#tn Heb “and all made in the pan”; cf. KJV “fryingpan”; NAB “deep-fried in a pot.” or on the griddle belongs to the priest who presented it. 10 Every grain offering, whether mixed with olive oil or dry, belongs to all the sons of Aaron, each one alike.#tn Heb “a man like his brother.”
The Peace Offering
11 “‘This is the law of the peace offering sacrifice which he#tn This “he” pronoun refers to the offerer. Smr and LXX have plural “they.” is to present to the Lord. 12 If he presents it on account of thanksgiving,#tn Or “for a thank offering.” along with the thank offering sacrifice he must present unleavened loaves mixed with olive oil, unleavened wafers smeared with olive oil,#tn See the notes on Lev 2:4. and well soaked#tn See the note on Lev 6:21 [6:14 HT]. ring-shaped loaves made of choice wheat flour#tn Heb “choice wheat flour well soaked ring-shaped loaves.” See the note on Lev 2:1. mixed with olive oil. 13 He must present this grain offering#tn The rendering “this [grain] offering” is more literally “his offering,” but it refers to the series of grain offerings listed just previously in v. 12. in addition to ring-shaped loaves of leavened bread which regularly accompany#tn The words “which regularly accompany” are not in the Hebrew text, but are supplied for clarity.sn The translation “[which regularly accompany]…” is based on the practice of bringing bread (and wine) to eat with the portions of the peace offering meat eaten by the priests and worshipers (see v. 14 and Num 15:1-13). This was in addition to the memorial portion of the unleavened bread that was offered to the Lord on the altar (cf. Lev 2:2, 9, and the note on 7:12). the sacrifice of his thanksgiving peace offering. 14 He must present one of each kind of grain offering#tn Here the Hebrew text reads “offering” (קָרְבָּן, qorbban), not “grain offering” (מִנְחָה, minkhah), but in this context the term refers once again to the list in 7:12. as a contribution offering#tn The term rendered “contribution offering” is תְּרוּמָה (tÿrumah), which generally refers to that which is set aside from the offerings to the Lord as prebends for the officiating priests (cf. esp. Lev 7:28-34 and R. E. Averbeck, NIDOTTE 4:335-37). Cf. TEV “as a special contribution.” to the Lord; it belongs to the priest who splashes the blood of the peace offering. 15 The meat of his#tn In the verse “his” refers to the offerer. thanksgiving peace offering must be eaten on the day of his offering; he must not set any of it aside until morning.
16 “‘If his offering is a votive or freewill sacrifice,#tn For the distinction between votive and freewill offerings see the note on Lev 22:23 and the literature cited there. it may be eaten on the day he presents his sacrifice, and also the leftovers from it may be eaten on the next day,#tn Heb “and on the next day and the left over from it shall be eaten.” 17 but the leftovers from the meat of the sacrifice must be burned up in the fire#tn Heb “burned with fire,” an expression which is sometimes redundant in English, but here means “burned up,” “burned up entirely” (likewise in v. 19). on the third day. 18 If some of the meat of his peace offering sacrifice is ever eaten on the third day it will not be accepted; it will not be accounted to the one who presented it, since it is spoiled,#tn Or “desecrated,” or “defiled,” or “forbidden.” For this difficult term see J. Milgrom, Leviticus (AB), 1:422. Cf. NIV “it is impure”; NCV “it will become unclean”; NLT “will be contaminated.” and the person who eats from it will bear his punishment for iniquity.#tn Heb “his iniquity he shall bear” (cf. Lev 5:1); NIV “will be held responsible”; NRSV “shall incur guilt”; TEV “will suffer the consequences.” 19 The meat which touches anything ceremonially#tn The word “ceremonially” has been supplied in the translation both here and in the following sentence to clarify that the uncleanness involved is ritual or ceremonial in nature. unclean must not be eaten; it must be burned up in the fire. As for ceremonially clean meat,#tn The Hebrew has simply “the flesh,” but this certainly refers to “clean” flesh in contrast to the unclean flesh in the first half of the verse. everyone who is ceremonially clean may eat the meat. 20 The person who eats meat from the peace offering sacrifice which belongs to the Lord while his uncleanness persists#tn Heb “and his unclean condition is on him.” will be cut off from his people.#sn The exact meaning of this penalty clause is not certain. It could mean that he will be executed, whether by God or by man, he will be excommunicated from sanctuary worship and/or community benefits (cf. TEV, CEV), or his line will be terminated by God (i.e., extirpation), etc. See J. E. Hartley, Leviticus (WBC), 100; J. Milgrom, Leviticus (AB), 1:457-60; and B. A. Levine, Leviticus (JPSTC), 241-42 for further discussion. 21 When a person touches anything unclean (whether human uncleanness, or an unclean animal, or an unclean detestable creature)#sn For these categories of unclean animals see Lev 11. and eats some of the meat of the peace offering sacrifice which belongs to the Lord, that person will be cut off from his people.’”#sn For the interpretation of this last clause see the note on Lev 7:20.
Sacrificial Instructions for the Common People: Fat and Blood
22 Then the Lord spoke to Moses:#sn See the note on Lev 6:8 [6:1 HT] above. 23 “Tell the Israelites, ‘You must not eat any fat of an ox, sheep, or goat. 24 Moreover, the fat of an animal that has died of natural causes#tn Heb “carcass,” referring to the carcass of an animal that has died on its own, not the carcass of an animal slaughtered for sacrifice or killed by wild beasts. This has been clarified in the translation by supplying the phrase “of natural causes”; cf. NAB, TEV “that has died a natural death.” and the fat of an animal torn by beasts may be used for any other purpose,#tn Heb “shall be used for any work”; cf. NIV, NLT “may be used for any other purpose.” but you must certainly never eat it. 25 If anyone eats fat from the animal from which he presents a gift to the Lord, that person will be cut off from his people.#sn See the note on Lev 7:20. 26 And you must not eat any blood of the birds or the domesticated land animals in any of the places where you live.#tn Heb “and any blood you must not eat in any of your dwelling places, to the bird and to the animal.” 27 Any person who eats any blood – that person will be cut off from his people.’”#sn See the note on Lev 7:20.
Priestly Portions of Peace Offerings
28 Then the Lord spoke to Moses:#sn See the note on Lev 6:8 [6:1 HT]. 29 “Tell the Israelites, ‘The one who presents his peace offering sacrifice to the Lord must bring his offering to the Lord from his peace offering sacrifice. 30 With his own hands he must bring the Lord’s gifts. He must bring the fat with the breast#tn Heb “on the breast.” to wave the breast as a wave offering before the Lord,#tc Many Hebrew mss and some versions (esp. the LXX) limit the offerings in the last part of this verse to the fat portions, specifically, the fat and the fat lobe of the liver (see the BHS footnote). The verse is somewhat awkward in Hebrew but nevertheless correct.tn Heb “the breast to wave it, a wave offering before the Lord.” Other possible translations are “to elevate the breast [as] an elevation offering before the Lord” (cf. NRSV) or “to present the breast [as] a presentation offering before the Lord.” See J. E. Hartley, Leviticus (WBC), 91, J. Milgrom, Leviticus (AB), 1:430-31, 461-72, and R. E. Averbeck, NIDOTTE 3:63-67. 31 and the priest must offer the fat up in smoke on the altar, but the breast will belong to Aaron and his sons. 32 The right thigh you must give as a contribution offering#tn Older English versions (e.g., KJV, ASV) translate this Hebrew term (תְּרוּמָה, tÿrumah) “heave offering,” derived from the idea of “to raise, to lift” found in the verbal root (cf. NAB “a raised offering”). “Contribution offering” is a better English rendering because it refers to something “taken out from” (i.e., “lifted up from”; cf. the Hebrew term הֵרִים (herim) in, e.g., Lev 2:9; 4:8, etc.) the offering as a special contribution to the specific priest who presided over the offering procedures in any particular instance (see the next verse and R. E. Averbeck, NIDOTTE 4:335-37). Cf. TEV “as a special contribution”; NCV, NLT “as a gift.” to the priest from your peace offering sacrifices. 33 The one from Aaron’s sons who presents the blood of the peace offering and fat will have the right thigh as his share, 34 for the breast of the wave offering and the thigh of the contribution offering I have taken from the Israelites out of their peace offering sacrifices and have given them to Aaron the priest and to his sons from the people of Israel as a perpetual allotted portion.’”#tn Or “a perpetual regulation”; cf. NASB “as their due forever”; NRSV “as a perpetual due”; NLT “their regular share.”
35 This is the allotment of Aaron and the allotment of his sons from the Lord’s gifts on the day Moses#tn Heb “the day he”; the referent (Moses) has been specified in the translation for clarity. presented them to serve as priests#tn Heb “in the day of he presented them to serve as priests to the Lord.” The grammar here is relatively unusual. First, the verb “presented” appears to be in the perfect rather than the infinitive (but see GKC 531), the latter being normal in such temporal expressions. Second, the active verb form appears to be used as a passive plural (“they were presented”). However, if it is translated active and singular then Moses would be the subject: “on the day he [Moses] offered them [Aaron and his sons].” to the Lord. 36 This is what the Lord commanded to give to them from the Israelites on the day Moses#tn Heb “the day he”; the referent (Moses) has been specified in the translation for clarity. anointed them#tn Heb “which the Lord commanded to give to them in the day he anointed them from the children of Israel.” Thus v. 36 is tied syntactically to v. 35 (see the note there). – a perpetual allotted portion throughout their generations.#tn Heb “for your generations”; cf. NIV “for the generations to come”; TEV “for all time to come.”
Summary of Sacrificial Regulations in Leviticus 6:8-7:36
37 This is the law#sn The Hebrew term translated “law” (תוֹרָה [torah]) occurs up to this point in the book only in Lev 6:9 [6:2 HT], 14 [7 HT], 25 [18 HT], 7:1, 7, 11, and here in 7:37. This suggests that Lev 7:37-38 is a summary of only this section of the book (i.e., Lev 6:8 [6:1 HT]-7:36), not all of Lev 1-7. for the burnt offering, the grain offering,#tc In the MT only “the grain offering” lacks a connecting ו (vav). However, many Hebrew , Smr, LXX, Syriac, and some mss of Tg. Onq. have the ו (vav) on “the grain offering” as well. the sin offering, the guilt offering, the ordination offering,#sn The inclusion of the “ordination offering” (מִלּוּאִים, milu’im; the term apparently comes from the notion of “filling [of the hand],” cf. Lev 8:33) here anticipates Lev 8. It is a kind of peace offering, as the regulations in Lev 8:22-32 will show (cf. Exod 29:19-34). In the context of the ordination ritual for the priests it fits into the sequence of offerings as a peace offering would: sin offering (Lev 8:14-17), burnt and grain offering (Lev 8:18-21), and finally peace (i.e., ordination) offering (Lev 8:22-32). Moreover, in this case, Moses received the breast of the ordination offering as his due since he was the presiding priest over the sacrificial procedures (Lev 8:29; cf. Lev 7:30-31), while Aaron and his sons ate the portions that would have been consumed by the common worshipers in a regular peace offering procedure (Exod 29:31-34; cf. Lev 7:15-18). For a general introduction to the peace offering see the note on Lev 3:1. and the peace offering sacrifice, 38 which the Lord commanded Moses on Mount Sinai on the day he commanded the Israelites to present their offerings to the Lord in the wilderness of Sinai.
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Leviticus 7: NET
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