Leviticus chapter 17
Sacrifice only at the Tent of Meeting. Eating blood is forbidden.
Note: Many people find it morally objectionable that a religion requires the killing of innocent animals.
SACRIFICE ONLY AT THE TENT OF MEETING
VERSE 1. The LORD spoke to Moses, saying,
VERSE 2. “Speak to Aaron, and to his sons, and to all the children of Israel, and say to them, ‘This is the thing which the LORD has commanded:
VERSE 3. Whatever man there is of the house of Israel who kills a bull, or lamb, or goat in the camp, or who kills it outside the camp,
VERSE 4. and hasn’t brought it to the door of the Tent of Meeting to offer it as an offering to the LORD before the LORD’s tabernacle: blood shall be imputed to that man. He has shed blood. That man shall be cut off from among his people.
hasn’t brought it to the door of the Tent of Meeting. As of this moment, the only legal way to sacrifice an animal is to bring it to the Tent of Meeting.
All other sacrifices are illegal. People can no longer sacrifice to their goat idols or their satyrs.
He has shed blood. That is, he is guilty of a capital crime.
VERSE 5. This is to the end that the children of Israel may bring their sacrifices, which they sacrifice in the open field, that they may bring them to the LORD, to the door of the Tent of Meeting, to the priest, and sacrifice them for sacrifices of peace offerings to the LORD.
which they sacrifice in the open field. This implies that people had a custom of killing an animal in the field and sacrificing it.
VERSE 6. The priest shall sprinkle the blood on the LORD’s altar at the door of the Tent of Meeting, and burn the fat for a pleasant aroma to the LORD.
burn the fat for a pleasant aroma. In ancient days, animal fats were prized. The visceral fats were burned in the temple. But the eating of animal fat as part of a meal was still permitted. Read more »
VERSE 7. They shall no more sacrifice their sacrifices to the goat idols, after which they play the prostitute. This shall be a statute forever to them throughout their generations.’
goat idols. This can also be translated as goat-demons.
Later in the biblical narrative, arrogant king Rehoboam re-introduces the goat-idols to the nation:
2 Chronicles 11:15. He himself appointed priests for the high places, for the male goat and calf idols which he had made.
they play the prostitute. This is a metaphor for idolatry.
VERSE 8. “You shall say to them, ‘Any man there is of the house of Israel, or of the strangers who live as foreigners among them, who offers a burnt offering or sacrifice,
VERSE 9. and doesn’t bring it to the door of the Tent of Meeting to sacrifice it to the LORD, that man shall be cut off from his people.
bring it to the door of the Tent of Meeting. If you make your sacrifice elsewhere, you will be cut off from your people.
EATING BLOOD IS FORBIDDEN
VERSE 10. “ ‘Any man of the house of Israel, or of the strangers who live as foreigners among them, who eats any kind of blood, I will set my face against that soul who eats blood, and will cut him off from among his people.
VERSE 11. For the life of the flesh is in the blood. I have given it to you on the altar to make atonement for your souls; for it is the blood that makes atonement by reason of the life.
I have given it to you on the altar to make atonement. In our New Testament era, the Precious Blood of Jesus was shed, once for all, on the “altar” of Calvary.
your souls. The Hebrew word is נָ֫פֶשׁ (“nephesh”).
Both animals and people have a nephesh. The word refers to the life-force of both humans and animal.
It is the part of the person or animal that does not disintegrate into dust, but departs the body.
It was assumed that the nephesh is contained in the blood. For that reason, they absolutely cannot drink blood.
However, the Lord Jesus Christ told his disciples to drink his blood. The disciples must have been shocked. They had never consumed blood.
And from the perspective of this verse, are we even permitted to drink his blood?
VERSE 12. Therefore I have said to the children of Israel, “No person among you may eat blood, nor may any stranger who lives as a foreigner among you eat blood.”
No person among you may eat blood. This prohibits all Jewish people from drinking blood.
nor may any stranger. This prohibits all non-Jewish from drinking blood. Or at least those who live with Jewish people.
Yet the Lord Jesus Christ told his disciples to drink his blood.
VERSE 13. “ ‘Whatever man there is of the children of Israel, or of the strangers who live as foreigners among them, who takes in hunting any animal or bird that may be eaten, he shall pour out its blood, and cover it with dust.
VERSE 14. For as to the life of all flesh, its blood is with its life. Therefore I said to the children of Israel, “You shall not eat the blood of any kind of flesh; for the life of all flesh is its blood. Whoever eats it shall be cut off.”
VERSE 15. “ ‘Every person that eats what dies of itself, or that which is torn by animals, whether he is native-born or a foreigner, shall wash his clothes, and bathe himself in water, and be unclean until the evening. Then he shall be clean.
VERSE 16. But if he doesn’t wash them, or bathe his flesh, then he shall bear his iniquity.’ ”
LEVITICUS
CHAPTERS: 01, 02, 03, 04, 05, 06, 07, 08, 09, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27
RESOURCES: Summary, Outline, Memorize, The Scapegoat, Female Sacrificial Animals
Unless otherwise noted, all Bible quotations on this page are from the World English Bible and the World Messianic Edition. These translations have no copyright restrictions. They are in the Public Domain.