Eating Fat and Blood Forbidden

²² The Lord said to Moses, ²³ “Say to the Israelites: ‘Do not eat any of the fat of cattle, sheep or goats.^{(A) 24} The fat of an animal found dead or torn by wild animals^(B) may be used for any other purpose, but you must not eat it. ²⁵ Anyone who eats the fat of an animal from which a food offering may be^[a] presented to the Lord must be cut off from their people. ²⁶ And wherever you live, you must not eat the blood^(C) of any bird or animal. ²⁷ Anyone who eats blood^(D) must be cut off from their people.’”

The Priests’ Share

²⁸ The Lord said to Moses, ²⁹ “Say to the Israelites: ‘Anyone who brings a fellowship offering to the Lord is to bring part of it as their sacrifice to the Lord. ³⁰ With their own hands they are to present the food offering to the Lord; they are to bring the fat, together with the breast, and wave the breast before the Lord as a wave offering.^{(E) 31} The priest shall burn the fat on the altar,^(F) but the breast belongs to Aaron and his sons.^{(G) 32} You are to give the right thigh of your fellowship offerings to the priest as a contribution.^{(H) 33} The son of Aaron who offers the blood and the fat of the fellowship offering shall have the right thigh as his share. ³⁴ From the fellowship offerings of the Israelites, I have taken the breast that is waved and the thigh^(I) that is presented and have given them to Aaron the priest and his sons^(J) as their perpetual share from the Israelites.’”

³⁵ This is the portion of the food offerings presented to the Lord that were allotted to Aaron and his sons on the day they were presented to serve the Lord as priests. ³⁶ On the day they were anointed,^(K) the Lord commanded that the Israelites give this to them as their perpetual share for the generations to come.

³⁷ These, then, are the regulations for the burnt offering,^(L) the grain offering,^(M) the sin offering, the guilt offering, the ordination offering^(N) and the fellowship offering, ³⁸ which the Lord gave Moses^(O) at Mount Sinai^(P) in the Desert of Sinai on the day he commanded the Israelites to bring their offerings to the Lord.^(Q)

The Ordination of Aaron and His Sons^(R)

8 The Lord said to Moses, ² “Bring Aaron and his sons,^(S) their garments,^(T) the anointing oil,^(U) the bull for the sin offering,^[b](V) the two rams^(W) and the basket containing bread made without yeast,^{(X) 3} and gather the entire assembly^(Y) at the entrance to the tent of meeting.” ⁴ Moses did as the Lord commanded him, and the assembly gathered at the entrance to the tent of meeting.

⁵ Moses said to the assembly, “This is what the Lord has commanded to be done.^(Z)” ⁶ Then Moses brought Aaron and his sons forward and washed them with water.^{(AA) 7} He put the tunic on Aaron, tied the sash around him, clothed him with the robe and put the ephod on him. He also fastened the ephod with a decorative waistband, which he tied around him.^{(AB) 8} He placed the breastpiece^(AC) on him and put the Urim and Thummim^(AD) in the breastpiece. ⁹ Then he placed the turban^(AE) on Aaron’s head and set the gold plate, the sacred emblem,^(AF) on the front of it, as the Lord commanded Moses.^(AG)

Jesus Accused by His Family and by Teachers of the Law^(A)(B)

²⁰ Then Jesus entered a house, and again a crowd gathered,^(C) so that he and his disciples were not even able to eat.^{(D) 21} When his family^[a] heard about this, they went to take charge of him, for they said, “He is out of his mind.”^(E)

²² And the teachers of the law who came down from Jerusalem^(F) said, “He is possessed by Beelzebul!^(G) By the prince of demons he is driving out demons.”^(H)

²³ So Jesus called them over to him and began to speak to them in parables:^(I) “How can Satan^(J) drive out Satan? ²⁴ If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. ²⁵ If a house is divided against itself, that house cannot stand. ²⁶ And if Satan opposes himself and is divided, he cannot stand; his end has come. ²⁷ In fact, no one can enter a strong man’s house without first tying him up. Then he can plunder the strong man’s house.^{(K) 28} Truly I tell you, people can be forgiven all their sins and every slander they utter, ²⁹ but whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven; they are guilty of an eternal sin.”^(L)

³⁰ He said this because they were saying, “He has an impure spirit.”

³¹ Then Jesus’ mother and brothers arrived.^(M) Standing outside, they sent someone in to call him. ³² A crowd was sitting around him, and they told him, “Your mother and brothers are outside looking for you.”

³³ “Who are my mother and my brothers?” he asked.

³⁴ Then he looked at those seated in a circle around him and said, “Here are my mother and my brothers! ³⁵ Whoever does God’s will is my brother and sister and mother.”