¹⁸ Then Aaron slaughtered the bull and the ram for the people’s peace offering. His sons brought him the blood, and he splattered it against all sides of the altar.

¹⁴ For Christ himself has brought peace to us. He united Jews and Gentiles into one people when, in his own body on the cross, he broke down the wall of hostility that separated us. ¹⁵ He did this by ending the system of law with its commandments and regulations. He made peace between Jews and Gentiles by creating in himself one new people from the two groups. ¹⁶ Together as one body, Christ reconciled both groups to God by means of his death on the cross, and our hostility toward each other was put to death.

¹⁷ He brought this Good News of peace to you Gentiles who were far away from him, and peace to the Jews who were near.

Faith Brings Joy

5 Therefore, since we have been made right in God’s sight by faith, we have peace^[a] with God because of what Jesus Christ our Lord has done for us.

¹⁰ For since our friendship with God was restored by the death of his Son while we were still his enemies, we will certainly be saved through the life of his Son.

Further Instructions for the Peace Offering

¹¹ “These are the instructions regarding the different kinds of peace offerings that may be presented to the Lord. ¹² If you present your peace offering as an expression of thanksgiving, the usual animal sacrifice must be accompanied by various kinds of bread made without yeast—thin cakes mixed with olive oil, wafers spread with oil, and cakes made of choice flour mixed with olive oil. ¹³ This peace offering of thanksgiving must also be accompanied by loaves of bread made with yeast. ¹⁴ One of each kind of bread must be presented as a gift to the Lord. It will then belong to the priest who splatters the blood of the peace offering against the altar. ¹⁵ The meat of the peace offering of thanksgiving must be eaten on the same day it is offered. None of it may be saved for the next morning.

¹⁶ “If you bring an offering to fulfill a vow or as a voluntary offering, the meat must be eaten on the same day the sacrifice is offered, but whatever is left over may be eaten on the second day. ¹⁷ Any meat left over until the third day must be completely burned up. ¹⁸ If any of the meat from the peace offering is eaten on the third day, the person who presented it will not be accepted by the Lord. You will receive no credit for offering it. By then the meat will be contaminated; if you eat it, you will be punished for your sin.

Procedures for the Peace Offering

3 “If you present an animal from the herd as a peace offering to the Lord, it may be a male or a female, but it must have no defects. ² Lay your hand on the animal’s head, and slaughter it at the entrance of the Tabernacle.^[a] Then Aaron’s sons, the priests, will splatter its blood against all sides of the altar. ³ The priest must present part of this peace offering as a special gift to the Lord. This includes all the fat around the internal organs, ⁴ the two kidneys and the fat around them near the loins, and the long lobe of the liver. These must be removed with the kidneys, ⁵ and Aaron’s sons will burn them on top of the burnt offering on the wood burning on the altar. It is a special gift, a pleasing aroma to the Lord.

⁶ “If you present an animal from the flock as a peace offering to the Lord, it may be a male or a female, but it must have no defects. ⁷ If you present a sheep as your offering, bring it to the Lord, ⁸ lay your hand on its head, and slaughter it in front of the Tabernacle. Aaron’s sons will then splatter the sheep’s blood against all sides of the altar. ⁹ The priest must present the fat of this peace offering as a special gift to the Lord. This includes the fat of the broad tail cut off near the backbone, all the fat around the internal organs, ¹⁰ the two kidneys and the fat around them near the loins, and the long lobe of the liver. These must be removed with the kidneys, ¹¹ and the priest will burn them on the altar. It is a special gift of food presented to the Lord.

¹² “If you present a goat as your offering, bring it to the Lord, ¹³ lay your hand on its head, and slaughter it in front of the Tabernacle. Aaron’s sons will then splatter the goat’s blood against all sides of the altar. ¹⁴ The priest must present part of this offering as a special gift to the Lord. This includes all the fat around the internal organs, ¹⁵ the two kidneys and the fat around them near the loins, and the long lobe of the liver. These must be removed with the kidneys, ¹⁶ and the priest will burn them on the altar. It is a special gift of food, a pleasing aroma to the Lord. All the fat belongs to the Lord.

¹⁷ “You must never eat any fat or blood. This is a permanent law for you, and it must be observed from generation to generation, wherever you live.”