Leviticus 17
Holman Christian Standard Bible
Forbidden Sacrifices
17 The Lord spoke to Moses: 2 “Speak to Aaron, his sons, and all the Israelites and tell them: This is what the Lord has commanded: 3 Anyone from the house of Israel who slaughters(A) an ox, sheep, or goat in the camp, or slaughters it outside the camp, 4 instead of bringing it to the entrance to the tent of meeting to present it as an offering to the Lord before His tabernacle—that person will be considered guilty.[a](B) He has shed blood(C) and must be cut off from his people.(D) 5 This is so the Israelites will bring to the Lord the sacrifices(E) they have been offering in the open country. They are to bring them to the priest at the entrance to the tent of meeting and offer them as fellowship sacrifices(F) to the Lord. 6 The priest will then sprinkle the blood on the Lord’s altar at the entrance to the tent of meeting and burn the fat as a pleasing aroma to the Lord. 7 They must no longer offer their sacrifices to the goat-demons(G) that they have prostituted(H) themselves with. This will be a permanent statute(I) for them throughout their generations.
8 “Say to them: Anyone from the house of Israel or from the foreigners(J) who live among them who offers a burnt offering or a sacrifice 9 but does not bring it to the entrance to the tent of meeting to sacrifice it to the Lord, that person must be cut off from his people.
Eating Blood and Carcasses Prohibited
10 “Anyone from the house of Israel or from the foreigners who live among them who eats any blood,(K) I will turn[b] against that person who eats blood and cut him off from his people. 11 For the life of a creature is in the blood, and I have appointed it to you to make atonement on the altar for[c] your lives, since it is the lifeblood that makes atonement.(L) 12 Therefore I say to the Israelites: None of you and no foreigner who lives among you may eat blood.
13 “Any Israelite or foreigner living among them, who hunts(M) down a wild animal or bird that may be eaten must drain its blood(N) and cover it with dirt. 14 Since the life of every creature is its blood, I have told the Israelites: You must not eat the blood of any creature,(O) because the life of every creature is its blood; whoever eats it must be cut off.
15 “Every person, whether the native or the foreigner,(P) who eats an animal that died a natural death or was mauled by wild beasts(Q) is to wash his clothes and bathe with water, and he will remain unclean until evening; then he will be clean. 16 But if he does not wash his clothes and bathe himself, he will bear his punishment.”
Footnotes
- Leviticus 17:4 Lit tabernacle—blood will be charged against that person
- Leviticus 17:10 Lit will set My face
- Leviticus 17:11 Or to ransom
Leviticus 17
New Living Translation
Prohibitions against Eating Blood
17 Then the Lord said to Moses, 2 “Give the following instructions to Aaron and his sons and all the people of Israel. This is what the Lord has commanded.
3 “If any native Israelite sacrifices a bull[a] or a lamb or a goat anywhere inside or outside the camp 4 instead of bringing it to the entrance of the Tabernacle[b] to present it as an offering to the Lord, that person will be as guilty as a murderer.[c] Such a person has shed blood and will be cut off from the community. 5 The purpose of this rule is to stop the Israelites from sacrificing animals in the open fields. It will ensure that they bring their sacrifices to the priest at the entrance of the Tabernacle, so he can present them to the Lord as peace offerings. 6 Then the priest will be able to splatter the blood against the Lord’s altar at the entrance of the Tabernacle, and he will burn the fat as a pleasing aroma to the Lord. 7 The people must no longer be unfaithful to the Lord by offering sacrifices to the goat idols.[d] This is a permanent law for them, to be observed from generation to generation.
8 “Give them this command as well. If any native Israelite or foreigner living among you offers a burnt offering or a sacrifice 9 but does not bring it to the entrance of the Tabernacle to offer it to the Lord, that person will be cut off from the community.
10 “And if any native Israelite or foreigner living among you eats or drinks blood in any form, I will turn against that person and cut him off from the community of your people, 11 for the life of the body is in its blood. I have given you the blood on the altar to purify you, making you right with the Lord.[e] It is the blood, given in exchange for a life, that makes purification possible. 12 That is why I have said to the people of Israel, ‘You must never eat or drink blood—neither you nor the foreigners living among you.’
13 “And if any native Israelite or foreigner living among you goes hunting and kills an animal or bird that is approved for eating, he must drain its blood and cover it with earth. 14 The life of every creature is in its blood. That is why I have said to the people of Israel, ‘You must never eat or drink blood, for the life of any creature is in its blood.’ So whoever consumes blood will be cut off from the community.
15 “And if any native-born Israelites or foreigners eat the meat of an animal that died naturally or was torn up by wild animals, they must wash their clothes and bathe themselves in water. They will remain ceremonially unclean until evening, but then they will be clean. 16 But if they do not wash their clothes and bathe themselves, they will be punished for their sin.”
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Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
