Leviticus 22:17-33

International Children’s Bible

¹⁷ The Lord said to Moses, ¹⁸ “Tell Aaron and his sons and all the people of Israel: ‘A citizen of Israel or a foreigner living in Israel might want to bring a whole burnt offering. It might be for some special promise he has made. Or it might be a special gift he wanted to give to the Lord. ¹⁹ If he does, he must bring a male animal. It must have nothing wrong with it. The gift might be a bull, a sheep or a goat. This is so it might be accepted for him. ²⁰ He must not bring an animal that has something wrong with it. It will not be accepted for him.

²¹ “‘Someone might bring a fellowship offering to the Lord. That offering might be payment for a special promise the person made. Or it may be a special gift the person wanted to give the Lord. It might be a bull or a sheep. But it must be healthy. There must be nothing wrong with it. This is so it might be accepted for him. ²² You must not offer to the Lord any animal that is blind. It must not have broken bones or be crippled. It must not have running sores or any sort of skin disease. You must not offer any animals like these on the altar. They cannot be used as an offering by fire to the Lord.

²³ “‘Sometimes a bull or lamb is smaller than normal. Or it may not be perfectly formed. If someone wants to give that animal as a special gift to the Lord, it will be accepted. But it will not be accepted as payment for a special promise the person made.

²⁴ “‘An animal might have bruised, crushed, torn or cut sex glands. If it does, you must not offer that animal to the Lord in your own land. ²⁵ You must not take such animals from foreigners as sacrifices to the Lord. This is because the animals have been hurt in some way. They have something wrong with them. They will not be accepted for you.’”

²⁶ The Lord said to Moses, ²⁷ “When an ox, a sheep or a goat is born, it must stay seven days with its mother. But from the eighth day on, this animal will be accepted as a sacrifice. It may be offered by fire to the Lord. ²⁸ But you must not kill the animal and its mother on the same day. This rule is the same for an ox or a sheep.

²⁹ “You might want to offer some special offering of thanks to the Lord. But you must do it in a way that pleases the Lord. ³⁰ You must eat the whole animal that same day. You must not leave any of the meat for the next morning. I am the Lord.

³¹ “Remember my commands and obey them. I am the Lord. ³² Show respect for my holy name. You Israelites must remember that I am holy. I am the Lord. I have made you holy. ³³ I brought you out of Egypt. I became your God. I am the Lord.”