Flawless Animals for Sacrifice

17 Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 18 “Speak to Aaron and to his sons, and to all the sons of Israel, and say to them, ‘(A)Anyone of the house of Israel or of the strangers in Israel who presents his offering, whether it is any of their [a]vows or any of their [b]voluntary offerings, which they present to the Lord as a burnt offering— 19 (B)for you to be accepted—it must be a male without defect [c]from the cattle, the sheep, or the goats. 20 (C)Whatever has a defect, you shall not offer, for it will not be accepted for you. 21 When someone offers a sacrifice of peace offerings to the Lord (D)to fulfill a special vow or for a [d]voluntary offering, [e]of the herd or [f]of the flock, it must be without defect to be accepted; there shall be no defect in it. 22 Those that are blind, fractured, maimed, or have a wart, a festering rash, or scabs, you shall not offer to the Lord, nor make of them an offering by fire on the altar to the Lord. 23 Now as for an ox or a lamb which has an [g]overgrown or stunted member, you may present it as a [h]voluntary offering, but for a vow it will not be accepted. 24 Also (E)anything with its testicles squashed, crushed, torn off, or cut off, you shall not offer to the Lord, nor [i]sacrifice in your land, 25 nor shall you offer any of these animals taken from the hand of a [j]foreigner (F)as the [k]food of your God; for their deformity is in them, they have an impairment. They will not be accepted for you.’”

26 Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 27 “When an ox or a sheep or a goat is born, it shall [l]remain (G)seven days [m]with its mother, and from the eighth day on it will be considered acceptable as a sacrifice of an offering by fire to the Lord. 28 (H)But, whether it is an ox or a sheep, you shall not slaughter both it and its young in one day. 29 When you sacrifice (I)a sacrifice of thanksgiving to the Lord, you shall sacrifice it so that you may be accepted. 30 It shall be eaten on the same day; you shall leave none of it until morning. I am the Lord. 31 (J)So you shall keep My commandments, and do them; I am the Lord.

32 “And you shall not profane My holy name, but I will be sanctified among the sons of Israel; I am the Lord who sanctifies you, 33 (K)who brought you out from the land of Egypt, to be your God; I am the Lord.”

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Footnotes

  1. Leviticus 22:18 Or vowed offerings
  2. Leviticus 22:18 Or freewill offerings
  3. Leviticus 22:19 Lit among
  4. Leviticus 22:21 Or freewill offering
  5. Leviticus 22:21 Lit among
  6. Leviticus 22:21 Lit among
  7. Leviticus 22:23 Or a deformed
  8. Leviticus 22:23 Or freewill offering
  9. Leviticus 22:24 Lit do
  10. Leviticus 22:25 Lit son of a stranger
  11. Leviticus 22:25 Lit bread
  12. Leviticus 22:27 Lit be
  13. Leviticus 22:27 Lit under

Worthy and Unworthy Offerings

17 And the Lord said to Moses, 18 “Give Aaron and his sons and all the Israelites these instructions, which apply both to native Israelites and to the foreigners living among you.

“If you present a gift as a burnt offering to the Lord, whether it is to fulfill a vow or is a voluntary offering, 19 you[a] will be accepted only if your offering is a male animal with no defects. It may be a bull, a ram, or a male goat. 20 Do not present an animal with defects, because the Lord will not accept it on your behalf.

21 “If you present a peace offering to the Lord from the herd or the flock, whether it is to fulfill a vow or is a voluntary offering, you must offer a perfect animal. It may have no defect of any kind. 22 You must not offer an animal that is blind, crippled, or injured, or that has a wart, a skin sore, or scabs. Such animals must never be offered on the altar as special gifts to the Lord. 23 If a bull[b] or lamb has a leg that is too long or too short, it may be offered as a voluntary offering, but it may not be offered to fulfill a vow. 24 If an animal has damaged testicles or is castrated, you may not offer it to the Lord. You must never do this in your own land, 25 and you must not accept such an animal from foreigners and then offer it as a sacrifice to your God. Such animals will not be accepted on your behalf, for they are mutilated or defective.”

26 And the Lord said to Moses, 27 “When a calf or lamb or goat is born, it must be left with its mother for seven days. From the eighth day on, it will be acceptable as a special gift to the Lord. 28 But you must not slaughter a mother animal and her offspring on the same day, whether from the herd or the flock. 29 When you bring a thanksgiving offering to the Lord, sacrifice it properly so you will be accepted. 30 Eat the entire sacrificial animal on the day it is presented. Do not leave any of it until the next morning. I am the Lord.

31 “You must faithfully keep all my commands by putting them into practice, for I am the Lord. 32 Do not bring shame on my holy name, for I will display my holiness among the people of Israel. I am the Lord who makes you holy. 33 It was I who rescued you from the land of Egypt, that I might be your God. I am the Lord.”

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Footnotes

  1. 22:19 Or it.
  2. 22:23 Or cow.