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17 Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying, “Speak to Aaron, and to his sons, and to all the children of Israel, and say to them, ‘This is the thing which Yahweh has commanded: Whatever man there is of the house of Israel who kills a bull, or lamb, or goat in the camp, or who kills it outside the camp, and hasn’t brought it to the door of the Tent of Meeting to offer it as an offering to Yahweh before Yahweh’s tabernacle: blood shall be imputed to that man. He has shed blood. That man shall be cut off from among his people. This is to the end that the children of Israel may bring their sacrifices, which they sacrifice in the open field, that they may bring them to Yahweh, to the door of the Tent of Meeting, to the priest, and sacrifice them for sacrifices of peace offerings to Yahweh. The priest shall sprinkle the blood on Yahweh’s altar at the door of the Tent of Meeting, and burn the fat for a pleasant aroma to Yahweh. They shall no more sacrifice their sacrifices to the goat idols, after which they play the prostitute. This shall be a statute forever to them throughout their generations.’

“You shall say to them, ‘Any man there is of the house of Israel, or of the strangers who live as foreigners among them, who offers a burnt offering or sacrifice, and doesn’t bring it to the door of the Tent of Meeting to sacrifice it to Yahweh, that man shall be cut off from his people.

10 “‘Any man of the house of Israel, or of the strangers who live as foreigners among them, who eats any kind of blood, I will set my face against that soul who eats blood, and will cut him off from among his people. 11 For the life of the flesh is in the blood. I have given it to you on the altar to make atonement for your souls; for it is the blood that makes atonement by reason of the life. 12 Therefore I have said to the children of Israel, “No person among you may eat blood, nor may any stranger who lives as a foreigner among you eat blood.”

13 “‘Whatever man there is of the children of Israel, or of the strangers who live as foreigners among them, who takes in hunting any animal or bird that may be eaten, he shall pour out its blood, and cover it with dust. 14 For as to the life of all flesh, its blood is with its life. Therefore I said to the children of Israel, “You shall not eat the blood of any kind of flesh; for the life of all flesh is its blood. Whoever eats it shall be cut off.”

15 “‘Every person that eats what dies of itself, or that which is torn by animals, whether he is native-born or a foreigner, shall wash his clothes, and bathe himself in water, and be unclean until the evening. Then he shall be clean. 16 But if he doesn’t wash them, or bathe his flesh, then he shall bear his iniquity.’”

Eating Blood Forbidden

17 The Lord said to Moses, “Speak to Aaron and his sons(A) and to all the Israelites and say to them: ‘This is what the Lord has commanded: Any Israelite who sacrifices an ox,[a] a lamb(B) or a goat(C) in the camp or outside of it instead of bringing it to the entrance to the tent of meeting(D) to present it as an offering to the Lord in front of the tabernacle of the Lord(E)—that person shall be considered guilty of bloodshed; they have shed blood and must be cut off from their people.(F) This is so the Israelites will bring to the Lord the sacrifices they are now making in the open fields. They must bring them to the priest, that is, to the Lord, at the entrance to the tent of meeting and sacrifice them as fellowship offerings.(G) The priest is to splash the blood against the altar(H) of the Lord(I) at the entrance to the tent of meeting and burn the fat as an aroma pleasing to the Lord.(J) They must no longer offer any of their sacrifices to the goat idols[b](K) to whom they prostitute themselves.(L) This is to be a lasting ordinance(M) for them and for the generations to come.’(N)

“Say to them: ‘Any Israelite or any foreigner residing among them who offers a burnt offering or sacrifice and does not bring it to the entrance to the tent(O) of meeting(P) to sacrifice it to the Lord(Q) must be cut off from the people of Israel.

10 “‘I will set my face against any Israelite or any foreigner residing among them who eats blood,(R) and I will cut them off from the people. 11 For the life of a creature is in the blood,(S) and I have given it to you to make atonement for yourselves on the altar; it is the blood that makes atonement for one’s life.[c](T) 12 Therefore I say to the Israelites, “None of you may eat blood, nor may any foreigner residing among you eat blood.”

13 “‘Any Israelite or any foreigner residing among you who hunts any animal or bird that may be eaten must drain out the blood and cover it with earth,(U) 14 because the life of every creature is its blood. That is why I have said to the Israelites, “You must not eat the blood of any creature, because the life of every creature is its blood; anyone who eats it must be cut off.”(V)

15 “‘Anyone, whether native-born or foreigner, who eats anything(W) found dead or torn by wild animals(X) must wash their clothes and bathe with water,(Y) and they will be ceremonially unclean till evening;(Z) then they will be clean. 16 But if they do not wash their clothes and bathe themselves, they will be held responsible.(AA)’”

Footnotes

  1. Leviticus 17:3 The Hebrew word can refer to either male or female.
  2. Leviticus 17:7 Or the demons
  3. Leviticus 17:11 Or atonement by the life in the blood