18 “Speak to Aaron, his sons, and all the Israelites and tell them: Any man of the house of Israel or of the foreign residents(A) in Israel who presents his offering(B)—whether they present freewill gifts or payment of vows to the Lord as burnt offerings— 19 must offer an unblemished male(C) from the cattle, sheep, or goats in order for you to be accepted. 20 You are not to present anything that has a defect, because it will not be accepted on your behalf.

21 “When a man presents a fellowship sacrifice to the Lord to fulfill a vow or as a freewill offering from the herd or flock, it has to be unblemished to be acceptable; there must be no defect in it. 22 You are not to present any animal to the Lord that is blind, injured, maimed, or has a running sore, festering rash,(D) or scabs; you may not put any of them on the altar as a fire offering to the Lord.(E) 23 You may sacrifice as a freewill offering any animal from the herd or flock that has an elongated or stunted limb, but it is not acceptable as a vow offering. 24 You are not to present to the Lord anything that has bruised, crushed, torn, or severed testicles;(F) you must not sacrifice them in your land. 25 Neither you nor[a] a foreigner are to present food to your God from any of these animals. They will not be accepted for you because they are deformed and have a defect.”(G)

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Footnotes

  1. Leviticus 22:25 Lit nor from the hand of

“If the vow involves one of the animals that may be brought as an offering to the Lord, any of these he gives to the Lord will be holy. 10 He may not replace it or make a substitution for it, either good for bad, or bad for good.(A) But if he does substitute one animal for another, both that animal and its substitute will be holy.

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When a man makes a vow to the Lord or swears an oath to put himself under an obligation, he must not break his word; he must do whatever he has promised.(A)

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Keeping Vows

21 “If you make a vow to the Lord your God, do not be slow to keep it, because He will require it of you, and it will be counted against you as sin. 22 But if you refrain from making a vow, it will not be counted against you as sin. 23 Be careful to do whatever comes from your lips, because you have freely vowed what you promised[a] to the Lord your God.(A)

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Footnotes

  1. Deuteronomy 23:23 Lit promised with your mouth

When you make a vow to God,(A) don’t delay fulfilling it, because He does not delight in fools. Fulfill what you vow. Better that you do not vow than that you vow and not fulfill it.(B) Do not let your mouth bring guilt on you,(C) and do not say in the presence of the messenger that it was a mistake.(D) Why should God be angry with your words and destroy the work of your hands? For many dreams bring futility, so do many words.(E) Therefore, fear God.

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