Leviticus7
New International Version
1“‘These are the regulations for the guilt offering, which is most holy:
2The guilt offering is to be slaughtered in the place where the burnt offering is slaughtered, and its blood is to be splashed against the sides of the altar.
3All its fat shall be offered: the fat tail and the fat that covers the internal organs,
4both kidneys with the fat on them near the loins, and the long lobe of the liver, which is to be removed with the kidneys.
5The priest shall burn them on the altar as a food offering presented to the Lord. It is a guilt offering.
6Any male in a priest’s family may eat it, but it must be eaten in the sanctuary area; it is most holy.
7“‘The same law applies to both the sin offering and the guilt offering: They belong to the priest who makes atonement with them.
8The priest who offers a burnt offering for anyone may keep its hide for himself.
9Every grain offering baked in an oven or cooked in a pan or on a griddle belongs to the priest who offers it,
10and every grain offering, whether mixed with olive oil or dry, belongs equally to all the sons of Aaron.
11“‘These are the regulations for the fellowship offering anyone may present to the Lord:
12“‘If they offer it as an expression of thankfulness, then along with this thank offering they are to offer thick loaves made without yeast and with olive oil mixed in, thin loaves made without yeast and brushed with oil, and thick loaves of the finest flour well-kneaded and with oil mixed in.
13Along with their fellowship offering of thanksgiving they are to present an offering with thick loaves of bread made with yeast.
14They are to bring one of each kind as an offering, a contribution to the Lord; it belongs to the priest who splashes the blood of the fellowship offering against the altar.
15The meat of their fellowship offering of thanksgiving must be eaten on the day it is offered; they must leave none of it till morning.
16“‘If, however, their offering is the result of a vow or is a freewill offering, the sacrifice shall be eaten on the day they offer it, but anything left over may be eaten on the next day.
17Any meat of the sacrifice left over till the third day must be burned up.
18If any meat of the fellowship offering is eaten on the third day, the one who offered it will not be accepted. It will not be reckoned to their credit, for it has become impure; the person who eats any of it will be held responsible.
19“‘Meat that touches anything ceremonially unclean must not be eaten; it must be burned up. As for other meat, anyone ceremonially clean may eat it.
20But if anyone who is unclean eats any meat of the fellowship offering belonging to the Lord, they must be cut off from their people.
21Anyone who touches something unclean—whether human uncleanness or an unclean animal or any unclean creature that moves along the ground—and then eats any of the meat of the fellowship offering belonging to the Lord must be cut off from their people.’”
22The Lord said to Moses,
23“Say to the Israelites: ‘Do not eat any of the fat of cattle, sheep or goats.
24The fat of an animal found dead or torn by wild animals may be used for any other purpose, but you must not eat it.
25Anyone who eats the fat of an animal from which a food offering may be presented to the Lord must be cut off from their people.
26And wherever you live, you must not eat the blood of any bird or animal.
27Anyone who eats blood must be cut off from their people.’”
28The Lord said to Moses,
29“Say to the Israelites: ‘Anyone who brings a fellowship offering to the Lord is to bring part of it as their sacrifice to the Lord.
30With their own hands they are to present the food offering to the Lord; they are to bring the fat, together with the breast, and wave the breast before the Lord as a wave offering.
31The priest shall burn the fat on the altar, but the breast belongs to Aaron and his sons.
32You are to give the right thigh of your fellowship offerings to the priest as a contribution.
33The son of Aaron who offers the blood and the fat of the fellowship offering shall have the right thigh as his share.
34From the fellowship offerings of the Israelites, I have taken the breast that is waved and the thigh that is presented and have given them to Aaron the priest and his sons as their perpetual share from the Israelites.’”
35This is the portion of the food offerings presented to the Lord that were allotted to Aaron and his sons on the day they were presented to serve the Lord as priests.
36On the day they were anointed, the Lord commanded that the Israelites give this to them as their perpetual share for the generations to come.
37These, then, are the regulations for the burnt offering, the grain offering, the sin offering, the guilt offering, the ordination offering and the fellowship offering,
38which the Lord gave Moses at Mount Sinai in the Desert of Sinai on the day he commanded the Israelites to bring their offerings to the Lord.
Study Guide
Public-domain commentary and original-language notes for Leviticus 7.
Chapter Summary
In this chapter: Concerning the trespass-offering. (1–10). Concerning the peace-offering. (11–27). The wave and heave offerings. (28–34). The conclusion of these institutions. (35–38).
vv1-10
In the sin-offering and the trespass-offering, the sacrifice was divided between the altar and the priest; the offerer had no share, as he had in the peace-offerings. The former expressed repentance and sorrow for sin, therefore it was more proper to fast than feast; the peace-offerings denoted communion with a reconciled God in Christ, the joy and gratitude of a pardoned sinner, and the privileges of a true believer.
vv11-27
As to the peace-offerings, in the expression of their sense of mercy, God left them more at liberty, than in the expression of their sense of sin; that their sacrifices, being free-will offerings, might be the more acceptable, while, by obliging them to bring the sacrifices of atonement, God shows the necessity of the great Propitiation. The main reason why blood was forbidden of old, was because the Lord had appointed blood for an atonement. This use, being figurative, had its end in Christ, who by his death and blood-shedding caused the sacrifices to cease. Therefore this law is not now in force on believers.
vv28-34
The priest who offered, was to have the breast and the right shoulder. When the sacrifice was killed, the offerer himself must present God's part of it; that he might signify his cheerfully giving it up to God. He was with his own hands to lift it up, in token of his regard to God as the God of heaven; and then to wave it to and fro, in token of his regard to God as the Lord of the whole earth. Be persuaded and encouraged to feed and feast upon Christ, our Peace-offering. This blessed Peace-offering is not for the priests only, for saints of the highest rank and greatest eminence, but for the common people also. Take heed of delay. Many think to repent and return to God when they are dying and dropping into hell; but they should eat the peace-offering, and eat it now. Stay not till the day of the Lord's patience be run out, for eating the third day will not be accepted, nor will catching at Christ when thou art gone to hell! (Le 7:35-38)
Key Words
תּוֹרָה: a precept or statute, especially the Decalogue or Pentateuch
אָשָׁם: guilt; by implication, a fault; also a sin-offering
קֹדֶשׁ: a sacred place or thing; rarely abstract, sanctity
מָקוֹם: properly, a standing, i.e. a spot; but used widely of a locality (general or specific); also (figuratively) of a condition (of body or mind)
שָׁחַט: to slaughter (in sacrifice or massacre)
עֹלָה: a step or (collectively, stairs, as ascending); usually a holocaust (as going up in smoke)
דָּם: blood (as that which when shed causes death) of man or an animal; by analogy, the juice of the grape; figuratively (especially in the plural) bloodshed (i.e. drops of blood)
זָרַק: to sprinkle (fluid or solid particles)
סָבִיב: (as noun) a circle, neighbour, or environs; but chiefly (as adverb, with or without preposition) around
מִזְבֵּחַ: an altar
Cross References
Leviticus 7Direct parallel establishing the law of eating the sacrifice of thanksgiving on the same day.
Supported by Matthew Poole, John Calvin
Establishes the foundational perpetual prohibition against eating fat and blood.
Supported by Matthew Henry, JFB
Identifies the priest who makes atonement as the one entitled to eat the sin/trespass offering.
Supported by Matthew Poole
Traditional patriarchal link for the priest receiving the animal skin, tracing back to Adam's garments.
Supported by JFB
Another distinct offering where leavened bread is explicitly permitted, showing leaven is not inherently evil.
Supported by Matthew Poole
The original Noahic covenant prohibition of eating flesh with its lifeblood.
Supported by Matthew Henry
States the severe penalty of cutting off anyone who consumes blood.
Supported by Matthew Henry
The exact ritual instructions for removing and burning the fat, kidneys, and liver caul.
Supported by Matthew Poole, John Calvin
Specifies that the holy portion must be eaten by the male priests in a holy place.
Supported by Matthew Poole
Direct law parallel for eating vow and voluntary peace offerings over two days, burning remaining flesh.
Supported by John Calvin
Warns of being cut off for approaching holy things while having ceremonial uncleanness.
Supported by Matthew Poole
Parallels prohibition of eating beasts that die of themselves or are torn.
Supported by JFB
Prescribes the wave breast and heave shoulder ritual during priestly consecration.
Supported by Matthew Henry, JFB
Confirms the priest's right to eat the sin offering in holy place.
Supported by Matthew Poole
Aligns the waved breast and right shoulder with the priests' inheritance.
Supported by JFB
Establishes that the law of the trespass offering matches the law of the sin offering.
Supported by John Calvin
Sacerdotally outlines the reserved most holy offerings given to Aaron and his sons as their portion.
Supported by JFB
Details the preparation of meat offerings (oven, pan, fryingpan) that belong to the priest.
Supported by Matthew Poole
The perpetual statute assigning the heave and wave peace offerings as the priests' portion.
Supported by Matthew Henry, JFB
Reiterates the key sacrificial principle: 'all the fat is the Lord's.'
Supported by Matthew Henry
Confirms the priest's portions as a perpetual due by reason of anointing.
Supported by JFB
Describes the historical anointing and presentation of Aaron and his sons.
Supported by JFB
New Testament parallel: those who minister at the altar feed from the altar's sacrifices.
Supported by Matthew Henry
Exhorts believers to offer up a continual sacrifice of praise, fulfillment of the peace/thanksgiving offering.
Supported by Matthew Henry
Spiritual parallel regarding examining oneself before partaking, avoiding eating the holy feast unworthily.
Supported by Matthew Henry
Contrasts godly observance with Eli's sons' sinful demands for raw fat.
Supported by Matthew Henry
Commands that flesh torn of beasts in the field be cast to dogs.
Supported by JFB
Reinforces the command to pour blood out upon the earth like water.
Supported by Matthew Henry
Reiterates the prohibition against eating anything with the blood.
Supported by John Calvin
Defines what constitutes touching an unclean thing and incurring guilt.
Supported by Matthew Poole