Leviticus7

Leviticus 7 details the laws concerning various offerings and the portions designated for the priests. It begins with the trespass offering, specifying its holiness and priestly consumption. The chapter then outlines the regulations for peace offerings, including different types and strict time limits for eating the flesh. Crucially, it reiterates the prohibitions against consuming fat and blood, with severe penalties for transgression.

The Law of the Trespass Offering

1
"'This is the law for the guilt offering: it is especially holy. ​
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They are to slaughter the guilt offering in the place where they slaughter the burnt offering, and its blood is to be splashed against all sides of the altar. ​
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He is to offer all its fat - the fat tail, the fat covering the inner organs,
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the two kidneys, the fat on them near the flanks, and the covering of the liver, which he will remove with the kidneys.
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The cohen will make them go up in smoke on the altar as an offering made by fire to ADONAI ; it is a guilt offering.
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Every male from a family of cohanim may eat it; it is to be eaten in a holy place; it is especially holy. ​

Priestly Portions from the Offerings

7
The guilt offering is like the sin offering; the same law governs them - it will belong to the cohen who uses it to make atonement. ​
8
"'The cohen who offers someone's burnt offering will possess the hide of the burnt offering which he has offered. ​
9
"'Every grain offering baked in the oven, cooked in a pot or fried on a griddle will belong to the cohen who offers it.
10
But every grain offering which is mixed with olive oil or is dry will belong to all the sons of Aharon equally.

The Law of the Peace Offering

11
"'This is the law for sacrificing peace offerings offered to ADONAI: ​
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If a person offers it for giving thanks, he is to offer it with the thanksgiving sacrifice of unleavened cakes mixed with olive oil, matzah spread with olive oil, and cakes made of fine flour mixed with olive oil and fried.
13
With cakes of leavened bread he is to present his offering together with the sacrifice of his peace offerings for giving thanks. ​
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From each kind of offering he is to present one as a gift for ADONAI; it will belong to the cohen who splashes the blood of the peace offerings against the altar.
15
The meat of the sacrifice of his peace offerings for giving thanks is to be eaten on the day of his offering; he is not to leave any of it until morning. ​
16
But if the sacrifice connected with his offering is for a vow or is a voluntary offering, then, while it is to be eaten on the day he offers his sacrifice, what remains of it may be eaten the next day.
17
However, what remains of the meat of the sacrifice on the third day is to be burned up completely.
18
If any of the meat of the sacrifice of his peace offerings is eaten on the third day, the sacrifice will neither be accepted nor credited to the person offering it; rather, it will have become a disgusting thing, and whoever eats it will bear the consequences of his wrongdoing. ​
19
Meat which touches something unclean is not to be eaten but burned up completely. As for the meat, everyone who is clean may eat it;
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but a person in a state of uncleanness who eats any meat from the sacrifice of peace offerings made to ADONAI will be cut off from his people. ​
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Anyone who touches something unclean - whether the uncleanness be from a person, from an unclean animal or from some other unclean detestable thing - and then eats the meat from the sacrifice of peace offerings for ADONAI, that person will be cut off from his people.'" ​

Prohibition on Eating Fat and Blood

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ADONAI said to Moshe,
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"Say to the people of Isra'el, 'You are not to eat the fat of bulls, sheep or goats. ​
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The fat of animals that die of themselves or are killed by wild animals may be used for any other purpose, but under no circumstances are you to eat it.
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For whoever eats the fat of animals of the kind used in presenting an offering made by fire to ADONAI will be cut off from his people.
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You are not to eat any kind of blood, whether from birds or animals, in any of your homes. ​
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Whoever eats any blood will be cut off from his people.'"

The Priests' Fixed Portions

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ADONAI said to Moshe,
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"Say to the people of Isra'el, 'A person who offers his sacrifice of peace offerings to ADONAI is to bring part of his sacrifice of peace offerings as his offering for ADONAI.
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He is to bring with his own hands the offerings for ADONAI made by fire - he is to bring the breast with its fat. The breast is to be waved as a wave offering before ADONAI. ​
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The cohen is to make the fat go up in smoke on the altar, but the breast will belong to Aharon and his descendants.
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You are to give the right thigh from your sacrifices of peace offerings to the cohen as a contribution.
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The descendant of Aharon who offers the blood of the peace offerings is to have the right thigh as his share.
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For the breast that has been waved and the thigh that has been contributed I have taken from the people of Isra'el out of their sacrifices of peace offerings and given them to Aharon the cohen and to his descendants as their share forever from the people of Isra'el.'" ​
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On the day when Aharon and his sons were presented to serve ADONAI in the office of cohen, this portion was set aside for him and his descendants from the offerings for ADONAI made by fire.
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On the day they were anointed, ADONAI ordered that this be given to them by the people of Isra'el. It is their share forever through all their generations.

Conclusion of the Sacrificial Laws

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This is the law for the burnt offering, the grain offering, the sin offering, the guilt offering, the consecration offering and the sacrifice of peace offerings ​
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which ADONAI ordered Moshe on Mount Sinai on the day he ordered the people of Isra'el to present their offerings to ADONAI, in the Sinai Desert. ​

Study Notes for Leviticus 7

Verse 1

The trespass offering ('Asham) addresses specific instances of wrongful action against God or neighbor that require restitution. Like the sin offering, it is designated 'most holy,' meaning consumption is restricted to the priests in a sacred location.

Verse 2

The requirement that the trespass offering be slaughtered in the same location as the burnt offering emphasizes the gravity and sacredness of the atonement process, linking it closely to the general sacrificial ritual.

Verse 6

Only male priests (the sons of Aaron) were permitted to eat the meat of the 'most holy' offerings (sin and trespass), symbolizing their unique consecrated status and limiting contact with the sacred food.

Verse 7

This verse establishes that the law governing the distribution of the trespass offering is identical to that of the sin offering: the priest who performs the rite receives the meat as his sustenance.

Verse 8

The skin of the burnt offering was the only part not consumed by fire, and it was given to the officiating priest. This portion provided practical material for clothing or trade, contributing to the priest's livelihood.

Verse 11

The peace offering (Shelamim) is unique because it is the only major sacrifice shared among God (fat), the priest (breast/shoulder), and the worshipper (remaining meat), symbolizing fellowship and communion.

Verse 13

Leavened bread is normally forbidden on the altar, but it is permitted here as a secondary offering alongside the unleavened cakes. This leavened bread was eaten by the priest and the offerer during the celebratory meal.

Verse 15

The thanksgiving peace offering must be consumed entirely on the day of sacrifice. This strict time limit emphasizes the urgency of expressing gratitude and ensures the meat is shared while the celebratory impulse is fresh.

Verse 18

Eating the meat on the third day renders the sacrifice unacceptable and is deemed an 'abomination.' This strict time limit maintains the sanctity of the offering and prevents ritual decay or defilement.

Verse 20

Participation in the sacred meal requires ritual purity. If a person eats the offering while in a state of uncleanness, they violate the holiness of the sacrifice and are subject to being 'cut off' (excommunication or divine judgment).

Verse 21

This verse reiterates the severe penalty for violating the sanctity of the peace offering through contact with human, animal, or object uncleanness, underscoring the necessity of ritual separation.

Verse 23

The fat (suet or internal organ fat) was reserved exclusively for the Lord, as it was considered the choicest part. Eating the fat was forbidden because it was the portion designated for the altar.

Verse 26

The prohibition on consuming blood is fundamental throughout the Torah because the blood represents the life (soul) of the creature. Blood must be reserved solely for the purpose of atonement upon the altar.

Verse 30

The worshipper personally presents the fat (for God) and the breast (for the priest) to the officiating priest. The breast is then ritually ‘waved’ before the Lord, marking its transfer as the priest’s food.

Verse 34

The 'wave breast' and the 'heave shoulder' were designated as permanent, non-negotiable portions for the Aaronic priesthood, establishing a perpetual means of their support and sustenance.

Verse 37

This verse serves as a summary colophon, listing the six main categories of sacrificial and priestly laws detailed across Leviticus 1-7, concluding the initial instruction given to Moses.

Verse 38

The summary emphasizes that these detailed sacrificial regulations were revealed by the LORD to Moses at Mount Sinai, thus placing the entire system under divine authority and covenant mandate.

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