Imamat 2:3

2:3 The remainder of the grain offering belongs to Aaron and to his sons ¹  – it is ²  most holy ³  from the gifts of the Lord.

Imamat 3:3

3:3 Then the one presenting the offering ⁴  must present a gift to the Lord from the peace offering sacrifice: He must remove the fat that covers the entrails and all the fat that surrounds the entrails, ⁵ 

Imamat 4:21

4:21 He ⁶  must bring the rest of the bull outside the camp ⁷  and burn it just as he burned the first bull – it is the sin offering of the assembly.

Imamat 5:1

Additional Sin Offering Regulations

5:1 “‘When a person sins ⁸  in that he hears a public curse against one who fails to testify ⁹  and he is a witness (he either saw or knew what had happened ¹⁰ ) and he does not make it known, ¹¹  then he will bear his punishment for iniquity. ¹² 

Imamat 5:3

5:3 or when he touches human uncleanness with regard to anything by which he can become unclean, ¹³  even if he did not realize it, but he himself has later come to know it and is guilty;

Imamat 6:16

6:16 Aaron and his sons are to eat what is left over from it. It must be eaten unleavened in a holy place; they are to eat it in the courtyard of the Meeting Tent.

Imamat 7:6

7:6 Any male among the priests may eat it. It must be eaten in a holy place. It is most holy. ¹⁴ 

Imamat 7:18

7:18 If some of the meat of his peace offering sacrifice is ever eaten on the third day it will not be accepted; it will not be accounted to the one who presented it, since it is spoiled, ¹⁵  and the person who eats from it will bear his punishment for iniquity. ¹⁶ 

Imamat 8:28

8:28 Moses then took them from their palms and offered them up in smoke on the altar ¹⁷  on top of the burnt offering – they were an ordination offering for a soothing aroma; it was a gift to the Lord.

Imamat 9:24

9:24 Then fire went out from the presence of the Lord ¹⁸  and consumed the burnt offering and the fat parts on the altar, and all the people saw it, so they shouted loudly and fell down with their faces to the ground. ¹⁹ 

Imamat 10:13

10:13 You must eat it in a holy place because it is your allotted portion ²⁰  and the allotted portion of your sons from the gifts ²¹  of the Lord, for this is what I have been commanded. ²² 

Imamat 13:2

13:2 “When someone has ²³  a swelling ²⁴  or a scab ²⁵  or a bright spot ²⁶  on the skin of his body ²⁷  that may become a diseased infection, ²⁸  he must be brought to Aaron the priest or one of his sons, the priests. ²⁹ 

Imamat 13:49

13:49 if the infection ³⁰  in the garment or leather or warp or woof or any article of leather is yellowish green or reddish, it is a diseased infection and it must be shown to the priest.

Imamat 13:57-59

13:57 Then if ³¹  it still appears again in the garment or the warp or the woof, or in any article of leather, it is an outbreak. Whatever has the infection in it you must burn up in the fire. 13:58 But the garment or the warp or the woof or any article of leather which you wash and infection disappears from it ³²  is to be washed a second time and it will be clean.”

Summary of Infection Regulations

13:59 This is the law ³³  of the diseased infection in the garment of wool or linen, or the warp or woof, or any article of leather, for pronouncing it clean or unclean. ³⁴ 

Imamat 14:44

14:44 the priest is to come and examine it, and if ³⁵  the infection has spread in the house, it is a malignant disease in the house. It is unclean.

Imamat 15:6

15:6 The one who sits on the furniture the man with a discharge sits on must wash his clothes, bathe in water, and be unclean until evening.

Imamat 15:26

15:26 Any bed she lies on all the days of her discharge will be to her like the bed of her menstruation, any furniture she sits on will be unclean like the impurity of her menstruation,

Imamat 16:22

16:22 The goat is to bear on itself all their iniquities into an inaccessible land, ³⁶  so he is to send the goat away ³⁷  in the wilderness.

Imamat 16:34

16:34 This is to be a perpetual statute for you ³⁸  to make atonement for the Israelites for ³⁹  all their sins once a year.” ⁴⁰  So he did just as the Lord had commanded Moses. ⁴¹ 

Imamat 17:3-4

17:3 “Blood guilt ⁴²  will be accounted to any man ⁴³  from the house of Israel ⁴⁴  who slaughters an ox or a lamb or a goat inside the camp or outside the camp, ⁴⁵  17:4 but has not brought it to the entrance of the Meeting Tent ⁴⁶  to present it as ⁴⁷  an offering to the Lord before the tabernacle of the Lord. He has shed blood, so that man will be cut off from the midst of his people. ⁴⁸ 

Imamat 20:14

20:14 If a man has sexual intercourse with both a woman and her mother, ⁴⁹  it is lewdness. ⁵⁰  Both he and they must be burned to death, ⁵¹  so there is no lewdness in your midst.

Imamat 22:23

22:23 As for an ox ⁵²  or a sheep with a limb too long or stunted, ⁵³  you may present it as a freewill offering, but it will not be acceptable for a votive offering. ⁵⁴ 

Imamat 22:25

22:25 Even from a foreigner ⁵⁵  you must not present the food of your God from such animals as these, for they are ruined and flawed; ⁵⁶  they will not be acceptable for your benefit.’”

Imamat 23:20

23:20 and the priest is to wave them – the two lambs ⁵⁷  – along with the bread of the first fruits, as a wave offering before the Lord; they will be holy to the Lord for the priest.

Imamat 25:2

25:2 “Speak to the Israelites and tell them, ‘When you enter the land that I am giving you, the land must observe a Sabbath ⁵⁸  to the Lord.

Imamat 25:5

25:5 You must not gather in the aftergrowth of your harvest and you must not pick the grapes of your unpruned ⁵⁹  vines; the land must have a year of complete rest.

Imamat 25:11

25:11 That fiftieth year will be your jubilee; you must not sow the land, harvest its aftergrowth, or pick the grapes of its unpruned vines. ⁶⁰ 

Imamat 25:46

25:46 You may give them as inheritance to your children after you to possess as property. You may enslave them perpetually. However, as for your brothers the Israelites, no man may rule over his brother harshly. ⁶¹ 

Imamat 27:14

Redemption of Vowed Houses

27:14 “‘If a man consecrates his house as holy to the Lord, the priest will establish its conversion value, whether good or bad. Just as the priest establishes its conversion value, thus it will stand. ⁶² 

Imamat 27:16

Redemption of Vowed Fields

27:16 “‘If a man consecrates to the Lord some of his own landed property, the conversion value must be calculated in accordance with the amount of seed needed to sow it, ⁶³  a homer of barley seed being priced at fifty shekels of silver. ⁶⁴ 

Imamat 27:23

27:23 the priest will calculate for him the amount of its conversion value until the jubilee year, and he must pay ⁶⁵  the conversion value on that jubilee day as something that is holy to the Lord.

[2:3]  ¹ tn Heb “…is to Aaron and to his sons.” The preposition “to” (לְ, lamed) indicates ownership. Cf. NAB, NASB, NIV and other English versions.

[2:3]  ² tn The words “it is” (הוּא, hu’) are not in the MT, but are supplied for the sake of translation into English. The Syriac also for translational reasons adds it between “most holy” and “from the gifts” (cf. 1:13, 17).

[2:3]  ³ tn Heb “holy of holies”; KJV, NASB “a thing most holy.”

[3:3]  ⁴ tn Heb “Then he”; the referent (the person presenting the offering) has been specified in the translation for clarity (cf. the note on Lev 1:5).

[3:3]  ⁵ tn Heb “and all the fat on the entrails.” The fat layer that covers the entrails as a whole (i.e., “that covers the entrails”) is different from the fat that surrounds and adheres to the various organs (“on the entrails,” i.e., surrounding them; J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:205-7).

[4:21]  ⁶ sn See the note on the word “slaughter” in v. 15.

[4:21]  ⁷ tn Heb “And he shall bring out the bull to from outside to the camp.”

[5:1]  ⁸ tn Heb “And a person when he sins.” Most English versions translate this as the protasis of a conditional clause: “if a person sins” (NASB, NIV).

[5:1]  sn The same expression occurs in Lev 4:2 where it introduces sins done “by straying unintentionally from any of the commandments of the Lord which must not be done” (see the notes there). Lev 5:1-13 is an additional section of sin offering regulations directed at violations other than those referred to by this expression in Lev 4:2 (see esp. 5:1-6), and expanding on the offering regulations for the common person in Lev 4:27-35 with concessions to the poor common person (5:7-13).

[5:1]  ⁹ tn The words “against one who fails to testify” are not in the Hebrew text, but have been supplied to make sense of the remark about the “curse” (“imprecation” or “oath”; cf. ASV “adjuration”; NIV “public charge”) for the modern reader. For the interpretation of this verse reflected in the present translation see J. Milgrom, Leviticus (AB), 1:292-97.

[5:1]  ¹⁰ tn The words “what had happened” are not in the Hebrew text, but are implied.

[5:1]  ¹¹ tn Heb “and hears a voice of curse, and he is a witness or he saw or he knew, if he does not declare.”

[5:1]  ¹² tn Heb “and he shall bear his iniquity.” The rendering “bear the punishment (for the iniquity)” reflects the use of the word “iniquity” to refer to the punishment for iniquity (cf. NRSV, NLT “subject to punishment”). It is sometimes referred to as the consequential use of the term (cf. Lev 5:17; 7:18; 10:17; etc.).

[5:3]  ¹³ tn Heb “or if he touches uncleanness of mankind to any of his uncleanness which he becomes unclean in it.”

[7:6]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “holiness of holinesses [or holy of holies] it is”; NAB “most sacred”; TEV “very holy.”

[7:18]  ¹⁵ tn Or “desecrated,” or “defiled,” or “forbidden.” For this difficult term see J. Milgrom, Leviticus (AB), 1:422. Cf. NIV “it is impure”; NCV “it will become unclean”; NLT “will be contaminated.”

[7:18]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “his iniquity he shall bear” (cf. Lev 5:1); NIV “will be held responsible”; NRSV “shall incur guilt”; TEV “will suffer the consequences.”

[8:28]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “toward the altar” (see the note on Lev 1:9).

[9:24]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “from to the faces of the Lord.” The rendering here is based on the use of “my faces” and “your faces” referring to the very “presence” of the Lord in Exod 33:14-15.

[9:24]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “fell on their faces.” Many English versions and commentaries render here “shouted for joy” (e.g., NIV; cf. NCV, NLT) or “shouted joyfully,” but the fact the people “fell on their faces” immediately afterward suggests that they were frightened as, for example, in Exod 19:16b; 20:18-21.

[10:13]  ²⁰ tn Heb “statute” (cf. 10:9, 11); cf. KJV, NAB, NASB, NRSV “due”; NIV “share”; NLT “regular share.”

[10:13]  ²¹ tn For the rendering of the Hebrew אִשֶׁה (’isheh) as “gift” rather than “offering [made] by fire,” see the note on Lev 1:9.

[10:13]  ²² sn Cf. Lev 2:3 and 6:14-18 [6:7-11 HT] for these regulations.

[13:2]  ²³ tn Heb “A man, if [or when] he has….” The term for “a man, human being” (אָדָם, ’adam; see the note on Lev 1:2) in this case refers to any person among “mankind,” male or female, since either could be afflicted with infections on the skin.

[13:2]  ²⁴ tn Some of the terms for disease or symptoms of disease in this chapter present difficulties for the translator. Most modern English versions render the Hebrew term שְׂאֵת (sÿ’et) as “swelling,” which has been retained here (see the explanation in J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 189). Some have argued that “deeper (עָמֹק, ’amoq) than the skin of his body” in v. 3 means that “this sore was lower than the surrounding skin” (J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:773), in which case “swelling” would be an inappropriate translation of שְׂאֵת in v. 2. Similarly, שְׂאֵת also occurs in v. 19, and then v. 20 raises the issue of whether or not it appears to be “lower (שָׁפָל, shafal) than the skin” (cf. also 14:37 for a mark on the wall of a house), which may mean that the sore sinks below the surface of the skin rather than protruding above it as a swelling would (B. A. Levine, Leviticus [JPSTC], 76-77). Thus, one could translate here, for example, “discoloration” (so Milgrom and II שְׂאֵת “spot, blemish on the skin” in HALOT 1301 s.v. II שְׂאֵת) or “local inflammation, boil, mole” (so Levine). However, one could interpret “lower” as “deeper,” i.e., visibly extending below the surface of the skin into the deeper layers as suggested by J. E. Hartley, Leviticus (WBC), 188, 192. “Swelling” often extends deeply below the surface of the skin, it is certainly a common symptom of skin diseases, and the alternation of these two terms (i.e., “deeper” and “lower”) in vv. 25-26 below shows that they both refer to the same phenomenon (see also the note on v. 20 below), so it is retained in the present translation.

[13:2]  ²⁵ tn The etymology and meaning of this term is unknown. It could mean “scab” (KJV, ASV, NASB) or possibly “rash” (NIV, NLT), “flaking skin,” or an “eruption” (NRSV) of some sort.

[13:2]  ²⁶ tn Heb “shiny spot” or “white spot,” but to render this term “white spot” in this chapter would create redundancy in v. 4 where the regular term for “white” occurs alongside this word for “bright spot.”

[13:2]  ²⁷ tn Heb “in the skin of his flesh” as opposed to the head or the beard (v. 29).

[13:2]  ²⁸ tn Heb “a mark [or stroke; or plague] of disease.” In some places in this context (vv. 2, 3) it could be translated “a contagious skin disease.” Although the Hebrew term צָרָעַת (tsara’at) rendered here “diseased” is translated in many English versions as “leprosy,” it does not refer to Hanson’s disease, which is the modern technical understanding of the term “leprosy” (HALOT 1057 s.v. צָרְעַת a). There has been much discussion of the proper meaning of the term and the disease(s) to which it may refer (see, e.g., J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:774-76, 816-26; J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 187-89; and the literature cited by them). The further description of the actual condition in the text suggests that the regulations are concerned with any kind of infectious diseases that are observable on the surface of the skin and, in addition to that, penetrate below the surface of the skin (vv. 3-4) or spread further across the surface of the skin (vv. 5-8). It is true that, in the OT, the term “disease” is often associated specifically with white “scaly” skin diseases that resemble the wasting away of the skin after death (see Milgrom who, in fact, translates “scale disease”; cf., e.g., Exod 4:6-7 and Num 12:9-12, esp. v. 12), but here it appears to be a broader term for any skin disease that penetrates deep or spreads far on the body. Scaly skin diseases would be included in this category, but also other types. Thus, a “swelling,” “scab,” or “bright spot” on the skin might be a symptom of disease, but not necessarily so. In this sense, “diseased” is a technical term. The term “infection” can apply to any “mark” on the skin whether it belongs to the category of “disease” or not (compare and contrast v. 3, where the “infection” is not “diseased,” with v. 4, where the “infection” is found to be “diseased”).

[13:2]  ²⁹ tn Or “it shall be reported to Aaron the priest.” This alternative rendering may be better in light of the parallel use of the same expression in Lev 14:2, where the priest had to go outside the camp in order to inspect the person who had been diseased. Since the rendering “he shall be brought to Aaron the priest” might confuse matters there, this expression should be rendered “it shall be reported” both here in 13:2 (cf. also v. 9) and in 14:2. See, however, the further note on 14:2 below, where it is argued that the diseased person would still need to “be brought” to the priest even if this happened outside the camp. Most English versions retain the idea of the afflicted person being “brought” to the priest for inspection.

[13:49]  ³⁰ tn Heb “and the infection is.” This clause is conditional in force, and is translated as such by almost all English versions.

[13:57]  ³¹ tn Heb “And if”; NIV, NCV “But if”; NAB “If, however.”

[13:58]  ³² tn Heb “and the infection turns aside from them.”

[13:59]  ³³ sn The Hebrew term translated “law” (תוֹרָה, torah) introduces here a summary or colophon for all of Lev 13. Similar summaries are found in Lev 7:37-38; 11:46-47; 14:54-57; and 15:32-33.

[13:59]  ³⁴ tn These are declarative Piel forms of the verbs טָהֵר (taher) and טָמֵא (tame’) respectively (cf. the notes on vv. 3 and 6 above).

[14:44]  ³⁵ tn Heb “and behold” (so KJV, ASV); NASB “If he sees that the mark has indeed spread.”

[16:22]  ³⁶ tn The Hebrew term rendered “inaccessible” derives from a root meaning “to cut off” (cf. NAB “an isolated region”). Another possible translation would be “infertile land” (see HALOT 187 s.v. *גָּזֵּר and cf. NRSV “a barren region”; NLT “a desolate land.”

[16:22]  ³⁷ tn Heb “and he [the man (standing) ready, v. 21] shall send the goat away.”

[16:34]  ³⁸ tn Heb “And this shall be for you to a statute of eternity” (cf. v. 29a above). cf. NASB “a permanent statute”; NIV “a lasting ordinance.”

[16:34]  ³⁹ tn Heb “from”; see note on 4:26.

[16:34]  ⁴⁰ tn Heb “one [feminine] in the year.”

[16:34]  ⁴¹ tn The MT of Lev 16:34b reads literally, “and he did just as the Lord had commanded Moses.” This has been retained here in spite of the fact that it suggests that Aaron immediately performed the rituals outlined in Lev 16 (see, e.g., J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 224 and 243; J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:1059; note that Aaron was the one to whom Moses was to speak the regulations in this chapter, v. 2). The problem is that the chapter presents these procedures as regulations for “the tenth day of the seventh month” and calls for their fulfillment at that time (Lev 16:29; cf. Lev 23:26-32 and the remarks in P. J. Budd, Leviticus [NCBC], 237), not during the current (first) month (Exod 40:2; note also that they left Sinai in the second month, long before the next seventh month, Num 10:11). The LXX translates, “once in the year it shall be done as the Lord commanded Moses,” attaching “once in the year” to this clause rather than the former one, and rendering the verb as passive, “it shall be done” (cf. NAB, NIV, etc.). We have already observed the passive use of active verbs in this context (see the note on v. 32 above). The RSV (cf. also the NRSV, TEV, CEV, NLT) translates, “And Moses did as the Lord commanded him,” ignoring the fact that the name Moses in the Hebrew text has the direct object indicator. Passive verbs, however, regularly take subjects with direct object indicators (see, e.g., v. 27 above). The NIV renders it “And it was done, as the Lord commanded Moses,” following the LXX passive translation. The NASB translates, “And just as the Lord had commanded Moses, so he did,” transposing the introductory verb to the end of the sentence and supplying “so” in order to make it fit the context.

[17:3]  ⁴² tn The complex wording of vv. 3-4 requires stating “blood guilt” at the beginning of v. 3 even though it is not mentioned until the middle of v. 4. The Hebrew text has simply “blood,” but in this case it refers to the illegitimate shedding of animal blood, similar to the shedding of the blood of an innocent human being (Deut 19:10, etc.). In order for it to be legitimate the animal must be slaughtered at the tabernacle and its blood handled by the priests in the prescribed way (see, e.g., Lev 1:5; 3:2, 17; 4:5-7; 7:26-27, etc.; cf. vv. 10-16 below for more details).

[17:3]  ⁴³ tn Heb “Man man.” The reduplication is way of saying “any man” (cf. Lev 15:2; 22:18, etc.). See the note on Lev 15:2.

[17:3]  ⁴⁴ tn The original LXX adds “or the sojourners who sojourn in your midst” (cf. Lev 16:29, etc., and note esp. 17:8, 10, and 13 below).

[17:3]  ⁴⁵ tn Heb “or who slaughters from outside to the camp.”

[17:4]  ⁴⁶ tn Smr and LXX add after “tent of meeting” the following: “to make it a burnt offering or a peace offering to the Lord for your acceptance as a soothing aroma, and slaughters it outside, and at the doorway of the tent of meeting has not brought it.”

[17:4]  ⁴⁷ tc Smr includes the suffix “it,” which is needed in any case in the translation to conform to English style.

[17:4]  ⁴⁸ sn The exact meaning of this penalty clause is not certain. It could mean (1) that he will be executed, whether by God or by man, (2) that he will be excommunicated from sanctuary worship and/or community benefits, or (3) that his line will be terminated by God (i.e., extirpation). See also the note on Lev 7:20.

[20:14]  ⁴⁹ tn Heb “And a man who takes a woman and her mother.” The Hebrew verb “to take” in this context means “to engage in sexual intercourse.”

[20:14]  ⁵⁰ tn Regarding “lewdness,” see the note on Lev 18:17 above.

[20:14]  ⁵¹ tn Heb “in fire they shall burn him and them.” The active plural verb sometimes requires a passive translation (GKC 460 §144.f, g), esp. when no active plural subject has been expressed in the context. The present translation specifies “burned to death” because the traditional rendering “burnt with fire” (KJV, ASV; NASB “burned with fire”) could be understood to mean “branded” or otherwise burned, but not fatally.

[22:23]  ⁵² tn Heb “And an ox.”

[22:23]  ⁵³ tn Heb “and stunted” (see HALOT 1102 s.v. I קלט).

[22:23]  ⁵⁴ sn The freewill offering was voluntary, so the regulations regarding it were more relaxed. Once a vow was made, the paying of it was not voluntary (see B. A. Levine, Leviticus [JPSTC], 151-52, for very helpful remarks on this verse).

[22:25]  ⁵⁵ tn Heb “And from the hand of a son of a foreigner.”

[22:25]  ⁵⁶ tn Heb “for their being ruined [is] in them, flaw is in them”; NRSV “are mutilated, with a blemish in them”; NIV “are deformed and have defects.” The MT term מָשְׁחָתָם (moshkhatam, “their being ruined”) is a Muqtal form (= Hophal participle) from שָׁחַת (shakhat, “to ruin”). Smr has plural בהם משׁחתים (“deformities in them”; cf. the LXX translation). The Qumran Leviticus scroll (11QpaleoLev) has תימ הם[…], in which case the restored participle would appear to be the same as Smr, but there is no בְּ (bet) preposition before the pronoun, yielding “they are deformed” (see D. N. Freedman and K. A. Mathews, The Paleo-Hebrew Leviticus Scroll, 41 and the remarks in J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 358).

[23:20]  ⁵⁷ tn Smr and LXX have the Hebrew article on “lambs.” The syntax of this verse is difficult. The object of the verb (two lambs) is far removed from the verb itself (shall wave) in the MT, and the preposition עַל (’al, “upon”), rendered “along with” in this verse, is also added to the far removed subject (literally, “upon [the] two lambs”; see B. A. Levine, Leviticus [JPSTC], 159). It is clear, however, that the two lambs and the loaves (along with their associated grain and drink offerings) constituted the “wave offering,” which served as the prebend “for the priest.” Burnt and sin offerings (vv. 18-19a) were not included in this (see Lev 7:11-14, 28-36).

[25:2]  ⁵⁸ tn Heb “the land shall rest a Sabbath.”

[25:5]  ⁵⁹ tn Heb “consecrated, devoted, forbidden” (נָזִיר, nazir). The same term is used for the “consecration” of the “Nazirite” (and his hair, Num 6:2, 18, etc.), a designation which, in turn, derives from the very same root.

[25:11]  ⁶⁰ tn Heb “you shall not sow and you shall not…and you shall not….”

[25:11]  sn See v. 5 above and the notes there.

[25:46]  ⁶¹ tn Heb “and your brothers, the sons of Israel, a man in his brother you shall not rule in him in violence.”

[27:14]  ⁶² tn The expression “it shall stand” may be a technical term for “it shall be legally valid”; cf. NLT “assessment will be final.”

[27:16]  ⁶³ tn Heb “a conversion value shall be to the mouth of its seed.”

[27:16]  ⁶⁴ tn Heb “seed of a homer of barley in fifty shekels of silver.”

[27:23]  ⁶⁵ tn Heb “give” (so KJV, ASV, NASB, NLT).