Imamat 1:1--16:34
Konteks1:1 Then the Lord called to Moses and spoke to him 1 from the Meeting Tent: 2 1:2 “Speak to the Israelites and tell them, ‘When 3 someone 4 among you presents an offering 5 to the Lord, 6 you 7 must present your offering from the domesticated animals, either from the herd or from the flock. 8
1:3 “‘If his offering is a burnt offering 9 from the herd he must present it as a flawless male; he must present it at the entrance 10 of the Meeting Tent for its 11 acceptance before the Lord. 1:4 He must lay his hand on the head of the burnt offering, and it will be accepted for him to make atonement 12 on his behalf. 1:5 Then the one presenting the offering 13 must slaughter the bull 14 before the Lord, and the sons of Aaron, the priests, must present the blood and splash 15 the blood against the sides of the altar which is at the entrance of the Meeting Tent. 1:6 Next, the one presenting the offering 16 must skin the burnt offering and cut it into parts, 1:7 and the sons of Aaron, the priest, 17 must put fire on the altar and arrange wood on the fire. 1:8 Then the sons of Aaron, the priests, must arrange the parts with the head and the suet 18 on the wood that is in the fire on the altar. 19 1:9 Finally, the one presenting the offering 20 must wash its entrails and its legs in water and the priest must offer all of it up in smoke on the altar 21 – it is 22 a burnt offering, a gift 23 of a soothing aroma to the Lord.
1:10 “‘If his offering is from the flock for a burnt offering 24 – from the sheep or the goats – he must present a flawless male, 1:11 and must slaughter it on the north side of the altar before the Lord, and the sons of Aaron, the priests, will splash its blood against the altar’s sides. 1:12 Next, the one presenting the offering 25 must cut it into parts, with its head and its suet, and the priest must arrange them on the wood which is in the fire, on the altar. 1:13 Then the one presenting the offering must wash the entrails and the legs in water, and the priest must present all of it and offer it up in smoke on the altar – it is a burnt offering, a gift of a soothing aroma to the Lord.
1:14 “‘If his offering to the Lord is a burnt offering from the birds, 26 he must present his offering from the turtledoves or from the young pigeons. 27 1:15 The priest must present it at the altar, pinch off 28 its head and offer the head 29 up in smoke on the altar, and its blood must be drained out against the side of the altar. 1:16 Then the priest 30 must remove its entrails by cutting off its tail feathers, 31 and throw them 32 to the east side of the altar into the place of fatty ashes, 1:17 and tear it open by its wings without dividing it into two parts. 33 Finally, the priest must offer it up in smoke on the altar on the wood which is in the fire – it is a burnt offering, a gift of a soothing aroma to the Lord.
2:1 “‘When a person presents a grain offering 34 to the Lord, his offering must consist of choice wheat flour, 35 and he must pour olive oil on it and put frankincense 36 on it. 2:2 Then he must bring it to the sons of Aaron, the priests, and the priest 37 must scoop out from there a handful of its choice wheat flour and some of its olive oil in addition to all of its frankincense, and the priest must offer its memorial portion 38 up in smoke on the altar – it is 39 a gift of a soothing aroma to the Lord. 2:3 The remainder of the grain offering belongs to Aaron and to his sons 40 – it is 41 most holy 42 from the gifts of the Lord.
2:4 “‘When you present an offering of grain baked in an oven, it must be made of 43 choice wheat flour baked into unleavened loaves 44 mixed with olive oil or 45 unleavened wafers smeared 46 with olive oil. 2:5 If your offering is a grain offering made on the griddle, it must be choice wheat flour mixed with olive oil, unleavened. 2:6 Crumble it in pieces 47 and pour olive oil on it – it is a grain offering. 2:7 If your offering is a grain offering made in a pan, 48 it must be made of choice wheat flour deep fried in olive oil. 49
2:8 “‘You must bring the grain offering that must be made from these to the Lord. Present it to the priest, 50 and he will bring it to the altar. 2:9 Then the priest must take up 51 from the grain offering its memorial portion and offer it up in smoke on the altar – it is 52 a gift of a soothing aroma to the Lord. 2:10 The remainder of the grain offering belongs to Aaron and to his sons – it is 53 most holy from the gifts of the Lord.
2:11 “‘No grain offering which you present to the Lord can be made with yeast, 54 for you must not offer up in smoke any yeast or honey as a gift to the Lord. 55 2:12 You can present them to the Lord as an offering of first fruit, 56 but they must not go up to the altar for a soothing aroma. 2:13 Moreover, you must season every one of your grain offerings with salt; you must not allow the salt of the covenant of your God to be missing from your grain offering 57 – on every one of your grain offerings you must present salt.
2:14 “‘If you present a grain offering of first ripe grain to the Lord, you must present your grain offering of first ripe grain as soft kernels roasted in fire – crushed bits of fresh grain. 58 2:15 And you must put olive oil on it and set frankincense on it – it is a grain offering. 2:16 Then the priest must offer its memorial portion up in smoke – some of its crushed bits, some of its olive oil, in addition to all of its frankincense – it is 59 a gift to the Lord.
3:1 “‘Now if his offering is a peace offering sacrifice, 60 if he presents an offering from the herd, he must present before the Lord a flawless male or a female. 61 3:2 He must lay his hand on the head of his offering and slaughter it at the entrance of the Meeting Tent, and the sons of Aaron, the priests, must splash the blood against the altar’s sides. 62 3:3 Then the one presenting the offering 63 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, 64 3:4 the two kidneys with the fat on their sinews, and the protruding lobe on the liver (which he is to remove along with the kidneys). 65 3:5 Then the sons of Aaron must offer it up in smoke on the altar atop the burnt offering that is on the wood in the fire as a gift of a soothing aroma to the Lord. 66
3:6 “‘If his offering for a peace offering sacrifice to the Lord is from the flock, he must present a flawless male or female. 67 3:7 If he presents a sheep as his offering, he must present it before the Lord. 3:8 He must lay his hand on the head of his offering and slaughter it before the Meeting Tent, and the sons of Aaron must splash 68 its blood against the altar’s sides. 3:9 Then he must present a gift to the Lord from the peace offering sacrifice: He must remove all the fatty tail up to the end of the spine, the fat covering the entrails, and all the fat on the entrails, 69 3:10 the two kidneys with the fat on their sinews, and the protruding lobe on the liver (which he is to remove along with the kidneys). 70 3:11 Then the priest must offer it up in smoke on the altar as a food gift to the Lord. 71
3:12 “‘If his offering is a goat he must present it before the Lord, 3:13 lay his hand on its head, and slaughter it before the Meeting Tent, and the sons of Aaron must splash its blood against the altar’s sides. 3:14 Then he must present from it his offering as a gift to the Lord: the fat which covers the entrails and all the fat on the entrails, 72 3:15 the two kidneys with the fat on their sinews, and the protruding lobe on the liver (which he is to remove along with the kidneys). 73 3:16 Then the priest must offer them up in smoke on the altar as a food gift for a soothing aroma – all the fat belongs to the Lord. 3:17 This is 74 a perpetual statute throughout your generations 75 in all the places where you live: You must never eat any fat or any blood.’” 76
4:1 Then the Lord spoke to Moses: 77 4:2 “Tell the Israelites, ‘When a person sins by straying unintentionally 78 from any of the Lord’s commandments which must not be violated, and violates any 79 one of them 80 –
4:3 “‘If the high priest 81 sins so that the people are guilty, 82 on account of the sin he has committed he must present a flawless young bull to the Lord 83 for a sin offering. 84 4:4 He must bring the bull to the entrance of the Meeting Tent before the Lord, lay his hand on the head of the bull, and slaughter the bull before the Lord. 4:5 Then that high priest must take some of the blood 85 of the bull and bring it to the Meeting Tent. 4:6 The priest must dip his finger in the blood and sprinkle 86 some of it 87 seven times before the Lord toward 88 the front of the veil-canopy 89 of the sanctuary. 4:7 The priest must put some of the blood on the horns of the altar of fragrant incense that is before the Lord in the Meeting Tent, and all the rest of the bull’s blood he must pour out at the base of the altar of burnt offering that is at the entrance of the Meeting Tent.
4:8 “‘Then he must take up all the fat from the sin offering bull: 90 the fat covering the entrails 91 and all the fat surrounding the entrails, 92 4:9 the two kidneys with the fat on their sinews, and the protruding lobe on the liver (which he is to remove along with the kidneys) 93 4:10 – just as it is taken from the ox of the peace offering sacrifice 94 – and the priest must offer them up in smoke on the altar of burnt offering. 4:11 But the hide of the bull, all its flesh along with its head and its legs, its entrails, and its dung – 4:12 all the rest of the bull 95 – he must bring outside the camp 96 to a ceremonially clean place, 97 to the fatty ash pile, 98 and he must burn 99 it on a wood fire; it must be burned on the fatty ash pile.
4:13 “‘If the whole congregation of Israel strays unintentionally 100 and the matter is not noticed by 101 the assembly, and they violate one of the Lord’s commandments, which must not be violated, 102 so they become guilty, 4:14 the assembly must present a young bull for a sin offering when the sin they have committed 103 becomes known. They must bring it before the Meeting Tent, 4:15 the elders of the congregation must lay their hands on the head of the bull before the Lord, and someone must slaughter 104 the bull before the Lord. 4:16 Then the high priest 105 must bring some of the blood of the bull to the Meeting Tent, 4:17 and that priest must dip his finger in the blood 106 and sprinkle 107 some of the blood seven times 108 before the Lord toward 109 the front of the veil-canopy. 110 4:18 He must put some of the blood on the horns of the altar 111 which is before the Lord in the Meeting Tent, and all the rest of the blood he must pour out at the base of the altar of burnt offering that is at the entrance of the Meeting Tent.
4:19 “‘Then the priest 112 must take all its fat 113 and offer the fat 114 up in smoke on the altar. 4:20 He must do with the rest of the bull just as he did with the bull of the sin offering; this is what he must do with it. 115 So the priest will make atonement 116 on their behalf and they will be forgiven. 117 4:21 He 118 must bring the rest of the bull outside the camp 119 and burn it just as he burned the first bull – it is the sin offering of the assembly.
4:22 “‘Whenever 120 a leader, by straying unintentionally, 121 sins and violates one of the commandments of the Lord his God which must not be violated, 122 and he pleads guilty, 4:23 or his sin that he committed 123 is made known to him, 124 he must bring a flawless male goat as his offering. 125 4:24 He must lay his hand on the head of the male goat and slaughter 126 it in the place where the burnt offering is slaughtered before the Lord – it is a sin offering. 4:25 Then the priest must take some of the blood of the sin offering with his finger and put it on the horns of the altar of burnt offering, and he must pour out the rest of its blood at the base of the altar of burnt offering. 4:26 Then the priest 127 must offer all of its fat up in smoke on the altar like the fat of the peace offering sacrifice. So the priest will make atonement 128 on his behalf for 129 his sin and he will be forgiven. 130
4:27 “‘If an ordinary individual 131 sins by straying unintentionally 132 when he violates one of the Lord’s commandments which must not be violated, 133 and he pleads guilty 4:28 or his sin that he committed 134 is made known to him, 135 he must bring a flawless female goat 136 as his offering for the sin 137 that he committed. 4:29 He must lay his hand on the head of the sin offering and slaughter 138 the sin offering in the place where the burnt offering is slaughtered. 4:30 Then the priest must take some of its blood with his finger and put it on the horns of the altar of burnt offering, and he must pour out all the rest of its blood at the base of the altar. 4:31 Then he must remove all of its fat (just as fat was removed from the peace offering sacrifice) and the priest must offer it up in smoke on the altar for a soothing aroma to the Lord. So the priest will make atonement 139 on his behalf and he will be forgiven. 140
4:32 “‘But if he brings a sheep as his offering, for a sin offering, he must bring a flawless female. 4:33 He must lay his hand on the head of the sin offering and slaughter it for a sin offering in the place where the burnt offering is slaughtered. 4:34 Then the priest must take some of the blood of the sin offering with his finger and put it on the horns of the altar of burnt offering, and he must pour out all the rest of its blood at the base of the altar. 4:35 Then the one who brought the offering 141 must remove all its fat (just as the fat of the sheep is removed from the peace offering sacrifice) and the priest must offer them up in smoke on the altar on top of the other gifts of the Lord. So the priest will make atonement 142 on his behalf for his sin which he has committed and he will be forgiven. 143
5:1 “‘When a person sins 144 in that he hears a public curse against one who fails to testify 145 and he is a witness (he either saw or knew what had happened 146 ) and he does not make it known, 147 then he will bear his punishment for iniquity. 148 5:2 Or when there is 149 a person who touches anything ceremonially 150 unclean, whether the carcass of an unclean wild animal, or the carcass of an unclean domesticated animal, or the carcass of an unclean creeping thing, even if he did not realize it, 151 but he himself has become unclean and is guilty; 152 5:3 or when he touches human uncleanness with regard to anything by which he can become unclean, 153 even if he did not realize it, but he himself has later come to know it and is guilty; 5:4 or when a person swears an oath, speaking thoughtlessly 154 with his lips, whether to do evil or to do good, with regard to anything which the individual might speak thoughtlessly in an oath, even if he did not realize it, but he himself has later come to know it and is guilty with regard to one of these oaths 155 – 5:5 when an individual becomes guilty with regard to one of these things 156 he must confess how he has sinned, 157 5:6 and he must bring his penalty for guilt 158 to the Lord for his sin that he has committed, a female from the flock, whether a female sheep or a female goat, for a sin offering. So the priest will make atonement 159 on his behalf for 160 his sin.
5:7 “‘If he cannot afford an animal from the flock, 161 he must bring his penalty for guilt for his sin that he has committed, 162 two turtledoves or two young pigeons, 163 to the Lord, one for a sin offering and one for a burnt offering. 5:8 He must bring them to the priest and present first the one that is for a sin offering. The priest 164 must pinch 165 its head at the nape of its neck, but must not sever the head from the body. 166 5:9 Then he must sprinkle 167 some of the blood of the sin offering on the wall of the altar, and the remainder of the blood 168 must be squeezed out at the base of the altar – it is a sin offering. 5:10 The second bird 169 he must make a burnt offering according to the standard regulation. 170 So the priest will make atonement 171 on behalf of this person for 172 his sin which he has committed, and he will be forgiven. 173
5:11 “‘If he cannot afford 174 two turtledoves or two young pigeons, 175 he must bring as his offering for his sin which he has committed 176 a tenth of an ephah 177 of choice wheat flour 178 for a sin offering. He must not place olive oil on it and he must not put frankincense on it, because it is a sin offering. 5:12 He must bring it to the priest and the priest must scoop out from it a handful as its memorial portion 179 and offer it up in smoke on the altar on top of the other gifts of the Lord – it is a sin offering. 5:13 So the priest will make atonement 180 on his behalf for his sin which he has committed by doing one of these things, 181 and he will be forgiven. 182 The remainder of the offering 183 will belong to the priest like the grain offering.’” 184
5:14 Then the Lord spoke to Moses: 185 5:15 “When a person commits a trespass 186 and sins by straying unintentionally 187 from the regulations about the Lord’s holy things, 188 then he must bring his penalty for guilt 189 to the Lord, a flawless ram from the flock, convertible into silver shekels according to the standard of the sanctuary shekel, 190 for a guilt offering. 191 5:16 And whatever holy thing he violated 192 he must restore and must add one fifth to it and give it to the priest. So the priest will make atonement 193 on his behalf with the guilt offering ram and he will be forgiven.” 194
5:17 “If a person sins and violates any of the Lord’s commandments which must not be violated 195 (although he did not know it at the time, 196 but later realizes he is guilty), then he will bear his punishment for iniquity 197 5:18 and must bring a flawless ram from the flock, convertible into silver shekels, 198 for a guilt offering to the priest. So the priest will make atonement 199 on his behalf for his error which he committed 200 (although he himself had not known it) and he will be forgiven. 201 5:19 It is a guilt offering; he was surely guilty before the Lord.”
6:1 (5:20) 202 Then the Lord spoke to Moses: 203 6:2 “When a person sins and commits a trespass 204 against the Lord by deceiving his fellow citizen 205 in regard to something held in trust, or a pledge, or something stolen, or by extorting something from his fellow citizen, 206 6:3 or has found something lost and denies it and swears falsely 207 concerning any one of the things that someone might do to sin 208 – 6:4 when it happens that he sins and he is found guilty, 209 then he must return whatever he had stolen, or whatever he had extorted, or the thing that he had held in trust, 210 or the lost thing that he had found, 6:5 or anything about which he swears falsely. 211 He must restore it in full 212 and add one fifth to it; he must give it to its owner when he is found guilty. 213 6:6 Then he must bring his guilt offering to the Lord, a flawless ram from the flock, convertible into silver shekels, 214 for a guilt offering to the priest. 6:7 So the priest will make atonement 215 on his behalf before the Lord and he will be forgiven 216 for whatever he has done to become guilty.” 217
6:8 (6:1) 218 Then the Lord spoke to Moses: 219 6:9 “Command Aaron and his sons, ‘This is the law of the burnt offering. The burnt offering is to remain on the hearth 220 on the altar all night until morning, and the fire of the altar must be kept burning on it. 221 6:10 Then the priest must put on his linen robe and must put linen leggings 222 over his bare flesh, and he must take up the fatty ashes of the burnt offering that the fire consumed on the altar, 223 and he must place them 224 beside the altar. 6:11 Then he must take off his clothes and put on other clothes, and he must bring the fatty ashes outside the camp to a ceremonially 225 clean place, 6:12 but the fire which is on the altar must be kept burning on it. 226 It must not be extinguished. So the priest must kindle wood on it morning by morning, and he must arrange the burnt offering on it and offer the fat of the peace offering up in smoke on it. 6:13 A continual fire must be kept burning on the altar. It must not be extinguished.
6:14 “‘This is the law of the grain offering. The sons of Aaron are to present it 227 before the Lord in front of the altar, 6:15 and the priest 228 must take up with his hand some of the choice wheat flour of the grain offering 229 and some of its olive oil, and all of the frankincense that is on the grain offering, and he must offer its memorial portion 230 up in smoke on the altar 231 as a soothing aroma to the Lord. 232 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. 6:17 It must not be baked with yeast. 233 I have given it as their portion from my gifts. It is most holy, 234 like the sin offering and the guilt offering. 6:18 Every male among the sons of Aaron may eat it. It is a perpetual allotted portion 235 throughout your generations 236 from the gifts of the Lord. Anyone who touches these gifts 237 must be holy.’” 238
6:19 Then the Lord spoke to Moses: 239 6:20 “This is the offering of Aaron and his sons which they must present to the Lord on the day when he is anointed: a tenth of an ephah 240 of choice wheat flour 241 as a continual grain offering, half of it in the morning and half of it in the evening. 6:21 It must be made with olive oil on a griddle and you must bring it well soaked, 242 so you must present a grain offering of broken pieces 243 as a soothing aroma to the Lord. 6:22 The high priest who succeeds him 244 from among his sons must do it. It is a perpetual statute; it must be offered up in smoke as a whole offering to the Lord. 6:23 Every grain offering of a priest must be a whole offering; it must not be eaten.”
6:24 Then the Lord spoke to Moses: 245 6:25 “Tell Aaron and his sons, ‘This is the law of the sin offering. In the place where the burnt offering is slaughtered the sin offering must be slaughtered before the Lord. It is most holy. 246 6:26 The priest who offers it for sin is to eat it. It must be eaten in a holy place, in the court of the Meeting Tent. 6:27 Anyone who touches its meat must be holy, and whoever spatters some of its blood on a garment, 247 you must wash 248 whatever he spatters it on in a holy place. 6:28 Any clay vessel it is boiled in must be broken, and if it was boiled in a bronze vessel, then that vessel 249 must be rubbed out and rinsed in water. 6:29 Any male among the priests may eat it. It is most holy. 250 6:30 But any sin offering from which some of its blood is brought into the Meeting Tent to make atonement in the sanctuary must not be eaten. It must be burned up in the fire. 251
7:1 “‘This is the law of the guilt offering. It is most holy. 7:2 In the place where they slaughter the burnt offering they must slaughter the guilt offering, and the officiating priest 252 must splash 253 the blood against the altar’s sides. 7:3 Then the one making the offering 254 must present all its fat: the fatty tail, the fat covering the entrails, 7:4 the two kidneys and the fat on their sinews, and the protruding lobe on the liver (which he must remove along with the kidneys). 255 7:5 Then the priest must offer them up in smoke on the altar 256 as a gift to the Lord. It is a guilt offering. 7:6 Any male among the priests may eat it. It must be eaten in a holy place. It is most holy. 257 7:7 The law is the same for the sin offering and the guilt offering; 258 it belongs to the priest who makes atonement with it.
7:8 “‘As for the priest who presents someone’s burnt offering, the hide of that burnt offering which he presented belongs to him. 7:9 Every grain offering which is baked in the oven or 259 made in the pan 260 or on the griddle belongs to the priest who presented it. 7:10 Every grain offering, whether mixed with olive oil or dry, belongs to all the sons of Aaron, each one alike. 261
7:11 “‘This is the law of the peace offering sacrifice which he 262 is to present to the Lord. 7:12 If he presents it on account of thanksgiving, 263 along with the thank offering sacrifice he must present unleavened loaves mixed with olive oil, unleavened wafers smeared with olive oil, 264 and well soaked 265 ring-shaped loaves made of choice wheat flour 266 mixed with olive oil. 7:13 He must present this grain offering 267 in addition to ring-shaped loaves of leavened bread which regularly accompany 268 the sacrifice of his thanksgiving peace offering. 7:14 He must present one of each kind of grain offering 269 as a contribution offering 270 to the Lord; it belongs to the priest who splashes the blood of the peace offering. 7:15 The meat of his 271 thanksgiving peace offering must be eaten on the day of his offering; he must not set any of it aside until morning.
7:16 “‘If his offering is a votive or freewill sacrifice, 272 it may be eaten on the day he presents his sacrifice, and also the leftovers from it may be eaten on the next day, 273 7:17 but the leftovers from the meat of the sacrifice must be burned up in the fire 274 on the third day. 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, 275 and the person who eats from it will bear his punishment for iniquity. 276 7:19 The meat which touches anything ceremonially 277 unclean must not be eaten; it must be burned up in the fire. As for ceremonially clean meat, 278 everyone who is ceremonially clean may eat the meat. 7:20 The person who eats meat from the peace offering sacrifice which belongs to the Lord while his uncleanness persists 279 will be cut off from his people. 280 7:21 When a person touches anything unclean (whether human uncleanness, or an unclean animal, or an unclean detestable creature) 281 and eats some of the meat of the peace offering sacrifice which belongs to the Lord, that person will be cut off from his people.’” 282
7:22 Then the Lord spoke to Moses: 283 7:23 “Tell the Israelites, ‘You must not eat any fat of an ox, sheep, or goat. 7:24 Moreover, the fat of an animal that has died of natural causes 284 and the fat of an animal torn by beasts may be used for any other purpose, 285 but you must certainly never eat it. 7:25 If anyone eats fat from the animal from which he presents a gift to the Lord, that person will be cut off from his people. 286 7:26 And you must not eat any blood of the birds or the domesticated land animals in any of the places where you live. 287 7:27 Any person who eats any blood – that person will be cut off from his people.’” 288
7:28 Then the Lord spoke to Moses: 289 7:29 “Tell the Israelites, ‘The one who presents his peace offering sacrifice to the Lord must bring his offering to the Lord from his peace offering sacrifice. 7:30 With his own hands he must bring the Lord’s gifts. He must bring the fat with the breast 290 to wave the breast as a wave offering before the Lord, 291 7:31 and the priest must offer the fat up in smoke on the altar, but the breast will belong to Aaron and his sons. 7:32 The right thigh you must give as a contribution offering 292 to the priest from your peace offering sacrifices. 7:33 The one from Aaron’s sons who presents the blood of the peace offering and fat will have the right thigh as his share, 7:34 for the breast of the wave offering and the thigh of the contribution offering I have taken from the Israelites out of their peace offering sacrifices and have given them to Aaron the priest and to his sons from the people of Israel as a perpetual allotted portion.’” 293
7:35 This is the allotment of Aaron and the allotment of his sons from the Lord’s gifts on the day Moses 294 presented them to serve as priests 295 to the Lord. 7:36 This is what the Lord commanded to give to them from the Israelites on the day Moses 296 anointed them 297 – a perpetual allotted portion throughout their generations. 298
7:37 This is the law 299 for the burnt offering, the grain offering, 300 the sin offering, the guilt offering, the ordination offering, 301 and the peace offering sacrifice, 7:38 which the Lord commanded Moses on Mount Sinai on the day he commanded the Israelites to present their offerings to the Lord in the wilderness of Sinai.
8:1 Then the Lord spoke to Moses: 302 8:2 “Take Aaron and his sons with him, and the garments, the anointing oil, the sin offering bull, the two rams, and the basket of unleavened bread, 8:3 and assemble the whole congregation at the entrance of the Meeting Tent.” 303 8:4 So Moses did just as the Lord commanded him, and the congregation assembled at the entrance of the Meeting Tent. 8:5 Then Moses said to the congregation: “This is what the Lord has commanded to be done.”
8:6 So Moses brought Aaron and his sons forward and washed them with water. 8:7 Then he 304 put the tunic 305 on Aaron, 306 wrapped the sash around him, 307 and clothed him with the robe. 308 Next he put the ephod on him 309 and placed on him 310 the decorated band of the ephod, and fastened the ephod closely to him with the band. 311 8:8 He then set the breastpiece 312 on him and put the Urim and Thummim 313 into the breastpiece. 8:9 Finally, he set the turban 314 on his head and attached the gold plate, the holy diadem, 315 to the front of the turban just as the Lord had commanded Moses.
8:10 Then Moses took the anointing oil and anointed the tabernacle and everything in it, and so consecrated them. 316 8:11 Next he sprinkled some of it on the altar seven times and so anointed the altar, all its vessels, and the wash basin and its stand to consecrate them. 8:12 He then poured some of the anointing oil on the head of Aaron and anointed him to consecrate him. 8:13 Moses also brought forward Aaron’s sons, clothed them with tunics, wrapped sashes around them, 317 and wrapped headbands on them 318 just as the Lord had commanded Moses.
8:14 Then he brought near the sin offering bull 319 and Aaron and his sons laid their hands on the head of the sin offering bull, 8:15 and he slaughtered it. 320 Moses then took the blood and put it all around on the horns of the altar with his finger and decontaminated the altar, 321 and he poured out the rest of the blood at the base of the altar and so consecrated it to make atonement on it. 322 8:16 Then he 323 took all the fat on the entrails, the protruding lobe of the liver, and the two kidneys and their fat, 324 and Moses offered it all up in smoke on the altar, 325 8:17 but the rest of the bull – its hide, its flesh, and its dung – he completely burned up 326 outside the camp just as the Lord had commanded Moses. 327
8:18 Then he presented the burnt offering ram and Aaron and his sons laid their hands on the head of the ram, 8:19 and he slaughtered it. 328 Moses then splashed the blood against the altar’s sides. 8:20 Then he 329 cut the ram into parts, 330 and Moses offered the head, the parts, and the suet up in smoke, 8:21 but the entrails and the legs he washed with water, 331 and Moses offered the whole ram up in smoke on the altar – it was a burnt offering for a soothing aroma, a gift to the Lord, just as the Lord had commanded Moses. 332
8:22 Then he presented the second ram, the ram of ordination, 333 and Aaron and his sons laid their hands on the head of the ram 8:23 and he slaughtered it. 334 Moses then took some of its blood and put it on Aaron’s right earlobe, 335 on the thumb of his right hand, and on the big toe 336 of his right foot. 8:24 Next he brought Aaron’s sons forward, and Moses put some of the blood on their right earlobes, on their right thumbs, and on the big toes of their right feet, and Moses splashed the rest of the blood against the altar’s sides.
8:25 Then he took the fat (the fatty tail, 337 all the fat on the entrails, the protruding lobe of the liver, and the two kidneys and their fat 338 ) and the right thigh, 339 8:26 and from the basket of unleavened bread that was before the Lord he took one unleavened loaf, one loaf of bread mixed with olive oil, and one wafer, 340 and placed them on the fat parts and on the right thigh. 8:27 He then put all of them on the palms 341 of Aaron and his sons, who waved 342 them as a wave offering before the Lord. 343 8:28 Moses then took them from their palms and offered them up in smoke on the altar 344 on top of the burnt offering – they were an ordination offering for a soothing aroma; it was a gift to the Lord. 8:29 Finally, Moses took the breast and waved it as a wave offering before the Lord from the ram of ordination. It was Moses’ share just as the Lord had commanded Moses.
8:30 Then Moses took some of the anointing oil and some of the blood which was on the altar and sprinkled it on Aaron and his garments, and on his sons and his sons’ garments with him. So he consecrated Aaron, his garments, and his sons and his sons’ garments with him. 8:31 Then Moses said to Aaron and his sons, “Boil the meat at the entrance of the Meeting Tent, and there you are to eat it and the bread which is in the ordination offering basket, just as I have commanded, 345 saying, ‘Aaron and his sons are to eat it,’ 8:32 but the remainder of the meat and the bread 346 you must burn with fire. 8:33 And you must not go out from the entrance of the Meeting Tent for seven days, until the day when your days of ordination are completed, because you must be ordained over a seven-day period. 347 8:34 What has been done 348 on this day the Lord has commanded to be done 349 to make atonement for you. 8:35 You must reside at the entrance of the Meeting Tent day and night for seven days and keep the charge of the Lord so that you will not die, for this is what I have been commanded.” 8:36 So Aaron and his sons did all the things the Lord had commanded through 350 Moses.
9:1 On the eighth day 351 Moses summoned 352 Aaron and his sons and the elders of Israel, 9:2 and said to Aaron, “Take for yourself a bull calf for a sin offering and a ram for a burnt offering, both flawless, and present them before the Lord. 9:3 Then tell the Israelites: ‘Take a male goat 353 for a sin offering and a calf and lamb, both a year old and flawless, 354 for a burnt offering, 9:4 and an ox and a ram for peace offerings to sacrifice before the Lord, and a grain offering mixed with olive oil, for today the Lord is going to appear 355 to you.’” 9:5 So they took what Moses had commanded to the front of 356 the Meeting Tent and the whole congregation presented them and stood before the Lord. 9:6 Then Moses said, “This is what the Lord has commanded you to do 357 so that the glory of the Lord may appear 358 to you.” 9:7 Moses then said to Aaron, “Approach the altar and make your sin offering and your burnt offering, and make atonement on behalf of yourself and on behalf of the people; 359 and also make the people’s offering and make atonement on behalf of them just as the Lord has commanded.”
9:8 So Aaron approached the altar and slaughtered the sin offering calf which was for himself. 9:9 Then Aaron’s sons presented the blood to him and he dipped his finger in the blood and put it on the horns of the altar, and the rest of the blood he poured out at the base of the altar. 9:10 The fat and the kidneys and the protruding lobe of 360 the liver from the sin offering he offered up in smoke on the altar just as the Lord had commanded Moses, 9:11 but the flesh and the hide he completely burned up 361 outside the camp. 362
9:12 He then slaughtered the burnt offering, and his sons 363 handed 364 the blood to him and he splashed 365 it against the altar’s sides. 9:13 The burnt offering itself they handed 366 to him by its parts, including the head, 367 and he offered them up in smoke on the altar, 9:14 and he washed the entrails and the legs and offered them up in smoke on top of the burnt offering on the altar.
9:15 Then he presented the people’s offering. He took the sin offering male goat which was for the people, slaughtered it, and performed a decontamination rite with it 368 like the first one. 369 9:16 He then presented the burnt offering, and did it according to the standard regulation. 370 9:17 Next he presented the grain offering, filled his hand with some of it, and offered it up in smoke on the altar in addition to the morning burnt offering. 371 9:18 Then he slaughtered the ox and the ram – the peace offering sacrifices which were for the people – and Aaron’s sons handed 372 the blood to him and he splashed it against the altar’s sides. 9:19 As for the fat parts from the ox and from the ram 373 (the fatty tail, the fat covering the entrails, 374 the kidneys, and the protruding lobe of the liver), 9:20 they 375 set those on the breasts and he offered the fat parts up in smoke on the altar. 9:21 Finally Aaron waved the breasts and the right thigh as a wave offering before the Lord just as Moses had commanded.
9:22 Then Aaron lifted up his hands toward the people and blessed them and descended from making the sin offering, the burnt offering, and the peace offering. 9:23 Moses and Aaron then entered into the Meeting Tent. When they came out, they blessed the people, and the glory of the Lord appeared to all the people. 9:24 Then fire went out from the presence of the Lord 376 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. 377
10:1 Then 378 Aaron’s sons, Nadab and Abihu, each took his fire pan and put fire in it, set incense on it, and presented strange fire 379 before the Lord, which he had not commanded them to do. 10:2 So fire went out from the presence of the Lord 380 and consumed them so that they died before the Lord. 10:3 Moses then said to Aaron, “This is what the Lord spoke: ‘Among the ones close to me I will show myself holy, 381 and in the presence of all the people I will be honored.’” 382 So Aaron kept silent. 10:4 Moses then called to Mishael and Elzaphan, the sons of Uzziel, Aaron’s uncle, and said to them, “Come near, carry your brothers away from the front of the sanctuary to a place outside the camp.” 10:5 So they came near and carried them away in their tunics to a place outside the camp just as Moses had spoken. 10:6 Then Moses said to Aaron and to Eleazar and Ithamar his other two sons, “Do not 383 dishevel the hair of your heads 384 and do not tear your garments, so that you do not die and so that wrath does not come on the whole congregation. Your brothers, all the house of Israel, are to mourn the burning which the Lord has caused, 385 10:7 but you must not go out from the entrance of the Meeting Tent lest you die, for the Lord’s anointing oil is on you.” So they acted according to the word of Moses.
10:8 Then the Lord spoke to Aaron, 10:9 “Do not drink wine or strong drink, you and your sons with you, when you enter into the Meeting Tent, so that you do not die, which is a perpetual statute throughout your generations, 386 10:10 as well as 387 to distinguish between the holy and the common, and between the unclean and the clean, 388 10:11 and to teach the Israelites all the statutes that the Lord has spoken to them through 389 Moses.”
10:12 Then Moses spoke to Aaron and to Eleazar and Ithamar, his remaining sons, “Take the grain offering which remains from the gifts of the Lord and eat it unleavened beside the altar, for it is most holy. 10:13 You must eat it in a holy place because it is your allotted portion 390 and the allotted portion of your sons from the gifts 391 of the Lord, for this is what I have been commanded. 392 10:14 Also, the breast of the wave offering and the thigh of the contribution offering you must eat in a ceremonially 393 clean place, you and your sons and daughters with you, for they have been given as your allotted portion and the allotted portion of your sons from the peace offering sacrifices of the Israelites. 394 10:15 The thigh of the contribution offering and the breast of the wave offering they must bring in addition to the gifts of the fat parts to wave them as a wave offering before the Lord, and it will belong to you and your sons with you for a perpetual statute just as the Lord has commanded.”
10:16 Later Moses sought diligently for the sin offering male goat, 395 but it had actually been burnt. 396 So he became angry at Eleazar and Ithamar, Aaron’s remaining sons, saying, 10:17 “Why did you not eat the sin offering in the sanctuary? For it is most holy and he gave it to you to bear the iniquity of the congregation, 397 to make atonement on their behalf before the Lord. 10:18 See here! 398 Its blood was not brought into the holy place within! 399 You should certainly have eaten it in the sanctuary just as I commanded!” 10:19 But Aaron spoke to Moses, “See here! 400 Just today they presented their sin offering and their burnt offering before the Lord and such things as these have happened to me! If I had eaten a sin offering today would the Lord have been pleased?” 401 10:20 When Moses heard this explanation, he was satisfied. 402
11:1 The Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying to them, 11:2 “Tell the Israelites: ‘This is the kind of creature you may eat from among all the animals 403 that are on the land. 11:3 You may eat any among the animals that has a divided hoof (the hooves are completely split in two 404 ) and that also chews the cud. 405 11:4 However, you must not eat these 406 from among those that chew the cud and have divided hooves: The camel is unclean to you 407 because it chews the cud 408 even though its hoof is not divided. 409 11:5 The rock badger 410 is unclean to you because it chews the cud even though its hoof is not divided. 11:6 The hare is unclean to you because it chews the cud even though its hoof is not divided. 11:7 The pig is unclean to you because its hoof is divided (the hoof is completely split in two 411 ), even though it does not chew the cud. 412 11:8 You must not eat from their meat and you must not touch their carcasses; 413 they are unclean to you.
11:9 “‘These you can eat from all creatures that are in the water: Any creatures in the water that have both fins and scales, 414 whether in the seas or in the streams, 415 you may eat. 11:10 But any creatures that do not have both fins and scales, whether in the seas or in the streams, from all the swarming things of the water and from all the living creatures that are in the water, are detestable to you. 11:11 Since they are detestable to you, you must not eat their meat and their carcass you must detest. 11:12 Any creature in the water that does not have both fins and scales is detestable to you.
11:13 “‘These you are to detest from among the birds – they must not be eaten, because they are detestable: 416 the griffon vulture, the bearded vulture, the black vulture, 11:14 the kite, the buzzard of any kind, 417 11:15 every kind of crow, 418 11:16 the eagle owl, 419 the short-eared owl, the long-eared owl, the hawk of any kind, 11:17 the little owl, the cormorant, the screech owl, 11:18 the white owl, the scops owl, the osprey, 11:19 the stork, the heron of any kind, the hoopoe, and the bat.
11:20 “‘Every winged swarming thing that walks on all fours 420 is detestable to you. 11:21 However, this you may eat from all the winged swarming things that walk on all fours, which have jointed legs 421 to hop with on the land. 11:22 These you may eat from them: 422 the locust of any kind, the bald locust of any kind, the cricket of any kind, the grasshopper of any kind. 11:23 But any other winged swarming thing that has four legs is detestable to you.
11:24 “‘By these 423 you defile yourselves; anyone who touches their carcass will be unclean until the evening, 11:25 and anyone who carries their carcass must wash his clothes and will be unclean until the evening.
11:26 “‘All 424 animals that divide the hoof but it is not completely split in two 425 and do not chew the cud 426 are unclean to you; anyone who touches them becomes unclean. 427 11:27 All that walk on their paws among all the creatures that walk on all fours 428 are unclean to you. Anyone who touches their carcass will be unclean until the evening, 11:28 and the one who carries their carcass must wash his clothes and be unclean until the evening; they are unclean to you.
11:29 “‘Now this is what is unclean to you among the swarming things that swarm on the land: 429 the rat, the mouse, the large lizard of any kind, 11:30 the Mediterranean gecko, the spotted lizard, the wall gecko, the skink, and the chameleon. 11:31 These are the ones that are unclean to you among all the swarming things. Anyone who touches them when they die will be unclean until evening. 11:32 Also, anything they fall on 430 when they die will become unclean – any wood vessel or garment or article of leather or sackcloth. Any such vessel with which work is done must be immersed in water 431 and will be unclean until the evening. Then it will become clean. 11:33 As for any clay vessel they fall into, 432 everything in it 433 will become unclean and you must break it. 11:34 Any food that may be eaten which becomes soaked with water 434 will become unclean. Anything drinkable 435 in any such vessel will become unclean. 436 11:35 Anything their carcass may fall on will become unclean. An oven or small stove must be smashed to pieces; they are unclean, and they will stay unclean 437 to you. 11:36 However, a spring or a cistern which collects water 438 will be clean, but one who touches their carcass will be unclean. 11:37 Now, if such a carcass falls on any sowing seed which is to be sown, 439 it is clean, 11:38 but if water is put on the seed and such a carcass falls on it, it is unclean to you.
11:39 “‘Now if an animal 440 that you may eat dies, 441 whoever touches its carcass will be unclean until the evening. 11:40 One who eats from its carcass must wash his clothes and be unclean until the evening, and whoever carries its carcass must wash his clothes and be unclean until the evening. 11:41 Every swarming thing that swarms on the land is detestable; it must not be eaten. 11:42 You must not eat anything that crawls 442 on its belly or anything that walks on all fours or on any number of legs 443 of all the swarming things that swarm on the land, because they are detestable. 11:43 Do not make yourselves detestable by any of the swarming things. 444 You must not defile yourselves by them and become unclean by them, 11:44 for I am the Lord your God and you are to sanctify yourselves and be holy because I am holy. You must not defile yourselves by any of the swarming things that creep on the ground, 11:45 for I am the Lord who brought you up from the land of Egypt to be your God, 445 and you are to be holy because I am holy. 11:46 This is the law 446 of the land animals, the birds, all the living creatures that move in the water, and all the creatures 447 that swarm on the land, 11:47 to distinguish between the unclean and the clean, between the living creatures that may be eaten and the living creatures that must not be eaten.’”
12:1 The Lord spoke to Moses: 12:2 “Tell the Israelites, ‘When a woman produces offspring 448 and bears a male child, 449 she will be unclean seven days, as she is unclean during the days of her menstruation. 450 12:3 On 451 the eighth day the flesh of his foreskin 452 must be circumcised. 12:4 Then she will remain 453 thirty-three days in blood purity. 454 She must not touch anything holy and she must not enter the sanctuary until the days of her purification are fulfilled. 455 12:5 If she bears a female child, she will be impure fourteen days as during her menstrual flow, and she will remain sixty-six days in 456 blood purity. 457
12:6 “‘When 458 the days of her purification are completed for a son or for a daughter, she must bring a one year old lamb 459 for a burnt offering 460 and a young pigeon or turtledove for a sin offering 461 to the entrance of the Meeting Tent, to the priest. 12:7 The priest 462 is to present it before the Lord and make atonement 463 on her behalf, and she will be clean 464 from her flow of blood. 465 This is the law of the one who bears a child, for the male or the female child. 12:8 If she cannot afford a sheep, 466 then she must take two turtledoves or two young pigeons, 467 one for a burnt offering and one for a sin offering, and the priest is to make atonement on her behalf, and she will be clean.’” 468
13:1 The Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron: 13:2 “When someone has 469 a swelling 470 or a scab 471 or a bright spot 472 on the skin of his body 473 that may become a diseased infection, 474 he must be brought to Aaron the priest or one of his sons, the priests. 475 13:3 The priest must then examine the infection 476 on the skin of the body, and if the hair 477 in the infection has turned white and the infection appears to be deeper than the skin of the body, 478 then it is a diseased infection, 479 so when the priest examines it 480 he must pronounce the person unclean. 481
13:4 “If 482 it is a white bright spot on the skin of his body, but it does not appear to be deeper than the skin, 483 and the hair has not turned white, then the priest is to quarantine the person with the infection for seven days. 484 13:5 The priest must then examine it on the seventh day, and if, 485 as far as he can see, the infection has stayed the same 486 and has not spread on the skin, 487 then the priest is to quarantine the person for another seven days. 488 13:6 The priest must then examine it again on the seventh day, 489 and if 490 the infection has faded and has not spread on the skin, then the priest is to pronounce the person clean. 491 It is a scab, 492 so he must wash his clothes 493 and be clean. 13:7 If, however, the scab is spreading further 494 on the skin after he has shown himself to the priest for his purification, then he must show himself to the priest a second time. 13:8 The priest must then examine it, 495 and if 496 the scab has spread on the skin, then the priest is to pronounce the person unclean. 497 It is a disease.
13:9 “When someone has a diseased infection, 498 he must be brought to the priest. 13:10 The priest will then examine it, 499 and if 500 a white swelling is on the skin, it has turned the hair white, and there is raw flesh in the swelling, 501 13:11 it is a chronic 502 disease on the skin of his body, 503 so the priest is to pronounce him unclean. 504 The priest 505 must not merely quarantine him, for he is unclean. 506 13:12 If, however, the disease breaks out 507 on the skin so that the disease covers all the skin of the person with the infection 508 from his head to his feet, as far as the priest can see, 509 13:13 the priest must then examine it, 510 and if 511 the disease covers his whole body, he is to pronounce the person with the infection clean. 512 He has turned all white, so he is clean. 513 13:14 But whenever raw flesh appears in it 514 he will be unclean, 13:15 so the priest is to examine the raw flesh 515 and pronounce him unclean 516 – it is diseased. 13:16 If, however, 517 the raw flesh once again turns white, 518 then he must come to the priest. 13:17 The priest will then examine it, 519 and if 520 the infection has turned white, the priest is to pronounce the person with the infection clean 521 – he is clean.
13:18 “When someone’s body has a boil on its skin 522 and it heals, 13:19 and in the place of the boil there is a white swelling or a reddish white bright spot, he must show himself to the priest. 523 13:20 The priest will then examine it, 524 and if 525 it appears to be deeper than the skin 526 and its hair has turned white, then the priest is to pronounce the person unclean. 527 It is a diseased infection that has broken out in the boil. 528 13:21 If, however, 529 the priest examines it, and 530 there is no white hair in it, it is not deeper than the skin, and it has faded, then the priest is to quarantine him for seven days. 531 13:22 If 532 it is spreading further 533 on the skin, then the priest is to pronounce him unclean. 534 It is an infection. 13:23 But if the bright spot stays in its place and has not spread, 535 it is the scar of the boil, so the priest is to pronounce him clean. 536
13:24 “When a body has a burn on its skin 537 and the raw area of the burn becomes a reddish white or white bright spot, 13:25 the priest must examine it, 538 and if 539 the hair has turned white in the bright spot and it appears to be deeper than the skin, 540 it is a disease that has broken out in the burn. 541 The priest is to pronounce the person unclean. 542 It is a diseased infection. 543 13:26 If, however, 544 the priest examines it and 545 there is no white hair in the bright spot, it is not deeper than the skin, 546 and it has faded, then the priest is to quarantine him for seven days. 547 13:27 The priest must then examine it on the seventh day, and if it is spreading further 548 on the skin, then the priest is to pronounce him unclean. It is a diseased infection. 549 13:28 But if the bright spot stays in its place, has not spread on the skin, 550 and it has faded, then it is the swelling of the burn, so the priest is to pronounce him clean, 551 because it is the scar of the burn.
13:29 “When a man or a woman has an infection on the head or in the beard, 552 13:30 the priest is to examine the infection, 553 and if 554 it appears to be deeper than the skin 555 and the hair in it is reddish yellow and thin, then the priest is to pronounce the person unclean. 556 It is scall, 557 a disease of the head or the beard. 558 13:31 But if the priest examines the scall infection and it does not appear to be deeper than the skin, 559 and there is no black hair in it, then the priest is to quarantine the person with the scall infection for seven days. 560 13:32 The priest must then examine the infection on the seventh day, and if 561 the scall has not spread, there is no reddish yellow hair in it, and the scall does not appear to be deeper than the skin, 562 13:33 then the individual is to shave himself, 563 but he must not shave the area affected by the scall, 564 and the priest is to quarantine the person with the scall for another seven days. 565 13:34 The priest must then examine the scall on the seventh day, and if 566 the scall has not spread on the skin and it does not appear to be deeper than the skin, 567 then the priest is to pronounce him clean. 568 So he is to wash his clothes and be clean. 13:35 If, however, the scall spreads further 569 on the skin after his purification, 13:36 then the priest is to examine it, and if 570 the scall has spread on the skin the priest is not to search further for reddish yellow hair. 571 The person 572 is unclean. 13:37 If, as far as the priest can see, the scall has stayed the same 573 and black hair has sprouted in it, the scall has been healed; the person is clean. So the priest is to pronounce him clean. 574
13:38 “When a man or a woman has bright spots – white bright spots – on the skin of their body, 13:39 the priest is to examine them, 575 and if 576 the bright spots on the skin of their body are faded white, it is a harmless rash that has broken out on the skin. The person is clean. 577
13:40 “When a man’s head is bare so that he is balding in back, 578 he is clean. 13:41 If his head is bare on the forehead 579 so that he is balding in front, 580 he is clean. 13:42 But if there is a reddish white infection in the back or front bald area, it is a disease breaking out in his back or front bald area. 13:43 The priest is to examine it, 581 and if 582 the swelling of the infection is reddish white in the back or front bald area like the appearance of a disease on the skin of the body, 583 13:44 he is a diseased man. He is unclean. The priest must surely pronounce him unclean because of his infection on his head. 584
13:45 “As for the diseased person who has the infection, 585 his clothes must be torn, the hair of his head must be unbound, he must cover his mustache, 586 and he must call out ‘Unclean! Unclean!’ 13:46 The whole time he has the infection 587 he will be continually unclean. He must live in isolation, and his place of residence must be outside the camp.
13:47 “When a garment has a diseased infection in it, 588 whether a wool or linen garment, 589 13:48 or in the warp or woof 590 of the linen or the wool, or in leather or anything made of leather, 591 13:49 if the infection 592 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. 13:50 The priest is to examine and then quarantine the article with the infection for seven days. 593 13:51 He must then examine the infection on the seventh day. If the infection has spread in the garment, or in the warp, or in the woof, or in the leather – whatever the article into which the leather was made 594 – the infection is a malignant disease. It is unclean. 13:52 He must burn the garment or the warp or the woof, whether wool or linen, or any article of leather which has the infection in it. Because it is a malignant disease it must be burned up in the fire. 13:53 But if the priest examines it and 595 the infection has not spread in the garment or in the warp or in the woof or in any article of leather, 13:54 the priest is to command that they wash whatever has the infection and quarantine it for another seven days. 596 13:55 The priest must then examine it after the infection has been washed out, and if 597 the infection has not changed its appearance 598 even though the infection has not spread, it is unclean. You must burn it up in the fire. It is a fungus, whether on the back side or front side of the article. 599 13:56 But if the priest has examined it and 600 the infection has faded after it has been washed, he is to tear it out of 601 the garment or the leather or the warp or the woof. 13:57 Then if 602 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 603 is to be washed a second time and it will be clean.”
13:59 This is the law 604 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. 605
14:1 The Lord spoke to Moses: 14:2 “This is the law of the diseased person on the day of his purification, when 606 he is brought to the priest. 607 14:3 The priest is to go outside the camp and examine the infection. 608 If the infection of the diseased person has been healed, 609 14:4 then the priest will command that two live clean birds, a piece of cedar wood, a scrap of crimson fabric, 610 and some twigs of hyssop 611 be taken up 612 for the one being cleansed. 613 14:5 The priest will then command that one bird be slaughtered 614 into a clay vessel over fresh water. 615 14:6 Then 616 he is to take the live bird along with the piece of cedar wood, the scrap of crimson fabric, and the twigs of hyssop, and he is to dip them and the live bird in the blood of the bird slaughtered over the fresh water, 14:7 and sprinkle it seven times on the one being cleansed 617 from the disease, pronounce him clean, 618 and send the live bird away over the open countryside. 619
14:8 “The one being cleansed 620 must then wash his clothes, shave off all his hair, and bathe in water, and so be clean. 621 Then afterward he may enter the camp, but he must live outside his tent seven days. 14:9 When the seventh day comes 622 he must shave all his hair – his head, his beard, his eyebrows, all his hair – and he must wash his clothes, bathe his body in water, and so be clean. 623
14:10 “On the eighth day he 624 must take two flawless male lambs, one flawless yearling female lamb, three-tenths of an ephah of choice wheat flour as a grain offering mixed with olive oil, 625 and one log of olive oil, 626 14:11 and the priest who pronounces him clean will have the man who is being cleansed stand along with these offerings 627 before the Lord at the entrance of the Meeting Tent.
14:12 “The priest is to take one male lamb 628 and present it for a guilt offering 629 along with the log of olive oil and present them as a wave offering before the Lord. 630 14:13 He must then slaughter 631 the male lamb in the place where 632 the sin offering 633 and the burnt offering 634 are slaughtered, 635 in the sanctuary, because, like the sin offering, the guilt offering belongs to the priest; 636 it is most holy. 14:14 Then the priest is to take some of the blood of the guilt offering and put it on the right earlobe of the one being cleansed, 637 on the thumb of his right hand, and on the big toe 638 of his right foot. 14:15 The priest will then take some of the log of olive oil and pour it into his own left hand. 639 14:16 Then the priest is to dip his right forefinger into the olive oil 640 that is in his left hand, and sprinkle some of the olive oil with his finger seven times before the Lord. 14:17 The priest will then put some of the rest of the olive oil that is in his hand 641 on the right earlobe of the one being cleansed, on the thumb of his right hand, and on the big toe of his right foot, on the blood of the guilt offering, 14:18 and the remainder of the olive oil 642 that is in his hand the priest is to put on the head of the one being cleansed. So the priest is to make atonement for him before the Lord.
14:19 “The priest must then perform the sin offering 643 and make atonement for the one being cleansed from his impurity. After that he 644 is to slaughter the burnt offering, 14:20 and the priest is to offer 645 the burnt offering and the grain offering on the altar. So the priest is to make atonement for him and he will be clean.
14:21 “If the person is poor and does not have sufficient means, 646 he must take one male lamb as a guilt offering for a wave offering to make atonement for himself, one-tenth of an ephah of choice wheat flour mixed with olive oil for a grain offering, a log of olive oil, 647 14:22 and two turtledoves or two young pigeons, 648 which are within his means. 649 One will be a sin offering and the other a burnt offering. 650
14:23 “On the eighth day he must bring them for his purification to the priest at the entrance 651 of the Meeting Tent before the Lord, 14:24 and the priest is to take the male lamb of the guilt offering and the log of olive oil and wave them 652 as a wave offering before the Lord. 14:25 Then he is to slaughter the male lamb of the guilt offering, and the priest is to take some of the blood of the guilt offering and put it on the right earlobe of the one being cleansed, 653 on the thumb of his right hand, and on the big toe 654 of his right foot. 14:26 The priest will then pour some of the olive oil into his own left hand, 655 14:27 and sprinkle some of the olive oil that is in his left hand with his right forefinger 656 seven times before the Lord. 14:28 Then the priest is to put some of the olive oil that is in his hand 657 on the right earlobe of the one being cleansed, on the thumb of his right hand, and on the big toe of his right foot, on the place of the blood of the guilt offering, 14:29 and the remainder of the olive oil that is in the hand 658 of the priest he is to put 659 on the head of the one being cleansed to make atonement for him before the Lord.
14:30 “He will then make one of the turtledoves 660 or young pigeons, which are within his means, 661 14:31 a sin offering and the other a burnt offering along with the grain offering. 662 So the priest is to make atonement for the one being cleansed before the Lord. 14:32 This is the law of the one in whom there is a diseased infection, 663 who does not have sufficient means for his purification.” 664
14:33 The Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron: 14:34 “When you enter the land of Canaan which I am about to give 665 to you for a possession, and I put 666 a diseased infection in a house in the land you are to possess, 667 14:35 then whoever owns the house 668 must come and declare to the priest, ‘Something like an infection is visible to me in the house.’ 14:36 Then the priest will command that the house be cleared 669 before the priest enters to examine the infection 670 so that everything in the house 671 does not become unclean, 672 and afterward 673 the priest will enter to examine the house. 14:37 He is to examine the infection, and if 674 the infection in the walls of the house consists of yellowish green or reddish eruptions, 675 and it appears to be deeper than the surface of the wall, 676 14:38 then the priest is to go out of the house to the doorway of the house and quarantine the house for seven days. 677 14:39 The priest must return on the seventh day and examine it, and if 678 the infection has spread in the walls of the house, 14:40 then the priest is to command that the stones that had the infection in them be pulled and thrown 679 outside the city 680 into an unclean place. 14:41 Then he is to have the house scraped 681 all around on the inside, 682 and the plaster 683 which is scraped off 684 must be dumped outside the city 685 into an unclean place. 14:42 They are then to take other stones and replace those stones, 686 and he is to take other plaster and replaster the house.
14:43 “If the infection returns and breaks out in the house after he has pulled out the stones, scraped the house, and it is replastered, 687 14:44 the priest is to come and examine it, and if 688 the infection has spread in the house, it is a malignant disease in the house. It is unclean. 14:45 He must tear down the house, 689 its stones, its wood, and all the plaster of the house, and bring all of it 690 outside the city to an unclean place. 14:46 Anyone who enters 691 the house all the days the priest 692 has quarantined it will be unclean until evening. 14:47 Anyone who lies down in the house must wash his clothes. Anyone who eats in the house must wash his clothes.
14:48 “If, however, the priest enters 693 and examines it, and the 694 infection has not spread in the house after the house has been replastered, then the priest is to pronounce the house clean because the infection has been healed. 14:49 Then he 695 is to take two birds, a piece of cedar wood, a scrap of crimson fabric, and some twigs of hyssop 696 to decontaminate 697 the house, 14:50 and he is to slaughter one bird into a clay vessel over fresh water. 698 14:51 He must then take the piece of cedar wood, the twigs of hyssop, the scrap of crimson fabric, and the live bird, and dip them in the blood of the slaughtered bird and in the fresh water, and sprinkle the house seven times. 14:52 So he is to decontaminate the house with the blood of the bird, the fresh water, the live bird, the piece of cedar wood, the twigs of hyssop, and the scrap of crimson fabric, 14:53 and he is to send the live bird away outside the city 699 into the open countryside. So he is to make atonement for the house and it will be clean.
14:54 “This is the law for all diseased infections, for scall, 700 14:55 for the diseased garment, 701 for the house, 702 14:56 for the swelling, 703 for the scab, 704 and for the bright spot, 705 14:57 to teach when something is unclean and when it is clean. 706 This is the law for dealing with infectious disease.” 707
15:1 The Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron: 15:2 “Speak to the Israelites and tell them, ‘When any man 708 has a discharge 709 from his body, 710 his discharge is unclean. 15:3 Now this is his uncleanness in regard to his discharge 711 – whether his body secretes his discharge or blocks his discharge, he is unclean. All the days that his body has a discharge or his body blocks his discharge, 712 this is his uncleanness. 713
15:4 “‘Any bed the man with a discharge lies on will be unclean, 714 and any furniture he sits on will be unclean. 715 15:5 Anyone who touches his bed 716 must wash his clothes, bathe in water, and be unclean until evening. 717 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. 15:7 The one who touches the body 718 of the man with a discharge must wash his clothes, bathe in water, and be unclean until evening. 15:8 If the man with a discharge spits on a person who is ceremonially clean, 719 that person must wash his clothes, bathe in water, and be unclean until evening. 15:9 Any means of riding 720 the man with a discharge rides on will be unclean. 15:10 Anyone who touches anything that was under him 721 will be unclean until evening, and the one who carries those items 722 must wash his clothes, bathe in water, and be unclean until evening. 15:11 Anyone whom the man with the discharge touches without having rinsed his hands in water 723 must wash his clothes, bathe in water, and be unclean until evening. 15:12 A clay vessel 724 which the man with the discharge touches must be broken, and any wooden utensil must be rinsed in water.
15:13 “‘When the man with the discharge becomes clean from his discharge he is to count off for himself seven days for his purification, and he must wash his clothes, bathe in fresh water, 725 and be clean. 15:14 Then on the eighth day he is to take for himself two turtledoves or two young pigeons, 726 and he is to present himself 727 before the Lord at the entrance of the Meeting Tent and give them to the priest, 15:15 and the priest is to make one of them a sin offering 728 and the other a burnt offering. 729 So the priest 730 is to make atonement for him before the Lord for 731 his discharge.
15:16 “‘When a man has a seminal emission, 732 he must bathe his whole body in water 733 and be unclean until evening, 15:17 and he must wash in water any clothing or leather that has semen on it, and it will be unclean until evening. 15:18 When a man has sexual intercourse with a woman and there is a seminal emission, 734 they must bathe in water and be unclean until evening.
15:19 “‘When a woman has a discharge 735 and her discharge is blood from her body, 736 she is to be in her menstruation 737 seven days, and anyone who touches her will be unclean until evening. 15:20 Anything she lies on during her menstruation will be unclean, and anything she sits on will be unclean. 15:21 Anyone who touches her bed must wash his clothes, bathe in water, and be unclean until evening. 15:22 Anyone who touches any furniture she sits on must wash his clothes, bathe in water, and be unclean until evening. 15:23 If there is something on the bed or on the furniture she sits on, 738 when he touches it 739 he will be unclean until evening, 15:24 and if a man actually has sexual intercourse with her so that her menstrual impurity touches him, 740 then he will be unclean seven days and any bed he lies on will be unclean.
15:25 “‘When a woman’s discharge of blood flows 741 many days not at the time of her menstruation, or if it flows beyond the time of her menstruation, 742 all the days of her discharge of impurity will be like the days of her menstruation – she is unclean. 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, 15:27 and anyone who touches them will be unclean, and he must wash his clothes, bathe in water, and be unclean until evening. 743
15:28 “‘If 744 she becomes clean from her discharge, then she is to count off for herself seven days, and afterward she will be clean. 15:29 Then on the eighth day she must take for herself two turtledoves or two young pigeons 745 and she must bring them to the priest at the entrance of the Meeting Tent, 15:30 and the priest is to make one a sin offering and the other a burnt offering. 746 So the priest 747 is to make atonement for her before the Lord from her discharge of impurity.
15:31 “‘Thus you 748 are to set the Israelites apart from their impurity so that they 749 do not die in their impurity by defiling my tabernacle which is in their midst. 15:32 This is the law of the one with a discharge: the one who has a seminal emission 750 and becomes unclean by it, 751 15:33 the one who is sick in her menstruation, the one with a discharge, whether male or female, 752 and a man 753 who has sexual intercourse with an unclean woman.’”
16:1 The Lord spoke to Moses after the death of Aaron’s two sons when they approached the presence of the Lord 754 and died, 16:2 and the Lord said to Moses: “Tell Aaron your brother that he must not enter at any time into the holy place inside the veil-canopy 755 in front of the atonement plate 756 that is on the ark so that he may not die, for I will appear in the cloud over the atonement plate.
16:3 “In this way Aaron is to enter into the sanctuary – with a young bull 757 for a sin offering 758 and a ram for a burnt offering. 759 16:4 He must put on a holy linen tunic, 760 linen leggings are to cover his body, 761 and he is to wrap himself with a linen sash 762 and wrap his head with a linen turban. 763 They are holy garments, so he must bathe 764 his body in water and put them on. 16:5 He must also take 765 two male goats 766 from the congregation of the Israelites for a sin offering and one ram for a burnt offering. 16:6 Then Aaron is to present the sin offering bull which is for himself and is to make atonement on behalf of himself and his household. 16:7 He must then take the two goats 767 and stand them before the Lord at the entrance of the Meeting Tent, 16:8 and Aaron is to cast lots over the two goats, 768 one lot for the Lord and one lot for Azazel. 769 16:9 Aaron must then present the goat which has been designated by lot for the Lord, 770 and he is to make it a sin offering, 16:10 but the goat which has been designated by lot for Azazel is to be stood alive 771 before the Lord to make atonement on it by sending it away to Azazel into the wilderness. 772
16:11 “Aaron is to present the sin offering bull which is for himself, and he is to make atonement on behalf of himself and his household. He is to slaughter the sin offering bull which is for himself, 16:12 and take a censer full of coals of fire from the altar before the Lord 773 and a full double handful of finely ground fragrant incense, 774 and bring them inside the veil-canopy. 775 16:13 He must then put the incense on the fire before the Lord, and the cloud of incense will cover the atonement plate which is above the ark of the testimony, 776 so that he will not die. 777 16:14 Then he is to take some of the blood of the bull and sprinkle it with his finger on the eastern face of the atonement plate, 778 and in front of the atonement plate he is to sprinkle some of the blood seven times with his finger. 779
16:15 “He must then slaughter the sin offering goat which is for the people. He is to bring its blood inside the veil-canopy, 780 and he is to do with its blood just as he did to the blood of the bull: He is to sprinkle it on the atonement plate and in front of the atonement plate. 16:16 So 781 he is to make atonement for the holy place from the impurities of the Israelites and from their transgressions with regard to all their sins, 782 and thus he is to do for the Meeting Tent which resides with them in the midst of their impurities. 16:17 Nobody is to be in the Meeting Tent 783 when he enters to make atonement in the holy place until he goes out, and he has made atonement on his behalf, on behalf of his household, and on behalf of the whole assembly of Israel.
16:18 “Then 784 he is to go out to the altar which is before the Lord and make atonement for it. He is to take 785 some of the blood of the bull and some of the blood of the goat, and put it all around on the horns of the altar. 16:19 Then he is to sprinkle on it some of the blood with his finger seven times, and cleanse and consecrate it 786 from the impurities of the Israelites.
16:20 “When he has finished purifying the holy place, 787 the Meeting Tent, and the altar, he is to present the live goat. 16:21 Aaron is to lay his two hands on the head of the live goat and confess over it all the iniquities of the Israelites and all their transgressions in regard to all their sins, 788 and thus he is to put them 789 on the head of the goat and send it away into the wilderness by the hand of a man standing ready. 790 16:22 The goat is to bear on itself all their iniquities into an inaccessible land, 791 so he is to send the goat away 792 in the wilderness.
16:23 “Aaron must then enter 793 the Meeting Tent and take off the linen garments which he had put on when he entered the sanctuary, and leave them there. 16:24 Then he must bathe his body in water in a holy place, put on his clothes, and go out and make his burnt offering and the people’s burnt offering. So he is to make atonement 794 on behalf of himself and the people. 795
16:25 “Then he is to offer up the fat of the sin offering 796 in smoke on the altar, 16:26 and the one who sent the goat away to Azazel 797 must wash his clothes, bathe his body in water, and afterward he may reenter the camp. 16:27 The bull of the sin offering and the goat of the sin offering, whose blood was brought to make atonement in the holy place, must be brought outside the camp 798 and their hide, their flesh, and their dung must be burned up, 799 16:28 and the one who burns them must wash his clothes and bathe his body in water, and afterward he may reenter the camp.
16:29 “This is to be a perpetual statute for you. 800 In the seventh month, on the tenth day of the month, you must humble yourselves 801 and do no work of any kind, 802 both the native citizen and the foreigner who resides 803 in your midst, 16:30 for on this day atonement is to be made for you to cleanse you from all your sins; you must be clean before the Lord. 804 16:31 It is to be a Sabbath of complete rest for you, and you must humble yourselves. 805 It is a perpetual statute. 806
16:32 “The priest who is anointed and ordained to act as high priest in place of his father 807 is to make atonement. He is to put on the linen garments, the holy garments, 16:33 and he is to purify 808 the Most Holy Place, 809 he is to purify the Meeting Tent and the altar, 810 and he is to make atonement for 811 the priests and for all the people of the assembly. 16:34 This is to be a perpetual statute for you 812 to make atonement for the Israelites for 813 all their sins once a year.” 814 So he did just as the Lord had commanded Moses. 815
[1:1] 1 tn Heb “And he (the
[1:1] sn The best explanation for the MT of Lev 1:1 arises from its function as a transition from Exod 40 to Lev 1. The first clause, “And he (the
[1:1] 2 sn The second clause of v. 1, “and the
[1:2] 3 tn “When” here translates the MT’s כִּי (ki, “if, when”), which regularly introduces main clauses in legislative contexts (see, e.g., Lev 2:1, 4; 4:2, etc.) in contrast to אִם (’im, “if”), which usually introduces subordinate sections (see, e.g., Lev 1:3, 10, 14; 2:5, 7, 14; 4:3, 13, etc.; cf. כִּי in Exod 21:2 and 7 as opposed to אִם in vv. 3, 4, 5, 8, 9, 10, and 11).
[1:2] sn Lev 1:1-2 serves as a heading for Lev 1-3 (i.e., the basic regulations regarding the presentation of the burnt, grain, and peace offerings) and, at the same time, leads directly into the section on “burnt offerings” in Lev 1:3. In turn, Lev 1:3-17 divides into three subsections, all introduced by אִם “if” (Lev 1:3-9, 10-13, and 14-17, respectively). Similar patterns are discernible throughout Lev 1:2-6:7 [5:26 HT].
[1:2] 4 tn Heb “a man, human being” (אָדָם, ’adam), which in this case refers to any person among “mankind,” male or female, since women could also bring such offerings (see, e.g., Lev 12:6-8; 15:29-30; cf. HALOT 14 s.v. I אָדָם); cf. NIV “any of you.”
[1:2] 5 tn The verb “presents” is cognate to the noun “offering” in v. 2 and throughout the book of Leviticus (both from the root קרב [qrb]). One could translate the verb “offers,” but this becomes awkward and, in fact, inaccurate in some passages. For example, in Lev 9:9 this verb is used for the presenting or giving of the blood to Aaron so that he could offer it to the
[1:2] 6 tn The whole clause reads more literally, “A human being (אָדָם, ’adam), if he brings from among you an offering to the
[1:2] 7 tn The shift to the second person plural verb here corresponds to the previous second person plural pronoun “among you.” It is distinct from the regular pattern of third person singular verbs throughout the rest of Lev 1-3. This too labels Lev 1:1-2 as an introduction to all of Lev 1-3, not just the burnt offering regulations in Lev 1 (J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:146; cf. note 3 above).
[1:2] 8 tn Heb “from the domesticated animal, from the herd, and from the flock.” It is clear from the subsequent division between animals from the “herd” (בָּקָר, baqar, in Lev 1:3-9) and the “flock” (צֹאן, tso’n; see Lev 1:10-13) that the term for “domesticated animal” (בְּהֵמָה, bÿhemah) is a general term meant to introduce the category of pastoral quadrupeds. The stronger disjunctive accent over בְּהֵמָה in the MT as well as the lack of a vav (ו) between it and בָּקָר also suggest בְּהֵמָה is an overall category that includes both “herd” and “flock” quadrupeds.
[1:2] sn The bird category (Lev 1:14-17) is not included in this introduction because bird offerings were, by and large, concessions to the poor (cf., e.g., Lev 5:7-10; 12:8; 14:21-32) and, therefore, not considered to be one of the primary categories of animal offerings.
[1:3] 9 sn The burnt offering (עֹלָה, ’olah) was basically a “a gift of a soothing aroma to the
[1:3] 10 tn Heb “door” (so KJV, ASV); NASB “doorway” (likewise throughout the book of Leviticus). The translation “door” or “doorway” may suggest a framed door in a casing to the modern reader, but here the term refers to the entrance to a tent.
[1:3] 11 tn The NIV correctly has “it” in the text, referring to the acceptance of the animal (cf., e.g., RSV, NEB, NLT), but “he” in the margin, referring to the acceptance of the offerer (cf. ASV, NASB, JB). The reference to a “flawless male” in the first half of this verse suggests that the issue here is the acceptability of the animal to make atonement on behalf of the offerer (Lev 1:4; cf. NRSV “for acceptance in your behalf”).
[1:4] 12 tn “To make atonement” is the standard translation of the Hebrew term כִּפֶּר, (kipper); cf. however TEV “as a sacrifice to take away his sins” (CEV similar). The English word derives from a combination of “at” plus Middle English “one[ment],” referring primarily to reconciliation or reparation that is made in order to accomplish reconciliation. The primary meaning of the Hebrew verb, however, is “to wipe [something off (or on)]” (see esp. the goal of the sin offering, Lev 4, “to purge” the tabernacle from impurities), but in some cases it refers metaphorically to “wiping away” anything that might stand in the way of good relations by bringing a gift (see, e.g., Gen 32:20 [21 HT], “to appease; to pacify” as an illustration of this). The translation “make atonement” has been retained here because, ultimately, the goal of either purging or appeasing was to maintain a proper relationship between the
[1:5] 13 tn Heb “Then he”; the referent (the offerer) has been specified in the translation for clarity. The LXX has “they” rather than “he,” suggesting that the priests, not the offerer, were to slaughter the bull (cf. the notes on vv. 6a and 9a).
[1:5] 14 tn Heb “the son of the herd”; cf. KJV “bullock”; NASB, NIV “young bull.”
[1:5] 15 tn “Splash” (cf. NAB) or “dash” (cf. NRSV) is better than “sprinkle,” which is the common English translation of this verb (זָרַק, zaraq; see, e.g., KJV, NASB, NIV, NLT). “Sprinkle” is not strong enough (contrast נָזָה [nazah], which does indeed mean “to sprinkle” or “to splatter”; cf. Lev 4:6).
[1:6] 16 tn Heb “Then he”; the referent (the offerer) has been specified in the translation for clarity. The LXX and Smr have “they” rather than “he” in both halves of this verse, suggesting that the priests, not the offerer, were to skin and cut the carcass of the bull into pieces (cf. the notes on vv. 5a and 9a).
[1:7] 17 tc A few medieval Hebrew
[1:8] 18 tc A few Hebrew
[1:8] sn “Suet” is the specific term used for the hard, fatty tissues found around the kidneys of sheep and cattle. A number of modern English versions have simplified this to “fat” (e.g., NIV, NCV, TEV, CEV, NLT).
[1:8] 19 tn Heb “on the wood, which is on the fire, which is on the altar.” Cf. NIV “on the burning wood”; NLT “on the wood fire.”
[1:9] 20 tn Heb “Finally, he”; the referent (the offerer) has been specified in the translation for clarity. Once again, the MT assigns the preparation of the offering (here the entrails and legs) to the offerer because it did not bring him into direct contact with the altar, but reserves the actual placing of the sacrifice on the altar for the officiating priest (cf. the notes on vv. 5a and 6a).
[1:9] 21 tn Heb “toward the altar,” but the so-called locative ה (hey) attached to the word for “altar” can indicate the place where something is or happens (GKC 250 §90.d and GKC 373-74 §118.g; cf. also J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:161). This is a standard way of expressing “on/at the altar” with the verb “to offer up in smoke” (Hiphil of קָטַר [qatar]; cf. also Exod 29:13, 18, 25; Lev 1:9, 13, 15, 17; 2:2, etc.).
[1:9] 22 tc A few Hebrew
[1:9] 23 sn The standard English translation of “gift” (אִשֶּׁה, ’isheh) is “an offering [made] by fire” (cf. KJV, ASV). It is based on a supposed etymological relationship to the Hebrew word for “fire” (אֵשׁ, ’esh) and is still maintained in many versions (e.g., NIV, RSV, NRSV, NLT; B. A. Levine, Leviticus [JPSTC], 7-8). For various reasons, including the fact that some offerings referred to by this term are not burned on the altar (see, e.g., Lev 24:9), it is probably better to understand the term to mean “gift” (J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 22) or “food gift” (“food offering” in NEB and TEV; J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:161-62). See R. E. Averbeck, NIDOTTE 1:540-49 for a complete discussion.
[1:10] 24 tn Heb “And if from the flock is his offering, from the sheep or from the goats, for a burnt offering.” Here “flock” specifies the broad category, with “sheep or goats” giving specific examples.
[1:12] 25 tn Heb “Then he”; the referent (the offerer) has been specified in the translation for clarity (so also in v. 13).
[1:14] 26 tn Heb “from the [category] ‘bird.’”
[1:14] 27 tn Heb “from the sons of the pigeon,” referring either to “young pigeons” (cf. KJV, NASB, NIV, NLT) or “various species of pigeon” (contrast J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:168, with J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 14).
[1:15] 28 tn The action here seems to involve both a twisting action, breaking the neck of the bird and severing its vertebrae, as well as pinching or nipping the skin to sever the head from the main body. Cf. NASB, NRSV “wring off its head”; NAB “snap its head loose”; NLT “twist off its head.”
[1:15] 29 tn Many English versions have “it” here, referring to the head of the bird, which the priest immediately tossed on the altar fire. However, “it” could be misunderstood to refer to the bird’s body, so “head” is repeated in the present translation for clarity. As the following lines show, certain things needed to be done to the body of the bird before it could be placed on the altar.
[1:16] 30 tn Heb “Then he”; the referent (apparently still the priest) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[1:16] 31 tn This translation (“remove its entrails by [cutting off] its tail feathers”) is based on the discussion in J. Milgrom, Leviticus (AB), 1:169-71, although he translates, “remove its crissum by its feathers.” Others possibilities include “its crop with its contents” (Tg. Onq., cf. NIV, NRSV; J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 23) or “its crop with its feathers” (LXX, NASB, RSV; “crop” refers to the enlarged part of a bird’s gullet that serves a pouch for the preliminary maceration of food).
[1:16] 32 tn The pronoun “them” here is feminine singular in Hebrew and refers collectively to the entrails and tail wing which have been removed.
[1:17] 33 tn Heb “he shall not divide it.” Several Hebrew
[2:1] 34 sn The “grain offering” ( מִנְחָה[minkhah]; here קָרְבַּן מִנְחָה, [qorbban minkhah], “an offering of a grain offering”) generally accompanied a burnt or peace offering to supplement the meat with bread (the libation provided the drink; cf. Num 15:1-10), thus completing the food “gift” to the
[2:1] 35 tn The Hebrew term for “choice wheat flour” (סֹלֶת, selet) is often translated “fine flour” (cf. KJV, NAB, NIV, NCV), but it refers specifically to wheat as opposed to barley (B. A. Levine, Leviticus [JPSTC], 10). Moreover, the translation “flour” might be problematic, since the Hebrew term may designate the “grits” rather than the more finely ground “flour” (see J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:179 as opposed to Levine, 10, and J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 30).
[2:1] 36 sn This is not just any “incense” (קְטֹרֶת, qÿtoret; R. E. Averbeck, NIDOTTE 3:913-16), but specifically “frankincense” (לְבֹנָה, lÿvonah; R. E. Averbeck, NIDOTTE 2:756-57).
[2:2] 37 tn Heb “and he”; the referent has been specified in the translation for clarity. The syntax is strange here and might suggest that it was the offerer who scooped out a handful of the grain offering for the memorial portion (G. J. Wenham, Leviticus [NICOT], 66), but based on v. 9 below it should be understood that it was the priest who performed this act (see, e.g., NRSV “After taking from it a handful of the choice flour and oil…the priest shall…”; see also J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:177, 181 and J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 30).
[2:2] 38 sn The “memorial portion” (אַזְכָרָה, ’azkharah) was the part of the grain offering that was burnt on the altar (see the previous clause), as opposed to the remainder, which was normally consumed by the priests (v. 3; see the full regulations in Lev 6:14-23[7-16]). It was probably intended to call to mind (i.e., memorialize) before the
[2:2] 39 tn The words “it is” have been supplied. See the notes on Lev 1:9 and 2:3. There is no text critical problem here, but the syntax suggests the same translation.
[2:3] 40 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] 41 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] 42 tn Heb “holy of holies”; KJV, NASB “a thing most holy.”
[2:4] 43 tn The insertion of the words “it must be made of” is justified by the context and the expressed words “it shall be made of” in vv. 7 and 8 below.
[2:4] 44 sn These “loaves” were either “ring-shaped” (HALOT 317 s.v. חַלָּה) or “perforated” (BDB 319 s.v. חַלָּה; cf. J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:184).
[2:4] 45 tn Heb “and.” Here the conjunction vav (ו) has an alternative sense (“or”).
[2:4] 46 tn The Hebrew word מְשֻׁחִים (mÿshukhim) translated here as “smeared” is often translated “anointed” in other contexts. Cf. TEV “brushed with olive oil” (CEV similar).
[2:6] 47 tn There is no vav (ו, “and”) in the MT at the beginning of v. 6 and the verb is pointed as an infinite absolute. The present translation has rendered it as an imperative (see GKC 346 §113.bb) and, therefore, the same for the following vav consecutive perfect verb (cf. NIV “Crumble it and pour oil on it”; cf. also NRSV, NEB, NLT, and J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:185, but note the objections to this rendering in J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 26). The LXX seems to suggest adding a vav (“and”) and pointing the verb as a consecutive perfect, which yields “and you shall break it in pieces” (cf. the BHS textual note; Hartley, 26, prefers the LXX rendering).
[2:7] 48 tn Heb “a grain offering of a pan”; cf. KJV “fryingpan”; NAB “pot”; CEV “pan with a lid on it.”
[2:7] 49 sn Lev 7:9 makes it clear that one cooked “on” a griddle but “in” a pan. This suggests that the oil in the pan served for deep fat frying, hence the translation “deep fried in olive oil” (see, e.g., J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:185); cf. also NAB.
[2:8] 50 tc There are several person, gender, and voice verb problems in this verse. First, the MT has “And you shall bring the grain offering,” but the LXX and Qumran have “he” rather than “you” (J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:185). Second, the MT has “which shall be made” (i.e., the 3rd person masculine Niphal passive verb which, in fact, does not agree with its feminine subject, מִנְחָה, minkhah, “grain offering”), while the LXX has “which he shall make” (3rd person Qal), thus agreeing with the LXX 3rd person verb at the beginning of the verse (see above). Third, the MT has a 3rd person vav consecutive verb “and he shall present it to the priest,” which agrees with the LXX but is not internally consistent with the 2nd person verb at the beginning of the verse in the MT. The BHS editors conjecture that the latter might be repointed to an imperative verb yielding “present it to the priest.” This would require no change of consonants and corresponds to the person of the first verb in the MT. This solution has been tentatively accepted here (cf. also J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 26-27), even though it neither resolves the gender problem of the second verb nor fits the general grammatical pattern of the chapter in the MT.
[2:9] 51 tn The Hebrew verb הֵרִים (herim, “to take up”; cf. NAB “lift”) is commonly used for setting aside portions of an offering (see, e.g., Lev 4:8-10 and R. E. Averbeck, NIDOTTE 4:335-36). A number of English versions employ the more normal English idiom “take out” here (e.g., NIV, NCV); cf. NRSV “remove.”
[2:9] 52 tn The words “it is” (הוּא, hu’) both here and in vv. 10 and 16 are not in the MT, but are assumed. (cf. vv. 2b and 3b and the notes there).
[2:10] 53 tn See the note on “it is” in v. 9b.
[2:11] 54 tn Heb “Every grain offering which you offer to the
[2:11] 55 tc A few Hebrew
[2:11] tn Heb “for all leaven and all honey you must not offer up in smoke from it a gift to the
[2:12] 56 sn The “first fruit” referred to here was given to the priests as a prebend for their service to the
[2:13] 57 tn Heb “from upon your grain offering.”
[2:14] 58 tn The translation of this whole section of the clause is difficult. Theoretically, it could describe one, two, or three different ways of preparing first ripe grain offerings (J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 27). The translation here takes it as a description of only one kind of prepared grain. This is suggested by the fact that v. 16 uses only one term “crushed bits” (גֶּרֶשׂ, geres) to refer back to the grain as it is prepared in v. 14 (a more technical translation is “groats”; see J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:178, 194). Cf. NAB “fresh grits of new ears of grain”; NRSV “coarse new grain from fresh ears.”
[2:16] 59 tn See the note on “it is” in 2:9b.
[3:1] 60 sn The peace offering sacrifice primarily enacted and practiced communion between God and man (and between the people of God). This was illustrated by the fact that the fat parts of the animal were consumed on the altar of the
[3:1] 61 tn Heb “if a male if a female, perfect he shall present it before the
[3:2] 62 tn See the remarks on Lev 1:3-5 above for some of the details of translation here.
[3:3] 63 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] 64 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).
[3:4] 65 tn Heb “and the protruding lobe on the liver on the kidneys he shall remove it.” Cf. NRSV “the appendage of the liver”; NIV “the covering of the liver” (KJV “the caul above the liver”).
[3:5] 66 tn Or “on the fire – [it is] a gift of a soothing aroma to the
[3:6] 67 tn Heb “a male or female without defect he shall present it”; cf. NLT “must have no physical defects.”
[3:8] 68 tn See the note on this term at 1:5.
[3:9] 69 sn See the note on this phrase in 3:3.
[3:10] 70 tn Heb “and the protruding lobe on the liver on the kidneys he shall remove it.”
[3:11] 71 tn Heb “food, a gift to the
[3:14] 72 sn See the note on this phrase in 3:3.
[3:15] 73 tn Heb “and the protruding lobe on the liver on the kidneys he shall remove it.”
[3:17] 74 tn The words “This is” are not in the Hebrew text, but are supplied due to requirements of English style.
[3:17] 75 tn Heb “for your generations”; NAB “for your descendants”; NLT “for you and all your descendants.”
[3:17] 76 tn Heb “all fat and all blood you must not eat.”
[4:1] 77 sn The quotation introduced here extends from Lev 4:2 through 5:13, and encompasses all the sin offering regulations. Compare the notes on Lev 1:1 above, and 5:14 and 6:1 [5:20 HT] below.
[4:2] 78 tn Heb “And a person, when he sins in straying.” The English translation of “by straying” (בִּשְׁגָגָה [bishgagah] literally, “in going astray; in making an error”) varies greatly, but almost all suggest that this term refers to sins that were committed by mistake or done not knowing that the particular act was sinful (J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:228-29). See, e.g., LXX “involuntarily”; Tg. Onq. “by neglect”; KJV “through ignorance”; ASV, RSV, NJPS “unwittingly”; NASB, NIV, NRSV, NLT “unintentionally”; NAB, NEB “inadvertently”; NCV “by accident.” However, we know from Num 15:27-31 that committing a sin “by straying” is the opposite of committing a sin “defiantly” (i.e., בְּיַד רָמָה [bÿyad ramah] “with a raised hand,” v. 30). In the latter case the person, as it were, raises his fist in presumptuous defiance against the
[4:2] 79 tn This is an emphatic use of the preposition מִן (min; see R. J. Williams, Hebrew Syntax, 56-57, §325).
[4:2] 80 tn The “when” clause (כִּי, ki) breaks off here before its resolution, thus creating an open-ended introduction to the following subsections, which are introduced by “if” (אִם [’im] vv. 3, 13, 27, 32). Also, the last part of the verse reads literally, “which must not be done and does from one from them.”
[4:3] 81 tn Heb “the anointed priest” (so ASV, NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV). This refers to the high priest (cf. TEV, CEV, NLT).
[4:3] 82 tn Heb “to the guilt of the people”; NRSV “thus bringing guilt on the people.”
[4:3] 83 tn Heb “and he shall offer on his sin which he sinned, a bull, a son of the herd, flawless.”
[4:3] 84 sn The word for “sin offering” (sometimes translated “purification offering”) is the same as the word for “sin” earlier in the verse. One can tell which rendering is intended only by the context. The primary purpose of the “sin offering” (חַטָּאת, khatta’t) was to “purge” (כִּפֶּר, kipper, “to make atonement,” see 4:20, 26, 31, 35, and the notes on Lev 1:4 and esp. Lev 16:20, 33) the sanctuary or its furniture in order to cleanse it from any impurities and/or (re)consecrate it for holy purposes (see, e.g., Lev 8:15; 16:19). By making this atonement the impurities of the person or community were cleansed and the people became clean. See R. E. Averbeck, NIDOTTE 2:93-103.
[4:5] 85 tn Heb “from the blood of the bull” (and similarly throughout this chapter).
[4:6] 86 tn The Hebrew verb וְהִזָּה (vÿhizzah, Hiphil of נָזָה, nazah) does indeed mean “sprinkle” or “splatter.” Contrast the different Hebrew verb meaning “splash” in Lev 1:5 (זָרָק, zaraq).
[4:6] 87 tn Heb “of the blood.” The relative pronoun (“it”) has been used in the translation here for stylistic reasons.
[4:6] 88 tn The particle here translated “toward” usually serves as a direct object indicator or a preposition meaning “with.” With the verb of motion it probably means “toward,” “in the direction of” (J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:234; J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 60); cf. NAB, CEV.
[4:6] 89 tn The Hebrew term פָּרֹכֶת (parokhet) is usually translated “veil” (e.g., ASV, NAB, NASB) or “curtain” (e.g., NIV, NRSV), but it seems to have stretched not only in front of but also over the top of the ark of the covenant which stood behind and under it inside the most holy place (see R. E. Averbeck, NIDOTTE 3:687-89).
[4:8] 90 tn Heb “all the fat of the bull of the sin offering he shall take up from it.”
[4:8] 91 tc The MT has here the preposition עַל (’al, “on, upon” [i.e., “which covers on the entrails,” as awkward in Hebrew as it is in English]), but Smr, LXX, Syriac, and Targums read אֶת (’et), which is what would be expected (i.e., “which covers the entrails”; cf. Lev 3:3, 9, 14). It may have been mistakenly inserted here under the influence of “on (עַל) the entrails” at the end of the verse.
[4:8] 92 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).
[4:9] 93 tn Heb “and the protruding lobe on the liver on the kidneys he shall remove it.”
[4:10] 94 tn Heb “taken up from”; KJV, ASV “taken off from”; NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV “removed.” See the notes on Lev 3:3-4 above (cf. also 3:9-10, 14-15).
[4:12] 95 tn All of v. 11 is a so-called casus pendens (also known as an extraposition or a nominative absolute), which means that it anticipates the next verse, being the full description of “all (the rest of) the bull” (lit. “all the bull”) at the beginning of v. 12 (actually after the first verb of the verse; see the next note below).
[4:12] 96 tn Heb “And he (the offerer) shall bring out all the bull to from outside to the camp to a clean place.”
[4:12] 97 tn Heb “a clean place,” but referring to a place that is ceremonially clean. This has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[4:12] 98 tn Heb “the pouring out [place] of fatty ash.”
[4:12] 99 tn Heb “burn with fire.” This expression is somewhat redundant in English, so the translation collocates “fire” with “wood,” thus “a wood fire.”
[4:13] 100 tn Heb “strays”; KJV “sin through ignorance.” The verb “strays” here is the verbal form of the noun in the expression “by straying” (see the note on Lev 4:2 above).
[4:13] 101 tn Heb “is concealed from the eyes of”; NASB, NRSV, NLT “escapes the notice of.”
[4:13] 102 tn Heb “and they do one from all the commandments of the
[4:14] 103 tn Heb “and the sin which they committed on it becomes known”; KJV “which they have sinned against it.” The Hebrew עָלֶיהָ (’aleha, “on it”) probably refers back to “one of the commandments” in v. 13 (J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:243).
[4:15] 104 tn Heb “and he shall slaughter.” The singular verb seems to refer to an individual who represents the whole congregation, perhaps one of the elders referred to at the beginning of the verse, or the officiating priest (cf. v. 21). The LXX and Syriac make the verb plural, referring to “the elders of the congregation.”
[4:16] 105 tn Heb “the anointed priest” (so ASV, NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV). This refers to the high priest (cf. TEV).
[4:17] 106 tn The words “in the blood” are not repeated in the Hebrew text at this point, but must be supplied in the English translation for clarity.
[4:17] 107 tn The Hebrew verb וְהִזָּה (vÿhizzah, Hiphil of נָזָה, nazah) does indeed mean “sprinkle” or “splatter.” Contrast the different Hebrew verb translated “splash” in Lev 1:5 (זָרָק, zaraq).
[4:17] 108 tc The MT reads literally, “and the priest shall dip his finger from the blood and sprinkle seven times.” This is awkward. Compare v. 6, which has literally, “and the priest shall dip his finger in the blood and sprinkle from the blood seven times.” The MT appears to be corrupt by haplography (i.e., assuming v. 6 to be the correct form, in v. 17 the scribe skipped from “his finger” to “from the blood,” thus missing “in the blood”) and metathesis (i.e., this also resulted in a text where “from the blood” stands before “sprinkle” rather than after it; J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 47).
[4:17] 109 tn See the note on v. 6 above.
[4:17] 110 tn See the note on v. 6 above.
[4:18] 111 sn See v. 7, where this altar is identified as the altar of fragrant incense.
[4:19] 112 tn Heb “Then he”; the referent has been specified in the translation for clarity. Based on the parallel statement in 4:10 and 4:31, it is the priest who performs this action rather than the person who brought the offering.
[4:19] 113 tn Heb “take up all its fat from it”; NASB “shall remove all its fat from it.”
[4:19] sn See the full discussion of the fat regulations in Lev 4:8-9 above.
[4:19] 114 tn Heb “it”; the referent (the fat) has been specified in the translation for clarity. Only the fat is meant here, since the “rest” of the bull is mentioned in v. 21.
[4:20] 115 sn Cf. Lev 4:11-12 above for the disposition of “the [rest of] the bull.”
[4:20] 116 sn The focus of sin offering “atonement” was purging impurities from the tabernacle (see the note on Lev 1:4).
[4:20] 117 tn Heb “there shall be forgiveness to them” or “it shall be forgiven to them.”
[4:21] 118 sn See the note on the word “slaughter” in v. 15.
[4:21] 119 tn Heb “And he shall bring out the bull to from outside to the camp.”
[4:22] 120 tn This section begins with the relative pronoun אֲשֶׁר (’asher) which usually means “who” or “which,” but here means “whenever.”
[4:22] 121 tn See the Lev 4:2 note on “straying.”
[4:22] 122 tn Heb “and does one from all the commandments of the
[4:23] 123 tn Heb “or his sin which he sinned in it is made known to him”; NAB “if he learns of the sin he committed.”
[4:23] 124 tn Lev 4:22b-23a is difficult. The present translation suggests that there are two possible legal situations envisioned, separated by the Hebrew אוֹ (’o, “or”) at the beginning of v. 23. Lev 4:22b refers to any case in which the leader readily admits his guilt (i.e., “pleads guilty”), whereas v. 23a refers to cases where the leader is convicted of his guilt by legal action (“his sin…is made known to him”). See R. E. Averbeck, NIDOTTE 2:95-96; Lev 4:27-28; and esp. the notes on Lev 5:1 below.
[4:23] 125 tn Heb “a he-goat of goats, a male without defect”; cf. NLT “with no physical defects.”
[4:24] 126 tn The LXX has a plural form here and also for the same verb later in the verse. See the note on Lev 1:5a.
[4:26] 127 tn Heb “Then he”; the referent has been specified in the translation for clarity. Based on the parallel statements in 4:10 and 4:31, it is the priest who performs this action rather than the person who brought the offering.
[4:26] 128 sn The focus of sin offering “atonement” was purging impurities from the tabernacle (see the note on Lev 1:4).
[4:26] 129 tn Heb “from.” In this phrase the preposition מִן (min) may be referring to the reason or cause (“on account of, because of”; GKC 383 §119.z). As J. E. Hartley (Leviticus [WBC], 47) points out, “from” may refer to the removal of the sin, but is an awkward expression. Hartley also suggests that the phrasing might be “an elliptical expression for יְכַפֵּר עַל־לְטַהֵר אֶת־מִן, ‘he will make expiation for…to cleanse…from…,’ as in 16:30.”
[4:26] 130 tn Heb “there shall be forgiveness to him” or “it shall be forgiven to him” (KJV similar).
[4:27] 131 tn Heb “an individual from the people of the land”; cf. NASB “anyone of the common people” (KJV, ASV both similar); NAB “a private person.”
[4:27] 132 tn Heb “If one person sins by straying, from the people of the land.” See Lev 4:2 for a note on “straying.”
[4:27] 133 tn Heb “by doing it, one from the commandments of the
[4:28] 134 tn Heb “or his sin which he sinned is made known to him”; cf. NCV “when that person learns about his sin.”
[4:28] 135 tn Lev 4:27b-28a is essentially the same as 4:22b-23a (see the notes there).
[4:28] 136 tn Heb “a she-goat of goats, a female without defect”; NAB “an unblemished she-goat.”
[4:28] 137 tn Heb “on his sin.”
[4:29] 138 tc The LXX has a plural form here (see v. 24 above and the note on Lev 1:5a).
[4:31] 139 sn The focus of sin offering “atonement” was purging impurities from the tabernacle (see the note on Lev 1:4).
[4:31] 140 tn Heb “there shall be forgiveness to him” or “it shall be forgiven to him” (KJV similar).
[4:35] 141 tn Heb “Then he”; the referent has been specified in the translation for clarity. Here “he” refers to the offerer rather than the priest (contrast the clauses before and after).
[4:35] 142 sn The focus of sin offering “atonement” was purging impurities from the tabernacle (see the note on Lev 1:4).
[4:35] 143 tn Heb “there shall be forgiveness to him” or “it shall be forgiven to him” (KJV similar).
[5:1] 144 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
[5:1] 145 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] 146 tn The words “what had happened” are not in the Hebrew text, but are implied.
[5:1] 147 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] 148 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.).
[5:2] 149 tc The insertion of the words “when there is” is a reflection of the few Hebrew
[5:2] 150 tn The word “ceremonially” has been supplied in the translation to clarify that the uncleanness involved is ritual or ceremonial in nature.
[5:2] 151 tn Heb “and it is hidden from him,” meaning that the person who contracted the ceremonial uncleanness was not aware at the time what had happened, but later found out that he had become ceremonially unclean. This same phrase occurs again in both vv. 3 and 4.
[5:2] 152 sn Lev 5:2-3 are parallel laws of uncleanness (contracted from animals and people, respectively), and both seem to assume that the contraction of uncleanness was originally unknown to the person (vv. 2 and 3) but became known to him or her at a later time (v. 3; i.e., “has come to know” in v. 3 is to be assumed for v. 2 as well). Uncleanness itself did not make a person “guilty” unless he or she failed to handle it according to the normal purification regulations (see, e.g., “wash his clothes and bathe with water, and he will be unclean till evening,” Lev 15:5 NIV; cf. Lev 11:39-40; 15:5-12, 16-24; Num 19, etc.). The problem here in Lev 5:2-3 is that, because the person had not been aware of his or her uncleanness, he or she had incurred guilt for not carrying out these regular procedures, and it would now be too late for that. Thus, the unclean person needs to bring a sin offering to atone for the contamination caused by his or her neglect of the purity regulations.
[5:3] 153 tn Heb “or if he touches uncleanness of mankind to any of his uncleanness which he becomes unclean in it.”
[5:4] 154 tn Heb “to speak thoughtlessly”; cf. NAB “rashly utters an oath.”
[5:4] 155 tn Heb “and is guilty to one from these,” probably referring here to any of “these” things about which one might swear a thoughtless oath (J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 45), with the word “oath” supplied in the translation for clarity. Another possibility is that “to one from these” is a dittography from v. 5 (cf. the note on v. 5a), and that v. 4 ends with “and is guilty” like vv. 2 and 3 (J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:300).
[5:5] 156 tn Heb “and it shall happen when he becomes guilty to one from these,” referring to any of “these” possible transgressions in Lev 5:1-4. Tg. Onq., the original Greek translation, and the Latin Vulgate omit this clause, possibly due to homoioteleuton because of the repetition of “to one from these” from the end of v. 4 in v. 5a (cf. the note on v. 4b).
[5:5] sn What all the transgressions in Lev 5:1-4 have in common is that the time is past for handling the original situation properly (i.e., testifying in court, following purity regulations, or fulfilling an oath), so now the person has become guilty and needs to follow corrective sacrificial procedures.
[5:5] 157 tn Heb “which he sinned on it”; cf. ASV “confess that wherein he hath sinned”; NCV “must tell how he sinned.”
[5:6] 158 tn In this context the word for “guilt” (אָשָׁם, ’asham) refers to the “penalty” for incurring guilt, the so-called consequential אָשָׁם (J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:303; cf. the note on Lev 5:1).
[5:6] 159 sn The focus of sin offering “atonement” was purging impurities from the tabernacle (see the note on Lev 1:4).
[5:6] 160 tn See the note on 4:26 regarding the use of מִן (min).
[5:7] 161 tn Heb “and if his hand does not reach enough of a flock animal” (see the note on v. 11 below). The term translated “animal from the flock” (שֶׂה, seh) is often translated “lamb” (e.g., KJV, NASB, NIV, NCV) or “sheep” (e.g., NRSV, TEV, NLT), but it clearly includes either a sheep or a goat here (cf. v. 6), referring to the smaller pasture animals as opposed to the larger ones (i.e., cattle; cf. 4:3). Some English versions use the more generic “animal” (e.g., NAB, CEV).
[5:7] 162 tn Heb “and he shall bring his guilt which he sinned,” which is an abbreviated form of Lev 5:6, “and he shall bring his [penalty for] guilt to the
[5:7] 163 tn See the note on Lev 1:14 above.
[5:8] 164 tn Heb “he.” The subject (“he”) refers to the priest here, not the offerer who presented the birds to the priest (cf. v. 8a).
[5:8] 165 sn The action seems to involve both a twisting action, breaking the neck of the bird and severing its vertebrae, as well as pinching or nipping the skin, but in this case not severing the head from the main body (note the rest of this verse).
[5:8] 166 tn Heb “he shall not divide [it]” (see J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:305).
[5:9] 167 tn The Hebrew verb וְהִזָּה (vÿhizzah, Hiphil of נָזָה, nazah) does indeed mean “sprinkle” or “splatter” (cf. Lev 4:6, 17). Contrast “splash” in Lev 1:5, etc. (זָרָק, zaraq).
[5:9] 168 tn Heb “the remainder in the blood.” The Heb. preposition “in” (בְּ, bÿ) is used here to mean “some among” a whole collection of something.
[5:10] 169 tn The word “bird” is not in the Hebrew text, but is supplied in the translation for clarity.
[5:10] 170 sn The term “[standard] regulation” (מִשְׁפָּט, mishppat) here refers to the set of regulations for burnt offering birds in Lev 1:14-17.
[5:10] 171 sn The focus of sin offering “atonement” was purging impurities from the tabernacle (see the note on Lev 1:4).
[5:10] 172 tn See the note on 4:26 with regard to מִן, min.
[5:10] 173 tn Heb “there shall be forgiveness to him” or “it shall be forgiven to him” (KJV similar).
[5:11] 174 tn Heb “and if his hand does not reach [or is not sufficient] to”; cf. NASB “if his means are insufficient for.” The expression is the same as that in Lev 5:7 above except for the verb: נָשַׂג (nasag, “to collect, to reach, to be sufficient”) is used here, but נָגַע (nagah, “to touch, to reach”) is used in v. 7. Smr has the former in both v. 7 and 11.
[5:11] 175 tn See the note on Lev 1:14 above (cf. also 5:7).
[5:11] 176 tn Heb “and he shall bring his offering which he sinned.” Like the similar expression in v. 7 above (see the note there), this is an abbreviated form of Lev 5:6, “and he shall bring his [penalty for] guilt to the
[5:11] 177 sn A tenth of an ephah would be about 2.3 liters, one day’s ration for a single person (J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:306). English versions handle the amount somewhat differently, cf. NCV “about two quarts”; TEV “one kilogramme”; CEV “two pounds.”
[5:11] 178 tn See the note on Lev 2:1 above.
[5:12] 179 sn The “memorial portion” (אַזְכָּרָה, ’azkkarah) was the part of the grain offering that was burnt on the altar (Lev 2:2), as opposed to the remainder, which was normally consumed by the priests (Lev 2:3; see the full regulations in Lev 6:14-23 [6:7-16 HT]). It was probably intended to call to mind (i.e., memorialize) before the
[5:13] 180 sn The focus of sin offering “atonement” was purging impurities from the tabernacle (see the note on Lev 1:4).
[5:13] 181 tn Heb “from one from these,” referring to the four kinds of violations of the law delineated in Lev 5:1-4 (see the note on Lev 5:5 above and cf. Lev 4:27).
[5:13] 182 tn Heb “there shall be forgiveness to him” or “it shall be forgiven to him” (KJV similar).
[5:13] 183 tn Heb “and it”; the referent (the remaining portion of the offering) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[5:13] 184 tn Heb “and it shall be to the priest like the grain offering,” referring to the rest of the grain that was not offered on the altar (cf. the regulations in Lev 2:3, 10).
[5:14] 185 sn The quotation introduced here extends from Lev 5:14 through 5:19, encompassing the first main section of guilt offering regulations. Compare the notes on Lev 1:1; 4:1; and 6:1 [5:20 HT].
[5:15] 186 tn Heb “trespasses a trespass” (verb and direct object from the same Hebrew root, מַעַל, ma’al); cf. NIV “commits a violation.” The word refers to some kind of overstepping of the boundary between that which is common (i.e., available for common use by common people) and that which is holy (i.e., to be used only for holy purposes because it has been consecrated to the
[5:15] 187 tn See Lev 4:2 above for a note on “straying.”
[5:15] 188 sn Heb “from the holy things of the
[5:15] 189 tn Here the word for “guilt” (אָשָׁם, ’asham) refers to the “penalty” for incurring guilt, the so-called consequential use of אָשָׁם (’asham; see J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:303).
[5:15] 190 tn Heb “in your valuation, silver of shekels, in the shekel of the sanctuary.” The translation offered here suggests that, instead of a ram, the guilt offering could be presented in the form of money (see, e.g., NRSV; J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:326-27). Others still maintain the view that it refers to the value of the ram that was offered (see, e.g., NIV “of the proper value in silver, according to the sanctuary shekel”; also NAB, NLT; J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 72-73, 81).
[5:15] sn The sanctuary shekel was about 10 grams (= ca. two fifths of an ounce; J. E. Shepherd, NIDOTTE 4:237-38).
[5:15] 191 tn The word for “guilt offering” (sometimes translated “reparation offering”) is the same as “guilt” earlier in the verse (rendered there “[penalty for] guilt”). One can tell which is intended only by the context.
[5:15] sn The primary purpose of the guilt offering was to “atone” (see the note on Lev 1:4 above) for “trespassing” on the
[5:16] 192 tn Heb “and which he sinned from the holy thing.”
[5:16] 193 sn Regarding “make atonement” see the note on Lev 1:4.
[5:16] 194 tn Heb “there shall be forgiveness to him” or “it shall be forgiven to him” (KJV similar).
[5:17] 195 tn Heb “and does one from all of the commandments of the
[5:17] 196 tn The words “at the time” are not in the Hebrew text, but are implied.
[5:17] 197 tn Heb “and he did not know, and he shall be guilty and he shall bear his iniquity” (for the rendering “bear his punishment [for iniquity]”) see the note on Lev 5:1.) This portion of v. 17 is especially difficult. The translation offered here suggests (as in many other English versions) that the offender did not originally know that he had violated the
[5:18] 198 tn The statement here is condensed. See the full expression in 5:15 and the note there.
[5:18] 199 sn Regarding “make atonement” see the note on Lev 1:4.
[5:18] 200 tn Heb “on his straying which he strayed.” See the note on Lev 4:2.
[5:18] 201 tn Heb “there shall be forgiveness to him” or “it shall be forgiven to him” (KJV and NASB both similar).
[6:1] 202 sn Beginning with 6:1, the verse numbers through 6:30 in the English Bible differ from the verse numbers in the Hebrew text (BHS), with 6:1 ET = 5:20 HT, 6:2 ET = 5:21 HT, 6:8 ET = 6:1 HT, etc., through 6:30 ET = 6:23 HT. Beginning with 7:1 the verse numbers in the English text and Hebrew text are again the same.
[6:1] 203 sn This paragraph is Lev 6:1-7 in the English Bible but Lev 5:20-26 in the Hebrew text. The quotation introduced by v. 1 extends from Lev 6:2 (5:21 HT) through 6:7 (5:26 HT), encompassing the third main section of guilt offering regulations. Compare the notes on Lev 1:1; 4:1; and 5:14 above.
[6:2] 204 tn Heb “trespasses a trespass” (verb and direct object from the same Hebrew root מַעַל, ma’al). See the note on 5:15.
[6:2] 205 tn Or “neighbor” (ASV, NAB, NIV, NRSV, NLT); NASB “companion”; TEV “a fellow-Israelite.”
[6:2] 206 tn Heb “has extorted his neighbor”; ASV “oppressed”; NRSV “defrauded.”
[6:3] 207 tn Heb “and swears on falsehood”; cf. CEV “deny something while under oath.”
[6:3] 208 tn Heb “on one from all which the man shall do to sin in them.”
[6:4] 209 tn Heb “and it shall happen, when he sins and becomes guilty,” which is both resumptive of the previous (vv. 2-3) and the conclusion to the protasis (cf. “then” introducing the next clause as the apodosis). In this case, “becomes guilty” (cf. NASB, NIV) probably refers to his legal status as one who has been convicted of a crime in court; thus the translation “he is found guilty.” See R. E. Averbeck, NIDOTTE 1:559-61.
[6:4] 210 tn Heb “that had been held in trust with him.”
[6:5] 211 tn Heb “or from all which he swears on it to falsehood.”
[6:5] 212 tn Heb “in its head.” This refers “the full amount” in terms of the “principal,” the original item or amount obtained illegally (J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:338; J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 84).
[6:5] 213 tn Heb “to whom it is to him he shall give it in the day of his being guilty.” The present translation is based on the view that he has been found guilty through the legal process (see the note on v. 4 above; cf., e.g., TEV and B. A. Levine, Leviticus [JPSTC], 33-34). Others translate the latter part as “in the day he offers his guilt [reparation] offering” (e.g., NIV and J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 73, 84), or “in the day he realizes his guilt” (e.g., NRSV and J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:319, 338).
[6:6] 214 tn The words “into silver shekels” are supplied here. See the full expression in Lev 5:15, and compare 5:18. Cf. NRSV “or its equivalent”; NLT “or the animal’s equivalent value in silver.”
[6:7] 215 sn Regarding “make atonement” see the note on Lev 1:4.
[6:7] 216 tn Heb “there shall be forgiveness to him” or “it shall be forgiven to him” (KJV similar).
[6:7] 217 tn Heb “on one from all which he does to become guilty in it”; NAB “whatever guilt he may have incurred.”
[6:8] 218 sn Lev 6:8 in the English Bible = 6:1 in the Hebrew text. See also the note on 6:1.
[6:8] 219 sn The following paragraphs are Lev 6:8-30 in the English Bible but 6:1-23 in the Hebrew text. This initial verse makes the special priestly regulations for the people’s burnt and grain offerings into a single unit (i.e., Lev 6:8-18 [6:1-11 HT]; cf. Lev 1-2 above). Note also the separate introductions for various priestly regulations in Lev 6:19 [12 HT], 24 [17 HT], and for the common people in Lev 7:22, 28 below.
[6:9] 220 tn Heb “It is the burnt offering on the hearth.”
[6:9] 221 tn Heb “in it.” In this context “in it” apparently refers to the “hearth” which was on top of the altar.
[6:10] 222 tn The exact nature of this article of the priest’s clothing is difficult to determine. Cf. KJV, ASV “breeches”; NAB “drawers”; NASB, NIV, NRSV, NLT “undergarments”; NCV “underclothes”; CEV “underwear”; TEV “shorts.”
[6:10] 223 tn Heb “he shall lift up the fatty ashes which the fire shall consume the burnt offering on the altar.”
[6:10] 224 tn Heb “it,” referring the “fatty ashes” as a single unit.
[6:11] 225 tn The word “ceremonially” has been supplied in the translation to clarify that the uncleanness of the place involved is ritual or ceremonial in nature.
[6:12] 226 tn Heb “in it,” apparently referring to the “hearth” which was on top of the altar (cf. the note on v. 9).
[6:14] 227 tn Heb “offering it, the sons of Aaron.” The verb is a Hiphil infinitive absolute, which is used here in place of the finite verb as either a jussive (GKC 346 §113.cc, “let the sons of Aaron offer”) or more likely an injunctive in light of the verbs that follow (Joüon 2:430 §123.v, “the sons of Aaron shall/must offer”).
[6:15] 228 tn Heb “and he”; the referent has been specified in the translation for clarity. The “he” refers to the officiating priest. A similar shift between singular and plural occurs in Lev 1:7-9, but see the note on Lev 1:7 and J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 89 for the possibility of textual corruption.
[6:15] 229 tn Heb “shall take up from it with his hand some of the choice wheat flour of the grain offering.”
[6:15] 230 sn See the note on Lev 2:2.
[6:15] 231 tc Smr reading, which includes the locative ה (hey, translated “on” the altar), is preferred here. This is the normal construction with the verb “offer up in smoke” in Lev 1-7 (see the note on Lev 1:9).
[6:15] 232 tn Heb “and he shall offer up in smoke [on] the altar a soothing aroma, its memorial portion, to the
[6:17] 233 tn Heb “It must not be baked leavened” (cf. Lev 2:11). The noun “leaven” is traditional in English versions (cf. KJV, ASV, NASB, NRSV), but “yeast” is more commonly used today.
[6:17] 234 tn Heb “holiness of holinesses [or holy of holies] it is”; cf. NAB “most sacred.”
[6:18] 235 tn Or “a perpetual regulation”; cf. NASB “a permanent ordinance”; NRSV “as their perpetual due.”
[6:18] 236 tn Heb “for your generations”; cf. NIV “for the generations to come.”
[6:18] 237 tn Heb “touches them”; the referent has been specified in the translation for clarity. In this context “them” must refer to the “gifts” of the
[6:18] 238 tn Or “anyone/anything that touches them shall become holy” (J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:443-56). The question is whether this refers to the contagious nature of holy objects (cf. NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV, NLT) or whether it simply sets forth a demand that anyone who touches the holy gifts of the
[6:19] 239 sn See the note on Lev 6:8 [6:1 HT] above.
[6:20] 240 sn A tenth of an ephah is about 2.3 liters, one day’s ration for a single person (J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:306).
[6:20] 241 tn For the rendering “choice wheat flour” see the note on Lev 2:1.
[6:21] 242 tn The term rendered here “well soaked” (see, e.g., NRSV; the Hebrew term is מֻרְבֶּכֶת, murbbekhet) occurs only three times (here; 7:12, and 1 Chr 23:29), and is sometimes translated “well-mixed” (e.g., NIV, NCV, NLT; NASB “well stirred”; NAB “well kneaded”). The meaning is uncertain (J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:399-400), but in Lev 7:12 it stands parallel to already prepared grain offerings either “mixed” (the Hebrew term is בְּלוּלֹת (bÿlulot), not מֻרְבֶּכֶת as in Lev 6:21 [6:14 HT]) or anointed with oil.
[6:21] 243 tn Heb “broken bits [?] of a grain offering of pieces,” but the meaning of the Hebrew term rendered here “broken bits” (תֻּפִינֵי, tufiney) is quite uncertain. Some take it from the Hebrew verb “to break up, to crumble” (פַּת [pat]; e.g., the Syriac, NAB, NIV, NLT “broken” pieces) and others from “to bake” (אָפַה, ’afah; e.g., NRSV “baked pieces”). For a good summary of other proposed options, see J. E. Hartley, Leviticus (WBC), 90. Compare Lev 2:5-6 for the general regulations regarding this manner of grain offering. Similar but less problematic terminology is used there.
[6:22] 244 tn Heb “And the anointed priest under him.”
[6:24] 245 sn See the note on Lev 6:8 [6:1 HT].
[6:25] 246 tn Heb “holiness of holinesses [or holy of holies] it is.” Cf. NAB “most sacred”; CEV “very sacred”; TEV “very holy.”
[6:27] 247 tn Heb “on the garment”; NCV “on any clothes”; CEV “on the clothes of the priest.”
[6:27] 248 tc The translation “you must wash” is based on the MT as it stands (cf. NASB, NIV). Smr, LXX, Syriac, Tg. Ps.-J., and the Vulgate have a third person masculine singular passive form (Pual), “[the garment] must be washed” (cf. NAB, NRSV, NLT). This could also be supported from the verbs in the following verse, and it requires only a repointing of the Hebrew text with no change in consonants. See the remarks in J. E. Hartley, Leviticus (WBC), 90 and J. Milgrom, Leviticus (AB), 1:404.
[6:28] 249 tn Heb “it”; the words “that vessel” are supplied in the translation to clarify the referent.
[6:29] 250 tn Heb “holiness of holinesses [or holy of holies] it is” (also in 7:1).
[6:30] 251 tn Heb “burned with fire,” an expression which is sometimes redundant in English, but here means “burned up,” “burned up entirely.”
[7:2] 252 tn Heb “he”; the referent (the officiating priest) has been specified in the translation for clarity. This priest was responsible for any actions involving direct contact with the altar (e.g., the splashing of the blood).
[7:2] 253 tn See the note on Lev 1:5.
[7:3] 254 tn Heb “then he.” This pronoun refers to the offerer, who was responsible for slaughtering the animal. Contrast v. 2 above and v. 5 below.
[7:4] 255 tn See the notes on Lev 3:3-4.
[7:5] 256 tn See the note on Lev 1:9 above.
[7:6] 257 tn Heb “holiness of holinesses [or holy of holies] it is”; NAB “most sacred”; TEV “very holy.”
[7:7] 258 tn Heb “like the sin offering like the guilt offering, one law to them.”
[7:9] 259 tn Heb “and” rather than “or” (cf. also the next “or”).
[7:9] 260 tn Heb “and all made in the pan”; cf. KJV “fryingpan”; NAB “deep-fried in a pot.”
[7:10] 261 tn Heb “a man like his brother.”
[7:11] 262 tn This “he” pronoun refers to the offerer. Smr and LXX have plural “they.”
[7:12] 263 tn Or “for a thank offering.”
[7:12] 264 tn See the notes on Lev 2:4.
[7:12] 265 tn See the note on Lev 6:21 [6:14 HT].
[7:12] 266 tn Heb “choice wheat flour well soaked ring-shaped loaves.” See the note on Lev 2:1.
[7:13] 267 tn The rendering “this [grain] offering” is more literally “his offering,” but it refers to the series of grain offerings listed just previously in v. 12.
[7:13] 268 tn The words “which regularly accompany” are not in the Hebrew text, but are supplied for clarity.
[7:13] sn The translation “[which regularly accompany]…” is based on the practice of bringing bread (and wine) to eat with the portions of the peace offering meat eaten by the priests and worshipers (see v. 14 and Num 15:1-13). This was in addition to the memorial portion of the unleavened bread that was offered to the
[7:14] 269 tn Here the Hebrew text reads “offering” (קָרְבָּן, qorbban), not “grain offering” (מִנְחָה, minkhah), but in this context the term refers once again to the list in 7:12.
[7:14] 270 tn The term rendered “contribution offering” is תְּרוּמָה (tÿrumah), which generally refers to that which is set aside from the offerings to the
[7:15] 271 tn In the verse “his” refers to the offerer.
[7:16] 272 tn For the distinction between votive and freewill offerings see the note on Lev 22:23 and the literature cited there.
[7:16] 273 tn Heb “and on the next day and the left over from it shall be eaten.”
[7:17] 274 tn Heb “burned with fire,” an expression which is sometimes redundant in English, but here means “burned up,” “burned up entirely” (likewise in v. 19).
[7:18] 275 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] 276 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.”
[7:19] 277 tn The word “ceremonially” has been supplied in the translation both here and in the following sentence to clarify that the uncleanness involved is ritual or ceremonial in nature.
[7:19] 278 tn The Hebrew has simply “the flesh,” but this certainly refers to “clean” flesh in contrast to the unclean flesh in the first half of the verse.
[7:20] 279 tn Heb “and his unclean condition is on him.”
[7:20] 280 sn The exact meaning of this penalty clause is not certain. It could mean that he will be executed, whether by God or by man, he will be excommunicated from sanctuary worship and/or community benefits (cf. TEV, CEV), or his line will be terminated by God (i.e., extirpation), etc. See J. E. Hartley, Leviticus (WBC), 100; J. Milgrom, Leviticus (AB), 1:457-60; and B. A. Levine, Leviticus (JPSTC), 241-42 for further discussion.
[7:21] 281 sn For these categories of unclean animals see Lev 11.
[7:21] 282 sn For the interpretation of this last clause see the note on Lev 7:20.
[7:22] 283 sn See the note on Lev 6:8 [6:1 HT] above.
[7:24] 284 tn Heb “carcass,” referring to the carcass of an animal that has died on its own, not the carcass of an animal slaughtered for sacrifice or killed by wild beasts. This has been clarified in the translation by supplying the phrase “of natural causes”; cf. NAB, TEV “that has died a natural death.”
[7:24] 285 tn Heb “shall be used for any work”; cf. NIV, NLT “may be used for any other purpose.”
[7:25] 286 sn See the note on Lev 7:20.
[7:26] 287 tn Heb “and any blood you must not eat in any of your dwelling places, to the bird and to the animal.”
[7:27] 288 sn See the note on Lev 7:20.
[7:28] 289 sn See the note on Lev 6:8 [6:1 HT].
[7:30] 290 tn Heb “on the breast.”
[7:30] 291 tc Many Hebrew
[7:30] tn Heb “the breast to wave it, a wave offering before the
[7:32] 292 tn Older English versions (e.g., KJV, ASV) translate this Hebrew term (תְּרוּמָה, tÿrumah) “heave offering,” derived from the idea of “to raise, to lift” found in the verbal root (cf. NAB “a raised offering”). “Contribution offering” is a better English rendering because it refers to something “taken out from” (i.e., “lifted up from”; cf. the Hebrew term הֵרִים (herim) in, e.g., Lev 2:9; 4:8, etc.) the offering as a special contribution to the specific priest who presided over the offering procedures in any particular instance (see the next verse and R. E. Averbeck, NIDOTTE 4:335-37). Cf. TEV “as a special contribution”; NCV, NLT “as a gift.”
[7:34] 293 tn Or “a perpetual regulation”; cf. NASB “as their due forever”; NRSV “as a perpetual due”; NLT “their regular share.”
[7:35] 294 tn Heb “the day he”; the referent (Moses) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[7:35] 295 tn Heb “in the day of he presented them to serve as priests to the
[7:36] 296 tn Heb “the day he”; the referent (Moses) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[7:36] 297 tn Heb “which the
[7:36] 298 tn Heb “for your generations”; cf. NIV “for the generations to come”; TEV “for all time to come.”
[7:37] 299 sn The Hebrew term translated “law” (תוֹרָה [torah]) occurs up to this point in the book only in Lev 6:9 [6:2 HT], 14 [7 HT], 25 [18 HT], 7:1, 7, 11, and here in 7:37. This suggests that Lev 7:37-38 is a summary of only this section of the book (i.e., Lev 6:8 [6:1 HT]-7:36), not all of Lev 1-7.
[7:37] 300 tc In the MT only “the grain offering” lacks a connecting ו (vav). However, many Hebrew , Smr, LXX, Syriac, and some
[7:37] 301 sn The inclusion of the “ordination offering” (מִלּוּאִים, milu’im; the term apparently comes from the notion of “filling [of the hand],” cf. Lev 8:33) here anticipates Lev 8. It is a kind of peace offering, as the regulations in Lev 8:22-32 will show (cf. Exod 29:19-34). In the context of the ordination ritual for the priests it fits into the sequence of offerings as a peace offering would: sin offering (Lev 8:14-17), burnt and grain offering (Lev 8:18-21), and finally peace (i.e., ordination) offering (Lev 8:22-32). Moreover, in this case, Moses received the breast of the ordination offering as his due since he was the presiding priest over the sacrificial procedures (Lev 8:29; cf. Lev 7:30-31), while Aaron and his sons ate the portions that would have been consumed by the common worshipers in a regular peace offering procedure (Exod 29:31-34; cf. Lev 7:15-18). For a general introduction to the peace offering see the note on Lev 3:1.
[8:1] 302 sn Lev 8 is the fulfillment account of the ordination legislation recorded in Exod 29, and is directly connected to the command to ordain the tabernacle and priesthood in Exod 40:1-16 as well as the partial record of its fulfillment in Exod 40:17-38.
[8:3] 303 sn For “tent of meeting” see the note on Lev 1:1 above.
[8:7] 304 sn Here Moses actually clothes Aaron (cf. v. 13 below for Aaron’s sons). Regarding the various articles of clothing see J. E. Hartley, Leviticus (WBC), 111-12 and esp. J. Milgrom, Leviticus (AB), 1:501-13.
[8:7] 305 sn The term “tunic” refers to a shirt-like garment worn next to the skin and, therefore, put on first (cf. Exod 28:4, 39-40; 29:5, 8; 39:27). Traditionally this has been translated “coat” (so KJV, ASV), but that English word designates an outer garment.
[8:7] 306 tn Heb “on him”; the referent (Aaron) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[8:7] 307 tn Heb “girded him with the sash” (so NASB); NCV “tied the cloth belt around him.”
[8:7] sn The sash fastened the tunic around the waist (Exod 28:4, 39; 29:9; 39:29).
[8:7] 308 sn The robe was a long shirt-like over-garment that reached down below the knees. Its hem was embroidered with pomegranates and golden bells around the bottom (Exod 28:4, 31-35; 29:5; 39:22-26).
[8:7] 309 sn The ephod was an apron like garment suspended from shoulder straps. It draped over the robe and extended from the chest down to the thighs (Exod 28:4, 6-14, 25-28; 29:5; 39:2-7).
[8:7] 310 tn Heb “girded him with.”
[8:7] 311 sn The decorated band of the ephod served as a sort of belt around Aaron’s body that would hold the ephod closely to him rather than allowing it to hang loosely across his front (Exod 28:8, 27; 29:5; 39:5, 20).
[8:8] 312 sn The breastpiece was made of the same material as the ephod and was attached to it by means of gold rings and chains on its four corners (Exod 28:15-30; 29:5; 39:8-21). It had twelve stones attached to it (representing the twelve tribes of Israel), and a pocket in which the Urim and Thummim were kept (see following).
[8:8] 313 sn The Urim and Thummim were two small objects used in the casting of lots to discern the will of God (see Exod 28:30; Num 27:21; Deut 33:8; 1 Sam 14:41 in the LXX and 28:6; Ezra 2:63 and Neh 7:65). It appears that by casting them one could obtain a yes or no answer, or no answer at all (1 Sam 28:6; J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 111-12). See the extensive discussion in J. Milgrom, Leviticus (AB), 1:507-11.
[8:9] 314 tn Although usually thought to be a “turban” (and so translated by the majority of English versions) this object might be only a “turban-like headband” wound around the forehead area (HALOT 624 s.v. מִצְנֶפֶת).
[8:9] sn The turban consisted of wound-up linen (cf. Exod 28:4, 37, 39; 29:6; 39:31; Lev 16:4).
[8:9] 315 sn The gold plate was attached as a holy diadem to the front of the turban by means of a blue cord, and had written on it “Holy to the
[8:10] 316 sn The expression “and consecrated it” refers to the effect of the anointing earlier in the verse (cf. “to consecrate them/him” in vv. 11 and 12). “To consecrate” means “to make holy” or “make sacred”; i.e., put something into the category of holy/sacred as opposed to common/profane (see Lev 10:10 below). Thus, the person or thing consecrated is put into the realm of God’s holy things.
[8:13] 317 tc The MT has here “sash” (singular), but the context is clearly plural and Smr has it in the plural.
[8:13] tn Heb “girded them with sashes” (so NAB, NASB); NRSV “fastened sashes around them.”
[8:13] 318 tn Heb “wrapped headdresses to them”; cf. KJV “bonnets”; NASB, TEV “caps”; NIV, NCV “headbands”; NAB, NLT “turbans.”
[8:13] sn Notice that the priestly garments of Aaron’s sons are quite limited compared to those of Aaron himself, the high priest (cf. vv. 7-9 above). The terms for “tunic” and “sash” are the same but not the headgear (cf. Exod 28:40; 29:8-9; 39:27-29).
[8:14] 319 sn See Lev 4:3-12 above for the sin offering of the priests. In this case, however, the blood manipulation is different because Moses, not Aaron (and his sons), is functioning as the priest. On the one hand, Aaron and his sons are, in a sense, treated as if they were commoners so that the blood manipulation took place at the burnt offering altar in the court of the tabernacle (see v. 15 below), not at the incense altar inside the tabernacle tent itself (contrast Lev 4:5-7 and compare 4:30). On the other hand, since it was a sin offering for the priests, therefore, the priests themselves could not eat its flesh (Lev 4:11-12; 6:30 [23 HT]), which was the normal priestly practice for sin offerings of commoners (Lev 6:26[19], 29[22]).
[8:15] 320 sn Contrary to some English versions (e.g., NAB, NASB, NIV, NLT), Aaron (not Moses) most likely slaughtered the bull, possibly with the help of his sons, although the verb is singular, not plural. Moses then performed the ritual procedures that involved direct contact with the altar. Compare the pattern in Lev 1:5-9, where the offerer does the slaughtering and the priests perform the procedures that involve direct contact with the altar. In Lev 8 Moses is functioning as the priest in order to consecrate the priesthood. The explicit reintroduction of the name of Moses as the subject of the next verb seems to reinforce this understanding of the passage (cf. also vv. 19 and 23 below).
[8:15] 321 tn The verb is the Piel of חָטָא (khata’, “to sin”) and means “to de-sin” the altar. This verse is important for confirming the main purpose of the sin offering, which was to decontaminate the tabernacle and its furniture from any impurities. See the note on Lev 4:3.
[8:15] 322 tn Similar to v. 10 above, “and consecrated it” refers to the effect of the blood manipulation earlier in the verse. The goal here was to consecrate the altar in order that it might become a place on which it would be appropriate “to make atonement” before the
[8:16] 323 tn Again, Aaron probably performed the slaughter and collected the fat parts (v. 16a), but Moses presented it all on the altar (v. 16b; cf. the note on v. 15 above).
[8:16] 324 sn See Lev 3:3-4 for the terminology of fat and kidneys here.
[8:16] 325 tn Heb “toward the altar” (see the note on Lev 1:9).
[8:17] 326 tn Heb “he burned with fire,” an expression which is sometimes redundant in English, but here means “burned up,” “burned up entirely.”
[8:17] 327 sn See Lev 4:11-12, 21; 6:30 [23 HT].
[8:19] 328 tn Aaron probably did the slaughtering (cf. the notes on Lev 8:15-16 above).
[8:20] 329 tn Again, Aaron probably cut the ram up into parts (v. 20a), but Moses presented them on the altar (v. 20b; cf. the note on v. 15 above).
[8:20] 330 tn Heb “cut it into its parts.” One could translate here, “quartered it” (J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:133; cf. Lev 1:6, 12 above).
[8:21] 331 tn Again, Aaron probably did the washing (v. 21a), but Moses presented the portions on the altar (v. 21b; cf. the note on v. 15 above).
[8:21] 332 tn See Lev 1:9, 13.
[8:22] 333 tn For “ordination offering” see Lev 7:37
[8:23] 334 tn Again, Aaron probably did the slaughtering (cf. the notes on Lev 8:15-16 above).
[8:23] 335 tn Heb “on the lobe of the ear of Aaron, the right one.”
[8:23] 336 tn The term for “big toe” (בֹּהֶן, bohen) is the same as that for “thumb.” It refers to the larger appendage on either the hand or the foot.
[8:25] 339 tn See Lev 7:32-34.
[8:27] 341 sn The “palms” refer to the up-turned hands, positioned in such a way that the articles of the offering could be placed on them.
[8:27] 342 tn Heb “and he waved.” The subject of the verb “he waved” is Aaron, but Aaron’s sons also performed the action (see “Aaron and his sons” just previously). See the similar shifts from Moses to Aaron as the subject of the action above (vv. 15, 16, 19, 20, 23), and esp. the note on Lev 8:15. In the present translation this is rendered as an adjectival clause (“who waved”) to indicate that the referent is not Moses but Aaron and his sons. Cf. CEV “who lifted it up”; NAB “whom he had wave” (with “he” referring to Moses here).
[8:27] 343 sn See Lev 7:30-31, 34.
[8:28] 344 tn Heb “toward the altar” (see the note on Lev 1:9).
[8:31] 345 tn Several major ancient versions have the passive form of the verb (see BHS v. 31 note c; cf. Lev 8:35; 10:13). In that case we would translate, “just as I was commanded.”
[8:32] 346 tn Heb “but the remainder in the flesh and in the bread”; NAB, CEV “what is left over”; NRSV “what remains.”
[8:33] 347 tn Heb “because seven days he shall fill your hands”; KJV “for seven days shall he consecrate you”; CEV “ends seven days from now.”
[8:33] sn It is apparent that the term for “ordination offering” (מִלֻּאִים, millu’im; cf. Lev 7:37 and the note there) is closely related to the expression “he shall fill (Piel מִלֵּא, mille’) your hands” in this verse. Some derive the terminology from the procedure in Lev 8:27-28, but the term for “hands” there is actually “palms.” It seems more likely that it derives from the notion of putting the priestly responsibilities (or possibly its associated prebends) under their control (i.e., “filling their hands” with authority; see J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:538-39). The command “to keep the charge of the
[8:34] 348 tn Heb “just as he has done” (cf. the note on v. 33).
[8:34] 349 tn Heb “the
[8:36] 350 tn Heb “by the hand of” (so KJV).
[9:1] 351 sn This eighth day is the one after the seven days of ordination referred to in Lev 8:33-35.
[9:1] 352 tn Heb “called to”; CEV, NLT “called together.”
[9:3] 353 tn Heb “a he-goat of goats.”
[9:3] 354 tn Heb “and a calf and a lamb, sons of a year, flawless”; KJV, ASV, NRSV “without blemish”; NASB, NIV “without defect”; NLT “with no physical defects.”
[9:4] 355 tn The verb is either a prophetic perfect (“will appear to you”) as in the MT (cf. IBHS §30.5.1.e; so many English versions), or a futurum instans participle (“is going to appear to you”) as in the LXX and several other versions (see the BHS footnote; cf. IBHS 627 §37.6f). In either case, the point is that Moses was anticipating that the
[9:5] 356 tn Heb “to the faces of.”
[9:6] 357 tn Heb “which the
[9:6] 358 tn Heb “and the glory of the
[9:7] 359 tn Instead of “on behalf of the people,” the LXX has “on behalf of your house” as in the Hebrew text of Lev 16:6, 11, 17. Many commentaries follow the LXX here (e.g., J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:578; J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 118) as do a few English versions (e.g., NAB), but others argue that, as on the Day of Atonement (Lev 16), the offerings of the priests also effected the people, even though there was still the need to have special offerings made on behalf of the people as reflected in the second half of the verse (e.g., B. A. Levine, Leviticus [JPSTC], 56).
[9:11] 361 tn Heb “he burned with fire,” an expression which is sometimes redundant in English, but here means “burned up,” “burned up entirely.”
[9:11] 362 sn See Lev 4:5-12 and the notes there regarding the sin offering for priest(s). The distinction here is that the blood of the sin offering for the priests was applied to the horns of the burnt offering altar in the court of the tabernacle, not the incense altar inside the tabernacle tent itself. See the notes on Lev 8:14-15.
[9:12] 363 tn For smoothness in the English translation, “his” was used in place of “Aaron’s.”
[9:12] 364 tn The verb is a Hiphil form of מָצָא, matsa’, “to find” (i.e., causative, literally “to cause to find,” but here the meaning is “to hand to” or “pass to”; see J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 117-18, and J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:581-82). The distinction between this verb and “presented” in v. 9 above (see the note there) is that in v. 9 Aaron’s sons held the bowl while Aaron manipulated some of the blood at the altar, while here in v. 12 they simply handed the bowl to him so he could splash all the blood around on the altar (Milgrom, 581).
[9:12] 365 tn For “splashed” (also in v. 18) see the note on Lev 1:5.
[9:13] 366 tn See the note on v. 12.
[9:13] 367 tn Heb “and the burnt offering they handed to him to its parts and the head.”
[9:15] 368 tn The expression “and performed a decontamination rite [with] it” reads literally in the MT, “and decontaminated [with] it.” The verb is the Piel of חטא (kht’, Qal = “to sin”), which means “to decontaminate, purify” (i.e., “to de-sin”; see the note on Lev 8:15).
[9:15] 369 sn The phrase “like the first one” at the end of the verse refers back to the sin offering for the priests described in vv. 8-11 above. The blood of the sin offering of the common people was applied to the burnt offering altar just like that of the priests.
[9:16] 370 tn The term “standard regulation” (מִשְׁפָּט, mishpat) here refers to the set of regulations for burnt offering goats in Lev 1:10-13. Cf. KJV “according to the manner”; ASV, NASB “according to the ordinance”; NIV, NLT “in the prescribed way”; CEV “in the proper way.”
[9:17] 371 sn The latter part of the verse (“in addition to the morning burnt offering”) refers to the complex of morning (and evening) burnt and grain offerings that was the daily regulation for the tabernacle from the time of its erection (Exod 40:29). The regulations for it were appended to the end of the section of priestly consecration regulations in Exod 29 (see Exod 29:38-40) precisely because they were to be maintained throughout the priestly consecration period and beyond (Lev 8:33-36). Thus, the morning burnt and grain offerings would already have been placed on the altar before the inaugural burnt and grain offerings referred to here.
[9:18] 372 tn See the note on Lev 9:12.
[9:19] 373 tn Heb “And the fat from the ox and from the ram.”
[9:19] 374 tn The text here has only the participle “the cover” or “that which covers,” which is elliptical for “the fat which covers the entrails” (see Lev 3:3, 9, 14; 7:3).
[9:20] 375 tn The plural “they” refers to the sons of Aaron (cf. v. 18). The LXX, Smr, and Syriac have singular “he,” referring to Aaron alone as in the latter half of the verse (the singular is followed here by NLT). Cf. NCV “Aaron’s sons put them.”
[9:24] 376 tn Heb “from to the faces of the
[9:24] 377 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.
[10:1] 378 tn Although it has been used elsewhere in this translation as an English variation from the ubiquitous use of vav in Hebrew, in this instance “then” as a rendering for vav is intended to show that the Nadab and Abihu catastrophe took place on the inauguration day described in Lev 9. The tragic incident in Lev 10 happened in close temporal connection to the
[10:1] 379 tn The expression “strange fire” (אֵשׁ זָרָה, ’esh zarah) seems imprecise (cf. NAB “profane fire”; NIV “unauthorized fire”; NRSV “unholy fire”; NLT “a different kind of fire”) and has been interpreted numerous ways (see the helpful summary in J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 132-33). The infraction may have involved any of the following or a combination thereof: (1) using coals from someplace other than the burnt offering altar (i.e., “unauthorized coals” according to J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:598; cf. Lev 16:12 and cf. “unauthorized person” אִישׁ זָר (’ish zar) in Num 16:40 [17:5 HT], NASB “layman”), (2) using the wrong kind of incense (cf. the Exod 30:9 regulation against “strange incense” קְטֹרֶת זָרָה (qÿtoreh zarah) on the incense altar and the possible connection to Exod 30:34-38), (3) performing an incense offering at an unprescribed time (B. A. Levine, Leviticus [JPSTC], 59), or (4) entering the Holy of Holies at an inappropriate time (Lev 16:1-2).
[10:2] 380 tn See the note on 9:24a.
[10:3] 381 tn The Niphal verb of the Hebrew root קָדַשׁ (qadash) can mean either “to be treated as holy” (so here, e.g., BDB 873 s.v. קָּדַשׁ, LXX, NASB, and NEB) or “to show oneself holy” (so here, e.g., HALOT 1073 s.v. קדשׁnif.1, NIV, NRSV, NLT; J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:595, 601-3; and J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 133-34). The latter rendering seems more likely here since, in the immediate context, the
[10:3] 382 tn In this context the Niphal of the Hebrew root כָּבֵד (kaved) can mean “to be honored” (e.g., NASB and NIV here), “be glorified” (ASV, NRSV and NLT here), or “glorify oneself, show one’s glory” (cf. NAB; e.g., specifically in this verse HALOT 455 s.v. כבדnif.3; J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:595, 603-4; and J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 126, 134). Comparing this clause with the previous one (see the note above), the point may be that when the
[10:6] 383 tc Smr has “you must not” (לֹא, lo’) rather than the MT’s “do not” (אַל, ’al; cf. the following negative לֹא, lo’, in the MT).
[10:6] 384 tn Heb “do not let free your heads.” Some have taken this to mean, “do not take off your headgear” (cf. NAB, NASB), but it probably also involves leaving one’s hair unkempt as a sign of mourning (see J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:608-9; cf. NCV, TEV, CEV, NLT).
[10:6] 385 tn Heb “shall weep [for] the burning which the
[10:9] 386 tn Heb “a perpetual statute for your generations”; NAB “a perpetual ordinance”; NRSV “a statute forever”; NLT “a permanent law.” The Hebrew grammar here suggests that the last portion of v. 9 functions as both a conclusion to v. 9 and an introduction to vv. 10-11. It is a pivot clause, as it were. Thus, it was a “perpetual statute” to not drink alcoholic beverages when ministering in the tabernacle, but it was also a “perpetual statue” to distinguish between holy and profane and unclean and clean (v. 10) as well as to teach the children of Israel all such statutes (v. 11).
[10:10] 387 tn Heb “and,” but regarding the translation “as well as,” see the note at the end of v. 9.
[10:10] 388 sn The two pairs of categories in this verse refer to: (1) the status of a person, place, thing, or time – “holy” (קֹדֶשׁ, qodesh) versus “common” (חֹל, khol); as opposed to (2) the condition of a person, place, or thing – “unclean” (טָמֵא, tame’) versus “clean” (טָהוֹר, tahor). Someone or something could gain “holy” status by being “consecrated” (i.e., made holy; e.g., the Hebrew Piel קִדֵּשׁ (qiddesh) in Lev 8:15, 30), and to treat someone or something that was holy as if it were “common” would be to “profane” that person or thing (the Hebrew Piel הִלֵּל [hillel], e.g., in Lev 19:29 and 22:15). Similarly, on another level, someone or something could be in a “clean” condition, but one could “defile” (the Hebrew Piel טִמֵּא [timme’], e.g., in Gen 34:5 and Num 6:9) that person or thing and thereby make it “unclean.” To “purify” (the Hebrew Piel טִהֵר [tiher], e.g., in Lev 16:19 and Num 8:6, 15) that unclean person or thing would be to make it “clean” once again. With regard to the animals (Lev 11), some were by nature “unclean,” so they could never be eaten, but others were by nature “clean” and, therefore, edible (Lev 11:2, 46-47). The meat of clean animals could become inedible by too long of a delay in eating it, in which case the Hebrew term פִּגּוּל (pigul) “foul, spoiled” is used to describe it (Lev 7:18; 19:7; cf. also Ezek 4:14 and Isa 65:4), not the term for “unclean” (טָהוֹר, tahor). Strictly speaking, therefore, unclean meat never becomes clean, and clean meat never becomes unclean.
[10:11] 389 tn Heb “by the hand of” (so KJV).
[10:13] 390 tn Heb “statute” (cf. 10:9, 11); cf. KJV, NAB, NASB, NRSV “due”; NIV “share”; NLT “regular share.”
[10:13] 391 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] 392 sn Cf. Lev 2:3 and 6:14-18 [6:7-11 HT] for these regulations.
[10:14] 393 tn The word “ceremonially” has been supplied in the translation to clarify that the cleanness of the place specified is ritual or ceremonial in nature.
[10:14] 394 sn Cf. Lev 7:14, 28-34 for these regulations.
[10:16] 395 sn This is the very same male goat offered in Lev 9:15 (cf. the note on Lev 10:1 above).
[10:16] 396 tn Heb “but behold, it had been burnt” (KJV and NASB both similar).
[10:17] 397 sn This translation is quite literal. On the surface it appears to mean that the priests would “bear the iniquity” of the congregation by the act of eating the sin offering (so J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:622-25, 635-40). Such a notion is, however, found nowhere else in the Levitical regulations and seems unlikely (so J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 136). A more likely interpretation is reflected in this interpretive rendering: “he gave it to you [as payment] for [your work of] bearing the iniquity of the congregation.” The previous section of the chapter deals with the prebends that the priests received for performing the ministry of the tabernacle (Lev 10:12-15). Lev 10:16-18, therefore, seems to continue the very same topic in the light of the most immediate situation (see R. E. Averbeck, NIDOTTE 2:702-4).
[10:18] 398 tn Or “Behold!” (so KJV, ASV, NASB).
[10:18] 399 sn The term here rendered “within” refers to the bringing of the blood inside the holy place for application to the altar of incense rather than to the altar of burnt offering in the courtyard of the tabernacle (cf. Lev 4:7, 16-18; 6:30 [23 HT]).
[10:19] 400 tn Or “Behold!” (so KJV, ASV, NASB); NRSV “See.”
[10:19] 401 tn Heb “today they presented their sin offering and their burnt offering before the
[10:20] 402 tn Heb “it was good in his eyes” (an idiom). Cf. KJV “he was content”; NLT “he approved.”
[11:2] 403 tn Heb “the animal,” but as a collective plural, and so throughout this chapter.
[11:3] 404 tn Heb “every divider of hoof and cleaver of the cleft of hooves”; KJV, ASV “parteth the hoof, and is clovenfooted.”
[11:3] 405 tn Heb “bringer up of the cud” (a few of the ancient versions include the conjunction “and,” but it does not appear in the MT). The following verses make it clear that both dividing the hoof and chewing the cud were required; one of these conditions would not be enough to make the animal suitable for eating without the other.
[11:4] 406 tn Heb “this,” but as a collective plural (see the following context).
[11:4] 407 sn Regarding “clean” versus “unclean,” see the note on Lev 10:10.
[11:4] 408 tn Heb “because a chewer of the cud it is” (see also vv. 5 and 6).
[11:4] 409 tn Heb “and hoof there is not dividing” (see also vv. 5 and 6).
[11:5] 410 sn A small animal generally understood to be Hyrax syriacus; KJV, ASV, NIV “coney”; NKJV “rock hyrax.”
[11:7] 411 tn See the note on Lev 11:3.
[11:7] 412 tn The meaning and basic rendering of this clause is quite certain, but the verb for “chewing” the cud here is not the same as the preceding verses, where the expression is “to bring up the cud” (see the note on v. 3 above). It appears to be a cognate verb for the noun “cud” (גֵּרָה, gerah) and could mean either “to drag up” (i.e., from the Hebrew Qal of גָרָר [garar] meaning “to drag,” referring to the dragging the cud up and down between the stomach and mouth of the ruminant animal; so J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:647, 653) or “to chew” (i.e., from the Hebrew Niphal [or Qal B] of גָרָר used in a reciprocal sense; so J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 149, and compare BDB 176 s.v. גָרַר, “to chew,” with HALOT 204 s.v. גרר qal.B, “to ruminate”).
[11:8] 413 sn The regulations against touching the carcasses of dead unclean animals (contrast the restriction against eating their flesh) is treated in more detail in Lev 11:24-28 (cf. also vv. 29-40). For the time being, this chapter continues to develop the issue of what can and cannot be eaten.
[11:9] 414 tn Heb “all which have fin and scale” (see also vv. 10 and 12).
[11:9] 415 tn Heb “in the water, in the seas and in the streams” (see also vv. 10 and 12).
[11:13] 416 tn For zoological remarks on the following list of birds see J. Milgrom, Leviticus (AB), 1:662-64; and J. E. Hartley, Leviticus (WBC), 159-60.
[11:14] 417 tn Heb “and the buzzard to its kind” (see also vv. 16 and 19 for the same expression “of any kind”).
[11:15] 418 tn Heb “every crow to its kind.” Many English versions (e.g., KJV, NASB, NIV, NRSV, NLT) render this as “raven.”
[11:16] 419 tn Literally, “the daughter of the wasteland.” Various proposals for the species of bird referred to here include “owl” (KJV), “horned owl” (NIV, NCV), and “ostrich” (ASV, NAB, NASB, NRSV, NLT).
[11:20] 420 tn Heb “the one walking on four” (cf. vv. 21-23 and 27-28).
[11:21] 421 tn Heb “which to it are lower legs from above to its feet” (reading the Qere “to it” rather than the Kethib “not”).
[11:22] 422 tn For entomological remarks on the following list of insects see J. Milgrom, Leviticus (AB), 1:665-66; and J. E. Hartley, Leviticus (WBC), 160-61.
[11:24] 423 tn Heb “and to these.”
[11:26] 424 tn Heb “to all” (cf. the note on v. 24). This and the following verses develop more fully the categories of uncleanness set forth in principle in vv. 24-25.
[11:26] 425 tn Heb “divides hoof and cleft it does not cleave”; KJV “divideth the hoof, and is not clovenfooted”; NLT “divided but unsplit hooves.”
[11:26] 426 tn See the note on Lev 11:3.
[11:26] 427 sn Compare the regulations in Lev 11:2-8.
[11:27] 428 tn Heb “the one walking on four.” Compare Lev 11:20-23.
[11:29] 429 tn For zoological analyses of the list of creatures in vv. 29-30, see J. Milgrom, Leviticus (AB), 1:671-72; and J. E. Hartley, Leviticus (WBC), 161-62.
[11:32] 430 tn Heb “And all which it shall fall on it from them.”
[11:32] 431 tn Heb “in water it shall be brought.”
[11:33] 432 tn Heb “And any earthenware vessel which shall fall from them into its midst.”
[11:33] 433 tn Heb “all which is in its midst.”
[11:34] 434 tn Heb “which water comes on it.”
[11:34] 435 tn Heb “any drink which may be drunk”; NASB “any liquid which may be drunk”; NLT “any beverage that is in such an unclean container.”
[11:34] 436 tn This half of the verse assumes that the unclean carcass has fallen into the food or drink (cf. v. 33 and also vv. 35-38).
[11:35] 437 tn Heb “be unclean.”
[11:36] 438 tn Heb “a spring and a cistern collection of water”; NAB, NIV “for collecting water.”
[11:37] 439 tn Heb “And if there falls from their carcass on any seed of sowing which shall be sown.”
[11:39] 440 tn This word for “animal” refers to land animal quadrupeds, not just any beast that dwells on the land (cf. 11:2).
[11:39] 441 tn Heb “which is food for you” or “which is for you to eat.”
[11:42] 442 tn Heb “goes” (KJV, ASV “goeth”); NIV “moves about”; NLT “slither along.” The same Hebrew term is translated “walks” in the following clause.
[11:42] 443 tn Heb “until all multiplying of legs.”
[11:43] 444 tn Heb “by any of the swarming things that swarm.”
[11:45] 445 tn Heb “to be to you for a God.”
[11:46] 446 sn The Hebrew term translated “law” (תוֹרָה, torah) introduces here a summary or colophon for all of Lev 11. Similar summaries are found in Lev 7:37-38; 13:59; 14:54-57; and 15:32-33.
[11:46] 447 tn Heb “for all the creatures.”
[12:2] 448 tn Heb “produces seed” (Hiphil of זָרַע, zara’; used only elsewhere in Gen 1:11-12 for plants “producing” their own “seed”), referring to the process of childbearing as a whole, from conception to the time of birth (H. D. Preuss, TDOT 4:144; cf. J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 164-65; and J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:742-43). Smr and LXX have Niphal “be impregnated” (see, e.g., Num 5:28); note KJV “If a woman have conceived seed” (cf. ASV, NAB, NRSV; also NIV, NLT “becomes pregnant”).
[12:2] 449 sn The regulations for the “male child” in vv. 2-4 contrast with those for the “female child” in v. 5 (see the note there).
[12:2] 450 tn Heb “as the days of the menstrual flow [nom.] of her menstruating [q. inf.] she shall be unclean” (R. E. Averbeck, NIDOTTE 1:925-26; the verb appears only in this verse in the OT). Cf. NASB “as in the days of her menstruation”; NLT “during her menstrual period”; NIV “during her monthly period.”
[12:2] sn See Lev 15:19-24 for the standard purity regulations for a woman’s menstrual period.
[12:3] 452 tn This rendering, “the flesh of his foreskin,” is literal. Based on Lev 15:2-3, one could argue that the Hebrew word for “flesh” here (בָּשָׂר, basar) is euphemistic for the male genitals and therefore translate “the foreskin of his member” (see, e.g., J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:748). A number of English versions omit this reference to the foreskin and mention only circumcision, presumably for euphemistic reasons (cf. NIV, NCV, TEV, CEV, NLT).
[12:4] 453 tn Heb “sit, dwell” (יָשָׁב, yashav) normally means “to sit, to dwell”), but here it means “to remain, to stay” in the same condition for a period of time (cf., e.g., Gen 24:55).
[12:4] 454 tn Heb “in bloods of purification” or “purifying” or “purity”; NASB “in the blood of her purification”; NRSV “her time of blood purification.” See the following note.
[12:4] 455 tn The initial seven days after the birth of a son were days of blood impurity for the woman as if she were having her menstrual period. Her impurity was contagious during this period, so no one should touch her or even furniture on which she has sat or reclined (Lev 15:19-23), lest they too become impure. Even her husband would become impure for seven days if he had sexual intercourse with her during this time (Lev 15:24; cf. 18:19). The next thirty-three days were either “days of purification, purifying” or “days of purity,” depending on how one understands the abstract noun טֹהֳרָה (toharah, “purification, purity”) in this context. During this time the woman could not touch anything holy or enter the sanctuary, but she was no longer contagious like she had been during the first seven days. She could engage in normal everyday life, including sexual intercourse, without fear of contaminating anyone else (B. A. Levine, Leviticus [JPSTC], 73-74; cf. J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:749-50). Thus, in a sense, the thirty-three days were a time of blood “purity” (cf. the present translation) as compared to the previous seven days of blood “impurity,” but they were also a time of blood “purification” (or “purifying”) as compared to the time after the thirty-three days, when the blood atonement had been made and she was pronounced “clean” by the priest (see vv. 6-8 below). In other words, the thirty-three day period was a time of “blood” (flow), but this was “pure blood,” as opposed to the blood of the first seven days.
[12:5] 456 tn Heb “on purity blood.” The preposition here is עַל (’al) rather than בְּ (bÿ, as it is in the middle of v. 4), but no doubt the same meaning is intended.
[12:5] 457 tn For clarification of the translation here, see the notes on vv. 2-4 above.
[12:5] sn The doubling of the time after the birth of a female child is puzzling (see the remarks in J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:750-51; and G. J. Wenham, Leviticus [NICOT], 188). Some have argued, for example, that it derives from the relative status of the sexes, or a supposed longer blood flow for the birth of a woman, or even to compensate for the future menstrual periods of the female just born. Perhaps there is a better explanation. First, a male child must be circumcised on the eighth day, so the impurity of the mother could not last beyond the first seven days lest it interfere with the circumcision rite. A female child, of course, was not circumcised, so the impurity of the mother would not interfere and the length of the impure time could be extended further. Second, it would be natural to expect that the increased severity of the blood flow after childbirth, as compared to that of a woman’s menstrual period, would call for a longer period of impurity than the normal seven days of the menstrual period impurity (compare Lev 15:19 with 15:25-30). Third, this suggests that the fourteen day impurity period for the female child would have been more appropriate, and the impurity period for the birth of a male child had to be shortened. Fourth, not only the principle of multiples of seven but also multiples of forty applies to this reckoning. Since the woman’s blood discharge after bearing a child continues for more than seven days, her discharge keeps her from contact with sacred things for a longer period of time in order to avoid contaminating the tabernacle (note Lev 15:31). This ended up totaling forty days for the birth of a male child (seven plus thirty-three) and a corresponding doubling of the second set of days for the woman (fourteen plus sixty-six). See R. E. Averbeck, NIDOTTE 2:368-70. The fact that the offerings were the same for either a male or a female infant (vv. 6-8) suggests that the other differences in the regulations are not due to the notion that a male child had greater intrinsic value than a female child (J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 169).
[12:6] 458 tn Heb “And when” (so KJV, NASB). Many recent English versions leave the conjunction untranslated.
[12:6] 459 tn Heb “a lamb the son of his year”; KJV “a lamb of the first year” (NRSV “in its first year”); NAB “a yearling lamb.”
[12:6] 460 sn See the note on Lev 1:3 regarding the “burnt offering.”
[12:6] 461 sn See the note on Lev 4:3 regarding the term “sin offering.”
[12:7] 462 tn Heb “and he” (i.e., the priest mentioned at the end of v. 6). The referent has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[12:7] 463 sn See the note on Lev 1:4 “make atonement.” The purpose of sin offering “atonement,” in particular, was to purge impurities from the tabernacle (see Lev 15:31 and 16:5-19, 29-34), whether they were caused by physical uncleannesses or by sins and iniquities. In this case, the woman has not “sinned” morally by having a child. Even Mary brought such offerings for giving birth to Jesus (Luke 2:22-24), though she certainly did not “sin” in giving birth to him. Note that the result of bringing this “sin offering” was “she will be clean,” not “she will be forgiven” (cf. Lev 4:20, 26, 31, 35; 5:10, 13). The impurity of the blood flow has caused the need for this “sin offering,” not some moral or relational infringement of the law (contrast Lev 4:2, “When a person sins by straying unintentionally from any of the commandments of the
[12:7] 464 tn Or “she will be[come] pure.”
[12:7] 465 tn Heb “from her source [i.e., spring] of blood,” possibly referring to the female genital area, not just the “flow of blood” itself (as suggested by J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:761). Cf. ASV “from the fountain of her blood.”
[12:8] 466 tn Heb “If her hand cannot find the sufficiency of a sheep.” Many English versions render this as “lamb.”
[12:8] 467 tn Heb “from the sons of the pigeon,” referring either to “young pigeons” or “various species of pigeon” (contrast J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:168, with J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 14; cf. Lev 1:14 and esp. 5:7-10).
[12:8] 468 tn Or “she will be[come] pure.”
[13:2] 469 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] 470 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] 471 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] 472 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] 473 tn Heb “in the skin of his flesh” as opposed to the head or the beard (v. 29).
[13:2] 474 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] 475 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.
[13:3] 476 tn Heb “and the priest shall see the infection.”
[13:3] 477 tn There is no “if” expressed, but the contrast between the priestly finding in this verse and the next verse clearly implies it.
[13:3] 478 tn Heb “and the appearance of the infection is deep ‘from’ (comparative מִן, min, “deeper than”) the skin of the his flesh.” See the note on v. 20 below.
[13:3] 479 tn For the translation “diseased infection” see the note on v. 2 above. Cf. TEV “a dreaded skin disease”; NIV “an infectious skin disease”; NLT “a contagious skin disease.”
[13:3] 480 tn The pronoun “it” here refers to the “infection,” not the person who has the infection (cf. the object of “examine” at the beginning of the verse).
[13:3] 481 tn Heb “he shall make him unclean.” The verb is the Piel of טָמֵא (tame’) “to be unclean.” Here it is a so-called “declarative” Piel (i.e., “to declare unclean”), but it also implies that the person is put into the category of actually being “unclean” by the pronouncement itself (J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 175; cf. the corresponding opposite in v. 6 below).
[13:4] 483 tn Heb “and deep is not its appearance from the skin”; cf. NAB “does not seem to have penetrated below the skin.”
[13:4] 484 tn Heb “and the priest will shut up the infection seven days.”
[13:5] 485 tn Heb “and behold” (so KJV, ASV).
[13:5] 486 tn Heb “the infection has stood in his eyes”; ASV “if in his eyes the plague be at a stay.”
[13:5] 487 tn Although there is no expressed “and” at the beginning of this clause, there is in the corresponding clause of v. 6, so it should be assumed here as well.
[13:5] 488 tn Heb “a second seven days.”
[13:6] 489 tn That is, at the end of the second set of seven days referred to at the end of v. 5, a total of fourteen days after the first appearance before the priest.
[13:6] 490 tn Heb “and behold.”
[13:6] 491 tn Heb “he shall make him clean.” The verb is the Piel of טָהֵר (taher, “to be clean”). Here it is a so-called “declarative” Piel (i.e., “to declare clean”), but it also implies that the person is put into the category of being “clean” by the pronouncement itself (J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 176; cf. the corresponding opposite in v. 3 above).
[13:6] 492 tn On the term “scab” see the note on v. 2 above. Cf. NAB “it was merely eczema”; NRSV “only an eruption”; NLT “only a temporary rash.”
[13:6] 493 tn Heb “and he shall wash his clothes.”
[13:7] 494 tn Heb “And if spreading [infinitive absolute] it spreads [finite verb].” For the infinitive absolute used to highlight contrast rather than emphasis see GKC 343 §113.p.
[13:8] 495 tn The “it” is not expressed but is to be understood. It refers to the “infection” (cf. the note on v. 2 above).
[13:8] 496 tn Heb “and behold” (so KJV, ASV).
[13:8] 497 tn This is the declarative Piel of the verb טָמֵא (tame’, cf. the note on v. 3 above).
[13:9] 498 tn Heb “When there is an infection of disease in a man.” The term for “a man; a human being” (אָדָם, ’adam; see the note on Lev 1:2 and cf. v. 2 above) refers to any person among “mankind,” male or female. For the rendering “diseased infection” see the note on v. 2 above.
[13:10] 499 tn Heb “and the priest shall see.” The pronoun “it” is unexpressed, but it should be assumed and it refers to the infection (cf. the note on v. 8 above).
[13:10] 500 tn Heb “and behold” (so KJV, ASV).
[13:10] 501 tn Heb “and rawness [i.e., something living] of living flesh is in the swelling”; KJV, NASB, NRSV “quick raw flesh.”
[13:11] 502 tn The term rendered here “chronic” is a Niphal participle meaning “grown old” (HALOT 448 s.v. II ישׁן nif.2). The idea is that this is an old enduring skin disease that keeps on developing or recurring.
[13:11] 503 tn Heb “in the skin of his flesh” as opposed to the head or the beard (v. 29; cf. v. 2 above).
[13:11] 504 tn This is the declarative Piel of the verb טָמֵא (tame’, cf. the note on v. 3 above).
[13:11] 505 tn Heb “he”; the referent (the priest) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[13:11] 506 sn Instead of just the normal quarantine isolation, this condition calls for the more drastic and enduring response stated in Lev 13:45-46. Raw flesh, of course, sometimes oozes blood to one degree or another, and blood flows are by nature impure (see, e.g., Lev 12 and 15; cf. J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 191).
[13:12] 507 tn Heb “And if spreading [infinitive absolute] it spreads out [finite verb].” For the infinitive absolute used to highlight contrast rather than emphasis see GKC 343 §113.p.
[13:12] 508 tn Heb “all the skin of the infection,” but see v. 4 above.
[13:12] 509 tn Heb “to all the appearance of the eyes of the priest.”
[13:13] 510 tn Heb “and the priest shall see.” The pronoun “it” is unexpressed, but it should be assumed and it refers to the infection (cf. the note on v. 8 above).
[13:13] 511 tn Heb “and behold” (so KJV, ASV, NASB).
[13:13] 512 tn Heb “he shall pronounce the infection clean,” but see v. 4 above. Also, this is another use of the declarative Piel of the verb טָהֵר (taher; cf. the note on v. 6 above).
[13:13] 513 tn Heb “all of him has turned white, and he is clean.”
[13:14] 514 tn Heb “and in the day of there appears in it living flesh.” Some English versions render this as “open sores” (cf. NCV, TEV, NLT).
[13:15] 515 tn Heb “and the priest shall see the living flesh.”
[13:15] 516 tn This is the declarative Piel of the verb טָמֵא (tame’; cf. the note on v. 3 above).
[13:16] 517 tn Heb “Or if/when.”
[13:16] 518 tn Heb “the living flesh returns and is turned/changed to white.” The Hebrew verb “returns” is שׁוּב (shuv), which often functions adverbially when combined with a second verb as it is here (cf. “and is turned”) and, in such cases, is usually rendered “again” (see, e.g., GKC 386-87 §120.g). Another suggestion is that here שׁוּב means “to recede” (cf., e.g., 2 Kgs 20:9), so one could translate “the raw flesh recedes and turns white.” This would mean that the new “white” skin “has grown over” the raw flesh (B. A. Levine, Leviticus [JPSTC], 79).
[13:17] 519 tn Heb “and the priest shall see it.”
[13:17] 520 tn Heb “and behold” (so KJV, ASV, NASB).
[13:17] 521 tn Heb “the priest shall pronounce the infection clean,” but see v. 4 above. Also, this is another use of the declarative Piel of the verb טָהֵר (taher, cf. the note on v. 6 above).
[13:18] 522 tc Heb (MT) reads, “And flesh if/when there is in it, in its skin, a boil.” Smr has only “in it,” not “in its skin,” and a few medieval Hebrew
[13:19] 523 tn Some English versions translate “it shall be shown to [or “be seen by”] the priest,” taking the infection to be the subject of the verb (e.g., KJV, NASB, RSV, NRSV). Based on the Hebrew grammar there is no way to be sure which is intended.
[13:20] 524 tn Heb “and the priest shall see.” The pronoun “it” is unexpressed, but it should be assumed and it refers to the infection (cf. the note on v. 8 above).
[13:20] 525 tn Heb “and behold.”
[13:20] 526 tn Heb “and behold its appearance is low (שָׁפָל, shafal) ‘from’ (comparative מִן, min, “lower than”) the skin.” Compare “deeper” in v. 3 above where, however, a different word is used (עָמֹק, ’amoq), and see the note on “swelling” in v. 1 above (cf. J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 192; note that, contrary to the MT, Tg. Onq. has עָמֹק in this verse as well as v. 4). 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. Some have argued that “this sore was lower than the surrounding skin” (J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:773, 788), in which case “swelling” would be an inappropriate translation of שְׂאֵת (sÿ’et) in v. 19. It seems unlikely, however, that the surface of a “boil” would sink below the surface of the surrounding skin. The infectious pus etc. that makes up a boil normally causes swelling.
[13:20] 527 tn The declarative Piel of the verb טָמֵא (tame’, cf. the note on v. 3 above).
[13:20] 528 tn Heb “It is an infection of disease. In the boil it has broken out.” For the rendering “diseased infection” see the note on v. 2 above.
[13:21] 530 tn Heb “and behold” (so KJV, ASV, NASB).
[13:21] 531 tn Heb “and the priest will shut him up seven days.”
[13:22] 533 tn Heb “is indeed spreading.”
[13:22] 534 tn This is the declarative Piel of the verb טָמֵא (tame’, cf. the note on v. 3 above).
[13:23] 535 tn Heb “and if under it the bright spot stands, it has not spread.”
[13:23] 536 tn This is the declarative Piel of the verb טָהֵר (taher, cf. the note on v. 6 above).
[13:24] 537 tn Heb “Or a body, if there is in its skin a burn of fire.”
[13:25] 538 tn Heb “and the priest shall see it.”
[13:25] 539 tn Heb “and behold” (so KJV, ASV).
[13:25] 540 tn Heb “and its appearance is deep ‘from’ [comparative מִן (min) meaning ‘deeper than’] the skin.”
[13:25] 541 tn Heb “it is a disease. In the burn it has broken out.”
[13:25] 542 tn This is the declarative Piel of the verb טָמֵא (tame’; cf. the note on v. 3 above).
[13:25] 543 tn For the rendering “diseased infection” see the note on v. 2 above.
[13:26] 545 tn Heb “and behold” (so KJV, ASV); NASB “and indeed.”
[13:26] 546 tn Heb “and low it is not ‘from’ (comparative מִן, min, “lower than”) the skin.” See the note on v. 20 above. Cf. TEV “not deeper than the surrounding skin.”
[13:26] 547 tn Heb “and the priest will shut him up seven days.”
[13:27] 548 tn Heb “is indeed spreading.”
[13:27] 549 tn For the rendering “diseased infection” see the note on v. 2 above.
[13:28] 550 tn Heb “and if under it the bright spot stands, it has not spread in the skin.”
[13:28] 551 tn This is the declarative Piel of the verb טָהֵר (taher; cf. the note on v. 6 above).
[13:29] 552 tn Heb “And a man or a woman if there is in him an infection in head or in beard.”
[13:29] sn The shift here is from diseases that are on the (relatively) bare skin of the body to the scalp area of the male or female head or the bearded area of the male face.
[13:30] 553 tn Heb “and the priest shall see the infection.”
[13:30] 554 tn Heb “and behold.”
[13:30] 555 tn Heb “its appearance is deep ‘from’ (comparative מִן, min, “deeper than”) the skin.”
[13:30] 556 tn This is the declarative Piel of the verb טָמֵא (tame’; cf. the note on v. 3 above).
[13:30] 557 tn The exact identification of this disease is unknown. Cf. KJV “dry scall”; NASB “a scale”; NIV, NCV, NRSV “an itch”; NLT “a contagious skin disease.” For a discussion of “scall” disease in the hair, which is a crusty scabby disease of the skin under the hair that also affects the hair itself, see J. E. Hartley, Leviticus (WBC), 192-93, and J. Milgrom, Leviticus (AB), 1:793-94. The Hebrew word rendered “scall” (נֶתֶק, neteq) is related to a verb meaning “to tear; to tear out; to tear apart.” It may derive from the scratching and/or the tearing out of the hair or the scales of the skin in response to the itching sensation caused by the disease.
[13:30] 558 tn Heb “It is scall. It is the disease of the head or the beard.”
[13:31] 559 tn Heb “and behold there is not its appearance deep ‘from’ (comparative מִן, min, meaning “deeper than”) the skin.”
[13:31] 560 tn Heb “and the priest will shut up the infection of the scall seven days.”
[13:32] 561 tn Heb “and behold” (so KJV, ASV).
[13:32] 562 tn Heb “and the appearance of the scall is not deep ‘from’ (comparative מִן, min, meaning “deeper than”) the skin.”
[13:33] 563 tn The shaving is done by the one who has the infection. Although KJV, ASV have the passive “he shall be shaven” here, most modern English versions have the reflexive “shall shave himself” (so NAB).
[13:33] 564 tn Heb “but the scall shall he not shave” (so KJV, ASV); NIV “except for the diseased area.”
[13:33] 565 tn Heb “and the priest will shut up the scall a second seven days.”
[13:34] 566 tn Heb “and behold” (so KJV, ASV).
[13:34] 567 tn Heb “and its appearance is not deep ‘from’ (comparative מִן, min, meaning “deeper than”) the skin.”
[13:34] 568 tn This is the declarative Piel of the verb טָהֵר (taher, cf. the note on v. 6 above).
[13:35] 569 tn Heb “And if spreading (infinitive absolute) it spreads further (finite verb).” For the infinitive absolute used to highlight contrast rather than emphasis see GKC 343 §113.p.
[13:36] 570 tn Heb “and behold.”
[13:36] 571 tn Heb “the priest shall not search to the reddish yellow hair.”
[13:36] 572 tn Heb “he”; the referent (the affected person) is specified in the translation for clarity (likewise in the following verse).
[13:37] 573 tn Heb “and if in his eyes the infection has stood.”
[13:37] 574 tn This is the declarative Piel of the verb טָהֵר (taher, cf. the note on v. 6 above).
[13:39] 575 tn Heb “and the priest shall see.”
[13:39] 576 tn Heb “and behold” (so KJV, ASV).
[13:39] 577 tn Heb “he,” but the regulation applies to a man or a woman (v. 38a). In the translation “the person” is used to specify the referent more clearly.
[13:40] 578 tn Heb “And a man, when his head is rubbed bare, he is bald-headed.” The translation offered here, referring to the back of the head (i.e., the area from the top of the head sloping backwards), is based on the contrast between this condition and that of the following verse. See also B. A. Levine, Leviticus (JPSTC), 82.
[13:41] 579 tn Heb “And if from the front edge of his face, his head is rubbed bare.” See the note on v. 40 above.
[13:41] 580 tn The rendering “balding in front” corresponds to the location of the bareness at the beginning of the verse.
[13:43] 581 tn Heb “and the priest shall see it” (cf. KJV). The MT has “him/it” which some take to refer to the person as a whole (i.e., “him”; see, e.g., J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:770; NIV, NRSV, etc.), while others take it as a reference to the “infection” (נֶגַע, nega’) in v. 42 (J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 172, 177). Smr has “her/it,” which would probably refer to “disease” (צָרַעַת, tsara’at) in v. 42. The general pattern in the chapter suggests that “it,” either the infection or the disease, is the object of the examination (see, e.g., v. 3 above and v. 50 below).
[13:43] 582 tn Heb “and behold.”
[13:43] 583 tn Heb “like appearance of disease of skin of flesh.”
[13:44] 584 tn Or perhaps translate, “His infection [is] on his head,” as a separate independent sentence (cf. KJV, ASV, NASB, NRSV). There is no causal expression in the Hebrew text connecting these two clauses, but the logical relationship between them seems to be causal.
[13:45] 585 tn Heb “And the diseased one who in him is the infection.”
[13:45] 586 tn Heb “and his head shall be unbound, and he shall cover on [his] mustache.” Tearing one’s clothing, allowing the hair to hang loose rather than bound up in a turban, and covering the mustache on the upper lip are all ways of expressing shame, grief, or distress (cf., e.g., Lev 10:6 and Micah 3:7).
[13:46] 587 tn Heb “All the days which the infection is in him.”
[13:47] 588 tn Heb “And the garment, if there is in it a mark of disease.”
[13:47] 589 tn Heb “in a wool garment or in a linen garment.”
[13:48] 590 sn The warp (vertical) and woof (horizontal) thread may be two different sets of thread not yet woven together, or they may refer to two different kinds of thread already woven, in which case one might have the disease in it while the other does not. See the explanation in J. Milgrom, Leviticus (AB), 1:809-10.
[13:48] 591 tn Heb “in any handiwork of skin” (cf. KJV, ASV, NRSV); most other modern English versions have “leather.”
[13:49] 592 tn Heb “and the infection is.” This clause is conditional in force, and is translated as such by almost all English versions.
[13:50] 593 tn Heb “And the priest shall see the infection and he shall shut up the infection seven days.”
[13:51] 594 tn Heb “to all which the leather was made into a handiwork.”
[13:53] 595 tn Heb “And if the priest sees and behold”; NASB “and indeed.”
[13:54] 596 tn Heb “a second seven days.”
[13:55] 597 tn Heb “and behold” (so KJV, ASV).
[13:55] 598 tn Heb “the infection has not changed its eye.” Smr has “its/his eyes,” as in vv. 5 and 37, but here it refers to the appearance of the article of cloth or leather, unlike vv. 5 and 37 where there is a preposition attached and it refers to the eyes of the priest.
[13:55] 599 tn The terms “back side” and “front side” are the same as those used in v. 42 for the “back or front bald area” of a man’s head. The exact meaning of these terms when applied to articles of cloth or leather is uncertain. It could refer, for example, to the inside versus the outside of a garment, or the back versus the front side of an article of cloth or leather. See J. Milgrom, Leviticus (AB), 1:814, for various possibilities.
[13:56] 600 tn Heb “And if the priest saw and behold….”
[13:56] 601 tn Heb “and he shall tear it from.”
[13:57] 602 tn Heb “And if”; NIV, NCV “But if”; NAB “If, however.”
[13:58] 603 tn Heb “and the infection turns aside from them.”
[13:59] 604 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] 605 tn These are declarative Piel forms of the verbs טָהֵר (taher) and טָמֵא (tame’) respectively (cf. the notes on vv. 3 and 6 above).
[14:2] 606 tn Heb “and.” Here KJV, ASV use a semicolon; NASB begins a new sentence with “Now.”
[14:2] 607 tn The alternative rendering, “when it is reported to the priest” may be better in light of the fact that the priest had to go outside the camp. Since he or she had been declared “unclean” by a priest (Lev 13:3) and was, therefore, required to remain outside the camp (13:46), the formerly diseased person could not reenter the camp until he or she had been declared “clean” by a priest (cf. Lev 13:6 for “declaring clean.”). See especially J. Milgrom, Leviticus (AB), 1:831, who supports this rendering both here and in Lev 13:2 and 9. B. A. Levine, however, prefers the rendering in the text (Leviticus [JPSTC], 76 and 85). It is the most natural meaning of the verb (i.e., “to be brought” from בּוֹא [bo’, “to come”] in the Hophal stem, which means “to be brought” in all other occurrences in Leviticus other than 13:2, 9, and 14:2; see only 6:30; 10:18; 11:32; and 16:27), it suits the context well in 13:2, and the rendering “to be brought” is supported by 13:7b, “he shall show himself to the priest a second time.” Although it is true that the priest needed to go outside the camp to examine such a person, the person still needed to “be brought” to the priest there. The translation of vv. 2-3 employed here suggests that v. 2 introduces the proceeding and then v. 3 goes on to describe the specific details of the examination and purification.
[14:3] 608 tn Heb “and he shall be brought to the priest and the priest shall go out to from outside to the camp and the priest shall see [it].” The understood “it” refers to the skin infection itself (see the note on 13:3 above). The referent has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[14:3] 609 tn Heb “And behold, the diseased infection has been healed from the diseased person.” The expression “diseased infection” has been translated as simply “infection” to avoid redundancy here in terms of English style.
[14:4] 610 tn The term rendered here “crimson fabric” consists of two Hebrew words and means literally, “crimson of worm” (in this order only in Lev 14:4, 6, 49, 51, 52 and Num 19:6; for the more common reverse order, “worm of crimson,” see, e.g., the colored fabrics used in making the tabernacle, Exod 25:4, etc.). This particular “worm” is an insect that lives on the leaves of palm trees, the eggs of which are the source for a “crimson” dye used to color various kinds of cloth (B. A. Levine, Leviticus [JPSTC], 86). That a kind of dyed “fabric” is intended, not just the dye substance itself, is made certain by the dipping of it along with the other ritual materials listed here into the blood and water mixture for sprinkling on the person being cleansed (Lev 14:6; cf. also the burning of it in the fire of the red heifer in Num 19:6). Both the reddish color of cedar wood and the crimson colored fabric seem to correspond to the color of blood and may, therefore, symbolize either “life,” which is in the blood, or the use of blood to “make atonement” (see, e.g., Gen 9:4 and Lev 17:11). See further the note on v. 7 below.
[14:4] 611 sn Twigs of hyssop (probably one or several species of marjoram thymus), a spice and herb plant that grows out of walls in Palestine (see 1 Kgs 4:33 [5:13 HT], HALOT 27 s.v. אֵזוֹב, and J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 195), were particularly leafy and therefore especially useful for sprinkling the purifying liquid (cf. vv. 5-7). Many of the details of the ritual procedure are obscure. It has been proposed, for example, that the “cedar wood” was a stick to which the hyssop was bound with the crimson material to make a sort of sprinkling instrument (Hartley, 195). In light of the burning of these three materials as part of the preparation of the ashes of the red heifer in Num 19:5-6, however, this seems unlikely.
[14:4] 612 tn The MT reads literally, “And the priest shall command and he shall take.” Clearly, the second verb (“and he shall take”) contains the thrust of the priest’s command, which suggests the translation “that he take” (cf. also v. 5a). Since the priest issues the command here, he cannot be the subject of the second verb because he cannot be commanding himself to “take” up these ritual materials. Moreover, since the ritual is being performed “for the one being cleansed,” the antecedent of the pronoun “he” cannot refer to him. The LXX, Smr, and Syriac versions have the third person plural here and in v. 5a, which corresponds to other combinations with the verb וְצִוָּה (vÿtsivvah) “and he (the priest) shall command” in this context (see Lev 13:54; 14:36, 40). This suggests an impersonal (i.e., “someone shall take” and “someone shall slaughter,” respectively) or perhaps even passive rendering of the verbs in 14:4, 5 (i.e., “there shall be taken” and “there shall be slaughtered,” respectively). The latter option has been chosen here.
[14:4] 613 tn Heb “the one cleansing himself” (i.e., Hitpael participle of טָהֵר, taher, “to be clean”).
[14:5] 614 tn Heb “And the priest shall command and he shall slaughter.” See the note on “be taken up” (v. 4).
[14:5] 615 tn Heb “into a vessel of clay over living water.” The expression “living [i.e., ‘fresh’] water” (cf. Lev 14:50; 15:13; Num 19:17) refers to water that flows. It includes such water sources as artesian wells (Gen 26:19; Song of Songs 4:15), springs (Jer 2:13, as opposed to cisterns; cf. 17:13), and flowing streams (Zech 14:8). In other words, this is water that has not stood stagnant as, for example, in a sealed-off cistern.
[14:5] sn Although there are those who argue that the water and the blood rites are separate (e.g., E. S. Gerstenberger, Leviticus [OTL], 175-76), it is usually agreed that v. 5b refers to the slaughtering of the bird in such a way that its blood runs into the bowl, which contained fresh water (see, e.g., N. H. Snaith, Leviticus and Numbers [NCBC], 74; G. J. Wenham, Leviticus [NICOT], 208; J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:836-38; cf. esp. Lev 14:51b, “and dip them in the blood of the slaughtered bird and in the fresh water”). This mixture of blood and water was then to be sprinkled on the person being cleansed from the disease.
[14:6] 616 tc Heb “the live bird he [i.e., the priest] shall take it.” Although the MT has no ו (vav, “and”) at the beginning of this clause, a few medieval Hebrew
[14:7] 617 tn Heb “the one cleansing himself” (i.e., Hitpael participle of טָהֵר [taher, “to be clean”]).
[14:7] 618 tn Heb “and he shall make him clean.” The verb is the Piel of טָהֵר (taher, “to be clean”), here used as a so-called “declarative” Piel (i.e., “to declare clean”; cf. 13:6, etc.).
[14:7] 619 sn The reddish color of cedar wood and the crimson colored fabric called for in v. 4 (see the note there, esp. the association with the color of blood) as well as the priestly commands to bring “two live” birds (v. 4a), to slaughter one of them “over fresh water” (literally “living water,” v. 5b), and the subsequent ritual with the (second) “live” bird (vv. 6-7) combine to communicate the concept of “life” and “being alive” in this passage. This contrasts with the fear of death associated with the serious skin diseases in view here (see, e.g., Aaron’s description of Miriam’s skin disease in Num 12:12, “Do not let her be like the dead one when it goes out from its mother’s womb and its flesh half eaten away”). Since the slaughtered bird here is not sacrificed at the altar and is not designated as an expiatory “sin offering,” this ritual procedure probably symbolizes the renewed life of the diseased person and displays it publicly for all to see. It is preparatory to the expiatory rituals that will follow (vv. 10-20, esp. vv. 18-20), but is not itself expiatory. Thus, although there are important similarities between the bird ritual here, the scapegoat on the Day of Atonement (Lev 16:20-22), and the red heifer for cleansing from corpse contamination (Num 19), this bird ritual is different in that the latter two constitute “sin offerings” (Lev 16:5, 8-10; Num 19:9, 17). Neither of the birds in Lev 14:4-7 is designated or treated as a “sin offering.” Nevertheless, the very nature of the live bird ritual itself and its obvious similarity to the scapegoat ritual suggests that the patient’s disease has been removed far away so that he or she is free from its effects both personally and communally.
[14:8] 620 tn Heb “the one cleansing himself” (i.e., Hitpael participle of טָהֵר [taher, “to be clean”]).
[14:8] 621 tn Heb “and he shall be clean” (so ASV). The end result of the ritual procedures in vv. 4-7 and the washing and shaving in v. 8a is that the formerly diseased person has now officially become clean in the sense that he can reenter the community (see v. 8b; contrast living outside the community as an unclean diseased person, Lev 13:46). There are, however, further cleansing rituals and pronouncements for him to undergo in the tabernacle as outlined in vv. 10-20 (see Qal “be[come] clean” in vv. 9 and 20, Piel “pronounce clean” in v. 11, and Hitpael “the one being cleansed” in vv. 11, 14, 17, 18, and 19). Obviously, in order to enter the tabernacle he must already “be clean” in the sense of having access to the community.
[14:9] 622 tn Heb “And it shall be on the seventh day.”
[14:9] 623 tn Heb “and he shall be clean” (see the note on v. 8).
[14:10] 624 tn The subject “he” probably refers to the formerly diseased person in this case (see the notes on Lev 1:5a, 6a, and 9a).
[14:10] 625 tn This term is often rendered “fine flour,” but it refers specifically to wheat as opposed to barley (B. A. Levine, Leviticus [JPSTC], 10) and, although the translation “flour” is used here, it may indicate “grits” rather than finely ground flour (J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:179; see the note on Lev 2:1). The unit of measure is most certainly an “ephah” even though it is not stated explicitly (see, e.g., Num 28:5; cf. 15:4, 6, 8), and three-tenths of an ephah would amount to about a gallon, or perhaps one-third of a bushel (J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 196; Milgrom, 845). Since the normal amount of flour for a lamb is one-tenth of an ephah (Num 28:4-5; cf. 15:4), three-tenths is about right for the three lambs offered in Lev 14:10-20.
[14:10] 626 tn A “log” (לֹג, log) of oil is about one-sixth of a liter, or one-third of a pint, or two-thirds of a cup.
[14:11] 627 tn The MT here is awkward to translate into English. It reads literally, “and the priest who pronounces clean (Piel participle of טָהֵר, taher) shall cause to stand (Hiphil of עָמַד, ’amad) the man who is cleansing himself (Hitpael participle of טָהֵר) and them” (i.e., the offerings listed in v. 10; the referent has been specified in the translation for clarity). Alternatively, the Piel of טָהֵר could be rendered “who performs the cleansing/purification” (J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:827), perhaps even as a technical term for one who holds the office of “purification priest” (B. A. Levine, Leviticus [JPSTC], 87). It is probably better, however, to retain the same meaning here as in v. 7 above (see the note there regarding the declarative Piel use of this verb).
[14:12] 628 tn Heb “And the priest shall take the one lamb.”
[14:12] 629 tn See the note on Lev 5:15 above. The primary purpose of the “guilt offering” (אָשָׁם, ’asham) was to “atone” (כִּפֶּר, kipper, “to make atonement,” see v. 18 below and the note on Lev 1:4) for “trespassing” on the
[14:12] 630 tn Heb “wave them [as] a wave offering before the
[14:13] 631 tn Heb “And he shall slaughter.”
[14:13] 632 tn Heb “in the place which.”
[14:13] 633 sn See the note on Lev 4:3 regarding the term “sin offering.”
[14:13] 634 sn See the note on Lev 1:3 regarding the “burnt offering.”
[14:13] 635 tn Since the priest himself presents this offering as a wave offering (v. 12), it would seem that the offering is already in his hands and he would, therefore, be the one who slaughtered the male lamb in this instance rather than the offerer. Smr and LXX make the second verb “to slaughter” plural rather than singular, which suggests that it is to be taken as an impersonal passive (see J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:852).
[14:13] 636 tn Heb “the guilt offering, it [is] to the
[14:14] 637 tn Heb “and the priest shall put [literally ‘give’] on the lobe of the ear of the one being cleansed, the right one.”
[14:14] 638 tn The term for “big toe” (בֹּהֶן, bohen) is the same as that for “thumb.” It refers to the larger appendage on either the hand or the foot.
[14:15] 639 tn Heb “And the priest…shall pour on the left hand of the priest.” As the Rabbis observe, the repetition of “priest” as the expressed subject of both verbs in this verse may suggest that two priests were involved in this ritual (see m. Nega’im 14:8, referred to by J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:852), but the seemingly unnecessary repetition of “priest” in several verses throughout the chapter argues against this (see esp. vv. 3, 14, 18, 20, 24, and 26). Moreover, in this case, “priest” may be repeated to avoid confusing the priest’s hand with that of the one being cleansed (cf. v. 14).
[14:16] 640 tn Heb “his right finger from the oil.”
[14:17] 641 tn Heb “on his hand.”
[14:18] 642 tn Heb “and the remainder in the oil.”
[14:19] 643 tn Heb “do [or “make”] the sin offering.”
[14:19] 644 tn Heb “And after[ward] he [i.e., the offerer] shall slaughter.” The LXX adds “the priest” as the subject of the verb (as do several English versions, e.g., NAB, NIV, NCV, NLT), but the offerer is normally the one who does the actually slaughtering of the sacrificial animal (cf. the notes on Lev 1:5a, 6a, and 9a).
[14:20] 645 tn Heb “cause to go up.”
[14:21] 646 tn Heb “and his hand does not reach”; NAB, NRSV “and cannot afford so much (afford these NIV).”
[14:21] 647 tn See the notes on v. 10 above.
[14:22] 648 tn Heb “from the sons of the pigeon,” referring either to “young pigeons” or “various species of pigeon” (contrast J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:168 with J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 14; cf. Lev 1:14 and esp. 5:7-10).
[14:22] 649 tn Heb “which his hand reaches”; NRSV “such as (which NIV) he can afford.”
[14:22] 650 tn Heb “and one shall be a sin offering and the one a burnt offering.” The versions struggle with whether or not “one” should or should not have the definite article in its two occurrences in this verse (KJV, ASV, NAB, NASB all have the English definite article with both). The MT has the first without and the second with the article.
[14:23] 651 tn Heb “to the doorway of”; KJV, ASV “unto the door of.”
[14:24] 652 tn Heb “and the priest shall wave them.” In the present translation “priest” is not repeated a second time in the verse for stylistic reasons. With regard to the “waving” of the “wave offering,” see the note on v. 12 above.
[14:25] 653 tn Heb “and the priest shall put [literally ‘give’] on the lobe of the ear of the one being cleansed, the right one.”
[14:25] 654 tn The term for “big toe” (בֹּהֶן, bohen) is the same as that for “thumb.” It refers to the larger appendage on either the hand or the foot.
[14:26] 655 tn Heb “And from the oil the priest shall pour out on the left hand of the priest.” Regarding the repetition of “priest” in this verse see the note on v. 15 above.
[14:27] 656 tn Heb “and the priest shall sprinkle with his right finger from the oil which is on his left hand.”
[14:28] 657 tn Heb “on his hand.”
[14:29] 658 tn Heb “on the hand.”
[14:30] 660 tn Heb “the one from the turtledoves.”
[14:30] 661 tc Heb “from which his hand reaches.” The repetition of virtually the same expression at the beginning of v. 31 in the MT is probably due to dittography (cf. the LXX and Syriac). However, the MT may be retained if it is understood as “one of the turtledoves or young pigeons that are within his means – whichever he can afford” (see J. Milgrom’s translation in Leviticus [AB], 1:828, contra his commentary, 862; cf. REB).
[14:31] 662 tn Heb “and the one a burnt offering on the grain offering.”
[14:32] 663 tn Heb “This is the law of who in him [is] a diseased infection.”
[14:32] 664 tn Heb “who his hand does not reach in his purification”; NASB “whose means are limited for his cleansing”; NIV “who cannot afford the regular offerings for his cleansing.”
[14:34] 665 tn Heb “which I am giving” (so NAB, NIV).
[14:34] 667 tn Heb “in the house of the land of your possession” (KJV and ASV both similar).
[14:35] 668 tn Heb “who to him the house.”
[14:36] 669 tn Heb “And the priest shall command and they shall clear the house.” The second verb (“and they shall clear”) states the thrust of the priest’s command, which suggests the translation “that they clear” (cf. also vv. 4a and 5a above), and for the impersonal passive rendering of the active verb (“that the house be cleared”) see the note on v. 4 above.
[14:36] 670 tn Heb “to see the infection”; KJV “to see the plague”; NASB “to look at the mark (mildew NCV).”
[14:36] 671 tn Heb “all which [is] in the house.”
[14:36] 672 sn Once the priest pronounced the house “unclean” everything in it was also officially unclean. Therefore, if they emptied the house of its furniture, etc. before the official pronouncement by the priest those possessions would thereby remain officially “clean” and avoid destruction or purification procedures.
[14:36] 673 tn Heb “and after thus.”
[14:37] 674 tn Heb “and behold” (so KJV, ASV).
[14:37] 675 tn For “yellowish green and reddish” see Lev 13:49. The Hebrew term translated “eruptions” occurs only here and its meaning is uncertain. For a detailed summary of the issues and views see J. Milgrom, Leviticus (AB), 1:870. The suggestions include, among others: (1) “depressions” from Hebrew שׁקע (“sink”) or קער as the root of the Hebrew term for “bowl” (LXX, Targums, NAB, NASB, NIV; see also B. A. Levine, Leviticus [JPSTC], 90), (2) “streaks” (ASV, NJPS), (3) and “eruptions” as a loan-word from Egyptian sqr r rwtj (“eruption; rash”); cf. Milgrom, 870; J. E. Hartley, Leviticus (WBC), 198-99. The latter view is taken here.
[14:37] 676 tn The Hebrew term קִיר (qir,“wall”) refers to the surface of the wall in this case, which normally consisted of a coating of plaster made of limestone and sand (see HALOT 1099 s.v. קִיר 1.a; J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:871; J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 199).
[14:38] 677 tn Heb “and he shall shut up the house seven days.”
[14:39] 678 tn Heb “and behold” (so KJV, ASV); NASB “If the mark has indeed spread.”
[14:40] 679 tn Heb “and the priest shall command and they shall pull out the stones which in them is the infection, and they shall cast them.” The second and third verbs (“they shall pull out” and “they shall throw”) state the thrust of the priest’s command, which suggests the translation “that they pull out…and throw” (cf. also vv. 4a, 5a, and 36a above), and for the impersonal passive rendering of the active verb (“be pulled and thrown”) see the note on v. 4 above.
[14:40] 680 tn Heb “into from outside to the city.”
[14:41] 681 tn Or, according to the plurality of the verb in Smr, LXX, Syriac, and Targums, “Then the house shall be scraped” (cf. NAB, NLT, and the note on v. 40).
[14:41] 682 tn Heb “from house all around.”
[14:41] 683 tn Heb “dust” (so KJV) or “rubble”; NIV “the material”; NLT “the scrapings.”
[14:41] 684 tn Heb “which they have scraped off.” The MT term קִיר (qir, “wall” from קָצָה, qatsah, “to cut off”; BDB 892), the original Greek does not have this clause, Smr has הקיצו (with uncertain meaning), and the BHS editors and HALOT 1123-24 s.v. I קצע hif.a suggest emending the verb to הִקְצִעוּ (hiqtsi’u, see the same verb at the beginning of this verse; cf. some Greek
[14:41] 685 tn Heb “into from outside to the city.”
[14:42] 686 tn Heb “and bring into under the stones.”
[14:43] 687 tn Heb “after he has pulled out the stones, and after scraping (variant form of the Hiphil infinitive construct, GKC 531) the house, and after being replastered (Niphal infinitive construct).”
[14:44] 688 tn Heb “and behold” (so KJV, ASV); NASB “If he sees that the mark has indeed spread.”
[14:45] 689 tn Smr, LXX, Syriac, and Tg. Ps.-J. have the plural verb, perhaps suggesting a passive translation, “The house…shall be torn down” (cf. NAB, NIV, TEV, NLT, and see the note on v. 4b above).
[14:45] 690 tn Once again, Smr, LXX, and Syriac have the plural verb, perhaps to be rendered passive, “shall be brought.”
[14:46] 691 tn Heb “the one who comes into.”
[14:46] 692 tn Heb “he,” referring to the priest (see v. 38). The referent has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[14:48] 693 tn Heb “And if the priest entering [infinitive absolute] enters [finite verb]” For the infinitive absolute used to highlight contrast rather than emphasis see GKC 343 §113.p.
[14:48] 694 tn Heb “and behold” (so KJV, ASV); NASB “and the mark has not indeed spread.”
[14:49] 695 tn The pronoun “he” refers to the priest mentioned in the previous verse.
[14:49] 696 tn Regarding these ritual materials, see the note on v. 4 above.
[14:49] 697 tn Regarding the Piel of חָטָא (khata’, cf. v. 52) meaning to “decontaminate” or “perform a decontamination,” see the notes on Lev 8:15 and 9:15.
[14:49] sn In Lev 8:15, for example, the “sin offering” is used to “decontaminate” the burnt offering altar. As argued above (see the note on v. 7 above), these ritual materials and the procedures performed with them do not constitute a “sin offering” (contrast vv. 19 and 31 above). In fact, no sin offering was required for the purification of a house.
[14:50] 698 tn See the note on v. 5 above.
[14:53] 699 tn Heb “to from outside to the city.”
[14:54] 700 tn Heb “and for the scall”; NASB “a scale”; NIV “any infectious skin disease.” Cf. Lev 13:29-37.
[14:55] 701 sn Cf. Lev 13:47-59.
[14:55] 702 sn Cf. Lev 14:33-53.
[14:56] 703 sn Cf. Lev 13:9-28, 43.
[14:56] 705 sn Cf. Lev 13:4, 18-28, 38-39. For explanations of all these terms for disease in Lev 14:56 see 13:2.
[14:57] 706 tn Heb “to teach in the day of the unclean and in the day of the clean.”
[14:57] 707 tn Heb “This is the law of the disease.” Some English versions specify this as “skin disease” (e.g., NIV, NLT), but then have to add “and (+ infectious NLT) mildew” (so NIV) because a house would not be infected with a skin disease.
[14:57] sn For an explanation of the term “disease” see Lev 13:2.
[15:2] 708 tn Heb “Man man.” The reduplication is a way of saying “any man” (cf. Lev 17:3; 22:18, etc.; see the distributive repetition of the noun in GKC 395-96 §123.c).
[15:2] 709 tn The term “discharge” actually means “to flow,” whether referring to a full flow as at a spring of water (Ps 78:20 and parallels) or in reference to the promised land as “a land flowing with milk and honey” (Exod 3:8 and parallels).
[15:2] 710 tn Heb “man, man when there is a discharge from his flesh.” The repetition of the word “man” is distributive, meaning “any [or “every”] man” (GKC 395-96 §123.c). It is well-recognized that the term “flesh” (i.e., “body”) in this chapter refers regularly and euphemistically to the male and female genital members or areas of the body (HALOT 164 s.v. בָּשָׂר 5.b; see also, e.g., B. A. Levine, Leviticus [JPSTC], 93). The euphemism has been retained in this translation since it is, in fact, intended in the Hebrew text. Some English versions partially remove the euphemism (e.g., NAB “from his private parts”; NRSV “from his member”) while some remove it completely (e.g., NLT “a genital discharge”; TEV “from his penis”; CEV “with an infected penis”).
[15:3] 711 tn The LXX has “this the law of his uncleanness…” (cf. v. 32 and compare, e.g., 13:59; 14:2, 56).
[15:3] 712 tc Smr, LXX, and the Paleo-Hebrew Leviticus Scroll from Qumran (11QpaleoLev; Fragment G contains Lev 14:52-15:5 and 16:2-4, and agrees with the LXX of Lev 15:3b) are in essential (although not complete) agreement against the MT in Lev 15:3b and are to be preferred in this case. The shorter MT text has probably arisen due to a lengthy haplography. See K. A. Mathews, “The Leviticus Scroll (11QpaleoLev) and the Text of the Hebrew Bible,” CBQ 48 (1986): 177-78, 198; D. N. Freedman, “Variant Readings in the Leviticus Scroll from Qumran Cave 11,” CBQ 36 (1974): 528-29; D. N. Freedman and K. A. Mathews, The Paleo-Hebrew Leviticus Scroll, 32. The MT of Lev 15:3 reads: “Now this is his uncleanness in [regard to] his discharge – whether his body secretes his discharge or blocks his discharge, this is his uncleanness.” Smr adds after MT’s “blocks his discharge” the following: “he is unclean; all the days that his body has a discharge or his body blocks his discharge, this is his uncleanness.” Thus, the MT appears to skip from Smr טמא הוא “he is unclean” in the middle of the verse to יא/טמאתו הו “this is his uncleanness” at the end of the verse, leaving out “he is unclean; all the days that his body has a discharge or his body blocks his discharge” (cf. the BHS footnote). 11Q1 (paleoLeva frag. G) is indeed fragmentary, but it does have ימי ז בו כל “…in him, all the days of the fl[ow],” supporting Smr and LXX tradition. The LXX adds after MT “blocks his discharge” the following: “all the days of the flow of his body, by which his body is affected by the flow,” followed by “it is his uncleanness” (i.e., the last two words of the MT).
[15:3] sn The contrast between the dripping or flowing from the male sexual member as opposed to there being a blockage is important. One might not understand that even though a blockage actually causes a lack of discharge, it is still unclean.
[15:3] 713 tn Heb “it is his uncleanness,” but the last clause recapitulates the effect of the first clause in this verse, both of which introduce the regulations for such uncleanness in the following verses. In other words, whether his discharge flows from his penis or is blocked in it, he is still unclean and must proceed according to the following regulations (vv. 4ff).
[15:4] 714 tn Heb “All the bed which the man with a discharge sits on it shall be unclean”; cf. NLT “Any bedding.”
[15:4] 715 tn Heb “and all the vessel which he sits on it shall be unclean”; NASB “everything on which he sits.”
[15:5] 716 tn Heb “And a man who touches in his bed”; NLT “touch the man’s bedding.”
[15:5] 717 tn Heb “he shall wash his clothes and bathe in water and be unclean until the evening” (cf. also vv. 6-8, 10-11, etc.).
[15:7] 718 tn Heb “And the one who touches in the flesh.” In this instance, “flesh” (or “body”) probably refers literally to any part of the body, not the genitals specifically (see the discussion in J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:914).
[15:8] 719 tn Heb “And if the man with a discharge spits in the clean one.”
[15:9] 720 tn The Hebrew term for “means of riding” is a cognate noun from the verb “ride” later in this verse. It refers to anything on which one may ride without the feet touching the ground including, for example, a saddle, a (saddle) blanket, or a seat on a chariot (see, e.g., J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:916).
[15:10] 721 tn Heb “which shall be under him.” The verb is perhaps a future perfect, “which shall have been.”
[15:10] 722 tn Heb “them”; the referent (the previously mentioned items which were under the unclean person) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[15:11] 723 tn Heb “And all who the man with the discharge touches in him and his hands he has not rinsed in water.”
[15:12] 724 tn The Hebrew term כְּלִי (kÿli) can mean “vessel” (v. 12a) or “utensil, implement, article” (v. 12b). An article of clay would refer to a vessel or container of some sort, while one made of wood would refer to some kind of tool or instrument.
[15:13] 725 tn For the expression “fresh water” see the note on Lev 14:5 above.
[15:14] 726 tn Heb “from the sons of the pigeon,” referring either to “young pigeons” or “various species of pigeon” (contrast J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:168 with J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 14; cf. Lev 1:14 and esp. 5:7-10).
[15:14] 727 tc The MT has the Qal form of the verb בּוֹא (bo’) “to come” here, but the LXX (followed generally by the Syriac and Tg. Ps.-J.) reflects the Hiphil form of the same verb, “to bring” as in v. 29 below. In v. 29, however, there is no additional clause “and give them to the priest,” so the Hiphil is necessary in that context while it is not necessary here in v. 14.
[15:15] 728 sn See the note on Lev 4:3 regarding the term “sin offering.”
[15:15] 729 tn Heb “and the priest shall make them one a sin offering and the one a burnt offering.” See the note on Lev 1:3 regarding the “burnt offering.”
[15:15] 730 tn Heb “And the priest.” The Hebrew conjunction ו (vav, “and”) can be considered to have resultative force here.
[15:15] 731 tn Heb “from”; see the note on 4:26.
[15:16] 732 tn Heb “And a man when a lying of seed goes out from him”; KJV, ASV “any man’s seed of copulation”; NIV, NRSV, TEV, NLT “an emission of semen.”
[15:16] 733 tn Heb “and he shall bathe all his flesh in water.”
[15:18] 734 tn Heb “And a woman who a man lies with her a lying of seed.”
[15:19] 735 tn See the note on Lev 15:2 above.
[15:19] 736 tn Heb “blood shall be her discharge in her flesh.” The term “flesh” here refers euphemistically to the female sexual area (cf. the note on v. 2 above).
[15:19] 737 tn See the note on Lev 12:2 and R. E. Averbeck, NIDOTTE 1:925-27.
[15:23] 738 tn Heb “and if on the bed it (הוּא, hu’) is or on the vessel which she sits on it, when he touches it….” The translation and meaning of this verse is a subject of much debate in the commentaries (see the summary in J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:938-40). It is difficult to determine what הוּא refers to, whether it means “he” referring to the one who does the touching, “it” for the furniture or the seat in v. 22, “she” referring to the woman herself (see Smr היא rather than הוא), or perhaps anything that was lying on the furniture or the bed of vv. 21-22. The latter view is taken here (cf. J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 202).
[15:23] 739 tn The MT accent suggest that “when he touches it” goes with the preceding line, but it seems to be better to take it as an introduction to what follows (see J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 202).
[15:24] 740 tn Heb “and if a man indeed lies with her and her menstrual impurity is on him.”
[15:25] 741 tn Heb “And a woman when the flow of her blood flows.”
[15:25] 742 tn Heb “in not the time of her menstruation or when it flows on her menstruation.”
[15:27] 743 tn See the note on v. 5 above.
[15:28] 744 tn Heb “And if…” Although this clause is parallel to v. 13 above, it begins with וְאִם (vÿ’im, “and if”) here rather than וְכִי (vÿkhi, “and when/if”) there.
[15:29] 745 tn Heb “from the sons of the pigeon,” referring either to “young pigeons” or “various species of pigeon” (contrast J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:168 with J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 14; cf. Lev 1:14 and esp. 5:7-10).
[15:30] 746 tn Heb “And the priest shall make the one a sin offering and the one a burnt offering.”
[15:30] 747 tn Heb “And the priest.” The Hebrew conjunction ו (vav, “and”) can be considered to have resultative force here.
[15:31] 748 tn Heb “And you shall.” The Hebrew conjunction ו (vav, “and”) can be considered to have resultative force here (cf. KJV, ASV, NASB, NCV, NRSV).
[15:31] 749 tn Heb “and they.” Here the Hebrew conjunction ו (vav, “and”) indicates a negative purpose (“lest,” so NAB, NASB).
[15:32] 750 tn Heb “and who a lying of seed goes out from him.”
[15:32] 751 tn Heb “to become unclean in it.”
[15:33] 752 tn Heb “and the one with a discharge, his discharge to the male and the female.”
[15:33] 753 tn Heb “and for a man.”
[16:1] 754 tn Heb “in their drawing near to the faces of the
[16:2] 755 tn Heb “into the holy place from house to the veil-canopy.” In this instance, the Hebrew term “the holy place” refers to “the most holy place” (lit. “holy of holies”), since it is the area “inside the veil-canopy” (cf. Exod 26:33-34). The Hebrew term פָּרֹכֶת (parokhet) is usually translated “veil” or “curtain,” but it seems to have stretched not only in front of but also over the top of the ark of the covenant which stood behind and under it inside the most holy place, and thus formed more of a canopy than simply a curtain (see R. E. Averbeck, NIDOTTE 3:687-89).
[16:2] 756 tn Heb “to the faces of the atonement plate.” The exact meaning of the Hebrew term כַּפֹּרֶת (kapporet) here rendered “atonement plate” is much debated. The traditional “mercy seat” (KJV, ASV, NASB, NRSV) does not suit the cognate relationship between this term and the Piel verb כִּפֶּר (kipper, “to make atonement, to make expiation”). The translation of the word should also reflect the fact that the most important atonement procedures on the Day of Atonement were performed in relation to it. Since the
[16:3] 757 tn Heb “with a bull, a son of the herd.”
[16:3] 758 sn See the note on Lev 4:3 regarding the term “sin offering.”
[16:3] 759 sn For the “burnt offering” see the note on Lev 1:3.
[16:4] 760 sn The term “tunic” refers to a shirt-like garment worn next to the skin and, therefore, put on first (cf. Exod 28:4, 39-40; 29:5, 8; 39:27). It covered the upper body only. For detailed remarks on the terminology for the priestly clothing in this verse (except the “linen leggings”) see the notes on Lev 8:7-9 and the literature cited there.
[16:4] 761 tn Heb “shall be on his flesh.” As in many instances in Lev 15, the term “flesh” or “body” here is euphemistic for the male genitals (J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:1017, and J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 222; cf. the note on Lev 15:2), which the priest must be careful not to expose during such ritual procedures (see Exod 20:26 with 28:42-43).
[16:4] 762 sn The sash fastened the tunic around the waist (Exod 28:4, 39; 29:9; 39:29).
[16:4] 763 tn Heb “and in a turban of linen he shall wrap.”
[16:4] sn The turban consisted of wound up linen (cf. Exod 28:4, 37, 39; 29:6; 39:31; Lev 16:4). It is usually thought to be a “turban,” but it might be only a “turban-like headband” wound around the forehead area (HALOT 624 s.v. מִצְנֶפֶת).
[16:4] 764 tn Heb “and he shall bathe….”
[16:5] 765 tn Heb “And he shall take.”
[16:5] 766 tn Heb “he-goats of goats”; CEV “two goats, both of them males.”
[16:7] 767 tn Heb “the two he-goats,” referred to as “two he-goats of goats” in v. 5.
[16:8] 768 tn Heb “and Aaron shall give lots on the two he-goats.” See the note on Lev 8:8 for the priestly casting of lots in Israel and the explanation in B. A. Levine, Leviticus (JPSTC), 102, on Lev 16:8-9. J. Milgrom, Leviticus (AB), 1:1019-20, suggests, however, that the expression here signifies that, the lots having been cast, the priest was to literally “place” (Heb “give”) the one marked “for the
[16:8] 769 tn The meaning of the Hebrew term עֲזָאזֵל (’aza’zel, four times in the OT, all of them in this chapter; vv. 8, 10 [2 times], and 26) is much debated. There are three or perhaps four major views (see the summaries and literature cited in J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:1020-21; B. A. Levine, Leviticus [JPSTC], 102; J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 237-38; D. P. Wright, The Disposal of Impurity [SBLDS], 21-25; M. V. Van Pelt and W. C. Kaiser, NIDOTTE 3:362-63; and M. S. Moore, NIDOTTE 4:421-22). (1) Some derive the term from a combination of the Hebrew word עֵז (’ez, “goat”; i.e., the word for “goats” in v. 5) and אָזַל (’azal, “to go away”), meaning “the goat that departs” or “scapegoat” (cf., e.g., the LXX and KJV, NASB, NIV, NLT). This meaning suits the ritual practice of sending the so-called “scapegoat” away into the wilderness (vv. 10, 21-22, 26). Similarly, some derive the term from Arabic ’azala (“to banish, remove”), meaning “entire removal” as an abstract concept (see BDB 736 s.v. עֲזָאזֵל). (2) Some see the term as a description of the wilderness area to which the goat was dispatched, deriving it somehow from Arabic ’azazu (“rough ground”) or perhaps עָזָז, (’azaz, “to be strong, fierce”). (3) The most common view among scholars today is that it is the proper name of a particular demon (perhaps even the Devil himself) associated with the wilderness desert regions. Levine has proposed that it may perhaps derive from a reduplication of the ז (zayin) in עֵז combined with אֵל (’el, “mighty”), meaning “mighty goat.” The final consonantal form of עֲזָאזֵל would have resulted from the inversion of the א (aleph) with the second ז. He makes the point that the close association between עֵז and שְׂעִירִים (shÿ’irim), which seems to refer to “goat-demons” of the desert in Lev 17:7 (cf. Isa 13:21, etc.), should not be ignored in the derivation of Azazel, although the term ultimately became the name of “the demonic ruler of the wilderness.” The latter view is supported by the parallel between the one goat “for (לְ, lamed preposition) the
[16:9] 770 tn Heb “which the lot has gone up on it for the
[16:10] 771 tn The LXX has “he shall stand it” (cf. v. 7).
[16:10] 772 tn Heb “to make atonement on it to send it away to Azazel toward the wilderness.”
[16:12] 773 tn Heb “and he shall take the fullness of the censer, coals of fire, from on the altar from to the faces of the
[16:12] 774 tn Heb “and the fullness of the hollow of his two hands, finely ground fragrant incense.”
[16:12] 775 tn Heb “and he shall bring from house to the veil-canopy.”
[16:13] 776 tn The text here has only “above the testimony,” but this is surely a shortened form of “above the ark of the testimony” (see Exod 25:22 etc.; cf. Lev 16:2). The term “testimony” in this expression refers to the ark as the container of the two stone tablets with the Ten Commandments written on them (see Exod 25:16 with Deut 10:1, 5, etc.).
[16:13] 777 tn Heb “and he will not die,” but it is clear that the purpose for the incense cloud was to protect the priest from death in the presence of the
[16:14] 778 tn Heb “on the faces of the atonement plate toward the east.” Some have taken this to mean that the ark was stationed just behind the veil-canopy on the eastern side of the most holy place. Thus, the high priest would need to enter and walk toward the west end of the most holy place and then turn eastward in order to face the ark and sprinkle the blood in an eastward direction. The rendering here, however, requires that the ark was stationed on the western end, or perhaps in the middle of the area, so that as the priest entered he was already facing the ark and would sprinkle the blood on the eastern face of the atonement plate, in a westward direction (see, e.g., J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 239 versus J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:1032).
[16:14] 779 sn Presumably in this case the blood was sprinkled seven times on the ground in front of the ark on which the atonement plate was mounted.
[16:15] 780 tn Heb “and he shall bring its blood into from house to the veil-canopy.”
[16:16] 781 tn Heb “And.” The Hebrew conjunction ו (vav, “and”) can be considered to have resultative or even inferential force here.
[16:16] 782 tn Heb “to all their sins.”
[16:17] 783 tn Heb “And all man shall not be in the tent of meeting.” The term for “a man, human being” (אָדָם, ’adam; see the note on Lev 1:2) refers to any person among “mankind,” male or female.
[16:18] 784 tn Heb “And.” The Hebrew conjunction ו (vav, “and”) indicates the sequence of events here.
[16:18] 785 tn Heb “And he shall take.”
[16:19] 786 tn Heb “and he shall purify it and he shall consecrate it.”
[16:20] 787 tn Heb “And he shall finish from atoning the holy place.” In this case, the “holy place” etc. are direct objects of the verb “to atone” (cf. v. 33a below). In this case, therefore, the basic meaning of the verb (i.e., “to purge” or “wipe clean”) comes to the forefront. When the prepositions עַל (’al) or בֲּעַד (ba’ad) occur with the verb כִּפֶּר (kipper) the purging is almost always being done “for” or “on behalf of” priests or people (see the note on Lev 1:4 as well as R. E. Averbeck, NIDOTTE 2:698, the literature cited there, and B. A. Levine, Leviticus [JPSTC], 110, for more details).
[16:21] 788 tn Heb “transgressions to all their sins.”
[16:21] 789 tn Heb “and he shall give them.”
[16:21] 790 tn The meaning of the Hebrew term עִתִּי (’itti) is uncertain. It is apparently related to עֵת (’et, “time”), and could perhaps mean either that he has been properly “appointed” (i.e., designated) for the task (e.g., NIV and NRSV) or “ready” (e.g., NASB and NEB).
[16:22] 791 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] 792 tn Heb “and he [the man (standing) ready, v. 21] shall send the goat away.”
[16:23] 793 tn Heb “And Aaron shall enter.”
[16:24] 794 tn Heb “And he shall make atonement.”
[16:24] 795 tn Heb “on behalf of himself and on behalf of the people.” After “on behalf of himself” the LXX adds the expected “and on behalf of his household” (cf. vv. 6, 11, and 17).
[16:25] 796 tn Heb “And the fat of the sin offering he is to offer up.”
[16:26] 797 tn For “Azazel” see the note on v. 8 above.
[16:27] 798 tn Heb “he shall bring into from outside to the camp.”
[16:27] 799 tn Heb “they shall burn with fire”; KJV “burn in the fire.” Because “to burn with fire” is redundant in contemporary English the present translation simply has “must be burned up.”
[16:29] 800 tn Heb “And it [feminine] shall be for you a perpetual statute.” Verse 34 begins with the same clause except for the missing demonstrative pronoun “this” here in v. 29. The LXX has “this” in both places and it suits the sense of the passage, although both the verb and the pronoun are sometimes missing in this clause elsewhere in the book (see, e.g., Lev 3:17).
[16:29] 801 tn Heb “you shall humble your souls.” The verb “to humble” here refers to various forms of self-denial, including but not limited to fasting (cf. Ps 35:13 and Isa 58:3, 10). The Mishnah (m. Yoma 8:1) lists abstentions from food and drink, bathing, using oil as an unguent to moisten the skin, wearing leather sandals, and sexual intercourse (cf. 2 Sam 12:16-17, 20; see the remarks in J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:1054; B. A. Levine, Leviticus [JPSTC], 109; and J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 242).
[16:29] 802 tn Heb “and all work you shall not do.”
[16:29] 803 tn Heb “the native and the sojourner who sojourns.”
[16:30] 804 tn The phrase “from all your sins” could go with the previous clause as the verse is rendered here (see, e.g., B. A. Levine, Leviticus [JPSTC], 109, and J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:1011), or it could go with the following clause (i.e., “you shall be clean from all your sins before the
[16:31] 805 tn See the note on v. 29 above.
[16:31] 806 tn Compare v. 29a above.
[16:32] 807 tn Heb “And the priest whom he shall anointed him and whom he shall fill his hand to act as priest under his father.” Imperfect active verbs are often used as passives (see, e.g., v. 27 above and the note on Lev 14:4).
[16:33] 808 tn Heb “to atone” (also later in this verse); see the note on “purifying the holy place” in 16:20.
[16:33] 809 tn Heb “the sanctuary of the holy place.” Although this is the only place this expression occurs in the OT, it clearly refers to the innermost shrine behind the veil-canopy, where the ark of the covenant was located.
[16:33] 810 tn Heb “and the tent of meeting and the alter he shall atone.” The repetition of the verb כִּפֶּר (kipper, “to atone”) at the beginning and end of the sequence appears to be strange, but the MT accents suggest that only “the Most Holy Place” goes with the verb at the beginning of the verse. Of course, the purging of “the Most Holy Place” has been the main emphasis of this chapter from the start (see vv. 2-3 and 11-17).
[16:33] 811 tn At this point in the verse the verb כִּפֶּר (kipper, “to make atonement”) takes its object with the preposition עַל (’al, “for”; literally, “upon”; contrast the first part of the verse and cf. the notes on Lev 1:4 and 16:20 above).
[16:34] 812 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] 813 tn Heb “from”; see note on 4:26.
[16:34] 814 tn Heb “one [feminine] in the year.”
[16:34] 815 tn The MT of Lev 16:34b reads literally, “and he did just as the
