Imamat 23:3

The Weekly Sabbath

23:3 “‘Six days work may be done, but on the seventh day there must be a Sabbath of complete rest, ¹  a holy assembly. You must not do any work; it is a Sabbath to the Lord in all the places where you live.

Imamat 23:14

23:14 You must not eat bread, roasted grain, or fresh grain until this very day, ²  until you bring the offering of your God. This is a perpetual statute throughout your generations ³  in all the places where you live.

Imamat 23:17

23:17 From the places where you live you must bring two loaves of ⁴  bread for a wave offering; they must be made from two tenths of an ephah of fine wheat flour, baked with yeast, ⁵  as first fruits to the Lord.

[23:3]  ¹ tn This is a superlative expression, emphasizing the full and all inclusive rest of the Sabbath and certain festival times throughout the chapter (see B. A. Levine, Leviticus [JPSTC], 155). Cf. ASV “a sabbath of solemn rest.”

[23:14]  ² tn Heb “until the bone of this day.”

[23:14]  ³ tn Heb “for your generations.”

[23:17]  ⁴ tc Smr, LXX, Syriac, Tg. Onq., and Tg. Ps.-J. insert the word חַלּוֹת (khallot, “loaves”; cf. Lev 2:4 and the note there). Even though “loaves” is not explicit in the MT, the number “two” suggests that these are discrete units, not just a measure of flour, so “loaves” should be assumed even in the MT.

[23:17]  ⁵ tn Heb “with leaven.” The noun “leaven” is traditional in English versions (cf. KJV, ASV, NASB, NRSV), but “yeast” is more commonly used today.