Leviticus 7

The Restitution Offering

1 "Now this is the law of the restitution offering;^[a] it is especially holy.

2 The restitution offering must be slaughtered at the place where the burnt offering is slaughtered,^[b] and the priest is to sprinkle its blood on all sides of the altar.

3 The offerer must present all the fat from it: the fat tail,^[c] the fat surrounding the entrails,^[d]

4 and the two kidneys with the fat on them at the loins; he will also remove the fatty lobe of the liver with the kidneys.^[e]

5 The priest will burn them on the altar as a fire offering to the Lord; it is a restitution offering.

6 Any male among the priests may eat it. It is to be eaten in a holy place; it is especially holy.^[f]

7 "The restitution offering is like the sin offering; the law is the same for both. It belongs to the priest who makes atonement with it.^[g]

8 As for the priest who presents someone's burnt offering, the hide of the burnt offering he has presented belongs to him; it is the priest's.

9 Any grain offering that is baked in an oven, or prepared in a pan or on a griddle,^[h] belongs to the priest who presents it; it is his.

10 But any grain offering, whether dry or mixed with oil, belongs equally^[i] to all of Aaron's sons.^[j]

The Fellowship Sacrifice

11 "Now this is the law of the fellowship sacrifice^[k] that someone may present to the Lord:

12 If he presents it for thanksgiving, in addition to the thanksgiving sacrifice,^{[l] [m]} he is to present unleavened cakes mixed with olive oil, unleavened wafers coated with oil, and well-kneaded cakes of fine flour mixed with oil.

13 He is to present as his offering cakes of leavened bread,^[n] with his thanksgiving sacrifice of fellowship.

14 From the cakes he must present one [portion] of each offering as a contribution to the Lord. It will belong to the priest who sprinkles the blood of the fellowship offering; it is his.

15 The meat of his thanksgiving sacrifice of fellowship must be eaten on the day he offers it; he may not leave any of it until morning.^[o]

16 "If the sacrifice he offers is a vow^[p] or a freewill offering,^{[q] [r]} it is to be eaten on the day he presents his sacrifice, and what is left over may be eaten on the next day.

17 But what remains of the sacrificial meat by the third day must be burned up.

18 If any of the meat of his fellowship sacrifice is eaten on the third day, it will not be accepted. It will not be credited to the one who presents it; it is repulsive. The person who eats any of it will be guilty.^{[s] [t]}

19 "Meat that touches anything unclean must not be eaten; it is to be burned up. Everyone who is clean may eat any [other] meat.

20 But the one who eats meat from the Lord's fellowship sacrifice while he is unclean,^[u] that person must be cut off from his people.

21 If someone touches anything unclean,^[v] whether human uncleanness, an unclean animal, or any unclean, detestable^[w] creature, and eats meat from the Lord's fellowship sacrifice, that person must be cut off from his people."

Fat and Blood Prohibited

22 The Lord spoke to Moses:

23 "Tell the Israelites: You are not to eat any fat^[x] of an ox, a sheep, or a goat.

24 The fat of an animal that dies naturally or is mauled by wild beasts^[y] may be used for any purpose, but you must not eat it.^[z]

25 If anyone eats animal fat from a fire offering presented to the Lord, the person who eats [it] must be cut off from his people.

26 Wherever you live, you must not eat the blood^[aa] of any bird or animal.

27 Whoever eats any blood, that person must be cut off from his people."

The Portion for the Priests

28 The Lord spoke to Moses:

29 "Tell the Israelites: The one who presents a fellowship sacrifice to the Lord must bring an offering to the Lord from his sacrifice.

30 His own hands will bring the fire offerings to the Lord. He will bring the fat together with the breast. The breast is to be waved as a presentation offering before the Lord.^[ab]

31 The priest is to burn the fat on the altar, but the breast belongs to Aaron and his sons.

32 You are to give the right thigh to the priest as a contribution from your fellowship sacrifices.

33 The son of Aaron who presents the blood of the fellowship offering and the fat will have the right thigh as a portion.

34 I have taken from the Israelites the breast of the presentation offering and the thigh of the contribution from their fellowship sacrifices, and have assigned them to Aaron the priest and his sons as a permanent portion^[ac] from the Israelites."

35 This is the portion from the fire offerings to the Lord for Aaron and his sons^[ad] since the day they were presented to serve the Lord as priests.

36 The Lord commanded this to be given to them by the Israelites on the day He anointed them. It is a permanent portion^[ae] throughout their generations.

37 This is the law for the burnt offering, the grain offering, the sin offering, the restitution offering, the ordination offering,^[af] and the fellowship sacrifice,

38 which the Lord commanded Moses on Mount Sinai on the day He^[ag] commanded the Israelites to present their offerings to the Lord in the Wilderness of Sinai.^[ah]

Leviticus 7 Commentary

Chapter 7

Concerning the trespass-offering. (1-10) Concerning the peace-offering. (11-27) The wave and heave offerings. (28-34) The conclusion of these institutions. (35-38)

Verses 1-10 In the sin-offering and the trespass-offering, the sacrifice was divided between the altar and the priest; the offerer had no share, as he had in the peace-offerings. The former expressed repentance and sorrow for sin, therefore it was more proper to fast than feast; the peace-offerings denoted communion with a reconciled God in Christ, the joy and gratitude of a pardoned sinner, and the privileges of a true believer.

Verses 11-27 As to the peace-offerings, in the expression of their sense of mercy, God left them more at liberty, than in the expression of their sense of sin; that their sacrifices, being free-will offerings, might be the more acceptable, while, by obliging them to bring the sacrifices of atonement, God shows the necessity of the great Propitiation. The main reason why blood was forbidden of old, was because the Lord had appointed blood for an atonement. This use, being figurative, had its end in Christ, who by his death and blood-shedding caused the sacrifices to cease. Therefore this law is not now in force on believers.

Verses 28-34 The priest who offered, was to have the breast and the right shoulder. When the sacrifice was killed, the offerer himself must present God's part of it; that he might signify his cheerfully giving it up to God. He was with his own hands to lift it up, in token of his regard to God as the God of heaven; and then to wave it to and fro, in token of his regard to God as the Lord of the whole earth. Be persuaded and encouraged to feed and feast upon Christ, our Peace-offering. This blessed Peace-offering is not for the priests only, for saints of the highest rank and greatest eminence, but for the common people also. Take heed of delay. Many think to repent and return to God when they are dying and dropping into hell; but they should eat the peace-offering, and eat it now. Stay not till the day of the Lord's patience be run out, for eating the third day will not be accepted, nor will catching at Christ when thou art gone to hell!

Verses 35-38 Solemn acts of religious worship are not things which we may do or not do at our pleasure; it is at our peril if we omit them. An observance of the laws of Christ cannot be less necessary than of the laws of Moses.

Footnotes

• [a]. Lv 5:14-6:7; Isa 53:10
• [b]. Lv 1:11
• [c]. Lv 3:9; 8:25; 9:19; Ex 29:22
• [d]. LXX, Sam add and all the fat that is on the entrails; Lv 3:3,9,14; 4:8
• [e]. Lv 3:3-4,9-10,14-15
• [f]. Lv 7:1; Ezk 42:13; 44:12-13
• [g]. Lv 4:1-5:13
• [h]. Lv 2:4-10
• [i]. Lit oil, will be a man like his brother
• [j]. 1 Co 9:13-14
• [k]. Lv 3:1-17
• [l]. The thanksgiving sacrifice is the first of three kinds of fellowship sacrifices. It was given to express gratitude to God (Jr 33:11) in circumstances such as answered prayer (Ps 50:14-15) or safe travel (Ps 107:22-25).
• [m]. Lv 22:29; 2 Ch 29:31; 33:16; Jr 33:11
• [n]. Although yeast was prohibited from being burned on the altar (Lv 2:11), leavened bread could still be an offering (Lv 23:17-20) to be eaten by the priests and their families.
• [o]. Lv 19:5-8; Ex 34:25; Dt 16:4
• [p]. The vow offering, the second category of fellowship sacrifice, was brought as an expression of gratitude to fulfill a vow; Gn 28:20; 2 Sm 15:7-8; Pr 7:14.
• [q]. The freewill offering, the third category of fellowship sacrifice, was a voluntary expression of gratitude toward God for any reason; Dt 16:10; Ps 54:6.
• [r]. Nm 15:3,8; Dt 12:6,17; Ezk 46:12
• [s]. Or will bear his guilt
• [t]. Lv 5:17; 19:8; 22:16
• [u]. Lit while his uncleanness is upon him
• [v]. Lv 5:2-3
• [w]. Some Hb mss, Sam, Syr, Tg read swarming
• [x]. Lv 3:16-17
• [y]. Lit fat of a carcass or the fat of a mauled beast
• [z]. Lv 17:15; 22:8; Ex 22:31
• [aa]. Lv 17:10-12; Gn 9:3-4; Dt 12:16,23
• [ab]. Ex 29:24
• [ac]. Or statute
• [ad]. Mt 10:10; 1 Co 9:13-14; 1 Tm 5:17-18
• [ae]. Or statute
• [af]. Lv 8:22,28-33; Ex 29:22,26,31-34
• [ag]. Or he
• [ah]. Lv 26:46; Ex 31:18; 34:32; Neh 9:13

Chapter Summary

INTRODUCTION TO LEVITICUS 7

The several things contained in this chapter are the law of the trespass offering, Le 7:1-7 the portion the priests had in the burnt offerings and meat offerings, Le 7:8-10 the law of the peace offerings, whether by way of thanksgiving, or a vow, or voluntary oblation, Le 7:11-21 the prohibition of fat and blood, Le 7:22-27 the parts the priests should have in the peace offerings, the breast and right shoulder, Le 7:28-36 and the chapter is concluded with a recapitulation of the various things contained in this and the preceding chapters, Le 7:37,38.