Leviticus 22:20

20 '¹Whatever * has a defect, you shall not offer, for it will not be accepted for you.

Leviticus 22:20 Meaning and Commentary

Leviticus 22:20

For whatsoever hath a blemish, that shall ye not offer
Which is the general rule, the particulars of which are after given, and which has been imitated by the Heathens. The Egyptians, as they only sacrificed the males of beeves, so they were very curious in examining them, that they might be entirely pure and perfect ^F19; and it was a custom among the Romans, that such sheep should be chosen for sacrifice, in which there was nothing wanting ^F20; and so, among the Grecians, Homer ^F21 speaks of perfect goats offered in sacrifice to appease the gods: for it shall not be acceptable for you;
be grateful to God, and accepted by him on their account, if blemished; see ( Malachi 1:13 Malachi 1:14 ) .

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FOOTNOTES:

F19 Heredot. Euterpe, sive, l. 2. c. 38.
F20 Servius in Virgil. Aeneid. l. 4.
F21 Iliad. 1. ver. 66.

Leviticus 22:20 In-Context

18 "Speak to Aaron and to his sons and to all the sons of Israel and say to them, 'Any man of the house of Israel or of the aliens in Israel who presents his offering, whether it is any of their votive or any of their freewill offerings, which they present to the LORD for a burnt offering -

19 for you to be accepted -it must be a male without defect from the cattle, the sheep, or the goats.

20 'Whatever has a defect, you shall not offer, for it will not be accepted for you.

21 'When a man offers a sacrifice of peace offerings to the LORD to fulfill a special vow or for a freewill offering, of the herd or of the flock, it must be perfect to be accepted; there shall be no defect in it.

22 'Those that are blind or fractured or maimed or having a running sore or eczema or scabs, you shall not offer to the LORD , nor make of them an offering by fire on the altar to the LORD .

Cross References

• 1. Deuteronomy 15:21; Deuteronomy 17:1; Malachi 1:8, 14; Hebrews 9:14; 1 Peter 1:19