Leviticus 22:17-33

17 ADONAI said to Moshe,

18 "Speak to Aharon and his sons and to the entire people of Isra'el; tell them: 'When anyone, whether a member of the house of Isra'el or a foreigner living in Isra'el, brings his offering, either in connection with a vow or as a voluntary offering, and brings it to ADONAI as a burnt offering,

19 in order for you to be accepted, you must bring a male without defect from the cattle, the sheep or the goats.

20 You are not to bring anything with a defect, because it will not be accepted from you.

21 Whoever brings a sacrifice of peace offerings to ADONAI in fulfillment of a vow or as a voluntary offering, whether it come from the herd or from the flock, it must be unblemished and without defect in order to be accepted.

22 If it is blind, injured, mutilated, has an abnormal growth or has festering or running sores, you are not to offer it to ADONAI or make such an offering by fire on the altar to ADONAI.

23 If a bull or lamb has a limb which is too long or short, you may offer it as a voluntary offering; but for a vow it will not be accepted.

24 An animal with bruised, crushed, torn or cut genitals you are not to offer to ADONAI. You are not to do these things in your land,

25 and you are not to receive any of these from a foreigner for you to offer as bread for your God, because their deformity is a defect in them - they will not be accepted from you.'"

26 ADONAI said to Moshe,

27 "When a bull, sheep or goat is born, it is to stay with its mother for seven days; but from the eighth day on, it may be accepted for an offering made by fire to ADONAI.

28 However, no animal is to be slaughtered together with its young on the same day, neither cow nor ewe.

29 "When you offer a sacrifice of thanksgiving to ADONAI, you must do it in a way such that you will be accepted.

30 It must be eaten on the same day it is offered; leave none of it till morning; I am ADONAI.

31 "You are to keep my mitzvot and obey them; I am ADONAI.

32 You are not to profane my holy name; on the contrary, I am to be regarded as holy among the people of Isra'el; I am ADONAI, who makes you holy,

33 who brought you out of the land of Egypt to be your God; I am ADONAI."

Leviticus 22:17-33 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO LEVITICUS 22

In this chapter several laws are delivered out, forbidding the priests to eat of holy things, when in any uncleanness, or at any time what dies of itself, or is torn of beasts, Le 22:1-9; also showing who belonging to the priests might or might not eat of the holy things, Le 22:10-16; and others requiring that whatever offerings were brought by the children, of Israel, they should be perfect and without blemish, Le 22:17-25; and also declaring what age a creature should be of when sacrificed, and the time when thank offerings were to be eaten, Le 22:26-30; concluding with an exhortation to observe the commands of God, and sanctify him, and not profane his name, Le 22:31-33.