Deuteronomy 18:1

Portion of the Levites

1 "1The Levitical priests, the whole tribe of Levi, shall have no portion or inheritance with Israel; they shall eat the LORD'S offerings by fire and His portion.

Deuteronomy 18:1 Meaning and Commentary

Deuteronomy 18:1

The priests, the Levites, and all the tribe of Levi, shall have
no part nor inheritance with Israel
That is, in the land of Canaan, in the division of it among the tribes:

they shall eat the offerings of the Lord made by fire, and his
inheritance;
the meat offerings, see ( Leviticus 2:2 Leviticus 2:3 ) ( Leviticus 6:17 Leviticus 6:18 ) , and whatsoever of the sin offerings and peace offerings which were the Lord's; so Ben Melech says, the flesh of the offerings which belonged to the priests was called fire offerings, after part of it was consumed by fire. All these, with other things, ( Numbers 18:8 Numbers 18:9 ) , were given, as the Targum of Jonathan expresses it, for their inheritance, in lieu of their having none in the land of Canaan.

Deuteronomy 18:1 In-Context

1 "The Levitical priests, the whole tribe of Levi, shall have no portion or inheritance with Israel; they shall eat the LORD'S offerings by fire and His portion.
2 "They shall have no inheritance among their countrymen; the LORD is their inheritance, as He promised them.
3 "Now this shall be the priests' due from the people, from those who offer a sacrifice, either an ox or a sheep, of which they shall give to the priest the shoulder and the two cheeks and the stomach.
4 "You shall give him the first fruits of your grain, your new wine, and your oil, and the first shearing of your sheep.
5 "For the LORD your God has chosen him and his sons from all your tribes, to stand and serve in the name of the LORD forever .

Cross References 1

  • 1. Deuteronomy 10:9; 1 Corinthians 9:13

Footnotes 1

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