Deuteronomy 18:3

3 And this shall be the priest's due from the people, from them that sacrifice a sacrifice, whether ox, or sheep: they shall give unto the priest the shoulder, and the jawbones, and the maw.

Deuteronomy 18:3 Meaning and Commentary

Deuteronomy 18:3

And this shall be the priest's due from the people, from them
that offer sacrifice
Not from the priests, as Jarchi observes, but from those that bring the sacrifices to the priests, particularly the peace offerings:

whether it be ox or sheep;
the one of the herd, the other of the flock, creatures used in sacrifice, and takes in goats and the kids of them, rams and lambs:

and they shall give unto the priest the shoulder, and the two cheeks,
and the maw;
the first of these designs the upper part of the arm that joins to the neck and back, and the next the two cheeks with the tongue, as both Jarchi and Aben Ezra observe, and indeed the whole head is meant; the maw, which the Septuagint interpreters call (enustron) , and other writers (hnustron) , is, according to the philosopher F16, the fourth and last ventricle or stomach, and which he thus describes;

``after the echinus or rough tripe is that which is called (hnustron) , the maw, which is in size larger than the echinus, and in form longer, and has many large and smooth folds;''

and (hnustron boov) , the maw of an ox, and the belly of a swine, are reckoned by the poet F17 as delicious food.


FOOTNOTES:

F16 Aristot. Hist. Animal. l. 2. c. 17.
F17 Aristophan. Equites, Act. 1. Sc. 3. p. 307. & Act. 4. Sc. 1. p. 355.

Deuteronomy 18:3 In-Context

1 The priests, the Levites, [and] the whole tribe of Levi, shall have no portion nor inheritance with Israel: Jehovah's offerings by fire, and his inheritance shall they eat,
2 but they shall have no inheritance among their brethren: Jehovah, he is their inheritance, as he hath said unto them.
3 And this shall be the priest's due from the people, from them that sacrifice a sacrifice, whether ox, or sheep: they shall give unto the priest the shoulder, and the jawbones, and the maw.
4 The firstfruits [also] of thy corn, of thy new wine, and of thine oil, and the firstfruits of the shearing of thy sheep, shalt thou give him;
5 for Jehovah thy God hath chosen him out of all thy tribes, that he may stand to serve in the name of Jehovah, he and his sons continually.

Footnotes 1

The Darby Translation is in the public domain.