Deuteronomy 18:3

3 And this shall be the priest's due from the people, from them that offer a sacrifice, whether it be ox or sheep; and they shall give unto the priest the shoulder, and the two cheeks, 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 all the tribe of Levi, shall have no part nor inheritance with Israel: they shall eat the offerings of the LORD made by fire, and his inheritance.
2 Therefore shall they have no inheritance among their brethren: the LORD is their inheritance, as he hath said unto them.
3 And this shall be the priest's due from the people, from them that offer a sacrifice, whether it be ox or sheep; and they shall give unto the priest the shoulder, and the two cheeks, and the maw.
4 The firstfruit also of thy corn, of thy wine, and of thine oil, and the first of the fleece of thy sheep, shalt thou give him.
5 For the LORD thy God hath chosen him out of all thy tribes, to stand to minister in the name of the LORD, him and his sons for ever.
The King James Version is in the public domain.