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OET-RV LEV

This is still a very early look into the unfinished text of the Open English Translation of the Bible. Please double-check the text in advance before using in public.

LEV - Open English Translation—Readers’ Version (OET-RV) v0.1.02

ESFM v0.6 LEV

WORDTABLE OET-LV_OT_word_table.tsv

The handbook of

Sacred Living

commonly known as

Leviticus

Introduction

The Latin word Leviticus means ‘concerning the Levites’, who were the tribe of workers and priests who God chose to serve him at the altar and in other religious ceremonies. Hebrew readers call this document ‘Vayikrā’ which is the first word in the Hebrew and means ‘And he called’ (Yahweh called Mosheh/Moses). Some European and other translations call it ‘The third book of Mosheh/Moses’.

It’s presumed that Mosheh wrote this document down while they were all camped there at Mt. Sinai as mentioned in a few places: 1:1, 4:1, 6:1,24, and of 8:1.

This document focuses on the proper values and behaviour that the Israelis should observe as Yahweh’s chosen and sacred people. That involved staying ‘clean’ as per Yahweh’s values by carefully following his detailed instructions, and by avoiding wickedness.

Some of the instructions apply particularly to the priests (Aharon’s/Aaron’s descendants) and to the remainder of their own tribe (the Levites that this document is often named after) who served the priests in their sacred ceremonies.

Main components of this account

Instructions about offerings and sacrifices 1:1-7:38

The dedication of Aharon and his sons as Yahweh’s priests 8:1-10:20

Instructions about ‘clean’ and ‘unclean’ 11:1-15:33

The day for getting right with Yahweh 16:1-34

Instructions for living and worshipping as a sacred people 17:1-27:34

This is still a very early look into the unfinished text of the Open English Translation of the Bible. Please double-check the text in advance before using in public.

1:1Procedures for burnt sacrifices

1Yahweh summoned Mosheh (Moses) to the sacred tent and told him, 2Tell the Israelis that when anyone presents an offering to Yahweh, it must be presented from their own herd or flock. 3If it’s from the herd, it must be a bull with no defects. It must be presented in front of the entrance to the sacred tent to be acceptable to Yahweh. 4The owner must place his hand on the head of that offering to be burnt, and then it will be accepted make him right with Yahweh. 5Then he must slaughter the bull in front of Yahweh, and the priests (Aharon’s (Aaron’s) descendants), must present the blood and splash it all around the altar which is by the entrance of the sacred tent. 6Then the presenter must skin the bull and cut it into pieces, 7Meanwhile, the priest Aharon’s sons must put fire on the altar and arrange wood on the fire, 8and then they must arrange the pieces (including the head and the fat portions) on top of the burning wood on the altar. 9Then the presenter must wash the innards and the feet with water, and the priest must place it on the altar, ensuring that every part is completely burnt up as a pleasing aroma for Yahweh.

10“If the offering is from the flock (i.e., a sheep or a goat), then it must be a healthy male that’s presented, 11and then it must be slaughtered on the northern side of the altar facing Yahweh, and Aharon’s sons, the priests, must splash its blood on the altar, all around. 12Then the presenter must cut it into pieces and they must arrange them (including the head and fat portions) on top of the burning wood on the altar. 13Then the presenter must wash the innards and the feet with water, and the priest must place it on the altar, ensuring that every part is completely burnt up as a pleasing aroma for Yahweh.

14However, if his burnt offering to Yahweh will be a bird, then it must be either a dove or a young pigeon. 15The priest must present it at the altar, and then twist its head off and burn the head on the altar as he drains the blood out onto the outer edge of the altar. 16Then he must pull out the crop with its contents, and throw it down on the eastern side of the altar where the ashes are. 17He will then tear the bird mostly apart by its wings (but making sure that it stays as one piece), and place it on the altar, ensuring that every part is completely burnt up as a pleasing aroma for Yahweh.

2:1Procedures for grain offerings

2“When someone presents a grain offering to Yahweh, it must be as fine, wheat flour mixed with olive, and with frankincense added to the top of it. 2It must be taken to the priest Aharon’s sons who will take it from them, then take a handful out, being sure to get flour, oil, and some frankincense, and throw that memorial portion onto the altar to get completely burnt up as a pleasing aroma for Yahweh. 3Then the rest of that grain offering will be for Aharon and his sons—it’s a very sacred part from the gifts for Yahweh.

4“When someone presents something baked as their grain offering, it must be baked without leaven: either wheat flour mixed with olive oil and baked into flat buns, or else wheat flour biscuits with olive oil spread on top. 5Or if your grain offering is done on the flat pan, it must be wheat flour mixed with olive oil and made into flat biscuits 6that should then be crumbled and have oil poured over them as your grain offering. 7Or if your grain offering is deep-fried in a pot, it must be made from wheat flour with olive oil.

8Any of the above types of grain offering to Yahweh must be presented to the priest, and he will take it to the altar. 9Then he must take a handful as a memorial portion to the altar to get completely burnt up as a pleasing aroma for Yahweh. 10Then the rest of that grain offering will be for Aharon and his sons—it’s a very sacred part from the gifts for Yahweh.

11“Anything that’s presented to Yahweh as a grain offering must not be made with any rising agent, because any leaven or honey mustn’t be burnt as a gift to Yahweh. 12Foods containing those can be presented as a first-fruits offering, but they mustn’t be burnt on the altar. 13However, every grain offering must be salted—the salt in the grain offering is a reminder of our agreement, so it must always be present.

14Finally, if you want to offer ripe grain as a grain offering to Yahweh, then it must be a young ear of grain that’s been roasted over the fire and presented as a grain offering of your first ripe grains 15with olive oil on it and some frankincense on top. That also becomes a grain offering, 16and the priest must burn a memorial portion from it with some of the crushed grains and some of the oil and some of the incense, to be burnt to become smoke as a gift to Yahweh.

3:1Procedures for peace offerings

3Now if it’s a sacrifice for a peace offering, if it’s from the herd, then either a male or female can be presented to Yahweh as long as it has no defects. 2The presenter must lay their hand on the head of the bull or cow, then he must slaughter it in front of the sacred tent. Then the priest Aharon’s sons will splash the blood on the altar on each side. 3From that peace offering, he must present the fat covering the innards and which is part of the innards as a gift to Yahweh, 4along with both kidneys and the fat that’s attached to them, and the lobe on the liver (all of which need to be removed from the animal). 5Then Aharon’s sons must burn them on the wood that’s burning on the altar as a gift—to become smoke as a pleasing aroma for Yahweh.

6However, if the sacrifice for a peace offering is from the flock, then either a male or a female can be presented to Yahweh as long as it has no defects. 7When the offering is being presented, it must be presented in front of Yahweh, 8and the presenter will put his hand on the head of the animal being offered, and slaughter it in front of the sacred tent. Then Aharon’s sons must splash its blood on the altar, on each side. 9From that peace offering, he must present the fat as a gift to Yahweh, along with the entire fatty tail (cut off near the backbone), the fat covering the innards and which is part of the innards, 10both kidneys and the fat that’s attached to them, and the lobe on the liver (all of which need to be removed from the animal). 11Then the priest must burn them on the altar as a food offering made to Yahweh by fire.

12Similarly, if the offering is a goat, then it can be presented to Yahweh. 13The presenter will put his hand on its head, and slaughter it in front of the sacred tent. Then Aharon’s sons must splash its blood on the altar, on each side. 14From that peace offering, he must present the fat as a gift to Yahweh, along with the fat covering the innards and which is part of the innards, 15both kidneys and the fat that’s attached to them, and the lobe on the liver (all of which need to be removed from the animal). 16Then the priest must burn them on the altar as a food offering made to Yahweh by fire as a pleasing aroma. All the fat belongs to Yahweh.

17This regulation must be permanent for all future generations: All of you must never eat fat or blood.”

4:1Procedures for sin offerings

4Then Yahweh told Mosheh (Moses), 2Tell the Israelis that if a person breaks any of Yahweh’s regulations unintentionally, or does anything that he said shouldn’t be done, then this is the procedure:

3“If it’s the high priest who’s done it, that causes the nation to be guilty, and for his transgression he must present a bull with no defects to Yahweh as a sin offering. 4He must bring the bull before Yahweh at the entrance of the sacred tent, then he must place his hand on its head and slaughter it in front of Yahweh. 5Then the high priest must get some of the bull’s blood and bringing it into the sacred tent, 6he must dip his finger into it and seven times he must flick the blood towards the front of the curtain of the sanctuary in front of Yahweh. 7Then the high priest must put some of the blood on the four projecting corners of the incense altar (located inside the sacred tent in front of Yahweh and used for burning fragrant incense). Then he must go back outside and pour the rest of the bull’s blood out at the base of the altar for burnt offerings (which is out at the entrance to the sacred tent). 8Then the high priest must remove all the fat from the bull being offered as a sin offering, including the fat covering the innards and which is a part of the innards, 9both kidneys and the fat that’s attached to them, and the lobe on the liver (all of which need to be removed from the animal) 10just like you’d do for the bull of the peace offering. Then the priest must burn them on the altar for the burnt offering. 11However, the bull’s hide and its meat, plus it’s head and feet, and innards and dung, 12must be taken outside the camp to the clean place where they pour out the ashes, and they must make a fire with wood there on top of the ashes and burn it there.

13If it’s the whole community that unintentionally transgresses by doing something that Yahweh prohibited, then they’ll be guilty even if the community didn’t actually notice.[ref] 14When they become aware of what they’ve done wrong, then the community must present a young bull in front of the sacred tent as a sin offering. 15Then the community elders must place their hands of the bull’s head in front of Yahweh, and slaughter it there. 16The high priest must take some of the bull’s blood into the sacred tent 17and seven times he must dip his finger in it and flick the blood towards the front of the curtain of the sanctuary in front of Yahweh. 18Then he must put some of the blood on the four projecting corners of the incense altar (located inside the sacred tent in front of Yahweh). Then he must go back outside and pour the rest of the bull’s blood out at the base of the altar for burnt offerings (which is out at the entrance to the sacred tent). 19Then he must remove all the fat from the slaughtered bull and burn up that fat on the altar, 20and he should process the bull just the same as for a sin offering. Then the priest will have made them right with God and they’ll be forgiven. 21Then he must take the remaining parts of the bull outside the camp and burn it as described above and it will be the sin offering for the community.

22“If it’s a leader that unintentionally transgresses by doing something that his god Yahweh prohibited, then he’ll be guilty. 23Alternatively, maybe someone else will point out his failing to him. Then he must bring an offering of a male goat with no defects. 24He must place his hand on its head and slaughter it in the place where the animals for the burnt offering are slaughtered. It will be a sin offering, 25and the priest must take some of the blood of that sin offering and with his finger, put some of the blood on the four projecting corners of the altar for burnt offerings. 26He must burn up all the fat on the altar just like the fat from the peace offering, and that way, the priest will make that leader right with God and he’ll be forgiven.

27“If it’s an ordinary person who unintentionally transgresses by doing something that Yahweh prohibited, then they’ll be guilty.[ref] 28Alternatively, maybe someone else will point out their failing to them. Then due to their transgression, that person must bring an offering of a female goat with no defects. 29He must place his hand on the head of the goat that’s a sin offering, and slaughter it at the place for burnt offerings. 30Then the priest must take some of the blood and with his finger, put some of the blood on the four projecting corners of the altar for burnt offerings, and then pour the rest of the blood at the altar’s base. 31Then the presenter must pull out all the fat (just like it’s done for the peace offering), and the priest will burn it on the altar to make a pleasing aroma for Yahweh, and to make that person right with God, and they’ll be forgiven.

32But if it’s a lamb that the individual wants to bring as their sin offering, then it must be a female with no defects. 33The presenter must put their hand on the head of the lamb and slaughter it as a sin offering at the place where burnt offerings are slaughtered. 34Then the priest must take some of the blood and with his finger, put some of the blood on the four projecting corners of the altar for burnt offerings, and then pour the rest of the blood at the altar’s base. 35Then the presenter must pull out all the fat (just like it’s done for the peace offering), and the priest will burn it on the altar to make a pleasing aroma for Yahweh, and to make that person right with God, and they’ll be forgiven.

5:1More needs for sin offerings

5“If someone is a witness to a case because of something they saw or knew about, and hears an oath in court but doesn’t testify, then they’ll become guilty.

2“If someone touches anything ‘unclean’ (e.g., a dead domestic or wild animal, or some creature) without realising it, they still become ‘unclean’ and is guilty.

3“If someone touches anything ‘unclean’ from another person, even if they initially didn’t realise what it was, they become guilty.

4“If someone makes a rash promise, whether it’s to do something good or something bad, and even if they were just speaking carelessly but find out later, they become guilty.

5So then the person that became guilty from any of the above, must confess their wrongdoing 6and present a penalty to Yahweh to address that wrongdoing, and must present a female lamb or young goat as a sin offering, and the priest will act on their behalf to make them right with God.

7However if that person can’t afford a sheep, then for their guilt offering because of their transgression, they must bring two doves or young pigeons to Yahweh—one for a sin offering and one for a burnt offering. 8The presenter must take them to the priest who will present the sin offering first—twisting the bird’s head off from the neck, but not pulling the body in half. 9Then he must sprinkle some of the blood from that sin offering onto the side of the altar, and then drain out the rest of the blood at the altar’s base. That will be the sin offering. 10The second bird will be for a burnt offering as per the regulation. The priest will make the presenter right with God after their wrongdoing, and they’ll be forgiven.

11However if that person still can’t afford those two doves or young pigeons, then they can present a kilogram of fine wheat flour for a sin offering. It mustn’t have oil or frankincense in it because it’s a sin offering. 12The presenter must take it to the priest who will then take a handful of it, and burn that memorial portion on the altar for burnt offerings to Yahweh. That will be the sin offering. 13The priest will make the presenter right with God after their wrongdoing as per one of the above, and they’ll be forgiven. The rest of the flour will be for the priest, similar to a grain offering.”

5:14More on guilt offerings

14Then Yahweh told Mosheh (Moses), 15If someone acts unfaithfully but unintentionally desecrates something that’s sacred to Yahweh, then because of their guilt, that person must present ram with no defects from the flock, or silver coins using the official valuation, as a guilt offering. 16They must also compensate for the sacred item, but with an extra twenty percent. That must all be given to the priest who will make the presenter right with God with that ram as the guilt offering, and they’ll be forgiven.

17“If someone transgresses by violating even one of Yahweh’s regulations or prohibitions, even if they didn’t realise it, they become guilty and must bear responsibility for that guilt. 18Then that person must take a ram from the flock that has no defects to the priest for a guilt offering. Then the priest will make the presenter right with God after that transgression (even if they weren’t aware of it), and they’ll be forgiven. 19That’s a guilt offering, because they were clearly guilty before Yahweh.”

6Then Yahweh told Mosheh (Moses),[ref] 2“Someone who transgresses against Yahweh by cheating with respect to a deposit or a pledge, or by theft or extortion, 3or by finding lost property and then denying it, or making an oath that was knowingly false, or by any other typical transgression that people do, 4then they’ve become guilty as a result of that transgression. That person must return what was stolen or extorted, or return the deposit or the lost property, 5or make amends for a false oath. They must return the full value plus an extra twenty percent as soon as the guilt is discovered. 6Then that person must take a ram from the flock with no defects to the priest as a guilt offering to Yahweh, 7and the priest will make the presenter right with Yahweh after whatever that transgression was to make them guilty, and they’ll be forgiven.

6:8The fire and the ashes

8Then Yahweh told Mosheh, 9“Tell Aharon (Aaron) and his sons that these are the regulations for the burnt offerings: The burnt offering must remain on the altar’s hearth, on the altar all night until the morning and the fire must be kept burning on it. 10Then the priest must put on his linen underwear and linen robe and remove the fatty ashes from the burnt offerings on the altar, and pile them beside it. 11After that, he’ll get changed again into his regular clothes and take those ashes outside the camp to a ‘clean’ place. 12Meanwhile, the fire on the altar must be kept burning—it must never go out. Every morning the priest must put more wood on the fire, then he must arrange more offerings on the fire—he should burn the fat of the fellowship offerings on that fire so the smoke rises. 13Yes, the fire must burn continually on the altar—never going out.

6:14Procedures for the grain offering

14“Here’s the regulations for the grain offering: Aharon’s sons must present it before Yahweh in front of the altar. 15The priest must take a handful of the flour from that grain offering, being sure it includes some of the oil and the incense, and burn it on the altar as a memorial portion to become a pleasing aroma for Yahweh. 16The remainder of that flour will be used as food for Aharon and his sons—they must eat the flat bread in a sacred place, i.e., in the courtyard of the sacred tent. 17It must not be baked with any rising agent. I give that to them from what’s given to me. It’s very sacred just like the sin offering and the guilt offering. 18Any of Aharon’s male descendants can eat it—it’ll be their portion from Yahweh’s gifts throughout the generations. Anyone who touches Yahweh’s gifts will become sacred themself.”

6:19Procedures for the ordination offering

19Then Yahweh told Mosheh, 20“On the day when one of Aharon’s male descendants is consecrated as a priest, this is what he must present to Yahweh: a continual grain offering of a kilogram of fine wheat flour—half for the morning and half for the evening. 21It must be mixed with olive oil then cooked with oil on a flat pan. It must then be broken into pieces and presented as a grain offering to make a pleasing aroma for Yahweh. 22The priest who’s next in line to become high priest must offer it and it must be completely burnt for Yahweh. This is a permanent regulation. 23Any grain offering by a priest must be completely burnt—it must not be eaten.”

6:24Procedures for the sin offering

24Then Yahweh told Mosheh, 25“Tell Aharon and his sons that these are the regulations for the sin offerings: The sin offering must be slaughtered in front of Yahweh at the place where the burnt offerings are slaughtered. It’s a very sacred activity. 26The priest who offers the sin offering must be the one to eat it. It must be eaten in a sacred place, i.e., in the courtyard of the sacred tent. 27Everything that touches the animal’s body will become sacred. Anyone who gets the blood on their clothes, must wash them in a sacred place. 28Any clay pot that it’s been boiled in, must then be shattered, but if it’s boiled in a bronze pot, then that must be scoured and rinsed with water. 29Any male in the priests’ families may eat it—it’s very sacred. 30However, every sin offering that has its blood taken inside the sacred tent to make someone right with God, then that meat mustn’t be eaten—it must be completely burnt up.

7:1Procedures for the guilt offering

7“Then these are the regulations for the very sacred guilt offerings: 2The guilt offering must be slaughtered at the same place as the burnt offerings, and the blood must be splashed on each side of the altar. 3The presenter must present all the fat including the fatty tail, the fat covering the innards, 4both kidneys and the fat that’s attached to them, and the lobe on the liver (all of which need to be removed from the animal). 5Then the priest must burn those on the altar as a guilt offering to Yahweh. 6Any male in the priests’ families may eat it—it’s very sacred. 7The regulations are the same for the guilt offering as for the sin offering—the priest who offers the guilt offering must be the one to eat it.

8“Whenever a priest presents someone’s burnt offering, the skin of the animal that was presented belongs to that priest. 9Any grain offering that’s baked in an oven, or cooked in a pan or on a griddle, will belong to the priest who presents it. 10Any grain offering that’s either dry or mixed with oil, belongs to all of Aharon’s male descendants without any distinction.

7:11Procedures for the peace offering

11“Then these are the regulations for sacrificing peace offerings to present to Yahweh: 12If it’s presented from thankfulness, then the sacrifice must be accompanied by thanksgiving flat bread buns (made from flour mixed with olive oil), and flat biscuits smeared with oil, and buns made from fine wheat flour mixed with oil, 13plus risen bread rolls. All that must accompany the peace offering from thankfulness. 14Then he must present one of each kind of bread as a contribution to Yahweh. Those will belong to the priest who splashes the blood for the peace offerings. 15The meat of the thankfulness sacrifice of those peace offerings must be eaten the same day that it’s offered—none of can be left until morning. 16However, if the sacrificed offering is a vow or freewill offering, then it can be eaten that same day and also the next day, 17but any left-over meat must be burnt up on the fire on the third day. 18If any of that meat from the sacrifice was eaten on the third day, the presenter won’t be accepted and they won’t be forgiven. It is spoilt, and anyone who eats any of it will bear their own guilt. 19If any meat touches anything that’s ‘unclean’, then it must not be eaten—it must be burnt up in the fire. However, any long as the meat remains ‘clean’, it can be eaten by any person who’s ‘clean’. 20If a person who was ‘unclean’ were to eat any of the meat from the sacrifice for a peace offering, then that person must be cut off from the community. 21Similarly, when a person touches anything ‘unclean’ (e.g., human uncleanness, or an unclean animal, or a detestable creature), and then they eat some of the meat of the sacrifice for a peace offering that now belongs to Yahweh, that person must be cut off from the community.

7:22Don’t eat fat or blood

22Then Yahweh told Mosheh, 23Tell the Israelis that you all must not eat the fat from cattle or sheep or goats, 24plus you all definitely must not eat the fat from an animal that died naturally or was killed by wild animals although you can use it for other purposes. 25Anyone who does eat the fat from an animal presented as a gift to Yahweh must be cut off from the community.

26Also, you all must not eat blood from either a bird or an animal, no matter where you’re living.[ref] 27Any person who does eat blood must be cut off from the community.”

7:28The priests’ portions

28Then Yahweh told Mosheh, 29“Tell the Israelis that anyone who offers a peace offering to Yahweh must take some of it as his peace offering to Yahweh. 30They must personally carry Yahweh’s gift which will be the breast with its fat and raise it in front of Yahweh as a wave offering, 31and the priest must burn that fat up on the altar but the breast will be for Aharon and his sons. 32The right thigh from the sacrifices of your peace offerings must be given to the priest33whichever priest (Aharon’s descendant) who handled the blood of the peace offerings and the fat, that right thigh will be his portion 34because I took the breast from the wave offering and the thigh from the contribution of the Israelis’ peace offerings, and I gave them to Aharon the priest and his sons as an ongoing portion from the Israeli people. 35That’s the share for Aharon and his sons from the gifts to Yahweh since Mosheh presented them to Yahweh as priests. 36Yahweh commanded them to be given to them back on the day when he anointed them out of all the Israeli people and made it a permanent regulation for future generations.

37Those are the regulations for the burnt offerings, the grain offerings, the sin offerings, the guilt offerings, the ordination offerings, and the peace offerings 38that Yahweh gave to Mosheh at Mt. Sinai on the day when he ordered the Israelis to present their offerings to Yahweh when they were there in the Sinai wilderness.

8:1Ordination of Aharon and his sons

(Exo. 29:1-37)

8Then Yahweh told Mosheh (Moses), 2“Take Aharon (Aaron) and his sons with their clothes and the anointing oil, and the bull for the sin offering and two rams, and a basket of unleavened bread, 3and assemble the entire community at the entrance to the sacred tent.”

4So Mosheh did exactly has Yahweh had commanded him, and the people assembled at the entrance of the sacred tent. 5Then Mosheh told the assembled people, “This ceremony is what Yahweh has told us to do.”

6Then Mosheh presented Aharon and his sons and after washing them with water, 7he put the tunic on Aharon and wrapped the sash around him, and then put the robe on him. Then he put the sacred apron on him, tying its finely woven waistband to fasten it onto him. 8Then he attached the chest pouch and put the Urim and Tummim into the pouch. 9Finally he placed the turban on his head, and fastened the golden flower-shaped plate (that sacred crown that demonstrates that Aharon is set apart to only serve Yahweh) to the front of the turban, exactly as Yahweh had instructed Mosheh.

10Then Mosheh took the anointing oil and anointed Yahweh’s residence and everything in it, thus consecrating it all. 11Seven times he flicked some of it onto the altar—anointing the altar and all its utensils and the basin and its base, thus consecrating them. 12He poured some of the anointing oil over Aharon’s head, thus anointing him to consecrate him. 13Then Mosheh presented Aharon’s sons and dressed them in tunics and wrapped sashes around each of them, and tied their headbands onto them, just as Yahweh had instructed Mosheh.

14Then he brought the bull for the sin offering, and Aharon and his sons placed their hands on its head. 15Then Aharon[fn] slaughtered it, and Mosheh took the blood and used his finger to put some on the four projecting corners of the altar, thus purifying the altar. Then he poured the rest of the blood out at the altar’s base, sanctifying it so it could be used for making people right with God. 16Then Mosheh took all the far that was on the innards and the lobe of the liver, and the two kidneys and their fat, and he burnt them up on the altar. 17However, he burnt up the rest of the bull including its hide, flesh, and dung, outside the camp, just as Yahweh had told him.

18Then Mosheh presented the ram for the burnt offering, and Aharon and his sons placed their hands on its head. 19Then Aharon[fn] slaughtered it, and Mosheh splashed the blood on each side of the altar. 20Then Aharon[fn] cut the ram into pieces, and Mosheh burnt up the head, and the pieces and the fat. 21However, Aharon[fn] washed the innards and the legs, then Mosheh also burnt those up on the altar as a burnt offering that was pleasing aroma for Yahweh, just as Yahweh had instructed Mosheh.

22Then Mosheh presented the second ram for the ordination offering, and Aharon and his sons placed their hands on the ram’s head. 23Then Aharon[fn] slaughtered it, and Mosheh took some of its blood and put it on the lobe of Aharon’s right ear, on his right thumb, and on his right big toe. 24Then he presented Aharon’s sons and put some of the blood on their right earlobes, and their right thumbs, and their right big toes. Then Mosheh splashed the blood on each side of the altar. 25He collected the fat and the fatty tail, and all the fat that was on the innards and the lobe of the liver, and the two kidneys with their fat, and the right thigh, 26Then from the basket of unleavened bread that was there in front of Yahweh, he took one flat bread bun, and one flat bread that had been smeared with oil, and one flat biscuit, and placed them on top of the fat and the right thigh. 27He place all that onto the open hands of Aharon and his sons who raised them as a wave offering in front of Yahweh. 28Then Mosheh took it all again, and burnt it all up on the altar with the burnt offering. That ordination offering on the fire became a pleasing aroma for Yahweh. 29Then Mosheh took the breast meat from the ram for the ordination offering, and raised it as a wave offering in front of Yahweh, just as Yahweh had instructed him.

30Then Mosheh took some of the anointing oil and some of the blood from on the altar, and he flicked them onto Aharon and his clothes, his sons and their clothes, thus consecrating Aharon and his clothes, and his sons and their clothes.

31Then Mosheh told Aharon and his sons, “Boil the meat at the entrance to the sacred tent and eat it, along with the flat bread that’s in the basket as part of the ordination offering, just as I had instructed that Aharon and his sons should eat it. 32Any meat or bread that’s leftover must be burnt in the fire. 33None of you may leave the entrance to the sacred tent for seven days. That’s because Yahweh will ordain you all over those seven days. 34What’s been done today has been initiated by Yahweh in order to make you all right with him, 35so remain here day and night at the entrance of the sacred tent for seven days as per Yahweh’s instructions and you all won’t die, because that’s what I’ve been commanded.” 36So Aharon and his sons did everything that Yahweh had instructed them via Mosheh.

9:1The priests start their duties

9On the eighth day, Mosheh summoned Aharon and his sons, along with Yisrael’s elders, 2and he told Aharon, “Get a healthy, young, male calf for a sin offering for yourself, and a ram without defects for a burnt offering, and present them to Yahweh. 3Then tell the Israeli people to take a male goat for a sin offering, and a calf and a lamb, both a year old and without defects for a burnt offering, 4as well as a bull and a ram to sacrifice to Yahweh as peace offerings, and a grain offering mixed will oil, because Yahweh will appear to you all today.”

5So they brought everything to the sacred tent that Mosheh had instructed them, and the whole assembly presented them as they stood before Yahweh, 6then Mosheh said, “You’ve done what Yahweh told you, so now you’ll all see his brightness appear.” 7Then he told Aharon, “Go to the altar and make your sin offering and your burnt offering to make yourself and the people right with God. Then make the people’s offering to make them right with God, just as Yahweh commanded.”[ref]

8So Aharon approached the altar and slaughtered the calf for his own sin offering, 9and his sons presented the blood to him. Dipping his finger into the blood, he smeared it on the altar’s four projecting corners, then he poured the rest of the blood out at the altar’s base. 10He burnt up the fat and the kidneys, and the lobe from the liver for the sin offering on the altar, just as Yahweh had instructed Mosheh, 11but the meat and the skin, he burnt up in a fire outside the camp.

12Then Aharon slaughtered the burnt offering, and his sons brought the blood to him and he splashed it on each side of the altar. 13Then they brought him the head and the cut-up pieces, and he burnt them up on the altar. 14He washed the innards and the legs, and then also burnt them up on the altar.

15Then Aharon presented the people’s offering. He took the goat for the people’s offering and slaughtered it, then offered it as a sin offering like the other one. 16He presented the burnt offering—following all the instructions when he did it. 17Then he presented the grain offering, and taking a large handful, he burnt it on the altar, in addition to the morning’s burnt offering. 18Then Aharon slaughtered the bull and the ram which were the people’s peace offering, and his sons brought the blood to him and he splashed it on each side of the altar.[ref] 19He took the fat from the bull and the ram, including their fatty tails and the fat covering the innards, the kidneys, and the lobe of the liver, 20and placed it all on top of those animals breast meat, then burnt up the fat on the altar. 21Finally, he raised the breast meat and the right thigh as a wave offering in front of Yahweh, just as Mosheh had instructed.

22Then Aharon raised his arms towards the people and blessed them, and then he stepped down, having finished making the sin offering, the burnt offering, and the peace offerings.[ref] 23Mosheh and Aharon entered the sacred tent, and when they came back out, they blessed the people and Yahweh’s brilliance appeared to all the people. 24Then flames shot out from Yahweh’s front and evaporated the burnt offering and the fat on the altar. They people saw that happen, and they yelled out and fell down onto their knees with their faces to the ground.

10:1Nadav and Avihu get destroyed

10Then two of Aharon’s sons, Nadav and Avihu each took their incense-burning pans and put fire in them, and put incense on the fire, thus offering unauthorised fire to Yahweh that he hadn’t instructed them to do. 2So flames shot out from Yahweh’s front and consumed then so they died there in front of Yahweh. 3Then Mosheh told Aharon, “That’s what Yahweh meant when he said, ‘I will reveal my holiness to those who approach me, then I’ll be honoured in the sight of all the people.’ ”

4Then Mosheh summoned Mishael and Elitsafan, the sons of Aharon’s Uncle Uzziyel, and told them, “Come and help by carrying your cousins’ bodies from the sacred place here to a place outside the camp.” 5So they came and carried the two corpses by their clothes to a place outside the camp just as Mosheh had told them to do.

6Then Mosheh told Aharon and his sons Eleazar and Itamar, “Don’t leave your hair loose, and don’t tear your clothes, so that you won’t die and so that Yahweh won’t be angry at the entire community. But meanwhile, all the Israelis must mourn because Yahweh was angry enough to burn those two. 7Also, don’t leave the entrance to the sacred tent, as you might die because you all still have Yahweh’s anointing oil on you.” So they did everything that Mosheh said.

10:8Instructions for priests

8Then Yahweh told Aharon, 9Neither you or your sons should drink wine or strong drink when you’re going to go into the sacred tent so that you won’t die. This regulation is permanent and for future generations. 10You must carefully distinguish between what’s sacred and what’s common, and what’s ‘unclean’ and ‘clean’. 11and you must teach the Israelis all the instructions that Yahweh has given them via Mosheh.”

12Then Mosheh told Aharon and his remaining sons Eleazar and Itamar, “Take the remainder of the grain offering after the memorial portion has been given to Yahweh, and eat that flat bread there beside the altar, because it’s very sacred.[ref] 13You all must eat it in a sacred place, because it’s the portion for you and your sons from the gifts to Yahweh, because that’s what I’ve been instructed. 14Also, you all must eat the breast meat from the wave offering and the thigh from the contribution offering in a ‘clean’ place. Your sons and daughters can join you all for that, because that food has been given as the portion for you and your children from the peace offering sacrifices from the Israelis.[ref] 15Yes, those thighs from the contribution offering and the breast meat from the wave offering, in addition to the gifts of the fat portions, must be brought before Yahweh as a raised offering, and then they’ll always become the portion for you and your families, just as Yahweh instructed.”

16Then Mosheh looked for the goat meat from the sin offering, but was shocked to discover that it had been burnt up on the altar, so he was angry with Aharon’s remaining sons Eleazar and Itamar, telling them, 17“Why didn’t you eat that sin offering in the sacred place, because it’s very sacred and he gave it to you to bear the community’s guilt then to make them right with Yahweh.[ref] 18Listen here! Its blood wasn’t taken into the inner sacred place, so you must eat it in the sacred place just like I told you to do!”

19Then Aharon explained to Mosheh, “Listen, they presented their sin offering and their burnt offering to Yahweh today, and yet I lost two of my sons. But if I’d eaten the sin offering today, would it have pleased Yahweh?” 20When Mosheh heard that, he was satisfied.

11:1Creatures that may be eaten

(Deu. 14:3-21)

11Then Yahweh told Mosheh and Aharon:

2Tell the Israelis that the following creatures on the earth are the ones that you all can eat: 3You all can eat any animal that has hooves which are completely split in two and that also chew the cud. 4However you mustn’t eat those without both traits, for example camels chew the cud but don’t have divided hooves, so they are ‘unclean’ for you. 5The rock badger likewise, because although it chews the cud, it too doesn’t have divided hooves, 6and the rabbit is ‘unclean’ for you all because although it chews the cud, it doesn’t have divided hooves. 7Pigs have divided hooves that are split completely, but don’t chew the cud, so they’re ‘unclean’ for you all—8you mustn’t eat their meat or touch their carcasses because they’re ‘unclean’ for you all.

9You all can eat everything that lives in the water, whether the oceans or rivers, as long as it has both fins and scales. 10In contrast, anything in the oceans or rivers without both fins and scales, whether they’re swarming creatures or otherwise, they’ll all be detestable for you all. 11So anything that’s detestable to you all, you mustn’t eat their meat and you must detest their carcasses. 12Anything in the water that doesn’t have both fins and scales will be detestable for you all.

13From the birds, the ones that you’ll all detest and avoid eating will include: the eagle and any kind of vulture, 14the kite and any kind of falcon, 15any kind of crow, 16any kind of owl, gull, or hawk, 17the cormorant, 18the osprey, 19the stork, any kind of heron, the hoopoe, and bats. 20Everything that swarms with wings and walks on four legs must be detestable for you all. 21However, you all can eat anything that swarms with wings and walks on four legs that has its legs above its feet for hopping on the ground. 22You all can eat any kind of locust or cricket or grasshopper, 23but anything that swarms with wings and walks on four legs must be detestable for you all.

24The following will make you ‘unclean’—anyone who touches their carcasses will become ‘unclean’ until the evening, 25plus anyone who carries their carcass must wash their clothes and will be ‘uncleanuntil the evening: 26Any animal with a divided hoof but not completely split in two or that doesn’t chew the cud will be ‘unclean’ for you all—anyone who touches them will become ‘unclean’. 27Also, any four-footed animal that walks on its paws is ‘unclean’ for you—anyone who touches their carcass will become ‘unclean’ until the evening, 28plus anyone who carries their carcass must wash their clothes and will be ‘unclean’ until the evening because they’re ‘unclean’ for you all.

29These are the ‘unclean’ creatures from the ones that swarm on the ground: rats, mice, lizards 30of any kind, geckos, skinks, and chameleons. 31Out of all the swarming things, those are ‘unclean’ for you—anyone who touches them when they’ve died will be ‘unclean’ until the evening. 32Also, anything that their dead bodies fall on will become ‘unclean’, whether it’s a wooden. cloth, leader, or sackcloth object, or any container used for work, so then it must be immersed in water and it will be ‘unclean’ until the evening when it will become ‘clean’ again. 33If one of those creatures falls into a clay container, everything in it will become ‘uncleanand you must break that container. 34If water from that container got onto any food, it will become ‘unclean’, and any drink take from that container will be ‘unclean’. 35Anything that the dead body of one of those creatures falls onto will become ‘unclean’—any oven or stove must be smashed. They have become ‘unclean’ and would always remain so. 36However a spring or a cistern for collecting water will be ‘clean’, but anyone touching that dead body will be ‘unclean’. 37If the dead body fell on some seeds that will be planted, that seed is still ‘clean’, 38but if the seeds are wet when the dead body falls on it, then it’s ‘unclean’ for you.

39If any animal that you all can eat dies, then any person touches its carcass will be ‘uncleanuntil the evening. 40Anyone who eats any part of that dead body, and anyone who moves it, must wash their clothes and will be ‘unclean’ until the evening.

41Every creature that swarms along the ground is detestable—it mustn’t be eaten. 42Everything that moves on its belly, and any swarming thing that moves along the ground on four or more feet mustn’t be eaten because they’re detestable. 43Don’t make yourselves detestable with any of those swarming creatures, and don’t make yourselves ‘unclean’ by touching or eating them, 44because I am your god Yahweh. You all must keep yourselves holy, and you’re a holy people because I’m holy. So don’t make yourselves ‘unclean’ with any swarming creatures that creep across the ground[ref] 45because I am Yahweh, the one who brought you all out of Egypt to be your god, and you must be holy because I am holy.

46The above are the regulations about livestock, birds, creatures that move in the water, and creatures that swarm across the ground, 47to distinguish between the ‘unclean’ and the ‘clean’, i.e., those that can be eaten and those that must not be eaten.

12:1Purification after giving birth

12Then Yahweh told Mosheh:

2Tell the Israelis that when a woman gets pregnant and then gives birth to a boy, she will then be ‘unclean’ for seven days similar to how her impurity during her monthly period makes her ‘unclean’. 3Then on the eighth day, the baby boy’s foreskin must be circumcised.[ref] 4The mother will remain impure from the blood for thirty-three days—she must not touch any sacred thing and may not enter the sanctuary until her purification time is completed.

5However, if she gave birth to a girl, she’ll be ‘unclean’ for two weeks similar to how her impurity during her monthly period, and her purification time will be sixty-six days.

6When the mother’s purification time is completed for either a son or a daughter, she must take a one-year-old lamb as a burnt offering and a young pigeon or dove as a sin offering to the priest at the entrance to the sacred tent. 7Then he must present them to Yahweh to make her right with God, and then she’ll be purified from her flow of blood. That’s the regulation for a woman who gives birth to either a male or a female.

8If she’s unable to afford a lamb, then she must take two young pigeons or doves—one for the burnt offering and one for the sin offering. Then the priest will make her right with God, and then she’ll will have been purified.[ref]

13:1Regulations about skin diseases

13Then Yahweh told Mosheh and Aharon:

2If someone discovers a raised area on their skin, or a scab or a bright spot, and it seems like an infectious skin disease, then that person should be taken to a priest (Aharon or one of his sons), 3and the priest must examine their skin. If the hair in the infected spot has turned white and the infection appears to be deeper under the skin, then it’s confirmed as an infectious skin disease and so the priest must pronounce the person as ‘unclean’. 4However, if it’s a white spot that doesn’t seem to be deep, and the hair hasn’t turned white, then the priest must order the person to be quarantined for seven days. 5Then on the seventh day, if the infection is still there but hasn’t spread, then the priest must order a further seven days of quarantine. 6After that next seven days, if the infection has faded and not spread, the priest must pronounce the person as ‘clean’—it was just a sore so the person must wash their clothes and then they’ll be ‘clean’. 7However, if the spot does spread across the skin after the priest has pronounced the person to be ‘clean’, then they must return to the priest a second time. 8The priest must re-examine that person and if the spot on the skin has spread, then the priest must pronounce them ‘unclean’ because they have a skin disease.

9Anyone who develops an infectious skin disease must be taken to a priest 10to be examined. If it’s a white spot on the skin and the hair has turned white, and there’s raw flesh visible in the swelling, 11then it’s a chronic skin disease, and the priest must pronounce that person as ‘unclean’ and can’t just be temporarily quarantined. 12However, if the disease has broken out and spread across the entire body from head to toe as far as can be observed by the priest, 13then after the priest’s confirmation that it covers the entire body, that person can be pronounced as ‘clean’ again as all of it has turned white. 14However, if any raw flesh shows itself, then they’ll become ‘uncleanthat same day. 15The priest must examine that raw flesh and must pronounce that person as ‘unclean’ due to their skin disease. 16Afterwards, if it heals over and goes white, then they can return to the priest 17to be reexamined, and if the infection has indeed gone white, then the priest can pronounce it as not being infectious and the person as ‘clean’ again.

18When someone has a boil on their skin, but it heals 19leaving behind a white swelling or a reddish-white bright spot, then that person must show themself to the priest. 20The priest will examine it, and if it is indeed more than just skin deep and its hair has turned white, then the priest must pronounce that person as ‘unclean’ because an infectious skin disease has broken out from the original boil. 21However, if the priest’s examination finds not white hair on it, and it’s not more than skin deep, and it’s fading, then he will order that person quarantined for seven days, 22and if it spreads further on their skin, then the priest must declare that person as ‘unclean’ because it’s infectious. 23But if the bright spot hasn’t spread during the quarantine, then it’s just the scar from the boil and the priest can pronounce the person as ‘clean’.

24If someone gets a burn on their skin, and the burn area becomes reddish-white or a white spot, 25then the priest must examine it, and if the hair on the spot has turned white and the infection looks more than skin deep, then a skin disease has broken out in the burn, and the priest must pronounce that person as ‘unclean’ because it’s infectious. 26However, if the priest sees that there’s no white hair in the spot, and it’s not more than skin deep, and it’s fading, then he will order that person quarantined for seven days. 27On the seventh day, the priest will re-examine the person, and if it’s spread further, he must pronounce that person as ‘unclean’ because it’s an infectious skin disease. 28But if the bright spot hasn’t spread on the skin, and it faded more, then it was just swelling from the burn. Then the priest will pronounce that person to be ‘clean’ because it was just the scar caused by their burn.

29If a man or woman has an infection in their scalp or under their beard, 30then the priest should inspect the infection. If it appears to be more than skin deep, and there’s any thin yellow hairs in it, then the priest must pronounce that person as ‘uncleanbecause it’s a itchy and infectious skin infection on the scalp or face. 31However, if the priest notices an itchy infection yet it’s only skin deep and there’s no black hair on it, then he should quarantine that person for seven days. 32On the seventh day, the priest will re-examine that person and if the spot hasn’t widened and still only appears to be skin deep, 33then that person should shave their head, and then the priest should quarantine them for a further seven days. 34Then again on the seventh day, the priest will inspect it, and if the spot hasn’t widened after being shaved and it doesn’t seem to be more than skin deep, then the priest can pronounce that person as ‘clean’ once they’ve washed their clothes. 35However, it is did spread on their skin after that, 36then the priest must inspect it again, and if it’s spread then that person is ‘unclean’ (whether or not there’s any yellow hair). 37But if it seems that the spot hasn’t spread and dark hair is growing in it again, then that person’s not infectious and the priest can pronounce them as ‘clean’.

38If a man or woman finds very white spots on their skin, 39then the priest must examine them. If the spots on their skin are dull white, then it’s a skin rash that’s broken out and they are ‘clean’.

40If a man’s head has become bare, then he’s gone bald and is still ‘clean’. 41Similarly, if the hair is receding from the front corners, he’s going bald and is still ‘clean’. 42However, if there’s a balding spot with a reddish-white infection, it’s a skin disease breaking out via that spot 43and the priest must examine him. If it’s a balding spot with a reddish-white infection that looks like a contagious skin disease, 44then he’s contagious and ‘unclean’. The priest must pronounce his as ‘unclean’ because of that infection on his head.

45Anyone who’s developed an infectious skin disease must tear their clothes and leave their hair loose, and must cover their mouth and call out, ‘Unclean, unclean.’ 46They will remain ‘unclean’ as long as they still have that infection, and must live alone outside the camp.

13:47Regulations about moulds and fungi

47When a piece of clothing has a mould growing on it, whether it’s made of wool or linen, 48or whether it’s something woven from wool or linen, or something made from leather, 49if the growth is greenish or reddish in colour, then it’s something that can spread and it must be shown to the priest. 50The priest must examine the growth, and quarantine the article for seven days. 51On the seventh day, if the growth has spread on that piece of material or leather equipment, and it’s confirmed as spreadable and is ‘unclean’. 52The owner must burn the piece of clothing or equipment that contains the infection because it’s contagious, so it must be completely burnt up.

53However if the priest notices that the growth hasn’t spread on the clothing or on the woven or leather material, 54then the priest must order that the material be washed and then quarantined for a further seven days. 55On the seventh day, the priest must inspect that washed material, and if the growth hasn’t changed its appearance, even if it hasn’t spread, then it’s ‘unclean’ and must be burnt in the fire—it’s a mildew that’s on the front or back of the material. 56However, if the priest notices that the growth has faded after being washed, then it can be torn out of the clothing or piece of leather or woven material. 57If it then reappears on that clothing or material, then it’s breaking out, so then that article must be burnt in the fire. 58On the other hand, if the growth vanished after being washed, then it must be washed a second time and then it will be ‘clean’.

59The above are the regulations concerning any growth on a piece of woollen or linen clothing or fabric, or any leather article, to pronounce it ‘clean’ or ‘unclean’.

14:1Purification after a skin disease

14Then Yahweh told Mosheh:

2These are the regulations for the purification of a person who had a skin disease. They must be taken to a priest[ref] 3who’ll go outside the camp to meet them. The priest must inspect that person, and if the skin disease has indeed left them, 4then the priest will order them to bring him two live, ‘clean’ birds, some cedar wood, some scarlet thread, and some hyssop twigs. 5The priest must tell the person to slaughter one bird so the blood runs into a clay jug containing water from a spring or creek. 6Then the priest will take the live bird, along with the cedar wood, the scarlet thread, and the hyssop twigs, and dip them all into that blood of the slaughtered bird (mixed with the fresh water), 7and flick it seven times onto the person who’s being purified from the skin disease. Then the priest can pronounce them as ‘clean’ enough to re-enter the community, and release the live bird to fly into the countryside. 8The person who’s being purified must then wash their clothes, shave all their hair, and then bathe in flowing water. After that, they can re-enter the camp but must live outside their tent for seven more days. 9On the seventh day, that person must shave off all their hair (including eyebrows and beard if appropriate), wash their clothes and bathe themself in flowing water, then they’ll be ‘clean’.

10Then on the eighth day, that person must get two one-year-old male lambs, and one female lamb, all with no defects, along with three kilograms of fine flour mixed with oil as a grain offering, as well as half a litre of olive oil. 11That must be taken to the priest who’d pronounced them as ‘clean’ will accompany them and all those offerings to stand in front of Yahweh at the entrance to the sacred tent. 12Then the priest must take one of the male lambs and the container of oil and present it as a guilt offering, then he’ll raise them as a wave offering in front of Yahweh. 13Then that person must slaughter that lamb in the sacred place where sin offerings and burnt offerings are slaughtered, because this guilt offering is like a sin offering in that it’s for the priest—it’s very sacred. 14Then the priest must take some of the blood from that guilt offering, and put it on the lobe of the right ear of the person being purified, and on their right thumb and right big toe. 15Then the priest must take the container of olive oil and pour some into his left hand. 16Then he’ll dip his right finger into that oil on his left palm, and with that same finger, flick it seven times towards Yahweh. 17Then the priest must put some of the remaining oil on his palm onto the lobe of the right ear of the person being purified, and on their right thumb and right big toe—on top of the blood from the guilt offering. 18Then the priest will put all the remaining oil from his palm onto the head of the person being purified, and the priest will then make that person right with Yahweh.

19Then the priest must make the sin offering and make that person right after being purified from their ‘uncleanness’. After that that person will slaughter lamb for the burnt offering. 20Then the priest must offer that burnt offering and the grain offering on the fire on the altar and he will make that person right again and he will be ‘clean’.

21However, if that person is poor and cannot afford the multiple lambs, then they must take one lamb to wave as the guilt offering and to make them right again, along with one kilogram of fine flour mixed with oil for the grain offering, and the half litre of oil, 22plus two doves or young pigeons—whichever they can afford—one for a sin offering and the other for the burnt offering. 23Then on that eighth day, he’ll take them to the priest at the entrance of the sacred tent for purification in front of Yahweh. 24Then the priest should take the guilt offering lamb and the container of oil and lift them up as a wave offering in front of Yahweh. 25Then the person should slaughter that guilt offering lamb, and the priest must take some of that blood and put it on the lobe of the right ear of the person being purified, and on their right thumb and right big toe. 26Then he must pour some of the oil onto his left palm 27and with his right finger he must flick it seven times towards Yahweh. 28Then the priest must put some of the oil from his palm onto the lobe of the right ear of the person being purified, and on their right thumb and right big toe—on top of the blood from the guilt offering. 29Then the priest will put all the remaining oil from his palm onto the head of the person being purified, and the priest will then make that person right with Yahweh. 30Then he must offer one of the birds (dove or pigeon—whatever that person could afford) 31as a sin offering and the other as a burnt offering along with the grain offering and he will make that person right again with Yahweh. 32The above are the regulations for anyone who has a skin disease but who couldn’t afford the regular purification offerings.

14:33Treating contaminated homes

33Then Yahweh told Mosheh and Aharon:

34When you enter into the land of Kanaan which I’m giving you all as a possession, and if I cause an infection in one your homes in that land, 35then the homeowner must go and inform the priest that something like an infection has appeared in their house. 36The priest must order that everything be removed out of the house before he comes to inspect it so that it won’t all be pronounced as ‘unclean’. After that’s done, he’ll go to see the house 37and examine the growth. If the growth is greenish or reddish and seems more than surface deep, 38then the priest must leave the house via the main entrance and quarantine the house for seven days. 39On the seventh day, the priest must return and examine it again, and if the growth has spread on the house walls, 40then he must order that those infected stones be pulled out of the wall and thrown outside the city into a place that’s consideredunclean’. 41Then the homeowner must scrape all the plaster off the inside walls and also dispose of that at thatuncleanplace. 42Then they can replace the stones that were removed, and apply fresh plaster to the house.

43However, if the growth returns and breaks out again in the house even after the stones were replaced and the walls were replastered, 44then the priest must come back and reexamine it. If the growth has spread on the walls, then it’s a malignant growth and the house is ‘unclean’. 45The owner must tear the house down—its stones and timber and all the mortar, must be carted outside the city into a place that’s consideredunclean’. 46Any person that enters that house after the priest had quarantined it, will be ‘uncleanuntil that evening. 47Any person who lies down or eats in that house, must wash their clothes.

48However, if the priest came back after the house was replastered and after his inspection, find that the growth hasn’t reappeared, then he can pronounce the house as ‘clean’ because the growth has gone. 49Then he must take two birds, cedar wood, scarlet thread, and some hyssop twigs, 50and slaughter one bird so the blood runs into a clay jug containing water from a spring or creek. 51Then the priest must take the live bird, along with the cedar wood, the scarlet thread, the hyssop twigs and the live bird, and dip them all into that blood of the slaughtered bird (mixed with the fresh water), and flick it seven times onto the house. 52In that way, he’ll purify the house with the bird’s blood and the fresh water, and with the live bird and the cedar wood, the hyssop twigs and the scarlet thread. 53Then he must release the live bird to fly into the countryside, thus making the house right with God, and then it’ll be ‘clean’.

54The above are the regulations concerning any serious skin diseases and itchiness, 55as well as growths on clothing and buildings 56and swellings, rashes, and bright spots on the skin, 57so that you’ll know how to determine what’sunclean’ or ‘clean’. Those are the regulations for infectious growths.

15:1Dealing with bodily discharges

15Then Yahweh told Mosheh and Aaron:

2Tell the Israelis that whenever any man has a discharge from his genitals, then he becomes ‘unclean’. 3He becomes ‘unclean’ whether his body secretes the flow or if it’s blocked—either way he’s ‘unclean’. 4Any bed that he was lying on during or after the discharge becomes ‘unclean’, as does anything he sits on. 5Anyone who touches that bed must wash their clothes and bathe themself in water, and that person will be ‘uncleanuntil the evening. 6Similarly, anyone who sits on the place where he sat must wash their clothes and bathe themself in water, and that person will be ‘uncleanuntil the evening. 7Anyone who touches the man who had a discharge must wash their clothes and bathe themself in water, and that person will be ‘uncleanuntil the evening. 8If that man who had a discharge spits on some person who was ‘clean’, then that person must wash their clothes and bathe themself in water, and they’ll be ‘uncleanuntil the evening. 9Any thing that the man who had a discharge rides on, will become ‘unclean’, 10and anyone who touches it will be ‘unclean’ until the evening, plus anyone who carries any of those things, must wash their clothes and bathe themself in water, and they’ll be ‘unclean’ until the evening. 11Anyone the man who had a discharge touches and do didn’t rinse their hands in water, must wash their clothes and bathe themself in water, and they’ll be ‘uncleanuntil the evening. 12Any container that the man who had a discharge touches, must be smashed if it’s made from clay and rinsed with water if it’s made from wood.

13When the man’s discharge ceases, he must mark off seven days for his purification, and then he must wash his clothes and bathe himself in water, and after that, he’ll be ‘clean’. 14Then on the eighth day, he must take two doves or young pigeons, and stand in front of Yahweh at the entrance to the sacred tent. There he should give them to a priest, 15and the priest must offer one as a sin offering and the other as a burnt offering, thus making the man right with Yahweh for his discharge.

16Now when a man has an emission of semen, then he must bathe his entire body in water, and he’ll be ‘uncleanuntil the evening. 17He must also wash all his clothing, and any leather articles on him that came into contact with the semen and all of that will be ‘uncleanuntil the evening. 18When a man and a woman ‘sleep together’, then they must both bathe in water, and they’ll both be ‘unclean’ until the evening.[fn]

19When a woman has her menstrual period, she’ll be ‘unclean’ for seven days, and anyone who touches her during that time will be ‘unclean’ until the evening. 20Anything that she lies on or sits on during that time will become ‘unclean’. 21Anyone who touches her bed must wash their clothes and bathe in water, and they’ll be ‘uncleanuntil the evening. 22Anyone who touches anything that she sat on must wash their clothes and bathe in water, and they’ll be ‘uncleanuntil the evening, 23i.e., whether it’s her bed or something she sat on, anyone who touches it will be ‘uncleanuntil the evening. 24If a man sleeps with a menstruating woman and gets blood on him, then he’ll be ‘unclean’ for seven days, and any bed that he lies on will also become ‘unclean’.

25If any woman has a blood flow when it’s not her period, or keeps bleeding beyond her menstrual period, all those days will be regarded the same as her menstruation so she’ll beunclean’. 26Any bed that she lies on as long as she’s discharging blood will be regarded the same as during her menstruation and will be ‘unclean’, as will anything she sits on. 27Also, any person who touches them will be ‘unclean’ and they must wash their clothes and bathe in water, and they’ll be ‘unclean’ until the evening. 28Once the flow stops, then the woman must count off seven days, and then she’ll be ‘clean’ after that. 29Then on the eighth day, she must take two doves or young pigeons and give them to a priest at the entrance to the sacred tent, 30and he will offer one as a sin offering and the other as a burnt offering, thus making her right with Yahweh from her ‘unclean’ flow.

31You two must keep the Israeli people separate from their ‘uncleanness’, then they won’t defile my residence that’s among them, and cause their own death.

32The above are the regulations for any man with a discharge or a seminal emission that makes him ‘unclean’, 33plus any woman who is menstruating or has a bodily discharge, as well as any man who sleeps with an ‘unclean’ woman.

16:1The day for making things right

16Yahweh spoke to Mosheh after the death of two of Aharon’s sons when they approached Yahweh wrongly and died, 2and he told Mosheh:

Tell your brother Aharon that if he doesn’t want to die, then he mustn’t just enter the holiest room inside the curtain at any old time. The atonement lid is on the sacred box, and I will appear in a cloud over that lid.[ref]

3This is how Aharon must enter the sacred tent: he must acquire a young bull for a sin offering, and a ram for a burnt offering. 4He must bathe himself in water and then put on linen underclothes, followed by his sacred linen tunic and tie the linen sash around it. Then he must wrap the linen turban on. Those are all sacred clothes.

5Then Aharon must acquire two young goats for a sin offering and one ram for a burnt offering. 6He must present the bull as a sin offering for himself to make both him and his household right with God. 7Then he must take the two goats and make them stand in front of Yahweh at the entrance to the sacred tent, 8and throw dice to decide which one is for Yahweh, and one is to be the ‘scapegoat’. 9Then Aharon must present the goat that’s for Yahweh, and offer it as a sin offering, 10but the chosen ‘scapegoat’ must be kept standing there in front of Yahweh, because it’ll be used to make the people right with Yahweh, and be sent into the wilderness.

11Then Aharon must present the bull for his own sin offering to make him and his household right with God, then he’ll slaughter the bull for the sin offering for himself. 12Then he must get a panful of burning coals off the altar in front of Yahweh as well as two handfuls of finely-ground, fragrant incense, and take them inside the curtain 13where he’ll put the incense on the coals in Yahweh’s presence. Then the smoke cloud from the incense will cover the atonement lid on the sacred chest, and he won’t die. 14Then he must take some of the bull’s blood, and using his finger, he must flick the blood seven times onto the eastern the side of the lid and seven times onto the front of the lid.

15Then Aharon must slaughter the goat for the people’s sin offering, and take its blood inside the curtain, and do the same with it that he did to the bull’s blood—flicking it onto the side and front of the atonement lid,[ref] 16thus making the Israeli people right with Yahweh for their uncleanness and their rebellion and disobedience. That’s also for the sacred tent which is among the people with their uncleanness. 17No one else can enter the sacred tent when Aharon enters to make atonement in the sacred room until he leaves again. He must make atonement for himself and his household, as well as for the whole Israeli community, 18then he’ll go out to the altar that’s in front of Yahweh and make atonement for that—he must take some of the bull’s blood and some of the goat’s blood and put it on the four projecting corners of the altar. 19Then he must flick blood on to it seven times with his finger, thus purifying it and removing the uncleanness of the Israeli people from it.

16:20The goat taking the blame

20When Aharon has finished purifying the sacred room, the sacred tent, and the altar, then he should present the live goat. 21He must place both his hands on the goat’s head, and confess all of Israel’s disobedience, rebellion, and shortcomingssymbolically placing them onto the goat’s head, and then he must choose a man that’s nearby to take it into the wilderness. 22Then he’ll release the goat there in the wilderness, and the goat will carry all their sins into that barren land.

23Then Aharon must enter the sacred tent and take off the linen garment that he’d put on as he’d entered into the sacred room and leave them there.[ref] 24Then he must wash himself in water in a sacred place, put on his regular clothes, and go out and make his burnt offering and the burnt offering for the people, thus making both himself and the people right with Yahweh. 25Then he must burn the fat from the sin offering up on the altar. 26Also, the person who led away the ‘scapegoat’ must wash his clothes and bathe himself in water, and then he can reenter the camp. 27Then the remains of the bull and the goat from the sin offerings (whose blood was taken into the sacred room to make atonement) must be taken to a place outside the camp where they must be burnt—skins, flesh, and dung.[ref] 28The man who burnt them must then wash his clothes and bathe his body in water, and then he can reenter the camp.

16:29The national purification day

29This will be a permanent regulation for you all:

On the 10th of the seventh month (of Tishrei—around September/October), all of you including those who are native-born as well as foreigners living among you, must humble yourselves and not work that day[ref] 30because on that day, the high priest will purify you all from your sins to make you right with Yahweh, and you’ll be ‘clean’. 31It’ll be a very sacred rest day for you, and you all must humble yourselves—a permanent regulation for you all. 32The priest who’s anointed and ordained to succeed his father as high priest must be the one to make atonement, and he must be wearing his sacred linen clothes. 33He will first purify the sacred room and the sacred tent, and the altar, and then make all the priests right with Yahweh and finally, the entire community. 34That will become a permanent regulation every year to make all the Israelis right with Yahweh because of their sins.

So Mosheh did exactly as Yahweh had instructed him.

17:1Slaughtering animals

17Then Yahweh told Mosheh:

2Tell Aharon and his sons and all the Israelis that these are the instructions from Yahweh: 3No Israeli is allowed to slaughter a bull or lamb or goat either inside the camp or outside it. 4If they’re not taken to the entrance to the sacred tent to be presented as an offering to Yahweh in front of his residence, then that person will be held guilty of its blood—they’ve shed blood so they must be cut off from his people. 5The Israelis must stop sacrificing their animals in the countryside, and instead bring them to Yahweh at the entrance to the sacred tent, i.e., they must bring them to the priest and sacrifice them as peace offerings to Yahweh. 6Then the priest will splash the blood onto Yahweh’s altar at the tent entrance, and burn up the fat to become a soothing aroma for Yahweh. 7Then they won’t be able to continue offering their sacrifices to the goat demons that they’re prostituting themselves to. The above will be a permanent regulation throughout the generations.

8You must tell them that if an Israeli or a foreigner living among them, makes a burnt offering or sacrifice 9without bringing it to Yahweh at the sacred tent entrance, then that person must be cut off from the community.

17:10The law concerning the blood

10If there’s any Israeli or foreigner living among them, who eats blood, then I’ll oppose that person and remove them from the community[ref] 11because the body’s life is in the blood. I myself have given you blood to make atonement for your lives at the altar, because it’s the blood that can atone for life.[ref] 12That’s why I told the Israelis that none of them must eat blood—not even the foreigners that live among them may eat blood.

13So any person (Israeli or foreigner living among them) who catches wild game (including birds) to eat, they must pour its blood out and cover it with soil 14because the life of their bodies is the blood that’s in them. Again, that’s why I’ve told the Israelis not to eat the blood of any living thing because the life is in the blood, and anyone who eats it must be cut off from the community.

15Anyone who eats part of a carcass they found or one that was killed by wild animals, must wash their clothes and bathe in water, and they’ll be ‘uncleanuntil the evening, and then they’ll be ‘clean’ again. 16However, if that person doesn’t wash their clothes or bathe, then they must bear the punishment for their own disobedience.

18:1Sexual relationships

18Then Yahweh told Mosheh:

2Tell the Israeli that I am their god Yahweh. 3They mustn’t behave as if they’re still there in Egypt, nor should they behave like the Canaanites that were living in the land that I’m taking you all into, and don’t emulate their customs and practices. 4You all must imbibe my values and follow my instructions. I am your god Yahweh. 5You all must follow my instructions and my values—those who do so will live. I am your god Yahweh.[ref]

6None of you may ever flirt with any close relative to try to get them to undress. I am Yahweh. 7You must never mess with your father’s naked body, or your mother’s—no, she’s your mother so don’t ever take advantage of her nakedness. 8Don’t ever mess with any of your father’s wives, because their naked bodies are the realm of your father.[ref] 9Don’t flirt with your sister’s nakedness, whether she’s a full sister, a half sister, or an adopted sister.[ref] 10Don’t flirt with your grandchildren’s nakedness, because you’d be absolutely shaming yourself. 11Don’t flirt with your step-sister’s nakedness, because she’s your sister and her nakedness isn’t yours to enjoy. 12Don’t flirt with your aunts nakedness on your father’s side, because she’s closely related to your father.[ref] 13Don’t flirt with your aunt’s nakedness on your mother’s side, because she’s closely related to your mother. 14Don’t flirt with your uncle’s nakedness on your father’s side, and keep away from his wife, because she’s your aunt. 15Don’t flirt with your daughter-in-law’s nakedness, because she’s your son’s wife and her nakedness isn’t yours to enjoy.[ref] 16Don’t flirt with your sister-in-law, because her naked body is the realm of your brother.[ref] 17Don’t flirt with the nakedness of both a woman and her daughter or her granddaughter, because they’re related to each other—that would be perverse.[ref] 18Don’t take your wife’s sister to be a junior wife while your wife is still alive.

19Don’t approach a woman who’s menstruating, to undress her, because she’s ‘unclean’.[ref] 20Don’t sleep with someone else’s wife—your child with her would beunclean’.[ref] 21Don’t sacrifice your children to Molek so you don’t profane your god’s reputation. I am Yahweh.[ref] 22Don’t have sexual relations with a man like with a woman—it’s an abomination.[ref] 23Men, don’t have sexual relations with any animal as that would make youunclean’. And women, don’t give yourself sexually to any animal as that’s perverse.[ref]

24Don’t make yourselves ‘unclean’ in any of the above ways, because all of those things were done by the people groups that I’m driving out of this land ahead of you all. 25The land had become ‘uncleanso I made them pay for their wickedness and so the land will vomit out its inhabitants. 26However, you all must obey my instructions and decisions and not tolerate any of that perverse behaviour—not you who are native-born, nor any foreigner living among you all, 27because all that perversity was done by those living there before you all, and the land becameunclean’. 28Don’t think that the land won’t vomit you all out just like it’s doing to the people groups that have been there before you, 29because everyone who does any of those perversities will be cut off from their community. 30So you all must carefully guard against practising any of those detestable customs which were previously done there and which would make you all ‘unclean’. I am your god Yahweh.

19:1Various moral imperatives

19Then Yahweh told Mosheh:

2Tell the entire Israeli community that they must be separate from others, because I, your god Yahweh, am holy (i.e., separated from impurity).[ref] 3Everyone must respect and obey their parents, and observe my rest days. I am your god Yahweh.[ref]

4Don’t turn to worthless idols, and don’t make cast metal gods for yourselves. I am your god Yahweh.[ref]

5When you all sacrifice peace offerings, do it correctly so that you’ll all be accepted. 6The meat from your sacrifice must be eaten that same day or the next day—anything left until the third day must be thrown into the fire. 7If it was to be eaten on the third day, it would be ‘uncleanand not acceptable, 8and the people eating it would have to bear their own guilt for profaning Yahweh’s holiness, and that person must be cut off from the community.

9When you all harvest your crops off your land, you mustn’t cut the grain right to the very edge of your field, and nor can you all pick up any dropped stalks.[ref] 10In your vineyards, you must not pick every last grape or pick up any that fall on the ground, because they must be left for the poor and for the foreigners. I am your god Yahweh.

11You all mustn’t steal or deceive, or defraud any fellow citizen,[ref] 12and don’t use my name to seal a promise and then go ahead and ruin my reputation. I am Yahweh.[ref]

13Don’t oppress your neighbours or steal from them. Don’t fail to pay a day-labourer as they finish each day’s work.[ref] 14Don’t curse a deaf person, or put something in front of a blind person to trip them. You must respect and obey your god. I am Yahweh.[ref]

15Don’t judge unfairly—showing partiality to the poor, or honouring those who are well-known—you must always judge your fellow citizens fairly.[ref] 16Don’t go around slandering people. Don’t take advantage of your neighbour’s death. I am Yahweh.

17You mustn’t hate your brother. Certainly rebuke those you interact with so you don’t get blamed for their bad behaviour.[ref] 18Don’t try to get revenge against others or hold a grudge against any of your people, but instead, love your neighbour as yourself. I am Yahweh.[ref]

19Follow my instructions—don’t crossbreed two different kinds of animals, don’t sow two different crops in your field, and don’t wear clothing made of different kinds of thread.[ref]

20If a man impregnates a woman who’s destined to be someone else’s slave and she hasn’t been freed, compensation needs to be paid.[fn] They mustn’t be executed, because she hadn’t been freed. 21However, that man must take a ram to Yahweh at the sacred tent’s entrance for a guilt offering, 22and the priest will make him right with Yahweh by means of that guilt offering ram, and then he’ll be forgiven for his transgression.

23When you all enter into the land and plant various kinds of fruit trees, you mustn’t eat the fruit for the first three years—it should be regarded asuncircumcisedfor that duration. 24Then in the fourth year, all that fruit must be regarded assacred’—praise offerings for Yahweh. 25Finally, in the fifth year, you can eat that fruit and add that produce to your harvest. I am your god Yahweh.

26Don’t eat anything with the blood still in it. Don’t practice divination or witchcraft.[ref] 27Don’t have haircuts that round off your hair at the sides, and men, don’t trim the edges of your beards.[ref] 28Don’t make cuts on your bodies when someone dies, and don’t tattoo yourselves. I am Yahweh.

29don’t defile your daughter by making her prostitute herself, so the country doesn’t prostitute itself and become full of wickedness.[ref] 30Keep my rest days, and respect my sanctuary. I am Yahweh.[ref]

31Don’t turn to mediums and diviners—don’t make yourselves ‘unclean’ by means of them. I am your god Yahweh.[ref]

32Stand up for those with gray hair, and honour the presence of the elderly. Honour and respect your god. I am Yahweh.

33Don’t take advantage of foreigners when they stay in your land—[ref] 34you all must treat foreigners the same as native-born Israelis and love them like you love yourselves, because you were all foreigners in Egypt (Heb. Mitsrayim). I am your god Yahweh.

35Don’t allow injustice either in judging cases, or by trading with rigged weights and measures[ref] 36your scales and weights and measuring containers must be honest. I am your god Yahweh who brought you all out of Egypt (Heb. Mitsrayim). 37You all must obey my instructions and decisions and stick to them. I am Yahweh.

20:1Penalties for disobedience

20Then Yahweh told Mosheh:

2Tell the Israeli people that if any of them, or any foreigner staying in Yisrael, gives any of their children to Molek, then that person must definitely be executed—the people must do it by throwing rocks at them. 3Yes, I myself will personally punish that person and cut them off from the people for giving their child to Molek and so making my sanctuaryunclean’ and profaning my sacred name. 4If the people of the land just hides their eyes from seeing anyone offering their child to Molek so they don’t have to execute that person, 5then I’ll also remove that other person and their clan. I’ll cut them off from their people, along with anyone else who practises prostitution by prostituting themselves to Molek.

6I’ll take action against any person who turns to mediums or diviners to prostitute themselves to them, and I’ll cut them off from their people. 7You must keep yourselves separate from those kinds of things to be holy, because I, Yahweh, am your god. 8You all must follow my instructions and implement them. I am Yahweh who makes you different from other people groups.

9Any person who curses their father or mother must be executed—their blood will be on their own head for cursing their parents.[ref]

10Any man who commits adultery with another man’s wife, maybe even his neighbours wife, must be executed—both the man and the woman.[ref] 11Any man who sleeps with any of his father’s wives, has exposed his father’s nakedness. Both of them must be executed—their blood is on their own heads.[ref] 12If a man sleeps with his daughter-in-law, both of them must be executed. That’s perversion and so their blood is on their own heads.[ref] 13If a man has a sexual relationship with another man, both of them have done something detestable and both of them must be executed—their blood is on their own heads.[ref] 14If a man takes both a mother and her daughter as wives, then that’s wicked. They must all be burnt to death so that depravity won’t take root among you.

15If a man tries to have sex with an animal, that man must be executed and the animal must also be killed.[ref] 16If a woman presents herself sexually to any animal, you must execute the woman and kill the animal—their blood is on their own heads.

17If a man sleeps with his sister (whether on his father’s or mother’s side) and they see each other’s nakedness, it’s a disgrace and they must be cut off from their people—he’s exposed her nakedness and he must bear his wickedness.[ref] 18If a man sleeps with a woman who’s menstruating, he’s exposed her nakedness and uncovered the source of her blood, so they must both be cut off from among their people.[ref]

19You mustn’t expose the nakedness of your sister (whether on your father’s side or mother’s side) because that’s like exposing your own body. They must bear their wickedness.[ref] 20A man who sleeps with his aunt, he’s exposed his uncle’s nakedness. They’ll bear their wickedness by dying childless. 21If a man marries his brother’s wife, it’s indecent. He’s exposed his nakedness and they’ll be childless.[ref]

22You all must obey my instructions and decisions and stick to them, and then the land that I’m about to take you into, won’t vomit you all out. 23Don’t follow the customs of the peoples that I’ll drive out ahead of you all, because they do all of the above things, and I detest them 24and I’ve told you all that you yourselves will inherit their land—I’ll give it to you to take possession of. It’s a land flowing with milk and honey. I am your god Yahweh who separates you all from the other people groups. 25You all must distinguish between ‘clean’ and ‘unclean’ animals and birds. Don’t make yourselves detestable to me with any animal or bird or crawling creature which I’ve distinguished for you all as ‘unclean’. 26You all must be ‘holy’ to me, because I Yahweh am holy, and I’ve set you all apart from the other people groups to be mine.

27Any man or woman who’s a medium or diviner must be executed—the people must do it by throwing rocks at them.

21:1Stricter instructions for priests

21Then Yahweh told Mosheh:

Tell Aharon’s descendants the priests that they must not defile themselves among the Israelis, by touching anything that’s not living 2apart from the body of a close relative like a parent, child, brother 3or unmarried sister—the priest can become ‘unclean’ by means of one of them. 4He must not make himself ‘uncleanif it’s the death of a relative only by marriage. 5They must not shave their heads or trim the edges of their beards or cut their bodies in grief.[ref]

6 The priests must stay separate for their God and they must not tarnish his reputation because they present the gifts to Yahweh—their god’s food 7They mustn’t marry a woman who was a prostitute or who has defiled herself some other way or who is divorced from her husband, because they’re separated for their god. 8You must treat him as set apart because he’s the one presenting your god’s food. He must be ‘holy’ for you, because I, Yahweh, am holy and I set you all apart as ‘holy’. 9If a priest’s daughter prostituted herself, she would be profaning her father so must be burnt to death.

10The priest who is chief of all his brothers and who had the anointing oil poured over his head, and who has the responsibility of wearing the special clothing, must not wear his hair loose, and he must not tear his clothes in grief. 11He mustn’t approach any dead body—not even his own parents—he mustn’t make himselfunclean’. 12Even for a death, he mustn’t leave his duties in the sanctuary, and he mustn’t profane the sanctuary of his god, because he’s been consecrated with the anointing oil. I am Yahweh. 13He can only marry a virgin14he mustn’t take a widow or a divorced woman, or a defiled prostitute. He can only marry an unmarried, Israeli girl, 15then he won’t profane his offspring among his relatives, because I am Yahweh who sets him apart as ‘holy’.

16Then Yahweh told Mosheh,

17Tell Aharon that none of his descendants who have a deformity should ever approach to present the food for his god. 18Yes, no man who has a deformity must approach to offer a sacrifice, i.e., no one who’s blind, lame, mutilated, or with a swelling, 19or with a broken foot or hand, 20or a hunchback or dwarf, or with an eye defect, with a scab or rash, or anyone with a crushed testicle. 21Any descendant of Aharon the priest with a blemish mustn’t approach to preset a gift to Yahweh—no that person mustn’t approach to present god’s food. 22However, they can eat those gifts for God, including the sacred and very sacred portions. 23Despite that, they mustn’t enter past the curtain or approach the altar if they have a defect on their body. They mustn’t profane my sanctuary because I am Yahweh who sets them apart as ‘holy’.

24So Mosheh told all that to Aharon and his sons, and all the Israelis.

22:1Offerings to Yahweh become sacred

22Then Yahweh told Mosheh:

2Tell Aharon and his sons that they must carefully honour the holy things offered by the Israeli people, and they mustn’t profane my holy reputation. I am Yahweh. 3Tell them that throughout the generations, any of your descendants who is ‘unclean’ and approaches things that have become holy because the people have consecrated them to Yahweh, that person will be cut off from me. I am Yahweh.

4Any man who’s a descendant of Aharon, if he has a skin disease or a discharge, he mustn’t eat any of the sacred food until he’s ‘clean’ again. The same applies if he’s touched any ‘uncleancorpse, anyone who’s had a seminal emission, 5anyone who’s touched any swarming creature that makes him ‘unclean’ or touches another person who makes him ‘unclean’ (whatever that person’s uncleanness is). 6No, the man who’s touched any of those will be ‘unclean’ until the evening and he mustn’t eat any of the sacred food until he’s washed his body with water. 7When the sun sets, then he’ll be ‘cleanand will be able to eat any of those sacred offerings because that’s his food. 8But he must never eat an animal found dead or torn by wild animals and becomeuncleanin that way. I am Yahweh.

9The priests must follow my instructions so they won’t have to bear their own disobedience and die from it because they profaned them. I am Yahweh who makes them sacred.

10However, no stranger may eat the sacred food, e.g., someone staying with the priest, or his hired servant. 11If the priest had purchased the person with cash, then that person can eat it, plus anyone that was born into the priest’s household. 12A priest’s daughter who is married by someone who’s not a priest can no longer eat those sacred offerings. 13However, in the future if she became a widow or was divorced without having had children, and if she has returned to her father’s house like when she was young, then she can eat the same food as her father, but no stranger may eat it.

14If someone accidentally eats something that’s sacred, then they must pay back the full value plus 20% to the priest.

15So in summary, the priests must not profane the sacred things contributed by the Israelis and which they’ve offered to Yahweh 16or else they’ll cause themselves to bear the guilt from their disobedience concerning eating sacred food, because I am Yahweh who has separated them to be sacred.

17The Yahweh told Mosheh:

18Tell Aharon and his sons, and all the Israelis that any Israeli or outsider residing in Yisrael, when they present their burnt offering to Yahweh, whether it’s for a vow or for a freewill offering, 19to be accepted it must be a male with no defects, whether it’s a cow, or a sheep, or a goat. 20Anything that has a defect must not be presented because it wouldn’t be acceptable on your behalf.[ref] 21When someone presents a sacrifice of peace offerings to Yahweh to fulfill a vow or as a freewill offering from the herd or the flock, to be accepted it must flawless with no defects22not blind or with broken bones, and not maimed or with an oozing sore or rash or scab. You all mustn’t present anything like that to Yahweh, and must not even offering any part of them to Yahweh on the altar. 23However, if a cow or a sheep has something enlarged or something stunted, it can be offered as a freewill offering, but it wouldn’t be accepted for a vow, 24and you all must never present to Yahweh any animal that’s bruised or torn or cut.[fn] You mustn’t do that in your country.

25You all mustn’t present any of those animals raised by foreigners to your god because they’ve been ruined and are defective,[fn] so they won’t be accepted for you.

26Then Yahweh told Mosheh:

27A newborn calf or lamb or goat must remain with its mother for seven days—it can be offered as a sacrifice to Yahweh from the eighth day onwards, 28but you mustn’t slaughter a cow or a sheep and it’s offspring on the same day. 29When you offer a thanksgiving sacrifice to Yahweh, it must be acceptable as a sacrifice 30and you can eat it that same day but no part of it should be left until the morning. I am Yahweh.

31You all must record my instructions and follow them. I am Yahweh. 32You mustn’t profane the reputation of my holiness, and I will demonstrate my holiness among the Israeli people. I am Yahweh who separates you all to be sacred33who brought you all out of Egypt (Heb. Mitsrayim) to be your god. I am Yahweh.

23:1The scheduled festivals

23Then Yahweh told Mosheh:

2Tell the Israelis that they must proclaim Yahweh’s scheduled festivals as sacred assemblies at the given times.

The rest day

3Work for six days, then the seventh is a rest day for a sacred assemblydon’t work on that day—wherever you live it’s a rest day to honour Yahweh.[ref]

4The following are the scheduled festivals that you must proclaim at the appointed times as sacred assemblies:

Passover and flat bread festivals

(Num. 28:16-25)

5The 14th of the first month (Nisan = March/April) each year at twilight is the start of the celebration to honour Yahweh with the ‘passover’.[ref]

6Then the next day (the 15th) is the start of the festival of flat bread to honour Yahweh—you all must eat bread made without any rising agent for seven days.[ref] 7On that first day you’ll hold a sacred assembly—no regular work may be done that day. 8For seven days you all must present offerings to Yahweh, then the seventh day is another sacred assemblyagain no regular work may be done that day.

23:9The firstfruits festival

9Then Yahweh told Mosheh:

10Tell the Israelis that when you enter the land that I’m giving you all, and you harvest your grain crops, then you all must bring a sheaf of the first part of your harvest to a priest, 11and he will wave the sheaf in front of Yahweh to be accepted for you. That must be done the day after the rest day. 12That same day, you all must offer a year-old lamb with no defects to Yahweh as a burnt offering, 13and the associated grain offering will be two kilograms of fine wheat flour mixed with olive oil. That will be a gift to Yahweh with a pleasing aroma, and the associated drink offering will be a litre of wine. 14You all may not eat any bread, or roasted or fresh grain, on that day, until after you’ve taken the offering to your god. That is a rule that will continue throughout your generations no matter where you live.

23:15The fiftieth day festival

(Num. 28:26-31)

15Then count seven rest days from the day after you brought the bundle of grain as a wave offering—seven full weeks.[ref] 16Then that next day will make fifty days, and then you all must present a new grain offering to Yahweh. 17From your homes, each family must bring two loaves of bread baked with a rising agent, as a firstfruits offering to Yahweh. 18Along with the bread, you all must present seven year-old male lambs without defects, one young bull, and two rams. They will be a burnt offering to Yahweh, with their associated grain and drink offerings—a gift with a pleasing aroma for Yahweh. 19You all must also offer a male goat as a sin offering and two one-year-old male lambs as a peace offering. 20The priest must raise them along with the firstfruits bread as a wave offering in front of Yahweh, with the two lambs. They will become sacred to Yahweh, but for the priest to eat. 21You all must proclaim a sacred assembly that same day—you mustn’t do any regular work. That is a permanent rule that will continue throughout the generations no matter where you live.

22When you all harvest your crops, don’t reap to the very edge of your field and don’t pick up stalks that drop on the ground—they must be left for the poor and for foreigners without land. I am your god, Yahweh.[ref]

23:23The new year festival

(Num. 29:1-6)

23Then Yahweh told Mosheh, 24“Tell the Israelis that on the 1st of the seventh month (Tishrei = September/October) each year, you must have a public holiday with a loud trumpet blast announcing the sacred assembly. 25You all must not do any regular work on that day, and you all must present a fire-offering to Yahweh.”

23:26The day of atonement

(Num. 29:7-11)

26Then Yahweh told Mosheh,[ref] 27“The 10th of that seventh month is a day for making things right with Yahweh. You all must hold a sacred assembly and humble yourselves and present a fire-offering to Yahweh. 28You mustn’t do any work on that particular day because it’s the day for making yourselves right in front of your god Yahweh, 29because anyone who doesn’t humble themself on that day will be cut off from their people. 30In addition, I will destroy anyone who works on that day—removing them from their people. 31You all must not do any work. That’s a permanent rule that will continue throughout the generations no matter where you live32it’s a very strict rest day and you all must humble yourselves from the evening of the 9th until the next evening when it will finish.

23:33The celebration in shelters

(Num. 29:12-40)

33Then Yahweh told Mosheh:[ref]

34Tell the Israelis that starting on the 15th of the seventh month (of Tishrei—around September/October), there will be a celebration in shelters to honour Yahweh. 35The first day will be a sacred assembly—you all mustn’t do any regular work. 36You all must present a gift to Yahweh each day for seven days, and then on the eighth day, there’ll be another sacred assembly and you’ll all present a gift to Yahweh. It’ll be a day to assemble—you all mustn’t do any regular work that day.

37The above are the scheduled dates to proclaim sacred assemblies to present a gift to Yahweh: burnt offerings and grain offerings, sacrifices and drink offerings, on the appropriate days, 38as well as Yahweh’s rest days, and alongside all your regular gifts and vows and freewill offerings that you all give to Yahweh.

39So indeed, on the 15th of the seventh month when you have harvested your crops, you’ll all celebrate Yahweh’s festival for seven days with the first and eighth days being rest days. 40On that first day, you’ll all bring the fruit from your trees, along with palm branches, leafy branches, and willow branches from beside the creeks, and you’ll all happily celebrate in front of your god Yahweh for seven days. 41Do that for seven days each year as a festival to honour Yahweh. you all must celebrate it in the seventh month. That’s a permanent rule that will continue throughout the generations. 42You all must live in shelters for seven days—all you native-born Israelis, 43so that the future generations will know that I made their ancestors live in shelters when I brought them out of Egypt (Heb. Mitsrayim). I am your god Yahweh.

44So Mosheh passed all those scheduled dates from Yahweh, on to the Israelis.

24:1Oil for the lamps

(Exo. 27:20-21)

24Then Yahweh told Mosheh:

2Order the Israelis to bring you pressed olive oil that’s pure, to supply lamps to give continual light. 3The high priest (Aharon) must take care of them from evening until the morning to burn continually in front of Yahweh. That’s a permanent requirement that will continue throughout the generations. 4He will arrange the lamps continually on the lampstand in front of Yahweh.

24:5The bread offered there to God

5Each week you must take fine wheat flour and bake twelve loaves of bread, using two kilograms of flour for each loaf.[ref] 6Arrange the loaves into two rows of six loaves on the pure table in front of Yahweh, 7and put pure frankincense with each row to be a memorial portion for the bread as a gift to Yahweh. 8Every rest day it will be placed in front of Yahweh representing the ongoing agreement with the Israelis. 9Afterwards, it will belong to Aharon and his sons, and they must eat it in a sacred area because it’s a very sacred part of the gifts for Yahweh. That’s a permanent rule.[ref]

24:10Execution for cursing Yahweh

10Once there was an Israeli woman and an Egyptian man who had a son who lived among the Israelis, and he got into a fight with an Israeli man. 11Then that son of the Israeli woman slandered Yahweh’s name and cursed, and so the people took him to Mosheh. (The mother was Shelomit, a daughter of Dibri from the Dan tribe.) 12They held him in custody while waiting for Yahweh’s decision.

13Then Yahweh told Mosheh:

14Take that man who cursed outside the camp, and everyone who heard him must place their hands on his head, and then all the people must execute him by throwing rocks at him. 15Then tell the people that anyone who curses God must bear the results of their own wickedness. 16Anyone who slanders Yahweh’s reputation must be executed. The gathered assembly must throw rocks at them. It makes no difference whether they’re a foreigner staying there, or a native-born Israeli.

17Anyone who murders another person, must definitely be executed.[ref] 18Anyone who kills someone else’s animal, must make restitution with the same kind of animal.

19Anyone who injures a fellow citizen, must have the same done to them—20fracture for fracture, eye for eye, tooth for tooth—however they injured the other person, that’s what must be done to them.[ref] 21Anyone who kills someone else’s animal must replace it, but anyone who kills another person must be executed. 22There’s only one set of regulations for both the foreigner and the native-born citizen because I am your god Yahweh.[ref]

23Mosheh passed all that onto the people, and they took the man who had cursed Yahweh outside the camp where they executed him with rocks. The Israelis did exactly what Yahweh had commanded them via Mosheh.

25:1The rest year

(Deu. 15:1-11)

25Then on Mt. Sinai, Yahweh told Mosheh:[ref]

2Tell the Israelis that when you all enter the land that I’m giving you, the land must observe a rest year for Yahweh. 3You can plant your crops, prune your grapevines, and harvest all its produce for six years, 4but during the seventh year, you must allow the land to rest to honour Yahweh. You mustn’t plant any crops or prune any grapevines. 5Don’t systematically harvest the self-sown crops or the grapes from the untrimmed vines. It must be a rest year for the land. 6However, during the rest year, the land will provide food for you and your servants, and for your hired workers and the foreigners who are living among you, 7as well as your livestock and the wild animals across the land. Any produce from the land can be eaten.

25:8The restoration celebration year

8Count off seven rest years, so seven times seven which is forty-nine years, 9then after that, sound loud horn blasts on the 10th of the seventh month to announce throughout the land that it’s the day for making things right with Yahweh. 10Then you all must declare that fiftieth year to be sacred. It’ll be a restoration celebration year when you announce freedom for all the inhabitants of the countryeveryone can be free to return to their families, and all families can be free to return to their originally inherited land. 11That fiftieth year will be a restoration celebration year. You all mustn’t plant crops and don’t systematically harvest the self-sown crops or the grapes from the untrimmed vines, 12because it’s a restoration celebration year. You all must treat it as sacred and just eat what you take directly from the countryside.

13In that restoration celebration year, you all should return to your inherited land. 14In the other years when you buy or sell from your fellow citizens, you mustn’t cheat them 15because the value of the land will depend on the number of years after the restoration celebration year, i.e., you must take into account the number of years of produce16if there’s many years to go, the price will increase, and if the next rest year is close, the price will decrease because you’re selling the number of crops. 17So don’t cheat eat other—you must respect and obey your god, because I am your god Yahweh.

18You all must follow all my instructions and maintain my values—keeping them so that you’ll be able to live securely on the land. 19The land will yield its crops and you’ll all have plenty to eat, and you’ll be able to live there securely.

20But if you all wonder what you’ll eat in that seventh year when you’ll neither plant crops or do organised harvests, 21well I’ll send my blessing to you all in the sixth year, and it’ll produce enough for three years 22so you all can still eat that stored food while you plant crops in the eighth year to feed you all through the ninth year.

25:23Returning property to the clan

23The land can not be irrevocably sold, because it belongs to me and you all are foreigners and temporary residents on my land. 24so for all the land that you take possession of, there must be a way to get back the family land. 25For example, if an Israeli man becomes poor and sells off some of his inherited land, then a close relative must have the right to go and buy back that land. 26Even if he didn’t have a relative who could do that, and he prospers again in the future and is able to raise enough money, 27then he can calculate the value of the years until the restoration celebration, and then for that amount he must be allowed to buy the land back from the person he’d sold it to. 28However, if the original owner wasn’t able to raise enough money, then that piece of land that was sold will remain under the control of the buyer until the restoration celebration year when it must be returned anyway.

29If a house inside a walled city is sold, then the right to buy it back will last until one full year after the sale. 30If it’s not bought back by the original family within that year, then that house in the walled city will then belong permanently to the buyer—it won’t be returned in the restoration celebration year. 31On the contrary, village houses will be considered as part of the family land, so they’ll be able to be bought back by the family, otherwise they’ll be returned in the restoration celebration year.

32The Levites’ cities and houses will belong to them permanently—the Levites must always be able to buy them back, 33but even if they don’t buy them back, they must be returned in the restoration celebration year because the Levites’ houses are their only possession among the Israelis. 34In addition, they may not sell the pastureland around their cities because that’s their permanent possession.

25:35Assisting the poor

35If a fellow citizen becomes poor and is unable to survive beside you, then you must support that person and allow him to live with you like a foreigner might.[ref] 36You mustn’t charge that person any interest or make a profit from him, but you must respect and obey your god, and your fellow citizen can continue to live with you. 37If you loan him money, don’t charge interest or make a profit from his food.[ref] 38I am your god Yahweh who brought you all out of Egypt (Heb. Mitsrayim) to give you the Kanaan region and to be your god.

25:39Treatment of slaves

39If a fellow citizen becomes poor and selling himself to you, don’t force him to work like a slave[ref] 40treat him like a hired worker or a temporary resident. He can work with you until the restoration celebration year 41when he must be released along with his children, and he can return to his family, and to his clan’s land, 42because they are my slaves that I brought out of Egypt so they mustn’t be sold again as slaves. 43Don’t rule harshly over them but rather, respect and obey your god. 44If you want to have male or female slaves, they you can buy them from the surrounding countries, 45or else from the children or clans of the foreigners who are living among you—you all can own them 46and then pass them on to your children to own as their inheritance. You all can make them work indefinitely for you, but you mustn’t harshly oppress your fellow Israelis.

47If a foreigner living among you becomes wealthy, yet your fellow citizen becomes poor and sells himself to that resident foreigner or to a member of their clan, 48then there’s always the right of redemption even after he’s sold himself, so one of his brothers can buy him back, 49or his uncle or cousin or another relative from the clan can pay to free him. In fact, he might even be able to buy his own way out. 50He must work out with his master how many years from when he sold himself, until the restoration celebration year, and figure out the price according to the wages of a hired worker for that many years. 51If there’s still a lot of years to go, he’d need to repay most of what he sold himself for, 52but if it’s only a few years to go, the price for his freedom would be proportionally smaller. 53While he works for the foreign master, he must be treated like an annual hired worker. You others must ensure that he’s not treated harshly. 54Then even if he’s not bought out, he and his children must be released in the restoration celebration year 55because the Israelis are my slaves—my slaves because I brought them out of Egypt. I am your god Yahweh.

26:1Obedience will lead to prosperity

(Deu. 7:12-24)

26You all mustn’t make worthless idols or carved images for yourselves, or set up sacred pillars. In your country, you must never bow down to an engraved stone image, because I am your god Yahweh.[ref] 2You all must observe my rest days and honour my sanctuary. I am Yahweh.

3If you’ll all follow my instructions and remember my rules and obey them, 4then I’ll give you all rain in the proper season, and the land will produce crops and the trees in the countryside will produce fruit. 5The grain threshing will continue until the grape harvest, and the grape harvesting will continue until it’s time to plant new crops, and so you’ll all have plenty of food and you’ll live securely there on your land.

6Then I’ll give peace in your country so that you’ll all sleep without being afraid. I’ll remove the wild animals from your area and there’ll be no raids or wars in your region. 7You’ll all be able to chase away your enemies and destroy them8five of you will chase away a hundred, and a hundred of you will chase away ten thousand, and you’ll be able to defeat your enemies.

9I’ll give you all my attention and bless you with many children, and I’ll maintain my agreement with you all. 10You’ll all still be eating the previous year’s grain when the new harvest starts, and you’ll have to move out that left-over grain to make room for the new. 11Then I’ll put my residence among you all and won’t reject you, 12and I’ll walk among you and be your god, and you’ll all be my people. 13I am your god Yahweh who brought you all out from being slaves in Egypt, and I broke the chains off you so that you all could walk with heads erect.

26:14Punishments for disobedience

(Deu. 28:15-68)

14However, if you all won’t listen to me and won’t follow all those instructions,[ref] 15and if you all reject my regulations and my values to the point of hating my commands, thus breaking my agreement, 16then this is what I’ll do to you all: I’ll send sudden terror to you all, and wasting diseases and sicknesses. You’ll all be wasting your time sowing seeds because your enemies will eat the harvest. 17I’ll take action against you, and you’ll be defeated by your enemies. You’ll be ruled over by those who hate you, and you’ll all run away frightened even when no one’s chasing you.

18If you all still won’t listen to me after that, then I’ll continue on to discipline you seven times over for your disobedience. 19Then I’ll smash your strong pride, and I’ll make the sky like iron with no rain and your land hard like bronze. 20Your energy spent working your land will be just wasted as your land won’t produce its crops, and the trees won’t produce any fruit.

21Then if you’re all still being contrary and unwilling to listen to me, then I’ll send seven times more plagues according to your disobedience. 22Then I’ll send in the wild animals to make you childless and to cut back your livestocks, thus diminishing your numbers and leaving your roads desolate.

23Then after that if you all still won’t accept my discipline and continue to oppose me, 24then I myself will oppose you all and punish you all seven times over for your disobedience. 25I’ll send armies against you all to avenge the breaking of our agreement. You’ll be shut into your cities where I’ll send diseases in for you all, and allow your enemies to defeat you. 26When I limit your food supplies, ten women will bake bread in one oven and it will be rationed by weight—you’ll all eat but never be satisfied.

27In spite of all that, if you all still won’t listen to me, and continue to oppose me, 28then I’ll be in a hostile rage against you all and I’ll discipline you seven times more for your disobedience 29and you’ll start eating your own sons and daughters. 30I’ll destroy your hilltop shrines and cut down you incense altars, then I’ll pile your corpses on top of your idols’ corpses, and I myself will detest you all. 31I’ll make your cities into heaps of rubble and I’ll devastate your sanctuaries and no longer smell the pleasing aromas of your sacrifices.

32I’ll devastate the region, and your enemies who live in it will be appalled. 33Then I’ll scatter you all among other nations and then armies will come in after you and your land will become desolate and your cities will become rubble, 34and the land will enjoy all its rest times while it’s desolate and you’re all in your enemies’ countries. The land will stop producing and enjoy its times of resting. 35It will rest all through its desolation since it didn’t get its rest times when you lived on it.

36Then those of you who are left in your enemies’ countries, I’ll make you paranoid there—even the sound of a blowing leaf will make them run away as if someone’s chasing them with a sword, and they’ll fall down even when no one’s chasing them. 37They’ll stumble over each other as if being attacked, but there won’t be anyone chasing them, and then you all won’t have the energy to stand up against your enemies. 38You’ll die in various countries and your enemies will consume you. 39Those of you who are left will rot away amongst the wickedness in your enemies’ countries and because of the wickedness of their ancestors.

40However, if they confess their wickedness and their ancestors’ wickedness, that they’ve disobeyed and neglected me, and been hostile towards me, 41(and that I became hostile toward them and took their into their enemies’ countries,) and humble their undisciplined hearts and admit their disobedience, 42then I’ll remember my agreements with Yakov (Jacob) and with Yitshak (Isaac) and with Avraham, and I’ll remember this land. 43The land here will have been deserted by them and will have enjoyed its times of rest, and they’ll accept their wickedness because they rejected my values and they really detested my regulations. 44Despite that, I won’t reject them in their enemies’ countries, and I won’t detest them enough to completely destroy them and to break my agreement with them, because I am their god Yahweh. 45I’ll remember the earlier agreement with their ancestors that I brought out of Egypt while all the nations watched me be their god. I am Yahweh.

46The above are the instructions and values and rules that Yahweh instilled between him and the Israelis through Mosheh (Moses) there at Mt. Sinai.

27:1Valuations of vows to Yahweh

27Then Yahweh told Mosheh:

2Tell the Israelis that when someone makes a special vow to offer someone to Yahweh, 3a man between twenty and sixty will be valued at fifty silver coins (according to the sanctuary standard weights) 4and a woman at thirty coins. 5If it’s someone between five and twenty, then it’s twenty silver coins for a male and ten for a female. 6Between one month old and five years, it’s five silver coins for a male and three for a female. 7For sixty years old and older, it’s fifteen silver coins for a male and ten for a female.

8If the maker of the vow can’t afford the valuation, then that person must stand in front of the priest and give an account, and then the priest can set a value that they can afford.

9If it’s an animal that they’re promising as a gift for Yahweh, then that animal becomes sacred10it can’t be exchanged for a different one (either better or worse), but if it does get substituted, then both animals will become sacred. 11Any ‘unclean’ animal cannot be presented to Yahweh, so if that’s what was promised, the person must take the animal to the priest, 12and a priest must give a fair valuation according to the quality of the animal—the priest’s decision will be final. 13However, if it’s later bought back, then an extra twenty percent must be added to that valuation.

14If someone dedicates their house as sacred to Yahweh, a priest must value it according to its quality—the priest’s decision will be final. 15However, if that person decides to buy back their house, then an extra twenty percent must be added to the valuation and then it can be theirs again.

16If someone dedicates part of their farmland as sacred to Yahweh, then it will be valued according to how much seed would be sown in itfifty silver coins for each 130kg of barley seed required. 17That would be its value if it was dedicated during the restoration celebration year, 18but in the years following, the priest must calculate the field’s value depending on how many years remain before the next rest year. 19However, if that person decides to buy back their land, then an extra twenty percent must be added to the valuation and then it can be theirs again. 20If the person doesn’t buy back the field but sells it to someone else, then it can’t be bought back again. 21Then when the field is released at the next rest year, it will be sacred to Yahweh and the priests will take ownership.

22If someone dedicates to Yahweh some land that they’ve bought (i.e., it’s not part of their clan inheritance), 23then a priest must calculate the valuation until the next restoration celebration year, and it must be paid that same day —becoming sacred to Yahweh. 24In that rest year, the land will return to the original owner who has it as part of their clan inheritance.

25All valuations will be calculated using the standard weights from the sanctuary—the silver coin must weigh twelve grams.

26Every firstborn domestic animal (including cows and sheep) automatically belongs to Yahweh, and no person can claim to ‘dedicate’ it. 27However, if it’s an ‘unclean’ animal then it must be bought back by paying its valuation plus an additional twenty percent, but if it’s not bought back, then it must be sold at its valuation price.

28If someone dedicates something to Yahweh that they own (e.g., a man or an animal, or a field), they can’t then sell it or buy it straight back—everything that’s dedicated like that becomes sacred to Yahweh.[ref]

29Any person who’s dedicated for destruction cannot be bought back—they must be executed.

30A tenth of all the harvests from the crops and fruit from the trees, belongs to Yahweh. It’s sacred to Yahweh.[ref] 31If someone really wanted to buy back their tenth of their produce, an additional twenty percent must be added to the valuation. 32Every tenth animal of the mustered domestic cattle and sheep and goats, is sacred to Yahweh. 33The herder mustn’t pick out good or bad ones, or make substitutions. (If a substitution was made, both animals then become sacred and must not be bought back.)

34The above are the instructions and rules that Yahweh gave Mosheh at Mt. Sinai for the Israelis.


8:15 It’s not 100% clear from the Hebrew if the pronoun here refers to Aharon or to Mosheh, but as Mosheh’s name is specifically mentioned in the next clause, we assume that ‘he’ was still referring to Aharon here.

8:19 It’s not 100% clear from the Hebrew if the pronoun here refers to Aharon or to Mosheh, but as Mosheh’s name is specifically mentioned in the next clause, we assume that ‘he’ was still referring to Aharon here.

8:20 Again it’s not 100% clear from the Hebrew if the pronoun here refers to Aharon or to Mosheh, but as Mosheh’s name is specifically mentioned in the next clause, we assume that ‘he’ was referring to Aharon (and possibly including his sons) here.

8:20 Again it’s not 100% clear from the Hebrew if the pronoun here refers to Aharon or to Mosheh, but as Mosheh’s name is specifically mentioned in the next clause, we assume that ‘he’ was referring to Aharon here.

8:19 It’s not 100% clear from the Hebrew if the pronoun here refers to Aharon or to Mosheh, but as Mosheh’s name is specifically mentioned in the next clause, we assume that ‘he’ was still referring to Aharon here.

15:18 Note that if they had sexual relations in the evening, say 9pm, then they’d be ‘unclean’ all the next day and until the following evening (because the Jewish ‘day’ begins after dusk—rather than at midnight like modern Western society counts time).

19:20 We as modern readers don’t understand all the dynamics of this seemingly complex social situation.

22:24 The Septuagint mentions ‘testicles’ here, which also correlates with 21:20.

22:25 Could this be related to the fact that they’d been neutered (as per v24 in the Septuagint)???


4:13-21: Num 15:22-26.

4:27-31: Num 15:27-28.

6:1-7: Num 5:5-8.

7:26-27: Gen 9:4; Lev 17:10-14; 19:26; Deu 12:16,23; 15:23.

9:7: Heb 7:27.

9:18: Lev 3:1-11.

9:22: Num 6:22-26.

10:12-13: Lev 6:14-18.

10:14-15: Lev 7:30-34.

10:17: Lev 6:24-26.

11:44: Lev 19:2; 1Pe 1:16.

12:3: Gen 17:12; Luk 2:21.

12:8: Luk 2:24.

14:2: Mat 8:4; Mrk 1:44; Luk 5:14; 17:14.

16:2: Heb 6:19.

16:15: Heb 9:12.

16:23: Eze 44:19.

16:27: Heb 13:11.

16:29-34: Lev 23:26-32; Num 29:7-11.

17:10: Gen 9:4; Lev 7:26-27; 19:26; Deu 12:16,23; 15:23.

17:11: Heb 9:22.

18:5: Neh 9:29; Eze 18:9; 20:11-13; Luk 10:28; Rom 10:5; Gal 3:12.

18:8: Lev 20:11; Deu 22:30; 27:20.

18:9: Lev 20:17; Deu 27:22.

18:12-14: Lev 20:19-20.

18:15: Lev 20:12.

18:16: Lev 20:21.

18:17: Lev 20:14; Deu 27:23.

18:19: Lev 20:18.

18:20: Lev 20:10.

18:21: Lev 20:1-5.

18:22: Lev 20:13.

18:23: Exo 22:19; Lev 20:15-16; Deu 27:21.

19:2: Lev 11:44-45; 1Pe 1:16.

19:3: a Exo 20:12; Deu 5:16; b Exo 20:8; Deu 5:12.

19:4: a Lev 26:1; b Exo 20:23; 34:17; Deu 27:15.

19:9-10: Lev 27:15; Deu 24:19-22.

19:11: a Exo 20:15; Deu 5:19; b Exo 20:16; Deu 5:20.

19:12: Exo 20:7; Deu 5:11; Mat 5:33.

19:13: Deu 24:14-15.

19:14: Deu 27:18.

19:15: Exo 23:6-8; Deu 16:19.

19:17: Mat 18:15.

19:18: Mat 5:43; 19:19; 22:39; Mrk 12:31; Luk 10:27; Rom 13:9; Gal 5:14; Jam 2:8.

19:19: Deu 22:9-11.

19:26: a Gen 9:4; Lev 7:26-27; 17:10-14; Deu 12:16,23; 15:23; b Deu 18:10.

19:27-28: Lev 21:5; Deu 14:1.

19:29: Deu 23:17.

19:30: Lev 26:2.

19:31: Deu 18:11; 1Sam 28:3; 2Ki 23:4; Isa 8:19.

19:33-34: Exo 22:21; Deu 24:17-18; 27:19.

19:35-36: Deu 25:13-16; Prv 20:10; Eze 45:10.

20:9: Exo 21:17; Mat 15:4; Mrk 7:10.

20:10: Exo 20:14; Lev 18:20; Deu 5:18.

20:11: Lev 18:8; Deu 22:30; 27:20.

20:12: Lev 18:15.

20:13: Lev 18:22.

20:15-16: Exo 22:19; Lev 18:23; Deu 27:21.

20:17: Lev 18:9; Deu 27:22.

20:18: Lev 18:19.

20:19-20: Lev 18:12-14.

20:21: Lev 18:16.

21:5: Lev 19:27-28; Deu 14:1.

22:20: Deu 17:1.

23:3: Exo 20:8-10; 23:12; 31:15; 34:21; 35:2; Deu 5:12-14.

23:5: Exo 12:1-13; Deu 16:1-2.

23:6-8: Exo 12:14-20; 23:15; 34:18; Deu 16:3-8.

23:15-21: Exo 23:16; 34:22; Deu 16:9-12.

23:22: Lev 19:9-10; Deu 24:19-22.

23:26-32: Lev 16:29-34.

23:33-36: Deu 16:13-15.

24:5-6: Exo 25:30.

24:9: Mat 12:4; Mrk 2:26; Luk 6:4.

24:17: Exo 21:12.

24:20: Exo 21:23-25; Deu 19:21; Mat 5:38.

24:22: Num 15:16.

25:1-7: Exo 23:10-11.

25:35: Deu 15:7-8.

25:37: Exo 22:25; Deu 23:19-20.

25:39-46: Exo 21:2-6; Deu 15:12-18.

26:1: a Lev 19:4; b Exo 20:4; Deu 5:8; 16:21-22; 27:1.

26:14-33: Deu 28:15-68.

27:28: Num 18:14.

27:30-33: Num 18:21; Deu 14:22-29.

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