the law of holiness
1 Yahweh said to Moses,
2 “Speak to Aaron, his sons and all the Israelites and say to them: This is what Yahweh has commanded:
3 Any man from the house of Israel who kills an ox, or a lamb or a goat in the camp or outside the camp
4 and does not bring it to the entrance of the Tent of Meeting to make an offering of it to Yahweh before the tabernacle of Yahweh—that man shall be considered guilty of bloodshed. He has shed blood and he shall be cut off from among his people.
5 The reason for this ordinance is so that the sons of Israel may bring the sacrifices that they used to slay in the fields to Yahweh at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting, to the priests, and sacrifice them as sacrifices of peace to Yahweh.
6 The priest shall sprinkle the blood on the altar of Yahweh at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting and burn the fat as a sweet-smelling offering to Yahweh. ［2K 23,8］
7 This way they shall no longer slay their sacrifices for the goat idols to whom they prostituted themselves.
This is to be a lasting ordinance for them in the generations to come.
You shall not eat blood
8 Then you shall give them this ordinance: Any man from the house of Israel or any alien living among them who offers a burnt offering or sacrifice
9 and does not bring it to the entrance of the Tent of Meeting to sacrifice it to Yahweh, that man shall be cut off from his people.
10 If any man from the house of Israel or any alien living among them eats blood, I will set my face against that person and I will cut him off from among his people.
11 For the life of the flesh is in the blood, and I have given it to you to rescue your life on the altar. Offered blood makes atonement because of the life with in it. That is why I said to the sons of Israel: No one among you shall eat blood, nor may any alien who lives among you eat blood.
12 If any Israelite or any alien living among you snares in hunting any beast or bird that may be eaten,
13 he shall pour out its blood and cover it with dust.
14 For the blood of every creature contains its life and I have therefore said to the peo ple of Israel: You are not to eat the blood of any flesh, for the life of all flesh is with in its blood; whoever eats it shall be cut off.
15 And every person who eats an animal that dies or that is torn by wild beasts, whether he be a native or an alien, shall wash his clothes and bathe in water and remain unclean until evening; then he will be purified.
16 But if he does not wash his clothes or bathe his body, he shall carry his guilt.”
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Comments Leviticus, Chapter 17
• 17.1 In this chapter, we have the beginning of the Law of Holiness, or, the law of a people consecrated to God.
The law about blood was a way of instructing about and instilling a sense of the sacred meaning of life. This is summarized in chapter 17.
Just as with most primitive people, the Hebrews believed that life was in the blood. Therefore, blood was sacred, even the blood of animals, and could only be offered to God (see Gen 9:5). If it was not offered on the altar, it must be poured on the ground, but must not be consumed.
Even at the time of Christ, the Jews felt such a repulsion for blood that, for some years, Chris tians from other nations observed that law in order not to scandalize their Jewish brothers (Acts 15).
Verse 11 explains why Christ chose a death in which he shed his blood. Whenever we read “Christ saved us through his blood,” we must understand “through the offering of his life.”