The several things contained in this chapter are the law of the trespass offering, Leviticus 7:1 the portion the priests had in the burnt offerings and meat offerings, Leviticus 7:8 the law of the peace offerings, whether by way of thanksgiving, or a vow, or voluntary oblation, Leviticus 7:11 the prohibition of fat and blood, Leviticus 7:22 the parts the priests should have in the peace offerings, the breast and right shoulder, Leviticus 7:28 and the chapter is concluded with a recapitulation of the various things contained in this and the preceding chapters, Leviticus 7:37.
Verse 1.Likewise this [is] the law of the trespass [offering],.... Or the various rites and rules to be observed at the offering of it: the persons for whom it was to be made are described in the two preceding chapters, Leviticus 5:1 both such that sinned through ignorance, and knowingly, and here the place and parts of the offering, and how to be disposed of, are declared:
it [is] most holy; wholly devoted for sacred use, either to the Lord, or to his priests; there were some things the Jews call light holy things, and others most holy in the highest degree, of this sort was the trespass offering.
Verse 2.In the place where they kill the burnt offering shall they kill the trespass [offering,.... See Leviticus 1:11:
and the blood thereof shall he sprinkle round about upon the altar; on the upper part of it. There was a scarlet thread that was drawn around the altar in the middle, the blood of some of the sacrifices was sprinkled below it; and some above it, as was the blood of the trespass offering.
Verse 3.And he shall offer of it all the fat thereof,.... To the Lord, that being claimed by him, as in the peace offerings of the herd, and of the flock, whether a bullock or cow, a lamb or a goat, Leviticus 3:3, &c. and in the sin offering of the bullock, Leviticus 1:8:
and the rump, or tail, which of sheep and rams, for the trespass offering, was very large and fat in those countries; See Gill on "Ex 29:22" see Gill on "Le 3:9":
and the fat that covereth the inwards; called the "omentum."
Verse 4.And the two kidneys, and the fat that [is] on them,.... Which are usually covered with fat:
which [is] by the flanks: or rather that which is "upon" them {y}; for this respects not the situation of the kidneys, nor the fat upon them, but the fat which is upon the flanks, as distinct from that, and where there are great collops of it, see Job 15:27:
and the caul [that is] above the liver; the lobe upon the liver, according to the Septuagint:
with the kidneys, it shall he take away; all the fat before mentioned, together with the kidneys, were to be taken away from the ram of the trespass offering, and burnt, as follows.
{y} Mylokh le rva "et qui est superiliis," Tigurine version.
Verse 5.And the priest shall burn them upon the altar,.... Fat taken off of the several parts before mentioned, and the kidneys: which were to be
[for] an offering made by fire unto the Lord; and was acceptable to him, being typical of the offering of Christ, which is a sweet smelling savour, bearing the fire of divine wrath in the room and stead of his people:
it [is] the trespass [offering]; an offering for a trespass committed, to make atonement for it; and this part of it, the burning of the fat, was properly the offering to the Lord, all the rest were the priest's, as follows.
Verse 6.Every male among the priests shall eat thereof,.... Of the flesh of it, after the fat was taken off and burnt, the rest belonged to the priests and their sons, and to them only, not to their wives and daughters:
it shall be eaten in the holy place; in the court of the tabernacle, in some apartment in it, for that purpose, as afterwards in the temple; it was not to be carried home to their houses, for all in the family to partake of, only the priests and their sons were to eat of it:
it [is] most holy; and therefore none but such who were devoted to holy services might eat of it; only sanctified persons, true believers, who are made priests unto God, have a right to eat of the altar Christ, or, can eat his flesh in a spiritual sense, and feed upon him by faith, and receive nourishment from him, Hebrews 13:10.
Verse 7.As the sin [offering is], so [is] the trespass [offering, there is] one law for them,.... The same as in Leviticus 6:27:
the priest that maketh atonement therewith shall have it; who by offering it made atonement for the trespass of the person that brings it, as typical of the atonement by the sacrifice of Christ; he was to have all but what was burnt, for himself and his sons; though no doubt but other priests then on duty in the court ate with him.
Verse 8.And the priest that offereth any man's burnt offering,.... In which the flesh was wholly burnt, and nothing of it remained to requite the priest for his trouble, as in other offerings:
even the priest shall have to himself the skin of the burnt offering, which he hath offered; in some cases the skin itself was burnt, and then he could have nothing, see Leviticus 4:11 but in others the skin was reserved for the priest. There seems to be an emphasis upon the phrase "to himself," and may signify, that though in other things other priests might partake with him, yet not in this; and so Maimonides {z} observes, that the skin was not given to every priest, but to him that offered the sacrifice; and elsewhere {a} he says, the skins of light holy things are the owner's, but the skins of the most holy things are the priest's. And some have thought this law has some respect to the case of Adam, and is agreeable thereunto; who having offered sacrifice according to divine directions given him, had coats made for him and his wife of the skins of the slain beasts; and it was usual with the Heathen priests to have the skins of the sacrifices, and in which they slept in their temples and others also were desirous of the same, in order by dreams or otherwise to get knowledge of things future; See Gill on "Am 2:8."
{z} In Misn. Challah, c. 4. sect. 9. {a} In Misn. Zebachim, c. 12. sect. 3.
Verse 9.And all the meat offering that is baked in the oven,.... Or "every meat offering" {b}, whether dressed in one way or another, and which was done in one or other of these three ways, of which this was one, baked in an oven heated for that purpose:
and all that is dressed in the frying pan; such as we call pancakes:
and in the pan; which was different from the frying pan; it seems to be what was set upon an hearth made hot, and soon baked; See Gill on "Le 6:21" of these three different ways of dressing the meat offering, see Leviticus 2:4.
Verse 10.And every meat offering mingled with oil, and dry,.... Rather it should be rendered "or dry" {c}; that is, as Jarchi interprets it, that has no oil in it; the meat offering in common, let it be dressed in what way soever, was mingled with oil; but in the poor man's offering for sin, which was as a meat offering, no oil was to be put upon it, Leviticus 5:11 but whether the offering was with or without oil, moist or dry, it
shall all the sons of Aaron have, one [as much] as another; it was to be equally divided among them; or a priest offering it at one time, was to have the same as another priest at another time; it was always alike, all that remained, except the handful that was burnt, was the priest's.
Verse 11.And this [is] the law of the sacrifice of peace offerings, which ye shall offer unto the Lord. Some other laws and rules respecting the oblation of them: in Leviticus 3:1 an account is given of what they should be, both of the herd and flock, and of the burning of the fat of them; and here the several sorts of them are distinctly observed, what should be offered with them, and the part the priest should have of it, and when the flesh of them should be eaten.
Verse 12.If he offer it for a thanksgiving,.... Which Jarchi restrains to the wonderful deliverances of seafaring persons, of travellers, and of such as have been confined in prison, or have laboured under violent diseases and disorders of body; and so Aben Ezra seems to understand it only of thanksgivings on account of being delivered out of distress; but it might be for the common mercies of life, or any particular mercy or instance of divine goodness a man was sensible of, and thought proper in this way to make an acknowledgment of it:
then he shall offer with the sacrifice of thanksgiving; which, if of the herd, was either a bullock or a cow; and if of the flock, was either a lamb or a goat;
unleavened cakes mingled with oil; ten of them, according to the Jewish writers; the measure of flour, of which they were made, were, as Jarchi says, five Jerusalem seahs or pecks, which were six of those used in the wilderness, and made twenty tenths or omers, an omer being the tenth part of an ephah {d}; the oil they were mingled with, as to the quantity of it, was half a log {e}; a fourth part of it was for the cakes, hastily baked, (said in the latter part of this verse to be fried,) an eighth part for those baked, (intended in this clause,) and an eighth part for the wafers next mentioned:
and unleavened wafers anointed with oil; these were a thinner sort of cakes, made without leaven as the others, but the oil was not mixed with the flour in the making of them, but put upon them when made, and therefore said to be anointed with it; there were also ten of these:
and cakes mingled with oil of fine flour fried; these were such as were hastily and not thoroughly baked, Leviticus 6:21 or, as Jarchi and Ben Gersom, they were mixed and boiled with hot water, as much as was sufficient; or, according to Maimonides {f}, were fried in oil; and there were ten of these, in all thirty,
{d} Vid. Misn. Menachot, c. 7. sect. 1. & Bartenora in ib. {e} Maimon. Maaseh Hakorbanot, c. 9. sect. 20. {f} In Misn. Menachot, c. 9. sect. 3.
Verse 13.Besides the cakes,.... The unleavened cakes, and the unleavened wafers, and the fried cakes; or with these, as Aben Ezra and Abendana interpret it:
he shall offer for his offering leavened bread, with the sacrifice of thanksgiving of his peace offerings; not that this was offered upon the altar, for all leaven was forbidden there, Leviticus 2:11 but it was given to the priest, that he might have change of bread, and such as was agreeable to him, to eat with the flesh of the peace offerings he had a share of, and to the owners also; and the whole of this consisted of ten cakes likewise, as will appear by what Maimonides {g} says; he (the offerer) takes twenty tenths of fine flour, and makes ten leavened, and ten unleavened; the ten leavened he makes into ten cakes, and the ten unleavened he makes of them eighty cakes alike, ten cakes of every sort, ten cakes baked in an oven, ten cakes wafers, and ten cakes slightly baked.
{g} Maaseh Hakorbanot, c. 9. sect. 17, 18, 21.
Verse 14.And of it he shall offer one out of the whole oblation [for] an heave offering unto the Lord,.... That is, one out of the unleavened cakes, and out of the unleavened wafers, and out of the cakes fried, and out of the cakes leavened; lo, says Aben Ezra, four at least, and the truth is, adds he, there were ten; and so Maimonides {h} says, the priest took out of all the four cakes, one out of every sort, as it is said, "and of it he shall offer one," &c.
and it shall be the priest's that sprinkleth the blood of the peace offerings; that is, that part of the cakes and bread, which is offered as an heave offering to the Lord, was the portion of the priests; and so Maimonides {i} says,
"the bread waved (rather heaved) with the thank offering was eaten by the priests, and the rest of the bread by the owners."
{h} Maaseh Hakorbanot, c. 9. sect. 17, 18, 21. {i} Maaseh Hakorbanot, c. 9. sect. 12.
Verse 15.And the flesh of the sacrifice of his peace offerings for thanksgiving,.... Having given directions about the cakes and bread that went along with the peace offerings, offered in thankfulness for mercies received; instructions are next given about eating the flesh of them; and the order is, that that
shall be eaten the same day that it is offered; partly by him that brought them, and his family, and partly by the poor he was to invite to eat thereof; and also by the priests and Levites, who were to have their share of it; see Deuteronomy 12:11
he shall not leave any of it until the morning; which was ordered to encourage liberality to the priests, Levites, and others, since all must be eaten up before morning: according to the Jewish canons, they might eat it no longer than midnight; by that time it was to be all consumed; and it is said {k}, the wise men made an hedge to the law to keep men from sin.
{k} Misn. Zebachim, c. 5. sect. 3.
Verse 16.But if the sacrifice of his offering be a vow,.... Be on account of a vow made, as, that if he was favoured with such and such benefits, or delivered out of such and such troubles and distresses, then he would offer such a sacrifice:
or a voluntary offering; without any condition or obligation; what from the mere motion of his mind he freely offered, not being directed to it by any command of God, or under any necessity from a vow of his own, and without any view to; any future good to be enjoyed: Aben Ezra describes both the one and the other thus; a "vow" which he uttered with his lips in his distresses, a "voluntary offering," which his spirit made him willing to bring, a sacrifice to God neither for a vow nor for thanksgiving:
it shall be eaten the same day that he offereth his sacrifice; that is, it shall be begun to be eaten then, and if all is eaten up it is very well, but they were not obliged in either of these cases, as in the preceding, to eat up all, and leave none to the morning, for it follows:
and on the morrow also the remainder of it shall be eaten; some of it, if thought fit, and could not be conveniently eaten, might be kept till the day after the sacrifice, but no longer.
Verse 17.But the remainder of the flesh of the sacrifice on the third day,.... What remained of it uneaten on the second day, and was kept till the third:
shall be burnt with fire; that it might neither corrupt, nor be put to superstitious uses, nor be of any profit in any respect; that so niggardliness and distrust of the care of Providence might be discouraged: perhaps some respect may be had in the type to the resurrection of Christ on the third day, having seen no corruption.
Verse 18.And if any of the flesh of his peace offerings be eaten at all on the third day,.... Any part of it, even the least:
it shall not be accepted; as a sacrifice well pleasing to God; he will take no delight in it, or express any satisfaction therein; but, on the contrary, reject it with abhorrence:
neither shall it be imputed to him that offereth it; the Targum of Jonathan adds, for merit or righteousness; it shall not be accounted a righteous action, or the offerer receive any benefit by it:
it shall be an abomination; to God, the flesh being kept so long, through a sordid and niggardly disposition:
and the soul that eateth of it shall bear his iniquity; it shall not be forgiven him; he shall bear the punishment of it.
Verse 19.And the flesh that toucheth any unclean [thing] shall not be eaten,.... That is, the flesh of the peace offerings; should it be touched by any unclean person, man or woman; that was so in a ceremonial sense, being profluvious or menstruous, or having touched anything unclean, or touched by any unclean creature, as a dog or the like, as it might be while carried from the tabernacle to any of their tents or houses:
it shall be burnt with fire; that no profit might be had of it; and this was to make them careful in carrying it from place to place:
and as for the flesh, all that be clean shall eat thereof; that are clean in a ceremonial sense; as all that are clean in an evangelic sense, through the blood and righteousness of Christ, may, by faith, eat his flesh and drink his blood. Jarchi observes, that whereas it is said, Deuteronomy 12:27 "thou shall eat the flesh"; some might object and say, that none might eat of the peace offerings but the owners of them, therefore it is said here, "all that be clean shall eat"; not the owners only, nor the priests and Levites only, but whoever the offerer should invite to eat thereof, provided he was but clean.
Verse 20.But the soul that eateth [of] the flesh of the sacrifice of the peace offerings, that [pertain] unto the Lord,.... That are offered up to him, and so are holy, and therefore not to be eaten by unholy persons, or by any
having his uncleanness upon him; a profluvious person that has an issue running out of him, a gonorrhoea; see Leviticus 15:2
even that soul shall be cut off from his people; be disfranchised as an Israelite, be debarred the privileges of the sanctuary, or be cut off by death before the usual time and term of man's life; so those that eat and drink unworthily in the supper of our Lord, where his flesh is eaten and his blood drank, eat and drink damnation to themselves, 1 Corinthians 11:29.
Verse 21.Moreover, the soul that shall touch any unclean [thing],.... Person or thing, the dead body of a man, or the bone of a dead body, or a grave in which it was laid:
as the uncleanness of man; the issue that runs from a profluvious person:
or [any] unclean beast; that was so by the law ceremonial; see Leviticus 11:4:
or any abominable unclean thing; which the Targum of Jonathan interprets of every unclean reptile: see Leviticus 11:20
and eat of the flesh of the sacrifice of peace offerings, which [pertain] unto the Lord, even that soul shall be cut off from his people; See Gill on "Le
7:20."
Verse 22.And the Lord spake unto Moses,.... Continued speaking to him:
saying; as follows.
Verse 23.Speak unto the children of Israel, saying,.... Putting them in mind, by repeating to them the laws concerning fat and blood, Leviticus 3:17
ye shall eat no manner of fat; of any creature fit for food, whose flesh otherwise may be eaten, and particularly
of ox, or of sheep, or of goats: creatures used in sacrifice; though this is not to be restrained to such of them, and the fat of them that were sacrificed, whose fat was claimed by the Lord as his, and was burnt on his altar; but this is to be understood of the fat of these creatures when killed for their common use, for the food of them and their families; the fat even of these was not to be eaten; that which was not separated from the flesh, but mixed with it, might be eaten, but not that which was separated {l}.
{l} Bechai in Lev. 3. 17.
Verse 24.And the fat of the beast that dieth of itself,.... Of any disease, and is not regularly killed:
and the fat of that which is torn with beasts; with wild beasts:
may be used in any other use; as in medicine, for plasters, or for making candles, or for greasing of anything to make it smooth and pliable, or the like:
but ye shall in no wise eat of it; such carcasses themselves were not to be eaten of, and one would think their fat in course must be unlawful; but however, to prevent the doing of it, this particular law was given, and those that broke this were doubly guilty, as the Jews observe {m}; once in eating things that died of themselves, or were torn with beasts, and again by eating the fat of them.
{m} Maimon. Hilchot Maacolot Asurot, c. 7. sect. 2.
Verse 25.For whosoever eateth the fat of the beast, of which men offer an offering made by fire unto the Lord,.... As oxen, sheep, rams, goats; meaning not only the fat of those that are offered, but the fat of all those of the like kind:
even the soul that eateth it shall be cut off from his people; See Gill on "Le 7:20" Maimonides {n} observes, that the punishment of cutting off is enjoined for the eating of fat, because men used to count it delicious, for which reason also God would honour his sacrifices with it: and he further observes {o}, that the fat of the intestines too much saturates, hinders concoction, generates gross and frigid blood, hence it is much better it should be burnt than eaten; and that blood and what dies of itself are of difficult digestion, and of bad nourishment, wherefore the latter is forbidden in the Leviticus 7:24, and the former in Leviticus 7:26: of the punishment for eating fat, the same writer {p} observes, he that eats fat the quantity of an olive, presumptuously, is guilty of cutting off; if ignorantly, he must bring the fixed sin offering: and elsewhere {q} he says, he that eats fat is beaten for it; and he eats it a second time, and is beaten for it; but if he eats it a third time they do not beat him, but put him into a prison, which is a strait place according to his height, where he cannot stand upright, nor can he lie down in it; and they give him bread and water of affliction till his bowels are distressed, and he become sick, and then they feed him with barley till his belly bursts.
{n} Moreh Nevochim, par. 3. c. 41. {o} Ibid. c. 48. {p} Hilchot Maacolot Asurot, c. 7. sect. 1. {q} Hilchot Sanhedrin, c. 18. sect. 4.
Verse 26.Moreover ye shall eat no manner of blood,.... Of any of the above creatures, or any other, even of any clean creature, and much less of an unclean one:
[whether it be] of fowl or of beast; of all sorts and kinds. Jarchi thinks, the words being thus expressed, the blood of fishes and locusts is excepted, and so lawful to eat:
in any of your dwellings; this shows that this law is not to be restrained to creatures slain in sacrifice in the tabernacle, and to the blood of them, but to be understood of all such as were slain in their own houses for food, and the blood of them.
Verse 27.Whatsoever soul [it be] that eateth any manner of blood,.... The Targum of Jonathan adds, of any living creature, that is, of any while it is alive; for the Jews always interpret the law in Genesis 9:4 of the member of a living creature torn off from it, and its flesh with the blood eaten directly:
even that soul shall be cut off from his people; Maimonides {r} observes, that to some sorts of food cutting off is threatened, particularly to blood, because of the eager desire of men to eat it in those times, and because it precipitated them to a certain species of idolatry; he means that of the Zabians, of which See Gill on "Eze 33:25" of the true reason of the prohibition of eating blood under the law, see Leviticus 17:10, &c.
{r} Moreh Nevochim, par. 3. c. 41.
Verse 28.And the Lord spake unto Moses,.... At the same time the above laws were delivered; for what follows relates to the sacrifice of the peace offerings:
saying; as follows.
Verse 29.Speak unto the children of Israel, saying,.... Giving them the further instructions concerning their peace offerings:
he that offereth the sacrifice of his peace offerings unto the Lord; whether it he for thanksgiving, or as a vow, or a voluntary oblation, and whether it be of the herd or of the flock, an ox or a cow, a lamb or a goat:
shall bring his oblation unto the Lord of the sacrifice of his peace offerings; that is, the unleavened cakes, wafers, and fried cakes, and unleavened bread, which are called the whole oblation, Leviticus 7:10.
Verse 30.His own hands shall bring the offerings of the Lord made by fire,.... That is, such parts of the peace offerings as were to be burnt with fire, as the fat on several parts described in Leviticus 3:3 the owners of the offerings were to bring them in the manner as will be presently observed:
the fat with the breast, it shall he bring; the fat to be burnt, and the breast for the priest and his sons, as in the following verse Leviticus 7:31:
that the breast may be waved [for] a wave offering before the Lord; how this waving was performed, See Gill on "Ex 29:24" particularly with respect to these peace offerings it was thus; if a thank offering, the priest takes of the bread brought with it one (cake) out of ten, and lays it with the breast, the shoulder, and the inwards, and waves all upon the hands of the owners; on which he puts the fat, then the breast and the shoulder above (i.e. upon the fat), then the two kidneys, and the caul, and the liver above them; and if there was any bread, he put it over them, and waved all, putting his hand under the hands of the owner {s}.
{s} Maimon. Maaseh Hakorbanot, c. 9. sect. 6, 7. so Ben Gersom in loc.
Verse 31.And the priest shall burn the fat upon the altar,.... Of burnt offering, even the fat upon the inwards, the two kidneys, the flanks, the caul, and liver:
but the breast shall be Aaron's and his sons; which being waved before the Lord for a wave offering, was the Lord's, and so was given to his priests to eat of, for the service done by them, it being but reasonable that they that serve at the altar should live of it; and thus, with other things, a maintenance was provided for the priests and their families, as ought also to be for Gospel ministers under the present dispensation.
Verse 32.And the right shoulder shall ye give unto the priest [for] an heave offering,.... Whether of an ox or a cow, a lamb or a goat:
of the sacrifices of your peace offerings; which were of either of these creatures; the Targum of Jonathan paraphrases it,
"the right arm from the shoulder to the elbow." The breast being the seat of wisdom, and the shoulder of strength, some think denote Christ as the wisdom and power of God unto his people, his priests, who have all their knowledge and strength from him, and who bears them on his heart and on his shoulder.
Verse 33.He among the sons of Aaron that offereth the blood of the peace offerings, and the fat,.... Who sprinkled the blood of them upon the altar round about, and burnt the fat upon it, which were rites enjoined to be observed, Leviticus 3:2:
shall have the right shoulder for [his] part; his particular part and share, because of his service: Aben Ezra remarks, that the right shoulder was given to him that sprinkled the blood, and the breast to all the priests; and Jarchi observes, that he that was fit for sprinkling the blood, and burning the fat, and went out an unclean person in the time of sprinkling the blood, or burning the fat, had no part in the flesh.
Verse 34.For the wave breast and the heave shoulder have I taken of the children of Israel,.... These two parts were particularly pitched upon and selected:
from off the sacrifices of their peace offering; the rest being allowed the owners, besides what were burnt:
and have given them unto Aaron the priest and unto his sons, by a statute for ever from among the children of Israel; as long as the priesthood lasted, even to the coming of the Messiah, in whom all these sacrifices would have their accomplishment and their end.
Verse 35.This [is the portion] of the anointing of Aaron,.... Of his being anointed to the priestly office; this is the part allotted and assigned him for the execution of it; this is the reward, as Aben Ezra interprets it, of his faithful performance of it, namely, his having the wave breast and heave shoulder of the peace offerings, and a cake out of everyone of the unleavened cakes, together with the leavened bread, besides other perquisites from other offerings:
and of the anointing of his sons; the successors of him in the priest hood; the Targum of Jonathan adds, above all their brethren the Levites:
out of the offerings of the Lord made by fire; out of such whose fat on the several parts of them was burnt with fire, such as the peace offerings were:
in the day when he presented them to minister unto the Lord in the priest's office; when they were ordered to be taken out from among the children of Israel, and to be consecrated to, and invested with, the priest's office, as they were by Moses, and presented by him unto him as his priests; at that time the above portion was assigned them, as follows.
Verse 36.Which the Lord commanded to be given them of the children of Israel,.... Whenever they brought their offerings to be offered up by them, such parts thereof were ordered to be allowed them as theirs;
in the day that he anointed them; or from the day they were anointed of Moses, by the direction of the Lord, from that time they had a right and claim to the above things, out of the sacrifices brought, so Aben Ezra: and this was
by a statute for ever throughout their generations; in all successive generations, unto the coming of the Messiah, which would put an end to their priesthood. Thus the Lord provided for the maintenance of his ministers, till that time came; and since it has been the ordinance of Christ, that they which preach the Gospel should live of the Gospel, 1 Corinthians 9:13.
Verse 37.This [is] the law of the burnt offering,.... As delivered, Leviticus 6:9:
and of the consecrations; of Aaron and his sons to the priest's office, as in Leviticus 6:20:
and of the sacrifice of the peace offerings; as in this chapter, Leviticus 7:11 for this is only a recapitulation of the several laws respecting these things before observed.
Verse 38.Which the Lord commanded Moses in Mount Sinai,.... Or "by" or "near" {t} Mount Sinai; for the above laws were not given to Moses when on the mount, but after the tabernacle was erected, and out of it, as appears from Leviticus 1:1 and to which what follows agrees:
in the day that he commanded the children of Israel to offer their oblations unto the Lord in the wilderness of Sinai; where they were when the above laws were delivered to them, and which wilderness had its name from the mount near to which they now were, and where the tabernacle was pitched, from whence the Lord spoke; and so the Targum of Jonathan paraphrases it,
"in the tabernacle which they made for him in the wilderness of Sinai;"
there they were ordered to offer their oblations of every sort, as before directed. It should be observed, that this is to be understood of the command given in the wilderness to offer sacrifices, but not of the sacrifices themselves then offered, which were not done while there; see
Jeremiah 7:22.
Leviticus 7 Bible Commentary
John Gill’s Exposition of the Bible
Verse 1. Likewise this [is] the law of the trespass [offering],.... Or the various rites and rules to be observed at the offering of it: the persons for whom it was to be made are described in the two preceding chapters, Leviticus 5:1 both such that sinned through ignorance, and knowingly, and here the place and parts of the offering, and how to be disposed of, are declared:
it [is] most holy; wholly devoted for sacred use, either to the Lord, or to his priests; there were some things the Jews call light holy things, and others most holy in the highest degree, of this sort was the trespass offering.
Verse 2. In the place where they kill the burnt offering shall they kill the trespass [offering,.... See Leviticus 1:11:
and the blood thereof shall he sprinkle round about upon the altar; on the upper part of it. There was a scarlet thread that was drawn around the altar in the middle, the blood of some of the sacrifices was sprinkled below it; and some above it, as was the blood of the trespass offering.
Verse 3. And he shall offer of it all the fat thereof,.... To the Lord, that being claimed by him, as in the peace offerings of the herd, and of the flock, whether a bullock or cow, a lamb or a goat, Leviticus 3:3, &c. and in the sin offering of the bullock, Leviticus 1:8:
and the rump, or tail, which of sheep and rams, for the trespass offering, was very large and fat in those countries; See Gill on "Ex 29:22" see Gill on "Le 3:9":
and the fat that covereth the inwards; called the "omentum."
Verse 4. And the two kidneys, and the fat that [is] on them,.... Which are usually covered with fat:
which [is] by the flanks: or rather that which is "upon" them {y}; for this respects not the situation of the kidneys, nor the fat upon them, but the fat which is upon the flanks, as distinct from that, and where there are great collops of it, see Job 15:27:
and the caul [that is] above the liver; the lobe upon the liver, according to the Septuagint:
with the kidneys, it shall he take away; all the fat before mentioned, together with the kidneys, were to be taken away from the ram of the trespass offering, and burnt, as follows.
{y} Mylokh le rva "et qui est superiliis," Tigurine version.
Verse 5. And the priest shall burn them upon the altar,.... Fat taken off of the several parts before mentioned, and the kidneys: which were to be
[for] an offering made by fire unto the Lord; and was acceptable to him, being typical of the offering of Christ, which is a sweet smelling savour, bearing the fire of divine wrath in the room and stead of his people:
it [is] the trespass [offering]; an offering for a trespass committed, to make atonement for it; and this part of it, the burning of the fat, was properly the offering to the Lord, all the rest were the priest's, as follows.
Verse 6. Every male among the priests shall eat thereof,.... Of the flesh of it, after the fat was taken off and burnt, the rest belonged to the priests and their sons, and to them only, not to their wives and daughters:
it shall be eaten in the holy place; in the court of the tabernacle, in some apartment in it, for that purpose, as afterwards in the temple; it was not to be carried home to their houses, for all in the family to partake of, only the priests and their sons were to eat of it:
it [is] most holy; and therefore none but such who were devoted to holy services might eat of it; only sanctified persons, true believers, who are made priests unto God, have a right to eat of the altar Christ, or, can eat his flesh in a spiritual sense, and feed upon him by faith, and receive nourishment from him, Hebrews 13:10.
Verse 7. As the sin [offering is], so [is] the trespass [offering, there is] one law for them,.... The same as in Leviticus 6:27:
the priest that maketh atonement therewith shall have it; who by offering it made atonement for the trespass of the person that brings it, as typical of the atonement by the sacrifice of Christ; he was to have all but what was burnt, for himself and his sons; though no doubt but other priests then on duty in the court ate with him.
Verse 8. And the priest that offereth any man's burnt offering,.... In which the flesh was wholly burnt, and nothing of it remained to requite the priest for his trouble, as in other offerings:
even the priest shall have to himself the skin of the burnt offering, which he hath offered; in some cases the skin itself was burnt, and then he could have nothing, see Leviticus 4:11 but in others the skin was reserved for the priest. There seems to be an emphasis upon the phrase "to himself," and may signify, that though in other things other priests might partake with him, yet not in this; and so Maimonides {z} observes, that the skin was not given to every priest, but to him that offered the sacrifice; and elsewhere {a} he says, the skins of light holy things are the owner's, but the skins of the most holy things are the priest's. And some have thought this law has some respect to the case of Adam, and is agreeable thereunto; who having offered sacrifice according to divine directions given him, had coats made for him and his wife of the skins of the slain beasts; and it was usual with the Heathen priests to have the skins of the sacrifices, and in which they slept in their temples and others also were desirous of the same, in order by dreams or otherwise to get knowledge of things future; See Gill on "Am 2:8."
{z} In Misn. Challah, c. 4. sect. 9. {a} In Misn. Zebachim, c. 12. sect. 3.
Verse 9. And all the meat offering that is baked in the oven,.... Or "every meat offering" {b}, whether dressed in one way or another, and which was done in one or other of these three ways, of which this was one, baked in an oven heated for that purpose:
and all that is dressed in the frying pan; such as we call pancakes:
and in the pan; which was different from the frying pan; it seems to be what was set upon an hearth made hot, and soon baked; See Gill on "Le 6:21" of these three different ways of dressing the meat offering, see Leviticus 2:4.
{b} hxnm lk "omne munus," Pagninus, Montanus, Junius & Tremellius, Piscator, &c.
Verse 10. And every meat offering mingled with oil, and dry,.... Rather it should be rendered "or dry" {c}; that is, as Jarchi interprets it, that has no oil in it; the meat offering in common, let it be dressed in what way soever, was mingled with oil; but in the poor man's offering for sin, which was as a meat offering, no oil was to be put upon it, Leviticus 5:11 but whether the offering was with or without oil, moist or dry, it
shall all the sons of Aaron have, one [as much] as another; it was to be equally divided among them; or a priest offering it at one time, was to have the same as another priest at another time; it was always alike, all that remained, except the handful that was burnt, was the priest's.
{c} hbrxw "vel aridum," Junius & Tremellius, Piscator.
Verse 11. And this [is] the law of the sacrifice of peace offerings, which ye shall offer unto the Lord. Some other laws and rules respecting the oblation of them: in Leviticus 3:1 an account is given of what they should be, both of the herd and flock, and of the burning of the fat of them; and here the several sorts of them are distinctly observed, what should be offered with them, and the part the priest should have of it, and when the flesh of them should be eaten.
Verse 12. If he offer it for a thanksgiving,.... Which Jarchi restrains to the wonderful deliverances of seafaring persons, of travellers, and of such as have been confined in prison, or have laboured under violent diseases and disorders of body; and so Aben Ezra seems to understand it only of thanksgivings on account of being delivered out of distress; but it might be for the common mercies of life, or any particular mercy or instance of divine goodness a man was sensible of, and thought proper in this way to make an acknowledgment of it:
then he shall offer with the sacrifice of thanksgiving; which, if of the herd, was either a bullock or a cow; and if of the flock, was either a lamb or a goat;
unleavened cakes mingled with oil; ten of them, according to the Jewish writers; the measure of flour, of which they were made, were, as Jarchi says, five Jerusalem seahs or pecks, which were six of those used in the wilderness, and made twenty tenths or omers, an omer being the tenth part of an ephah {d}; the oil they were mingled with, as to the quantity of it, was half a log {e}; a fourth part of it was for the cakes, hastily baked, (said in the latter part of this verse to be fried,) an eighth part for those baked, (intended in this clause,) and an eighth part for the wafers next mentioned:
and unleavened wafers anointed with oil; these were a thinner sort of cakes, made without leaven as the others, but the oil was not mixed with the flour in the making of them, but put upon them when made, and therefore said to be anointed with it; there were also ten of these:
and cakes mingled with oil of fine flour fried; these were such as were hastily and not thoroughly baked, Leviticus 6:21 or, as Jarchi and Ben Gersom, they were mixed and boiled with hot water, as much as was sufficient; or, according to Maimonides {f}, were fried in oil; and there were ten of these, in all thirty,
{d} Vid. Misn. Menachot, c. 7. sect. 1. & Bartenora in ib. {e} Maimon. Maaseh Hakorbanot, c. 9. sect. 20. {f} In Misn. Menachot, c. 9. sect. 3.
Verse 13. Besides the cakes,.... The unleavened cakes, and the unleavened wafers, and the fried cakes; or with these, as Aben Ezra and Abendana interpret it:
he shall offer for his offering leavened bread, with the sacrifice of thanksgiving of his peace offerings; not that this was offered upon the altar, for all leaven was forbidden there, Leviticus 2:11 but it was given to the priest, that he might have change of bread, and such as was agreeable to him, to eat with the flesh of the peace offerings he had a share of, and to the owners also; and the whole of this consisted of ten cakes likewise, as will appear by what Maimonides {g} says; he (the offerer) takes twenty tenths of fine flour, and makes ten leavened, and ten unleavened; the ten leavened he makes into ten cakes, and the ten unleavened he makes of them eighty cakes alike, ten cakes of every sort, ten cakes baked in an oven, ten cakes wafers, and ten cakes slightly baked.
{g} Maaseh Hakorbanot, c. 9. sect. 17, 18, 21.
Verse 14. And of it he shall offer one out of the whole oblation [for] an heave offering unto the Lord,.... That is, one out of the unleavened cakes, and out of the unleavened wafers, and out of the cakes fried, and out of the cakes leavened; lo, says Aben Ezra, four at least, and the truth is, adds he, there were ten; and so Maimonides {h} says, the priest took out of all the four cakes, one out of every sort, as it is said, "and of it he shall offer one," &c.
and it shall be the priest's that sprinkleth the blood of the peace offerings; that is, that part of the cakes and bread, which is offered as an heave offering to the Lord, was the portion of the priests; and so Maimonides {i} says, "the bread waved (rather heaved) with the thank offering was eaten by the priests, and the rest of the bread by the owners."
{h} Maaseh Hakorbanot, c. 9. sect. 17, 18, 21. {i} Maaseh Hakorbanot, c. 9. sect. 12.
Verse 15. And the flesh of the sacrifice of his peace offerings for thanksgiving,.... Having given directions about the cakes and bread that went along with the peace offerings, offered in thankfulness for mercies received; instructions are next given about eating the flesh of them; and the order is, that that
shall be eaten the same day that it is offered; partly by him that brought them, and his family, and partly by the poor he was to invite to eat thereof; and also by the priests and Levites, who were to have their share of it; see Deuteronomy 12:11
he shall not leave any of it until the morning; which was ordered to encourage liberality to the priests, Levites, and others, since all must be eaten up before morning: according to the Jewish canons, they might eat it no longer than midnight; by that time it was to be all consumed; and it is said {k}, the wise men made an hedge to the law to keep men from sin.
{k} Misn. Zebachim, c. 5. sect. 3.
Verse 16. But if the sacrifice of his offering be a vow,.... Be on account of a vow made, as, that if he was favoured with such and such benefits, or delivered out of such and such troubles and distresses, then he would offer such a sacrifice:
or a voluntary offering; without any condition or obligation; what from the mere motion of his mind he freely offered, not being directed to it by any command of God, or under any necessity from a vow of his own, and without any view to; any future good to be enjoyed: Aben Ezra describes both the one and the other thus; a "vow" which he uttered with his lips in his distresses, a "voluntary offering," which his spirit made him willing to bring, a sacrifice to God neither for a vow nor for thanksgiving:
it shall be eaten the same day that he offereth his sacrifice; that is, it shall be begun to be eaten then, and if all is eaten up it is very well, but they were not obliged in either of these cases, as in the preceding, to eat up all, and leave none to the morning, for it follows:
and on the morrow also the remainder of it shall be eaten; some of it, if thought fit, and could not be conveniently eaten, might be kept till the day after the sacrifice, but no longer.
Verse 17. But the remainder of the flesh of the sacrifice on the third day,.... What remained of it uneaten on the second day, and was kept till the third:
shall be burnt with fire; that it might neither corrupt, nor be put to superstitious uses, nor be of any profit in any respect; that so niggardliness and distrust of the care of Providence might be discouraged: perhaps some respect may be had in the type to the resurrection of Christ on the third day, having seen no corruption.
Verse 18. And if any of the flesh of his peace offerings be eaten at all on the third day,.... Any part of it, even the least:
it shall not be accepted; as a sacrifice well pleasing to God; he will take no delight in it, or express any satisfaction therein; but, on the contrary, reject it with abhorrence:
neither shall it be imputed to him that offereth it; the Targum of Jonathan adds, for merit or righteousness; it shall not be accounted a righteous action, or the offerer receive any benefit by it:
it shall be an abomination; to God, the flesh being kept so long, through a sordid and niggardly disposition:
and the soul that eateth of it shall bear his iniquity; it shall not be forgiven him; he shall bear the punishment of it.
Verse 19. And the flesh that toucheth any unclean [thing] shall not be eaten,.... That is, the flesh of the peace offerings; should it be touched by any unclean person, man or woman; that was so in a ceremonial sense, being profluvious or menstruous, or having touched anything unclean, or touched by any unclean creature, as a dog or the like, as it might be while carried from the tabernacle to any of their tents or houses:
it shall be burnt with fire; that no profit might be had of it; and this was to make them careful in carrying it from place to place:
and as for the flesh, all that be clean shall eat thereof; that are clean in a ceremonial sense; as all that are clean in an evangelic sense, through the blood and righteousness of Christ, may, by faith, eat his flesh and drink his blood. Jarchi observes, that whereas it is said, Deuteronomy 12:27 "thou shall eat the flesh"; some might object and say, that none might eat of the peace offerings but the owners of them, therefore it is said here, "all that be clean shall eat"; not the owners only, nor the priests and Levites only, but whoever the offerer should invite to eat thereof, provided he was but clean.
Verse 20. But the soul that eateth [of] the flesh of the sacrifice of the peace offerings, that [pertain] unto the Lord,.... That are offered up to him, and so are holy, and therefore not to be eaten by unholy persons, or by any
having his uncleanness upon him; a profluvious person that has an issue running out of him, a gonorrhoea; see Leviticus 15:2
even that soul shall be cut off from his people; be disfranchised as an Israelite, be debarred the privileges of the sanctuary, or be cut off by death before the usual time and term of man's life; so those that eat and drink unworthily in the supper of our Lord, where his flesh is eaten and his blood drank, eat and drink damnation to themselves, 1 Corinthians 11:29.
Verse 21. Moreover, the soul that shall touch any unclean [thing],.... Person or thing, the dead body of a man, or the bone of a dead body, or a grave in which it was laid:
as the uncleanness of man; the issue that runs from a profluvious person:
or [any] unclean beast; that was so by the law ceremonial; see Leviticus 11:4:
or any abominable unclean thing; which the Targum of Jonathan interprets of every unclean reptile: see Leviticus 11:20
and eat of the flesh of the sacrifice of peace offerings, which [pertain] unto the Lord, even that soul shall be cut off from his people; See Gill on "Le 7:20."
Verse 22. And the Lord spake unto Moses,.... Continued speaking to him:
saying; as follows.
Verse 23. Speak unto the children of Israel, saying,.... Putting them in mind, by repeating to them the laws concerning fat and blood, Leviticus 3:17
ye shall eat no manner of fat; of any creature fit for food, whose flesh otherwise may be eaten, and particularly
of ox, or of sheep, or of goats: creatures used in sacrifice; though this is not to be restrained to such of them, and the fat of them that were sacrificed, whose fat was claimed by the Lord as his, and was burnt on his altar; but this is to be understood of the fat of these creatures when killed for their common use, for the food of them and their families; the fat even of these was not to be eaten; that which was not separated from the flesh, but mixed with it, might be eaten, but not that which was separated {l}.
{l} Bechai in Lev. 3. 17.
Verse 24. And the fat of the beast that dieth of itself,.... Of any disease, and is not regularly killed:
and the fat of that which is torn with beasts; with wild beasts:
may be used in any other use; as in medicine, for plasters, or for making candles, or for greasing of anything to make it smooth and pliable, or the like:
but ye shall in no wise eat of it; such carcasses themselves were not to be eaten of, and one would think their fat in course must be unlawful; but however, to prevent the doing of it, this particular law was given, and those that broke this were doubly guilty, as the Jews observe {m}; once in eating things that died of themselves, or were torn with beasts, and again by eating the fat of them.
{m} Maimon. Hilchot Maacolot Asurot, c. 7. sect. 2.
Verse 25. For whosoever eateth the fat of the beast, of which men offer an offering made by fire unto the Lord,.... As oxen, sheep, rams, goats; meaning not only the fat of those that are offered, but the fat of all those of the like kind:
even the soul that eateth it shall be cut off from his people; See Gill on "Le 7:20" Maimonides {n} observes, that the punishment of cutting off is enjoined for the eating of fat, because men used to count it delicious, for which reason also God would honour his sacrifices with it: and he further observes {o}, that the fat of the intestines too much saturates, hinders concoction, generates gross and frigid blood, hence it is much better it should be burnt than eaten; and that blood and what dies of itself are of difficult digestion, and of bad nourishment, wherefore the latter is forbidden in the Leviticus 7:24, and the former in Leviticus 7:26: of the punishment for eating fat, the same writer {p} observes, he that eats fat the quantity of an olive, presumptuously, is guilty of cutting off; if ignorantly, he must bring the fixed sin offering: and elsewhere {q} he says, he that eats fat is beaten for it; and he eats it a second time, and is beaten for it; but if he eats it a third time they do not beat him, but put him into a prison, which is a strait place according to his height, where he cannot stand upright, nor can he lie down in it; and they give him bread and water of affliction till his bowels are distressed, and he become sick, and then they feed him with barley till his belly bursts.
{n} Moreh Nevochim, par. 3. c. 41. {o} Ibid. c. 48. {p} Hilchot Maacolot Asurot, c. 7. sect. 1. {q} Hilchot Sanhedrin, c. 18. sect. 4.
Verse 26. Moreover ye shall eat no manner of blood,.... Of any of the above creatures, or any other, even of any clean creature, and much less of an unclean one:
[whether it be] of fowl or of beast; of all sorts and kinds. Jarchi thinks, the words being thus expressed, the blood of fishes and locusts is excepted, and so lawful to eat:
in any of your dwellings; this shows that this law is not to be restrained to creatures slain in sacrifice in the tabernacle, and to the blood of them, but to be understood of all such as were slain in their own houses for food, and the blood of them.
Verse 27. Whatsoever soul [it be] that eateth any manner of blood,.... The Targum of Jonathan adds, of any living creature, that is, of any while it is alive; for the Jews always interpret the law in Genesis 9:4 of the member of a living creature torn off from it, and its flesh with the blood eaten directly:
even that soul shall be cut off from his people; Maimonides {r} observes, that to some sorts of food cutting off is threatened, particularly to blood, because of the eager desire of men to eat it in those times, and because it precipitated them to a certain species of idolatry; he means that of the Zabians, of which See Gill on "Eze 33:25" of the true reason of the prohibition of eating blood under the law, see Leviticus 17:10, &c.
{r} Moreh Nevochim, par. 3. c. 41.
Verse 28. And the Lord spake unto Moses,.... At the same time the above laws were delivered; for what follows relates to the sacrifice of the peace offerings:
saying; as follows.
Verse 29. Speak unto the children of Israel, saying,.... Giving them the further instructions concerning their peace offerings:
he that offereth the sacrifice of his peace offerings unto the Lord; whether it he for thanksgiving, or as a vow, or a voluntary oblation, and whether it be of the herd or of the flock, an ox or a cow, a lamb or a goat:
shall bring his oblation unto the Lord of the sacrifice of his peace offerings; that is, the unleavened cakes, wafers, and fried cakes, and unleavened bread, which are called the whole oblation, Leviticus 7:10.
Verse 30. His own hands shall bring the offerings of the Lord made by fire,.... That is, such parts of the peace offerings as were to be burnt with fire, as the fat on several parts described in Leviticus 3:3 the owners of the offerings were to bring them in the manner as will be presently observed:
the fat with the breast, it shall he bring; the fat to be burnt, and the breast for the priest and his sons, as in the following verse Leviticus 7:31:
that the breast may be waved [for] a wave offering before the Lord; how this waving was performed, See Gill on "Ex 29:24" particularly with respect to these peace offerings it was thus; if a thank offering, the priest takes of the bread brought with it one (cake) out of ten, and lays it with the breast, the shoulder, and the inwards, and waves all upon the hands of the owners; on which he puts the fat, then the breast and the shoulder above (i.e. upon the fat), then the two kidneys, and the caul, and the liver above them; and if there was any bread, he put it over them, and waved all, putting his hand under the hands of the owner {s}.
{s} Maimon. Maaseh Hakorbanot, c. 9. sect. 6, 7. so Ben Gersom in loc.
Verse 31. And the priest shall burn the fat upon the altar,.... Of burnt offering, even the fat upon the inwards, the two kidneys, the flanks, the caul, and liver:
but the breast shall be Aaron's and his sons; which being waved before the Lord for a wave offering, was the Lord's, and so was given to his priests to eat of, for the service done by them, it being but reasonable that they that serve at the altar should live of it; and thus, with other things, a maintenance was provided for the priests and their families, as ought also to be for Gospel ministers under the present dispensation.
Verse 32. And the right shoulder shall ye give unto the priest [for] an heave offering,.... Whether of an ox or a cow, a lamb or a goat:
of the sacrifices of your peace offerings; which were of either of these creatures; the Targum of Jonathan paraphrases it, "the right arm from the shoulder to the elbow." The breast being the seat of wisdom, and the shoulder of strength, some think denote Christ as the wisdom and power of God unto his people, his priests, who have all their knowledge and strength from him, and who bears them on his heart and on his shoulder.
Verse 33. He among the sons of Aaron that offereth the blood of the peace offerings, and the fat,.... Who sprinkled the blood of them upon the altar round about, and burnt the fat upon it, which were rites enjoined to be observed, Leviticus 3:2:
shall have the right shoulder for [his] part; his particular part and share, because of his service: Aben Ezra remarks, that the right shoulder was given to him that sprinkled the blood, and the breast to all the priests; and Jarchi observes, that he that was fit for sprinkling the blood, and burning the fat, and went out an unclean person in the time of sprinkling the blood, or burning the fat, had no part in the flesh.
Verse 34. For the wave breast and the heave shoulder have I taken of the children of Israel,.... These two parts were particularly pitched upon and selected:
from off the sacrifices of their peace offering; the rest being allowed the owners, besides what were burnt:
and have given them unto Aaron the priest and unto his sons, by a statute for ever from among the children of Israel; as long as the priesthood lasted, even to the coming of the Messiah, in whom all these sacrifices would have their accomplishment and their end.
Verse 35. This [is the portion] of the anointing of Aaron,.... Of his being anointed to the priestly office; this is the part allotted and assigned him for the execution of it; this is the reward, as Aben Ezra interprets it, of his faithful performance of it, namely, his having the wave breast and heave shoulder of the peace offerings, and a cake out of everyone of the unleavened cakes, together with the leavened bread, besides other perquisites from other offerings:
and of the anointing of his sons; the successors of him in the priest hood; the Targum of Jonathan adds, above all their brethren the Levites:
out of the offerings of the Lord made by fire; out of such whose fat on the several parts of them was burnt with fire, such as the peace offerings were:
in the day when he presented them to minister unto the Lord in the priest's office; when they were ordered to be taken out from among the children of Israel, and to be consecrated to, and invested with, the priest's office, as they were by Moses, and presented by him unto him as his priests; at that time the above portion was assigned them, as follows.
Verse 36. Which the Lord commanded to be given them of the children of Israel,.... Whenever they brought their offerings to be offered up by them, such parts thereof were ordered to be allowed them as theirs;
in the day that he anointed them; or from the day they were anointed of Moses, by the direction of the Lord, from that time they had a right and claim to the above things, out of the sacrifices brought, so Aben Ezra: and this was
by a statute for ever throughout their generations; in all successive generations, unto the coming of the Messiah, which would put an end to their priesthood. Thus the Lord provided for the maintenance of his ministers, till that time came; and since it has been the ordinance of Christ, that they which preach the Gospel should live of the Gospel, 1 Corinthians 9:13.
Verse 37. This [is] the law of the burnt offering,.... As delivered, Leviticus 6:9:
of the meat offering; as in Leviticus 6:14:
and of the sin offering; as in Leviticus 6:25:
and of the trespass offering; as in Leviticus 7:1:
and of the consecrations; of Aaron and his sons to the priest's office, as in Leviticus 6:20:
and of the sacrifice of the peace offerings; as in this chapter, Leviticus 7:11 for this is only a recapitulation of the several laws respecting these things before observed.
Verse 38. Which the Lord commanded Moses in Mount Sinai,.... Or "by" or "near" {t} Mount Sinai; for the above laws were not given to Moses when on the mount, but after the tabernacle was erected, and out of it, as appears from Leviticus 1:1 and to which what follows agrees:
in the day that he commanded the children of Israel to offer their oblations unto the Lord in the wilderness of Sinai; where they were when the above laws were delivered to them, and which wilderness had its name from the mount near to which they now were, and where the tabernacle was pitched, from whence the Lord spoke; and so the Targum of Jonathan paraphrases it, "in the tabernacle which they made for him in the wilderness of Sinai;" there they were ordered to offer their oblations of every sort, as before directed. It should be observed, that this is to be understood of the command given in the wilderness to offer sacrifices, but not of the sacrifices themselves then offered, which were not done while there; see Jeremiah 7:22.
{t} rhb "by the mount"; so Patrick in loc.