Leviticus 17:1-16
1 And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,
2 Speak unto Aaron, and unto his sons, and unto all the children of Israel, and say unto them; This is the thing which the LORD hath commanded, saying,
3 What man soever there be of the house of Israel, that killeth an ox, or lamb, or goat, in the camp, or that killeth it out of the camp,
4 And bringeth it not unto the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, to offer an offering unto the LORD before the tabernacle of the LORD; blood shall be imputed unto that man; he hath shed blood; and that man shall be cut off from among his people:
5 To the end that the children of Israel may bring their sacrifices, which they offer in the open field, even that they may bring them unto the LORD, unto the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, unto the priest, and offer them for peace offerings unto the LORD.
6 And the priest shall sprinkle the blood upon the altar of the LORD at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, and burn the fat for a sweet savour unto the LORD.
7 And they shall no more offer their sacrifices unto devils, after whom they have gone a whoring. This shall be a statute for ever unto them throughout their generations.
8 And thou shalt say unto them, Whatsoever man there be of the house of Israel, or of the strangers which sojourn among you, that offereth a burnt offering or sacrifice,
9 And bringeth it not unto the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, to offer it unto the LORD; even that man shall be cut off from among his people.
10 And whatsoever man there be of the house of Israel, or of the strangers that sojourn among you, that eateth any manner of blood; I will even set my face against that soul that eateth blood, and 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 upon the altar to make an atonement for your souls: for it is the blood that maketh an atonement for the soul.
12 Therefore I said unto the children of Israel, No soul of you shall eat blood, neither shall any stranger that sojourneth among you eat blood.
13 And whatsoever man there be of the children of Israel, or of the strangers that sojourn among you, which hunteth and catcheth any beast or fowl that may be eaten; he shall even pour out the blood thereof, and cover it with dust.
14 For it is the life of all flesh; the blood of it is for the life thereof: therefore I said unto the children of Israel, Ye shall eat the blood of no manner of flesh: for the life of all flesh is the blood thereof: whosoever eateth it shall be cut off.
15 And every soul that eateth that which dieda of itself, or that which was torn with beasts, whether it be one of your own country, or a stranger, he shall both wash his clothes, and bathe himself in water, and be unclean until the even: then shall he be clean.
16 But if he wash them not, nor bathe his flesh; then he shall bear his iniquity.
GOD'S RIGHTS WHEN AN ANIMAL WAS KILLED (vv. 1-16)
This chapter is an appendix to chapter 16, though it does not deal with the sin offering. Rather, the Lord now strongly insists that any Israelite who would slaughter an ox or a lamb or a goat must bring it to the door of the tent of meeting to present it as an offering to the Lord. Verse 5 adds that these were to be offered as peace offerings to the Lord.
The offerer received most of the peace offering as food, but first the fat, the two kidneys and the lobe of the liver were to be burned on the altar to the Lord (Leviticus 7:3), while the breast was given to Aaron and his sons and the right thigh to the priest who offered the animal (Leviticus 7:31). Thus, God was to be first recognized in the killing of the animal, then typically Christ and the priestly family were to have their part, then the offerer was given all that remained.
The spiritual significance of this for us we must not ignore. For if anyone in Israel did not give God this first place of recognition, he was to be sentenced to death. The matter is no less serious for us, though God is not today requiring the sentence of death for an offender. Instead He has given us the instruction of 1 Timothy 4:4, “For every creature of God is good, and nothing to be refused if it is received with thanksgiving: for it is sanctified by the word of God and prayer.” Even animals unclean for Israel by the law's standards are for us perfectly fit for eating, for they are sanctified by the word of God and by the prayer of thanksgiving on the part of the eater. If one does not thank God for his food, he has no proper right to eat at all. For every creature is the property of God, and in receiving it we ought to recognize His rights first of all.
The ungodly sacrificed to demons in their recognizing idols, and evidently Israel had blindly followed this evil example, but verse 7 tells them to desist from this adulterous association. In fact, not only the people of Israel, but also any Gentiles who dwelt among them, were required to bring their sacrifices to the door of the tabernacle to be offered to the Lord, or suffer the penalty of death (vv. 8-9).
Again the Lord insists that anyone of Israel or of strangers who dwelt among them who ate blood must be cut off, that is, put to death (v. 10). “For the life of the flesh is in the blood,” and “it is the blood that makes atonement for the soul” (v. 11). The blood shed is the sign of death. Since God is the Lifegiver, we must recognize His rights by refraining from eating blood. This was true before the law was given (Genesis 9:4), and it remains true today when believers are not under law but under grace (Acts 15:28).
If an animal died or was killed by other animals, it would not be properly bled, and if one should eat the dead animal he must both wash his clothes and bathe in water to be cleansed from defilement. If he did not, he would bear his guilt, which would mean death (vv. 15-16). All of this chapter therefore insists that God has rights that man must not ignore.