Text -- Leviticus 7:11-21 (NET)

The Peace Offering

7:11 “‘This is the law of the peace offering sacrifice which he is to present to the Lord. 7:12 If he presents it on account of thanksgiving, along with the thank offering offering sacrifice he must present unleavened loaves mixed with olive oil, unleavened wafers smeared with olive oil, and well soaked ring-shaped loaves made of choice wheat flour mixed with olive oil. 7:13 He must present this grain offering in addition to ring-shaped loaves of leavened bread which regularly accompany the sacrifice of his thanksgiving peace offering. 7:14 He must present one of each kind of grain offering as a contribution offering to the Lord; it belongs to the priest who splashes the blood of the peace offering. 7:15 The meat of his thanksgiving peace offering must be eaten on the day of his offering; he must not set any of it aside until morning. 7:16 “‘If his offering is a votive or freewill sacrifice, it may be eaten on the day he presents his sacrifice, and also the leftovers from it may be eaten on the next day, 7:17 but the leftovers from the meat of the sacrifice must be burned up in the fire on the third day. 7:18 If some of the meat of his peace offering sacrifice is ever eaten on the third day it will not be accepted; it will not be accounted to the one who presented it, since it is spoiled, and the person who eats from it will bear his punishment for iniquity. 7:19 The meat which touches anything ceremonially unclean must not be eaten; it must be burned up in the fire. As for ceremonially clean meat, everyone who is ceremonially clean may eat the meat. 7:20 The person who eats meat from the peace offering sacrifice which belongs to the Lord while his uncleanness persists will be cut off from his people. 7:21 When a person touches anything unclean (whether human uncleanness, or an unclean animal, or an unclean detestable creature) and eats some of the meat of the peace offering sacrifice which belongs to the Lord, that person will be cut off from his people.’”

Commentary -- Verse Notes / Footnotes

NET Notes: Lev 7:11

¹ tn This “he” pronoun refers to the offerer. Smr and LXX have plural “they.”

NET Notes: Lev 7:12

¹ tn Or “for a thank offering.”

² tn See the notes on Lev 2:4.

³ tn See the note on Lev 6:21 [6:14 HT].

⁴ tn Heb “choice wheat flour well soaked ring-shaped loaves.” See the note on Lev 2:1.

NET Notes: Lev 7:13

¹ tn The rendering “this [grain] offering” is more literally “his offering,” but it refers to the series of grain offerings listed just previously in v. 12.

² tn The words “which regularly accompany” are not in the Hebrew text, but are supplied for clarity.

sn The translation “[which regularly accompany]…” is based on the practice of bringing bread (and wine) to eat with the portions of the peace offering meat eaten by the priests and worshipers (see v. 14 and Num 15:1-13). This was in addition to the memorial portion of the unleavened bread that was offered to the Lord on the altar (cf. Lev 2:2, 9, and the note on 7:12).

NET Notes: Lev 7:14

¹ tn Here the Hebrew text reads “offering” (קָרְבָּן, qorbban), not “grain offering” (מִנְחָה, minkhah), but in this context the term refers once again to the list in 7:12.

² tn The term rendered “contribution offering” is תְּרוּמָה (tÿrumah), which generally refers to that which is set aside from the offerings to the Lord as prebends for the officiating priests (cf. esp. Lev 7:28-34 and R. E. Averbeck, NIDOTTE 4:335-37). Cf. TEV “as a special contribution.”

NET Notes: Lev 7:15

¹ tn In the verse “his” refers to the offerer.

NET Notes: Lev 7:16

¹ tn For the distinction between votive and freewill offerings see the note on Lev 22:23 and the literature cited there.

² tn Heb “and on the next day and the left over from it shall be eaten.”

NET Notes: Lev 7:17

¹ tn Heb “burned with fire,” an expression which is sometimes redundant in English, but here means “burned up,” “burned up entirely” (likewise in v. 19).

NET Notes: Lev 7:18

¹ tn Or “desecrated,” or “defiled,” or “forbidden.” For this difficult term see J. Milgrom, Leviticus (AB), 1:422. Cf. NIV “it is impure”; NCV “it will become unclean”; NLT “will be contaminated.”

² tn Heb “his iniquity he shall bear” (cf. Lev 5:1); NIV “will be held responsible”; NRSV “shall incur guilt”; TEV “will suffer the consequences.”

NET Notes: Lev 7:19

¹ tn The word “ceremonially” has been supplied in the translation both here and in the following sentence to clarify that the uncleanness involved is ritual or ceremonial in nature.

² tn The Hebrew has simply “the flesh,” but this certainly refers to “clean” flesh in contrast to the unclean flesh in the first half of the verse.

NET Notes: Lev 7:20

¹ tn Heb “and his unclean condition is on him.”

² sn The exact meaning of this penalty clause is not certain. It could mean that he will be executed, whether by God or by man, he will be excommunicated from sanctuary worship and/or community benefits (cf. TEV, CEV), or his line will be terminated by God (i.e., extirpation), etc. See J. E. Hartley, Leviticus (WBC), 100; J. Milgrom, Leviticus (AB), 1:457-60; and B. A. Levine, Leviticus (JPSTC), 241-42 for further discussion.

NET Notes: Lev 7:21

¹ sn For these categories of unclean animals see Lev 11.

² sn For the interpretation of this last clause see the note on Lev 7:20.