Leviticus — Chapter 3

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1And if his oblation

2And he shall lay his hand upon the head of his offering, and kill it

3And he shall offer of the sacrifice of the peace offering an offering made by fire unto the LORD; the fat that covereth the inwards, and all the fat that

4And the two kidneys, and the fat that

5And Aaron’s sons shall burn it on the altar upon the burnt sacrifice, which

6And if his offering for a sacrifice of peace offering unto the LORD

7If he offer a lamb for his offering, then shall he offer it before the LORD.

8And he shall lay his hand upon the head of his offering, and kill it before the tabernacle of the congregation: and Aaron’s sons shall sprinkle the blood thereof round about upon the altar.

9And he shall offer of the sacrifice of the peace offering an offering made by fire unto the LORD; the fat thereof,

10And the two kidneys, and the fat that

11And the priest shall burn it upon the altar:

12And if his offering

13And he shall lay his hand upon the head of it, and kill it before the tabernacle of the congregation: and the sons of Aaron shall sprinkle the blood thereof upon the altar round about.

14And he shall offer thereof his offering,

15And the two kidneys, and the fat that

16And the priest shall burn them upon the altar:

17It shall be a perpetual statute for your generations throughout all your dwellings, that ye eat neither fat nor blood.

1And if his oblation be a sacrifice of peace-offerings; if he offer of the herd, whether male or female, he shall offer it without blemish before Jehovah.

2And he shall lay his hand upon the head of his oblation, and kill it at the door of the tent of meeting: and Aaron`s sons the priests shall sprinkle the blood upon the altar round about.

3And he shall offer of the sacrifice of peace-offerings an offering made by fire unto Jehovah; the fat that covereth the inwards, and all the fat that is upon the inwards,

4and the two kidneys, and the fat that is on them, which is by the loins, and the caul upon the liver, with the kidneys, shall he take away.

5And Aaron`s sons shall burn it on the altar upon the burnt-offering, which is upon the wood that is on the fire: it is an offering made by fire, of a sweet savor unto Jehovah.

6And if his oblation for a sacrifice of peace-offerings unto Jehovah be of the flock; male or female, he shall offer it without blemish.

7If he offer a lamb for his oblation, then shall he offer it before Jehovah;

8and he shall lay his hand upon the head of his oblation, and kill it before the tent of meeting: and Aaron`s sons shall sprinkle the blood thereof upon the altar round about.

9And he shall offer of the sacrifice of peace-offerings an offering made by fire unto Jehovah; the fat thereof, the fat tail entire, he shall take away hard by the backbone; and the fat that covereth the inwards, and all the fat that is upon the inwards,

10and the two kidneys, and the fat that is upon them, which is by the loins, and the caul upon the liver, with the kidneys, shall he take away.

11And the priest shall burn it upon the altar: it is the food of the offering made by fire unto Jehovah.

12And if his oblation be a goat, then he shall offer it before Jehovah:

13and he shall lay his hand upon the head of it, and kill it before the tent of meeting; and the sons of Aaron shall sprinkle the blood thereof upon the altar round about.

14And he shall offer thereof his oblation, [even] an offering made by fire unto Jehovah; the fat that covereth the inwards, and all the fat that is upon the inwards,

15and the two kidneys, and the fat that is upon them, which is by the loins, and the caul upon the liver, with the kidneys, shall he take away.

16And the priest shall burn them upon the altar: it is the food of the offering made by fire, for a sweet savor; all the fat is Jehovah`s.

17It shall be a perpetual statute throughout your generations in all your dwellings, that ye shall eat neither fat nor blood.

1“‘Now if his offering is a peace-offering sacrifice, if he presents an offering from the herd, he must present before the Lord a flawless male or a female.

2He must lay his hand on the head of his offering and slaughter it at the entrance of the Meeting Tent, and the sons of Aaron, the priests, must splash the blood against the altar’s sides.

3Then the one presenting the offering must present a gift to the Lord from the peace-offering sacrifice: He must remove the fat that covers the entrails and all the fat that surrounds the entrails,

4the two kidneys with the fat on their sinews, and the protruding lobe on the liver (which he is to remove along with the kidneys).

5Then the sons of Aaron must offer it up in smoke on the altar atop the burnt offering that is on the wood in the fire as a gift of a soothing aroma to the Lord.

6“‘If his offering for a peace-offering sacrifice to the Lord is from the flock, he must present a flawless male or female.

7If he presents a sheep as his offering, he must present it before the Lord.

8He must lay his hand on the head of his offering and slaughter it before the Meeting Tent, and the sons of Aaron must splash its blood against the altar’s sides.

9Then he must present a gift to the Lord from the peace-offering sacrifice: He must remove all the fatty tail up to the end of the spine, the fat covering the entrails, and all the fat on the entrails,

10the two kidneys with the fat on their sinews, and the protruding lobe on the liver (which he is to remove along with the kidneys).

11Then the priest must offer it up in smoke on the altar as a food gift to the Lord.

12“‘If his offering is a goat, he must present it before the Lord,

13lay his hand on its head, and slaughter it before the Meeting Tent, and the sons of Aaron must splash its blood against the altar’s sides.

14Then he must present from it his offering as a gift to the Lord: the fat which covers the entrails and all the fat on the entrails,

15the two kidneys with the fat on their sinews, and the protruding lobe on the liver (which he is to remove along with the kidneys).

16Then the priest must offer them up in smoke on the altar as a food gift for a soothing aroma—all the fat belongs to the Lord.

17This is a perpetual statute throughout your generations in all the places where you live: You must never eat any fat or any blood.’”

1“‘If his offering is a sacrifice of peace offerings; if he offers it from the herd, whether male or female, he shall offer it without defect before Yahweh.

2He shall lay his hand on the head of his offering, and kill it at the door of the Tent of Meeting: and Aaron’s sons, the priests, shall sprinkle the blood around on the altar.

3He shall offer of the sacrifice of peace offerings an offering made by fire to Yahweh; the fat that covers the innards, and all the fat that is on the innards,

4and the two kidneys, and the fat that is on them, which is by the loins, and the cover on the liver, with the kidneys, he shall take away.

5Aaron’s sons shall burn it on the altar on the burnt offering, which is on the wood that is on the fire: it is an offering made by fire, of a pleasant aroma to Yahweh.

6“‘If his offering for a sacrifice of peace offerings to Yahweh is from the flock; male or female, he shall offer it without defect.

7If he offers a lamb for his offering, then he shall offer it before Yahweh;

8and he shall lay his hand on the head of his offering, and kill it before the Tent of Meeting: and Aaron’s sons shall sprinkle its blood around on the altar.

9He shall offer from the sacrifice of peace offerings an offering made by fire to Yahweh; its fat, the entire tail fat, he shall take away close to the backbone; and the fat that covers the inwards, and all the fat that is on the inwards,

10and the two kidneys, and the fat that is on them, which is by the loins, and the cover on the liver, with the kidneys, he shall take away.

11The priest shall burn it on the altar: it is the food of the offering made by fire to Yahweh.

12“‘If his offering is a goat, then he shall offer it before Yahweh:

13and he shall lay his hand on its head, and kill it before the Tent of Meeting; and the sons of Aaron shall sprinkle its blood around on the altar.

14He shall offer from it as his offering, an offering made by fire to Yahweh; the fat that covers the innards, and all the fat that is on the innards,

15and the two kidneys, and the fat that is on them, which is by the loins, and the cover on the liver, with the kidneys, he shall take away.

16The priest shall burn them on the altar: it is the food of the offering made by fire, for a pleasant aroma; all the fat is Yahweh’s.

17“‘It shall be a perpetual statute throughout your generations in all your dwellings, that you shall eat neither fat nor blood.’”

Summary
Authorship & Background
Map & Geography
Commentary
Videos
Reflection

Summary

Section 1 — Peace Offering from the Herd (vv.1-5): Male or female, without blemish. The worshipper lays his hand on the animal's head and kills it at the entrance of the tent of meeting. The priests sprinkle the blood on the altar. The fat covering the entrails, the two kidneys with their fat, and the long lobe of the liver are burned on the altar atop the burnt offering — a food offering with a pleasing aroma. Section 2 — Peace Offering from the Flock: A Lamb (vv.6-11): Male or female, without blemish. Same procedure: laying on of hands, killing, blood sprinkled. The fat, the entire fat tail (cut off close to the backbone), the fat on the entrails, kidneys, and liver lobe are burned. The priest burns it as "a food offering to the LORD." Section 3 — Peace Offering from the Flock: A Goat (vv.12-16): Same procedure as above. The fat, entrails, kidneys, and liver lobe are burned. "All fat is the LORD's" (v.16). Section 4 — The Perpetual Statute (v.17): A permanent command for all generations: "You shall eat neither fat nor blood." The fat belongs to God; the blood is the life and belongs to God alone.

Authorship & Background

Author: Moses. Leviticus is the third book of the Pentateuch, written during the wilderness period (approximately 1445-1405 BC). Hebrew title: "Vayikra" — "And He called." God speaks from the Tabernacle, giving instructions for worship, sacrifice, and holy living.
Historical Context: The peace offering (Hebrew: "shelamim," from "shalom" — peace, wholeness, well-being) is the third offering described in Leviticus. Unlike the burnt offering (entirely consumed) or the grain offering (shared between God and priests), the peace offering was a communal meal — portions were given to God (the fat burned on the altar), to the priest (the breast and right thigh, detailed in Lev 7:31-34), and to the worshipper and his family (the remaining meat). It was the only offering where the worshipper ate a portion.
This offering was voluntary — an expression of thanksgiving, fulfillment of a vow, or a freewill act of devotion (Lev 7:11-16). It celebrated fellowship and communion with God. The shared meal pictured reconciliation — God and man eating together in peace. This points forward to Christ, who is "our peace" (Eph 2:14), who broke down the dividing wall and reconciled us to God, making fellowship possible through His blood.

Map & Geography

  • No specific geographic locations are referenced in this chapter.

Commentary

  • Enduring Word (David Guzik): enduringword.com Guzik highlights the peace offering as the only sacrifice where the worshipper ate a portion — picturing fellowship and communion with God. He emphasizes that peace with God is the foundation for the peace of God, and that Christ is both our peace offering and our peace.
  • Charles Spurgeon:

Reflection

  • 1. The peace offering was a shared meal — God, priest, and worshipper eating together. Through Christ, you have been invited to God's table. Do you enjoy fellowship with God, or do you treat your relationship as distant and formal? The Lord's Supper is your peace offering meal.
  • 2. "All fat is the LORD's" (v.16). The best belongs to God — not the leftovers. Do you give God the first and best of your time, energy, finances, and attention? Or does He receive what remains after you've served yourself?
  • 3. The worshipper laid his hand on the offering's head (v.2) — identification. You are identified with Christ: His death is your death; His acceptance is your acceptance. Do you live in the confidence of that identification, or do you still try to earn your standing before God?
  • 4. Peace with God (Rom 5:1) is the foundation for the peace of God (Phil 4:7). Have you settled the question of peace WITH God through faith in Christ? Only then can you experience the peace OF God in daily life.
  • 5. The peace offering was voluntary — an overflow of gratitude and joy. Is your worship obligatory or voluntary? Do you come to God because you must, or because you delight to? What would it look like to offer a "peace offering" of thanksgiving this week?