The Priestly Ministry Begins

9 It came to pass on the aeighth day that Moses called Aaron and his sons and the elders of Israel. 2 And he said to Aaron, “Take for yourself a young bbull as a sin offering and a ram as a burnt offering, without blemish, and offer them before the Lord. 3 And to the children of Israel you shall speak, saying, c‘Take a kid of the goats as a sin offering, and a calf and a lamb, both of the first year, without blemish, as a burnt offering, 4 also a bull and a ram as peace offerings, to sacrifice before the Lord, and da grain offering mixed with oil; for etoday the Lord will appear to you.’ ”

5 So they brought what Moses commanded before the tabernacle of meeting. And all the congregation drew near and stood 1before the Lord. 6 Then Moses said, “This is the thing which the Lord commanded you to do, and the glory of the Lord will appear to you.” 7 And Moses said to Aaron, “Go to the altar, foffer your sin offering and your burnt offering, and make atonement for yourself and for the people. gOffer the offering of the people, and make atonement for them, as the Lord commanded.”

8 Aaron therefore went to the altar and killed the calf of the sin offering, which was for himself. 9 Then the sons of Aaron brought the blood to him. And he dipped his finger in the blood, put it on the horns of the altar, and poured the blood at the base of the altar. 10 hBut the fat, the kidneys, and the fatty lobe from the liver of the sin offering he burned on the altar, as the Lord had commanded Moses. 11 iThe flesh and the hide he burned with fire outside the camp.

12 And he killed the burnt offering; and Aaron’s sons presented to him the blood, jwhich he sprinkled all around on the altar. 13 kThen they presented the burnt offering to him, with its pieces and head, and he burned them on the altar. 14 lAnd he washed the entrails and the legs, and burned them with the burnt offering on the altar.

15 mThen he brought the people’s offering, and took the goat, which was the sin offering for the people, and killed it and offered it for sin, like the first one. 16 And he brought the burnt offering and offered it naccording to the 2prescribed manner. 17 Then he brought the grain offering, took a handful of it, and burned it on the altar, obesides the burnt sacrifice of the morning.

18 He also killed the bull and the ram as psacrifices of peace offerings, which were for the people. And Aaron’s sons presented to him the blood, which he sprinkled all around on the altar, 19 and the fat from the bull and the ram—the fatty tail, what covers the entrails and the kidneys, and the fatty lobe attached to the liver; 20 and they put the fat on the breasts. qThen he burned the fat on the altar; 21 but the breasts and the right thigh Aaron waved ras a wave offering before the Lord, as Moses had commanded.

22 Then Aaron lifted his hand toward the people, sblessed them, and came down from offering the sin offering, the burnt offering, and peace offerings. 23 And Moses and Aaron went into the tabernacle of meeting, and came out and blessed the people. Then the glory of the Lord appeared to all the people, 24 and tfire came out from before the Lord and consumed the burnt offering and the fat on the altar. When all the people saw it, they ushouted and fell on their vfaces.

The Profane Fire of Nadab and Abihu

10 Then Nadab aand Abihu, the sons of Aaron, beach took his censer and put fire in it, put incense on it, and offered cprofane fire before the Lord, which He had not commanded them. 2 So dfire went out from the Lord and devoured them, and they died before the Lord. 3 And Moses said to Aaron, “This is what the Lord spoke, saying:

‘By those ewho come near Me

I must be regarded as holy;

And before all the people

I must be glorified.’ ”

So Aaron held his peace.

4 Then Moses called Mishael and Elzaphan, the sons of Uzziel the uncle of Aaron, and said to them, “Come near, fcarry your brethren from 1before the sanctuary out of the camp.” 5 So they went near and carried them by their tunics out of the camp, as Moses had said.

6 And Moses said to Aaron, and to Eleazar and Ithamar, his sons, “Do not 2uncover your heads nor tear your clothes, lest you die, and gwrath come upon all the people. But let your brethren, the whole house of Israel, 3bewail the burning which the Lord has kindled. 7 hYou shall not go out from the door of the tabernacle of meeting, lest you die, ifor the anointing oil of the Lord is upon you.” And they did according to the word of Moses.

Conduct Prescribed for Priests

8 Then the Lord spoke to Aaron, saying: 9 j“Do not drink wine or intoxicating drink, you, nor your sons with you, when you go into the tabernacle of meeting, lest you die. It shall be a statute forever throughout your generations, 10 that you may kdistinguish between holy and unholy, and between unclean and clean, 11 land that you may teach the children of Israel all the statutes which the Lord has spoken to them by the hand of Moses.”

12 And Moses spoke to Aaron, and to Eleazar and Ithamar, his sons who were left: m“Take the grain offering that remains of the offerings made by fire to the Lord, and eat it without leaven beside the altar; nfor it is most holy. 13 You shall eat it in a oholy place, because it is your 4due and your sons’ due, of the sacrifices made by fire to the Lord; for pso I have been commanded. 14 qThe breast of the wave offering and the thigh of the heave offering you shall eat in a clean place, you, your sons, and your rdaughters with you; for they are your due and your sons’ sdue, which are given from the sacrifices of peace offerings of the children of Israel. 15 tThe thigh of the heave offering and the breast of the wave offering they shall bring with the offerings of fat made by fire, to offer as a wave offering before the Lord. And it shall be yours and your sons’ with you, by a statute forever, as the Lord has commanded.”

16 Then Moses made careful inquiry about uthe goat of the sin offering, and there it was—burned up. And he was angry with Eleazar and Ithamar, the sons of Aaron who were left, saying, 17 v“Why have you not eaten the sin offering in a holy place, since it is most holy, and God has given it to you to bear wthe guilt of the congregation, to make atonement for them before the Lord? 18 See! xIts blood was not brought inside 5the holy place; indeed you should have eaten it in a holy place, yas I commanded.”

19 And Aaron said to Moses, “Look, zthis day they have offered their sin offering and their burnt offering before the Lord, and such things have befallen me! If I had eaten the sin offering today, awould it have been accepted in the sight of the Lord?” 20 So when Moses heard that, he was content.

Foods Permitted and Forbidden

11 Now the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying to them, 2 “Speak to the children of Israel, saying, a‘These are the animals which you may eat among all the animals that are on the earth: 3 Among the animals, whatever divides the hoof, having cloven hooves and chewing the cud—that you may eat. 4 Nevertheless these you shall bnot eat among those that chew the cud or those that have cloven hooves: the camel, because it chews the cud but does not have cloven hooves, is 1unclean to you; 5 the 2rock hyrax, because it chews the cud but does not have cloven hooves, is 3unclean to you; 6 the hare, because it chews the cud but does not have cloven hooves, is unclean to you; 7 and the swine, though it divides the hoof, having cloven hooves, yet does not chew the cud, cis unclean to you. 8 Their flesh you shall not eat, and their carcasses you shall not touch. dThey are unclean to you.

9 e‘These you may eat of all that are in the water: whatever in the water has fins and scales, whether in the seas or in the rivers—that you may eat. 10 But all in the seas or in the rivers that do not have fins and scales, all that move in the water or any living thing which is in the water, they are 4an fabomination to you. 11 They shall be an abomination to you; you shall not eat their flesh, but you shall regard their carcasses as an abomination. 12 Whatever in the water does not have fins or scales—that shall be an abomination to you.

13 g‘And these you shall regard as an abomination among the birds; they shall not be eaten, they are an abomination: the eagle, the vulture, the buzzard, 14 the kite, and the falcon after its kind; 15 every raven after its kind, 16 the ostrich, the short-eared owl, the sea gull, and the hawk after its kind; 17 the little owl, the fisher owl, and the screech owl; 18 the white owl, the jackdaw, and the carrion vulture; 19 the stork, the heron after its kind, the hoopoe, and the bat.

20 ‘All flying insects that creep on all fours shall be an abomination to you. 21 Yet these you may eat of every flying insect that creeps on all fours: those which have jointed legs above their feet with which to leap on the earth. 22 These you may eat: hthe locust after its kind, the destroying locust after its kind, the cricket after its kind, and the grasshopper after its kind. 23 But all other flying insects which have four feet shall be an abomination to you.

Unclean Animals

24 ‘By these you shall become 5unclean; whoever touches the carcass of any of them shall be unclean until evening; 25 whoever carries part of the carcass of any of them ishall wash his clothes and be unclean until evening: 26 The carcass of any animal which divides the foot, but is not cloven-hoofed or does not chew the cud, is unclean to you. Everyone who touches it shall be unclean. 27 And whatever goes on its paws, among all kinds of animals that go on all fours, those are unclean to you. Whoever touches any such carcass shall be unclean until evening. 28 Whoever carries any such carcass shall wash his clothes and be unclean until evening. It is unclean to you.

29 ‘These also shall be unclean to you among the creeping things that creep on the earth: the mole, jthe mouse, and the large lizard after its kind; 30 the gecko, the monitor lizard, the sand …