Statutes Against Eating Blood

1Then Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying, 2“Speak to Aaron and to his sons and to all the sons of Israel and say to them, ‘This is what Yahweh has commanded, saying, 3“Any man from the house of Israel who slaughters an ox or a lamb or a goat in the camp, or who slaughters it outside the camp, 4and has not brought it to the doorway of the tent of meeting to bring it near as an offering to Yahweh before the [†]tabernacle of Yahweh, it will be counted as bloodguiltiness to that man. He has shed blood, and that man shall be cut off from among his people. 5[†]The reason is so that the sons of Israel may bring their sacrifices which they were sacrificing in the open field, that they may bring them in to Yahweh, at the doorway of the tent of meeting to the priest, and sacrifice them as sacrifices of peace offerings to Yahweh. 6And the priest shall splash the blood on the altar of Yahweh at the doorway of the tent of meeting and offer up the fat in smoke as a soothing aroma to Yahweh. 7And they shall no longer sacrifice their sacrifices to the [†]goat demons with which they play the harlot. This shall be a perpetual statute to them throughout their generations.”’

8“Then you shall say to them, ‘Any man from the house of Israel, or from the sojourners who sojourn among them, who offers a burnt offering or sacrifice, 9and does not bring it to the doorway of the tent of meeting to [†]offer it to Yahweh, that man also shall be cut off from his people.

10‘And any man from the house of Israel, or from the sojourners who sojourn among them, who eats any blood, I will set My face against that person who eats blood and will cut him off from among his people. 11For the [†]life of the flesh is in the blood, and I have given it to you on the altar to make atonement for your souls; for it is the blood that makes atonement by the [†]life.’ 12Therefore I said to the sons of Israel, ‘No person among you may eat blood, and no sojourner who sojourns among you may eat blood.’ 13So any man from the sons of Israel, or from the sojourners who sojourn among them, who in hunting catches a beast or a bird which may be eaten, shall pour out its blood and cover it with earth.

14“For as for the [†]life of all flesh, its blood is identified with its [†]life. Therefore I said to the sons of Israel, ‘You are not to eat the blood of any flesh, for the [†]life of all flesh is its blood; whoever eats it shall be cut off.’ 15And when any person eats an animal which dies or is torn by beasts, whether he is a native or a sojourner, he shall wash his clothes and bathe in water and remain unclean until evening; then he will become clean. 16But if he does not wash them or bathe his body, then he shall bear his [†]guilt.”