9:4 But 4 you must not eat meat 5 with its life (that is, 6 its blood) in it. 7
1 tn Heb “two two” meaning “in twos.”
2 tn Heb “flesh.”
3 tn Heb “everything which [has] the breath of the spirit of life in its nostrils from all which is in the dry land.”
4 tn Heb “only.”
5 tn Or “flesh.”
6 tn Heb “its life, its blood.” The second word is in apposition to the first, explaining what is meant by “its life.” Since the blood is equated with life, meat that had the blood in it was not to be eaten.
7 tn The words “in it” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.
sn You must not eat meat with its life…in it. Because of the carnage produced by the flood, people might conclude that life is cheap and therefore treat it lightly. But God will not permit them to kill or even to eat anything with the lifeblood still in it, serving as a reminder of the sanctity of life.