17:10 “‘Any man 6 from the house of Israel or from the foreigners who reside 7 in their 8 midst who eats any blood, I will set my face against that person who eats the blood, and I will cut him off from the midst of his people, 9
20:17 “‘If a man has sexual intercourse with 13 his sister, whether the daughter of his father or his mother, so that he sees her nakedness and she sees his nakedness, it is a disgrace. They must be cut off in the sight of the children of their people. 14 He has exposed his sister’s nakedness; he will bear his punishment for iniquity. 15 20:18 If a man has sexual intercourse with a menstruating woman and uncovers her nakedness, he has laid bare her fountain of blood and she has exposed the fountain of her blood, so both of them 16 must be cut off from the midst of their people.
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.
3 tn Smr and LXX add after “tent of meeting” the following: “to make it a burnt offering or a peace offering to the
4 tc Smr includes the suffix “it,” which is needed in any case in the translation to conform to English style.
5 sn The exact meaning of this penalty clause is not certain. It could mean (1) that he will be executed, whether by God or by man, (2) that he will be excommunicated from sanctuary worship and/or community benefits, or (3) that his line will be terminated by God (i.e., extirpation). See also the note on Lev 7:20.
6 tn Heb “And man, man.” The repetition of the word “man” is distributive, meaning “any (or every) man” (GKC 395-96 §123.c; cf. Lev 15:2).
7 tn Heb “from the sojourner who sojourns.”
8 tc The LXX, Syriac, and Vulgate have “your” (plural) rather than “their.”
9 tn Heb “I will give my faces against [literally “in”] the soul/person/life [נֶפֶשׁ, nefesh, feminine] who eats the blood and I will cut it [i.e., that נֶפֶשׁ, nefesh] off from the midst of its people.” The uses of נֶפֶשׁ in this and the following verse are most significant for the use of animal blood in Israel’s sacrificial system. Unfortunately, it is a most difficult word to translate accurately and consistently, and this presents a major problem for the rendering of these verses (see, e.g., G. J. Wenham, Leviticus [NICOT], 244-45). No matter which translation of נֶפֶשׁ one uses here, it is important to see that both man and animal have נֶפֶשׁ and that this נֶפֶשׁ is identified with the blood. See the further remarks on v. 11 below. On the “cutting off” penalty see the note on v. 4 above. In this instance, God takes it on himself to “cut off” the person (i.e., extirpation).
10 tn Heb “for the life/soul (נֶפֶשׁ, nefesh) of all flesh, its blood in its life/soul (נֶפֶשׁ) it is.” The LXX, Syriac, and Vulgate leave out “in its life/soul,” which would naturally yield “for the life of all flesh, its blood it is” (see J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 261, 263). The present translation is something of an oversimplification, but the meaning is basically the same in any case. Cf. NRSV “For the life of every creature – its blood is its life.”
11 tn Heb “of all flesh” (also later in this verse). See the note on “every living thing” in v. 11.
12 tn For remarks on the “cut off” penalty see the note on v. 4 above.
13 tn Heb “takes.” The verb “to take” in this context means “to engage in sexual intercourse,” though some English versions translate it as “marry” (e.g., NIV, NCV, TEV, CEV).
14 tn Regarding the “cut off” penalty, see the note on Lev 7:20.
15 tn See the note on Lev 17:16 above.
16 tn Heb “and the two of them.”
17 tn Heb “To your generations.”
18 tn The Piel (v. 2) and Hiphil (v. 3) forms of the verb קָדַשׁ (qadash) appear to be interchangeable in this context. Both mean “to consecrate” (Heb “make holy [or “sacred”]”).
19 tn Heb “and his impurity [is] on him”; NIV “is ceremonially unclean”; NAB, NRSV “while he is in a state of uncleanness.”
20 sn Regarding the “cut off” penalty, see the note on Lev 7:20. Cf. the interpretive translation of TEV “he can never again serve at the altar.”