Leviticus 22:17

"And Jehovah spake unto Moses, saying, Speak unto Aaron and to his sons, and unto all the children of Israel, and say unto them, Whosoever he be of the house of Israel, or of the sojourners in Israel, that offereth his oblation, whether it be any of their vows, or any of their freewill-offerings, which they offer unto Jehovah for a burnt-offering; that ye may be accepted, ye shall offer a male without blemish, of the bullocks, of the sheep, or of the goats. But whatsoever hath a blemish, that shall ye not offer: for it shall not be acceptable for you. And whosoever offereth a sacrifice of peace-offerings unto Jehovah to accomplish a vow, or for a freewill-offering, of the herd, or of the flock, it shall be perfect to be accepted; there shall be no blemish therein. Blind, or broken, or maimed, or having a wen, or scurvy, or scabbed, ye shall not offer these unto Jehovah, nor make an offering by fire of them upon the altar unto Jehovah. Either a bullock or a lamb that hath anything superfluous or lacking in his parts, that mayest thou offer for a freewill-offering; but for a vow it shall not be accepted. That which hath its stones bruised, crushed, or broken, or cut, ye shall not offer unto Jehovah; neither shall ye do thus in your land. Neither from the hand of a foreigner shall ye offer the bread of your God of any of these; because their corruption is in them, there is a blemish in them: they shall not be accepted for you."

The emphasis throughout Leviticus is upon perfection, an emphasis that seems to be carried to the very limits of insistence, and it becomes clearer and clearer as these long chapters have unraveled that the big message in this entire Third Book of Moses is geared precisely to this Divine requirement of perfection in anything that God will accept. (See further on this at the end of the chapter.)

"Having a wen ..." (Leviticus 22:22) is explained as "having an ulcer"; and, "Anything superfluous or lacking in his parts" (Leviticus 22:23) has these variations in ancient manuscripts: "Any limb overgrown or stunted," or "having cropped ears or tail."[8]

"Or cut ..." (Leviticus 22:24) is a reference to castration, a practice absolutely forbidden to the Jews. "Stones bruised, crushed, or broken, or cut" (Leviticus 22:24) are, "The four ways in which this mutilation was generally done."[9]

Notice that the animals with "superfluous or lacking parts" (Leviticus 22:23) were suitable for freewill-offerings, but not for the fulfillment of a vow. This may have been due to the fact that a vow would have given an offering the same status as a debt. Debts could not be paid with inferior animals.

"Neither shall ye do thus in your land ..." (Leviticus 22:24) "leaves open, unnecessarily, the antecedent of `thus' (is it `ye shall not offer unto the Lord?)'," in Orlinsky's opinion. He rendered the passage, "Ye shall have no such practices."[10]