Leviticus 3:17

A perpetual statute forbids Israel from eating fat or blood. The fat belongs to God and the blood represents life, so both are withheld from human consumption.

Cross-references · 27

• Gen 9:4But flesh with its life, that is, its blood, you shall not eat.
• Matt 26:28for this is my blood of the new covenant, which is poured out for many for the remission of sins.
• Deut 15:23Only you shall not eat its blood. You shall pour it out on the ground like water.
• Lev 7:23“Speak to the children of Israel, saying, ‘You shall eat no fat, of bull, or sheep, or goat.
• Deut 12:23Only be sure that you don’t eat the blood; for the blood is the life. You shall not eat the life with the meat.
• Lev 17:7They shall no more sacrifice their sacrifices to the goat idols, after which they play the prostitute. This shall be a statute forever to them throughout their generations.’
• Lev 3:16The priest shall burn them on the altar: it is the food of the offering made by fire, for a pleasant aroma; all the fat is Yahweh’s.
• Lev 6:18Every male among the children of Aaron shall eat of it, as their portion forever throughout your generations, from the offerings of Yahweh made by fire. Whoever touches them shall be holy.’”
• Deut 12:16Only you shall not eat the blood. You shall pour it out on the earth like water.
• Ezek 44:15But the priests the Levites, the sons of Zadok, who performed the duty of my sanctuary when the children of Israel went astray from me, they shall come near to me to minister to me; and they shall stand before me to offer to me the fat and the blood, says the Lord Yahweh:
• Lev 7:36which Yahweh commanded to be given them of the children of Israel, in the day that he anointed them. It is their portion forever throughout their generations.
• Lev 17:10–16“‘Any man of the house of Israel, or of the strangers who live as foreigners among them, who eats any kind of blood, I will set my face against that soul who eats blood, and will cut him off from among his people.
• Ezek 33:25Therefore tell them, Thus says the Lord Yahweh: You eat with the blood, and lift up your eyes to your idols, and shed blood: and shall you possess the land?
• Deut 32:14butter from the herd, and milk from the flock, with fat of lambs, rams of the breed of Bashan, and goats, with the finest of the wheat. From the blood of the grape, you drank wine.
• Eph 1:7in whom we have our redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace,
• Acts 15:29that you abstain from things sacrificed to idols, from blood, from things strangled, and from sexual immorality, from which if you keep yourselves, it will be well with you. Farewell.”
• Lev 23:14You must not eat bread, or roasted grain, or fresh grain, until this same day, until you have brought the offering of your God. This is a statute forever throughout your generations in all your dwellings.
• Eph 5:26that he might sanctify it, having cleansed it by the washing of water with the word,
• Matt 16:24Then Jesus said to his disciples, “If anyone desires to come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.
• Ezek 44:7in that you have brought in foreigners, uncircumcised in heart and uncircumcised in flesh, to be in my sanctuary, to profane it, even my house, when you offer my bread, the fat and the blood, and they have broken my covenant, to add to all your abominations.
• Acts 15:20–21but that we write to them that they abstain from the pollution of idols, from sexual immorality, from what is strangled, and from blood.
• 1 Tim 4:4For every creature of God is good, and nothing is to be rejected, if it is received with thanksgiving.
• Lev 16:34“This shall be an everlasting statute for you, to make atonement for the children of Israel once in the year because of all their sins.” It was done as Yahweh commanded Moses.
• 1 Sam 14:32–34and the people pounced on the plunder, and took sheep, cattle, and calves, and killed them on the ground; and the people ate them with the blood.
• Neh 8:10Then he said to them, “Go your way. Eat the fat, drink the sweet, and send portions to him for whom nothing is prepared, for today is holy to our Lord. Don’t be grieved, for the joy of Yahweh is your strength.”
• Num 19:21It shall be a perpetual statute to them. He who sprinkles the water for impurity shall wash his clothes, and he who touches the water for impurity shall be unclean until evening.
• Lev 7:25–27For whoever eats the fat of the animal, of which men offer an offering made by fire to Yahweh, even the soul who eats it shall be cut off from his people.

Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.