And the priest shall burn the fat upon the altar: but the breast shall be Aaron’s and his sons’.
Parallel translations
- WEB The priest shall burn the fat on the altar, but the breast shall be Aaron’s and his sons’.
- BSB The priest is to burn the fat on the altar, but the breast belongs to Aaron and his sons.
- NKJV And the priest shall burn the fat on the altar, but the breast shall be Aaron’s and his sons’.
- NASB And the priest shall offer up the fat in smoke on the altar, but the breast shall belong to Aaron and to his sons.
- NLT Then the priest will burn the fat on the altar, but the breast will belong to Aaron and his descendants.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
The priest burns the fat on the altar, and the breast becomes the portion of Aaron and his sons. God's part was burned; the priests received the breast.
Overview
The fat ascended to God in fire while the breast sustained the priesthood, dividing the offering between the LORD and His ministers. This arrangement honored God first and then provided for those who served Him. It illustrates the order of worship: God receives His due, and His servants are cared for.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 9
- Lev 3:16And the priest shall burn them upon the altar: it is the food of the offering made by fire for a sweet savour: all the fat is the LORD’s.
- Lev 7:34For the wave breast and the heave shoulder have I taken of the children of Israel from off the sacrifices of their peace offerings, and have given them unto Aaron the priest and unto his sons by a statute for ever from among the children of Israel.
- Lev 3:11And the priest shall burn it upon the altar: it is the food of the offering made by fire unto the LORD.
- Lev 3:5And Aaron’s sons shall burn it on the altar upon the burnt sacrifice, which is upon the wood that is on the fire: it is an offering made by fire, of a sweet savour unto the LORD.
- Lev 8:29And Moses took the breast, and waved it for a wave offering before the LORD: for of the ram of consecration it was Moses’ part; as the LORD commanded Moses.
- Lev 6:26The priest that offereth it for sin shall eat it: in the holy place shall it be eaten, in the court of the tabernacle of the congregation.
- Num 18:18And the flesh of them shall be thine, as the wave breast and as the right shoulder are thine.
- Lev 6:16And the remainder thereof shall Aaron and his sons eat: with unleavened bread shall it be eaten in the holy place; in the court of the tabernacle of the congregation they shall eat it.
- Lev 5:13And the priest shall make an atonement for him as touching his sin that he hath sinned in one of these, and it shall be forgiven him: and the remnant shall be the priest’s, as a meat offering.
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Christ at the center
Every sacrifice, every priest, and every day of atonement points beyond itself to the one perfect offering and the great High Priest who, by his own blood, makes the unclean holy once for all.
How Leviticus 7:31 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
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.