Lev. 22: Keep It Clean, Priesty.

God clearly did not want priests screwing up the offerings that the Israelites brought. This is evidenced by further instructions and guidelines given in Leviticus 22.

The Israelites went to the trouble, both physically and spiritually, to center their hearts, to select a sacrifice without defect, be clean, and bring this sacrifice to the altar. To make an offering (as a priest) while ritually unclean was to desecrate the very name of God. This was punishable by being cut off from one's people. To treat the ceremony with irreverence, meant death. I'm looking at you, Nadab and Abihu. In order to make the atonement count, the one making the offering had to be absolutely pure.

One could become ceremonially unclean as a priest in virtually the same ways one could become ceremonially unclean as laity. You know, having skin disease or discharge, emission, touching unclean things. If any of these applied, he had to wash up, become clean, wait for the sun to go down, and then he eat of the offering, as that was his grub.

The offering food was fair game to anyone in the priest's family. That included hired help (slaves). But, if his daughter married some dude who wasn't a priest, she couldn't eat from the offerings. She belonged to the house of another at that point, apparently. But if she gets divorced or widowed before having children and comes back to papa, she is allowed to eat again. Of the offering, that is.

Any unauthorized one munching offering accidentally had to repay the cost of the animal, plus 20%.

We've heard all along that the male sacrifice must be without defect. Well, here in Lev. 22:22, we get specific guidelines as to what constitutes a defect: blind, the injured or the maimed, or anything with warts or festering or running sores, or an animal whose testicles are bruised, crushed, torn or cut. Ouch. Those could not be offered as a burnt offering. Deformed or stunted oxen or sheep were acceptable as a freewill offering, but not as fulfillment of a vow.

All of these were somewhat repetitive, but...I still don't have all the offerings straight, and I have them clearly right in front of me. How these Israelites managed to do it without the Bible is beyond me. I guess it takes practice. Years and years of bloody, gruesome practice.

God again demands holiness at the end of chapter 22. He is the one who makes things holy, so people should not make effort to make things unholy.