God commanded the Jewish people to slaughter some animals as sacrifices. He also permits animals to be slaughtered for food. But the Jewish people are not permitted to eat the animal’s blood.
The prohibition against eating blood was first mentioned in Genesis 9:4. In Leviticus 17:11 we are presented with a reason for the prohibition.
Let look at the verses before and after Leviticus 17:11 for some context:
10. And any man from the house of Israel, or of the stranger who dwells among them, who eats any blood; I will set My face against that soul which eats the blood, and will cut it off from among its people.
11. For the life of the flesh is in the blood; and I have given it to you upon the altar to atone for your souls; for it is the blood that shall atone for the soul.
12. Therefore I have said to the children of Israel, No soul of you shall eat blood, and the stranger who dwells among you shall not eat blood.
Introduction and Grammar
As Rabbi Steinsaltz points out, the prohibition against eating blood applies to all the children of Israel, including gentiles who join them.
Even if the animal was slaughtered for food, it’s not permitted to eat the blood.
Who is the Stranger?
The word “stranger” in verses 10 and 12 is the translation of the Hebrew “ger.”
How should we understand “ger” in this context? Some commentators say it means convert to Judaism.
Other write that here it means “ger toshav.” A ger toshav is a gentile who agrees to abandon idolatry in order to live among the Jewish people.
It seems to me that ger toshav fits best in these verses. A convert is required to accept and follow all of Jewish law and, therefore, does not need to be specifically mentioned in these verses.
Nefesh
If you read these verses in Hebrew, you will notice that the word “nefesh” appears 5 times.
Nefesh can be translated as “soul” or “spirit.” It often means the life force within a person or an animal.
Daat Mikra points out that nefesh is used in 3 different ways in these verses.
In verses 10 and 12, nefesh is translated as “soul” but means an individual human.
In verse 11, “nefesh habasar” is translated as “the life of the flesh” to indicate the life force of a person or animal.
Also in verse 11, “al nafshoteichem” is translated as “for your souls” meaning the human soul that needs an atonement.
With that introduction, let’s look closely at Leviticus 17:11.
Understanding Leviticus 17:11
Ramban in his commentary offers some background to the prohibition in this verse.
God prohibited the Jewish people to eat blood because it is to be used on the altar to bring atonement for the person’s soul.
At first, people were not permitted to eat animals. The animals were saved from the flood by Noah who brought some of them as offerings to God.
20. And Noah built an altar to the Lord; and took of every clean beast, and of every clean bird, and offered burnt offerings on the altar.
After Noah brought these offerings, God gave man permission to eat animals. He permitted people to make use of the animal’s body for food. But the soul (blood) of the animal should not be for food, but as an atonement on the altar when the animal was brought as an offering.
3. Every moving thing that lives shall be food for you; even as the green herb have I given you all things.
4. But flesh with its life, which is its blood, you shall not eat.
Rabbi Hirsch offers this comment on Genesis 9:4: “The soul which resides in the body is an invisible entity; and the whole essence of animal individuality and human personality hinges on the soul. This soul is represented by the blood… The blood, then, is the visible representative of the soul; hence, it symbolizes, in offerings, the elevation and devotion of the soul to God, and the soul’s steadfast adherence to Him.”
The Netziv in HaEmek Davar explains that the prohibition against eating blood is not because it’s disgraceful or disgusting to eat it. Rather, it’s because the blood belongs to God.
Malbim makes a similar point. He writes that we have no permission to use the blood in any other way than to place it on the altar. The blood was the carrier of the life. We have permission to use the physical part of the animal but not the life of the animal.
Blood on the Altar
When the blood of an offering is placed on the altar, the owner receives atonement. This is true even if there is a disqualifying problem with the offering.
Shmuel says: When the mishna states that the offering is disqualified, it means that the meat is unfit for consumption. But the owner of the offering has achieved atonement through it.
What is the reason for this? It is as the verse states with regard to the blood: “And I have given it to you upon the altar to atone for your souls” (Leviticus 17:11), from which it is derived that once the blood reaches any location on the altar, the owner of the offering has achieved atonement…
The verse states “to atone,” emphasizing that I have given it to you for atonement and for nothing else.
Another Gemara quotes Leviticus 17:11 and concludes there is no atonement except with blood.
Does the placing of hands atone for one’s sins? Isn’t atonement accomplished only by the sprinkling of the blood, as it is stated: “For it is the blood that shall atone for the soul” (Leviticus 17:11)?
As Malbim explains, the blood atones by means of the life that was tied to it. Therefore, it atones for the transgression of the soul.
When There is No Altar
Is Leviticus 17:11 teaching us that the Jewish people have no means of atonement any more?
The Second Temple was destroyed close to 2000 years ago. Since then no offerings have been brought and no blood has been placed on the altar.
Then what is the source of atonement?
God Rejects Some Sacrifices
We find that the prophets at times upbraided the Jewish people for treating the Temple and offerings as some sort of a “get out of jail free” card.
11. To what purpose is the multitude of your sacrifices to Me? said the Lord; I am full of the burnt offerings of rams, and the fat of fed beasts; and I delight not in the blood of bulls, or of lambs, or of male goats…
13. Bring no more vain offerings…
We read a similar sentiment from the last of the prophets, Malachi:
10. If only there was one among you who would shut the doors [of the Temple] that you might not kindle fire on My altar in vain! I have no pleasure in you, said the Lord of hosts, nor will I accept an offering from your hand.
We understand from these verses that even when the Temple stood, God may not be pleased with the offerings that are brought on the altar.
There is also a hint in these verses that just bringing the offering may not be enough.
As Rabbi Hirsch writes (Collected Writings IV, page 104): “What the prophets were saying was that all ‘religious’ practices were without any value if they were not carried out in a spirit of integrity.”
Cain and Repentance
What happened after the first recorded murder helps us understand what God wants from a person who sins.
After Cain murdered his brother Abel, God punished Cain with a curse and declared that he would be “a fugitive and a wanderer” (Genesis 4:12).
Here’s how the midrash records what happened next:
“And Cain went out from the presence of the Lord, and lived in the land of Nod, in the east of Eden” (Genesis 4:16)…
Adam met him and said to him, “What happened to your judgment?”
He replied to him, “I repented and my punishment was eased.”
Adam said, “This is the power of repentance and I did not know it.”
Cain repented but only partially. Therefore his punishment was reduced. He was still a fugitive, but was not required to wander. He was allowed to settle in one place, in the land of Nod.
Repentance Built Into the System
The Gemara teaches us that the concept of repentance was not something God invented after man sinned.
Wasn’t it taught [in a beraita]: Seven phenomena were created before the world was created, and they are: Torah, and repentance, and the Garden of Eden, and Gehenna, and the Throne of Glory, and the Temple, and the name of Messiah.
Rabbi Steinsaltz’s comments: “This statement means that God created these phenomena before He created the world, as without them the world either could not exist or its existence would not be justified. Torah, repentance, the Throne of Glory, and the Temple all enable man to know God and serve Him, which is the ultimate purpose of Creation. The Garden of Eden and Gehenna represent the concept of reward and punishment. The name of the Messiah relates to hope and anticipation of the ultimate redemption. As these foundational ideas were essential to the world, it was necessary for them to precede Creation (Midrash Shlomo).”
Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan Explains
Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan in A Handbook of Jewish Thought, Volume 2, goes into a lot of detail about repentance and its importance today.
Here’s just a sampling of what he writes. He provides much more detail and extensive sources that support his words.
“15:4 Therefore, one of the fundamental teachings of Judaism is that when any person repents, his sins are forgiven.”
“15:5 Repentance is effective for any sin, no matter how serious, and our sages teach us, ‘Nothing can stand before repentance.'”
“16:4 Confession is a prerequisite for all atonement. Therefore, in ancient times, one was required to confess over every sacrifice that was offered.” [See, for example, Leviticus 5:5.]
“17:4 There are four types of atonement given to us by God: repentance, Yom Kippur, suffering, and death… Repentance and confession are prerequisites for all these atonements.”
When the Temple stood, animal offering provided an important way for a sinner to reconnect with God. At that time, the atonement was not complete unless the blood was placed on the altar.
Even then, the offering could not be a rote exercise in merely checking off a few boxes on the to do list.
Then and now, repentance is the key to atonement.