What Does Leviticus 1:5 Mean?
And he shall slaughter the bullock before the face of the LORD, and the priests, Aaron's sons, shall bring near the blood, and dash it round about upon the altar that is at the opening of the tent of meeting.
Key words are shown with the Hebrew or Greek and what each word meant.
Selah Decoded Version The Selah Decoded Version renders what the Hebrew and Greek words meant to the people who first heard them.
King James wording
King James Version
And he shall kill the bullock before the LORD: and the priests, Aaron’s sons, shall bring the blood, and sprinkle the blood round about upon the altar that is by the door of the tabernacle of the congregation.THE KEY
The Hebrew word for altar grows from the root for sacrifice, so the place receiving the blood is already named by the act taking place there.
THE MEANING
The verse presents a stark sequence: the bull is killed before the LORD, its blood is carried by the priests, and that blood is cast around the altar. Here, approach to the sacred is bound to an animal’s death, blood, and a marked place; the violence remains visible.
THE ROOT
וְהִקְרִיבוּ
wehiqriḇu
GROWS FROM
קרב
q-r-b
to come near, approach
“bring near” in this verse is wehiqriḇu. The word translated “bring” carries the sense of bringing near. The priests enact approach by carrying the blood toward the altar.
ALSO GROWS
qarov: near, close
קָרוֹב
This branch makes the nearness carried by the priests’ action audible in the root itself.
qorban: offering; that which is brought near
קָרְבָּן
The same root names an offering, linking the act of bringing blood with the language of approach.
הַמִּזְבֵּחַ
hamizbeach
GROWS FROM
זבח
z-b-ḥ
to slaughter, sacrifice
The word for altar belongs to the same root family as the word for sacrifice. The destination is named by the sacrificial act it receives, tying the place and the blood offering together.
ALSO GROWS
zavach: to slaughter, sacrifice
זָבַח
This verb names the act associated with the altar’s root.
zevach: sacrifice; sacrificial meal
זֶבַח
This noun shares the root of “altar,” joining the place to the offering made there.
THE PATTERN
These texts make approach visible through blood or an offering brought to a marked place of encounter.
You slaughter the ram and take his blood, and dash it all around upon the altar.For the living soul of the flesh is in the blood, and I have given it to you upon the altar to make a covering for your living souls, for it is the blood that covers the living soul.Let us draw near with a true heart in the fullness of trust, our hearts sprinkled from a burdened shared sight, and our bodies bathed in clean waters.THE THREAD
Speak to the children of Israel, and say to them, If anyone of you brings near a drawing near to the LORD, you shall bring near your drawing near from the cattle, from the herd and from the flock.In this verse, both “bring” and “offering” use words from the root קרב (q-r-b), meaning to approach or come near. Leviticus 1:5 repeats that root as the priests bring the blood near the altar, making the ritual an enacted approach.
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