You shall not eat any flesh with the blood in it: literally “You shall not eat upon the blood.” The ancient Greek has “upon the mountains.” But most modern versions take it to mean the same thing as 17.12. Some commentators find this strange in the context of witchcraft, but it is quite possible that “upon the blood” refers to eating the sacrifice while standing on the ground where the blood had been spilled. While certain French versions (Bible en français courant and Traduction oecuménique de la Bible) adopt this interpretation, virtually all English versions follow the interpretation of Revised Standard Version and Good News Translation.

Practice augury: a Roman “augur” was an official who foretold the future as a result of his observation of birds. But the English word augury has slightly changed in meaning, and it is not well known today. The term used here actually refers to divination, or the practice of foretelling the future, or discovering secret knowledge by consulting spirits.

Witchcraft: sorcery, or the use of supernatural powers to control events. Although Good News Translation has translated the two terms together with “any kind of magic,” it will be quite easy in many languages to find two separate terms. But it is true that the forbidding of the two should be all-inclusive, conveying the idea that all types of magic are prohibited.

Quoted with permission from Péter-Contesse, René and Ellington, John. A Handbook on Leviticus. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 1990. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .