Good News Translation has restructured and shortened this verse considerably. The future tense at the beginning of this verse becomes an imperative. The qualifying word cereal is omitted because it is unnecessary in the larger context. Similarly, made of these things has been left implicit. Finally the temporal clause starting with when… has also been made into an imperative to make a more natural-sounding sentence. The final independent clause of Revised Standard Version becomes a relative clause in the dynamic rendering. While the meaning remains the same and flows much more naturally in Good News Translation, some may feel that this structure tends to downplay the role of the priest in bringing the offering to the altar.

Made of these things: this may be understood in two different ways. It may be taken to refer only to the last-mentioned kind of grain sacrifice and meaning “made in this way” or made of these things (that is, the way or the materials described in verse 7). If this interpretation is adopted, this verse would be a continuation of the paragraph started in verse 7, as in Revised Standard Version, Good News Translation, New English Bible, and many other versions. Although this interpretation is probably best, some scholars understand it to refer to any of the three ways mentioned in the preceding verses. New Jerusalem Bible, for example, translates “made in any of these ways” and makes this a new paragraph. An American Translation and New American Bible read the same but without making a new paragraph. This solution is also adopted by certain other versions. Moffatt begins the verse “all these cereal offerings….”

The preparation and cooking would have been done at home, and then the finished product was brought to the Tent of the LORD’s presence for the ceremonial offering. There is a change from second person singular to third person singular in the second part of this verse in the original, and this corresponds with the change of place from the home of the offerer to the Tent.

To the LORD: some translations have rendered this phrase “to the sanctuary,” since that is where the LORD was thought to be present in a special way (see 1.5). And it should be remembered that in many languages it is necessary to say “to me” when direct discourse is being used.

Presented to the priest: that which is offered to God could not be presented directly by the lay person. It was necessary to have the priest as an intermediary in making this presentation.

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 .