Then from the sacrifice of the peace offering: the wording of Revised Standard Version reflects the Hebrew but may be somewhat confusing. Some have translated “Since it is a fellowship offering, these parts must be given as a food offering to the LORD:…” or “He shall present part of the fellowship offering as a food offering to the LORD….” New International Version begins this verse: “From the fellowship offering he is to bring a sacrifice….” Compare verse 3.

An offering by fire: see verse 5 above.

The fat tail entire: the tail of the kind of sheep raised in Palestine may have contained as much as seven or more kilograms of fat and was considered a delicacy. While this kind of information is important in understanding the text, it cannot be included in the text of the translation. It may therefore be wise to give such information in a cultural footnote.

Taking it away close by the backbone: the word for backbone used in this verse is found only here in all the Old Testament. Probably it referred to a specific place on the spinal column of the animal. Such precision is important in a text of this kind and, as far as possible, translators should choose an equivalent technical term in their own language. If this proves to be impossible, a natural descriptive phrase should be used. For example, “at the very end of the spinal column (or, backbone)” or in some cases “the entire tail” may imply cutting off at this particular point. In other languages the same idea can be conveyed by speaking of the “very beginning of the tail.”

On the translation of entrails as “internal organs” in Good News Translation, see 1.9.

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 .