Leviticus 8:24
וַיַּקְרֵב אֶת־בְּנֵי אַהֲרֹן וַיִּתֵּן מֹשֶׁה מִן־הַדָּם עַל־תְּנוּךְ אָזְנָם הַיְמָנִית וְעַל־בֹּהֶן יָדָם הַיְמָנִית וְעַל־בֹּהֶן רַגְלָם הַיְמָנִית וַיִּזְרֹק מֹשֶׁה אֶת־הַדָּם עַל־הַֽמִּזְבֵּחַ סָבִֽיב׃
✦ Hebrew interlinear
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✦ The same verse in five languages
וַיַּקְרֵ֞ב אֶת־בְּנֵ֣י אַהֲרֹ֗ן וַיִּתֵּ֨ן מֹשֶׁ֤ה מִן־הַדָּם֙ עַל־תְּנ֤וּךְ אָזְנָם֙ הַיְמָנִ֔ית וְעַל־בֹּ֤הֶן יָדָם֙ הַיְמָנִ֔ית וְעַל־בֹּ֥הֶן רַגְלָ֖ם הַיְמָנִ֑ית וַיִּזְרֹ֨ק מֹשֶׁ֧ה אֶת־הַדָּ֛ם עַל־הַֽמִּזְבֵּ֖חַ סָבִֽיב׃
καὶ προσήγαγεν Μωυσῆς τοὺς υἱοὺς Ἀαρών· καὶ ἐπέθηκεν Μωυσῆς ἀπὸ τοῦ αἵματος ἐπὶ τοὺς λοβοὺς τῶν ὤτων τῶν δεξιῶν καὶ ἐπὶ τὰ ἄκρα τῶν χειρῶν αὐτῶν τῶν δεξιῶν καὶ ἐπὶ τὰ ἄκρα τῶν ποδῶν αὐτῶν τῶν δεξιῶν· καὶ π ροσέχεεν Μωσῆς τὸ αἷμα ἐπὶ τὸ θυσιαστήριον κύκλῳ.
Greek text from Swete's edition, CC BY-SA 4.0
Latin (Vulgate)
Obtulit et filios Aaron: cumque de sanguine arietis immolati tetigisset extremum auriculæ singulorum dextræ, et pollices manus ac pedis dextri, reliquum fudit super altare per circuitum:
Moisés hizo acercarse a los hijos de Aarón y les untó un poco de sangre en el lóbulo de la oreja derecha, en el pulgar de la mano derecha y en el dedo gordo del pie derecho. Luego roció el resto de la sangre por todos los lados del altar.
Classic Spanish (Reina-Valera 1909)
Hizo llegar luego los hijos de Aarón, y puso Moisés de la sangre sobre la ternilla de sus orejas derechas, y sobre los pulgares de sus manos derechas, y sobre los pulgares de sus pies derechos: y roció Moisés la sangre sobre el altar en derredor;
Moses also presented Aaron’s sons and put some of the blood on their right earlobes, on the thumbs of their right hands, and on the big toes of their right feet. Then he sprinkled the blood on all sides of the altar.
✦ What the text says
Summary
Moses brings Aaron's sons forward and applies blood to specific points on their bodies: the right earlobe, the right thumb, and the right big toe. He then sprinkles the remaining blood on all sides of the altar.
Key words
- yakrev ("he presented", H7126H) — hiphil (causative) form: Moses causes the sons of Aaron to draw near, not merely brings them.
- yitten ("he put", H5414H) — qal narrative form describing the direct application of blood, distinct in verb stem from the causative act of presenting.
- tenukh ("lobe of", H8571) — construct noun specifying the exact anatomical point (earlobe) receiving blood, not the whole ear.
- bohen ("thumb/big toe of", H0931) — same noun used twice (v.24 hand, v.27... foot), construct form linking it to "hand" and later "foot," showing the text uses one term for both digits.
- yemanit ("right", H3233G) — feminine adjective in construct/agreement position, repeated three times to specify laterality (ear, hand, foot) each time.
What the text says
The verse is built on a chain of narrative vav-consecutive verbs (va-yakrev, va-yitten, va-yizroq), each marked "and then," which gives the Hebrew a strict sequential structure: presenting, then applying blood pointwise, then sprinkling the remainder. The subject alternates between an unstated "he" (understood as Moses from context) for the first verb and explicit Mosheh for the second and third, though the grammatical subject is consistent throughout the pericope.
The three body parts — tenukh + 'ozen ("ear", construct chain "lobe of their ear"), bohen + yad ("thumb of their hand"), and bohen + regel ("big toe of their foot") — are each governed by the preposition 'al ("on/upon", H5921A), showing the blood was placed on these points rather than in or through them. Each phrase is followed by the adjective yemanit ("right"), which in Hebrew is stated three separate times (for ear, hand, and foot) rather than applied once collectively, giving a repetitive, list-like rhythm absent from more compact translations. The final action uses a different verb, yizroq ("he sprinkled", H2236), distinguishing the targeted application of blood on body parts from the wider distribution of the remaining blood sabiv ("all around", H5439H) the altar.
Differences between versions
The LXX renders the anatomical terms more generally: "τοὺς λοβοὺς τῶν ὤτων" (the lobes of the ears) and "τὰ ἄκρα τῶν χειρῶν / τῶν ποδῶν" ("the extremities of the hands/feet") rather than specifying "thumb" and "big toe" as the Hebrew bohen does. The Vulgate similarly uses "pollices manus ac pedis" ("thumbs of hand and foot"), aligning more closely with the Hebrew's specific digit reference than the LXX's broader "extremities."
This explanation describes the text using linguistic data; it adds no doctrine or confessional interpretation.