Only ye shall not eat the blood; ye shall pour it upon the earth as water.
The command stands among the laws rehearsed with Israel just before crossing the Jordan, repeating laws already given to impress their sacred importance and Israel's duty to keep them. Blood was not to be eaten but to be poured upon the earth as water is poured, onto the ground. The broader permission in the chapter to eat what one desires was bounded by specific restrictions and did not open the way to eat animals expressly forbidden as unclean.
For ordinary slaughter this required killing animals in a way that lets them bleed freely instead of holding the blood in the body. In the sacrificial service the blood was poured out around the altar and covered with dust, because blood represents life. That poured-out blood pictured the life of Christ, the spotless Lamb who gave Himself for humanity, not keeping His life for Himself but pouring it out freely for others.
The command stands among the laws rehearsed with Israel just before crossing the Jordan, repeating laws already given to impress their sacred importance and Israel's duty to keep them. Blood was not to be eaten but to be poured upon the earth as water is poured, onto the ground. The broader permission in the chapter to eat what one desires was bounded by specific restrictions and did not open the way to eat animals expressly forbidden as unclean.
For ordinary slaughter this required killing animals in a way that lets them bleed freely instead of holding the blood in the body. In the sacrificial service the blood was poured out around the altar and covered with dust, because blood represents life. That poured-out blood pictured the life of Christ, the spotless Lamb who gave Himself for humanity, not keeping His life for Himself but pouring it out freely for others.