Flesh-hook

The flesh-hook was a many-pronged fork used in the sacrificial services of the tabernacle and temple to handle the meat of burnt offerings at the altar. The sons of Eli at Shiloh are reproved in 1 Samuel 2:13-14 for using the flesh-hook illegitimately — plunging it into the boiling pot and taking whatever it brought up as their priest's portion, instead of following the lawful procedure for priestly portions of the sacrifice.

The flesh-hooks of the tabernacle altar were made of bronze as part of the altar's standard equipment (Exodus 27:3; Exodus 38:3), and their construction was specified along with the other altar vessels: shovels, basins, and firepans. The flesh-hook was used to manage the burning sacrifice on the altar and to lift pieces of meat for proper placement. Leviticus 7:29-36 specifies the lawful priestly portions — breast and right thigh — which the flesh-hook abuse of Eli's sons violated, a sin that foreshadowed the priestly house's downfall.