Caul

The word caul appears in the UPDV in two unrelated senses. In the sacrificial law it names an organ — the lobe-shaped membrane fastened to the liver, set apart with the fat and kidneys to be burned on the altar. In Isaiah's catalogue of Jerusalem finery it names an article of female adornment, a netted head-covering listed among the trinkets that the Lord will strip from the daughters of Zion.

The Caul on the Liver

In the consecration of Aaron and his sons, Yahweh tells Moses to take "all the fat that covers the insides, and the caul on the liver, and the two kidneys, and the fat that is on them, and burn them on the altar" (Ex 29:13). The caul is paired with the kidneys and the surrounding fat as the inner suet-portions reserved to Yahweh. A few verses later, in the same consecration sequence, the ram of consecration yields the same inventory: "of the ram the fat, and the fat tail, and the fat that covers the insides, and the caul of the liver, and the two kidneys, and the fat that is on them, and the right thigh" (Ex 29:22).

In the Peace-Offering

Leviticus 3 prescribes the same removal for peace-offerings, repeating the formula for each animal class. From the lamb: "the two kidneys, and the fat that is on them, which is by the loins, and the caul on the liver, with the kidneys, he will take away" (Le 3:4). From the sheep: the same words at Le 3:10. From the goat: the same words again at Le 3:15. The repetition is itself the point — peace-offerings of every kind surrender the same inner organs to the altar.

In the Sin-Offering and Trespass-Offering

The pattern carries forward into the other sacrifices. For the priestly sin-offering, "the two kidneys, and the fat that is on them, which is by the loins, and the caul on the liver, with the kidneys, he will take away" (Le 4:9). For the trespass-offering the wording is identical: "the two kidneys, and the fat that is on them, which is by the loins, and the caul on the liver, with the kidneys, he will take away" (Le 7:4). The caul is treated as a fixed and standard portion of every sacrifice that consumes the inner fat.

Burned on the Altar

Where the rituals are narrated rather than legislated, the same items appear. At the consecration of Aaron, Moses "took all the fat that was on the insides, and the caul of the liver, and the two kidneys, and their fat; and Moses burned it on the altar" (Le 8:16). When the consecration ram is presented, "he took the fat, and the fat tail, and all the fat that was on the insides, and the caul of the liver, and the two kidneys, and their fat, and the right thigh" (Le 8:25). On the eighth day, when Aaron makes his own sin-offering, "the fat, and the kidneys, and the caul from the liver of the sin-offering, he burned on the altar; as Yahweh commanded Moses" (Le 9:10). And from the people's peace- offerings on the same day, "the fat of the ox and of the ram, the fat tail, and that [fat] which covers [the entrails], and the kidneys, and the caul of the liver" (Le 9:19) — laid on the altar with the burnt- offerings. Across narrative and statute, the caul never appears alone: it is one item in a four-part inventory of fat, kidneys, caul, and (in the larger animals) the fat tail.

The Cauls of the Daughters of Zion

The second sense is unrelated to the altar. In Isaiah's oracle against the haughty women of Jerusalem, the Lord lists everything he will confiscate: "Moreover Yahweh said, Because the daughters of Zion are haughty, and walk with outstretched necks and wanton eyes, walking and mincing as they go, and making a tinkling with their feet... In that day the Lord will take away the beauty of their anklets, and the cauls, and the crescents; the pendants, and the bracelets, and the mufflers; the headtires, and the ankle chains, and the sashes, and the houses of the soul, and the amulets; the rings, and the nose-jewels; the festival robes, and the mantles, and the shawls, and the satchels; the hand-mirrors, and the fine linen, and the turbans, and the veils" (Is 3:16). Isolated for emphasis, the same item appears in v. 18: "In that day the Lord will take away the beauty of their anklets, and the cauls, and the crescents" (Is 3:18). The cauls here stand near the head of the list, alongside anklets and crescent-shaped ornaments — netted head-coverings counted among the marks of vanity that judgment will sweep away.

Both senses are concrete; nothing in the rows treats the caul figuratively or symbolically. The sacrificial caul is an anatomical portion the law repeatedly singles out for the altar; the Isaianic caul is a piece of women's headgear in a list of luxuries marked for removal.