Does The Bible Condemn Blood Transfusions?

[Traveler]

The science of blood typing was unknown when the bible was written. How can the bible condemn something the authors knew nothing about? Lives are saved with blood transfusions.

[BigJohn]

When I was a boy, a famous General lived nearby during the American Revolution. It was his job to get the Continental Army in shape and included telling them they could no longer eat 'road kill'. Back then, I doubt 'road kill' existed but I got a feeling you could find aged and diseased animals laying around dead or floating in the waters.

[WhiteWarrior]

Back in biblical times, it was simply wisdom not to eat blood that had been sacrificed or been in a dead animal. Blood of a dead animal goes bad, pretty much as soon as the heart stops beating. Any hunter knows that bleeding the carcass is first priority - beside the blood going bad quick, it also poisons the meat. In a modern slaughter house, or hospital for that matter, the blood can be collected, cleansed and frozen for later use. By contrast, some nomadic tribes still drink blood from certain livestock if they are in dire circumstances - but they drink it straight from the living (or dying) animal.

So, I say the biblical phrase was and IS correct. Don't consume untreated blood from a long dead animal. It's just medically unsound.