The Grain Offering
12/23/20
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| In loving memory of my father Robert Louis (Bob) Padgett July 28, 1931-May 22, 2023 |
In our previous message we shared with you from Leviticus, Chapter 1, about the burnt offering - the first and therefore the most important of the five major Levitical offerings. All of those five offerings were fulfilled in Christ. We tried to emphasize the prophetic significance of the burnt offering for every Christian today. The will of God is that every Christian should fully identify with the Lord Jesus Christ by becoming a burnt offering - a voluntary, unquestioning obedience to the rhema word of God through the Holy Spirit.
Now let us look at the grain offering. What is rendered as the meat offering in Leviticus actually should be called the meal offering or grain offering because it never contained any meat as we know it. The grain offering was the only bloodless offering.
The oil which was used in this offering was probably olive oil. This would not have been readily available in the desert. Oil in scripture speaks of an anointing or the Spirit of God. From Psalm 133:2, For brethren to dwell together in unity, "It is like the precious ointment upon the head, that ran down upon the beard, even Aaron's beard: that went down to the skirts of his garments;" Note that anointing oil is only on the Head, the Lord Jesus Christ. There is no reference to the anointing being on the body.
Because the grain offering was a thing most holy, the priests were to eat it in the sanctuary area proper and not feed their families with it.
The word, oblation, is the Hebrew word korban, translated elsewhere as offering. Note, from Verses 4, 5, and 7, the three different ways to prepare the grain offering: using an oven (Verse 4), a pan (Verse 5 - the better translation is a flat plate or griddle), and a frying pan (Verse 7). Why did the Lord specify three different ways to cook or prepare the grain offering? To the Israelites of that day, those verses meant nothing more than three different natural means to prepare the grain offering. I suspect that the same interpretation or explanation of the three different methods likewise means only the natural level to most Christians today. However, let us consider that Jesus suffered physically, emotionally, and spiritually during His short ministry on earth. I am sure that when that crown of thorns was thrust on His head, it hurt. When Jesus was crucified and was nailed to that cross and when they raised up that cross in the air and dropped it in that hole - with the weight of that heavy wood and with His very own weight, the impact was enough to tear apart His body, except for the grace of God.
Everyone could see with their natural eyes the agony and physical suffering that Jesus endured on that cross before He died. The griddle or flat plate in Verse 5 was completely open for anyone and everyone to see what was on that flat griddle. So the griddle corresponds to the physical suffering of Jesus.
In Leviticus 2:7, another way to prepare the grain offering was with a frying pan, which had raised sides and therefore only partially visible to men but fully visible by the Father above. That corresponds to the emotional suffering endured by Jesus. Just before Jesus was apprehended by the chief priests, the scribes, and the elders, we read, in
Here again, the Father is speaking of His Son.
But the greatest suffering that Jesus endured was spiritual. Just before Jesus died on the cross, He who knew no sin became sin, and sin was crucified on the cross. At that point Jesus experienced a separation from the Father because no sin can be in the presence of God. At that point Jesus cried out, "My God, my God; why hast thou forsaken me?" (Matthew 27:46). That corresponds to Jesus as the grain offering being baked in an oven. That is listed as the first of the three methods of preparing the grain offering and therefore the most significant. And no man could ever see or comprehend that level of spiritual suffering.
I do not know how the Israelites of that day made flour. However, I am aware how they made a grain offering from corn. As Verse 14 says, they started with green ears of corn, dried by the fire. Green ears describe the first and best produce (Exodus 23:19). Firstfruits, the first portion of the harvest, were viewed as the choice part that belonged to God as the source of all blessing (1 Corinthians 15:20). A number of years ago before I ate an average size piece of fresh corn, I counted the number of rows on the piece of corn and counted the number of kernels on a row. Somewhat to my surprise, there were between 500 and 600 individual kernels on that piece of corn. One website says that the average number of kernels per ear of corn is 800.
To obtain fine flour required a great deal of extra effort on the part of the person who ground it, because it was not something which one bought from a grocery store. Neither was it simply run through an electrically powered mechanical grinder. The flour would have had to have been ground on a primitive grinding stone or millstone. Therefore it required a sacrifice of much time and labor on the part of the offerer.
After the ears of corn were dried by fire, the kernels were removed and placed between two large millstones, perhaps made out of hardened clay. The lower stone represents the flesh of man, which touches the earth. The upper stone represents the sovereignty of God in arranging our circumstances to help us to seek the Lord. The kernels of corn were thoroughly ground up to produce fine flour such that there was no longer any evidence that it had been corn. Likewise, we must lose our identity in Christ. From Verses 13 and 14 of Leviticus 2, oil and salt were required because they are both amazing preservatives. Leaven was forbidden in making the flour because leaven in this context speaks of pride. Leaven puffs up.
Honey wine is the oldest alcoholic drink known to man and wine was forbidden while the priests were ministering. Honey, of course, is sweet and speaks to the natural man of a natural or emotional affection. There is nothing wrong with eating natural honey. John the Baptist ate locusts and wild honey.
In the spiritual realm, honey most often symbolizes abundance and prosperity. The Promised Land is described as "a land flowing with milk and honey" twenty times. The pairing of milk and honey symbolizes fullness of life. God was promising abundant satisfaction of both needs (milk) and desire (honey). It was a delicacy rather than a necessity of life, a sign of luxury and abundance.
So honey is good after we have been born from above, but to partake of what honey represents (prosperity and natural desires) before being born from above usually results in judgment of some kind.
That rock is the Lord Jesus Christ. The spiritual honey that the Lord provides is wonderful and greatly to be desired.
Grain was common in the ancient Near East, but it was not a common commodity in the camp of the Israelites. Therefore, God provided manna for the Israelites to eat. The Israelites could not raise wheat or corn in the desert. Such a crop would not grow without rain, and the Israelites were just passing through that place anyway. The grain which the Israelites were to offer was much more rare, much more precious a commodity than the cattle, which those shepherds had in abundance.
Assuming that the Israelites had grain with them in the camp, grain which they would not eat, but which could be offered to God, what would this grain have been for? Perhaps this grain was taken with the Israelites for seed.
The caul is a fatty membrane that can occur in several different places in the body of an animal.
Three basic ideas are included in this offering: peace, thanksgiving, and fellowship. This symbolizes peace between God and man as well as the inward peace that results. The peace offering was the only sacrifice of which the offerer might eat a part. Fellowship was involved because the offerer, on the basis of the sacrifice, had fellowship with God and with the priest, who also ate part of the offering. Therefore, it included a communal meal. The peace offering was also the first of the five Levitical offerings when a female animal could be used as a sacrifice. In Christ there is neither male nor female, for we are all one in Christ Jesus. (Galatians 3:28). We might recall from Leviticus, Chapter 1, that if any animal (not the birds) were brought as a burnt offering, it had to be a male. That seems to substantiate Acts 16:30-31, when the Philippian jailor, a man, said, "Sirs, what must I do to be saved? And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house." The phrase "believe on" means to trust in the Lord.
The sin offering, which is described in Leviticus, Chapter 4, was a mandatory atonement for specific umintentional sin. It involved procedures for confession of sin, forgiveness of sin, and cleansing from defilement.
Although only the Lord knows how many people were on earth at the time of the great flood, estimates range from 240 million to 15 billion. Scripture does not specifically tell us why Noah built an altar unto the LORD and offered burnt offerings on that altar. However, I must believe that Noah was overwhelmed with the grace of God that had saved only him and his family, a total of 8 souls (1 Peter 3:20). His heart was probably full and overflowing with thanksgiving and praise to God. Therefore, he offered back to God what God had given into his care in the form of clean animals. By so doing, he offered himself, by substitution and identification, as a burnt offering to God.
Therefore, the question for you and me and for every Christian is: Are we overwhelmed with the grace of God that has saved us and our family? Is our heart full and overflowing with thanksgiving and praise to God? If so, then we must agree with the will of God and offer ourself voluntarily and unquestioning as a burnt offering to Him. May the Lord be glorified. Amen.
Now let us look at the grain offering. What is rendered as the meat offering in Leviticus actually should be called the meal offering or grain offering because it never contained any meat as we know it. The grain offering was the only bloodless offering.
Leviticus, Chapter 2.
1 And when any will offer a meat offering unto the LORD, his offering shall be of fine flour; and he shall pour oil upon it, and put frankincense thereon:
The oil which was used in this offering was probably olive oil. This would not have been readily available in the desert. Oil in scripture speaks of an anointing or the Spirit of God. From Psalm 133:2, For brethren to dwell together in unity, "It is like the precious ointment upon the head, that ran down upon the beard, even Aaron's beard: that went down to the skirts of his garments;" Note that anointing oil is only on the Head, the Lord Jesus Christ. There is no reference to the anointing being on the body.
Psalm 45:7, "Thou lovest righteousness, and hatest wickedness: therefore God, thy God, hath anointed thee with the oil of gladness above thy fellows."
That verse says that the Father anointed the Son, Jesus, with oil.
1 Chronicles 16:22 says, "Touch not mine anointed, and do my prophets no harm."
There again, the Father is speaking. Who is His anointed? His Son, Jesus Christ. The Lord is not going to anoint you or me. He already has one who is anointed - Christ Jesus.
Frankincense was a sweet-smelling fragrance available in the ancient Near East. It was a sensory symbol of the pleasure which the offering was intended to bring God. Frankincense, which was probably quite rare and expensive, was a reminder that costly sacrifice is worth the price, for pleasing God is the highest good. God the Father said of God the Son, "This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased." We Christians likewise are accepted only insofar as we are in the Son. The sacrificial materials, the grain, the oil, and the frankincense, were all difficult to obtain in the days of Moses. Once the people entered the land of Canaan, obtaining those goods depended upon the bounty of the harvest, for which the Israelites had to look to God.
Frankincense was a sweet-smelling fragrance available in the ancient Near East. It was a sensory symbol of the pleasure which the offering was intended to bring God. Frankincense, which was probably quite rare and expensive, was a reminder that costly sacrifice is worth the price, for pleasing God is the highest good. God the Father said of God the Son, "This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased." We Christians likewise are accepted only insofar as we are in the Son. The sacrificial materials, the grain, the oil, and the frankincense, were all difficult to obtain in the days of Moses. Once the people entered the land of Canaan, obtaining those goods depended upon the bounty of the harvest, for which the Israelites had to look to God.
2 And he shall bring it to Aaron's sons the priests: and he shall take thereout his handful of the flour thereof, and of the oil thereof, with all the frankincense thereof; and the priest shall burn the memorial of it upon the altar, to be an offering made by fire, of a sweet savour unto the LORD:3 And the remnant of the meat offering shall be Aaron's and his sons': it is a thing most holy of the offerings of the LORD made by fire.
Because the grain offering was a thing most holy, the priests were to eat it in the sanctuary area proper and not feed their families with it.
4 And if thou bring an oblation of a meat offering baken in the oven, it shall be unleavened cakes of fine flour mingled with oil, or unleavened wafers anointed with oil.5 And if thy oblation be a meat offering baken in a pan, it shall be of fine flour unleavened, mingled with oil.6 Thou shalt part it in pieces, and pour oil thereon: it is a meat offering.7 And if thy oblation be a meat offering baken in the fryingpan, it shall be made of fine flour with oil.
The word, oblation, is the Hebrew word korban, translated elsewhere as offering. Note, from Verses 4, 5, and 7, the three different ways to prepare the grain offering: using an oven (Verse 4), a pan (Verse 5 - the better translation is a flat plate or griddle), and a frying pan (Verse 7). Why did the Lord specify three different ways to cook or prepare the grain offering? To the Israelites of that day, those verses meant nothing more than three different natural means to prepare the grain offering. I suspect that the same interpretation or explanation of the three different methods likewise means only the natural level to most Christians today. However, let us consider that Jesus suffered physically, emotionally, and spiritually during His short ministry on earth. I am sure that when that crown of thorns was thrust on His head, it hurt. When Jesus was crucified and was nailed to that cross and when they raised up that cross in the air and dropped it in that hole - with the weight of that heavy wood and with His very own weight, the impact was enough to tear apart His body, except for the grace of God.
Psalm 22:14, "I am poured out like water, and all my bones are out of joint:17 I may tell all my bones: they look and stare upon me."
Everyone could see with their natural eyes the agony and physical suffering that Jesus endured on that cross before He died. The griddle or flat plate in Verse 5 was completely open for anyone and everyone to see what was on that flat griddle. So the griddle corresponds to the physical suffering of Jesus.
In Leviticus 2:7, another way to prepare the grain offering was with a frying pan, which had raised sides and therefore only partially visible to men but fully visible by the Father above. That corresponds to the emotional suffering endured by Jesus. Just before Jesus was apprehended by the chief priests, the scribes, and the elders, we read, in
Mark 14:50, "And they all forsook Him, and fled."Also, in Isaiah 53:11, "He shall see of the travail of His soul, and shall be satisfied: by His knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for He shall bear their iniquities."
Here again, the Father is speaking of His Son.
But the greatest suffering that Jesus endured was spiritual. Just before Jesus died on the cross, He who knew no sin became sin, and sin was crucified on the cross. At that point Jesus experienced a separation from the Father because no sin can be in the presence of God. At that point Jesus cried out, "My God, my God; why hast thou forsaken me?" (Matthew 27:46). That corresponds to Jesus as the grain offering being baked in an oven. That is listed as the first of the three methods of preparing the grain offering and therefore the most significant. And no man could ever see or comprehend that level of spiritual suffering.
Back to Leviticus, Chapter 2.8 And thou shalt bring the meat offering that is made of these things unto the LORD: and when it is presented unto the priest, he shall bring it unto the altar.9 And the priest shall take from the meat offering a memorial thereof, and shall burn it upon the altar: it is an offering made by fire, of a sweet savour unto the LORD.10 And that which is left of the meat offering shall be Aaron's and his sons': it is a thing most holy of the offerings of the LORD made by fire.11 No meat offering, which ye shall bring unto the LORD, shall be made with leaven: for ye shall burn no leaven, nor any honey, in any offering of the LORD made by fire.12 As for the oblation of the firstfruits, ye shall offer them unto the LORD: but they shall not be burnt on the altar for a sweet savour.13 And every oblation of thy meat offering shalt thou season with salt; neither shalt thou suffer the salt of the covenant of thy God to be lacking from thy meat offering: with all thine offerings thou shalt offer salt.14 And if thou offer a meat offering of thy firstfruits unto the LORD, thou shalt offer for the meat offering of thy fistfruits green ears of corn dried by the fire, even corn beaten out of full ears.15 And thou shalt put oil upon it, and lay frankincense thereon: it is a meat offering.16 And the priest shall burn the memorial of it, part of the beaten corn thereof, and part of the oil thereof, with all the frankincense thereof: it is an offering made by fire unto the LORD.
I do not know how the Israelites of that day made flour. However, I am aware how they made a grain offering from corn. As Verse 14 says, they started with green ears of corn, dried by the fire. Green ears describe the first and best produce (Exodus 23:19). Firstfruits, the first portion of the harvest, were viewed as the choice part that belonged to God as the source of all blessing (1 Corinthians 15:20). A number of years ago before I ate an average size piece of fresh corn, I counted the number of rows on the piece of corn and counted the number of kernels on a row. Somewhat to my surprise, there were between 500 and 600 individual kernels on that piece of corn. One website says that the average number of kernels per ear of corn is 800.
To obtain fine flour required a great deal of extra effort on the part of the person who ground it, because it was not something which one bought from a grocery store. Neither was it simply run through an electrically powered mechanical grinder. The flour would have had to have been ground on a primitive grinding stone or millstone. Therefore it required a sacrifice of much time and labor on the part of the offerer.
After the ears of corn were dried by fire, the kernels were removed and placed between two large millstones, perhaps made out of hardened clay. The lower stone represents the flesh of man, which touches the earth. The upper stone represents the sovereignty of God in arranging our circumstances to help us to seek the Lord. The kernels of corn were thoroughly ground up to produce fine flour such that there was no longer any evidence that it had been corn. Likewise, we must lose our identity in Christ. From Verses 13 and 14 of Leviticus 2, oil and salt were required because they are both amazing preservatives. Leaven was forbidden in making the flour because leaven in this context speaks of pride. Leaven puffs up.
Honey wine is the oldest alcoholic drink known to man and wine was forbidden while the priests were ministering. Honey, of course, is sweet and speaks to the natural man of a natural or emotional affection. There is nothing wrong with eating natural honey. John the Baptist ate locusts and wild honey.
In the spiritual realm, honey most often symbolizes abundance and prosperity. The Promised Land is described as "a land flowing with milk and honey" twenty times. The pairing of milk and honey symbolizes fullness of life. God was promising abundant satisfaction of both needs (milk) and desire (honey). It was a delicacy rather than a necessity of life, a sign of luxury and abundance.
Proverbs 5:3, "For the lips of a strange woman drop as an honeycomb, and her mouth is smoother than oil:"Leviticus 20:24, "But I have said unto you, Ye shall inherit their land, and I will give it unto you to possess it, a land that floweth with milk and honey: I am the LORD your God, which have separated you from other people."
So honey is good after we have been born from above, but to partake of what honey represents (prosperity and natural desires) before being born from above usually results in judgment of some kind.
Psalm 81:16, "He should have fed them also with the finest of the wheat: and with honey out of the rock should I have satisfied thee."
That rock is the Lord Jesus Christ. The spiritual honey that the Lord provides is wonderful and greatly to be desired.
Grain was common in the ancient Near East, but it was not a common commodity in the camp of the Israelites. Therefore, God provided manna for the Israelites to eat. The Israelites could not raise wheat or corn in the desert. Such a crop would not grow without rain, and the Israelites were just passing through that place anyway. The grain which the Israelites were to offer was much more rare, much more precious a commodity than the cattle, which those shepherds had in abundance.
Assuming that the Israelites had grain with them in the camp, grain which they would not eat, but which could be offered to God, what would this grain have been for? Perhaps this grain was taken with the Israelites for seed.
2 Corinthians 9:10, "Now He that ministereth seed to the sower both minister bread for your food, and multiply your seed sown, and increase the fruits of your righteousness;)"
To sacrifice their seed to God was indeed an act of faith.
The purpose of the grain offering is not atonement, but worship, acknowledgment of God's divine provision of the needs of the Israelite for life itself. The grain offering praised God for His abundant supply of the "daily bread" of the Israelite. But while men do not contribute to their redemption, they do participate in the growing of the crops by which God sustains their life, i.e., agriculture. Thus, the human element is present in the grain offering in a way that it is not in the burnt offering.
While leaven corrupts, salt preserves and purifies. Salt is therefore related to purification and preservation. Remember, from Leviticus 2:13, "with all thine offerings thou shalt offer salt." The drink offering is mentioned in Leviticus 23. The drink offering, although not one of the five major offerings, commonly accompanied the grain offering. However, the first occurrence of a drink offering is in
The purpose of the grain offering is not atonement, but worship, acknowledgment of God's divine provision of the needs of the Israelite for life itself. The grain offering praised God for His abundant supply of the "daily bread" of the Israelite. But while men do not contribute to their redemption, they do participate in the growing of the crops by which God sustains their life, i.e., agriculture. Thus, the human element is present in the grain offering in a way that it is not in the burnt offering.
While leaven corrupts, salt preserves and purifies. Salt is therefore related to purification and preservation. Remember, from Leviticus 2:13, "with all thine offerings thou shalt offer salt." The drink offering is mentioned in Leviticus 23. The drink offering, although not one of the five major offerings, commonly accompanied the grain offering. However, the first occurrence of a drink offering is in
Genesis 35:14, "And Jacob set up a pillar in the place where he talked with Him, even a pillar of stone: and he poured a drink offering thereon, and he poured oil thereon."
That pillar of stone speaks prophetically of Jesus. Jesus became that drink offering when He poured Himself out not only at Calvary but also throughout His life on earth.
Oil speaks of the anointing of the Holy Spirit. The anointing is not on any man or woman. The anointing is on the Head, the Lord Jesus Christ. So when Jacob poured a drink offering and oil on that pillar of stone, he poured it on Christ Jesus. That event marked the confirmation of Jacob's new name of Israel.
Oil speaks of the anointing of the Holy Spirit. The anointing is not on any man or woman. The anointing is on the Head, the Lord Jesus Christ. So when Jacob poured a drink offering and oil on that pillar of stone, he poured it on Christ Jesus. That event marked the confirmation of Jacob's new name of Israel.
From Philippians 2:7, speaking of Jesus, "But made Himself of no reputation, and took upon Him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men:"
"Made Himself of no reputation" can be translated as He "emptied Himself." Every Christian is likewise called to empty or deny self.
Jesus said, in John 12:24, "Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit."
The only way that we can become fruitful and fit for the use of the hand of our Master is to die to self.
The third and last of the voluntary offerings was called the peace offering, which we read about in Leviticus, Chapter 3.
The third and last of the voluntary offerings was called the peace offering, which we read about in Leviticus, Chapter 3.
1 And if his oblation be a sacrifice of peace offering, if he offer it of the herd; whether it be a male or female, he shall offer it without blemish before the LORD.2 And he shall lay his hand upon the head of his offering, and kill it at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation: and Aaron's sons the priests shall sprinkle the blood upon the altar round about.3 And he shall offer of the sacrifice of the peace offering an offering made by fire unto the LORD; the fat that covereth the inwards, and all the fat that is upon the inwards,4 And the two kidneys, and the fat that is on them, which is by the flanks, and the caul above the liver, with the kidneys, it shall he take away.
The caul is a fatty membrane that can occur in several different places in the body of an animal.
5 And Aaron's sons shall burn it on the altar upon the burnt sacrifice, which is upon the wood that is on the fire: it is an offering made by fire, of a sweet savour unto the LORD.6 And if his offering for a sacrifice of peace offering unto the LORD be of the flock; male or female, he shall offer it without blemish.7 If he offer a lamb for his offering, then shall he offer it before the LORD.
8 And he shall lay his hand upon the head of his offering, and kill it before the tabernacle of the congregation: and Aaron's sons shall sprinkle the blood thereof round about upon the altar.9 And he shall offer of the sacrifice of the peace offering an offering made by fire unto the LORD; the fat thereof, and the whole rump, it shall he take off hard by the backbone; and the fat that covereth the inwards, and all the fat that is upon the inwards,10 And the two kidneys, and the fat that is upon them, which is by the flanks, and the caul above the liver, with the kidneys, it shall he take away.11 And the priest shall burn it upon the altar: it is the food of the offering made by fire unto the LORD.12 And if his offering be a goat, then he shall offer it before the LORD.13 And he shall lay his hand upon the head of it, and kill it before the tabernacle of the congregation: and the sons of Aaron shall sprinkle the blood thereof upon the altar round about.14 And he shall offer thereof his offering, even an offering made by fire unto the LORD; the fat that covereth the inwards, and all the fat that is upon the inwards,15 And the two kidneys, and the fat that is upon them, which is by the flanks, and the caul above the liver, with the kidneys, it shall he take away.16 And the priest shall burn them upon the altar: it is the food of the offering made by fire for a sweet savour: all the fat is the LORD'S.17 It shall be a perpetual statute for your generations throughout all your dwellings, that ye eat neither fat nor blood.
Three basic ideas are included in this offering: peace, thanksgiving, and fellowship. This symbolizes peace between God and man as well as the inward peace that results. The peace offering was the only sacrifice of which the offerer might eat a part. Fellowship was involved because the offerer, on the basis of the sacrifice, had fellowship with God and with the priest, who also ate part of the offering. Therefore, it included a communal meal. The peace offering was also the first of the five Levitical offerings when a female animal could be used as a sacrifice. In Christ there is neither male nor female, for we are all one in Christ Jesus. (Galatians 3:28). We might recall from Leviticus, Chapter 1, that if any animal (not the birds) were brought as a burnt offering, it had to be a male. That seems to substantiate Acts 16:30-31, when the Philippian jailor, a man, said, "Sirs, what must I do to be saved? And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house." The phrase "believe on" means to trust in the Lord.
The sin offering, which is described in Leviticus, Chapter 4, was a mandatory atonement for specific umintentional sin. It involved procedures for confession of sin, forgiveness of sin, and cleansing from defilement.
1 John 2:1-2, "My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous: And He is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world."
The sin offering for a ruler had to be a male animal whereas the sin offering for the people had to be a female animal. Perhaps that was because males were designed to be in leadership positions in the church but Eve first sinned (2 Corinthians 11:3).
The trespass offering, described in Leviticus, Chapter 5, was a mandatory atonement for unintentional sin requiring restitution plus the equivalent of a 20% fine, and cleansing from defilement. The only animal mentioned as the sacrifice is a female.
All of the five offerings are called "most holy" except for the burnt offering. In Exodus 40:10 we read,
The trespass offering, described in Leviticus, Chapter 5, was a mandatory atonement for unintentional sin requiring restitution plus the equivalent of a 20% fine, and cleansing from defilement. The only animal mentioned as the sacrifice is a female.
All of the five offerings are called "most holy" except for the burnt offering. In Exodus 40:10 we read,
"And thou shalt anoint the altar of the burnt offering, and all his vessels, and sanctify the altar: and it shall be an altar most holy."
Here we see that the altar of the burnt offering was most holy. That seems to indicate that the altar also speaks of Christ.
I am at a loss to find any scripture that speaks of an offering for intentional sin or trespass.
I am at a loss to find any scripture that speaks of an offering for intentional sin or trespass.
Hebrews 10:26 says "For if we sin wilfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins."
I knew a rather mature Christian man many years ago who said that the Lord told him to divorce his wife and marry another woman. I must believe that man was deceived because in Malachi 2:16, the Lord says that He hates divorce.
Finally, to conclude our brief look at the five major Levitical offerings, I want to return to the example of Noah. I believe the Lord wants to emphasize this principle to us because I had a dream very early this past Friday morning about the most important aspect of Noah's life and how that must be an example for us. The first thing that Noah did after coming out of the ark on dry ground is recorded in
Finally, to conclude our brief look at the five major Levitical offerings, I want to return to the example of Noah. I believe the Lord wants to emphasize this principle to us because I had a dream very early this past Friday morning about the most important aspect of Noah's life and how that must be an example for us. The first thing that Noah did after coming out of the ark on dry ground is recorded in
Genesis 8:20-21, "And Noah builded an altar unto the LORD; and took of every clean beast, and of every clean fowl, and offered burnt offerings on the altar. And the LORD smelled a sweet savour ..."
Although only the Lord knows how many people were on earth at the time of the great flood, estimates range from 240 million to 15 billion. Scripture does not specifically tell us why Noah built an altar unto the LORD and offered burnt offerings on that altar. However, I must believe that Noah was overwhelmed with the grace of God that had saved only him and his family, a total of 8 souls (1 Peter 3:20). His heart was probably full and overflowing with thanksgiving and praise to God. Therefore, he offered back to God what God had given into his care in the form of clean animals. By so doing, he offered himself, by substitution and identification, as a burnt offering to God.
Therefore, the question for you and me and for every Christian is: Are we overwhelmed with the grace of God that has saved us and our family? Is our heart full and overflowing with thanksgiving and praise to God? If so, then we must agree with the will of God and offer ourself voluntarily and unquestioning as a burnt offering to Him. May the Lord be glorified. Amen.
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