SCRIPTURE: LEVITICUS 2 (Tuesday)
IMPORTANT VERSE:
THE GRAIN OFFERING (vs. 1-16)
“‘When someone brings a grain offering to the Lord, his offering is to be of fine flour. He is to pour oil on it, put incense on it and take it to Aaron’s sons the priests. The priest shall take a handful of the fine flour and oil, together with all the incense, and burn this as a memorial portion on the altar, an offering made by fire, and aroma pleasing to the Lord. The rest of the grain offering belongs to Aaron and his sons; it is a most holy part of the offerings made to the Lord by fire.
“‘If you bring a grain offering baked in an oven, it is to consist of fine flour: cakes made without yeast and mixed with oil, or wafers made without yeast and spread with oil. If your grain offering is prepared on a griddle, it is to be made of fine flour mixed with oil, and without yeast. Crumble it and pour oil on it; it is a grain offering. If your grain offering is cooked in a pan, it is to be made of fine flour and oil. Bring the grain offering made of these things to the Lord; present it to the priest, who shall take it to the altar. He shall take out the memorial portion from the grain offering and burn it on the altar as an offering made by fire, an aroma pleasing to the Lord. The rest of the grain offering belongs to Aaron and his sons; it is a most holy part of the offerings made to the Lord by fire.
“‘Every grain offering you bring to the lord must be made without yeast, for you are not to burn any yeast or honey in an offering made to the Lord by fire. You may bring them to the Lord as an offering of the firstfruits, but they are not to be offered on the altar as a pleasing aroma. Season all your grain offerings with salt. Do not leave the salt of the covenant of you8r God out of your grain offerings; add salt to all your offerings.
“‘If you bring a grain offering of firstfruits to the Lord, offer crushed heads of new grain roasted in the fire. Put oil and incense on it; it is a grain offering. The priest shall burn the memorial portion of the crushed grain and the oil, together with all the incense, as an offering made to the Lord by fire.
THOUGHTS: (From Life Application Study Bible)
The grain offering accompanied all burnt offerings and was a gift of thanks to God. It reminded the people that their food came from God and that they therefore owed their lives to him.
Three kinds of grain offerings:
- Fine flour with oil and incense.
- Baked cakes or wafers of fine flour and oil.
- Roast ed kernels of grain (corn) with oil and incense.
The absence of yeast symbolized the absence of sin and the oil symbolized God’s presence. Part of the grain offering was burned on the altar as a gift to God and the rest was eaten by the priest. The offerings helped support them in their work.
Yeast was not allowed in the grain offering because yeast is a bacterial fungus or model. therefore, it is an appropriate symbol for sin. It grows in bread dough just as sin grows in a life. A little yeast will affect the whole loaf, just as a little sin can ruin a whole life.
The offerings were seasoned with salt as a reminder of the people’s covenant with God. Salt is a good symbol of God’s activity in a person’s life because it penetrates, preserves and aids in healing. God wants to be active in your life. Let him become part of you, penetrating every aspect of y8our life, preserving you from the evil all around and healing you of your sins and shortcomings.
In Arab countries, an agreement was sealed with a gift of salt to show the strength and permanence of the contract. In Matthew 5:13 believers are called “the slat of the earth”. Let the salt you use each day remind you that you are now one of God’s covenant people who actively help preserve and purity the world.
Crushed heads of a new grain mixed with oil and baked was typical food for the average person. This offering was a token presentation of a person’s daily food. In this way, people acknowledged God as provider of their food. Even a poor person could fulfill this offering. God was pleased by the motivation and the dedication of the persons making it.
THOUGHTS (By Warren Wiersbe)
The oil symbolized the Holy Spirit who has anointed each believer (2 Cor. 1:21-22). The oil mixed with the offering reminds us that our Lord was born of the Spirit with a perfect nature. (Luke 1:35). The oil poured on the offering speaks of the power of the Spirit given to the Savior (Acts 10:36). We need the fruit of the Spirit (Gal. 5:22-23) and the power of the Spirit (Acts 1:8) if we are to please God in character and service.
Note that God never wants leaven (a picture of sin (1 Cor. 5-6) or honey (man’s glory and not God’s-Prov,. 25:27). But he does want salt, which speaks of purity (Co, 4:6) and frankincense, which is praise to God.