Leviticus Chapter 02

CHAPTER TWO

THE MEAL OFFERING

With the Burnt offering, there were ancillary offerings also made which are not noted in the previous chapter. Attention is now given to the meal offering. In addition toit being an ancillary offering to the Burnt-offering,  it could also be offered independently in its own right. Hence its independent appearing in the record at this place.  When it was meant to serve as an ancillary offering only, proper prescribed quantities were set out in a special schedule (Num.  15 3).   Here, three kinds of meal offerings are noted without stipulating the amount to be given. They comprise the offering of (1) fine flour - vv.    1-3; (2) unleavened cakes- vv. 4-7; (3) parched ears of the firstfruits - vv. 14-16. Of each of these, a small portion was burnt upon the  altar, and the rest given to the priests.

a. Of Fine Flour — vv . 1-3 Commenting upon the meal offering. Brother Roberts in "The Law of Moses" writes: There is something very beautiful in this idea of a man making God a partaker of the man's own plenty. How agreeable to social feeling for friend to send to friend a portion from one's own table: what closer act of communion could there be? How pleasing that man should be able to do this with God. . . Such a gift offered in an enlightened spirit would be a source of the highest pleasure it is possible for a created being to enjoy. It is like having God as a Guest at your table.

VERSE 1

"And when any will offer a meal offer­ing unto Yahweh" — Two Hebrew words are used here. They are korban and minchah. The former word we have met already in Lev.   1:2 (see note); the latter symbolised prayer. Such gifts should be sanc­tified with prayer.

VERSE 2

"And he shall bring it to Aaron's sons the priests" — He did this because the priests were Yahweh's representatives on earth (see Lev. 4:4; Deut. 19:17).

"And be shall take thereout"—By "he" is not meant the offerer but the presiding priest who acted on behalf of the others in this way.

"His handful of the flour and the oil thereof with all the frankincense" — A handful of fine flour impregnated with the anointing oil is thus taken out by the priests and used by them as representa­tives of Yahweh. However, all the fran­kincense is taken and burnt upon the altar. It represents prayer, and therefore, in its totality it should go through the priest to the Father Himself. 

"And the priest shall burn the mem­orial of it upon the altar" — The Mem­orial was the regular name, not only for the portion of the Minchah which was burnt on the altar (w. 9,16; 5:12; 6:15; Num. 5:26), but for the frankincense which was laid upon the shewbread (Lev. 24:7). The same word describes the prayers and alms of Cornelius, which came up as a "memorial before God" (Acts 10:4). Such memorials in Israel were designed not merely to recall an incident to mind, but to awaken the mind to its great significance (see Exod. 12:14 with notes on Memorials in Israel). In the case now before us, the Memorial recall­ed to mind that God is the Giver of every good and perfect gift (James 1:17), and therefore, true worshippers should honour Him by returning some of the substance received from Him.

"To be an offering made by fire of a sweet savour to Yahweh"—God is well pleased when man recognises his depen-dance on Him, and His goodness to His creation (see Matt. 5:44-45). Let us, therefore, "honour Him with the first-fruits of our increase" (Prov. 3:9).

VERSE 3

"And the remnant of the meat offering shall be Aaron's and his sons" — The presiding priest took his handful, and this was shared with the other priests as Yah­weh's representatives to the nation. Therefore, so long as the people remain­ed faithful, the priests ate well. It was to their advantage, therefore, for the nation to remain faithful. The priests benefited materially whilst the people did spiritualyl.

"It is a thing most holy of the offerings of Yahweh made by fire"—The term "most holy" is literally holy of holies. The term is applied to the Minchah, the shew­bread, and incense, and the flesh of sin and trespass victims. Food designated as "most holy" was eaten in the holy place, that is, in the court of the Tabernacle (Lev. 24:9), though the priest's portion of the peace-offering might be eaten by the priests and their families in any "clean" place away from the Tabernacle (Lev. 10:12-14). The food eaten in the court as a public testimony. It witnessed to the fact that the priests were Yahweh's re­presentatives, and as such should receive the honour due to them, not merely by word of mouth, but by material support.

b. Of Unleavened Cakes — vv. 4-10

The offerer can make choice of the form in which the Minchan might be offered. If he personally prefers unleavened cakes rather than fine flour, he can lovingly pre­pare such cakes for the purpose. This can lake the form that he best tikes as food, so long as it conforms to the restrictions laid down. Four varieties of cakes are listed by which the flour and oil can be made up for cooking. The ritual of the offering repeats that of the first form. The frankincense finds no mention, but is to be understood.

VERSE 4

"And if thou bring an oblation of a meat offering oaken in the oven"—If the offerer was particularly fond of cakes baken in the oven, he could share his pleasure with Yahweh by making an oblation (Heb. korban. or "gift" render­ed "offering" — Ch. 1:2) of such. The offering had to be "baken in an oven", typing the Lord who was "tried as by fire".

"It shall be unleavened cakes of fine flour mingled with oil"—Leaven sym­bolises malice or wickedness (1 Cor. 5:8; 14:20). In providing unleavened cakes, therefore, the offerer was taught to "put away all malice" (Eph. 4:31: 1 Pet. 2:1), whilst his offering typed the Lord who was without sin. The Hebrew word for cakes denotes cakes that were pierced, or perforated, and again, in this way, point­ed forward to the Lord.

"Or unleavened wafers anointed with oil"—The unleavened wafers were similar to the unleavened bread used at the Pass­over. These were anointed with oil, and so pointed forward to Christ as the anointed bread of life.

VERSE 5

"And if thy oblation be a meat offering baken in a pan it shall be of fine flour unleavened, mingled with oil"—The pan comprised a flat plate or griddle, so that the offering would then take the form of pancakes.

VERSE 6

"Thou shalt part it in pieces, and pour oil thereon; it U a meal offering" — The large griddle cake, was not divided into separate cakes as the cakes and wafers, but had to be broken in pieces, like the dismembered pieces of the animal offer­ing, so that the fire could more easily pass through it.

VERSE 7

"And if thy oblation be a meat offering baken in the frying plan, it shall be made of fine flour with oil" — If the preference of the offerer was for fried bread, he could share his taste with Yahweh in this form.

VERSE 8

"And thou shalt bring the meat offering that is made of those things unto Yahweh: and when it is presented unto the priest, he shall bring it unto the altar"—The priest first took his handful of the offering (v.2), and then took the balance to the altar to be served up to Yahweh as upon his table (cp. Mal. 1:7.12).

VERSE 9

"And the priest shall take from the meat offering a memorial thereof, and shall bum il upon the altar"—see note v.2.

"It is an offering made by fire, of a sweet savour unto Yahweh"—See note Lev. 1:9. This identifies the Meal-offer­ing with the Burnt-offering.

VERSE 10

"And that whkh is left of the meat offering shall be Aaron's and his sons" — In this way, the labour of the priests, in working for Yahweh, was rewarded. See 1 Cor. 9:13; 10:18.

"It is a thing most holy of the offerings of Yahweh made by fire"—See note v. 3. The giving of these things to the priests was public witness that those who work for Yahweh are rewarded.

c. Leaven And Honey Excluded — vv. 11-12

Leaven and honey are forms of fermen­tation, and, therefore, are excluded from the Burnt-offering. Placing them on the fire would cause them to ferment the Quicker.

VERSE 11

"No meat offering, which ye shall bring unto Yahweh, shall be made with leaven" — Leaven, as a form of fermentation which turns the dough sour, is likened to malice and wickedness (1 Cor. 5:6-8), and, therefore, is excluded from the offering. See this subject discussed at length in our comment upon Exod. 12:15.

"For ye shall burn no leaven, nor any honey, in any offering of Yahweh made by lire"—In Prov. 25:27, honey is aligned with self-gratification, and therefore is excluded from the offerings. Honey, like leaven, adds to fermentation or corrup­tion. The exclusion of both from the meal offerings, taught that an act of liberality was unacceptable if it were inspired with a wicked mind. See Prov. 15:8.

VERSE 12

"As for the oblation of the flrstfruiu, ye shall offer them unto Yahweh" — The American Jewish Bible, as with Young's Literal, render this: "As an oblation of the firstfruits. . ." Leaven and honey might be presented at the Sanctuary, but not on the altar as a sacrifice, in common with the ordinary first fruits (Deut. 26:2). The Law instructed that two leavened loaves be offered at the Feast of Pente­cost; but the reason for that concession will be explained at that place: Lev. 23:

"But they shall not be burnt on the altar for a sweet savour" — If honey or leaven is placed on the fire, they swell and froth most unagreeably. They were to be offered only as instructed.

d. Salt Obligatory In Sacrifice — v. 13

Sail must be added to every sacrifice.

"And every oblation of thy meat offering shall tbou season with salt"—Not only every minchahx but every animal of­fering! was to be accompanied by salt. It was the one symbol which was never ab­sent from the Altar of Burnt-offering, showing the imperishableness of Yah-weh's covenant. In its unalterable nature, salt is contrary to leaven. It prevents putrefaction, whilst honey and leaven produce it. Salt has relation to the cove­nant (Num. 18:19), and only through identification with the covenant could Is­rael offer acceptably to Yahweh. See how it is identified with a covenant of per­manence in 2 Chron. 13:5. Salt also brings out the flavour of food (Luke 14: 34), so that "saltiness" speaks of virility in the things of God (Matt. 5:13; Mark 9:49-50). Hence Paul exhorted: "Let your speech be always with grace, season­ed with salt, that ye may know how ye ought to answer every man" (Col. 4:6).

Salt has power to strengthen food and preserve it from putrefaction and corrup­tion, and when applied to a sacrifice im­parted to it the unbending truthfulness of self-surrender to Yahweli by which all impurity and hypocrisy is repelled. Salt symbolised hospitality: it represented the ministry of good men, as opposing the spiritual corruption of sinners (Matt. 5: 13), of grace in the heart (Mark 9:50), of wisdom or good sense in speech (Col. 4:6). Hypocritical professors are likened to salt without savour (Matt. 5:13; Mark 9:50). The Scriptures also refer to berith melah or a "covenant of salt". In such a covenant, the contracting parties were ac­customed to partake of salt to show that what they covenanted to do was inviol­ably sure (Num. 18:19; 2 Chron. 13:5). As salt brings out the flavour of food, so a covenant of salt would be fulfilled in its true spirit; as salt prevents putrefaction or decay, so a covenant of salt would be permanent and abiding. By adding salt to the sacrifices, the worshipper was com­mitting himself to complete self-surren­der to the will of Yahweh.

"Neither shall thou suffer the salt of the covenant of thy God to be tacking from thy meat offerings: with all thine offerings thou shall offer salt"—The offerings then became completely acceptable to Yah­weh.

g. Parched Ears of Firstfruils — vv. 14-16

The final form in which the Meal-offer­ing could take was that of parched grains of com, with oil, salt, and frankincense.

Once again, there was human effort con­nected with the offering, as the offerer shared the fruits of his labour with Yah­weh.

VERSE 14

"And if thou offer a meat offering of thy firstfruits unto Yahweh, Ihou shall offer for thy meat offering of thy first-fruits green ears of corn dried by the fire" — Instead of "green ears of corn" the R.V. renders: com in the ear, that is, corn just ripe, freshly gathered. The com was then dried by the tire. Parched corn was a frequent article of diet in those days.

"Even corn beaten out of full ears" — The corn was not to be rubbed by the hands as described in Luke 6:1, but bruised or crushed so as to be broken into pieces. The breaking up of the com set forth figuratively the giving up of self, without reserve, to the will of Yahweh.

VERSE 15

"And thou shall put oil upon it" — see note v.1.

"And lay frankincense thereon: it is a meat offering"—See Note v. 1.

VERSE 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 Yahweh"—See notes vv. 2-3.