The Meat Offering: Leviticus 2

From: Bible Handbook: Old Testament By: Walter Biggar Scott

Leviticus 2 • 3 min. read • grade level: 10

This is another of the "sweet savor offerings" in which God's portion and delight in Jesus is fully brought out. True in one sense all that Jesus did, all that He was in life and death was "for us;" but His work to God for the expiation of sin is surely a different thing from His work to God for the acceptance of the offerer. In the former, Gods hatred to sin and outpouring of wrath upon the sinner's Substitute is expressed; in the latter, God's delight in holiness and in the infinite perfection of Christ in His person and work. "Christ made sin for us," characterize the various sin and trespass offerings. Christ giving Himself for us "an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet smelling savor," describe the distinguishing feature of the other sacrificial offerings.

If the burnt offering sets Jesus before us coming up to the altar—the cross—of His own free will, and there, in the place of sin, and where only it could be expiated, offering Himself to accomplish the will and glory of God in death; the meat offering presents Him offering a whole unblemished life to God, and that too, in the place of sin and sorrow. The material of which it was composed was "fine flour"—humanity in perfection; its adjuncts were "oil"-the Holy Ghost; "frankincense"-the moral graces; and "salt"—incorruption and perpetuity. What was forbidden was "leaven " (save in one marked exception), figure of evil; and "honey," type of mere human affection. The "oil poured" upon the offering is the expression of Christ's anointing by the Spirit and power, as in Acts 10:38³⁸How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power: who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; for God was with him. (Acts 10:38); while the offering mingled with oil sets forth the profound teaching of Matt. 1:20²⁰But while he thought on these things, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a dream, saying, Joseph, thou son of David, fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife: for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost. (Matthew 1:20) -"conceived of the Holy Ghost." This "most holy of the offerings of the LORD made by fire," was brought to the priests; a handful taken out with all the frankincense and burnt upon the altar. Thus Jesus in all His blessed life, His words, His ways, His actions, and in all the moral graces and beauties and lovely traits of that wondrous path, trod to the glory of God, was subjected to the trial of fire. And what was the result? A sweet savor of rest to God. That part of the offering not put upon the altar, became the food of the priests. Thus we enjoy communion with God in His expressed delight of His Beloved One as a man on earth. Wondrous privilege!

Neither leaven nor honey were to be burned on the altar (Lev. 2:11¹¹No 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. (Leviticus 2:11)). The meat offering of first fruits being baked with "leaven" (Lev. 2:12¹²As 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 savor. (Leviticus 2:12); see Lev. 23:17¹⁷Ye shall bring out of your habitations two wave loaves of two tenth deals: they shall be of fine flour; they shall be baken with leaven; they are the firstfruits unto the Lord. (Leviticus 23:17)), was an exception, but this, as setting forth the church at Pentecost, sanctified and presented to God by the Holy Ghost, could not be "burnt on the altar," for the simple but weighty reason that there was "leaven" or sin there; hence, when the "meat offering," typical of the church was offered, the loaves made of fine flour were baken with leaven, but there was also offered with them a sin offering, to meet the actual state of the church, which, of course, on this side of glory is necessarily one of imperfection (Lev. 23:15-21¹⁵And ye shall count unto you from the morrow after the sabbath, from the day that ye brought the sheaf of the wave offering; seven sabbaths shall be complete: ¹⁶Even unto the morrow after the seventh sabbath shall ye number fifty days; and ye shall offer a new meat offering unto the Lord. ¹⁷Ye shall bring out of your habitations two wave loaves of two tenth deals: they shall be of fine flour; they shall be baken with leaven; they are the firstfruits unto the Lord. ¹⁸And ye shall offer with the bread seven lambs without blemish of the first year, and one young bullock, and two rams: they shall be for a burnt offering unto the Lord, with their meat offering, and their drink offerings, even an offering made by fire, of sweet savor unto the Lord. ¹⁹Then ye shall sacrifice one kid of the goats for a sin offering, and two lambs of the first year for a sacrifice of peace offerings. ²⁰And the priest shall wave them with the bread of the firstfruits for a wave offering before the Lord, with the two lambs: they shall be holy to the Lord for the priest. ²¹And ye shall proclaim on the selfsame day, that it may be an holy convocation unto you: ye shall do no servile work therein: it shall be a statute for ever in all your dwellings throughout your generations. (Leviticus 23:15‑21)); for the meat offering representing Christ personally - in which there was the most careful exclusion of "leaven," see Lev. 2:1-10¹And 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: ²And 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 savor unto the Lord: ³And 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. ⁴And 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. ⁵And if thy oblation be a meat offering baken in a pan, it shall be of fine flour unleavened, mingled with oil. ⁶Thou shalt part it in pieces, and pour oil thereon: it is a meat offering. ⁷And if thy oblation be a meat offering baken in the fryingpan, it shall be made of fine flour with oil. ⁸And 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. ⁹And 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 savor unto the Lord. ¹⁰And 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. (Leviticus 2:1‑10). The vital connection between the God-glorifying life and death of priceless worth, of Jesus, was carefully maintained by an abiding statute when the people were settled in the land, every burnt offering (death of Jesus), was to be accompanied with a meat offering (life of Jesus). Num. 15:8-11⁸And when thou preparest a bullock for a burnt offering, or for a sacrifice in performing a vow, or peace offerings unto the Lord: ⁹Then shall he bring with a bullock a meat offering of three tenth deals of flour mingled with half an hin of oil. ¹⁰And thou shalt bring for a drink offering half an hin of wine, for an offering made by fire, of a sweet savor unto the Lord. ¹¹Thus shall it be done for one bullock, or for one ram, or for a lamb, or a kid. (Numbers 15:8‑11).

We would again call attention to the interesting and important distinction in these offerings. The four classes of sacrifice were the burnt, meat, peace, and sin offerings, the three former specially expressive of God's delight therein, while the latter expressed His judgment upon sin.

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