Leviticus 2:1-16 NKJV
1 Now the Lord called to Moses, and spoke to him from the tabernacle of meeting, saying, 2 “Speak to the children of Israel, and say to them: ‘When any one of you brings an offering to the Lord, you shall bring your offering of the livestock—of the herd and of the flock.
3 ‘If his offering is a burnt sacrifice of the herd, let him offer a male without blemish; he shall offer it of his own free will at the door of the tabernacle of meeting before the Lord. 4 Then he shall put his hand on the head of the burnt offering, and it will be accepted on his behalf to make atonement for him. 5 He shall kill the bull before the Lord; and the priests, Aaron’s sons, shall bring the blood and sprinkle the blood all around on the altar that is by the door of the tabernacle of meeting. 6 And he shall skin the burnt offering and cut it into its pieces. 7 The sons of Aaron the priest shall put fire on the altar, and lay the wood in order on the fire. 8 Then the priests, Aaron’s sons, shall lay the parts, the head, and the fat in order on the wood that is on the fire upon the altar; 9 but he shall wash its entrails and its legs with water. And the priest shall burn all on the altar as a burnt sacrifice, an offering made by fire, a sweet aroma to the Lord.
10 ‘If his offering is of the flocks—of the sheep or of the goats—as a burnt sacrifice, he shall bring a male without blemish. 11 He shall kill it on the north side of the altar before the Lord; and the priests, Aaron’s sons, shall sprinkle its blood all around on the altar. 12 And he shall cut it into its pieces, with its head and its fat; and the priest shall lay them in order on the wood that is on the fire upon the altar; 13 but he shall wash the entrails and the legs with water. Then the priest shall bring it all and burn it on the altar; it is a burnt sacrifice, an offering made by fire, a sweet aroma to the Lord.
14 ‘And if the burnt sacrifice of his offering to the Lord is of birds, then he shall bring his offering of turtledoves or young pigeons. 15 The priest shall bring it to the altar, wring off its head, and burn it on the altar; its blood shall be drained out at the side of the altar. 16 And he shall remove its crop with its feathers and cast it beside the altar on the east side, into the place for ashes. 17 Then he shall split it at its wings, but shall not divide it completely; and the priest shall burn it on the altar, on the wood that is on the fire. It is a burnt sacrifice, an offering made by fire, a sweet aroma to the Lord.
The second voluntary offering Israel could bring was grain offerings. The grain offering could consist of fine flour mixed with oil and incense. It could be mixed with oil, baked, then anointed with oil. It could not contain leaven or honey. Both ingredients would make the bread go bad sooner. Every offering was to be seasoned with salt as a preservative. In each type of grain offering, the priest put a portion of it on the altar which made a sweet aroma to the LORD. The rest belonged to the High Priest and his sons for their sustenance.
As the burnt offerings signified Christ, so do the grain offerings. As fine flour is pure, so Christ was innocent of all sin. As the offering could be baked into bread, so Christ is the Bread of Life (Jn 6:35). Christ was anointed, not with oil, but the Holy Spirit (Psalm 45:7; Jn 3:34). He was without the leaven of sin and falsehood. His teaching was sweet like honey, but without the harmful sweetness of insincerity. His teaching was a salt, savory to the soul and able to preserve men into eternity. His offering on the altar of the cross a sweet-smelling aroma to God the Father, and His priests—all believers (1 Peter 2:9)—partake in His sacrifice by faith, for faith is how people feast on Christ and live forever.
The grain offerings are also a picture of the new life which the Holy Spirit begins in believers. All who feast on Christ by faith receive the forgiveness of sins, so that in God’s sight they are pure and innocent of all sin. Whoever feasts on Christ by believing in Him receives the anointing of the Holy Spirit so that by the Spirit’s power they daily get rid of the leaven of sin from their hearts. They deny themselves the harmful sweetness of sinful pleasures, choosing instead the true sweetness of living according to God’s word. The one who feasts on Christ by faith is salted so that he does not rot but perseveres in faith despite adversity and trials for Christ’s sake. By feasting on the Bread of Life each day, the believer’s life is a sweet-smelling aroma to the Lord.
Let us pray: Grant, O Lord, that we partake of You each day by faith, so that we may enjoy the forgiveness of our sins, live Christians lives, and persevere unto the end and be saved. Amen.