Commentari biblici

Concerning free-will meat-offerings, of fine flour with oil and frankincense upon it, Leviticus 2:1; for a memorial, Leviticus 2:2. The remainder most holy, to be eaten by Aaron and his sons, Leviticus 2:3. Of baked and unleavened cakes mixed and wafers sprinkled with oil, Leviticus 2:4; or dressed in the pan, Leviticus 2:5; or in the frying-pan, Leviticus 2:7; but without leaven or honey, Leviticus 2:11. The firstlings excepted, Leviticus 2:12. Salt of the covenant to be offered, Leviticus 2:13. First-fruits, how to be offered, Leviticus 2:14-16.

A meat-offering was of two kinds; the one joined with other offerings, Numbers 15:4,7,10, which was prescribed, together with the measure or proportion of it; the other, of which this place speaks, was a distinct and separate offering, and was left to the offerer’s good will, both for the thing and for the quantity. And the matter of this offering was things without life, as meal, corn, cakes, &c. Now this sort of sacrifices were appointed,

1. Because these are things of greatest necessity and benefit to man, and therefore it is meet that God should be served with them, and owned and praised as the giver of them.

2. In condescension to the poor, that they might not want an offering for God, and to show that God would accept even the meanest services, when offered to him with a sincere mind.

3. These were necessary provisions for the feast, which was here to be represented to God, and for the use of the priests, who were to attend upon these holy ministrations.

Fine flour, searched, or sifted, and purged from all bran, it being fit that the best things should be offered to the best Being.

He shall pour oil upon it; which may note the graces of the Holy Ghost, which are compared to oil, and anointing with it, Psalm 45:7 1Jo 2:20, and which are necessary to make any offering acceptable to God. The frankincense manifestly designed Christ’s satisfaction and intercession, which is compared to a sweet odour, Ephesians 5:2, and to incense, Revelation 8:3.

Verse 1. - And when any will offer a meat offering unto the Lord. The word used in the original for "meat offering" (minchah), means, like its Greek equivalent, δῶρον, a gift made by an inferior to a superior. Thus the sacrifices of Cain and Abel were their "minchah" to God (Genesis 4:3, 4), the present sent to Esau by Jacob was his "minchah" (Genesis 32:13), and the present to Joseph was his brethren's "minchah" (Genesis 43:11). It is therefore equivalent to a gift of homage, which recognizes the superiority of him to whom it is offered, and ceremonially promises loyal obedience to him. Owing to its use in this passage, it came gradually to be confined in its signification to vegetable gifts, - unbloody sacrifices, as they are called sometimes, in contrast to animal sacrifices - while the word "corban" crone to be used in the wider acceptation which once belonged to "minchah." The conditions to be fulfilled by the Israelite who offered a meat offering were the following.

1. He must offer either

(1) uncooked flour, with oil, salt, and frankincense, or

(2) flour made into an unleavened cake (whether of the nature of biscuit or pancake), with oil, salt, and frankincense; or

(3) roasted grains, with oil, salt, and frankincense.

2. He must bring his offering to the court of the tabernacle, and give to the priests at least as much as one omer (that is, nearly a gallon), and not more than sixty-one omers. The priest receiving it from him must:

3. Take a handful of the flour, oil, and salt, or a proportionate part of the cake (each omer generally made ten cakes) in place of the flour, and burn it with all the frankincense as a memorial upon the altar of burnt offering.

4. With his brother priests he must eat the remainder within the precincts of the tabernacle. Here the essentials of the sacrifice are the presentation made by the offerer, and the burning of the memorial on the altar, followed by the consumption of the remainder by the priests. The moral lesson taught to the Israelite completed that of the burnt offering. As the burnt offering taught self-surrender, so the meat offering taught recognition of God's supremacy and submission to it, the first by the surrender of a living creature substituted for the offerer, the second by the gift of a part of the good things bestowed by God on man for the preservation of life which, being given back to God, serve as a recognition of his supremacy. Spiritually the lesson taught the Jew was that of the necessity of a loyal service to God; and mystically he may have learnt a lesson

(1) as to the force of prayer rising up to heaven as the incense which had to be offered with each form of the meat offering;

(2) as to the need of purity and incorruption, symbolized by the prohibition of leaven and honey, and the command to use salt. The supplemental character of the meat offering accounts for the order in which it here stands, not arbitrarily interposed between two animal sacrifices, but naturally following on the burnt offering, as an adjunct to it and the complement of its teaching. So close was the union between the two sacrifices, that the burnt offering was never offered without the accompaniment of the meat offering (Numbers 15:4). It has been also maintained that the meat offering, like the drink offering, was never made independently of the animal sacrifice; but this cannot be proved. On the contrary, the manner in which laws regulating it are here laid down, lead to the inference that it might be offered, when any willed it, by itself. The close connection between the sacrifice of an animal and the offering of cakes of flour, and of wine, is noticeable in heathen sacrifices likewise. The very word, immolare, translated "to sacrifice," is derived from the mola or salt-cake offered with the animal; and the other word ordinarily used in Latin for "sacrifice," that is, mactare, is derived from the victim being enriched (magis auctus) with the libation of wine. Thus we see that the offering of the fruits of the earth was regarded, elsewhere as well as in Judaea, as the natural concomitant of an animal sacrifice, and not only that, but as so essential a part of the latter as to have given a name to the whole ceremony, and not only to the whole ceremony, but to the specific act of the slaughter of the victim. The thought of the heathen in offering the fruits of the earth was probably not much different from that of the Israelites. It was his gift to the superhuman power, to which he thus acknowledged that he owed submission. We may further notice that salt was enjoined in the heathen as in the Jewish sacrifices as indispensable. Pliny says that the importance of salt is seen especially in sacrifices, none of which are completed without the salt-cake ('Hist. Nat.,' 31, 7) The now obsolete use of the word "meat" in the sense of "food," in contrast to "flesh," creates some confusion of thought. "Fruit offering" would be a better title, were it not that the signification of "fruit" is going through a similar change to that which "meat" has undergone. "Flour offering" might be used, but an alteration in the rendering is not imperative.

II.

(1) A meat offering.—Better, an oblation of a meat offering, as the same two words are rendered in Leviticus 2:4; Leviticus 2:13. The meat offerings which come next in the legal enumeration, and which occupy the whole of the present chapter, consisted of three kinds. The first is fine flour with oil and frankincense (Leviticus 2:1-3). The flour was of wheat (Exodus 29:2), and was double the value of the ordinary barley flour (2Kings 7:1; 2Kings 7:16; 2Kings 7:18), and because of its use at the sacrifices formed part of the Temple stores (1Chronicles 9:29; 1Chronicles 23:29).

Shall pour oil upon it.—Oil being to the food of the Israelites what butter is to ours, the offerer is here commanded to put some of it into this preparation in order to make it more palatable to the priests who were to eat part of it. (See Leviticus 2:3.) The frankincense was designed to counteract the offensive smell arising from the quantity of the flesh burnt there, as is evident from the following verse, where it is stated that it is wholly to be burnt.

Leviticus 2:1. When any will offer a meat-offering — The word מנחה, mincha, which we render meat-offering, signifies generally a simple oblation or gift. In this chapter and elsewhere it signifies an offering of things inanimate, in opposition to animal sacrifices, described in the former chapter. The word meat-offering (which is supposed by some to have been an ancient false print, that has run through many editions of our Bible, for meal-offering) conveys a quite different idea to the English reader. It certainly would be better rendered meal-offering, or wheat-offering. It was of two kinds: the one which, being joined with other offerings, (Numbers 15:4; Numbers 15:7; Numbers 15:10,) was particularly prescribed with the measure and proportion of it. The other, which is here spoken of, was left to the offerer’s good-will, both for the thing offered and the quantity. As to the matter of these minchas, or offerings of things inanimate, it was of such things as were of great use to the support of human life, namely, flour, bread, wine, salt, &c. Now this sort of sacrifices was appointed, 1st, Because these are things of the greatest necessity and benefit to man, and therefore it is meet that God should be served with them, and owned and praised as the giver of them. 2d, In condescension to the poor, that they might not want an offering for God, and to show that God would accept even the meanest services, when offered with a sincere mind. Some of these offerings were for the whole congregation, as the waved sheaf, (Leviticus 23:11,) and the two waved loaves, Leviticus 23:17. Some, again, were for private persons; among which were that for the poor sinner who could not afford the more expensive sacrifices, Leviticus 5:11, that, for the suspected woman, Numbers 5:15; besides the voluntary ones. He shall pour oil upon it, and put frankincense thereon — To make a sweet odour in the court of the tabernacle, which otherwise would have been very offensive, by reason of the blood that was sprinkled and the flesh that was burned there daily.

Besides, the pouring oil, and putting frankincense thereon, signified its being grateful and acceptable to God. And therefore in the offering of jealousy, when guilt was supposed, and sin brought to remembrance, no oil nor frankincense was to be put on the oblation. Now both these things were emblematical of spiritual blessings; the oil of the graces of the Holy Spirit, which are compared to oil and to anointing therewith, (Psalm 45:7; 1 John 2:20,) and are necessary to make any offering acceptable to God; and the frankincense of Christ’s atonement and intercession, compared to a sweet odour, Ephesians 5:2. And the intention of all these offerings being fully answered by the mediation of the Messiah and the blessings of his gospel, it was proper they should cease upon his death, as is thought to have been expressly foretold, Daniel 9:27.

Leviticus 2:1. A meat-offering— The words immediately following clearly shew what is meant by this offering; and, consequently, how ill it is rendered a meat-offering. מנחה Minchah signifies any offering or present made to God, as a means of appearing his wrath; and it should certainly have been rendered here, either a bread or wheat-offering: accordingly, Le Clerc renders it donarium farreum; and the French gateau.

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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:

Of fine flour. — No quantity is here prescribed, because it was a freewill offering: only it must be fine, no bran in it: to show the purity of Christ’s sacrifice, Hebrews 7:26 and of our services through him, Malachi 3:11 by means of the oil of his Spirit and incense of his intercession.

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The Law of the Meat-Offering (1490 BC)

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:
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.
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.
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.

There were some meat-offerings that were only appendices to the burnt-offerings, as that which was offered with the daily sacrifice (Ex 29:38,39) and with the peace-offerings; these had drink-offerings joined with them (see Nu 15:4,7,9,10), and in these the quantity was appointed. But the law of this chapter concerns those meat-offerings that were offered by themselves, whenever a man saw cause thus to express his devotion. The first offering we read of in scripture was of this kind (Ge 4:3): Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering.

I. This sort of offerings was appointed, 1. In condescension to the poor, and their ability, that those who themselves lived only upon bread and cakes might offer an acceptable offering to God out of that which was their own coarse and homely fare, and by making for God's altar, as the widow of Sarepta for his prophet, a little cake first, might procure such a blessing upon the handful of meal in the barrel, and the oil in the cruse, as that it should not fail. 2. As a proper acknowledgment of the mercy of God to them in their food. This was like a quitrent, by which they testified their dependence upon God, their thankfulness to him, and their expectations from him as their owner and bountiful benefactor, who giveth to all life, and breath, and food convenient. Thus must they honour the Lord with their substance, and, in token of their eating and drinking to his glory, must consecrate some of their meat and drink to his immediate service. Those that now, with a grateful charitable heart, deal out their bread to the hungry, and provide for the necessities of those that are destitute of daily food, and when they eat the fat and drink the sweet themselves send portions to those for whom nothing is prepared, offer unto God an acceptable meat-offering. The prophet laments it as one of the direful effects of famine that thereby the meat-offering and drink-offering were cut off from the house of the Lord (Joe 1:9), and reckoned it the greatest blessing of plenty that it would be the revival of them, Joe 2:14.

II. The laws of the meat-offerings were these:—1. The ingredients must always be fine flour and oil, two staple commodities of the land of Canaan, De 8:8. Oil was to them then in their food what butter is now to us. If it was undressed, the oil must be poured upon the flour (Le 2:1); if cooked, it must be mingled with the flour, Le 2:4, etc. 2. If it was flour unbaked, besides the oil it must have frankincense put upon it, which was to be burnt with it (Le 2:1,2), for the perfuming of the altar; in allusion to this, gospel ministers are said to be a sweet savour unto God, 2Co 2:15. 3. If it was prepared, this might be done in various ways; the offerer might bake it, or fry it, or mix the flour and oil upon a plate, for the doing of which conveniences were provided about the tabernacle. The law was very exact even about those offerings that were least costly, to intimate the cognizance God takes of the religious services performed with a devout mind, even by the poor of his people. 4. It was to be presented by the offerer to the priest, which is called bringing it to the Lord (Le 2:8), for the priests were God's receivers, and were ordained to offer gifts. 5. Part of it was to be burnt upon the altar, for a memorial, that is, in token of their mindfulness of God's bounty to them, in giving them all things richly to enjoy. It was an offering made by fire, Le 2:2,9. The consuming of it by fire might remind them that they deserved to have all the fruits of the earth thus burnt up, and that it was of the Lord's mercies that they were not. They might also learn that as meats are for the belly, and the belly for meats, so God shall destroy both it and them (1Co 6:13), and that man lives not by bread alone. This offering made by fire is here said to be of a sweet savour unto the Lord; and so are our spiritual offerings, which are made by the fire of holy love, particularly that of almsgiving, which is said to be an odour of a sweet smell, a sacrifice acceptable, well pleasing to God (Php 4:18), and with such sacrifices God is well pleased, Heb 13:16. 6. The remainder of the meat-offering was to be given to the priests, Le 2:3,10. It is a thing most holy, not to be eaten by the offerers, as the peace-offerings (which, though holy, were not most holy), but by the priests only, and their families. Thus God provided that those who served at the altar should live upon the altar, and live comfortably.

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 firstfruits 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.

Here, I. Leaven and honey are forbidden to be put in any of their meat-offerings: No leaven, nor any honey, in any offering made by fire, Le 2:11. 1. The leaven was forbidden in remembrance of the unleavened bread they ate when they came out of Egypt. So much despatch was required in the offerings they made that it was not convenient they should stay for the leavening of them. The New Testament comparing pride and hypocrisy to leaven because they swell like leaven, comparing also malice and wickedness to leaven because they sour like leaven, we are to understand and improve this as a caution to take heed of those sins which will certainly spoil the acceptableness of our spiritual sacrifices. Pure hands must be lifted up without wrath, and all our gospel feasts kept with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth. 2. Honey was forbidden, though Canaan flowed with it, because to eat much honey is not good (Pr 25:16,27); it turns to choler and bitterness in the stomach, though luscious to the taste. Some think the chief reason why those two things, leaven and honey, were forbidden, was because the Gentiles used them very much in their sacrifices, and God's people must not learn or use the way of the heathen, but his services must be the reverse of their idolatrous services; see De 12:30,31. Some make this application of this double prohibition: leaven signifies grief and sadness of spirit (Ps 73:21), My heart was leavened; honey signifies sensual pleasure and mirth. In our service of God both these must be avoided, and a mean observed between those extremes; for the sorrow of the world worketh death, and a love to the delights of sense is a great enemy to holy love.

II. Salt is required in all their offerings, Le 2:13. The altar was the table of the Lord; and therefore, salt being always set on our tables, God would have it always used at his. It is called the salt of the covenant, because, as men confirmed their covenants with each other by eating and drinking together, at all which collations salt was used, so God, by accepting his people's gifts and feasting them upon his sacrifices, supping with them and they with him (Re 3:20), did confirm his covenant with them. Among the ancients salt was a symbol of friendship. The salt for the sacrifice was not brought by the offerers, but was provided at the public charge, as the wood was, Ezr 7:20-22. And there was a chamber in the court of the temple called the chamber of salt, in which they laid it up. Can that which is unsavoury be eaten without salt? God would hereby intimate to them that their sacrifices in themselves were unsavoury. The saints, who are living sacrifices to God, must have salt in themselves, for every sacrifice must be salted with salt (Mk 9:49,50), and our speech must be always with grace (Col 4:6), so must all our religious performances be seasoned with that salt. Christianity is the salt of the earth.

III. Directions are given about the first-fruits. 1. The oblation of their first-fruits at harvest, of which we read, De 26:2. These were offered to the Lord, not to be burnt upon the altar, but to be given to the priests as perquisites of their office, Le 2:12. And you shall offer them (that is, leaven and honey) in the oblation of the first-fruits, though they were forbidden in other meat-offerings; for they were proper enough to be eaten by the priests, though not to be burnt upon the altar. The loaves of the first-fruits are particularly ordered to be baked with leaven, Le 23:17. And we read of the first-fruits of honey brought to the house of God, 2Ch 31:5. 2. A meat-offering of their first-fruits. The former was required by the law; this was a free-will offering, Le 2:14-16. If a man, with a thankful sense of God's goodness to him in giving him hopes of a plentiful crop, was disposed to bring an offering in kind immediately out of his field, and present it to God, owning thereby his dependence upon God and obligations to him, (1.) Let him be sure to bring the first ripe and full ears, not such as were small and half-withered. Whatever was brought for an offering to God must be the best in its kind, though it were but green ears of corn. We mock God, and deceive ourselves, if we think to put him off with a corrupt thing while we have in our flock a male, Mal 1:14. (2.) These green ears must be dried by the fire, that the corn, such as it was, might be beaten out of them. That is not expected from green ears which one may justly look for from those that have been left to grow fully ripe. If those that are young do God's work as well as they can, they shall be accepted, though they cannot do it so well as those that are aged and experienced. God makes the best of green ears of corn, and so must we. (3.) Oil and frankincense must be put upon it. Thus (as some allude to this) wisdom and humility must soften and sweeten the spirits and services of young people, and then their green ears of corn shall be acceptable. God takes a particular delight in the first ripe fruits of the Spirit and the expressions of early piety and devotion. Those that can but think and speak as children, yet, if they think and speak well, God will be well pleased with their buds and blossoms, and will never forget the kindness of their youth. (4.) It must be used as other meat-offerings, Le 2:16, compare Le 2:9. He shall offer all the frankincense; it is an offering made by fire. The fire and the frankincense seem to have had a special significancy. [1.] The fire denotes the fervency of spirit which ought to be in all our religious services. In every good thing we must be zealously affected. Holy love to God is the fire by which all our offerings must be made; else they are not of a sweet savour to God. [2.] The frankincense denotes the mediation and intercession of Christ, by which all our services are perfumed and recommended to God's gracious acceptance. Blessed be God that we have the substance of which all these observances were but shadows, the fruit that was hid under these leaves.