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Leviticus
Chapter Two
New King James Version (NKJV)
INTRODUCTION TO LEVITICUS 2
This
chapter contains the law of the meat offering, and gives an account of what it
was made of, fine flour, with oil poured, and frankincense put upon it, Leviticus 2:1 what
was done with it; part of it burnt upon the altar, and the rest was the
property of the priests, Leviticus 2:2 how
it was to be when baked in an oven, or in a pan, or fried in a frying pan, Leviticus 2:4 what
was prohibited in it, leaven and honey, Leviticus 2:11 what
was to be used in it, salt, Leviticus 2:13 and
what was to be the oblation and meat offering of the first fruits, and what to
be done with it, Leviticus 2:12.
Leviticus 2:1. ‘When
anyone offers a grain offering to the Lord, his offering shall be of
fine flour. And he shall pour oil on it, and put frankincense on it.
YLT 1`And when a person bringeth near an offering,
a present to Jehovah, of flour is his offering, and he hath poured on it oil,
and hath put on it frankincense;
And when any man will offer a meat offering unto the Lord,.... Or,
"when a soul", and which Onkelos renders "a man", so called
from his more noble part; and, as the Jews say, this word is used because the
Minchah, or meat offering here spoken of, was a freewill offering, and was
offered up with all the heart and soul; and one that offered in this manner, it
was all one as if he offered his soul to the LordF19Jarchi, Aben
Ezra, & Baal Hatturim, in loc. : there were some meat offerings which were
appointed and fixed at certain times, and were obliged to be offered, as at the
daily sacrifice, the consecration of priests, the waving of the sheaf, &c. Exodus 29:40 but
this was a freewill offering; wherefore it is said, "when any man will
offer"; the Hebrew word מנחה, "a meat
offering", may be derived from נחה, "to
bring" or "offer", and so is a name common to offerings of any
sort; or from הניח, to "recreate" and
delight, it being of a sweet savour to the Lord, as other offerings were;
others derive it from מנח, a root not in use, and in
the Chaldee language signifies a gift or present, in which sense this word is
used, Genesis 32:13.
his offering shall be of fine flour; of flour of wheat, Exodus 29:2 for, as
the Jews say, there is no fine flour but wheat, and this was for the meat
offering, 1 Chronicles 21:23
and this was to be of the finest of the wheat; for all offerings, whether
private or public, were to be of the best, and to be brought from those places
which were noted for having the best; and the best places for fine flour were
Mechmas and Mezonicha, and the next to them were Caphariim, in the valley; and
though it might be taken out of any part of the land of Israel and used, yet it
chiefly came from henceF20Misn. Menachot, c. 8. sect. 1. ; and
according to the Jewish writersF21Jarchi & Gersom in loc. ; the
least quantity of fine flour used in a meat offering was the tenth part of an
ephah, which was about three pints and a half, and a fifth part of half a pint:
Christ was prefigured by the meat offering; his sacrifice came in the room of
it, and put an end to it, Psalm 40:7 whose
flesh is meat indeed, the true meat or bread, in distinction from this typical
meat offering, John 6:55 the fine
flour denotes the choiceness, excellency, and purity of Christ; the dignity of
his person, the superiority of him to angels and men, being the chiefest, and
chosen out of ten thousand; the purity of his human nature being free from the
bran of original corruption, and the spotlessness of his sacrifice: and fine
flour of wheat being that of which bread is made, which is the principal part
of human sustenance, and what strengthens the heart of man, and nourishes him,
and is the means of maintaining and supporting life; it is a fit emblem of
Christ, the bread of life, by which the saints are supported in their spiritual
life, and strengthened to perform vital acts, and are nourished up unto
everlasting life, and who, as the meat offering, is called the bread of God, Leviticus 21:6 John 6:33.
and he shall pour oil upon it; upon all of it, as
Jarchi observes, because it was mingled with it, and it was the best oil that
was used; and though it might be brought from any part of the land of Israel,
which was a land of oil olive, yet the chief place for oil was Tekoah, and the
next to it was Ragab beyond Jordan, and from hence it was usually broughtF23Misn.
Menachot, c. 8. sect. 3. ; and the common quantity was a log, or half a pint,
to a tenth deal of fine flour, as Gersom asserts from the wise men, and to
which MaimonidesF24Hilchot Maaseh, Hakorbanot, c. 13. sect 5.
agrees; and Gersom on the place observes, that it is proper that some of the
oil should be put in the lower part of the vessel, and after that the fine
flour should put in it, and then he should pour some of it upon it and mix it:
the oil denotes the grace of the Spirit poured out upon Christ without measure,
the oil of gladness, with which he was anointed above his fellows, and from
whence he has the name of Messiah or Christ, or Anointed; and with which he was
anointed to be prophet, priest, and King, and which renders him very desirable
and delightful to his people, his name being as ointment poured forth, Psalm 45:7.
and put frankincense thereon; on a part of it, as
Jarchi's note is; and according to him, the man that brought the meat offering
left an handful of frankincense upon it on one side; and the reason of this
was, because it was not to be mixed with it as the oil was, and it was not to
be taken in the handful with itF26Vid T. Bab. Sotah, fol. 14. 2. ;
and the quantity of the frankincense, as Gersom says, was one handful: this
denoted the sweet odour and acceptableness of Christ, the meat offering, both
to God and to his people: it is an observation of the Jewish writers, that the
pouring out of the oil on the fine flour, and mixing it with it, and putting on
the frankincense, might be done by a stranger, by any man, by the man that brought
the meat offering, but what follows after the bringing of it to the priest were
done by himF1T. Bab. Menachot, fol. 9. 1. & 18. 2. &
Pesachim, fol. 36. 1. & Jarchi in loc. .
Leviticus 2:2.
2 He shall bring it to
Aaron’s sons, the priests, one of whom shall take from it his handful of fine
flour and oil with all the frankincense. And the priest shall burn it as
a memorial on the altar, an offering made by fire, a sweet aroma to the Lord.
YLT 2and he hath brought it in unto the sons of
Aaron, the priests, and he hath taken from thence the fulness of his hand of
its flour and of its oil, besides all its frankincense, and the priest hath
made perfume with its memorial on the altar, a fire-offering of sweet fragrance
to Jehovah;
And he shall bring it to Aaron's sons, the priests,.... And this
is all that he did with it; he left it with the priest, who carried it to the
altar, to the southwest horn of itF2T. Bab. Sotah, ib. &
Meaachot, fol. 8. 2. : the order of bringing it, according to MaimonidesF3Hilchot
Maaseh Hakorbanot, c. 13. sect. 12. , was this,"a man brings fine flour
from his house in baskets of silver or of gold or of other kind of metals, in a
vessel fit to be a ministering vessel; and if it is a meat offering of fine
flour, he puts it into a ministering vessel, and sanctifies it in a ministering
vessel;'then did what follows:
and he shall take thereout his handful of the flour thereof, and
of the oil thereof; as mixed together: the Jews sayF4Misn. Menachot, c.
1. sect. 2. , this was done with the right hand, which is very likely, that
being generally used in this way: the Talmudists thus describe the manner in
which the handful was taken; the priest stretched out his three fingers over
the palm of his hand, and gathered the handful in the plate or pan, and parted
it off with his thumb above, and with his little finger below; and this was the
most difficult piece of service in the sanctuaryF5T. Bab. Menachot,
fol. 11. 1. : though MaimonidesF6In Misn. Menachot, ib. rejects this
notion of difficulty, and says it was done in the common way, in which men take
up a handful of anything: but Bartenora saysF7In ib. , it was not in
the usual way, but much as before described: the priest put the sides of his
fingers into the flour, and gathered the flour with the sides of his fingers
within his hand, and took of the flour only three fingers' full, upon the palm
of his hand, and no more; and that it might not be heaped or go out, he pared
it off, above with his thumb, and below with his little finger; and this he
affirms, according to the Gemara, and what his masters had taught him, was one
of the hardest pieces of service in the sanctuary:
with all the frankincense thereof; this was not taken along
with the handful of flour and oil; for if there was ever so small a quantity of
frankincense in the handful it was not rightF8Misn. ib. & Jarchi
in loc. ; for the frankincense, when brought, was put on one side of the fine
flour, and when the handful was taken, then that was taken altogether, and put
upon it:
and the priest shall burn the memorial of it upon the altar: that is, he
was to burn the handful of fine flour and oil with the frankincense, as a
"memorial"; either to put the Lord in mind of his lovingkindness to
his people, and of his covenant with them, and promises unto them, to which the
allusion is, Psalm 20:3 or to put
the offerer in mind of the great sacrifice of Christ, who was to be offered for
his sins, and to be a meat offering to him: this was the part the Lord had in
this offering, and which related to his worship, as the word used sometimes
signifies, as De Dieu has observed:
to be an offering
made by fire, of a sweet savour unto the Lord; See Gill on Leviticus 1:9.
Leviticus 2:3.
3 The rest of the grain
offering shall be Aaron’s and his sons’. It is most holy of the
offerings to the Lord
made by fire.
YLT 3and the remnant of the present [is] for Aaron
and for his sons, most holy, of the fire-offerings of Jehovah.
And the remnant of the meat offering shall be Aaron's and his
sons',.... Which not only shows the care taken by the Lord for the
maintenance of the priests, from whence the apostle argues for the support of ministers
of the Gospel, 1 Corinthians 9:13
but denotes that such who are made priests unto God by Christ, have a right to
feed upon Christ the meat offering by faith; who is that altar and meat
offering, which none but such have a right to eat of:
it is a thing most holy of the offerings of the Lord made by fire; some
offerings with the Jews were only holy things, or, as they call them,
"light" holy things, comparatively speaking; others were heavy holy
things, or most holy; or, as it is in the original, "holiness of
holiness", the most holy of all.
Leviticus 2:4. 4 ‘And
if you bring as an offering a grain offering baked in the oven, it shall be
unleavened cakes of fine flour mixed with oil, or unleavened wafers anointed
with oil.
YLT 4`And when thou bringest near an offering, a
present baked in an oven, [it is of] unleavened cakes of flour mixed with oil,
or thin unleavened cakes anointed with oil.
And if thou bring an oblation of a meat offering baken in an oven,.... This is
another kind of meat offering, or in another form; the former was only fine
flour and oil mixed together, and frankincense put on it, but this was made up
into cakes, and baked in an oven, and not in anything else, according to the
Jewish traditionF9Misn. Menachot, c. 5. sect. 9. Maimon. &
Bartenora in. ib. ; he that says, lo, upon me be a meat offering baked in an
oven, he may not bring that baked otherwise; and this meat offering was made
into cakes and wafers, and then baked, as follows: and
it shall be unleavened
cakes of fine flour mingled with oil, or unleavened wafers anointed with oil; which
according to the Jews were made after this mannerF11T. Bab.
Menachot, fol. 75. 1. ; the priest put the oil into a vessel before the making
of it, then put the fine flour to it, and put oil upon it, and mixed it, and
kneaded it, and baked it, and cut it in pieces, and put oil upon it, and mixed
it, and again put oil upon it, and took the handful, and it was the fourth part
of an hin of oil that was divided into the several cakes; the cakes, they say,
were obliged to be mixed, and the wafers to be anointed; the cakes were mixed,
but not the wafers the wafers were anointed, and not the cakes. The oil denoted
the grace of the Spirit of God in Christ, and in his people; and being
unleavened, the sincerity and truth with which the meat offering, Christ, is to
be upon.
Leviticus 2:5. 5 But
if your offering is a grain offering baked in a pan, it shall
be of fine flour, unleavened, mixed with oil.
YLT 5`And if thine offering [is] a present [made]
on the girdel, it is of flour, mixed with oil, unleavened;
And if thy meat offering be an oblation baken on a pan,.... Which had
no edge or covering, and the paste on it hard, that it might not run out:
it shall be of fine flour unleavened, mingled with oil; signifying
the same as before.
Leviticus 2:6. 6 You
shall break it in pieces and pour oil on it; it is a grain offering.
YLT 6divide thou it into parts, and thou hast
poured on it oil; it [is] a present.
Thou shalt part it in pieces,.... This answered to the
dividing of the pieces of the burnt offering, Leviticus 1:6 and
signified the same thing; See Gill on Leviticus 1:6, Leviticus 1:12 All
meat offerings, it is saidF12Misn. Menachot, c. 6. sect. 4. Maimon.
Maaseh Hakorbanot, c. 13. sect. 10. , that were prepared in a vessel, were
obliged to be cut to pieces; the meat offering of an Israelite, one (cake) was
doubled into two, and two into four, and then divided, each piece was about the
quantity of an olive:
and pour oil thereon; after parted into
pieces; see Gill on Leviticus 2:4.
it is a meat
offering; as well as that of fine flour, or that which was baked in an
oven.
Leviticus 2:7. 7 ‘If
your offering is a grain offering baked in a covered pan, it
shall be made of fine flour with oil.
YLT 7`And if thine offering [is] a present [made]
on the frying-pan, of flour with oil it is made,
And if thy oblation be a meat offering baken in the
fryingpan,.... It is askedF13Misn. Menachot. c. 5. sect. 8. ,
what difference there is between the pan, and the fryingpan? the fryingpan has
a cover, but the pan has no cover; the fryingpan is deep, and its works (or
paste) flow, or are thin, but the pan is extended, and its works (or paste) are
hard or stiff; which MaimonidesF14Misn. ib. & Maaseh Hakorbanot,
c. 5. sect. 7. Vid. Jarchi & Gersom & Ben Melech in loc. explains thus,
the fryingpan is a deep vessel, which has a lip or edge round about it, and the
paste which is baked in it is thin and flows; the pan is a vessel which has no
lip or edge, and therefore its paste is hard or stiff, that it flow not: now
all these acts of mixing the flour, and kneading, and baking, and frying, and
cutting in pieces, as well as burning part on the altar, signify the dolorous
sufferings of Christ when he was sacrificed for us, to be both an atonement for
our sins, and food for our faith:
it shall be made of fine flour with oil: as the other
sort of meat offerings before mentioned.
Leviticus 2:8. 8 You
shall bring the grain offering that is made of these things to the Lord. And when it
is presented to the priest, he shall bring it to the altar.
YLT 8and thou hast brought in the present which is
made of these to Jehovah, and [one] hath brought it near unto the priest, and
he hath brought it nigh unto the altar,
And thou shalt bring the meat offering, that is made of these
things, unto the Lord,.... Either to the tabernacle, the house of the Lord, or to the
Lord's priest, as it follows:
and when it is presented to the priest; by the owner
of it:
he shall bring it unto the altar; to the south west horn
of the altarF15Jarchi & Gersom in loc. T. Bab. Sotah, fol. 14.
2. Menachot, fol. 8. 2. Zebachim, fol. 63. 1. .
Leviticus 2:9. 9 Then
the priest shall take from the grain offering a memorial portion, and burn it
on the altar. It is an offering made by fire, a sweet aroma to the Lord.
YLT 9and the priest hath lifted up from the
present its memorial, and hath made perfume on the altar, a fire-offering of
sweet fragrance to Jehovah;
And the priest shall take from the meat offering a memorial
thereof,.... That is, an handful of it; as of the fine flour, Leviticus 2:2 so of
the pieces of that which was baked, whether in the oven, or pan, or fryingpan:
and shall burn it upon the altar; the memorial or handful:
it is an offering
made by fire, of a sweet savour unto the Lord; See Gill on Leviticus 1:9.
Leviticus 2:10. 10 And
what is left of the grain offering shall be Aaron’s and his sons’. It
is most holy of the offerings to the Lord made by fire.
YLT 10and the remnant of the present [is] for Aaron
and for his sons, most holy, of the fire-offerings of Jehovah.
And that which is left of the meat offering,.... Not burnt
with fire:
shall be Aaron's and
his sons'; the high priest took his part first, and then the common
priests:
it is a thing most
holy of the offerings of the Lord made by fire; See Gill on Leviticus 2:3.
Leviticus 2:11. 11 ‘No grain offering which
you bring to the Lord
shall be made with leaven, for you shall burn no leaven nor any honey in any offering
to the Lord
made by fire.
YLT 11No present which ye bring near to Jehovah is
made fermented, for with any leaven or any honey ye perfume no fire-offering to
Jehovah.
No meat offering which ye shall bring unto the Lord shall be made
with leaven,.... It might be used in peace offerings, and in the wave loaves,
Leviticus 7:13 but
not in meat offerings; not only in the handful that was burnt, but in the rest
that was eaten by Aaron and his sons; for so is the ruleF16Misn.
Menachot, c. 5. sect. 2. ,"all meat offerings are kneaded in hot water,
and are kept that they might not be leavened; and if what is left of them be
leavened, a negative precept is transgressed, Leviticus 2:11.'It
denoted in Christ, the antitype of the meat offering, freedom from hypocrisy
and all false doctrines, which were the leaven of the Scribes and Pharisees, Luke 12:1 and in
his people that feed upon him by faith, that they should be clear of malice and
wickedness, and of communion with profane and scandalous persons, 1 Corinthians 5:6
so the JewsF17Baal Hatturim in loc. say, the corruption of nature is
like to leaven, and therefore forbid:
for ye shall burn no leaven, nor any honey, in any offering of the
Lord made by fire; as leaven was used in some offerings, so honey was brought with
the first fruits, 2 Chronicles 31:5
but neither of them might be used in offerings made by fire; they are forbidden
to be burnt: the reason why they were forbidden, some think is, because they
were used by the Heathens in their sacrifices, so MaimonidesF18Moreh
Nevochim, par. 3. c. 46, p. 481. , whose customs were not to be followed; and
certain it is that honey was used in Heathen sacrifices: Homer speaks of honey
as the sweet food of the godsF19----- μελι
χλωρον, &c. Hymn. in Mercur. prope finem. χρηστον
μελιτωμα, &c. Batrachomyo. , and what they desire; and so
PausaniasF20Eliac. 1. sive l. 5. p. 316. relates of the Eleans,
that, according to an ancient custom, they used to offer on the altar
frankincense, and wheat mixed with honey: PorphyryF21De Abstinentia,
l. 2. c. 20, 21. observes, that the ancient sacrifices with most were sober,
the libations of water; after these, libations of honey, ready prepared by the
bees, the first of moist fruits, next libations of oil, and, last of all,
libations of wine; the Egyptians used honey in their sacrificesF23Herodot.
Euterpe, sive l. 2. c. 40. ; or the reason is, because it was much of the same
fermenting nature with leaven, as Aben Ezra, and when burnt gave an ill smell,
which was not proper in offerings made by tire, of a sweet savour to the Lord;
or rather because a symbol of sin and sinful pleasures. Baal Hatturim on the
place says, the corruption of nature is sweet to a man as honey, and intimates
that that is the reason of its prohibition: it denotes unto us that such as
would feed by faith on Christ ought to relinquish sinful lusts and pleasures;
and that those that will live godly in Christ Jesus must not expect their
sweets, but bitters, even afflictions, reproaches, and persecutions, for
Christ's sake, in this life.
Leviticus 2:12. 12 As for the offering of the
firstfruits, you shall offer them to the Lord, but they shall not be
burned on the altar for a sweet aroma.
YLT 12`An offering of first-[fruits] -- ye bring
them near to Jehovah, but on the altar they go not up, for sweet fragrance.
As for the oblation of the firstfruits, ye shall offer them unto
the Lord,.... Or "in" or "with the oblation", as some
render it; that is, along with the oblation of the firstfruits leaven and honey
might be offered: the Arabic version is very express, "but for a sacrifice
of firstfruits ye" shall offer both to God; as they might be, as before
observed; so the Targum of Jonathan,"for the leavened bread of the firstfruits
shall be offered, and dates in the time of the firstfruits; the fruits with
their honey shall be offered, and the priest shall eat them:"
but they shall not be burnt on the altar for a sweet savour; which they
could not make, and besides were to be the portion of the priests.
Leviticus 2:13. 13 And
every offering of your grain offering you shall season with salt; you shall not
allow the salt of the covenant of your God to be lacking from your grain
offering. With all your offerings you shall offer salt.
YLT 13And every offering -- thy present -- with
salt thou dost season, and thou dost not let the salt of the covenant of thy
God cease from thy present; with all thine offerings thou dost bring near salt.
And every oblation of thy meat offering shalt thou season with
salt,.... Which makes food savoury, and preserves from putrefaction;
denoting the savouriness and acceptableness of Christ as a meat offering to his
people, he being savoury food, such as their souls love, as well as to God the
Father, who is well pleased with his sacrifice; and also the perpetuity of his
sacrifice, which always has the same virtue in it, and of him as a meat
offering, who is that meat which endures to everlasting life, John 6:27 and also
the grave and gracious conversation of those that by faith feed upon him, Mark 9:50.
neither shall thou suffer the salt of the covenant of thy God to
be lacking from thy meat offering; this seems to suggest
the reason why salt was used in meat offerings, and in all others, because it
was a symbol of the perpetuity of the covenant, which from thence is called a
covenant of salt, Numbers 18:19
namely, the covenant of the priesthood, to which these sacrifices belonged, Numbers 25:13 hence
the Targum of Jonathan,"because the twenty four gifts of the priests are
decreed by the covenant of salt, therefore upon all thine offerings thou shalt
offer salt:"
with all thine offerings thou shall offer salt, even those
that were not to be eaten, as well as those that were; as the burnt offering of
the herd, of the flock, and of fowls, and their several parts; all were obliged
to be salted that were offered, excepting wine, blood, wood, and incenseF24Maimon.
Issure Mizbeach, c. 5. sect. 11. ; hence there was a room in the temple where
salt was laid up for this purpose, called לשכת מלח, "the salt room"F25Misn. Middot,
c. 5. sect. 2. ; and which was provided by the congregation, and not by a
private personF26Maimon. Issure Mizbeach, c. 5. sect. 13. ; our Lord
has reference to this law in Mark 9:49 the
Heathens always made use of salt in their sacrificesF1Ante Deos
Homini, &c. Ovid. Fastor. l. 1. Vid. Horat. Carmin. l. 3. Ode 23. .
Leviticus 2:14. 14 ‘If
you offer a grain offering of your firstfruits to the Lord, you shall
offer for the grain offering of your firstfruits green heads of grain roasted
on the fire, grain beaten from full heads.
YLT 14`And if thou bring near a present of
first-ripe [fruits] to Jehovah, -- of green ears, roasted with fire, beaten out
[corn] of a fruitful field thou dost bring near the present of thy first-ripe
[fruits],
And if thou offer a meat offering of thy firstfruits unto the Lord,.... This,
according to Aben Ezra, was not any of the offerings of the firstfruits, which
they were obliged to, as at the passover or pentecost, or feast of tabernacles,
but a free will offering; but Jarchi thinks it is to be understood of the meat
offering of the Omer, Leviticus 23:13 and
so Gersom, which was offered up on the sixteenth of Nisan; and this is the
general sense of the Jewish writersF2Maimon. & Bartenora in
Misn. Menachot, c. 10. sect. 4. :
thou shalt bring for the meat offering of thy firstfruits green
ears of corn dried by the fire; these were ears of barley, which began to
be ripe in the month Abib, which month had its name from hence, and is the word
here used; these were dried by the fire, being green and moist, or otherwise
they could not have been ground; for, according to Gersom, these were
afterwards ground into fine flour:
even corn beaten
out of full ears; and so made the finest flour: the firstfruits were a type of
Christ, who is so called, 1 Corinthians 15:23
the beating of the ears of corn, and drying of them by the fire, and the
grinding of them, denoted the sufferings of Christ.
Leviticus 2:15. 15 And
you shall put oil on it, and lay frankincense on it. It is a grain
offering.
YLT 15and thou hast put on it oil, and laid on it
frankincense, it [is] a present;
And thou shalt put oil upon it, and lay frankincense thereon,.... Either on
the ears of corn dried, or on the fine flour of them when ground; in like manner
as the oil and frankincense were put upon the fine flour of wheat, and upon the
cakes and wafers baked, Leviticus 2:1.
it is a meat offering; one sort of it, and like
the rest.
Leviticus 2:16. 16 Then
the priest shall burn the memorial portion: part of its beaten grain and
part of its oil, with all the frankincense, as an offering made by fire
to the Lord.
YLT 16and the priest hath made perfume with its
memorial from its beaten out [corn], and from its oil, besides all its
frankincense -- a fire-offering to Jehovah.
The priest shall burn the memorial of it,.... That
which is taken out of it for a memorial, the same with the handful of fine
flour and cakes of the meat offering:
part of the beaten corn thereof; or that which was ground
in a mill:
and part of the oil thereof, with all the frankincense thereof; as was done
in the other meat offerings:
it is an offering made by fire unto the Lord, see Leviticus 2:2.
──《John Gill’s Exposition
of the Bible》