Principle
Under the Law of Moses, GOD gave specific instructions regarding grain offerings.
Explanation
Here are the instructions GOD gave to Israel through Moses in the Law about grain offerings.
Grain Offering Preparations
- Fine flour
- Pour oil on it
- Pour frankincense on it
- Take it to the priest
- Priest to put a handful of the flour upon the altar
- Remainder of the grain offering given to the priests to be eaten
- Declared the most holy of sacrifices
- Alternatively, the grain offering could be baked, fried, or from a grate/griddle
- Fine flour
- Unleavened cakes or wafers mixed with oil
- No leaven in any grain offering
- Salt to be included in every grain offering
1 ‘Now if a soul should offer a gift for a grain offering to the Lord, his gift shall be of fine flour; and he shall pour oil on it, and put frankincense on it. 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. Then the priest shall put it on the altar as a memorial, a sacrifice for a sweet aroma to the Lord. 3 The rest of the grain offering shall be Aaron’s and his sons. It is the most holy of the Lord’s sacrifices.
4 But if you should offer a gift as a grain offering baked in the oven, a gift of fine flour to the Lord, it shall be unleavened cakes of fine flour mixed with oil, or unleavened wafers anointed with oil. 5 But if your gift should be a grain offering fried in a pan, it shall be of fine flour, unleavened, and mixed with oil. 6 You shall break it in pieces and pour oil on it; it is a grain offering to the Lord. 7 If your gift should be a grain offering from the grate, it shall be made of fine flour with oil. 8 You shall offer the grain offering made of these things to the Lord; and when it is presented to the priest, he shall bring it to the altar. 9 Then the priest shall take from the grain offering its memorial portion, and put it on the altar as a burnt offering, for a sweet aroma to the Lord. 10 But what is left of the grain offering shall be Aaron’s and his sons. It is the most holy of the Lord’s burnt offerings.
11 ‘No grain offering you offer to the Lord shall be made with leaven, for you shall burn no leaven or honey in any burnt offering to the Lord. 12 As for a gift of firstfruits, you shall offer them to the Lord, but they shall not be offered on the altar for a sweet aroma. 13 Now every gift of your grain offering you shall season with salt; you shall not allow the salt of the Lord’s covenant to be lacking from your grain offerings. With every gift you shall offer salt to the Lord your God. 14 If you should 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 for the Lord. Thus you shall offer your grain offering of firstfruits. 15 Then you shall put oil on it, and put frankincense on it. It is a grain offering. 16 The priest shall then offer its memorial portion: its beaten grain and oil, with all the frankincense. It is a burnt offering to the Lord.
Leviticus 2:1-16 OSB
Instructions to Priests
The priests had specific instructions on the receiving and processing end of the sacrifices as GOD’s intermediaries with Israel. And a priest who was anointed would offer a grain offering that would be entirely consumed, rather than partially consumed and the rest eaten.
7 ‘Now this is the law of the grain offering: The sons of Aaron shall offer it in front of the altar before the Lord. 8 He shall take from it his handful of the fine flour of the grain offering, with its oil and frankincense which is on the grain offering, and offer it on the altar of burnt offering for a sweet aroma, a memorial to the Lord. 9 Then Aaron and his sons shall eat what is left. It shall be eaten in a holy place, in the court of the tabernacle of testimony. 10 It shall not be baked with leaven. I gave it to them as their portion of the Lord’s burnt offerings; it is most holy, like the sin offering and the trespass offering. 11 All the males of the priests shall eat it. It shall be an ordinance forever in your generations concerning the Lord’s burnt offerings. Everyone who touches them shall be sanctified.’”
12 Again the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 13 “This is the gift of Aaron and his sons, which they shall offer to the Lord on the day you anoint him: one-tenth of an ephah of fine flour as a daily grain offering, half of it in the morning and half in the evening. 14 It shall be made in a frying pan with oil. When it is mixed, you shall bring it in. The baked pieces of the grain offering you shall offer for a sweet aroma to the Lord. 15 The anointed priest who takes his place from among his sons shall make it. It is an ordinance forever. It shall be wholly consumed. 16 For every grain offering of a priest shall be wholly burned. It shall not be eaten.”
Leviticus 6:7-16 OSB
Grain Offerings for Animal Sacrifices
Certain grain offerings accompanied animal offerings.
1 Now the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 2 “Speak to the children of Israel and say to them, ‘When you come into the land you are to inhabit, which I am giving to you, 3 and you make a whole burnt offering to the Lord, a whole burnt offering or a sacrifice, to make a great vow or a freewill offering, or in your feasts, to make a sweet aroma to the Lord, from the oxen or the sheep, 4 then he who brings his gifts to the Lord shall bring a grain offering of one-tenth of an ephah of fine flour prepared with one-fourth of a hin of oil; 5 and one-fourth of a hin of wine as a drink offering you shall offer with the whole burnt offering or the sacrifice, and for each male lamb you shall offer the same amounts, a burnt offering as a sweet aroma to the Lord. 6 Or for a ram, when you offer it either as a whole burnt offering or a sacrifice, you shall offer with it a grain offering of two-tenths of an ephah of fine flour prepared with one-third of a hin of oil; 7 and as a drink offering you shall offer one-third of a hin of wine as a sweet aroma to the Lord. 8 Now if from the oxen you offer a whole burnt offering or a sacrifice, to make a great vow or a peace offering to the Lord, 9 then one shall offer with the young bull a grain offering of three-tenths of an ephah of fine flour, prepared with half a hin of oil; 10 and you shall bring as the drink offering half a hin of wine as a burnt offering, a sweet aroma to the Lord.
11 ‘Thus you shall do for each young bull, for each ram, or for each male lamb from the sheep or the goats. 12 According to the number you offer, so you shall do with each one according to their number.
Numbers 15:1-12 OSB
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