Leviticus 1

Today’s Passage: Leviticus 1

The LORD calls Moses from the Tent of Meeting and tells him to speak to Israel about what they may bring. A bull from the herd. A sheep or a goat from the flock. A turtledove or a young pigeon if that is what a person has. The worshiper lays a hand (סָמַךְ) sāmak, pronounced sah-MAK. Strong's H5564, to lean, lay upon, rest one's weight. To lean. To rest weight on something. The worshiper puts himself on that head, transferring his own weight there. The animal is accepted on his behalf precisely because he has leaned on it: atonement is named before the fire is even lit. on the head. The animal is slaughtered. The blood goes on the altar. Then the whole gift is arranged on the fire and rises. A pleasing aroma to the LORD. Nothing is carved off for a later meal. The whole offering goes up.

As you read, hold this: The whole offering goes up. Nothing is held back.

Leviticus 1:1–4 (BSB)

¹ Then the LORD called to Moses and spoke to him from the Tent of Meeting, saying, ² “Speak to the Israelites and tell them: When any of you brings an offering to the LORD, you may bring as your offering an animal from the herd or the flock.

³ If one’s offering is a burnt offering from the herd, he is to present an unblemished male. He must bring it to the entrance to the Tent of Meeting for its acceptance before the LORD. ⁴ He is to lay his hand on the head of the burnt offering, so it can be accepted on his behalf to make atonement for him.

The book opens with a call, not a climb. The LORD speaks from the tent. The gift is walked to the door, unblemished, and a hand rests on the head. That hand is weight, not a wave. Accepted on his behalf. Atonement for him. He is bound to what will go up.

Leviticus 1:5–9 (BSB)

⁵ And he shall slaughter the young bull before the LORD, and Aaron’s sons the priests are to present the blood and sprinkle it on all sides of the altar at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting. ⁶ Next, he is to skin the burnt offering and cut it into pieces.

⁷ The sons of Aaron the priest shall put a fire on the altar and arrange wood on the fire. ⁸ Then Aaron’s sons the priests are to arrange the pieces, including the head and the fat, atop the burning wood on the altar. ⁹ The entrails and legs must be washed with water, and the priest shall burn all of it on the altar as a burnt offering, an offering made by fire, a pleasing aroma to the LORD.

The bull is skinned and cut. The priests put fire and wood on the altar and lay the pieces on it, head and fat with the rest. Entrails and legs are washed. Then all of it burns. The man who walked that animal to the door does not take a roast home. The whole bull goes up, and the LORD calls it a pleasing aroma.

Leviticus 1:10–13 (BSB)

¹⁰ If, however, one’s offering is a burnt offering from the flock—from the sheep or goats—he is to present an unblemished male. ¹¹ He shall slaughter it on the north side of the altar before the LORD, and Aaron’s sons the priests are to sprinkle its blood against the altar on all sides. ¹² He is to cut the animal into pieces, and the priest shall arrange them, including the head and fat, atop the burning wood that is on the altar. ¹³ The entrails and legs must be washed with water, and the priest shall bring all of it and burn it on the altar; it is a burnt offering, an offering made by fire, a pleasing aroma to the LORD.

It is the same gift from a smaller animal. He slaughters it on the north side of the altar, the priests put the blood on all sides, and the pieces go on the wood after the entrails and legs are washed. All of it burns. The aroma is named the same. The flock is not a lesser welcome.

Leviticus 1:14–17 (BSB)

¹⁴ If, instead, one’s offering to the LORD is a burnt offering of birds, he is to present a turtledove or a young pigeon. ¹⁵ Then the priest shall bring it to the altar, twist off its head, and burn it on the altar; its blood should be drained out on the side of the altar. ¹⁶ And he is to remove the crop with its contents and throw it to the east side of the altar, in the place for ashes. ¹⁷ He shall tear it open by its wings, without dividing the bird completely. And the priest is to burn it on the altar atop the burning wood. It is a burnt offering, an offering made by fire, a pleasing aroma to the LORD.

A bird is still a burnt offering (עֹלָה) ʿōlāh, pronounced oh-LAH. Strong's H5930, burnt offering, that which goes up (in smoke). The word means that which goes up: the whole animal ascends in the smoke, and none of it returns to the one who brought it. Later in this wave, some offerings will leave a portion for the priest or for the worshiper himself. Not this one. The offering that goes up whole is the gift that does not come back down. . The priest works at the altar: the head goes on the fire, the blood is drained on the side, and the crop is thrown to the ash heap on the east. He tears the bird by the wings without splitting it in two, and it burns. The last line is the same line you heard over the bull — a pleasing aroma to the LORD. Herd, flock, or bird, the whole gift rises, and nothing is held back.