Today’s Passage: Leviticus 2
The last chapter, the whole animal went up. Here the gift can be a bowl of fine flour with oil and frankincense. A handful burns on the altar as a memorial portion, and the rest belongs to Aaron and his sons. Oven, griddle, or pan — still unleavened, still oil, still a pleasing aroma. No leaven and no honey on that fire. Salt on every gift, the salt of the covenant. Even crushed new grain, roasted and oiled, is received. The LORD is pleased with flour.
As you read, hold this: Even flour and oil can be a pleasing aroma.
Context The world of Leviticus 2
You are still at the same altar, at the door of the same tent. The herd and the flock have already been named. Now the camp kitchen is invited: fine flour, olive oil, frankincense, cakes from an oven, bread from a griddle, a pan, and firstfruits of new grain crushed and roasted.
No animal dies in this chapter. The memorial handful still goes up as an offering made by fire, and the sentence you heard over the bull comes back over the flour: a pleasing aroma to the LORD. The priests eat what remains. It is called most holy.
Leviticus 2:1–3 (BSB)
¹ “When anyone brings a grain offering to the LORD, his offering must consist of fine flour. He is to pour olive oil on it, put frankincense on it, ² and bring it to Aaron’s sons the priests. The priest shall take a handful of the flour and oil, together with all the frankincense, and burn this as a memorial portion on the altar, an offering made by fire, a pleasing aroma to the LORD. ³ The remainder of the grain offering shall belong to Aaron and his sons; it is a most holy part of the offerings made by fire to the LORD.
No animal this time. Fine flour, oil, frankincense. A handful goes on the fire with all the frankincense. That handful is the memorial portion, and it is a pleasing aroma. What is left belongs to Aaron and his sons. The LORD is pleased with flour, and the priests live from what He has received.
Leviticus 2:4–10 (BSB)
⁴ Now if you bring an offering of grain baked in an oven, it must consist of fine flour, either unleavened cakes mixed with oil or unleavened wafers coated with oil. ⁵ If your offering is a grain offering prepared on a griddle, it must be unleavened bread made of fine flour mixed with oil. ⁶ Crumble it and pour oil on it; it is a grain offering. ⁷ If your offering is a grain offering cooked in a pan, it must consist of fine flour with oil.
⁸ When you bring to the LORD the grain offering made in any of these ways, it is to be presented to the priest, and he shall take it to the altar. ⁹ The priest is to remove the memorial portion from the grain offering and burn it on the altar as an offering made by fire, a pleasing aroma to the LORD. ¹⁰ But the remainder of the grain offering shall belong to Aaron and his sons; it is a most holy part of the offerings made by fire to the LORD.
Whether it comes from an oven, a griddle, or a pan, it is still unleavened, still mixed with oil, still a memorial portion on the fire, and still a remainder for the priests. The kitchen in the camp can send up the same aroma the herd sent up in the last chapter.
Leviticus 2:11–13 (BSB)
¹¹ No grain offering that you present to the LORD may be made with leaven, for you are not to burn any leaven or honey as an offering made by fire to the LORD. ¹² You may bring them to the LORD as an offering of firstfruits, but they are not to be offered on the altar as a pleasing aroma. ¹³ And you shall season each of your grain offerings with salt. You must not leave the salt of the covenant of your God out of your grain offering; you are to add salt to each of your offerings.
Leaven and honey stay off that fire. You may bring them as firstfruits, but they do not go on the altar as a pleasing aroma. Salt does. Every minḥāh, pronounced min-KHAH. Strong's H4503, grain offering, gift, tribute. A gift set down before someone greater: tribute in a bowl. Here it is flour, not an animal. The poor man’s handful still reaches the altar. The aroma is not reserved for the one who can walk a bull to the door. gets melaḥ, pronounced MEH-lakh. Strong's H4417, salt. Beside it in the Hebrew text stands the word for covenant, bĕrît. You must not leave the salt of the covenant of your God out. Salt stays. The handful on the altar is bound to a promise that does not spoil. , the salt of the covenant of your God, and the gift is seasoned with a promise that keeps.
Leviticus 2:14–16 (BSB)
¹⁴ If you bring a grain offering of firstfruits to the LORD, you shall offer crushed heads of new grain roasted on the fire. ¹⁵ And you are to put oil and frankincense on it; it is a grain offering. ¹⁶ The priest shall then burn the memorial portion of the crushed grain and the oil, together with all its frankincense, as an offering made by fire to the LORD.
New grain, crushed and roasted, oil and frankincense again. The priest burns the memorial portion. The small bowl is not turned away. Even flour and oil can be a pleasing aroma.
Study notes Going deeper
Flour rose as a pleasing aroma. The lips can do that now, through the One who is the better offering.
"Through Jesus, therefore, let us continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise, the fruit of lips that confess His name." Hebrews 13:15 (BSB)
The small gift is still received. Praise Him for that.