The Grain Offerings: Dedicated to God
2: 1-16
The grain offerings DIG: What was significant about the grain offering? How was it like and unlike the burnt offering? As a bloodless offering, was it ever sufficient in itself (Numbers 6:14-13)? Why do you think these regulations were mandatory? What did they imply? Why without leaven or honey? Why the specific amounts? Why so fine? How are these laws part of the reconciliation between God and His people?
REFLECT: How would you describe your minhah to God? Is it systematic and regular? How is it like or unlike the grain offering described here? How does your offering help reconciliation? How do you feel about the offering plate at your place of worship? About the sermons on stewardship? In what ways are they related to the grain offering? What can you do to ensure a proper attitude toward giving where you worship?
The grain offerings were made of bread; in the same way that Yeshua is the bread of life, and was born in Bethlehem (Hebrew: Bet Lechem, meaning the house of bread).
It is fitting for those who have been accepted by God through sacrificial atonement to express their dedication to Him. And this is the relationship between the grain and the burnt offerings. The grain offering was an acknowledgment that everything the worshiper had belonged to God; and now, a portion of that substance was given back to the LORD as an expression of the belief that YHVH was the source of and the Provider of life. Thus, the main emphasis of the grain offering should be the idea of dedication to God.29
The second kind of offering (Hebrew: korban, meaning something brought near) in our portion is not an animal offering, but a grain offering. The Hebrew word for the grain offering is minhah, which is often combined with the word korban, to be korban minhah, meaning to give a gift. What was its purpose? First, it was always offered after the burnt offering (Joshua 22:23; Judges 13:19 and 23; First Kings 8:64; Second Kings 16:13 and 15). It is therefore natural that the grain offering should be described immediately after the burnt offering (to see link click Ai – The Burnt Offering) in Leviticus.30 It was not an atoning offering per say, but should be viewed as a dedication to God.
Second, it was not an animal sacrifice where blood was shed. Since Leviticus is clear that only blood can atone for sin, it confirms that the minhah was not an atoning offering. Lastly, the name minhah itself is used in the Scriptures to denote a gift, especially a tribute. This is how it is used, for example, in Genesis 44 where Jacob brought a minhah – a tribute – to Esau (see the commentary on Genesis Hv – Jacob Prepares to Meet Esau). Therefore, the grain offering was a gift by the worshiper to YHVH. It normally followed the burnt offering. God, having granted a temporary covering for sin through the burnt offering, the worshiper responded by giving YHVH some of the produce of his hands in the grain offering. That is what the grain offering came to be, a tribute of a faithful worship to God.31
The process to draw the worshiper near to YHVH began with the voluntary burnt offering, accompanied with the voluntary grain offering inside the Tabernacle courtyard. The grain offering, or minhah offering, consisted of grain, fine flour, olive oil, frankincense, baked bread, and salt. It accompanied the burnt offering (Numbers 28:7-15, Joshua 22:23 and 29; Judges 13:19 and 23; First Kings 8:64; Second Kings 16:13), and the fellowship offering (along with a wine drink offering). It was a voluntary act of worship and devotion, in recognition of God’s goodness and His provisions. It was unique in that it was the only offering of the five that was presented without the shedding of blood.
The priests had communion with God, feeding upon the same food as that which satisfied the Father’s heart. Likewise, as believer priests we feed upon the Bread of Life, Yeshua Himself. He is manna to our souls and He satisfies His Father’s heart. Therefore, we fellowship with our heavenly Father through the merits of His beloved Son and our Savior (John 6:22-66). YHVH spoke to Moses saying: I have given the grain offering to the priests as their share of the offerings made to me by fire (Leviticus 6:17). And to us He has given His one and only Son, to be food for our souls. The priests ate their portion of the grain offering in the courtyard. We enter by faith into the greater and more perfect Tabernacle that is not man-made; there, our great Meal Offering satisfies our hungry hearts (Hebrews 9:11-12).32
There were five different kinds of minhah offerings permitted. Except for the handful of fine flour below, these cakes would resemble our modern baked pie or pizza dough. Since grain represents the fruit of our labor, the grain offering was one way for the Jews to dedicate to YHVH that which He had enabled them to produce.33 Not only that, it seems that the Holy One showed His grace in giving the worshippers the freedom to choose several different ways of making their offering. Now ADONAI is the Spirit, and where the Ruach Ha’Kodesh is, there is freedom (Second Corinthians 3:17).
1. The regular fine grain offering. When the worshiper brought his grain offering of wheat or barley to God, it was to be of uncooked fine flour (see the commentary on Genesis Es – Abraham’s Three Visitors), literally the finest and purest wheat flour. He took a handful of fine flour (a token that the whole was given to God), poured oil on it and put incense on it before he took it to the priest probably in some sort of vessel (Numbers 7:13). The worshiper would bring it to the priest, who would then burn it as a small “memorial portion” of the whole on the altar, an offering made by fire, an aroma pleasing to YHVH (Leviticus 2:1-2, 6:14-15).
The minhah constantly reminds us of the Messiah. This was the most expensive and purest kind of fine flour because it was so finely crushed and refined. It was taken exclusively from the inner kernel of the wheat showing that the person was to give only their best. Like Messiah, it was to be crushed (see the commentary on Isaiah Jd – Yet It Was the LORD’s Will to Crush Him). Yeshua Himself spoke of this when He said: The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. I tell you the truth, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds (John 12:23-24).
Dear Heavenly Father, Praise You that You gave your very best, Yeshua, Your own Son, to ransom mankind from sin. Yeshua’s willingness to become a man to offer Himself in our place is truly a remarkable and wonderful gift. Who, though existing in the form of God, did not consider being equal to God a thing to be grasped. But He emptied Himself – taking on the form of a slave, becoming the likeness of men and being found in appearance as a man. He humbled Himself – becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. For this reason, God highly exalted Him and gave Him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Yeshua every knee should bow, in heaven and on the earth and under the earth, and every tongue profess that Yeshua the Messiah is Lord – to the glory of God the Father (Philippians 2:6-11).
Like the grain offering, Messiah Yeshua was crushed. Yet it pleased ADONAI to bruise Him. He caused Him to suffer. If He makes His soul a guilt offering, (Isaiah 53:10). Praise Your power to raise Him from the dead (Ephesians 1:19-20) ! We had no way to save ourselves. No amount of good works would be enough to enter heaven, for perfect holiness is the only way to enter Your holy heaven. Only thru Yeshua’s free gift of His righteousness to those who love and follow Him, are we able to enter heaven. He made the One who knew no sin to become a sin offering on our behalf, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God (Second Corinthians 5:21). We offer a sacrifice of praise (Hebrews 13:15), similar to the thanks of a grain offering, to Messiah Yeshua for being the Lamb of God. I love, praise and worship You. I desire to give You my life as a gift, a korban, in thanks for Your priceless gift! In Messiah Yeshua’s holy name and power of His resurrection. Amen
The oil mentioned here was olive oil (Hebrew: shemen), it was crushed out of the olives which speaks again of the great suffering of our Messiah. At Gethsemane (which means oil press) the fruit was crushed until its bloody oil flowed (Isaiah 53:5). One can only imagine the spiritual oppression Christ was under as Satan tried to prevent Him from going to the Cross. But the minhah is also a reminder of the anointing of the Ruach Ha’Kodesh who inhabits us at the moment of salvation (see the commentary on The Life of Christ Bw – What God Does for Us at the Moment of Faith). When we walk with Yeshua and give our minhah, we are on our way to becoming sanctified by the shemen and will be ready for the Messiah when He comes (see The Life of Christ Jw – The Parable of the Ten Virgins).
The frankincense, as a symbol of prayer, was not actually mixed into the grain offering but poured over it, masking the smell of the burnt flesh of the animal. All of the frankincense was scooped up with the “memorial portion” that was placed on top of the burnt offering. It could never be given without blood, so any prayer we give today should be offered up in the name of Yeshua, our bloody Sacrifice. We might ask what did the “memorial portion” memorialize? In the simplest meaning, it was a memorial to the offender, equivalent to the sacrificial parts being removed from animal offerings and placed upon the bronze altar of sacrifice. Only a small “memorial portion” of the minhah was actually placed on the altar. The rest was given to the priests as food. Frankincense is indigestible and not very appetizing. Instead, the frankincense was offered on the side in conjunction with the grain offerings. As with the animal offerings, it was transformed into heat and smoke that rose up to YHVH as a pleasing aroma.34 Philippians 4:18 explains that the fragrant aroma meant the sacrifice was acceptable . . . well pleasing to God.
In contrast with the burnt offering that was totally consumed on the altar, the rest of the grain offering belonged to Aaron and his sons. Only a small “memorial portion” of the grain offering was actually placed on the bronze altar. The rest was given to the priests as food.
It was to be eaten without leaven in a holy place. They are to eat it in the courtyard of the Tabernacle. It must not be baked with leaven, and the fact that this is repeated shows how important it was in the mind of God. I have given it to the priests as their share of the offerings made to me by fire. Any male descendant of Aaron could eat it. It was his regular share of the offerings made to YHVH by fire for the generations to come, as long as the Torah of Moses was in effect. And as a warning to laymen, God warned them not to touch any of the grain offering, or they would become holy themselves. As a result, they would have to undergo an extensive purification ceremony, something similar to the Nazarite vow. It was the most holy part of the offerings made to God by fire (Leviticus 2:3; 6:16-18).
There was also a special grain offering for the ordination of the priest. This was the offering Aaron and his sons were to bring to God on the day they were anointed: a tenth of an ephah, or two dry quarts, of fine flour as a regular grain offering, half of it in the morning, in conjunction with the morning sacrifice, and half in the evening, in conjunction with the evening sacrifice. The offering of the priest was to be mixed with oil prior to baking on a griddle; he brought it well mixed and presented the grain offering broken in pieces as an aroma pleasing to YHVH. The heir of the high priest was commanded to continue this practice. Since a priest was not to eat his own offering, it was to be burned completely on the altar (Leviticus 6:19-23).
2. Most grain offerings were not offered as raw flowers. Most were baked before being presented. They were baked immediately after being mixed with water to prevent the possibility of leavening. Passover mitzvah is still made according to this same method today. If they brought a grain offering baked in an oven, it was to consist of fine flour, cakes or wafers, made without leaven and “anointed” with oil after baking (2:4). As always, the Torah’s use of the word “anointing” turns our thoughts to the Anointed One, the Messiah.
3. If the grain offering was fried on a griddle, it was to be made of fine flour mixed with oil before baking, and without leaven. The worshiper crumbled it and poured oil on it after it was baked (2:5-6). These were, essentially, “holy” pancakes.
4. If, however, their grain offering was cooked in a pan, it was to be made of fine flour and oil mixed together before frying (2:7). The priest received the minhah from the worshiper at the gate of the Tabernacle, using his three middle fingers, he scooped some of the grain offering up and put it on top of the burnt offering on the bronze altar.35
Whether baked in an oven, fried on a griddle, or cooked in a pan, the grain offering matzah was broken into pieces before being presented. This was necessary to allow the priest to scoop out the “memorial portion” and offer it on the bronze altar. Then he brought the grain offering made of these things to God. The worshiper would then present the grain offering to the priest, who carried the entire grain offering to the bronze altar and touched it to the corner (2:8). This touching was the equivalent of splashing the blood at the base of the altar. Anything that touched the altar became “most holy.” The priest then scooped out the “memorial portion” from the minhah and placed it upon the burnt offering. Upon being sanctified as “most holy” it could then be eaten only by Aaron and his sons; it was the “most holy” part of the offerings made to YHVH by fire (2:10). In the terminology of the Tabernacle sacrifices, “the most” holy part refers to sacrificial portions that could only be eaten by the priesthood and only within the Tabernacle courtyard. There were portions from the sacrifices that were not considered most holy. Those portions could be brought home and shared with the priests’ family, or in the case of the peace offering (see Ak – The Peace Offerings: At Peace with God), could be eaten by the worshiper. Failure to eat the appropriate portion of the sacrifices in the proper place and within the proper span of time would render the sacrifices themselves ineffectual.36
There were several other instructions and restrictions regarding the grain offering. Every grain offering brought to God had to be made without leaven, for they were not to burn any leaven or honey in an offering made to YHVH by fire (2:11). Leaven is a symbol of sin in the Bible, and thus a separation from corruption. Leavening is actually a fermentation (decomposition) process. Honey decomposes just like leaven. Decomposition was strictly avoided in the Tabernacle. Those who came into contact with a corpse or the carcass of an unclean animal were forbidden from participating in the Tabernacle until they had undergone purification. Similarly, the meat of the animal sacrifices were to be burned with fire if they had not been eaten before the third day since the slaughter. The worship system of God was about the transformation from the perishable to the imperishable.
The minhah offering had a rather interesting ingredient added to it – salt. Stated positively, all their grain offerings were to be seasoned with salt. Stated negatively, they were not to leave the Covenant of salt out of their grain offerings. Salt was a symbol of God’s Covenant with Moses (Numbers 18:19) and God’s Covenant with David (Second Chronicles 13:5). Therefore, God said: Add salt to all five of your offerings (Leviticus 2:13; Mark 9:49-50). Salt does two things, it seasons and it preserves, in contrast with leaven and honey that spoils and decays. That is why the commandment to salt the offerings is coupled with the prohibition on allowing leaven. Both are intended to avoid fermentation. The Tabernacle sacrifices needed to be maintained in an imperishable state.
The mitzvot to salt the sacrifices, as a symbol of the covenant of salt (see Numbers Cu – Salt of the Covenant), provides us with a key for unlocking the mystery of the whole sacrificial system. It allows us a concrete basis for interpreting the sacrifices as covenantal gestures. The salting of the offerings symbolizes the eternal nature of God’s covenant with Isra’el (see the commentary on Jeremiah Eo – The Days are Coming, declares the LORD, When I Will Make a New Covenant with the People of Isra’el). Therefore, the offerings themselves represent various aspects of that same covenant. Each korban (drawing near to God) symbolized one aspect of the covenant. In this sense, the sacrifices themselves can be seen as visual dramatizations of the covenant between God and His people Isra’el.37
5. If you bring a grain offering of firstfruits to YHVH, offer the crushed heads of the new grain roasted in the fire. After it was roasted, oil was put on it because it was a grain offering. Then the priest took a handful of the crushed heads and offered it as the “memorial portion,” together with the frankincense, an offering made by fire, a pleasing aroma to YHVH (2:14-16). The grain offering of firstfruits was distinguished from the other grain offerings in that it marked a particular occasion (see Ea – Resheet). The other grain offerings could be offered at any time throughout the year.38
The daily grain offering: YHVH said to Moshe, “This is the offering Aaron and his sons are to bring to YHVH on the day he is anointed, and was to continue as a high priest offering. It consisted of a tenth of an ephah of fine flour as a regular grain offering, half of it in the morning and half of it in the evening (6:20). This became known as the daily grain offering, and was offered with every burnt offering at 9:00am and 3:00pm. The daily offering by the high priest illustrated his sinfulness and need for daily forgiveness. This contrasts the ministry of Yeshua Messiah, who as the sinless Son of God needed to make only one sacrifice, but it was for the sin of others: Unlike other high priests, He does not need to offer sacrifices day after day, first for his own sins, and them for the sins of the people. He sacrificed for their sins once-and-for-all when He offered Himself (Hebrews 7:27).39
In conclusion, as the grain offering was a tribute of a faithful worshiper to his God, we can pay tribute to our God by acknowledging: For it is by grace that we have been saved, through faith – and this is not from ourselves, it is the gift of God – not by works, so we can not boast (Ephesians 2:8-9). God is honored when we offer praise to Him. When was the last time you offered a sacrifice of praise to God (Hebrews 13:15)?
The Messianic significance: The grain offering was made of bread (matzah). In the same way Yeshua said: I am the bread of life (John 6:35) and was born in Bethlehem (Hebrew: Bet Lechem, meaning the house of bread). On the day that the Master was raised from the dead, a special grain offering (the barley omer) was offered in the Temple.
Again, consider the words of the Messiah, when He took the unleavened bread, broke it and gave it to His apostles as a “memorial” of Himself.
In the same way, the Master took the matzah that was striped and pierced (see the commentary on Isaiah Jb – Yet We Considered Him Punished, Stricken and Afflicted by God), broke it and give it to His apostles as a “memorial portion” of Himself. So, too, the grain offering was broken and shared among the priesthood with “the memorial portion” going to the bronze altar of sacrifice. This touching is the equivalent of splashing the blood against the altar. The grain offering was unleavened matzah, broken, divided and shared among the priests. In the same way, the Master broke the matzah and shared it with His apostles saying: Do this in remembrance of Me (Luke 22:19).
The grain offerings were anointed with oil prior to the baking. Oil is a symbol of the Ruach Ha’Kodesh in the B’rit Chadashah. In the same way, Yeshua was anointed with the Spirit prior to His sacrifice on the cross.
The grain offerings were offered in conjunction with wine drink offerings (23:13), which were spilled out on the bronze altar. The grain offering was also a symbol of God’s Covenant. He took the cup of wine (see my commentary on The Life of Christ Kk – The Third Cup of Redemption) and said: Drink from it, all of you. This cup is the New Covenant in My blood, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins; do this, whenever you drink it (Luke 22:20).
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