The Minhah Offering: Assuring People of God’s Acceptance
6: 14-23
The minhah offering DIG: What was significant about the minhah offering? How was it like and unlike the ‘olah offering? As a bloodless offering, was it ever sufficient in itself (Numbers 6:14-13)? What did they imply? Why grill it? Why the specific amounts? How are these mitzvot part of the reconciliation between God and His people?
REFLECT: How would you describe your offering to God? How is it like or unlike the minhah offering described here? How does your offering help the reconciliation process? How does communion relate to the minhah offering? Would you say that your prayer life is sporadic or continual? Are you a chosen person, or a royal priest belonging to God? Why or why not?
The grain offering from the perspective of the priests.
The Church is always calling for dedication from its holy ones. But what becomes of these dedications? How can we demonstrate what dedication is? And how can it respond to the people who make such commitments to the LORD? Learning about the minhah offering will open this topic of dedication. This is the mitzvot for the minhah offering (to see link click Aj – The Grain Offering): the sons of Aaron are to offer it before ADONAI in front of the bronze altar (6:14). The officiating priest was required to follow the mitzvot regarding the minhah offering and the eating of the sacrifice in order to please God.64
The memorial portion: From each of the minhah offerings, the priesthood was to remove a small “memorial” portion, which corresponded to the choice fats and sacrificial parts of the animal offerings that were committed to the flames of the bronze altar. The priest was to take a handful of fine flour and oil, together with all the incense on the minhah offering, and burn the “memorial” portion on the bronze altar as a fragrant aroma for ADONAI (6:15 NIV). Similar language is used regarding our prayers and acts of charity. In Acts 10, an angel from heaven told Cornelius the centurion that his prayers and alms have ascended as a “memorial” before God. Cornelius prayed regularly, and in fact, the angel appeared to him as he prayed during the time of the afternoon offering about three o’clock (Acts 10:3-4). His prayers, coupled with his generous gifts to the poor (Acts 10:2), had ascended to the heavenly altar before YHVH as a “memorial.” Once again, we see the principle of how prayer (and charity) function as a remembrance for sacrifice. In Cornelius’ case, sacrifice was not possible. As a Gentile, he was unable to enter the Temple courts to bring a sacrifice for himself. Nevertheless, his sacrifice of prayer and charity were received as a “memorial” portion, just as those Jews who offered their sacrifices upon the bronze altar. This principle is clearly taught in the B’rit Chadashah: Through Yeshua, therefore, let us offer God a sacrifice of praise continually. For this is the natural product of lips that acknowledge His name. But don’t forget doing good and sharing with others, for with such sacrifices God is well pleased (Hebrews 13:15-16).65
The daily minhah offering: Aside from the “memorial” portion, Aaron and his sons were to eat the rest of it. Those who performed the offering received their share. It was to be eaten without leaven in a holy place; in other words, they were to eat it in the courtyard of the Tabernacle. It was not to be baked with leaven. ADONAI gave it as their portion of His offerings made by fire; like the purification offering and the guilt offering, it is most holy. The minhah offering was most holy, which simply means that it must be eaten by the priesthood within the Tabernacle courtyard. It could not be taken home to feed their families. Any male descendant of Aaron may eat from it; it is his share of the offerings for ADONAI made by fire forever through all your generations (6:16-18a).
Whatever touches those offerings must be holy (6:18b). Whatever touches the minhah offerings is similarly dedicated and must be accorded the same status. Thus, if a pan in which a minhah offering is cooked (or any food that might come in contact with a minhah offering) takes on the status of most holy. It must be treated with the same sanctity accorded to the minhah offering itself.
Though we may not all be descendants of Aaron, there is something of the priesthood and the mitzvot of the priesthood which relates to all of God’s people. We are a nation of priests. The Bible declares: You are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His wonderful light (First Peter 2:9). Our spiritual gifts are like the mitzvot of the minhah offering (see the commentary on First Corinthians Ch – Unwrapping Your Spiritual Gifts). No one else can fulfill them for us, they are most holy. Each spiritual gift offers us an opportunity to serve our Creator in a unique fashion. And like the minhah offering, because our spiritual gifts are most holy, they render everything that touches them most holy.
When a new high priest was dedicated: When high priests were dedicated to their office, there were special minhah offerings. On the day he is anointed into the priesthood, the high priest was to offer a special minhah offering. This is the offering for ADONAI that Aaron and his sons are to offer on the day he was dedicated: two quarts of fine flour, half of it in the morning and half in the evening, as a regular minhah offering from then on. The Sages interpreted the mitzvah to mean that the new high priest should bring this special minhah offering every day of his seven-day confirmation (see Ba – The Meal and Seven Days of Training). It is to be well mixed with olive oil and fried on a griddle; then bring it in, break it in pieces and offer the minhah offering as a fragrant aroma for ADONAI (6:19-21).
Therefore, the minhah offering by the new high priest was his “memorial” minhah offering. The high priest who will take Aaron’s place from among his descendants will offer it (6:22a). It also appears that the high priest continued to offer this minhah offering for the duration of his ministry. It was a perpetual obligation. Every day, at 9am and at 3pm, the high priest would offer the minhah offering on top of the ‘olah offering (see Ao – The Olah Offering). This constantly reminded the priests that, although they differed from the rest of the Israelites in terms of function, they were exactly the same in terms of their sinful nature and their desperate need for ADONAI and His forgiveness. The priests who remembered this need would be protected from one of the strongest temptations faced by those who lead God’s people: spiritual pride.66
It must be entirely made to go up in smoke for ADONAI; every minhah offering of the priest is to be entirely made to go up in smoke – it is not to be eaten (6:22b-23). In contrast to the daily minhah offerings by the priesthood, which were to be eaten (6:16), the perpetual minhah offerings made by the high priest were not to be eaten. Nothing remained for the high priest to eat, it all went up in smoke. The high priest could not eat from the minhah offering when he was dedicated because it was made on his behalf. Instead, it had to be offered to YHVH and completely consumed. It all belonged to ADONAI. The high priest could only partake of an offering while functioning in his role as mediator on behalf of his people.67
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 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 Jd – 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 in the B’rit Chadashah. In the same way, Yeshua was anointed with the Spirit of God 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).
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
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