Leviticus 2. Laws for Grain Offerings

Laws for Grain Offerings

• Grain offering: מִנְחָה (minchah) means “gift,” “offering,” or “tribute”.
  • Technically no word for grain is actually used in Hebrew but it is implied since it mentioned flour right after.

“When anyone brings a grain offering as an offering to the Lord, his offering shall be of fine flour. He shall pour oil on it and put frankincense on it ² and bring it to Aaron’s sons the priests. And he shall take from it a handful of the fine flour and oil, with all of its frankincense, and the priest shall burn this as its memorial portion on the altar, a food offering with a pleasing aroma to the Lord. ³ But the rest of the grain offering shall be for Aaron and his sons; it is a most holy part of the Lord’s food offerings.

• Grain offerings (uncooked)
  • Fine flour with oil and frankincense
    • The frankincense was all burned with the memorial portion (v. 2); it was not part of what the priests ate.
  • Priest will burn on the altar
  • Rest of the offering for the priests (unlike burnt offering)
    • Notice how this part is called the “most holy part” (v. 3)
• My question is that even if only a small portion of Israel gave grain offerings, this would be A LOT of food for Aaron and sons. Where did it all go?

⁴ “When you bring a grain offering baked in the oven as an offering, it shall be unleavened loaves of fine flour mixed with oil or unleavened wafers smeared with oil. ⁵ And if your offering is a grain offering baked on a griddle, it shall be of fine flour unleavened, mixed with oil. ⁶ You shall break it in pieces and pour oil on it; it is a grain offering. ⁷ And if your offering is a grain offering cooked in a pan, it shall be made of fine flour with oil. ⁸ And you shall bring the grain offering that is made of these things to the Lord, and when it is presented to the priest, he shall bring it to the altar. ⁹ And the priest shall take from the grain offering its memorial portion and burn this on the altar, a food offering with a pleasing aroma to the Lord. ¹⁰ But the rest of the grain offering shall be for Aaron and his sons; it is a most holy part of the Lord’s food offerings.

• Grain offerings (cooked)
  • unleavened loaves of flour and oil, or unleavened wafers with oil
  • Break into pieces (for griddle offering) and pour oil on it
  • Can be cooked in oven (v. 4), griddle (v. 5) or pan (v. 7)

¹¹ “No grain offering that you bring to the Lord shall be made with leaven, for you shall burn no leaven nor any honey as a food offering to the Lord. ¹² As an offering of firstfruits you may bring them to the Lord, but they shall not be offered on the altar for a pleasing aroma. ¹³ You shall season all your grain offerings with salt. You shall not let the salt of the covenant with your God be missing from your grain offering; with all your offerings you shall offer salt.

• NO yeast or honey on the altar. Some suggest this is due to fermentation.
  • They CAN be given as firstfruits offering
• Season with salt (mentioned 3x!)
  • Salt does not ferment or decay like leaven and honey can.
  • God calls it “the salt of the covenant” (מֶלַח בְּרִית, melaḥ berit).
  • We see this phrase again in Numbers 18:19 and 2 Chronicles 13:5 when God’s covenant with David is referred as “a covenant of salt.”

¹⁴ “If you offer a grain offering of firstfruits to the Lord, you shall offer for the grain offering of your firstfruits fresh ears, roasted with fire, crushed new grain. ¹⁵ And you shall put oil on it and lay frankincense on it; it is a grain offering. ¹⁶ And the priest shall burn as its memorial portion some of the crushed grain and some of the oil with all of its frankincense; it is a food offering to the Lord.

• Firstfruit offering:
  • fresh ears
  • roasted with fire
  • crushed new grain with oil and frankincense
• This is a grain offering made from the first/new grain, which is different from v. 12 saying leaven and honey could be brought as “an offering of firstfruits.”