Bible Reading Plan

Category: Leviticus

  • Leviticus 2

    Leviticus 2

    Read Leviticus 2

    The Grain Offering

    2 “‘When anyone brings a grain offering to the Lord, their offering is to be of the finest flour. They are to pour olive oil on it, put incense on it 2 and take it to Aaron’s sons the priests. The priest shall take a handful of the flour and oil, together with all the incense, and burn this as a memorial portion on the altar, a food offering, an aroma pleasing to the Lord. 3 The rest of the grain offering belongs to Aaron and his sons; it is a most holy part of the food offerings presented to the Lord.

    4 “‘If you bring a grain offering baked in an oven, it is to consist of the finest flour: either thick loaves made without yeast and with olive oil mixed in or thin loaves made without yeast and brushed with olive oil. 5 If your grain offering is prepared on a griddle, it is to be made of the finest flour mixed with oil, and without yeast. 6 Crumble it and pour oil on it; it is a grain offering. 7 If your grain offering is cooked in a pan, it is to be made of the finest flour and some olive oil. 8 Bring the grain offering made of these things to the Lord; present it to the priest, who shall take it to the altar. 9 He shall take out the memorial portion from the grain offering and burn it on the altar as a food offering, an aroma pleasing to the Lord. 10 The rest of the grain offering belongs to Aaron and his sons; it is a most holy part of the food offerings presented to the Lord.

    11 “‘Every grain offering you bring to the Lord must be made without yeast, for you are not to burn any yeast or honey in a food offering presented to the Lord. 12 You may bring them to the Lord as an offering of the firstfruits, but they are not to be offered on the altar as a pleasing aroma. 13 Season all your grain offerings with salt. Do not leave the salt of the covenant of your God out of your grain offerings; add salt to all your offerings.

    14 “‘If you bring a grain offering of firstfruits to the Lord, offer crushed heads of new grain roasted in the fire. 15 Put oil and incense on it; it is a grain offering. 16 The priest shall burn the memorial portion of the crushed grain and the oil, together with all the incense, as a food offering presented to the Lord.

    Go Deeper

    In Leviticus 2, we find God’s regulations regarding the grain offering. On its face, it looks relatively similar to the blood offering discussed in the prior chapter but digging deeper gives us fresh insight as to the significance behind the grain offering.

    In our culture, finding a bag of finely sifted flour is as easy as checking a box online for grocery delivery. But let’s consider the setting within which this offering is occurring. In Leviticus, the Children of Israel are not living in the promised land (Canaan, the land flowing with milk and honey). They are in the midst of a 40-year stint in the wilderness and desert. A place so inhospitable to crops that God had to provide manna from Heaven daily as sustenance for his people to simply survive. And while it is understood that the Israelites left Egypt with herds of animals that they could graze throughout their journey, the opportunity to actually plow and sow a wheat field much less reap a harvest must have been almost non-existent. This, added to the wandering nature of God’s pillar of fire, made putting down literal and figurative roots a problem.

    As such, a wheat or barley offering must have carried much more significance in how precious a commodity was being laid on the altar. In contrast to the sin sacrifice of the animal, there was not a stipulation on the grain offering as to how much should be offered. There was only a stipulation that it be finely ground. There was no transference of sin by the placing on of hands for atonement. In short, the grain offering was much more of a gesture of gratitude to God rather than a sacrifice for sin. It was not to cover over failures, but was, rather, to express thankfulness to God as a first-fruits gift from the heart. For it to be pleasing to God, it needed to be finely ground. Manually grinding wheat with a millstone was a laborious process. Five cups of flour could take up to an hour to grind by hand. It was an act of love, an act of service, a product of intention and care to honor a most holy God. It was a precious commodity crafted with diligent intention to lavish on a deserving God.

    As we read Leviticus 2 through the lens of the Good News of Jesus, this all makes more sense. God knew how that painful crushing of an offering would foreshadow the redemption and reunification of God to man through Christ’s sacrifice. 

    Questions

    1. What most stuck out to you about this passage as you read it? 
    2. In what ways is your giving to God dutiful instead of lavish?
    3. If you were to evaluate your driving force for sacrifice to Him, is it primarily driven by obedience or by gratitude?

    By the Way

    Read Isaiah 53 for a description of the suffering servant and look at the corollaries between our offering to God and His offering for us.

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  • Leviticus 1 + Preview

    Leviticus 1 + Preview

    Leviticus Introduction

    The book of Leviticus picks up where Exodus leaves off. As a refresher, God had delivered His people out of slavery and established a covenant with them (known as the Mosaic Covenant). As is common throughout scripture, God’s people ultimately rebelled and broke the covenant, splintering their relationship with God. Because of Israel’s sin, they were cut off from being in the presence of God. Not even Moses, their leader, could enter into the tent where God’s presence was. 

    Leviticus, at its most basic level, is a collection of instructions given from God to Moses that Moses then passed on to priests with the intention of instructing the Israelites how to live in relation to a holy God. Sin, as it always does, had caused destruction and harm. The book of Leviticus outlines how the Israelites could live holy (or set apart) lives.

    As we read this book, it is important to note a couple of things. First, we’ll see time and time again that the details matter to God. He gave Moses and the Israelites specific instructions and He cared about the small details in Leviticus in the same way that He cares about the seemingly small details of our lives today. Second, because of the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus, we get to read this book through the lens of the Gospel. We have a different access to God than the Israelites had back then. Praise God! But that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t pay attention to this book. 

    Dr. Chuck Swindoll, a pastor and scholar, said this about the book of Leviticus: 

    “Today’s readers are often put off by the book’s lists of laws regarding diet, sacrifice, and social behavior. But within these highly detailed directives we discover the holiness—the separateness, distinction, and utter “otherness”—of God. And we learn how sin devastates humanity’s relationship with their Creator.”

    As you read this book, take good notes. Read closely and carefully, paying special attention to the sequence of events that are unfolding before you. Get to know the characters in these stories. What does each chapter in this book teach you about God’s character? What does it teach you about humanity? What are the implications for you today? These are the questions we’ll be seeking answers to.

    Read Leviticus 1

    The Burnt Offering

    1 The Lord called to Moses and spoke to him from the tent of meeting. He said, 2 “Speak to the Israelites and say to them: ‘When anyone among you brings an offering to the Lord, bring as your offering an animal from either the herd or the flock.

    3 “‘If the offering is a burnt offering from the herd, you are to offer a male without defect. You must present it at the entrance to the tent of meeting so that it will be acceptable to the Lord. 4 You are to lay your hand on the head of the burnt offering, and it will be accepted on your behalf to make atonement for you. 5 You are to slaughter the young bull before the Lord, and then Aaron’s sons the priests shall bring the blood and splash it against the sides of the altar at the entrance to the tent of meeting. 6 You are to skin the burnt offering and cut it into pieces. 7 The sons of Aaron the priest are to put fire on the altar and arrange wood on the fire. 8 Then Aaron’s sons the priests shall arrange the pieces, including the head and the fat, on the wood that is burning on the altar. 9 You are to wash the internal organs and the legs with water, and the priest is to burn all of it on the altar. It is a burnt offering, a food offering, an aroma pleasing to the Lord.

    10 “‘If the offering is a burnt offering from the flock, from either the sheep or the goats, you are to offer a male without defect. 11 You are to slaughter it at the north side of the altar before the Lord, and Aaron’s sons the priests shall splash its blood against the sides of the altar. 12 You are to cut it into pieces, and the priest shall arrange them, including the head and the fat, on the wood that is burning on the altar. 13 You are to wash the internal organs and the legs with water, and the priest is to bring all of them and burn them on the altar. It is a burnt offering, a food offering, an aroma pleasing to the Lord.

    14 “‘If the offering to the Lord is a burnt offering of birds, you are to offer a dove or a young pigeon. 15 The priest shall bring it to the altar, wring off the head and burn it on the altar; its blood shall be drained out on the side of the altar. 16 He is to remove the crop and the feathers and throw them down east of the altar where the ashes are. 17 He shall tear it open by the wings, not dividing it completely, and then the priest shall burn it on the wood that is burning on the altar. It is a burnt offering, a food offering, an aroma pleasing to the Lord.

    Go Deeper

    Leviticus is a difficult, complex book with a bunch of laws that don’t seem to apply to Christians today. Didn’t Jesus free us from the Law? What does it matter? If we keep in mind that all of Scripture is “God-breathed” (2 Timothy 3:16), that God looks to show us who He is through all of what we know as the Bible, then there must be something here for us, right?

    We might not have burnt sacrifices needed for atonement anymore, thanks to the sacrifice of Jesus, but we do still see the character of God showing through in this chapter. Notice that God gives His people options on what animals to bring as their offering (v. 2), “When anyone among you brings an offering to the LORD, bring as your offering an animal from either the herd or the flock.” This doesn’t seem like a huge detail to us now, so far removed from the burnt offerings, but this is very significant. Giving up an animal in a herding culture would’ve been financially huge for many, some weren’t even wealthy enough to have a flock. Notice, however, that the LORD says they can bring a sacrifice from the herd (cattle), the flock (sheep or goats), or they could bring a burnt offering of birds.

    What does this tell us about God and His character? It tells us that, even all the way back in Leviticus, God was interested in letting all who desired a relationship with Him to come to Him. The invitation was open to whoever would bring their offering in obedience. God’s character has not changed from then to now; He is the same God in the Old Testament as He is in the New Testament and beyond. The entirety of Scripture points to this fact! God has always offered His grace to every human; we see it here in Leviticus, we see Paul write about this (while quoting the prophet Joel) in Romans 10:13, “for, ‘Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”

    Jesus is the offering now; He stands as our offering to God and He shows that God is offering us Himself. Let us not refuse this offer.

    Questions

    1. When was the last time you thought or reflected on Jesus as our offering before God? Take some time this week and write down some thoughts on what this means for your life. 
    2. Is there something in your life that you feel is keeping you from accepting Jesus as the offer? What is it? If you have a trusted Christian in your life to discuss this with, set up a time to meet with them.
    3. What is one way this week that you can seek to draw nearer to God? Set aside a time or two and do it!

    Watch This

    For a preview of what’s to come as we read through Leviticus together, check out this video from The Bible Project.

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