Leviticus 7

Leviticus 7: Torah of the Guilt Offering for Edification of the Priests

1 'Likewise this is the law of the trespass offering (aka guilt offering) It is most holy: 2 In the place where they kill the burnt offering they shall kill the trespass offering. And its blood he shall sprinkle all around on the altar. 3 And he shall offer from it all its fat. The fat tail and the fat that covers the entrails, 4 the two kidneys and the fat that is on them by the flanks, and the fatty lobe attached to the liver above the kidneys, he shall remove; 5 and the priest shall burn them on the altar as an offering made by fire to Yahweh. It is a trespass offering. 6 Every male among the priests may eat it. It shall be eaten in a holy place. It is most holy. 7 The trespass offering is like the sin offering; there is one law for them both: the priest who makes atonement with it shall have it. 8 And the priest who offers anyone's burnt offering, that priest shall have for himself the skin of the burnt offering which he has offered. 9 Also every grain offering that is baked in the oven and all that is prepared in the covered pan, or in a pan, shall be the priest's who offers it. 10 Every grain offering, whether mixed with oil, or dry, shall belong to all the sons of Aaron, to one as much as the other.

“Likewise this is the law of the trespass offering” (1a) These laws differ very little from the requirements in case of the sin-offering, with which this is very closely related. "Both were intended as remedies for the sins of infirmity attending upon life still subject to the trials and temptations of this world.” (Joseph A. Seiss)

In the original burnt as well as the subsequent sin offerings, the leading idea was that of atonement, the expiation of sin by a substituted life. But how can we know that we are forgiven?“Quest in search of this line is orthodoxy.” (J. Parker, D. D.) "How it differed from the sin offering is hard to determine.” (John Trapp) Here, in this offering, "the leading feature was that of satisfaction, the wiping out of sin by the payment of a recompense.” (Professor Cave) “’It is most holy,’ (1b) it being "wholly devoted for sacred use” (John Gill) to teach the priests.

I think we are just adding another precept. As with the sin offering, “’In the place where they kill the burnt offering they shall kill the trespass offering.’ (2a) “Whom will he teach knowledge? And whom will he make to understand the message?... For precept must be upon precept, precept upon precept, line upon line, line upon line, here a little, there a little.” (Isaiah 28:9-10)— “’And its blood he shall sprinkle all around on the altar.’ (2b) “One point of difference between them was in the mode of disposing of the blood. Both were bloody offerings, but the blood in one case was to be put on the four horns of the altar, and in the other it was to be sprinkled ‘round about upon the altar.’” (Joseph A. Seiss)

We have a “blood of sprinkling that speaks better things than that of Abel.” (Hebrews 12:24) “I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean; I will cleanse you from all your impurities and from all your idols. I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws.” (Ezekiel 36:25–27)

“Forgiveness comes only because of the death of an innocent substitute. Isaiah.53:10 clearly says that when Jesus died on the cross, God made His Son ‘a guilt offering’ (the penalty we should have paid, He paid for us), ‘Yet it was the Lord's will to crush him and cause him to suffer, and though the LORD makes his life a guilt offering, he will see his offspring and prolong his days, and the will of the LORD will prosper in his hand.’” (Bell's Commentary)

"And he shall offer from it all its fat. The fat tail and the fat that covers the entrails, the two kidneys and the fat that is on them by the flanks, and the fatty lobe attached to the liver above the kidneys, he shall remove; and the priest shall burn them on the altar as an offering made by fire to Yahweh. It is a trespass offering.’ It points to the idea that the Lord Jesus, with all His strength, has accomplished the work with which the guilty one has been freed from guilt and above that God has been glorified.” (G. de Koning) “It is a guilt offering.” (3-5a)

“Every male among the priests may eat it.’ “Of the flesh of it, after the fat was taken off and burnt, the rest belonged to the priests and their sons, and to them only, not to their wives and daughters [as signified by ‘every male’)— ‘It shall be eaten in a holy place. It is most holy,’ (5b-6) serving a most important role.

“The trespass offering is like the sin offering; there is one law for them both.’ (7a) Perhaps it concerns the same sins. “The priest who makes atonement with it shall have it.’ (7b) The one who does the work of evangelism gets the evanglist's prize. “Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.” (2 Tim 2:15)

“‘And the priest who offers anyone's burnt offering, that priest shall have for himself the skin of the burnt offering which he has offered.’ [8] “As the skin was the only part not consumed [either by the priest or] by the fire, in the case of the burnt offering, it fell to the share of the officiating priest.” (C. J. Ellicott) It is a reminder of the covering provided to the offerer. And it is a crown of rejoicing to the officiating priest, covering "a multitude of sins.” (James 5:20)

“‘Also every grain offering that is baked in the oven and all that is prepared in the covered pan, or in a pan, shall be the priest's who offers it. Every grain offering, whether mixed with oil, or dry, shall belong to all the sons of Aaron, to one as much as the other.’ (9-10) , “literally,’ a man as his brother’; that is, every man alike [shall eat]. The rule obtained in the time of Christ that neither a child nor woman, though of priestly descent, could partake of this offering;

but a priest who was disqualified from officiating through a physical blemish had a share in it, as he comes under the designation of man.” (C. J. Ellicott)

Hear, O people, the heart of the person hungry for release from guilt of sin. “Put me, I pray thee, into one of the priest’s offices, that I may eat a piece of bread.” (1 Samuel 2:36) We can be adopted by faith. “And this law assures us, who in Christ are of the ‘priesthood,’ that there is an equal participation in the merits of the sacrifice and the privileges of the Christian life for all who are sacredly related. The gracious rule of brotherhood is to be illustrated in our enjoyment of the sacramental feast at the Lord’s table, ‘All ye are brethren.’ No assumption of superiority is permissible, no exclusive appropriation of the sacred provisions; in the Gospel feast, and at the Lord’s Supper, ‘a man is as his brother.’ How, then, dare the Romish celebrant assume the sole right of participating? or where is the warrant for ‘priestly’ superiority in the ‘household of faith’?” (Joseph S. Exell)

Leviticus 7: Torah of the Peace Offering for Thanksgiving for Edification of the Priests

11 ‘This is the law of the sacrifice of peace offerings which he shall offer to Yahweh: 12 If he offers it for a thanksgiving, then he shall offer, with the sacrifice of thanksgiving, unleavened cakes mixed with oil, unleavened wafers anointed with oil, or cakes of blended flour mixed with oil. 13 Besides the cakes, as his offering he shall offer leavened bread with the sacrifice of thanksgiving of his peace offering. 14 And from it he shall offer one cake from each offering as a heave offering to Yahweh. It shall belong to the priest who sprinkles the blood of the peace offering. 15 ‘The flesh of the sacrifice of his peace offering for thanksgiving shall be eaten the same day it is offered. He shall not leave any of it until morning.

16 But if the sacrifice of his offering is a vow or a voluntary offering, it shall be eaten the same day that he offers his sacrifice; but on the next day the remainder of it also may be eaten; 17 the remainder of the flesh of the sacrifice on the third day must be burned with fire. 18 And if any of the flesh of the sacrifice of his peace offering is eaten at all on the third day, it shall not be accepted, nor shall it be imputed to him; it shall be an abomination to him who offers it, and the person who eats of it shall bear guilt.

“We are ready enough to cry to God in times of great sorrow, but are too forgetful of His benefits when the cloud passes and the sun shines again. In Israel the recognition took the form of a feast, in which the divine fire and the suppliant seem to feed together.” (F. B. Meyers) In it, we call on all within us to praise and bless God’s holy name. "It was a peace-offering, a national thanksgiving, which Solomon made at the dedication of the Temple. It is this sacrifice which is so frequently referred to in the Psalms. In connection with the celebration of the Passover there were two peace-offerings. The former of these is continued in the Lord’s Supper, which is a feast of thanksgiving for God’s greatest gift to men. We should thank God at the sacramental table for all special exhibitions of the Divine goodness.” (G. R. Leavitt)

“The peace-offering was the only one that laymen were allowed to eat.” (Gordon Wenham) Peace offerings— “three kinds are recognized: an offering of thanksgiving, an offering in connection with vows, and one which is purely a free-will offering to God. In all these communion is recognized.” (G. Campbell Morgan) Firstly, ““’If he offer it for a thanksgiving.’—That is, acknowledgment of special mercies received from God, such as deliverance in travels, by land or sea, redemption from captivity, restoration to health, etc.— ‘then he shall offer, with the sacrifice of thanksgiving, unleavened cakes mixed with oil, unleavened wafers anointed with oil, or cakes of blended flour mixed with oil.’ (12) It is to this sacrifice that the apostle alludes when he says, “By him therefore let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually.” (C. J. Ellicott) Keep the feast with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth. (1 Cor 5:8) “There must be sincerity in all our services; for else God will not once look at them.” (Trapp)

“‘Besides the cakes, as his offering he shall offer leavened bread with the sacrifice of thanksgiving of his peace offering.’ (13) LO, LEAVENED BREAD WILL PASS IN A PEACE OFFERING: God for Christ’s sake rejects not the services of his saints, though tainted with corruption.” (John Trapp) “LEAVENED cakes.’ That cannot speak of the Lord Jesus. Leaven speaks of sin and in Him is no sin. But there is leaven in us. Sin is still in us. These cakes tell in picture that we come in the awareness that sin is still in us (1 John 1:8), although sin no longer is allowed to rule us neither is that necessary.” (G. de Koning) At such feasts: “Let therefore the more enlightened and advanced in religious attainments, endeavour to indoctrinate one another with heavenly wisdom, and with an increase of divine affections.” (Joseph Sutcliffe)

“‘And from it he shall offer one cake from each offering as a heave offering to Yahweh. It shall belong to the priest who sprinkles the blood of the peace offering.’ One cake is to be lifted up from the rest, as a ‘heave-offering’ (Num 5:9), the due of the officiating priest.” (Arthur Peake) Neither is perfection required of him, but let us ever lift our ministers up to the Lord.

“The flesh of the sacrifice of his peace offering for thanksgiving shall be eaten the same day it is offered. He shall not leave any of it until morning.'- A stringent requirement in connection with this offering is that no part of them should be allowed to see corruption….” (G. Campbell Morgan), associated with eternal death. It “had the further result of enforcing a liberal distribution of food among the poor.” (F. B. Meyers) “But if the sacrifice of his offering is a vow or a voluntary offering, it shall be eaten the same day that he offers his sacrifice; but on the next day the remainder of it also may be eaten; the remainder of the flesh of the sacrifice on the third day must be burned with fire. And if any of the flesh of the sacrifice of his peace offering is eaten at all on the third day, it shall not be accepted, nor shall it be imputed to him;’ — As in the offering of thanksgiving, “The offerer was expected to see that the entire votive or voluntary offering was ‘eaten the same day’ as it was offered;... And if through inattention to this duty of considerate and generous hospitality any part remained uneaten that ‘same day,’ it must be completely consumed ‘on the morrow.’” (J. S. Exell) If not,— “it shall be an abomination to him who offers it, and the person who eats of it shall bear guilt.” (15-18)

“What does the peace offering as a thanksgiving offering mean to me? I can eat of the unleavened bread of Christ in sincerity and truth with thanksgiving and have peace with with God. And I am justified because I am acting on convictions. My theology and my works are flawed, thus the leavened bread in the feast. I am a partaker of the sacrifice of Christ Jesus. “By him therefore let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually.” Therefore let me cast a broad net in inviting my neighbors to the feast. Let me not reckon some as too worldly or others as too religious to receive the truth. Let me spread a broad net with my neighbors, for any left in the morning will be reckoned to me as sin. Let me not be depressed but let me bring my doctrine and be myself, sanctifying the Lord God in my heart— ready to give a testimony of the hope that is in me. There is therefore, my brothers, no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. Shalom!” (Bill Schwartz)

And if f I take comfort from the sacrifice of the peace offerings, I must heed its warnings. “‘The flesh that touches any unclean thing shall not be eaten. It shall be burned with fire. And as for the clean flesh, all who are clean may eat of it.’ (Lev 7:19) If, in carrying it from the altar to the place where it was eaten, a dog touched it, or it touched a dead body or any other unclean thing, it was then unfit to be used in a religious feast. [In application of this principle:] Everything we honour the holy God with must be pure and carefully kept from all pollution. It is a case adjudged (Haggai 2:12) that the holy flesh could not by its touch communicate holiness to what was common; but by this law it is determined that by the touch of that which was unclean it received pollution from it, which intimates that the infection of sin is more easily and more frequently communicated than the savour of grace.” (Matthew Henry) Beware brethren: “The gospel is a holy feast…. There is a morality in religion, as well as faith and ecstasy. Grace does not make void the law [or teachings thereof].” (J. A. Seiss, D. D.) “Today, in Christendom, there are innumerable cases of unclean doctrine and practice introduced, and the Christian is warned, ‘Come out from among them and be separate, says the Lord. Do not touch what is unclean, and I will receive you’ (2 Cor 6:17).” (L. M. Grant)

“‘But the person who eats the flesh of the sacrifice of the peace offering that belongs to Yahweh, while he is unclean, that person shall be cut off from his people. Moreover the person who touches any unclean thing, such as human uncleanness, an unclean animal, or any abominable unclean thing, and who eats the flesh of the sacrifice of the peace offering that belongs to the Lord, that person shall be cut off from his people.’ (Lev 7:20-21) The holiness of the food being ceremonial, those were incapacitated to partake of it who lay under any ceremonial uncleanness. But we are hereby taught to preserve ourselves pure from all the pollutions of sin, that we may have the benefit and comfort of Christ's sacrifice, 1 Peter 2:1; 2:2. Our consciences must be purged from dead works, that we may be fit to serve the living God,Hebrews 9:14.” (Matthew Henry)

“The seriousness of eating while unclean is clear from the penalty imposed (Leviticus 7:20-21), which was direct divine judgment, usually death.” (Dr. Thomas B. Constable)— "The reference ‘shall be cut off from his people’ is intriguing, and there are few certainties as to the exact meaning. It has been seen as ostracism from the community, or capital punishment, or some other penalty, but Bamberger may have the correct explanation thus: ‘Several related passages make it clear that it is God who cuts the offender off from his kin (Lev. 17:10; 20:3-6). The term then refers to divine rather than human punishment…’.” (Coffman Commentary) Those cut off from the church in the wilderness are destined to post-Judgment eternal death. Compare Exodus 31:14: "'Therefore you are to observe the sabbath, for it is holy to you. Everyone who profanes it shall surely be put to death; for whoever does any work on it, that person shall be cut off from among his people.' See [also] Numbers 15:32-36. The distinction between the meaning of the two expressions, ‘to be cut off from the people’, and ‘to be put to death’, is here indicated. He who was cut off from the people had, by his offence, put himself out of the terms of the covenant, and was an outlaw.” (Albert Barnes) That person was destined for end-time destruction! “Shall not the Church of Christ be equally guarded from the presence of the unclean?” (Preacher's Complete Homiletical Commentary)

Knowledge brings responsibility. “So those that eat and drink unworthily in the supper of our Lord, where his flesh is eaten and his blood drank, eat and drink damnation to themselves, 1 Corinthians 11:29.” (John Gill) "For when they shall say, peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape." (1 Thessalonians 5:3)

Leviticus 7: Fat & Blood: Things Forbidden

22 And Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying, 23 "Speak to the children of Israel, saying: 'You shall not eat any fat, of ox or sheep or goat. 24 And the fat of an animal that dies naturally, and the fat of what is torn by wild beasts, may be used in any other way; but you shall by no means eat it. 25 For whoever eats the fat of the animal of which men offer an offering made by fire to the Lord, the person who eats it shall be cut off from his people. 26 Moreover you shall not eat any blood in any of your dwellings, whether of bird or beast. 27 Whoever eats any blood, that person shall be cut off from his people.' "

“Repetition of the prohibition of eating the fat and the blood, addressed to the people in the midst of the instructions to the priests” (Pulpit Commentaries) “The provision that it is forbidden to eat fat and blood comes after the peace offering. Peace offerings are offerings of which a great part can be eaten….Yet there remains something that is only for God, to which He asserts His exclusive right: the life (blood) and the inner strength (fat) belong entirely to Him.” (G. de Koning)

“And Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying, ‘Speak to the children of Israel, saying: 'You shall not eat any fat, of ox or sheep or goat.’ etc. (22-23) These animals were consecrated to God for making atonement of the soul. “Any other fat they might eat, but the fat of these was sacred, because they were the only animals which were offered in sacrifice, though many others ranked among the clean animals as well as these.” (Adam Clarke) “And the fat of an animal that dies naturally, and the fat of what is torn by wild beasts, may be used in any other way; but you shall by no means eat it.” (24) That is, of the aforesaid animals which died of any disease or accident, or were killed by wild beasts, and which, therefore, are entirely unclean (see Leviticus 17:15; Leviticus 22:8), might be used for common purposes in ordinary life, such as making candles, etc.” (C. J. Ellicott) Others uses of fat inlcude, oiling a harnessor or making soap.

“For whoever eats the fat of the animal of which men offer an offering made by fire to the Lord, the person who eats it shall be cut off from his people. Moreover you shall not eat any blood in any of your dwellings, whether of bird or beast. Whoever eats any blood, that person shall be cut off from his people." (25-27) That is, this law is binding upon the Israelites wherever they may dwell (See Leviticus 3:17.).” (Adam Clarke) “Michaelis suggests that the prohibition of fat was for the purpose of promoting the culture of the olive, and Knobel maintains that it was because the mouth of man is unclean. A better reason is, because it would be an infringement of Jehovah’s rights to eat as common food that which he had sanctified unto himself.’ (Daniel Whedon) Of life and strength, the Lord give and the the Lord takes away, blessed His name forever.

“Religiously speaking the idea here was to prevent the partaking of the essential life of creatures. It counteracted the beliefs of certain of those with whom Israel came in contact who sought to do exactly that. It emphasised the uniqueness of man in God’s eyes. When man sought power and life he should look to God for it, not seek to drain it from lower creatures.” (Peter Pett)— “Also, there is the double reference to being cut off from one's people.” (Coffman Commentary) “Shall be cut off - excommunicated from the people of God, and so deprived of any part in their inheritance, and in their blessings. Genesis 17:14.” (Adam Clarke)

“No observing man can fail to recognise the very ominous fact that a constantly increasing number, even of professed preachers of the Gospel, in so many words refuse to recognise the place which propitiatory blood has in the Gospel of Christ, and to admit its preeminent sanctity as consisting in this, that it was given on the altar to make atonement for our souls. Nor has the present generation outgrown the need of the other reminder touching the consecration of the best to the Lord… .Such need to be most urgently and solemnly reminded that in spirit the warning against the eating of the blood and the fat is in full force. It was written of such as should break this law, ‘that soul shall be cut off from his people.’ And so in the Epistle to the Hebrews {Heb 10:26-29} we find one of its most solemn warnings directed to those who ‘count this blood of the covenant,’ the blood of Christ, ‘an unholy (i.e., common) thing’; as exposed by this, their undervaluation of the sanctity of the blood, to a ‘sorer punishment’ than overtook him that ‘set at naught Moses’ law,’ even the retribution of Him who said, ‘Vengeance is Mine; I will repay, saith the LORD.’” (The Expositor's Bible Comm)

Leviticus 7: The Portions of the Peace Offering and Conclusion

28 Then Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying, 29 "Speak to the children of Israel, saying: 'He who offers the sacrifice of his peace offering to Yahweh shall bring his offering to Yahweh from the sacrifice of his peace offering. 30 His own hands shall bring the offerings made by fire to Yahweh. The fat with the breast he shall bring, that the breast may be waved as a wave offering before Yahweh. 31 And the priest shall burn the fat on the altar, but the breast shall be Aaron's and his sons'. 32 Also the right thigh you shall give to the priest as a heave offering from the sacrifices of your peace offerings. 33 He among the sons of Aaron, who offers the blood of the peace offering and the fat, shall have the right thigh for his part. 34 For the breast of the wave offering and the thigh of the heave offering I have taken from the children of Israel, from the sacrifices of their peace offerings, and I have given them to Aaron the priest and to his sons from the children of Israel by a statute forever.'" 35 This is the consecrated portion for Aaron and his sons, from the offerings made by fire to Yahweh, on the day when Moses presented them to minister to Yahweh as priests. 36 Yahweh commanded this to be given to them by the children of Israel, on the day that He anointed them, by a statute forever throughout their generations.

"Speak to the children of Israel, saying: 'He who offers the sacrifice of his peace offering to Yahweh— “that is, if his peace offering is one of the three aforementioned classes (Lev 7:11).” (C. J. Ellicott)— shall bring his offering (the part of his oblation devoted to the Lord and to the officiating priest) to Yahweh from the sacrifice of his peace offering. “The object of this provision seems to be to secure an actual, instead of a merely constructive offering. As most of the flesh was to be consumed by the offerer, it might possibly have been supposed sufficient merely to send in the consecrated parts; but the law regards the whole as offered to the Lord, and therefore requires that it shall be distinctly presented before Him.” (J. P. Lange) “The man had to go for himself, and present the sacrifice himself, and lay his hand upon its head, and confess, and eat, all for himself. There can be no transfer of religious obligations--no substitution in the performance of religious duties. Of all things, piety is one of the most intensely personal. It is the intercourse of the individual soul with its Maker; just as much as if there were no other beings in existence. As each must eat, and die, and be judged for him or herself, so each must repent, and believe, and be religious for him or herself…. True religion demands one’s personal and individual action--the putting forth of one’s own hand. No man or angel can do it for us.

Preachers and pious friends may prompt, direct, encourage, and pray for us, but that is all. They can do nothing more.” (J. A. Seiss, D. D.)

“The priest who offered, was to have the breast and the right shoulder.” (Matthew Henry) But it was first to be waived before the LORD to be accepted on the offerers behalf. This speaks to the waive offering of the first fruits of the harvest. “The waving was peculiarly connected with the breast, which is thence called the wave-breast; and the heaving with the shoulder, for this reason called the heave-shoulder. When those parts were thus presented to God and set apart to the priesthood, the rest of the flesh was given up to the offerer to be partaken of by himself and those he might call to share and rejoice with him. Among these he was instructed to invite, beside his own friends, the Levite, the widow, and the fatherless.” (P. Fairbairn) “The heave offering was simply to be lifted up, signifying the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, while the wave offering, being waved, symbolizes His ascension and heavenly exaltation. The right thigh speaks of strength, typically the power of Christ's resurrection…” (L. M. Grant)

“The blood and fat of the peace offering are brought to the altar… The breast and the right thigh of this offering are for the priest. The rest of the offering is for the offeror and all with whom he wants to celebrate and who are clean.” (G. de Koning) "...feed and feast upon Christ, our Peace-offering. This blessed Peace-offering is not for the priests only, for saints of the highest rank and greatest eminence, but for the common people also. Take heed of delay.” (Matthew Henry)

37 This is the law of the burnt offering, the grain offering, the sin offering, the trespass offering, the consecrations, and the sacrifice of the peace offering, 38 which Yahweh commanded Moses on Mount Sinai, on the day when He commanded the children of Israel to offer their offerings to Yahweh in the Wilderness of Sinai.

"Jesus said that God must be worshipped in spirit and in truth. And it has become commonplace to contrast spirit and form as if they were incompatible in worship. ’The letter killeth but the Spirit giveth life’ is a text that out of context (2 Corinthians 3:6) can be used to justify slapdash leading of services and other Christian activities. Spontaneity and lack of preparation is equated with spirituality. Leviticus 6-7 denies this: care and attention to detail are indispensable to the conduct of divine worship. God is more important, more distinguished, worthy of more respect than any man; therefore we should follow his injunctions to the letter, if we respect him." (Gordon Wenham)

“There are many other lessons of a personal and practical nature that appear in these instructions. Honesty, integrity, fair-dealing, self-denial, humility, hospitality, and many other virtues are inherently woven into the whole structure of the sacred sacrifices. Also, the dramatic and vital difference between that which is holy and that which is not holy is apparent in every word of these divine instructions. The extreme danger in all sin, the heavenly Father's unqualified hatred of sin (yet coupled with the love of the sinner), and the eventual outpouring of divine wrath upon Adam's sinful race are constant overtones of all that is written here.” (Coffman Commentary)