Leviticus Chapter 9 Continued
Leviticus 9:15 "And he brought the people's offering, and took the goat, which [was] the sin offering for the people, and slew it, and offered it for sin, as the first."
To the altar, having offered his own first.
"And took the goat, which was the sin offering for the people, and slew it": Where he had slain his own.
"And offered it for sin, as the first":
The first offering he offered for himself, which was of the same sort.
In this lesson, I will not get into every little detail about what each item symbolizes. We dealt with those things in a previous lesson.
I will however, remind all of us about some of the important differences in each offering.
The most important thing to remember here, is that the offering for the entire congregation was the same as for the priest.
This again, indicates that the priest will pay a higher price for his sins, because he sinned in knowledge.
Leviticus 9:16 "And he brought the burnt offering, and offered it according to the manner."
The calf and the lamb (Lev. 9:3).
"And offered it according to the manner":
Judgment, ordinance, and appointment of God respecting that sort of offerings (see Lev. 1:1).
The thing that stands out to me in this is, that Aaron has learned his lesson well, and he is doing the offerings in the proper order.
Leviticus 9:17 And he brought the meat offering, and took a handful thereof, and burnt [it] upon the altar, beside the burnt sacrifice of the morning."
Made of fine flour, with oil and frankincense put upon it (see Lev. 2:1).
"And took a handful thereof, and burnt it upon the altar":
See Lev. 2:2.
"Beside the burnt sacrifice of the morning":
The daily morning sacrifice, which was not to be omitted on account of these extraordinary sacrifices, both for the priest and for the people.
Or "after the burnt sacrifice of the morning"; for no sacrifice was offered up before that: so Jarchi.
We must not forget that the meat offering had no animal flesh involved.
It contained the elements to make bread.
Jesus is the Bread of life.
Jesus spoke of His flesh as the Bread.
John 6:51 "I am the living bread which came down from heaven: if any man eat of this bread, he
shall live for ever: and the bread that I will give is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world."
This Scripture in John makes it very clear why this offering of bread is called meat.
It symbolizes the flesh of Jesus.
Leviticus 9:18 "He slew also the bullock and the ram [for] a sacrifice of peace offerings, which [was] for the people: and Aaron's sons presented unto him the blood, which he sprinkled upon the altar round about,"
That they might feast, rejoice, and be glad that atonement was made for their sins, and their gifts and sacrifices accepted of God (see Rom. 5:11).
"And Aaron's sons presented unto him the blood":
Of the peace offerings, the bullock and the ram, which they had received into a vessel as they were killing them.
"Which he sprinkled upon the altar round about":
As he did with the blood of his own burnt offering (Lev. 9:12).
The important thing to remember is, that Jesus is our peace.
Ephesians 2:14 "For he is our peace, who hath made both one, and hath broken down the middle wall of partition [between us];"
Leviticus 9:19 "And the fat of the bullock and of the ram, the rump, and that which covereth [the inwards], and the kidneys, and the caul [above] the liver:"
Which in all offerings was the LORD's, and was burnt (see Lev. 3:16).
"The rump":
Or tail of the ram.
Which in those countries was very large, and had a great deal of fat upon it (see notes on Exodus 29:22; Lev. 3:9).
"And that which covereth the inwards":
Called the "omentum".
"And the kidneys, and the caul above the liver":
And the fat that was upon each of these.
Ben Gersom observes, that the kidneys and liver are mentioned last, to show that they were laid uppermost in waving (after directed to), that the owners might be stirred up, or moved by these things.
Leviticus 9:20 "And they put the fat upon the breasts, and he burnt the fat upon the altar:"
Both of the bullock and of the ram, while they were waving. "And he burnt the fat upon the altar":
After having been waved.
The fat in every offering was God's.
The rump here, was actually the fat tail of the animal.
The fat and all of these inward parts were to be burned as a sweet savor to the LORD. The breast was not burned here.
It was just the fat and inwards burned.
Leviticus 9:21 "And the breasts and the right shoulder Aaron waved [for] a wave offering before the LORD; as Moses commanded."
The breasts of the bullock and the ram, and the right shoulders of them both.
"Aaron waved for a wave offering before the LORD":
Which was given to him as his part of the peace offerings, after they had been thus waved before the LORD.
Whereby an acknowledgment was made that he was LORD of all, and had a right to all they had. In token of which these parts were given to his priests towards their maintenance.
"As Moses commanded”: See Exodus 29:27.
This waving of the breast and shoulder was raising it up to God in offering, that God might bless it for their consumption later.
The priest would eat this breast after it was properly cooked such as boiling or baking.
Leviticus 9:22 And Aaron lifted up his hand toward the people, and blessed them, and came down from offering of the sin offering, and the burnt offering, and peace offerings.
After he had offered the above sacrifices both for himself and them.
The manner of the priests lifting up their hands when they blessed is thus described.
In the provinces, the priests lifted up their hands to their shoulders, and in the sanctuary above their heads.
Excepting the high priest, who did not lift up his hands above the plate of gold.
But R. Judah says, the high priest lifted up his hands above the plate, as it is said (Lev. 9:22).
The modern Jews describe it thus: they lift up their hands to their shoulders, and they lift up the right hand somewhat higher than the left.
Then they stretch out their hands, and part their fingers, and frame them so as to make five airs.
Between two fingers and two fingers one air, and between the forefinger and the thumb, and between the two thumbs.
They spread out their hands so, that the middle (or palm) of the hand may be towards the earth, and the back part of it towards heaven.
Aaron lifted his hands upwards, signifying from whence he implored the blessing, and towards the people on whom he desired it might descend.
In this was a type of Christ, who, after he had offered himself a sacrifice for the sins of his people, when he was risen from the dead and about to ascend to heaven, blessed his disciples (Luke 24:50).
In Christ, the saints are blessed with all spiritual blessings.
By him they are procured for them, through his blood, sacrifice, and satisfaction.
And he ever lives to make intercession for the application of them to them (see Eph. 1:3).
"And came down from offering of the sin offering, and the burnt offering, and peace offerings": From the altar with joy, as the Targum of Jonathan.
Being glad he had done his service with acceptance.
He is said to "come down", there being a rise or ascent to the altar, which, as Aben Ezra observes, was three cubits high, and therefore it is with propriety said he came down.
Which he did as soon as he had made an end of offering all the sacrifices.
Up until this time, all blessings of God spoken on the people had been done by Moses. Now Aaron is taking on his job as high priest.
He is speaking a blessing that actually came from God, but God used him to speak it.
This lifting up his hands toward heaven showed that Aaron knew where his power came from. All of the offerings had foreshadowed the sacrifice that Jesus would make for us all.
This sin offering showed the placing of the sin on the one being offered.
Our sins were placed on Jesus and He became our substitute (in the sin offering). In the burnt offering, we see Christ offered up to God (a sweet savor to God).
I believe the statement (not my will but thine), is covered in this offering, as we said earlier in this lesson.
Jesus is our peace.
We could say in the peace offering, not by works, but by grace am I saved. All of these offerings are made in a short time period.
It is impossible to separate them totally.
They all symbolize some aspect of what God did for all believers through Jesus Christ.
Leviticus 9:23 "And Moses and Aaron went into the tabernacle of the congregation, and came out, and blessed the people: and the glory of the LORD appeared unto all the people."
They went out of the court where the altar of burnt offering stood, and where Aaron had been offering the sacrifices.
And they went into the Holy Place, where stood the altar of incense, the showbread table, and the candlestick.
And it is probable Moses went in with Aaron there to show him how to offer the incense, to order the showbread on the table, and to light and trim the lamps of the candlestick.
And so Jarchi observes, that he went in to teach him concerning the business of the incense.
But it may be, it was also to pray for the people, as the Targum, and for the LORD's appearance to them, as was promised and expected.
And that fire might descend on the sacrifices as a token of acceptance of them, as Aben Ezra notes.
"And came out, and blessed the people":
Aaron had blessed them before, but now both Moses and Aaron blessed them.
Atonement being made by the sacrifice of Christ, and law and justice thereby fully satisfied.
Christ and the law agree together in the blessing of the Lord's people.
The way was hereby made for the communication of blessings to them, consistent with the law of God, and his holiness and justice (Gal. 3:10).
"And the glory of the LORD appeared unto all the people":
Some visible signs of his glory, some very great splendor or luster, or breaking forth of his glory.
Or Christ, the glory of the Father, appeared in a human form, as a pledge of his future incarnation, when all the above sacrifices, which were types of him, would have their accomplishment.
And this being immediately upon the offering of them, may signify that the glory of God greatly appears in the sacrifice and satisfaction of Christ, and in the redemption and salvation of his people in that way (Psalm 21:4).
And the glorious and gracious presence of God is enjoyed by his people, in consequence of the propitiatory sacrifice of Christ, which was signified by the mercy seat, from whence the Lord communed.
And it is through Christ, his blood and sacrifice, saints have access to God, and fellowship with him (Eph. 2:18).
We sing a little chorus at our church which says (I want to see Jesus).
I believe that is the desire of all true believers in Christ.
I refuse to worship in any church where the presence of God is absent.
We know that the presence of God was in the sanctuary in the Holy of Holies.
Remember, the congregation could not go into that area.
The presence of Moses and Aaron here, shows the people that God speaks through them both.
This glory spoken of here I believe, is the Shekinah glory of God.
In this the people would not see the face of God, but a great presence of light.
This Light would be the same Light that Paul encountered on the road to Damascus when his life was totally transformed.
Acts 9:3 "And as he journeyed, he came near Damascus: and suddenly there shined round about him a light from heaven:"
We know that man cannot see the face of God and live.
This is a presence of God that cannot be denied, such as a very bright light.
Many times throughout the Bible, God has appeared to someone.
Usually he appears in some form of fire, or smoke made by fire, or a light.
Leviticus 9:24 "And there came a fire out from before the LORD, and consumed upon the altar the burnt offering and the fat: [which] when all the people saw, they shouted, and fell on their faces."
Either from heaven, or from the Holy of Holies, where was the symbol of the divine Presence, and Jehovah had now taken up his residence.
"And consumed upon the altar the burnt offering, and the fat":
According to Aben Ezra, the burnt offering of Aaron, and of the people, and of the daily sacrifice.
For so it is written, besides the burnt offering of the morning (Lev. 9:17).
And the fat of the calf and ram of Aaron, and of the goat, ox, and ram of the people, which though they were laid upon the altar at the time of their offering.
Yet it is thought by some they were not burnt till now.
Yet, with respect to the persons for whom this sacrifice was offered, it denotes acceptance of it, that it was an offering by fire, and of a sweet smelling savor to God.
His law and justice being satisfied, and having honor done them.
Concerning this fire, and the perpetual burning of it (see notes on Lev. 6:12; 6:13).
"Which when all the people saw, they shouted, and fell on their faces":
Aaron blessing them, and the appearance of the glory of God unto them, no doubt, gave them joy and pleasure, as the spiritual blessings by Christ, and the gracious presence of God do to his people (Psalm 103:1).
But what filled them with joy unspeakable was the acceptance of their sacrifices, as typical of the sacrifice of Christ, and atonement by it, which made them shout.
And the court to ring with it; and yet fell down on their faces with all reverence and humility, under a sense of the divine Majesty being so near unto them, in this sensible token of his presence.
There was fire already present on the altar for these offerings.
Generally, the fire under the offerings would take the period of a full day to consume the offering.
This was an unusual fire then.
Look in the following verse what God calls Himself.
Hebrews 12:29 "For our God[is] a consuming fire."
This fire that totally consumes this offering then is the fire of God, which came from the Holy of Holies and consumed these offerings.
This very same thing happened when Solomon dedicated the great temple in Jerusalem.
2 Chronicles 7:1 "Now when Solomon had made an end of praying, the fire came down from heaven, and consumed the burnt offering and the sacrifices; and the glory of the LORD filled the house."
This is the very same thing that happened to Moses, Aaron, and the people here.
God was so pleased, that He overwhelmed them with His presence.
His immediate consumption of the offering showed that He was greatly pleased with their offering.
One more time that I think shows this same thing so strongly, is when Elijah challenged the prophets of Baal to call fire from heaven.
If they had consumed the offering with fire, they would win.
If Elijah's God consumed his offering, they were all to follow Elijah's God.
Let us see what happened.
1 Kings
neither voice, nor any to answer, nor any that regarded." "And Elijah said unto all the people, Come near unto me. And all the people came near unto him. And he repaired the altar of the LORD [that was] broken down." "And Elijah took twelve stones, according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Jacob, unto whom the word of the LORD came, saying, Israel shall be thy name:" "And with the stones he built an altar in the name of the LORD: and he made a trench about the altar, as great as would contain two measures of seed." "And he put the wood in order, and cut the bullock in pieces, and laid [him] on the wood, and said, Fill four barrels with water, and pour [it] on the burnt sacrifice, and on the wood." "And he said, Do [it] the second time. And they did [it] the second time. And he said, Do [it] the third time. And they did [it] the third time." "And the water ran round about the altar; and he filled the trench also with water." "And it came to pass at [the time of] the offering of the [evening] sacrifice, that Elijah the prophet came near, and said, LORD God of Abraham, Isaac, and of Israel, let it be known this day that thou [art] God in Israel, and [that] I [am] thy servant, and [that] I have done all these things at thy word." "Hear me, O LORD, hear me, that this people may know that thou [art] the LORD God, and [that] thou hast turned their heart back again." "Then the fire of the LORD fell, and consumed the burnt sacrifice, and the wood, and the stones, and the dust, and licked up the water that [was] in the trench." "And when all the people saw [it], they fell on their faces: and they said, The LORD, he [is] the God; the LORD, he [is] the God."
The effect of the extreme presence of God is always the same.
They fall on their face to worship Him.
This manifestation is so great; it leaves no doubt that this is God.
Read the rest of 1 Kings chapter 18 of to get the full story.
To sum up this lesson, Moses has followed God's instructions.
Aaron is installed as high priest.
God is pleased, and the people realize this is God's plan, and not man's plan.
Leviticus Chapter 9 Continued Questions
1.What was different in the people's offering and the priest's offering?
2.What lesson can we learn in this?
3.What is strange about the meat offering, being called meat?
4.What do the elements of the meat offering make up?
5.Who is the Bread?
6.What does the offering of bread as a meat offering symbolize?
7.Who is the Christian's peace?
8.The fat in every offering belonged to whom?
9.The fat burned made a ________ ________ to God.
10.What did the waving of the breast symbolize?
11.Who had spoken the blessings of God to the people, before Aaron was ordained?
12.What did the fact that Aaron raised his hands toward heaven symbolize?
13.Jesus was our ____________ for our sin, in the sin offering.
14.Jesus was a sweet savor unto God for us in which offering?
15.In which offering was Jesus our peace?
16.What is the desire of every true Christian?
17.Where was the presence of God ordinarily, in the tabernacle in the wilderness?
18.What does the author believe the glory of the LORD to be?
19.Who did this glory appear to?
20.What did Paul see, when the glory of the LORD appeared to him?
21.What did the Fire do that came out in front of the people?
22.What effect did this have on the people?
23.What happened when Solomon had finished praying, when the temple in Jerusalem was dedicated to God?
24.What did this immediate consumption of the offering by God show the people?
25.What false god did Elijah and the real God discredit on Mount Carmel?
26.How many prophets of Baal prayed to their false god?
27.How long did they pray?
28.Did their long prayer help?
29.What other obstacle did Elijah place before God?
30.What happened when Elijah prayed to the real God?
31.What effect did this have on the people?
32.Sum up this lesson.