Lexical Summary marchesheth: Pan Original Word: מַרְחֶשֶׁת Strong's Exhaustive Concordance frying pan From rachash; a stew-pan -- fryingpan. see HEBREW rachash NAS Exhaustive Concordance Word Originfrom rachash Definition a stewpan, saucepan NASB Translation pan (2). Brown-Driver-Briggs מַרְחֶ֫שֶׁת noun feminine stew-pan, sauce-pan (so Late Hebrew; see especially LevyNHWB iii. 69 b, and compare Late Hebrew רָחוֺשׁ Idib. iv. 443 a); — ׳מִנְחַת מ Leviticus 2:7, ׳נַעֲשָׂה בַּמּ [מִנְחָה]כָּלֿ Leviticus 7:9. Topical Lexicon Biblical Context and Usage מַרְחֶשֶׁת appears only in Leviticus 2:7 and Leviticus 7:9. In both texts it designates the receptacle used for specific grain offerings. Leviticus 2:7 says, “If your grain offering is prepared in a pan, it is to be made of the finest flour with oil,” while Leviticus 7:9 adds, “Likewise, every grain offering that is baked in an oven or cooked in a pan or on a griddle belongs to the priest who offers it.” The term is therefore confined to the cultic legislation governing worship at the Tabernacle. Cultic Function The pan was employed for one of three permissible methods of preparing the grain offering: baked in an oven, cooked on a griddle, or cooked in a pan. When the worshiper chose the pan method, the offering was sautéed in oil, producing a moist cake that contrasted with the crisper griddle cakes. The priest would remove a memorial portion for combustion on the altar (Leviticus 2:2), while the remainder became priestly food (Leviticus 7:9–10). Thus the pan facilitated both divine presentation (through fire) and priestly sustenance. Material and Construction While Scripture does not specify the exact composition, extrabiblical parallels from the Late Bronze and Iron Age Levant indicate shallow, handle-less vessels made of bronze or cast iron, with gently sloping sides suitable for even heating. The absence of handles allowed the entire surface to contact the hearth stones, ensuring the oil-flour mixture cooked uniformly. Its portability made it useful for worship in the wilderness era, where metal implements could be packed and re-erected with each encampment. Symbolic Significance 1. Unity of Ingredients: The mingling of oil with fine flour within the confines of the pan pictures inseparable union. Oil commonly signifies the Holy Spirit; the fine flour, the perfection of Messiah’s humanity. Heated together, they portray the Spirit-anointed life of Jesus, entirely devoted under testing (“fire”) to the Father. Relation to Other Tabernacle Utensils Unlike the griddle (machabat) that produced thin, crispy cakes, or the oven (tannur) that enclosed the loaf in radiant heat, the pan allowed continuous visual contact with the offering as it cooked. That openness underscores voluntary, transparent devotion—no hidden chambers, no leaven, nothing concealed. The pan thus complements the other two implements, providing worshipers varied avenues to express the same underlying devotion of heart. New Testament Echoes Though the utensil itself is not named in the New Testament, the principle of an offering prepared under heat yet without leaven resurfaces in passages such as Hebrews 7:26–27, where Christ’s once-for-all offering supersedes the Levitical types. The pan’s function—bringing flour and oil through fire to God—prefigures the ultimate presentation of Christ’s sinless humanity through the suffering of the cross. Ministry Applications • Integrity in Service: Just as the pan’s contents were exposed to continual scrutiny during cooking, Christian service should be conducted in openness and purity before the Lord. Historical Insight Archaeological finds at sites such as Tel Dan and Hazor include bronze skillets with diameters ranging from 15 to 25 centimeters, consistent with a personal or family-sized grain offering. These artifacts affirm the everyday practicality of sacrificial worship: ordinary cookware consecrated to holy use. Summary מַרְחֶשֶׁת, though mentioned only twice, highlights the balance of simplicity and sanctity in Israel’s sacrificial system. A humble pan, filled with fine flour and oil, became an instrument of worship, priestly sustenance, and typological anticipation of the perfect offering found in Christ. Forms and Transliterations מַחֲבַ֑ת מַרְחֶ֖שֶׁת מחבת מרחשת ma·ḥă·ḇaṯ machaVat maḥăḇaṯ mar·ḥe·šeṯ marCheshet marḥešeṯLinks Interlinear Greek • Interlinear Hebrew • Strong's Numbers • Englishman's Greek Concordance • Englishman's Hebrew Concordance • Parallel TextsEnglishman's Concordance Leviticus 2:7 HEB: וְאִם־ מִנְחַ֥ת מַרְחֶ֖שֶׁת קָרְבָּנֶ֑ךָ סֹ֥לֶת NAS: is a grain offering [made] in a pan, it shall be made KJV: [be] a meat offering [baken] in the fryingpan, it shall be made INT: now if offering A pan your offering of fine Leviticus 7:9 2 Occurrences |
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