What is the meaning of Leviticus 6:21? It shall be prepared with oil • The Lord instructs that the priest’s daily grain offering be mixed with oil, not water, echoing earlier directions in Leviticus 2:5—“If your offering is a grain offering baked on a griddle, it shall be of fine flour mixed with oil”. • Oil speaks of consecration and empowerment. When Samuel anointed David “with oil” (1 Samuel 16:13), “the Spirit of the LORD rushed upon David.” Likewise, Zechariah 4:6 ties oil and Spirit together: “‘Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit,’ says the LORD.” The daily use of oil reminds us that every act of worship depends on the Spirit’s enabling, not mere human effort. on a griddle • A griddle (flat pan) produced a quick-cooked bread, ready for immediate use. The priest’s service was to be fresh each morning, not leftovers. • This plain, open cooking method made the offering visible to all. Worship was never to be secretive or half-hearted. • Ezekiel was told to set an “iron griddle” (Ezekiel 4:3) as a symbolic wall; here, the griddle is for fellowship, not separation. God welcomes His priests—and, by extension, His people—to open, transparent communion. you are to bring it well-kneaded • The flour and oil had to be thoroughly blended so that every bite carried the same flavor. God desires undivided, integrated devotion. • Exodus 12:39 shows Israel baking in haste “without leaven.” Here, the kneading is careful and deliberate—no shortcuts in daily consecration. • Jesus compared the kingdom to yeast that a woman “hid in three measures of flour” until “all of it was leavened” (Luke 13:21). Though the imagery differs, the principle is similar: the whole must be permeated. and present it as a grain offering • Grain offerings were gifts, not sin offerings. They acknowledged God as provider (Leviticus 2:1-3) and accompanied burnt offerings that pictured atonement. • Numbers 28:2 commands Israel, “Present My food offerings.” Daily worship keeps gratitude alive: we live by bread He first supplies. • For priests, this particular offering also became their daily meal (Leviticus 6:23). Ministry flows from what we first give to God and then receive back sanctified. broken in pieces • The loaf was divided so every priest could share. Worship is communal, not isolated. • The breaking anticipates the Messiah: Jesus “took bread, gave thanks, and broke it” (Luke 22:19), declaring, “This is My body.” John 6:51 calls Him “the living bread...given for the life of the world.” • Physical fragments did not diminish the offering’s worth; likewise, Christ’s body broken did not lessen His glory but displayed it. a pleasing aroma to the LORD • Genesis 8:21 records, “The LORD smelled the pleasing aroma” of Noah’s sacrifice. The same language shows God’s delight here. • Ephesians 5:2 applies it to Jesus: “Christ loved us and gave Himself for us, a fragrant offering.” Every obedient act, however small, carries that fragrance when offered through Christ. • The Lord’s pleasure, not our feelings, confirms true worship. summary Leviticus 6:21 pictures a daily, Spirit-empowered act of worship: fresh bread mixed with oil, openly cooked, thoroughly prepared, offered gratefully, shared in fellowship, and enjoyed by God Himself. It reminds believers to present every day’s work—in the Spirit, with wholehearted devotion, in communion with others—as a fragrant gift that delights the Lord. |
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