Posted on by Abe Austin

Scriptural Analysis- Leviticus 7:1-6

1 Likewise this is the law of the trespass offering: it is most holy.

2 In the place where they kill the burnt offering shall they kill the trespass offering: and the blood thereof shall he sprinkle round about upon the altar.

3 And he shall offer of it all the fat thereof; the rump, and the fat that covereth the inwards,

4 And the two kidneys, and the fat that is on them, which is by the flanks, and the caul that is above the liver, with the kidneys, it shall he take away:

5 And the priest shall burn them upon the altar for an offering made by fire unto the Lord: it is a trespass offering.

6 Every male among the priests shall eat thereof: it shall be eaten in the holy place: it is most holy.

We heard about the trespass offering in the past two chapters, but there were limited descriptions on how the ritual was actually carried out. The assumption was that the sacrificed animal was handled much the same as other offerings. Today we get those fuller details, and the assumption is proven correct.

Importantly, this offering matches the burnt offering in how the blood was to be sprinkled around the altar, but matches the sin offering in how the fat, kidneys, and other minor parts were burned on the altar. It also matches the sin offering in how a portion of the meat was to be eaten by the priests.

These details make perfect sense, given what we noted earlier. The trespass offering was really two offerings in one: the burnt offering and the sin offering. Thus, some offerings were more fundamental (sin and burnt offering), and more complex offerings were composed of them (trespass offering). Not only this, but those fundamental offerings were themselves composed of specific ritualistic expressions (sprinkling of blood, burning of fat, priests eating of meat, etc.). From this we see that there was a grammar to the Hebrew sacrifices, and by becoming literate in the basic parts, we can use them to spell out more complex expressions.

SacrificeEligible oblationStepsExplanation
Trespass offeringFor minor offenses and mistakes
Lamb, young goatFat and kidneys burned on altarCleansing our behavior and desire
Blood sprinkled around altarOur life is sprinkled over God’s work
Portion given to priestsPriests share the burden of the sin
Two turtledoves, two pigeonsOne bird for a sin offering, one for a burnt offeringGiving up of offense and recommitment to the Lord
FlourSome of the grain for a sin offering, some for a meat offeringGiving up of offense and shared communion with the Lord
Posted on by Abe Austin

Scriptural Analysis- Leviticus 5:7-10

7 And if he be not able to bring a lamb, then he shall bring for his trespass, which he hath committed, two turtledoves, or two young pigeons, unto the Lord; one for a sin offering, and the other for a burnt offering.

8 And he shall bring them unto the priest, who shall offer that which is for the sin offering first, and wring off his head from his neck, but shall not divide it asunder:

9 And he shall sprinkle of the blood of the sin offering upon the side of the altar; and the rest of the blood shall be wrung out at the bottom of the altar: it is a sin offering.

10 And he shall offer the second for a burnt offering, according to the manner: and the priest shall make an atonement for him for his sin which he hath sinned, and it shall be forgiven him.

In the last verses we heard how the person making a trespass offering could give a lamb or a young goat, now we hear that two birds were also acceptable if one could not obtain the larger animals. Interestingly, if one went with the birds, each one represented another sub-offering. The first bird would be a sin offering, the second would be a burnt offering.

The sin offering would merely involve taking the life of the animal and wringing out its blood, nothing burned upon the altar. This, of course, represents the person wringing that which is wrong out of their lives, giving up the sin that holds them back. Then, the burnt offering, that is laid on the altar and burned as a gift to the Lord. This represents the commitment of one’s life to God.

With a larger animal, presumably there was enough material to do both of these steps in one. Blood to be sprinkled or smeared and unclean body parts to be discarded, fulfilling the sin offering portion, and good meat to be consumed on the altar, fulfilling the burnt offering portion.

Having both of these offering types as a part of the trespass offering, we see that in the grammar of sacrificial offerings, sin and burnt offerings were fundamental components, individual words that could be combined together to create more advanced sentences of surrender to the Lord.

SacrificeEligible oblationStepsExplanation
Trespass offeringLamb, young goat, two turtledoves, two pigeonsFor minor offenses and mistakes
One bird for a sin offering, one for a burnt offeringGiving up of offense and recommitment to the Lord