Sacrifices To Ask The Lord’s Blessing

Topic: Peace

Passage: Leviticus 3:1–17

March 30, 2022

Commentary

III. THE PEACE (HEAVE) OFFERING – Chapter 3

The “peace (fellowship) offering” is the third sacrifice of worship. It represented the personal fellowship between God and each Israelite person that resulted from the relationship that God had established with the redeemed individual (Rom. 5:1). Hands were laid on the head of the animal and its blood sprinkled while the body was burned on the altar. This points to peace with God through Christ. This is not referring to the peace of forgiveness. It is not peace with God; it is the peace of God we are talking about here. It is peace not in the sense of hostility ceased but in the sense of emotional stability, of an untroubled heart. That is what we need – a sense of security, of well-being, of confidence that things are under control and that it is all going to work out. That is the kind of peace this offering represents.

They could offer either a bull or a cow, but there must be nothing wrong with the animal (v.1). A priest from Aaron’s family was to splatter its blood against the sides of the altar (v. 2). They were to offer all of the fat on the animal’s insides (v. 3), also the liver and the two kidneys with their fat (v. 4). The priests were to lay these pieces on the altar and send them up in smoke, together with the sacrifice that is offered (v. 5).

Instead of a bull or a cow, you could offer any sheep or goat that had nothing wrong with it (vv. 6-11). If you offered a goat, you must also present it at the entrance to the sacred tent the same as with the bull or cow (vv. 12-16). They must never eat any fat or any blood, not even in the privacy of their own homes (v. 17).

Application

We all are familiar with the physical difficulties which can come with such an absence of peace. It is an excellent way for me to build a good case of ulcers. I desire to cultivate love, joy and peace.

Leviticus 3:1– 17 (NET)

¹ “‘Now if his offering is a peace-offering sacrifice, if he presents an offering from the herd, he must present before the Lord a flawless male or a female. ² He must lay his hand on the head of his offering and slaughter it at the entrance of the Meeting Tent, and the sons of Aaron, the priests, must splash the blood against the altar’s sides. ³ Then the one presenting the offering must present a gift to the Lord from the peace-offering sacrifice: He must remove the fat that covers the entrails and all the fat that surrounds the entrails, ⁴ the two kidneys with the fat on their sinews, and the protruding lobe on the liver (which he is to remove along with the kidneys). ⁵ Then the sons of Aaron must offer it up in smoke on the altar atop the burnt offering that is on the wood in the fire as a gift of a soothing aroma to the Lord.

⁶ “‘If his offering for a peace-offering sacrifice to the Lord is from the flock, he must present a flawless male or female. ⁷ If he presents a sheep as his offering, he must present it before the Lord. ⁸ He must lay his hand on the head of his offering and slaughter it before the Meeting Tent, and the sons of Aaron must splash its blood against the altar’s sides. ⁹ Then he must present a gift to the Lord from the peace-offering sacrifice: He must remove all the fatty tail up to the end of the spine, the fat covering the entrails, and all the fat on the entrails, ¹⁰ the two kidneys with the fat on their sinews, and the protruding lobe on the liver (which he is to remove along with the kidneys). ¹¹ Then the priest must offer it up in smoke on the altar as a food gift to the Lord.

¹² “‘If his offering is a goat he must present it before the Lord, ¹³ lay his hand on its head, and slaughter it before the Meeting Tent, and the sons of Aaron must splash its blood against the altar’s sides. ¹⁴ Then he must present from it his offering as a gift to the Lord: the fat which covers the entrails and all the fat on the entrails, ¹⁵ the two kidneys with the fat on their sinews, and the protruding lobe on the liver (which he is to remove along with the kidneys). ¹⁶ Then the priest must offer them up in smoke on the altar as a food gift for a soothing aroma—all the fat belongs to the Lord. ¹⁷ This is a perpetual statute throughout your generations in all the places where you live: You must never eat any fat or any blood.’”