βAnd when any will offer a meat offering unto the LORD, his offering shall be of fine flour; and he shall pour oil upon it, and put frankincense thereon:β
One, (anima). The soul is put to denote the whole person. β Of sacrifice. Hebrew mincha, which is applied to inanimate things, particularly to flour, βa present of wheat.β (Vatable) β As the other sacrifices have peculiar names, this is barely called sacrifice by the Vulgate. It was instituted, 1. for the poor; 2. to support the ministers of religion; 3. to shew that God was to be honoured with the fruits of the earth; 4. sacrifice being intended as a sort of feast, bread, salt, wine, and oil accompany it; and also incense, which was almost solely reserved for God. (Menochius) β The person who offered the sacrifice, had to furnish all things belonging to it. The Samaritan and Septuagint add at the end of this verse, βBehold what is the offering of the Lord.β Similar words occur, (ver. 6. and 16,) in Hebrew. Sacrifices of flour were the most ancient of all. Ovid (Fast. ii.) says, Farra tamen veteres jaciebant, farra metebant, &c. βNuma taught the people to worship the gods with fruits and flour, and to make supplication with a salted cake.β (Pliny, xviii. 2.) Fruge deos colere, & molΔ salsΔ supplicare. (Calmet)
βAnd he shall bring it to Aaron's sons the priests: and he shall take thereout his handful of the flour thereof, and of the oil thereof, with all the frankincense thereof; and the priest shall burn the memorial of it upon the altar, to be an offering made by fire, of a sweet savour unto the LORD:β
Memorial. βTo worship and celebrate the name of God.β (Louis de Dieu.)
βAnd the remnant of the meat offering shall be Aaron's and his sons': it is a thing most holy of the offerings of the LORD made by fire.β
Holy of holies. That is, most holy; as being dedicated to God, and set aside by his ordinance for the use of his priests. (Challoner) β All was to be eaten or consumed in the tabernacle. The high priest offered a gomor full of flour and oil, rather baked, every day, chap. vi. 20. (Calmet)
βAnd the priest shall take from the meat offering a memorial thereof, and shall burn it upon the altar: it is an offering made by fire, of a sweet savour unto the LORD.β
Out of. The handful, which shall be burnt, shall cause God to remember and grant the request of the offerer, equally as if the whole were consumed. (Menochius)
βNo meat offering, which ye shall bring unto the LORD, shall be made with leaven: for ye shall burn no leaven, nor any honey, in any offering of the LORD made by fire.β
Without leaven or honey. No leaven or honey was to be used in the sacrifice offered to God: to signify that we are to exclude from the pure worship of the gospel, all double-dealing and affection to carnal pleasures. (Challoner) β The prohibition of leaven regarded these sacrifices. It was offered with the first-fruits, (chap. xxiii. 17,) and perhaps also in peace-offerings, chap. vii. 13. Honey is here rejected, as incompatible with the other ingredients, to admonish us to lead a penitential life, and to keep at a greater distance from the customs of the pagans, who generally accompanied their oblations with honey, Ezechiel xvi. 18. Herodotus (B. ii.) says, the Egyptians used honey in sacrifice. (Calmet) β By unleavened bread, the Hebrews were reminded of their flight out of Egypt; and by refraining from honey, they were taught to act like men. (Menochius)
βAs for the oblation of the firstfruits, ye shall offer them unto the LORD: but they shall not be burnt on the altar for a sweet savour. be burnt: Heb. ascendβ
First-fruits, &c., to be voluntarily given to the priests, in honour of God. The honey arising from the dates might also be offered. β It was little inferior to that of bees. (Josephus, Jewish Wars v. 3.) See Numbers xv. 19.
βAnd every oblation of thy meat offering shalt thou season with salt; neither shalt thou suffer the salt of the covenant of thy God to be lacking from thy meat offering: with all thine offerings thou shalt offer salt.β
Salt. In every sacrifice salt was to be used, which is an emblem of wisdom and discretion, without which none of our performances are agreeable to God. (Challoner) β Salt is not prescribed in the sacrifices of animals. But it was to be used in them, as we learn from the Jews, and from St. Mark ix. 48, Every victim shall be salted. The ancient poets never specify salt in their descriptions of sacrifices. But Pliny assures us, that in his time it was of the greatest authority, and always used in sacrifices, with cakes. Maxime in sacris intelligebatur salis auctoritas, quando nulla conficiuntur sine molΔ salsΔ. (B. xxxi. 7.) β Covenant. It is so called, because it was a symbol of the durable condition of the alliance with God, which was renewed in every sacrifice; (Calmet) or it may signify βthe salt prescribedβ by God: for the law and covenant are often used synonymously. (Menochius) β Let your speech be always in grace, seasoned with salt, Colossians iv. 6. See Numbers xviii. 19.
βAnd if thou offer a meat offering of thy firstfruits unto the LORD, thou shalt offer for the meat offering of thy firstfruits green ears of corn dried by the fire, even corn beaten out of full ears.β
And break, &c. Hebrew has simply, βcorn beaten out (or ready to be beaten out) of full ears.β (Haydock) β These were to be offered at the Passover. (Du Hamel)