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What Did the Burnt Offerings Really Mean?

Episode 3
53m
June 13, 2022
What is the significance of the offerings described in Leviticus? In this episode, join Tim and Jon as they walk through the five offerings ancient Israelites made to Yahweh and see how the purpose of these practices sound a lot like the teachings of Jesus. Even here in Leviticus, Yahweh’s hope for his people is the same: love God and love your neighbor.
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QUOTE

The death of the animal and its purging through fire and ascending is an image of what I need to undergo––purging that could take my life. But in taking my life, it transforms me to live in proximity to the source of real life … This offering takes me on a journey that I need to undergo myself, which is a burning away of what I call life to embrace what is true life.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

  • Our sins endanger us and our proximity to the God who is the source of all life. Atonement repairs the relationship, so we can stay in proximity to God—real life is being in communion with God.
  • The story symbolically captured in the ascension offering animates Jesus’ story—that of laying down his life as a blameless representative and re-entering Yahweh’s presence, so all humanity might have the chance to enter Eden too.
  • The offerings show us that the ethics we find in Jesus’ teachings were not new when he arrived on the scene—Yahweh’s earliest guidelines for his people had everything to do with loving God and loving your neighbor.

Life That is Truly Life

In part one (00:00-9:01), Tim and Jon kick off our final conversation about the first movement of Leviticus. We recommend listening to the first two episodes in this series to best understand what we’re talking about in this episode. See episode one for our conversation about how Leviticus fits into the storyline of the Torah and episode two for what an atoning sacrifice is.

Our sins endanger us and our proximity to the God who is the source of all life. Atonement repairs the relationship, so we can stay in proximity to God—real life is being in communion with God.

John 17:3

This is eternal life, that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.

The “Going Up” Offering

In part two (9:01-24:26), Tim and Jon discuss the five offerings described in the opening movement of Leviticus: the ascension offering, the gift offering, the peace offering, the purification offering, and the guilt offering.

The ascension offering is first in the list because it’s foundational to the other offerings. “Ascension” is our translation of the Hebrew name for this offering, olah, which simply means to go up, so named because the focal point of this offering was the smoke that would rise up from the burning offering toward Heaven. It was offered every morning and evening to mark the boundaries between day and night.

With most offerings, only part of an animal was burned up, and part was saved to feed the priest who offered it. However, the olah involved burning the entire animal, representing costly and total surrender to Yahweh, not unlike the woman who anointed Jesus by pouring an entire bottle of perfume on him (Matt. 26, Mk. 14, Lk. 7).

In Leviticus 9, the glory cloud of Yahweh descends on the altar and lights the fire for the first ascension offering, creating a way for the blameless animal to enter his presence—to re-enter Eden—as the smoke ascends to Yahweh on behalf of Israel.

The story symbolically captured in the ascension offering animates Jesus’ story—the one he saw himself living out and fulfilling. Followers of Jesus mimic this same pattern where our whole lives can become olahs, imagery Paul riffs on in 1 Corinthians 3 and Romans 12.

The Gift Offering and the Peace Offering

In part three (24:26-33:20), Tim and Jon explore the gift offering and the peace offering.

The gift offering, or minha, was an offering of grain, fruits, or vegetables. It was an offering of firstfruits, just like Cain’s (Gen. 4), to thank God for his provision.

The peace offering, tzebakh shelammim, gets its name because shelammim is from the same root word as the Hebrew word for peace, shalom, and it gives us a visual depiction of the biblical understanding of shalom. The person presenting the peace offering would place their hands on the animal, similar to the practice of the atonement offering, but it’s not a sacrifice of atonement.

In the peace offering, the presenter keeps all the valuable meat, shares some with the priest, and then throws a dinner party for widows, orphans, and the rest of their family. Shalom is not just the absence of conflict, but the presence of relational harmony and abundance. Many psalms reference the peace offering because of its beautiful depiction of shalom.

  • Psalm 36:7
  • Psalm 65:4

The Purification Offering and the Guilt Offering

In part four (33:20-52:37), the guys talk about the final two offerings described in Leviticus.

The fourth offering, usually called the sin offering in English, is called the khatta’t in Hebrew. However, while the consonants in this Hebrew word are the same as the Hebrew word for sin (khata’a), its vowel pattern matches the Hebrew word khatte’, which means “to purify from sin’s effects.” This makes it clear that the name of the khatta’t offering refers to the process of purification from sin, not to the act of sin itself.

Finally, the guilt offering (asham) made restitution when someone misused or abused something of value to Yahweh or another person. The asham communicated a powerful principle we see throughout Scripture: when we wrong other humans, we also wrong Yahweh. Accordingly, in the asham, a person would repay the person wronged and then add an extra fifth of the value of what was destroyed and pay it to the temple.

The offerings show us that the ethics we find in Jesus’ teachings were not new when he arrived on the scene—Yahweh’s earliest guidelines for his people had everything to do with loving God and loving your neighbor.

Referenced Resources

  • Who Shall Ascend the Mountain of the Lord?: A Biblical Theology of the Book of Leviticus, L. Michael Morales
  • Leviticus: A Book of Ritual and Ethics, Jacob Milgrom
  • The Picture of Dorian Gray, Oscar Wilde
  • Interested in more? Check out Tim’s library here.
  • You can experience the literary themes and movements we’re tracing on the podcast in the BibleProject app, available for Android and iOS.

Show Music

  • “Defender (Instrumental)” by TENTS
  • “Educated Fool” by Jackie Hill Perry
  • “Analogs” by GreyFlood
  • Sound design by Dan Gummel

Show produced by Cooper Peltz. Edited by Dan Gummel and Tyler Bailey. Show notes by Lindsey Ponder. Podcast annotations for the BibleProject app by MacKenzie Buxman and Ashlyn Heise.

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Scripture References
Exodus 40:35
Exodus 19
Leviticus 27:30
John 17:3
Hebrews 13:15-16
Acts 2:3
Romans 12:1
Isaiah 6
Exodus 25:17-22
Leviticus 17:11
Psalms 65:4
Leviticus 2
Leviticus 3
Leviticus 4
Leviticus 5:1-14
Matthew 26:6-13
Leviticus 9:24
Matthew 16:25
Daniel 3:8-25
1 Corinthians 3:13
Deuteronomy 26
1 Corinthians 8
Deuteronomy 16:1-8
Psalms 36:7-9
Leviticus 8:14-15
Leviticus 4:1-12
Leviticus 4:13-21
Leviticus 4:27-31
Leviticus 5:14-16
Leviticus 17:6
Exodus 26
Exodus 30
Genesis 4:3

10 Episodes

Episode 1
How God Reveals Himself in Leviticus
"Holiness" is a word we frequently associate with the Bible, but what does it mean? As we pick up the story from where we left off in Exodus, we find even Moses unable to enter God’s presence—and a whole bunch of laws about situations many of us have never considered. What is going on in the scroll of Leviticus? And why is it important? In this episode, join Tim and Jon as they dive into the first movement of the Leviticus scroll, where we’ll trace the theme of sacrifice.
1hr 5m • May 30, 2022
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Episode 2
What Is Atonement?
A God who wants nothing more than to dwell with humanity, a way forward to a repaired relationship between Heaven and Earth, atoning sacrifices meant to communicate grace (not punishment)—you’ll find all of this in Leviticus. While the laws governing Israel’s sacrificial system can be some of the most challenging parts of the Bible to read, they’re an integral part of the unfolding story of the Bible. In this episode, Tim and Jon discuss the surprising beauty of sacrifice and atonement in the opening movement of Leviticus.
1hr 14m • June 6, 2022
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Episode 3
What Did the Burnt Offerings Really Mean?
What is the significance of the offerings described in Leviticus? In this episode, join Tim and Jon as they walk through the five offerings ancient Israelites made to Yahweh and see how the purpose of these practices sound a lot like the teachings of Jesus. Even here in Leviticus, Yahweh’s hope for his people is the same: love God and love your neighbor.
53m • June 13, 2022
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Episode 4
The Dangerous Gift of God’s Presence
In the second movement of Leviticus, Aaron and his sons agree to the terms of their covenant with Yahweh, signing up to be the gatekeepers of Heaven and Earth. But then Aaron’s sons offer unholy fire before Yahweh—and then they die. What’s going on here? A seven-day ceremony of consecration and celebration ends with everything going terribly wrong. Join Tim and Jon as they kick off the second movement of Leviticus, discussing the theme of holiness and a very difficult part of the story.
1hr 4m • June 20, 2022
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Episode 5
Purity and Impurity in Leviticus
Childbirth, non-kosher food, sex, death, disease—they’re all considered impure in the book of Leviticus. In this episode, join Tim and Jon as they discuss the levitical laws of purity and impurity and how they create a way for humanity to share in God’s own life and form a surprisingly beautiful backdrop for Jesus’ miraculous healings.
1hr 6m • June 27, 2022
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Episode 6
What Is the Day of Atonement?
At the center of the center of the Torah is the Day of Atonement. What is the significance of this day the biblical authors have placed at the heart of the Torah? What does this day accomplish? And what’s with the sacrificial goat and the scapegoat? In this episode, Tim and Jon explore the Day of Atonement and the ultimate atonement accomplished by Jesus on the cross.
1hr 9m • July 4, 2022
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Episode 7
Why Is the Sabbath So Important?
Throughout the Leviticus scroll, Yahweh instructs Israel, “Be holy as I am holy.” But what does that actually mean? As we enter into the third and final movement of Leviticus, we’ll find that living holy lives had everything to do with how Israel treated others and utilized their time, a theme reinforced by the continual command to honor the Sabbath. Join Jon and Tim as they explore the wisdom we can find in these ancient laws.
1hr 9m • July 11, 2022
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Episode 8
What Israel's Feasts Teach Us
Are there specific times humans can meet with God in special ways? For ancient Israel, the answer was yes. In this episode, join Tim and Jon as they explore the final movement of Leviticus, talk about the Sabbaths and festivals ancient Israelites celebrated every year, and discuss the significance of rituals and liturgies that allow us to see our time as a significant part of God’s story.
1hr 1m • July 18, 2022
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Episode 9
The Law of the Blasphemer
Blasphemy, principles of restitution, jubilee, exile, and the mercy and justice of God—it’s all there in the final lines of the scroll of Leviticus. Join Tim and Jon as they talk about the great gift and responsibility of carrying Yahweh’s name and discuss the wisdom and surprising hope of the Law that’s finally fulfilled in Jesus.
1hr 9m • July 25, 2022
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Episode 10
What Does Leviticus Teach Us About Jesus?
How do you clean a tabernacle? What does “laying of hands” represent? Is the scapegoat a hyperlink to Cain and Abel? How was it even possible for Israelites to follow the law? In this episode, Tim and Jon respond to your questions about the Leviticus scroll. Thanks to our audience for your insightful questions!
59m • October 12, 2022
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