भाष्य सध्या फक्त इंग्रजीत उपलब्ध आहे. मराठी भाषांतर प्रगतीपथावर आहे.
Leviticus 1 — It Shall Be Accepted for Him to Make Atonement
God calls Moses from the tabernacle. The first of the five offerings is the burnt offering — voluntary, of the herd or flock or fowl, completely consumed on the altar. The offerer lays his hand on the head of the offering; it is accepted for him to make atonement. The whole offering ascends as a sweet savor.
“And he shall put his hand upon the head of the burnt offering; and it shall be accepted for him to make atonement for him.”
— Leviticus 1:4
- v.1-2 The Lord calls Moses from the tabernacle
- v.3-9 Burnt offering from the herd
- v.10-13 Burnt offering from the flock
- v.14-17 Burnt offering of birds
A male without blemish. The standard for the burnt offering. The offering had to be the best of the herd, not the worst. Malachi 1:8 — if ye offer the blind for sacrifice, is it not evil? God will not be honored by what costs us nothing.
Of his own voluntary will. The burnt offering was not compulsory. It was the voluntary expression of total dedication. The same principle runs through Romans 12:1 — present your bodies a living sacrifice... your reasonable service.
The laying on of hands transferred the worshipper's identification to the victim. The animal stood in the offerer's place. The blood that flowed was, by symbolic substitution, his own.
Accepted for him. The Hebrew makes it clear — the offering is accepted in his place. This is substitutionary atonement in its earliest detailed form. The same principle reaches its perfection at Calvary: the Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all (Isaiah 53:6).
Burn all on the altar. The whole burnt offering — everything consumed, nothing kept back. Of all the offerings, this one alone was wholly given to God.
Christ offered Himself wholly. He did not save part of His life. He gave even His last breath. The burnt offering is the picture; His total self-giving is the substance. Christ also hath loved us, and hath given himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweetsmelling savour (Ephesians 5:2).
A provision for the poor. The herd was for the wealthy, the flock for the middle-class, the doves for those who could afford no more. No one was excluded from worship by poverty.
Luke 2:24 — Mary and Joseph, after the birth of Jesus, offered a pair of turtledoves, or two young pigeons. The Son of God was born into a family poor enough to bring the bird offering. The same Christ would later say blessed are the poor (Luke 6:20).
Lay your hand on Christ — the True Burnt Offering. The transfer of identification is by faith. He shall be accepted for you to make atonement for you. The animal stood for the Old Testament worshipper; Christ stands for the believer. Put your hand on Him by faith; His acceptance becomes yours.
Christ is the perfect Burnt Offering. He was without blemish (1 Peter 1:19). He came of His own voluntary will (John 10:18). He was accepted in the place of sinners. He was wholly given — every part of Him offered, every drop of blood spent. Ephesians 5:2 names Him explicitly as the burnt offering: Christ also hath loved us, and hath given himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweetsmelling savour.
The book of Leviticus opens with God calling. The glory had filled the tabernacle at the end of Exodus; now God speaks from it. Worship begins not with man approaching but with God speaking.
Hebrews 1:1-2 — God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son. The voice from the tabernacle becomes the voice from heaven becomes the voice in the flesh of Christ. The same God still speaks.