Leviticus 6:1(8) -8:36
The word “tzav” meas “command”.
This week's portion can be divided as follows:
The Law of the Elevation or Burnt (Olah) Offering
The Meal or Grain (Minchah) Offering
The Sin (Chatat) Offering
The Guilt (Asham) Offering
The Thanksgiving (Todah) or Peace (Shelamim) Offering
Eating in a State of Contamination
Fat and Blood Not to Be Eaten
The Parts of the Offering to Be Burned and Those Given to the Priests as Gifts
Consecration of Aaron and His Sons for the Priestly Service in the Tabernacle
In this Torah portion we find additional instructions given to Moses regarding the sacrifices and the priests. Some is repeated from the portion from the prior week.
The priests are required to keep the fire on the altar burning and to make sure that the olah offering is burnt up completely before morning.
Aaron and his sons are also instructed to remain within the tabernacle for 7 days during which time they will be set apart and initiated into the priesthood.
Notice how many times the word blood is mentioned in this portion. No doubt the continual flow of blood would have daily reminded the priests as well as the people about the value of life, both man's and animals. No doubt it would have also reminded them that sin was an awful thing and it always costs an innocent victim its life.
They knew firsthand that sin seperated man from his Creator. Remember also that whenever an offerer brought a sacrifice to the tabernacle, or later the temple, that the offerer had to actually kill the sacrifice. The priest completed the process but only after the offerer had killed the animal. This always reminded the offerer of the great value of life and the great cost of sin. What if you had to bring an animal and kill it every time you missed the mark (sinned)? Surely it would make you think twice about your daily actions and activities?
Yeshua paid this great price for us. He took our sins upon Himself and died for our sins. He was the innocent victim paying the price for mankinds guilt. As we approach the Passover season we should remember His great sacrifice; not only at Passover, but every day we should remember the blood that this man shed.
In addition, all of the sacrifices and offerings pointed to life, not death. The peace offering in particular pointed to a resurrection on the third day. Yeshua arose on the third day and His flesh did not see decay as is recorded in scripture: “For thou wilt not leave my soul in Sheol; neither wilt thou suffer thy Holy One to see decay”. Psalm 16:10
In Hosea we read about the third day:
He will revive us after two days; He will raise us up on the third day, that we may live before Him” (Hosea 6:2).
Shalom,
Leisa