Leviticus 2: The Grain Offering — ReidOne Bible Study

Leviticus 2 (WEB)

1 “‘When anyone offers an offering of a meal offering to Yahweh, his offering shall be of fine flour; and he shall pour oil on it, and put frankincense on it.

2 He shall bring it to Aaron’s sons, the priests; and he shall take his handful of its fine flour, and of its oil, with all its frankincense; and the priest shall burn its memorial on the altar, an offering made by fire, of a pleasant aroma to Yahweh.

3 That which is left of the meal offering shall be Aaron’s and his sons’. It is a most holy thing of the offerings of Yahweh made by fire.

4 “‘When you offer an offering of a meal offering baked in the oven, it shall be unleavened cakes of fine flour mixed with oil, or unleavened wafers anointed with oil.

5 If your offering is a meal offering of the griddle, it shall be of unleavened fine flour, mixed with oil.

6 You shall cut it in pieces, and pour oil on it. It is a meal offering.

7 If your offering is a meal offering of the pan, it shall be made of fine flour with oil.

8 You shall bring the meal offering that is made of these things to Yahweh: and it shall be presented to the priest, and he shall bring it to the altar.

9 The priest shall take from the meal offering its memorial, and shall burn it on the altar, an offering made by fire, of a pleasant aroma to Yahweh.

10 That which is left of the meal offering shall be Aaron’s and his sons’. It is a thing most holy of the offerings of Yahweh made by fire.

11 “‘No meal offering, which you shall offer to Yahweh, shall be made with yeast; for you shall burn no yeast, nor any honey, as an offering made by fire to Yahweh.

12 As an offering of first fruits you shall offer them to Yahweh: but they shall not ascend for a pleasant aroma on the altar.

13 Every offering of your meal offering you shall season with salt; neither shall you allow the salt of the covenant of your God to be lacking from your meal offering. With all your offerings you shall offer salt.

14 “‘If you offer a meal offering of first fruits to Yahweh, you shall offer for the meal offering of your first fruits grain in the ear parched with fire, bruised grain of the fresh ear.

15 You shall put oil on it, and lay frankincense on it: it is a meal offering.

16 The priest shall burn as its memorial, part of its bruised grain, and part of its oil, along with all its frankincense: it is an offering made by fire to Yahweh.

Leviticus 2 (KJV)

1 And 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:

2 And 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:

3 And 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.

4 And if thou bring an oblation of a meat offering baken in the oven, it shall be unleavened cakes of fine flour mingled with oil, or unleavened wafers anointed with oil.

5 And if thy oblation be a meat offering baken in a pan, it shall be of fine flour unleavened, mingled with oil.

6 Thou shalt part it in pieces, and pour oil thereon: it is a meat offering.

7 And if thy oblation be a meat offering baken in the fryingpan, it shall be made of fine flour with oil.

8 And thou shalt bring the meat offering that is made of these things unto the Lord: and when it is presented unto the priest, he shall bring it unto the altar.

9 And 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.

10 And that which is left 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.

11 No 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.

12 As 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.

13 And 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.

14 And 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.

15 And thou shalt put oil upon it, and lay frankincense thereon: it is a meat offering.

16 And the priest shall burn the memorial of it, part of the beaten corn thereof, and part of the oil thereof, with all the frankincense thereof: it is an offering made by fire unto the Lord.

Leviticus 2 (ASV)

1 And when any one offereth an oblation of a meal-offering unto Jehovah, his oblation shall be of fine flour; and he shall pour oil upon it, and put frankincense thereon:

2 and he shall bring it to Aaron’s sons the priests; and he shall take thereout his handful of the fine flour thereof, and of the oil thereof, with all the frankincense thereof. And the priest shall burn it as the memorial thereof upon the altar, an offering made by fire, of a sweet savor unto Jehovah:

3 and that which is left of the meal-offering shall be Aaron’s and his sons’: it is a thing most holy of the offerings of Jehovah made by fire.

4 And when thou offerest an oblation of a meal-offering baken in the oven, it shall be unleavened cakes of fine flour mingled with oil, or unleavened wafers anointed with oil.

5 And if thy oblation be a meal-offering of the baking-pan, it shall be of fine flour unleavened, mingled with oil.

6 Thou shalt part it in pieces, and pour oil thereon: it is a meal-offering.

7 And if thy oblation be a meal-offering of the frying-pan, it shall be made of fine flour with oil.

8 And thou shalt bring the meal-offering that is made of these things unto Jehovah: and it shall be presented unto the priest, and he shall bring it unto the altar.

9 And the priest shall take up from the meal-offering the memorial thereof, and shall burn it upon the altar, an offering made by fire, of a sweet savor unto Jehovah.

10 And that which is left of the meal-offering shall be Aaron’s and his sons’: it is a thing most holy of the offerings of Jehovah made by fire.

11 No meal-offering, which ye shall offer unto Jehovah, shall be made with leaven; for ye shall burn no leaven, nor any honey, as an offering made by fire unto Jehovah.

12 As an oblation of first-fruits ye shall offer them unto Jehovah: but they shall not come up for a sweet savor on the altar.

13 And every oblation of thy meal-offering shalt thou season with salt; neither shalt thou suffer the salt of the covenant of thy God to be lacking from thy meal-offering: with all thine oblations thou shalt offer salt.

14 And if thou offer a meal-offering of first-fruits unto Jehovah, thou shalt offer for the meal-offering of thy first-fruits grain in the ear parched with fire, bruised grain of the fresh ear.

15 And thou shalt put oil upon it, and lay frankincense thereon: it is a meal-offering.

16 And the priest shall burn the memorial of it, part of the bruised grain thereof, and part of the oil thereof, with all the frankincense thereof: it is an offering made by fire unto Jehovah.

Summary

After the burnt offering of an animal, Yahweh describes the grain or meal offering, the one bloodless sacrifice. A worshiper brings fine flour with oil poured on it and frankincense, and the priest burns a handful as a memorial portion, an offering made by fire and a pleasant aroma to Yahweh. The grain offering may be raw flour or baked into unleavened cakes or wafers from the oven, griddle, or pan, but always without yeast and never with honey, for these picture corruption that has no place on God's altar. Every grain offering is to be seasoned with salt, the salt of the covenant of God, a sign of lasting faithfulness. The portion not burned belongs to Aaron and his sons as a most holy thing, providing for those who serve at the altar. As a gift drawn from the fruit of human labor, the grain offering expresses gratitude and the dedication of daily work to the Lord. In its purity, its memorial, and its salt of covenant, it points toward Christ, the bread of life, whose self-giving is the truest offering of all.

Key Figures

Yahweh (the LORD) — The God who receives the gift of grain as a pleasant aroma and shares its portions with those who serve him at the altar.
The worshiper — The Israelite who brings fine flour, oil, and frankincense, dedicating the fruit of his labor to God in thankful worship.
Aaron and his sons — The priests who burn the memorial portion and receive the remainder as a most holy provision for their service.

Key Verse

Leviticus 2:13 (WEB)

Every offering of your meal offering you shall season with salt; neither shall you allow the salt of the covenant of your God to be lacking from your meal offering. With all your offerings you shall offer salt.

Lessons Learned

God welcomes the dedication of our ordinary labor, not only the sacrifice of animals.
Worship is to be free of the “yeast” of corruption that quietly spreads through what we offer.
The salt of the covenant marks God's relationship with his people as enduring and faithful.
God provides for those who serve him by giving the priests a share of the offering.

Daily work can be offered to God. The worshiper brings “fine flour” with oil and frankincense (Leviticus 2:1, WEB). The grain offering consecrates the fruit of human labor to the Lord.
No corruption belongs on the altar. “No meal offering… shall be made with yeast; for you shall burn no yeast, nor any honey” (Leviticus 2:11, WEB). What pictures decay is excluded from worship.
Covenant is sealed with salt. “Neither shall you allow the salt of the covenant of your God to be lacking” (Leviticus 2:13, WEB). God's bond with his people is meant to last and to preserve.
A memorial rises to God. The priest burns “its memorial on the altar, an offering made by fire, of a pleasant aroma to Yahweh” (Leviticus 2:2, WEB). Even a humble gift is remembered before God.

What sets the grain offering apart from the animal sacrifices, and what might its bloodless gift express?
Why are yeast and honey forbidden while salt is required in every grain offering?
What does it mean that a “memorial portion” is burned while the rest is given to the priests?
How does offering the fruit of one's labor reflect a heart of gratitude and dependence?
What part of your daily work could you consciously dedicate to God as an offering this week?

The grain offering is the one offering without blood, a gift drawn from cultivated grain rather than the flock. It expresses thankful dedication of one's labor and sustenance, accompanying the atoning sacrifices rather than replacing them.
Yeast and honey were associated with fermentation and decay, fit symbols of corruption, while salt preserves and signifies the enduring “salt of the covenant” (2:13). Worship is to be pure and bound to God's lasting faithfulness.
A handful is burned as a memorial that ascends to God, while the rest sustains the priests as “a most holy thing” (2:3). God both receives worship and provides for his servants through the same gift.
Bringing fine flour and oil acknowledges that our daily bread comes from God and belongs to him. The offering trains the heart in gratitude and dependence rather than self-sufficiency.
This is a gentle personal-application question. Encourage members to name a specific area of work or daily provision they can offer to God, and to consider how dedicating it might reshape their attitude toward it.