I. Verses 1-16.

A. These verses probably should have been included in chapter 21 for they continue talking about the responsibilities and requirements of the priesthood.

B. Verse 1-9 - Gives the requirements the priest must meet in order to eat of the holy and most holy things.

1. 21:16-23 tells of the blemishes on the priesthood that makes the priest unacceptable as far as tending the altar or going into the Most Holy Place. These priests, because of these blemishes they are not responsible for, were allowed to eat of the holy and most holy things.

2. 22:1-9 tells of uncleanness of the priest which will keep them from eating of the holy and most holy things.

a. Some of these things the priest is not responsible for:

1) Verse 4 - For being a leper or having a running issue.

2) Verse 5-8 - The accidental touching of anything unclean, thus making the priest unclean.

b. The priest is responsible for the willful touching of anything unclean, thus making the priest unclean.

3. How the priest in purified from his uncleanness.

a. Verse 6 - The first thing the priest must remember is that he is not to eat of the holy things while he is ceremonially unclean.

b. Verse 6 - He must wash his flesh in water. This is a ceremonial cleansing.

c. Verse 7 - After the sun is gone down, then he may eat of the holy food.

d. Verse 4 - The priest that is a leper or has a running issue may not eat of the holy things until he is cleansed of his leprosy or running issue. Verse 8 tells this priest that he can eat other food, but not to eat anything torn of beasts or that dies of itself.

4. The penalty to the priest that eats the holy food in his uncleanness.

a. Verse 2 - He profanes the holy things. This means that he makes them common. He destroys their sacredness, both to God and man.

b. Verse 9 - The priest shall die if they willingly profane the sacrifices to God.

c. Verse 9 - The reason is because God has sanctified (set aside) them. They are the human representatives of God upon this earth and ought to be like Christ.

C. Verse 10-16 - The people that are not priests that may eat of the holy things.

1. Verse 10 - No stranger of Israel, or a visitor to the priest, or a hired servant. They are not permanent in the family of the priest. Their eating of the holy things causes the food to be common and not special to God.

2. Verse 11 - Any servant that is bought or that is born in the house may eat because they are considered to be a permanent member of that family.

3. Verse 12,13 - The priests daughter.

a. Verse 12 - If she marries a stranger or someone who is not a priest, she may not eat of the holy things for she has left the family.

b. Verse 13 - If she marries and her husband dies or he divorces her, and she has no children, then she is able to eat of the holy things. It is just like it was when she lived unmarried in the family. If she has children, then she cannot eat of the holy things, for this once again causes the holy things to be made common.

4. The priests sons - They are not mentioned because they are, of course, priests themselves and are allowed to eat of the holy things unless some uncleanness falls on them.

D. Verse 14 - The man that mistakenly eats the holy things either in his uncleanness or a man who is not a priest and eats.

1. He must pay a 20% penalty for his mistake.

2. He must also bring the remainder of the holy thing to the priest.

E. Verse 15,16 - The priest must be very careful to cause the people to think very highly upon the things of God. They must never allow them to become common everyday things or things that they would take for granted. To do so would cause the judgment of God to fall on them and on the people. They must ever be on guard against this.

F. If all the above things are true, and they are, how do we explain I Sam. 21:1-6? This is the place where David (who was not a priest) took of the shewbread and gave it to the men that were with him. They did not suffer the judgment of God for this action.

1. The answer is in Matt. 12:1-8 - The Pharisees had come the place that they obeyed all the parts of the law that it was humanly possible to keep. They looked down on everybody that didn't do it like they did.

2. In verse 3, Jesus confronts them with this story.

3. The answer is in verse 7 where Jesus states that the most important thing is mercy and not sacrifice. (Obedience from the heart rather than obedience from the flesh.)

a. Ps. 51:16,17 - David would have given a sacrifice if that was what God desired. But God desired a broken spirit, a broken and contrite heart. (Contrite means "collapse")

b. Matt. 23:23 - Jesus condemned the Pharisees and scribes for going to extremes to fulfill the physical or fleshly parts of the law and neglecting the weightier matters - judgment, mercy, and faith.

II. Verse 17-33 - Three laws concerning sacrifices.

A. Verse 17-25 - The sacrifices must be pure because they represent Jesus who was pure.

1. Verse 18 - These laws concern the burnt offering.

2. Verse 19:

a. Offer at your own free will. This is odd to some people for they expect that all the offerings in the Old Testament were given because they had to be given. In that day, as it is in this day, the only offering acceptable to God were those "free- will offerings".

b. Without blemish - because Christ had no blemish, neither physically or spiritually.

c. Beeves - of the "ox kind" of either gender (as used for ploughing).

3. Verse 20 - Offering nothing with a blemish.

4. Verse 21 - The sacrifice of a peace offering shall be without blemish.

5. Verse 22 - Various types of blemishes are mentioned.

a. Wen - a running sore.

b. Scurvy - not the disease, but a wound caused by scratching, like an infection.

6. Verse 23 - For a free will offering a less than perfect animal can be offered.

a. This is an animal that is born like this, not this way because of an accident of some kind.

b. Example: An animal whose eyes are not equal, or whose ears are not the same size. As long as they are not blind, broken, or maimed, or having a wen, or scurvy, or scabbed. (verse 22)

c. Reason: Our freewill offerings to God are also given in imperfection. The less than perfect animal reflects our less than perfect thanksgiving.

d. But the vow requires a perfect sacrifice so we will complete the vow to perfection. God requires us to.

7. Verse 24 - Offer nothing to the Lord which is bruised, crushed, broken, or cut. Don't offer anything to God that you figure will die anyway. God doesn't want our scrapes. He desires from us that which is good and useful to ourselves.

8. Verse 25 - Any stranger that will offer to God must do it God's way. In most other religions, any kind of sacrifice is accepted. Some pagan religions accepted dead animals, or those dying. But let every stranger know that the God of Israel will not be worshipped like pagan gods, nor will He be worshipped with the decaying sacrifices of pagan gods. He will be worshipped with the best.

B. The age requirement of the sacrifice.

1. Verse 27 - Nothing under 8 days old shall be used for a sacrifice. This will give plenty of time to see if it is a fit animal or not. This also conforms to the law of circumcision.

2. Verse 28 - Don't kill both the young and the parent on the same day. a. The purpose: to instill a respect for life, thus the law written in Deut. 22:6. b. To reflect a tenderness toward life even when it is necessary to kill animals. c. As; the King of Babylon who killed Zedediah's sons before him, then put out both his eyes. This is an act of a barbarian. Let us not be like they are.

C. The eating requirements of the sacrifice.

1. Verse 29 - Offer thanksgiving offerings at your own will.

2. Verse 30 - Eat it all that day, because God commanded it.

D. Verse 31-33 - The reason for doing all of these things.

1. Verse 31 - Therefore I am the Lord.

2. Verse 32 - don't profane (make common) my name (authority). Israel, as well as folks today, are commanded to respect the Lord and set Him aside because He is the one who has set us aside.

3. Verse 33 - Remember the blessings of coming out of the land of Egypt, therefore, worship me. I am the LORD.