The Burnt Offering (Leviticus 1)

Do the offerings in various ways foreshadow different aspects of the sacrifice of our Savior? How does the burnt offering prefigure Jesus? Do we offer our lives to God completely? Let’s begin with the burnt offering in Leviticus 1.

What was the first kind of offering mentioned in Leviticus? Could an unblemished or flawless male have prefigured a sinless Jesus?

Then the Lord called to Moses and said to him from the meeting tent, Speak to the Israelites and say to them: When any of you present a livestock offering to the Lord, you can present it from either the herd or the flock. If the offering is an entirely burned offering from the herd, you must present a flawless male, bringing it to the meeting tent’s entrance for its acceptance before the Lord. (Leviticus 1:1-3 CEB)

Laying on of hands is a doctrine found throughout the Bible. It was used for conveying a blessing, healing, confessing sin and putting hands on the head of a sacrifice, ordination and setting apart. What could it possibly mean here?

Lay your hand on its head, and I will accept the animal as a sacrifice for taking away your sins. After the bull is killed in my presence, some priests from Aaron's family will offer its blood to me by splattering it against the four sides of the altar. (Leviticus 1:4-5 CEV)

Did flaying the burnt offering foreshadow Jesus being flogged? Did burning all of it picture Jesus’ life on the cross as a total sacrifice?

Then he shall flay the burnt offering and cut it into pieces, and the sons of Aaron the priest shall put fire on the altar and arrange wood on the fire. And Aaron's sons the priests shall arrange the pieces, the head, and the fat, on the wood that is on the fire on the altar; but its entrails and its legs he shall wash with water. And the priest shall burn all of it on the altar, as a burnt offering, a food offering with a pleasing aroma to the Lord. (Leviticus 1:6-9 ESV)

For families unable to afford a large animal, was an offering from the sheep or goats also to have been unblemished? What could the washing have pictured?

But if his gift for a burnt offering is from the flock, from sheep or goats, he is to present an unblemished male. He will slaughter it on the north side of the altar before the Lord. Aaron’s sons the priests will sprinkle its blood against the altar on all sides. He will cut the animal into pieces with its head and its suet, and the priest will arrange them on top of the burning wood on the altar. But he is to wash the entrails and shanks with water. The priest will then present all of it and burn it on the altar; it is a burnt offering, a fire offering of a pleasing aroma to the Lord. (Leviticus 1:10-13 HCSB)

For an even poorer family, was a smaller offering of a bird acceptable? Did Jesus’ parents offer a pair of doves in making a similar sacrifice (Luke 2:24)?

If his offering is a burnt offering of birds to the Lord, he is to bring turtledoves or young doves. The priest is to bring it to the altar to offer it up in smoke. He is to decapitate it and drain its blood on the side of the altar, and then he is to eviscerate it and throw the viscera and the feathers to the east side of the altar, where the fatty ashes are located. He is then to tear it open by its wings, but not divide it completely into two parts. The priest is then to offer all of it on the wood over the fire as a burnt offering by fire, an aroma pleasing to the Lord. (Leviticus 1:14-17 ISV)

Do the offerings in various ways foreshadow different aspects of the sacrifice of our Savior? How does the burnt offering prefigure Jesus? Do we offer our lives to God completely? You decide!