‘No grain offering which you bring to the Lord shall be made with leaven, for you shall burn no leaven nor any honey in any offering to the Lord made by fire.
Parallel translations
- WEB “‘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.
- KJV 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.
- BSB No grain offering that you present to the LORD may be made with leaven, for you are not to burn any leaven or honey as an offering made by fire to the LORD.
- NASB ‘No grain offering, which you bring to the Lord, shall be made with leaven, for you shall not offer up in smoke any leaven or any honey as an offering by fire to the Lord.
- NLT “Do not use yeast in preparing any of the grain offerings you present to the Lord, because no yeast or honey may be burned as a special gift presented to the Lord.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
No grain offering may contain yeast or honey when burned to God. Symbols of corruption and fermentation are excluded from what ascends on the altar.
Overview
Leaven and honey both ferment and were therefore unfit for burning on the altar, likely symbolizing corruption or natural sweetness that does not belong in the fire of sacrifice. The prohibition guarded the purity of offerings made to God. This emphasis on purity anticipates the sincerity and truth that mark genuine worship, made possible through Christ our unleavened Passover (1 Corinthians 5:8).
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 16
- Luke 12:1Meanwhile, when a multitude of many thousands had gathered together, so much so that they trampled on each other, he began to tell his disciples first of all, “Beware of the yeast of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy.
- Gal 5:9A little yeast grows through the whole lump.
- Exod 23:18“You shall not offer the blood of my sacrifice with leavened bread. The fat of my feast shall not remain all night until the morning.
- Mark 8:15He warned them, saying, “Take heed: beware of the yeast of the Pharisees and the yeast of Herod.”
- 1 Pet 4:2that you no longer should live the rest of your time in the flesh for the lusts of men, but for the will of God.
- Lev 6:16–17That which is left of it Aaron and his sons shall eat. It shall be eaten without yeast in a holy place. They shall eat it in the court of the Tent of Meeting.
- Prov 25:27It is not good to eat much honey; nor is it honorable to seek one’s own honor.
- Prov 24:13My son, eat honey, for it is good; the droppings of the honeycomb, which are sweet to your taste:
- Exod 12:19–20There shall be no yeast found in your houses for seven days, for whoever eats that which is leavened, that soul shall be cut off from the congregation of Israel, whether he is a foreigner, or one who is born in the land.
- Prov 25:16Have you found honey? Eat as much as is sufficient for you, lest you eat too much, and vomit it.
- Luke 21:34“So be careful, or your hearts will be loaded down with carousing, drunkenness, and cares of this life, and that day will come on you suddenly.
- Exod 34:25“You shall not offer the blood of my sacrifice with leavened bread. The sacrifice of the feast of the Passover shall not be left to the morning.
- Matt 16:11–12How is it that you don’t perceive that I didn’t speak to you concerning bread? But beware of the yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees.”
- Acts 14:22confirming the souls of the disciples, exhorting them to continue in the faith, and that through many afflictions we must enter into God’s Kingdom.
- Matt 16:6Jesus said to them, “Take heed and beware of the yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees.”
- 1 Cor 5:6–8Your boasting is not good. Don’t you know that a little yeast leavens the whole lump?
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Christ at the center
Every sacrifice, every priest, and every day of atonement points beyond itself to the one perfect offering and the great High Priest who, by his own blood, makes the unclean holy once for all.
How Leviticus 2:11 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
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