Torah Studies · Study 23
Giving God Our Best
Connecting the Torah and Jesus
Day 23 · Leviticus 22
Explore Leviticus 22 and learn to honor what belongs to God. See how the complete offering of Jesus gives us a grateful heart for worship.
In this study
Let’s begin together
Father, help us approach You with respect and gratitude. Teach us to handle Your gifts faithfully and trust the perfect offering of Jesus. In His name, amen.
Leviticus 22 continues the instructions for priests and then speaks about acceptable sacrifices. Holy things were gifts set apart for God’s service. The people were to handle them as God instructed, remembering the Lord who brought them out of Egypt.
Main truth: We honor God with grateful obedience because He has first given to us.
1. Treat holy gifts with care
Leviticus 22:1-9 King James Version
1 And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,
2 Speak unto Aaron and to his sons, that they separate themselves from the holy things of the children of Israel, and that they profane not my holy name in those things which they hallow unto me: I am the LORD.
3 Say unto them, Whosoever he be of all your seed among your generations, that goeth unto the holy things, which the children of Israel hallow unto the LORD, having his uncleanness upon him, that soul shall be cut off from my presence: I am the LORD.
4 What man soever of the seed of Aaron is a leper, or hath a running issue; he shall not eat of the holy things, until he be clean. And whoso toucheth any thing that is unclean by the dead, or a man whose seed goeth from him;
5 Or whosoever toucheth any creeping thing, whereby he may be made unclean, or a man of whom he may take uncleanness, whatsoever uncleanness he hath;
6 The soul which hath touched any such shall be unclean until even, and shall not eat of the holy things, unless he wash his flesh with water.
7 And when the sun is down, he shall be clean, and shall afterward eat of the holy things; because it is his food.
8 That which dieth of itself, or is torn with beasts, he shall not eat to defile himself therewith: I am the LORD.
9 They shall therefore keep mine ordinance, lest they bear sin for it, and die therefore, if they profane it: I the LORD do sanctify them.
A priest who was ritually unclean had to wait and follow the required cleansing before eating holy food. The chapter names ordinary bodily conditions as well as contact with impurity. Such a condition was not automatically a moral failure. Deliberately ignoring God’s instructions was a different matter and carried serious consequences.
Leviticus 22:10-16 King James Version
10 There shall no stranger eat of the holy thing: a sojourner of the priest, or an hired servant, shall not eat of the holy thing.
11 But if the priest buy any soul with his money, he shall eat of it, and he that is born in his house: they shall eat of his meat.
12 If the priest’s daughter also be married unto a stranger, she may not eat of an offering of the holy things.
13 But if the priest’s daughter be a widow, or divorced, and have no child, and is returned unto her father’s house, as in her youth, she shall eat of her father’s meat: but there shall no stranger eat thereof.
14 And if a man eat of the holy thing unwittingly, then he shall put the fifth part thereof unto it, and shall give it unto the priest with the holy thing.
15 And they shall not profane the holy things of the children of Israel, which they offer unto the LORD;
16 Or suffer them to bear the iniquity of trespass, when they eat their holy things: for I the LORD do sanctify them.
The holy food supported the priest’s household, with detailed rules about who could eat it. The passage includes the ancient reality of purchased servants; that description is not a model for owning people today. It also provides a way to make things right after eating holy food by mistake: repay it and add a fifth, or twenty percent.
Making things right matters. If we damage something entrusted to us, an apology should lead to an honest effort to repair the harm. Respect for God includes care for what has been given for His service.
2. An offering was not a way to discard leftovers
Leviticus 22:17-25 King James Version
17 And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,
18 Speak unto Aaron, and to his sons, and unto all the children of Israel, and say unto them, Whatsoever he be of the house of Israel, or of the strangers in Israel, that will offer his oblation for all his vows, and for all his freewill offerings, which they will offer unto the LORD for a burnt offering;
19 Ye shall offer at your own will a male without blemish, of the beeves, of the sheep, or of the goats.
20 But whatsoever hath a blemish, that shall ye not offer: for it shall not be acceptable for you.
21 And whosoever offereth a sacrifice of peace offerings unto the LORD to accomplish his vow, or a freewill offering in beeves or sheep, it shall be perfect to be accepted; there shall be no blemish therein.
22 Blind, or broken, or maimed, or having a wen, or scurvy, or scabbed, ye shall not offer these unto the LORD, nor make an offering by fire of them upon the altar unto the LORD.
23 Either a bullock or a lamb that hath any thing superfluous or lacking in his parts, that mayest thou offer for a freewill offering; but for a vow it shall not be accepted.
24 Ye shall not offer unto the LORD that which is bruised, or crushed, or broken, or cut; neither shall ye make any offering thereof in your land.
25 Neither from a stranger’s hand shall ye offer the bread of your God of any of these; because their corruption is in them, and blemishes be in them: they shall not be accepted for you.
The animals offered had to meet the stated requirements. A damaged animal was not to be presented as though God did not deserve careful obedience. Verse 23 makes a specific distinction between a freewill offering and an offering connected with a vow. We should read those details instead of making every rule sound identical.
The lesson is not that God loves wealthy people more. It is that worship should be sincere and attentive to His word. Giving God our best includes our honesty, attention, willingness, and care. We cannot buy His love with an expensive gift.
3. Remember the God who rescued you
Leviticus 22:26-33 King James Version
26 And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,
27 When a bullock, or a sheep, or a goat, is brought forth, then it shall be seven days under the dam; and from the eighth day and thenceforth it shall be accepted for an offering made by fire unto the LORD.
28 And whether it be cow or ewe, ye shall not kill it and her young both in one day.
29 And when ye will offer a sacrifice of thanksgiving unto the LORD, offer it at your own will.
30 On the same day it shall be eaten up; ye shall leave none of it until the morrow: I am the LORD.
31 Therefore shall ye keep my commandments, and do them: I am the LORD.
32 Neither shall ye profane my holy name; but I will be hallowed among the children of Israel: I am the LORD which hallow you,
33 That brought you out of the land of Egypt, to be your God: I am the LORD.
A newborn animal stayed with its mother for seven days before it could be offered. A mother and her young were not to be killed on the same day. Thanksgiving offerings also had a stated time for eating. The chapter closes with the reason for obedience: the Lord brought Israel out of Egypt to be their God.
4. Jesus gave Himself completely
1 Peter 1:18-21 King James Version
18 Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers;
19 But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot:
20 Who verily was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you,
21 Who by him do believe in God, that raised him up from the dead, and gave him glory; that your faith and hope might be in God.
Peter uses the language of a lamb without blemish to describe Christ. Our rescue was not purchased with silver or gold, but with His precious blood. Jesus gave His life, and God raised Him from the dead. Our worship begins with receiving that gift and placing our hope in God.
Hebrews 10:10-14 King James Version
10 By the which will we are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.
11 And every priest standeth daily ministering and offering oftentimes the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins:
12 But this man, after he had offered one sacrifice for sins for ever, sat down on the right hand of God;
13 From henceforth expecting till his enemies be made his footstool.
14 For by one offering he hath perfected for ever them that are sanctified.
Hebrews says that Jesus’ offering was once for all. Repeated sacrifices could not accomplish what His single offering accomplished. We do not add a better sacrifice to complete His work. We respond to His finished offering with faith and a life increasingly shaped by Him.
Talk it over with friends
1. How were priests to treat holy food?
2. What can giving your best mean when you have little money?
3. How does Jesus’ complete offering shape our gratitude?
Put it into practice
Give God your full attention during a short time of prayer today. Then complete one responsibility carefully, as an act of grateful service. Repair something you have neglected if you can.
A verse to carry with you
Hebrews 10:14 King James Version
14 For by one offering he hath perfected for ever them that are sanctified.
Our confidence rests in the complete offering of Jesus.
Let’s pray together
Father, thank You for giving Your Son. Free us from careless worship and from trying to earn Your love. Teach us to receive Your grace, care for what You entrust to us, and serve with grateful hearts. In Jesus’ name, amen.
I love you, my friends.
Scripture and sources
Scripture text was checked against the King James Version published by eBible.org. Complete verses retain the historical wording; editorial footnotes are omitted. Scripture references link to the source chapter.