Tribute for the King Christ Church (Moscow, ID)

INTRODUCTIONLeviticus 2 explains the Tribute Offering, an offering of flour and oil, often cooked into a cake or loaf of bread. This offering expressed love and loyalty and devotion for God the King. It teaches Christians that Christ is our King, and therefore, we are called to even greater devotion.THE TEXT“Now when anyone presents a grain offering to the LORD, his offering shall be of fine flour; and he shall pour oil on it, and put frankincense on it…” (Lev. 2)SUMMARY OF THE TEXTThere are several types of grain offerings described: uncooked ground grain with oil and frankincense (2:1-3) and baked/cooked unleavened cakes/wafers made with oil or spread on top (2:4-10). In both, a memorial portion or handful is put on the altar, but the rest is given to the priests (2:2-3, 9-10). There is to be no leaven or honey in any of the grain offerings offered on the altar; they may be given as first fruits offerings but not put on the altar (2:11-12). Every grain offering is to be seasoned with salt, so that the “covenant of salt” is remembered constantly (2:13). Israelites could also bring early ripened grain as a grain offering, much like the offering of uncooked flour (2:14-16).THE TRIBUTE OFFERINGIt makes sense that the Ascension Offering is the first thing in Leviticus since it is the most common daily sacrifice, but Numbers 28 makes it clear that grain offerings were offered continuously with the daily Ascension Offerings (morning and evening), along with morning and evening drink offerings that were poured out to the Lord. This is likely why it comes next in Leviticus. It may also be that the grain offering was an additional option for the poorest in Israel who could not afford even a pigeon or a dove. It seems to be closely associated with the Ascension Offering given the repeated refrain: “up in smoke on the altar as an offering by fire of a soothing aroma to the Lord” (Lev. 2:2, 9, cf. 1:9, 13, 17). The word translated “grain offering” is “minchah” and literally means “tribute.” While it always refers to this grain offering in Leviticus, it is used more generally to refer to any kind of sacrifice elsewhere (Gen. 4:3-5, 1 Sam. 2:17, 29, 26:19) and often refers to a gift of honor from an inferior to a superior, vassals to their lord, i.e. tribute (Gen. 32:19ff, Gen. 43:11ff, Jdg. 3:15ff, 1 Sam. 10:27, 2 Sam. 8:2ff, 1 Kgs. 4:21, 2 Kgs. 8:7-9). While frankincense is only added in the uncooked Tribute offerings, they are always mixed or anointed with oil, presumably highlighting the royal nature of the gift. This gift of bread proclaimed Yahweh as King.THE GRAIN OFFERING OF JEALOUSYThis notion of tribute or loyalty perhaps explains why this offering was used for the jealousy rite in Numbers 5 as well as the Nazirite vow in Numbers 6. In Numbers 5, God established a trial by ordeal in which a woman suspected of adultery swears an oath of innocence before the Lord and a tribute of jealousy is offered in the process (Num. 6:15-18, 25-26). The Tribute offering swears allegiance to the Lord, and the woman is swearing that she has been faithful to her husband and her God, faithful to all her covenant vows in other words (cf. Prov. 2:17). The flip side of this is the Tribute offering that is offered at the conclusion of a Nazirite vow, which is a temporary oath of dedication to the service of the Lord (a sort of semi-priestly service, often associated with holy war). The point is again complete allegiance, loyalty, dedication.COVENANT OF SALTAll of this is related to what is referenced in 2:13: “the salt of the covenant.” Salt was to go on the Tribute offering as well as all of the offerings (2:13). The same notion is referred to in Numbers 18:19 and 2 Chron. 13:5 where the covenant is called “a covenant of salt.” In context, this designation refers to the permanence of the covenant: it is forever. This also underlines the covenantal character of the sacrificial system: “Gather my godly ones to Me,