this offering, and these must be sought for in the various passages where it occurs.

The material was either flour, or new corn parched and bruised, and in either case accompanied with oil, frankincense, and salt. The flour might be baked in cakes on a pan, but without leaven. On receiving the flour from the offerer, the priest took a handful of it, which as representing the whole quantity was called "the memorial" of it, and this he burnt upon the altar, "to be an offering made by fire, of a sweet savour unto the Lord" (ii. 2). The remainder belonged to the priests, to be eaten by them, not at home, but in the court of the Tabernacle; for having been, by virtue of the "memorial," itself upon the altar, it was thing most holy." If cakes were brought, a piece of one of them was used for the memorial, and all the rest was dealt with as the flour. The unground corn was brought not in the grain, but in the ear, which was to be fresh (R.V.). The grains when separated were parched with fire and bruised (R.V.), the memorial and the bulk being then dealt with as before. As the ears were to be the first-fruits of the crop, this form of the meat-offering was possible in no other than one brief portion of the year.

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The first mention of a minchah offered to the Lord is Cain's "fruit of the ground," which was rejected (Gen. iv. 3, 4). Abel's offering from his flock is also called minchah, not olah. It followed Cain's and was accepted. An altar and a sacrifice are reasonably presumed, but they are not named, so that the first mentioned olah was Noah's. The second known minchah, in Ex. xxix. 41, was after the giving of the Law. Should it occasion surprise that an offering repulsed when presented by Cain was expressly commanded in the Mosaic system, the difficulty will clear up, probably, as we proceed. In the passage last referred to, the meat-offering is of the class of public ones, those namely forming part of the constant and official service of the Tabernacle, not brought by a private offerer. It was to be offered along with the morning and evening burnt-offering; and consequently as there was to be a daily or continual burnt

offering (Num. iv. 16), so there was to be a daily or continual meat-offering (Neh. x. 33). The rejected minchah of the son of Adam is now indeed in a place of honour, associated permanently with the lamb which was the express type of the Lamb of God.

Other passages in which the meat-offering is associated with the burnt-offering are: Exod. xl. 29; Lev. ix. 17 ; x. 12, 13; xiv. 20, 31 ; Judg. xiii. 19, 23; 1 Chron. xxi. 23; 1 Kings viii. 64; xviii. 29, 36; 2 Kings iii. 20; xvi. 13, 15; Ezek. xlv. 17; Ezra vii. 7; Neh. x. 33; xiii. 5, 9.

From this survey we gather that the meat-offering is ever a concomitant of other offerings, which are all animal ones, and that it is almost invariably the concomitant of the burnt-offering, next to which it stands, and no doubt for that very reason stands, in the list of the offerings. This high rank indicates its great importance, an importance entirely due to its association with the burnt-offering. Nor, if we may conclude from that frequent expression, “and their meat-offerings," which so frequently follows the mention of burnt-offerings, were these last ever complete without them.

Cain's error is now not difficult to see. His minchah was rejected because presented as an independent offering, sufficient in itself. The Mosaic minchah is seen occupying its right place, which is one entirely subordinate to, and dependent for its validity upon, an offering which had given up the blood of life; for "without shedding of blood there is no remission."

It should here be noted that a drink-offering (něsěk), though absent from the early chapters of Leviticus now before us, occurs in xxiii. 13, 18, 37, and in many other parts of the Old Testament. The term first appears in Gen. xxxv. 14, where Jacob, having erected a pillar, "poured a drink-offering thereon." The next mention (Exod. xxix. 40, 41) connects it with the altar ritual, and it is enjoined as a rule that the daily lamb of a burnt-offering, both morning and evening, is to be accompanied with a meat-offering (as already noticed), and with "the fourth part of a hin of wine

for a drink-offering." As the hin was equal to our gallon the drink-offering was in this case one quart. In several passages besides, we find that" the continual burnt-offering" was accompanied by a drink-offering (Num. xxviii. 10, 15, 24, 31; xxix. 11, 16, 19, 34), while in other burnt-offerings a drink-offering continually appears as annexed to the meatoffering, the quantity composing it varying from one-fourth of a hin to one-third and one-half, never therefore exceeding half a gallon. The manner of its offering is nowhere stated; but from the prohibition (Exod. xxx. 9) of a drink-offering being poured upon the incense altar within the Tabernacle, it is inferred that it was poured upon the outer altar, as also the reason of the thing would suggest; and it is supposed, after the analogy of the meat-offering, that when a small quantity of the wine had been poured as a memorial upon the altar, the bulk was assigned to the priests for their consumption along with the meat-offering in the court of the Tabernacle. It should be added that idolaters offered drinkofferings to false gods (Deut. xxxii. 38; Isa. lvii. 6; lxv. 11; Jer. vii. 18; xix. 13; xxxii. 19; xliv. 17, 18, 19, 25; Ezek. xx. 28).

VI. THE PEACE-OFFERING (SHELEM) (Lev. iii.).—The victim was from the herd or from the flock, a male or a female, and the manner of offering it was as follows. The fat upon the inwards, the kidneys, the caul upon the liver, having been removed by the offerer from the body of the animal, were burnt by the priest upon the altar, as an "offering made by fire, of a sweet savour unto the Lord." This "fat" was altogether distinct from that which is embedded in streaks in different parts of the animal's body, and not prohibited to the Israelites as food. These parts being set aside, all the remainder of the victim was divided as follows. The bulk went to the offerer, while the priest received the breast or brisket and the right shoulder, which were taken possession of with two ceremonious movements, the shoulder being heaved, or lifted upwards, the breast waved from side to side, causing these portions to be named the "heave shoulder," and the "wave breast" (Ex. xxix. 38; Lev. vii. 15,

16, 31, 32, 34). Thus apportioned the victim was to be eaten the same day, or on the second day at farthest, and any remainder burnt; for eaten on the third day "it shall not be accepted, neither shall it be imputed unto him that offereth it; it shall be an abomination" (vii. 15–18), language which implies that a feeding on this offering, if within the prescribed period, was a religious act inseparable from the sacrifice itself.

The wave breast and the heave shoulder were eaten in a clean place by the priests, their sons and their daughters (x. 14, 15). The offerer's portion was presumably disposed of (for nothing is said) in a similar manner; and if so, the peace-offering seems to have given an opportunity for social re-unions among families and kinsfolk, on a somewhat large scale, the poor probably included, and other invited guests. Occasions calling for a peace-offering were, "a thanksgiving," "a vow," or if one desired to make "a voluntary offering" without any definite reason (Lev. vii. 12, 13, 15, 16; xix. 5; xxii. 21; Prov. vii. 14). In the case of "a vow," the offering would come at its termination, as in that of a Nazarite (Num. vi. 14-18).

A characteristic of the peace-offering was its being entirely optional, not exacted, or in any way penal. It was obligatory, indeed, at the termination of a vow; but then the vow itself was optional. Another aspect of the peace-offering will come into view, as we proceed to a series of historical examples.

It is first mentioned (Exod. xx. 24) immediately after the delivery of the Law, when it was ordered that burnt-offerings and peace-offerings must be sacrificed on an altar of earth. The peace-offering, therefore, like the burnt-offering, appears to have been known before the regulations of Leviticus concerning it were given. Its first recorded celebration was when Moses at Sinai, before the consecration of the priests, caused burnt-offerings and peace-offerings to be sacrificed (Exod. xxiv. 5). The next instance was in that awful act of apostacy, the worship of the golden calf, when the people, having "offered burnt-offerings and brought peace-offerings

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sat down to eat and to drink and rose up to play ". a perverted worship and perverted festivity. Peace-offerings were among the first offered by Aaron after his consecration (Lev. ix. 18, 22). After Jordan was crossed, burnt-offerings and peace-offerings were to be offered on an altar to be erected, "and thou shalt eat there and rejoice before the Lord thy God" (Deut. xxvii. 7). Here, on a most worthy occasion, was the first recorded sanctioned festivity connected with this offering. Among later instances we may notice I Sam. xi. 15; 2 Sam. vi. 17, 18; 1 Chron. xvi. 1, 2 ; 1 Kings iii. 15; viii. 63, 64; 2 Chron. xxix. 35. The peaceoffering is seldom mentioned except in close association with a burnt-offering; but it is occasionally, which shows its independence. Why the combination should have occurred on great festive occasions seems plain. The burnt-offering, which took the lead of all offerings, had in itself no means of festivity, being wholly devoted to the altar, and but for its association with the peace-offering could have provided Thus the sacred solemnity of a whole burnt-offering could have its joyous side; and in like manner the Gospel, which reveals the true Lamb of burnt-offering, can bid the Christian "rejoice in the Lord alway;" "Christ our Passover is sacrificed for us, therefore let us keep the feast."

none.

From three passages, and especially from the third, it might be supposed that there was a distinct sacrifice bearing the name of sacrifice of thanksgiving, or thank-offering. Thus in Ps. cvii. 22, "Let them sacrifice the sacrifice of thanksgiving" (tôdah); Ps. cxvi. 7, "I will offer to thee the sacrifice of thanksgiving ; 2 Chron. xxxiii. 16, Manasseh offered peace-offerings and thank-offerings. In each of these passages the peace-offering alone is meant, but offered for thanksgiving, according to Lev. vii. 11-15, where the peaceofferings so offered are actually called peace-offerings for thanksgiving and sacrifice of thanksgiving, the word for thanksgiving being tôdah. In the third of the above texts the Hebrew is literally “sacrifices of peace and thanksgiving," which is only another way of expressing peace-offerings for thanksgiving.