Leviticus 22 Devotional

The Gift God Accepts

“When a man presents a peace offering to the LORD from the herd or flock to fulfill a vow or as a freewill offering, it must be without blemish or defect to be acceptable.”Leviticus 22:21 (BSB)

After the priests and the holy food, this chapter turns to the animals themselves. Whether a gift fulfills a vow or is given freely, it must be without defect to be accepted on the worshiper's behalf (22:19-21). Blind, injured, or diseased animals are not to be placed on the altar (22:22). There is even a rule for newborns: a calf, lamb, or kid stays with its mother seven days, and a mother and her young are not slaughtered on the same day (22:27-28).

Malachi later rebuked priests who offered blind and lame animals, asking whether a governor would accept such gifts (Malachi 1:8). God is not honored by leftovers. Yet the chapter ends not with the worshiper's achievement but with God's: he is the LORD who sanctifies them (22:32). Hebrews says Christ's offering of himself to God was without any flaw (Hebrews 9:14). The flawless offering God requires is the one he has supplied. Out of that gift, your own offerings to him can be wholehearted rather than whatever happens to be left.

To think about: What have you been giving God out of leftovers, and what would a wholehearted gift look like instead?