Leviticus 3:1–2: “When his offering is a sacrifice of peace offering, if he offers it of the herd, whether male or female, he shall offer it without blemish before the LORD. And he shall lay his hand on the head of his offering, and kill it at the door of the tabernacle of meeting; and Aaron’s sons, the priests, shall sprinkle the blood all around on the altar.”

March 20th, 2026 by Pastor Ed in devotional

This was the third type of offering, the peace offering. It represented the desire of the person bringing it to have fellowship with God. God’s redemption brings peace and fellowship, and this act of worship symbolized that. The peace offering was similar to the burnt offering, but the peace offering accepted both male and female animals as sacrifices. This is interesting since this type of sacrifice was brought to initiate and celebrate fellowship with God.

We learn in the New Testament that in Jesus Christ, with respect to blessings and privileges, there is no longer any distinction between male and female. Paul wrote: “There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus” (Gal. 3:28). This is perhaps the clearest statement of equality between sexes found in any document, religious or secular. God desires fellowship with any who would come to him. This was such a revolutionary idea in Jesus’ day that even His own disciples were shocked when they found Him speaking with the Samaritan woman at the well (John 4). All are invited to come to Him.

There is a second fact about this peace offering that catches our eye. The priest was to “kill it at the door of the tabernacle of meeting.” This offering was not as holy as the others, which were to be eaten only by the priest. Part of the fellowship offering was also to be eaten by the person bringing the offering. This was a picture of humanity and God, sitting down at a table together and sharing a meal. For the New Testament believer, God still invites us to come and share a meal with Him through communion. The 2 familiar elements, bread and wine, remind us of what our Savior did for us through His broken body and shed blood.

“LORD, we desire to walk with You and have close fellowship with You all through this day.”

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Leviticus 3 KJV

¹ And if his oblation be a sacrifice of peace offering, if he offer it of the herd; whether it be a male or female, he shall offer it without blemish before the LORD. ² And he shall lay his hand upon the head of his offering, and kill it at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation: and Aaron’s sons the priests shall sprinkle the blood upon the altar round about. ³ And he shall offer of the sacrifice of the peace offering an offering made by fire unto the LORD; the fat that covereth the inwards, and all the fat that is upon the inwards, ⁴ And the two kidneys, and the fat that is on them, which is by the flanks, and the caul above the liver, with the kidneys, it shall he take away.  ⁵ And Aaron’s sons shall burn it on the altar upon the burnt sacrifice, which is upon the wood that is on the fire: it is an offering made by fire, of a sweet savour unto the LORD. ⁶ And if his offering for a sacrifice of peace offering unto the LORD be of the flock; male or female, he shall offer it without blemish. ⁷ If he offer a lamb for his offering, then shall he offer it before the LORD. ⁸ And he shall lay his hand upon the head of his offering, and kill it before the tabernacle of the congregation: and Aaron’s sons shall sprinkle the blood thereof round about upon the altar. ⁹ And he shall offer of the sacrifice of the peace offering an offering made by fire unto the LORD; the fat thereof, and the whole rump, it shall he take off hard by the backbone; and the fat that covereth the inwards, and all the fat that is upon the inwards, ¹⁰ And the two kidneys, and the fat that is upon them, which is by the flanks, and the caul above the liver, with the kidneys, it shall he take away. ¹¹ And the priest shall burn it upon the altar: it is the food of the offering made by fire unto the LORD. ¹² And if his offering be a goat, then he shall offer it before the LORD. ¹³ And he shall lay his hand upon the head of it, and kill it before the tabernacle of the congregation: and the sons of Aaron shall sprinkle the blood thereof upon the altar round about. ¹⁴ And he shall offer thereof his offering, even an offering made by fire unto the LORD; the fat that covereth the inwards, and all the fat that is upon the inwards, ¹⁵ And the two kidneys, and the fat that isupon them, which is by the flanks, and the caul above the liver, with the kidneys, it shall he take away. ¹⁶ And the priest shall burn them upon the altar: it is the food of the offering made by fire for a sweet savour: all the fat is the LORD’S. ¹⁷ It shall be a perpetual statute for your generations throughout all your dwellings, that ye eat neither fat nor blood.