Leviticus 9 Commentary
by Brad Boyles
All of these offerings can get confusing! There is a cool resource I stumbled upon that makes it easy for visual learners to comprehend complex chapters like this one. It’s called Doodle Through the Bible. You can click here to view the visual for Leviticus 9.
As you can see, there are a lot of sacrifices being made. What was the point? What I see in Leviticus 9 is genuine awe-struck worship of the Lord. The ceremony meant nothing without the anticipation of the Lord’s presence. Similarly, the rituals and the laws that filled the OT would have been meaningless without God showing up. The clothing, the sacrifices, and the gathering all set the hearts and minds of the people in preparation for the Lord’s coming.
In ancient Israel, the people fell reverently on their faces.
Suddenly the LORD sent a fire, and it consumed the burnt offering and the fat parts on the altar. When the people saw it, they all shouted and bowed down with their faces to the ground.
Leviticus 9:24 GNB
It is the same today. Just like the Holy Spirit fell with fire upon the tongues of the apostles, fire consumed the sacrifices that Aaron prepared. I am reminded that when we enter into worship, we are expecting the presence of God to appear. There is certainly an aspect of celebration but also a fearful reverence for which we participate alongside Christ as He ministers to us. Our God is a consuming fire!
