Leviticus 3:6-11
Covenant fellowship with the Lord is expressed through a sacrificial offering that gives the best portions to God.
6 “ ‘If his offering for a sacrifice of peace offerings to Yahweh is from the flock, either male or female, he shall offer it without defect.
7 If he offers a lamb for his offering, then he shall offer it before Yahweh;
8 and he shall lay his hand on the head of his offering, and kill it before the Tent of Meeting. Aaron’s sons shall sprinkle its blood around on the altar.
9 He shall offer from the sacrifice of peace offerings an offering made by fire to Yahweh; its fat, the entire tail fat, he shall take away close to the backbone; and the fat that covers the entrails, and all the fat that is on the entrails,
10 and the two kidneys, and the fat that is on them, which is by the loins, and the cover on the liver, with the kidneys, he shall take away.
11 The priest shall burn it on the altar: it is the food of the offering made by fire to Yahweh.
Covenant fellowship with the LORD is expressed through a sacrificial offering that gives the best portions to God.
This passage extends the peace offering legislation to animals from the flock. It shows that covenant fellowship offerings may come from sheep while preserving the same sacrificial pattern of presentation, identification, priestly mediation, and the burning of the LORD's portion upon the altar.
Leviticus 3:6-11 stands in the middle of the fellowship offering instructions. Verses 1-5 introduced the fellowship offering from the herd. Verses 6-11 now describe the fellowship offering from the flock when the animal is a lamb. Verses 12-17 will continue with the goat offering and conclude the chapter with the enduring prohibition against eating fat or blood. This unit repeats the core procedure while adding a lamb-specific detail: the fat tail is included in the LORD's altar portion.
Leviticus 3:6-11 belongs to Israel's tabernacle worship in the wilderness after the LORD has begun instructing Moses from the tent of meeting concerning Israel's sacrificial approach. Israel is already the LORD's redeemed covenant people. The fellowship offering belongs to their worship life as a people brought near to God, teaching them how peace and communion with the LORD are to be expressed through sacrifice. The offering is presented before the LORD and slaughtered before the tent of meeting. Aaron's sons splash the blood against the sides of the altar and burn the designated fat portions on the altar as a food offering to the LORD. The instructions are for Israelites who bring a fellowship offering from the flock and for Aaron's sons, the priests, who mediate the blood and altar actions. Lambs were valuable flock animals in Israelite life. The fat tail of certain sheep breeds was especially substantial and is specifically assigned to the LORD's altar portion in this passage. This passage continues the third major offering category in Leviticus. It shows that covenant fellowship is sacrificially mediated and that peace before the LORD remains governed by holiness, blood, and priestly service.
The Fellowship Offering: Peace Before the LORD
True fellowship with the holy God is received and enjoyed through sacrifice, priestly mediation, and reverent surrender of what belongs uniquely to Him.