BEHAVIOURS THAT NEED THE PURIFYING OFFERING (LEV.5)
WITH THE EARLIER OFFERINGS, THE TYPES OF ANIMALS PERMITTED VARIED FROM A BULL ALL THE WAY DOWN TO A BIRD AND IT HAD NOTHING TO DO WITH THE DEGREE OF ONE’S DISOBEDIENT BEHAVIOUR, IT WAS BASED ON WHAT A PERSON COULD REASONABLY AFFORD. A BULL WAS THE MOST EXPENSIVE AND A BIRD WAS THE CHEAPEST. HOWEVER, WITH THE PURIFYING OFFERING, THINGS WERE VERY DIFFERENT BECAUSE THE TYPE OF ANIMAL OFFERED UP WAS DIRECTLY CONNECTED TO THE TRESPASSER’S POSITION IN SOCIETY. THE HIGHER THE POSITION, THE MORE EXPENSIVE AND LARGER THE ANIMAL HAD TO BE. THUS THE HIGH PRIEST WAS OBLIGATED TO USE THE PRICIEST AND BIGGEST ANIMAL OFFERING WHICH WAS A 3-YEAR OLD BULL.
BEHAVIOURS THAT REQUIRE A PURIFYING OFFERING
“If you are called to testify as a witness about something you’ve seen or heard and you refuse to step up and tell the truth, it’s evil, and you’ll be punished for that behaviour. EVEN IF YOU ONLY WITHHELD INFORMATION BUT DIDN’T PARTICIPATE IN A CRIMINAL ACT, (IF YOU KNOW ABOUT IT), YAHUSHA SEES YOU AS BEING “NEGLIGENT” IN YOUR DUTY BY WAY OF `OMISSION’. Or if you touch anything unclean, like the carcass of an unclean animal (wild or domestic), or a dead reptile, and you weren’t aware of it at the time, but now you’re contaminated and guilty, just fess-up and tell the truth. Or suppose you unknowingly touch something that makes a person unclean TOUCHING DEAD ANIMALS IS UNCLEAN. When you realise what you’ve done, you must admit your guilt. Making rash, stupid vows (of any kind) for good or bad, is foolish too, so if this is how you roll, guess what? You’re guilty.
THE SCRIPTURAL DEFINITION OF A `VOW’ IS A PROMISE SWORN IN THE NAME OF YAHUAH TO FULFILL THE DECLARATION HE HAS MADE. IN THE ANCIENT DAYS, OATHS AND VOWS WERE MUCH MORE SERIOUS MATTERS THAN THEY ARE IN THE 21ST CENTURY. JUST AS OUR MODERN SOCIETY USES LAWYERS AND WRITTEN CONTRACTS, IT WAS VOWS AND OATHS THAT WERE THE TRADITIONAL METHOD OF FORMING LEGAL AGREEMENTS IN ANCIENT TIMES AND THEY WERE JUST AS BINDING IF NOT MORE SO. YAHUSHA SAID TO `JUST LET YOUR YES BE YES AND YOUR NO BE NO!’
So when it finally dawns on you that you’ve been behaving any of these things, you must be honest and admit it.
WHETHER A PERSON IS GUILTY OR NOT HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH THEM BEING AWARE OF THEIR CRIME. THE POINT IS SOMETHING THAT SHOULD HAVE BEEN DONE WASN’T OR SOMETHING THAT SHOULD NOT HAVE BEEN DONE WAS.
Then as a penalty for your disobedient behaviour, you must bring Me a female from the flock, (either sheep or goat). This is a PURIFYING OFFERING that the priest will use to purify you from your disobedience and make you right with Me again. A PERSON HAD TO BE SORRY AND REPENTANT OF HEART FOR THE OFFERING TO WORK.
But if you cannot afford to bring a sheep, you may bring Me two turtledoves or two young pigeons as the atoning penalty for your behaviour. One of the birds will be for a PURIFYING OFFERING, and the other for an ASCENDING-NEAR OFFERING. You must bring them to the priest, who will present the first bird as the PURIFYING OFFERING. He will wring its neck but without severing its head from the body. Then he will sprinkle some of the blood of the PURIFYING OFFERING against the sides of the altar, and the rest of the blood will be drained out at the base of the altar. This is an offering for PURIFICATION. The priest will then prepare the second bird as an ASCENDING-NEAR OFFERING, following all the procedures that have been prescribed. And through this process the priest will purify you from your disobedient behaviour, making you right with Me, and you’ll be completely forgiven.
If you can’t afford to bring two turtledoves or two young pigeons, you may bring 2.2 Litres of choice flour SEMOLINA for your PURIFYING OFFERING. Since it’s an offering for disobedience to My Instructions, you mustn’t moisten it with olive oil or put any frankincense on it. Take the flour to the priest, who will scoop out a handful as a portion of remembrance to Me. Then he will burn it on the altar on top of the special gifts presented to Me. It’s an offering for disobedient behaviour and through this process, the priest will purify those who are guilty of any of these things, making them right with Me, and they’ll be completely forgiven. The rest of the flour will belong to the priest, just as with the LOVE-GRAIN OFFERING”.
