Exodus 29:15-18

THE BURNT-OFFERING (Exodus 29:15-18):

"Thou shalt also take the one ram; and Aaron and his sons shall lay their hands upon the head of the ram. And thou shalt slay the ram, and thou shalt take its blood, and sprinkle it round about upon the altar. And thou shalt cut the ram into its pieces, and with its head. And thou shalt burn the whole ram upon the altar: it is a burnt-offering unto Jehovah; it is a sweet savor, an offering made by fire unto Jehovah."

Despite the fact of the bullock's having been called a sin-offering, and this a burnt-offering, there are elements of the same figure in both. "The various types of sacrifices are not wholly distinct from each other in purpose."[14] One animal alone could not suffice to typify the Christ, because the type required that the animal be consumed wholly upon the altar, and at the same time, be burned without the camp. Therefore, two beasts were required. Also, the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world could not be adequately represented by a "bull." Yet, the enormity of humanity's load of guilt could hardly be represented by anything else!

"It is a sweet savor ..." "A pleasing smell" is the meaning of these words, but they are an ancient idiom meaning, actually, "an action God approves." This should be understood, "Not after the carnal fashion in which skeptics have interpreted the words, but in the same sense in which the wicked are a smoke in His nostrils from a continually burning fire."[15] As Clements observed: "It is evident that the author has thought of God in spiritual terms, and not as though He needed a meal."[16]