Leviticus 24:1-9
Leviticus 24:1–9: Laws Concerning the Lamps This passage gives instructions for taking care of the lampstand and the table inside God’s sanctuary. God wanted everything in His house to be kept in order and treated with respect. The lamps were to be kept burning, and the table was to always have bread on it. These rules helped the Israelites remember God’s presence and provision for His people (Leviticus 24:1–9 a). vv. 2–4: The people were to bring pure olive oil for the lamps. The oil had to be the best quality. The priests were responsible for keeping the lamps burning all the time, both morning and evening. The seven lamps were like one lamp, pointing to the unity of God’s Spirit, who is described as seven lamps in heaven (Leviticus 24:2–4; Exodus 27:20,21 b; Revelation 4:5; 1 Corinthians 12:4 c). The people provided the oil, and the priests kept the lights burning, just as today God’s people support those who serve in ministry. – – vv. 5–6: The table in the sanctuary was always to have twelve loaves of bread, one for each tribe of Israel. These loaves were a sign that God provided for everyone. Even after ten tribes left, the number of loaves stayed the same to remind everyone that all Israelites were included (Leviticus 24:5,6; 2 Chronicles 13:11 d). – v. 7: A small amount of frankincense was placed with the bread as a “memorial” and was burned as an offering to God. This made the bread a sweet aroma to God, just as the prayers of God’s people are pleasing to Him (Leviticus 24:7; Leviticus 2:2 e; Acts 10:4 f). vv. 8–9: Every Sabbath, the bread was replaced with new bread. The old bread was given to the priests to eat in the holy place. This was done every week, so there was always bread before the Lord. This also reminded the people of the manna God provided in the wilderness. Ministers today should always have something fresh and good to share from God’s Word each week (Leviticus 24:8,9; Exodus 25:30 g; Exodus 16:22; 1 Timothy 4:1,5 h). –
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