Peter Pett's Commentary on the Bible
Leviticus 2:11-13
The Grain Offering Must Not Contain Anything That Corrupts But What Preserves (Leviticus 2:11).
It is now pointed out that the Grain Offering must not contain anything that ferments, neither leaven nor honey. Rather it must positively be seasoned with salt as a preservative. The emphasis is on its unalloyed purity and its continual permanence in that state.
‘No grain-offering, which you (plural) shall offer to Yahweh, shall be made with leaven, for you (pl) shall burn no leaven, nor any honey, as an offering made by fire to Yahweh. As an oblation of first -fruits you (pl) shall offer them to Yahweh, but they shall not come up for a pleasing odour on the altar.'
The change to the plural verb emphasises the overall coverage of this provision. It applies to all. Yahweh is so pure and holy that nothing that ferments and thus corrupts inwardly must be offered to Him by fire. It is not acceptable to Him offered in such a way. This reminds us that the fire is not seen as destroying but as ‘preserving' and lifting up to the spiritual realm. It goes up in the smoke as a pleasing odour.
The idea would appear to be that the offering must be pristine as God gave it, without earthly influence having altered it (their own labour was not looked on in this way, for they were made in the image of God). It must be pure and unaffected by the world. By this provision He brought home a warning of the danger of a person becoming corrupted within by what was corrupting in the world, and of retaining within thoughts and aims that would produce corruption (see Mark 7:20). It reminded them that He required holiness, (likeness to Himself as those separated to Him), and that any corruption would make them unacceptable to Him. They, like the offering, must ensure that in dedicating themselves to Him they removed from themselves all that was corrupt (1 Corinthians 5:6). In mind may have been Adam, created pure but ‘fermenting' within and becoming sinful. Or the fermented wine that made men behave so unworthily (compare Genesis 9:20), and the ‘strong drink' which did so even more. The leaven used for leavening was a piece of old dough retained and allowed to ferment so that it could be used to ferment new dough, thus lightening the pastry.
However we should note that both leaven and honey can be offered as first-fruits, which suggests that we are here dealing with domesticated honey. They are not forbidden for food, and gratitude should be shown for them, as for all that God has given us. But their unacceptability as a fire-offering and as a pleasing odour is a pointed symbol that nothing that corrupts brings pleasure to God because of what it symbolises about the state of the world, about the state of men and women, and about the sin that has marred and caused corruption in creation. It cannot therefore be offered in pure worship as something wholly pleasing to God. A sacrifice of thanksgiving, however, could be offered with leavened bread along with unleavened cakes (Leviticus 7:13; compare Amos 4:5) because like the first-fruits it was an expression of gratitude for God's gifts, not something totally for God's enjoyment and benefit. Man partook of the peace sacrifice, and of the cereal offerings offered with them. They were not exclusive. They were not as ‘holy'. This emphasises that the holiness of something very much depends on the motive and purpose. It is not intrinsic in the thing. And he must therefore give thanks for leaven. And the wave loaves at the Feast of Weeks were of leavened bread because they were first-fruits, again an expression of gratitude, but no leaven could seemingly be offered with offerings made by fire. The leavened bread in Leviticus 7:13 was presumably for the consumption of the participants/priests as part of the thankoffering.
‘And every oblation of your grain-offering shall you (sing.) salt with salt; neither shall you allow the salt of the covenant of your God to be lacking from your grain-offering. With all your (sing.) oblations you shall offer salt.'
In contrast the grain offering should be seasoned with salt in all circumstances. A supply of salt would be kept by for that purpose. Salt preserves and prevents corruption. It was therefore an important symbol of faithfulness to the covenant. Its introduction indicated a heart that intended to be true to the covenant. Each person (singular verbs) must therefore always offer salt with their grain offering, as a sign of their dedication to the permanent maintenance of God's covenant requirements by obedience to His will, and as a symbol of God's own faithfulness to His promises in the covenant. Salt seals the promises on both sides and ensures their preservation. It is ‘the salt of the covenant of your God'. See also Numbers 18:19 and 2 Chronicles 13:5 where the same idea is expressed, in both cases with the emphasis being on permanence. It stresses the permanent nature of the covenant relationship on both sides.