Leviticus 1:2
Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them, If any man of you bring an offering unto the LORD, ye shall bring your offering of the cattle, even of the herd, and of the flock.
Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them,.... For unto no other was the law of sacrifices given; not to the Gentiles, but to the children of Israel:
If any man; or woman, for the word "man", as Ben Gersom observes, includes the whole species:
of you; of you Israelites; the Targum of Jonathan adds,
"and not of the apostates who worship idols.''
Jarchi interprets it of yours, of your mammon or substance, what was their own property, and not what was stolen from another {d}, see
bring an offering unto the LORD; called "Korban" of "Karab", to draw nigh, because it was not only brought nigh to God, to the door of the tabernacle where he dwelt, but because by it they drew nigh to God, and presented themselves to him, and that for them; typical of believers under the Gospel dispensation drawing nigh to God through Christ, by whom their spiritual sacrifices are presented and accepted in virtue of his:
ye shall bring your offering of the cattle, even of the herd, and of the flock; that is, of oxen, and of sheep or goats. The Targum of Jonathan is,
"of a clean beast, of oxen, and of sheep, but not of wild beasts shall ye bring your offerings.''
These were appointed, Ben Gersom says, for these two reasons, partly because the most excellent, and partly because most easy to be found and come at, as wild creatures are not: but the true reason is, because they were very fit to represent the great sacrifice Christ, which all sacrifices were typical of; the ox or bullock was a proper emblem of him for his strength and laboriousness, and the sheep for his harmlessness, innocence, and patience, and the goat, as he was not in himself, but as he was thought to be, a sinner, being sent in the likeness of sinful flesh, and being traduced as such, and having the sins of his people imputed to him.
{d} Vid. T. Bab. Succah, fol. 30. 1. & not. Abendana in Miclol Yophi in loc.