Peace offerings are brought to express one’s love for God, as recognition of His goodness toward us. The very name, Shelamim (peace offering) means peace (shalom).

These are voluntary offerings, in contrast to required sin offerings of the next chapter.

(V.1) The first words, zevach shelamim, mean feast peace-offering. This is the only offering with which the word zevach / feast appears. It was a feast, because the owner would invite his family, friends, and acquaintances to eat it with him, whereupon he would praise God for His graciousness before them.

(V.2) The owner leans on the animal, not to confess sin, but to praise God.

(V.5) The first offering of the day was a lamb that was offered each morning (the continual elevation offering). The peace offering, a lamb or a goat, has its fat, kidneys, diaphragm, and liver placed on the altar beside the daily elevation offering, to be burned with the same fire. “Aaron's sons shall offer it up in smoke on the altar beside the (daily) elevation offering, which is on the wood that is on the fire; it is an offering by fire of a soothing aroma to Yahweh.”

The various Festival offerings are appropriate to the symbolism of each one’s Festival. The offering for Hag Shavuot / Pentecost – the betrothal feast – is a peace offering, to indicate love for the Groom.

From Ezekiel we learn that, at the future Millennial Temple, the Levites will again slaughter the elevation offerings for the people. God’s people will serve Him, they will bring their choice gifts, and they will be accepted as a soothing aroma. They will loathe their past evil deeds, and praise Yahweh Who dealt with them in grace for His own Name’s sake. That will be a glorious time!

David says (Psalm 70:15-17, 23), like at a feast peace-offering, “My mouth shall tell of Your righteousness, and of Your salvation all day long; for I do not know the sum of them.  I will come with the mighty deeds of Lord Yahweh; I will make mention of Your righteousness, Yours alone. O God, You have taught me from my youth; and I still declare Your wondrous deeds.” “My lips will shout for joy when I sing praises to You; and my soul, which You have redeemed.”

Today’s Apostolic reading is from The Revelation of Yeshua the Messiah. This title does not mean a book of various revelations about the future, but rather it means that, by the things written therein, people might be able to see Yeshua unveiled – recognize Him for Who He is in the end times.

 In chapters 5-8, we see a scroll in the right hand of the Holy, Almighty, Eternal One. This scroll has a page, written on both sides, rolled up and a seal holding it closed. Then a second page, written on both sides, is rolled on top of the first page, with a seal also holding it closed. Seven pages are finally rolled up, on top of another, each one having its own seal. But no one is found who is worthy to break the seals, to read the pages, except the Lamb that was slain (v.5:6-9) – Yeshua.

In today’s reading (Ch.8), Yeshua broke the seventh seal, and we learn of the events of the last page.

An angel will approach the Altar with a golden censor having its smoke going up to God – representing the prayers of saints. The angel will then throw the fire from the censor to the earth. Thereupon, seven angels, who stand before God, will consecutively sound seven trumpets. Then we see a future likeness of the Egyptian Passover.

When the first angel sounds his trumpet (v.7), and there is fire and hail mixed with blood falling upon earth. A third of the vegetation will be burned up. Consider what a catastrophe this will be for those on earth! Remember, this is because of the praise and requests of the saints who desire righteousness on earth – and thus it relates to the offerings of Leviticus.

When the second angel sounds his trumpet (v.8), a third of the sea will turn to blood. Will our scientists try to copy this in their labs, like the Pharaoh’s magicians did?

When the third angel sounded his trumpet (v.10) –

A little girl was drawing pictures of angels, and they all looked like little girls in dresses. When she was asked why she didn’t draw any little boy angels, she said, “I have never seen any little boy angels!”

When he sounds his trumpet, a third of the waters will become bitter – “wormwood” – and many men will die because of the waters. Wormwood is the second most-bitter herb known to man; it is toxic in large doses, and is used in insecticides. Deuteronomy 29:18 speaks of those who do not turn away from Yahweh to idols, that “there will not be among you a root bearing poisonous fruit and wormwood.”

Interestingly, “Wormwood” in Russian is “Chernoble” – the name of the city where a Russian nuclear reactor that melted down, and is is poisoning aquifers over great distances.

When the fourth angel sounded his trumpet (v.12), a third of the sun, moon, and stars were darkened. While the meaning is not clear, it may mean that for a third of the day and a third of the night these will not shine.

Then we hear “Woe, woe, woe!” because of the three angels who are about to sound their trumpets.

This tribulation will come upon earth, preceding the Millennial Temple (Ezekiel 40-48) where we will offer peace offerings.

Readings:

Ezekiel 20:41

Reader 4*  Amen. ⁴⁰ "For on My holy mountain, on the high mountain of Israel," declares Lord Yahweh, "there the whole house of Israel, all of them, will serve Me in the land; there I will accept them and there I will seek your contributions and the choicest of your gifts, with all your holy things. ⁴¹ "As a soothing aroma I will accept you when I bring you out from the peoples and gather you from the lands where you are scattered; and I will prove Myself holy among you in the sight of the nations. ⁴² "And you will know that I am Yahweh, when I bring you into the land of Israel, into the land which I swore to give to your forefathers. ⁴³ "There you will remember your ways and all your deeds with which you have defiled yourselves; and you will loathe yourselves in your own sight for all the evil things that you have done. ⁴⁴ "Then you will know that I am Yahweh when I have dealt with you for My name's sake, not according to your evil ways or according to your corrupt deeds, O house of Israel," declares Lord Yahweh.'"

Ezekiel 44:10-11

Reader 5*  Amen. ¹⁰ "But the Levites who went far from Me when Israel went astray, who went astray from Me after their idols, shall bear the punishment for their iniquity. ¹¹ "Yet they shall be ministers in My sanctuary, having oversight at the gates of the house and ministering in the house; they shall slaughter the elevation offering and the sacrifice for the people, and they shall stand before them to minister to them.
 

Psalm 71

(To be sung.) ¹ In You, O Yahweh, I have taken refuge; let me never be ashamed. ² In Your righteousness deliver me and rescue me; incline Your ear to me and save me. ³ Be to me a rock of habitation to which I may continually come; You have given commandment to save me, for You are my rock and my fortress. ⁴ Rescue me, O my God, out of the hand of the wicked, out of the grasp of the wrongdoer and ruthless man, ⁵ For You are my hope; O Lord Yahweh, You are my confidence from my youth. ⁶ By You I have been sustained from my birth; You are He who took me from my mother's womb; my praise is continually of You. ⁷ I have become a marvel to many, for You are my strong refuge. ⁸ My mouth is filled with Your praise and with Your glory all day long. ⁹ Do not cast me off in the time of old age; do not forsake me when my strength fails. ¹⁰ For my enemies have spoken against me; and those who watch for my life have consulted together, ¹¹ Saying, "God has forsaken him; pursue and seize him, for there is no one to deliver." ¹² O God, do not be far from me; O my God, hasten to my help! ¹³ Let those who are adversaries of my soul be ashamed and consumed; let them be covered with reproach and dishonor, who seek to injure me. ¹⁴ But as for me, I will hope continually, and will praise You yet more and more. ¹⁵ My mouth shall tell of Your righteousness and of Your salvation all day long; for I do not know the sum of them. ¹⁶ I will come with the mighty deeds of the Lord Yahweh; I will make mention of Your righteousness, Yours alone. ¹⁷ O God, You have taught me from my youth, and I still declare Your wondrous deeds. ¹⁸ And even when I am old and gray, O God, do not forsake me, until I declare Your strength to this generation, Your power to all who are to come. ¹⁹ For Your righteousness, O God, reaches to the heavens, You who have done great things; O God, who is like You? ²⁰ You who have shown me many troubles and distresses will revive me again, and will bring me up again from the depths of the earth. ²¹ May You increase my greatness and turn to comfort me. ²² I will also praise You with a harp, even Your truth, O my God; to You I will sing praises with the lyre, O Holy One of Israel. ²³ My lips will shout for joy when I sing praises to You; and my soul, which You have redeemed. ²⁴ My tongue also will utter Your righteousness all day long; for they are ashamed, for they are humiliated who seek my hurt.

Revelation 8:1-13

Reader 6*  Amen. ¹ When the Lamb broke the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven for about half an hour. ² And I saw the seven angels who stand before God, and seven trumpets were given to them. ³ Another angel came and stood at the altar, holding a golden censer; and much incense was given to him, so that he might add it to the prayers of all the saints on the golden altar which was before the throne. ⁴ And the smoke of the incense, with the prayers of the saints, went up before God out of the angel's hand. ⁵ Then the angel took the censer and filled it with the fire of the altar, and threw it to the earth; and there followed peals of thunder and sounds and flashes of lightning and an earthquake. ⁶ And the seven angels who had the seven trumpets prepared themselves to sound them.

Reader 7*  Amen.  ⁷ The first sounded, and there came hail and fire, mixed with blood, and they were thrown to the earth; and a third of the earth was burned up, and a third of the trees were burned up, and all the green grass was burned up. ⁸ The second angel sounded, and something like a great mountain burning with fire was thrown into the sea; and a third of the sea became blood, ⁹ and a third of the creatures which were in the sea and had life, died; and a third of the ships were destroyed. ¹⁰ The third angel sounded, and a great star fell from heaven, burning like a torch, and it fell on a third of the rivers and on the springs of waters. ¹¹ The name of the star is called Wormwood; and a third of the waters became wormwood, and many men died from the waters, because they were made bitter. ¹² The fourth angel sounded, and a third of the sun and a third of the moon and a third of the stars were struck, so that a third of them would be darkened and the day would not shine for a third of it, and the night in the same way. ¹³ Then I looked, and I heard an eagle flying in midheaven, saying with a loud voice, "Woe, woe, woe to those who dwell on the earth, because of the remaining blasts of the trumpet of the three angels who are about to sound!"