Leviticus has been by far the HARDEST book for me to go through. It's full of tons of information. Most of which we ignore today in Christianity... and some of it I know the Jews ignore as well. I think that NONE of it should be ignored. As it is the very foundations of both religions! I have done my best to summarize, so please do not think that this post is comprehensive. Thank you!
An Overview of Leviticus;
And what I learned from reading this Book of the Bible
·
Leviticus
is the book of Levi (Leh-vee)
·
The
altar sacrifice of mainly animals, which is the primary thrust of Leviticus,
ceased with the destruction of Herod’s temple in Jerusalem nearly two thousand
years ago.
·
During
the Middle Ages (which began between the second & fifth century AD and
lasted for one thousand years) it was illegal for anyone except church
authorities to own, and therefore study, Scripture.
·
Yeshua
of Nazareth was the fulfillment of all that the sacrificial system of Leviticus
pointed to.
·
In
general, the Noachide Laws were: (1) no idolatry, (2) no blasphemy (cursing God
or using His name in a false vow), (3) no murder, (4) no stealing, (5) no
immoral sex, (6) no drinking blood or eating a live animal, and (7) man was to
establish a human government in order to administer God’s justice system.
·
Chapters
1-7 cover the laws on ritual sacrifice.
·
Chapters
8, 9, and 10 speak of the ordination of the priesthood.
·
Chapters
11-16 deal with ritual purity and cleanliness.
·
Finally,
Chapters 17-27 lay down basic principles and practices for applying holiness to
the everyday lives of the Israelite people.
Chapters 1-7: Establishing the
Sacrificial System
Burnt Offering
(‘olah): A burnt offering is a
personal offering, for personal reasons, or requests. Each according to the individual. It’s intention was to ask God to accept the
worshipper, thus allowing the worshipper to draw nearer to God.
God sincerely wants mankind to be at peace with Him. So much so that He set up this system that
cost Yehoveh millions upon millions of His valuable living creatures, creatures
that He dearly cared about. Mankind
meant so much more to Him, though, that for our sakes He didn’t spare even
those beautiful innocent creatures, and it pleased Him to do it to attain His
goal of peace with man. We’re also told
that when Christ died “it pleased God” for His own Son to be sacrificed…
because it brought humans another step closer to universal and eternal peace
with Yehoveh.
A preeminent biblical principle of holiness was that once
God declared an object or person to be holy, that state of holiness could be
transmitted from object to object, object to person, person to person, and
person to object merely by means of contact.
Grain Offering
(minchah): From what I can tell the
grain offering was done in gratitude for the favorable attention received from
the burnt offering. This was done at the
individual level, and the individual’s decision. A “fragrant” aroma to please God in gratitude
for pouring his favor on the worshipper.
Truly not much else is gleaned from the passage on this offering.
Peace Offering
(zevah): Leviticus 7 gives us three
reasons why the peace offering should be brought before the Lord: (1) as a “confession offering”; (2) as a
“freewill offering”; and (3) as a “vow offering.” It was used for special occasions.
(1) Confession offering: The first occasion, the “confession
offering,” was used when the worshipper sought God for deliverance from his
enemies or for healing from sickness.
Since some unknown sin was often seen as the cause for oppression from
an enemy or for becoming ill, it was logical that the confession of sin was
necessary if the worshipper thought that was the reason for his predicament.
(2) Vow offering (zelah): It was typical in that day to make a vow to
God that if He helped you out of some kind of problem, or would show His mercy
to you for a special need, you would pledge to do something for God in return. When that pledge, that vow, to God was
fulfilled, it would be capped off with a ceremony that included a peace
offering.
(3) Freewill Offering: differs from the other offerings, in that the
worshipper was not seeking something from God; rather, this was simply a
spontaneous expression of gratitude to Yehoveh.
Purification Offering
(Hatta’at): From a functional
aspect, the hatta’at repairs the condition of the worshipper who had committed
a sin – it purified the worshipper.
The main problem with sin is that it can destroy the relationship
between man and God. God is a god of
both love AND judgment.
This fourth class of sacrifice deals, with the precarious state in which the
person who sinned finds himself. It’s as
though the person who sinned has been poisoned with such a powerful toxin that
he is very liable not to survive. The
hatta’at, the purification offering, is the antidote to neutralize that
poison. How the person got poisoned, and
the precise nature of the toxin, is secondary, provided the sin occurred
unintentionally.
Sin changes the condition of the sinner, the hatta’at was
designed to put the sinner back right with God, provided the behavior had been
a mistake, an error, and unintended.
Reparation Offering
(‘asham): Sin creates a debt owed to God.
The reparation offering is designed to pay that debt.
(1) To atone for Sins of Omission:
a. If
someone hears of a public proclamation that anyone who knows the facts of an
incident that needs to be adjudicated should come forward, but does not, that
person is guilty of the sin of omission.
b. Becoming
unclean by touching an unclean “thing”: (1) the carcass of a wild animal; (2)
the carcass of a domesticated animal; and (3) the carcass of a reptile, a
snake, or any kind of animal that creeps along the ground.
c. Touching
human impurity. Touching a woman after
childbirth, before the allotted purification time had not elapsed. Sex at beginning of menstruation.
d. Forgetting
about a vow that we have made.
(2) Sins against mitzvot of Adonai
Chapters 8-10: Establishing the Priests. Aharon & his sons.
Aharon and his sons, went through a 7 day sanctification
process. At the end of which, Moses
transferred all authority over. Moses
was still the only one who got to talk directly to God. But Aharon and his sons oversaw the
Tabernacle, the rituals, sacrifices and day to day operations.
Nadav & Avihu.
Two of Aharon’s sons. We see
early after the sanctification period, that these two sons, offer up some alien
incense. And God strikes them dead on
the spot. Being Holy themselves, they
should have known better than to perform the tasks wrong. They should have known better than to not
follow the rules. As Holy men, they are
held to higher expectations. Any number
of these and more not listed could have been the reason for God’s swift
judgment on these two. May have been a
combination of all of the above.
Chapter 11: Dietary
Restrictions: kashrut… kosher eating.
YES you can eat:
·
You may eat any animal that has a divided hoof
and that chews the cud.
·
“‘Of all the creatures
living in the water of the seas and the streams you may eat any that have fins
and scales.
·
22 Of these you may eat any kind of locust, katydid,
cricket or grasshopper.
No you may NOT eat:
·
Camel, Rabbit, Pig, Hyrax
·
Anything in the water that does not have fins or
scales.
·
13 “‘These are the birds you are to regard as unclean and not
eat because they are unclean: the eagle,[a] the
vulture, the black vulture, 14 the red
kite, any kind of black kite, 15 any kind of raven, 16 the horned owl, the screech owl, the gull, any kind of hawk, 17 the little owl, the cormorant, the great owl, 18 the white owl, the
desert owl, the osprey, 19 the
stork, any kind of heron, the hoopoe and the bat.
·
20 “‘All flying insects that walk on all fours are to be
regarded as unclean by you.
·
29 “‘Of the animals that move along the ground, these are
unclean for you: the weasel, the rat, any kind
of great lizard, 30 the
gecko, the monitor lizard, the wall lizard, the skink and the chameleon.
·
42 You are not to eat any creature that moves along the ground,
whether it moves on its belly or walks on all fours or on many feet; it is
unclean.
IN ADDITION:
By eating the meat of unclean animals, you become
unclean.
By touching the carcass of ANY animal that has died you
become unclean until evening.
Picking up or eating from the carcass of a permitted animal
that has died, makes you unclean until evening, and you must wash your
clothes.
Picking up a carcass of ANY animal that has died, you have to
wash your clothes, and your unclean until evening.
A dead critter falling on something makes it unclean, put it
in water, it will be unclean until evening.
A dead critter falls into a clay pot, everything in it
becomes unclean and you must break the pot (container, oven, cooking pot).
A dead critter falls on/in a cistern or spring, the water
remains clean.
A dead critter falls on any seeds that are to be planted,
remain clean.
A dead critter falls on any seeds that have been already
watered, they are unclean.
Chapter 12-16: Clean Vs. Unclean
Holy is the opposite of common, just as clean is the
opposite of unclean.
Common has neither special value nor position. It’s typical and usual’ it is not set apart;
the term applies to the largest group.
Common means there is more of whatever the common word is describing,
Holy holds the highest position and carries the greatest value.
Only clean common things are eligible to become
sanctified. Unclean common things cannot
be holy.
Rule 1: Common and
clean is the natural and beginning state of most things, mankind included. Common and clean things can be elevated into
something holy, or common and clean things can be degraded into something
unclean.
Rule 2: the only way
something common can ever become Holy is if God authorizes it by means of His
Grace.
Only God can make clean what is unclean.
Uncleanness, or defilement, can happen in an instant, but
becoming pure takes time.
Priests could not remove the sinful nature of man, the Torah
wasn’t created for that purpose. Only
Christ can do that. The purpose of the
Torah was to show man what sin and righteousness was, not save him from those
sins.
“If a person considers something unclean, then for him it is
unclean” Romans 14:14
“Has the Lord laid it on your heart that some biblically
defined prohibited food is unclean for you?
Then follow that feeling, based on
trust – not on rule or ritual or what your friends think. Don’t use Leviticus
as a cookbook, and don’t worry about what others think; in fact, you aren’t
even obligated to divulge to others what God has shown you. And, of critical importance, do not judge other
believers concerning kosher eating. As a
person who eats kosher, you have nothing to brag about or say to someone who
doesn’t. And as a person who sees no
foods as unclean, you have nothing to defend yourself about; but neither are
you to criticize someone who eats kosher in some form or another.”
–
Tom Bradford: torahclass.com
Chapter 14 deals with the
outward signs of sin… skin disease. It
is generally agreed upon by rabbi’s that outward signs of sin do not occur any
longer. However, currently we have no
temple, and no priesthood. Without a
priest who has authority to discern tzara’at or perform the cleansing and
atoning rituals, and without a temple the rituals listed here cannot be
performed.
Female discharges – this is not tradition, but laid out in
the Torah as Law. No one was to touch or
be touched by a woman during the time of her discharge. Women were shunned during this time.
Chapter 16: Yom Kippur and the Scapegoat
The reasons for Yom Kippur was to cleanse the
tabernacle/temple from uncleanness that others brought into the area and to
purify the people, priests and high priest.
Two goats were a part of this.
The first was given to Adonai as a sacrifice, the second was filled with
all the sins of everyone and sent off into the wilderness to ‘Az’azel.
(‘Az’azel is listed in Enoch as a divine fallen being, or a demon).
Chapter 17-26: The “Holiness Code”
Chapter 17: All domestic
animals must be killed in the temple.
Wild animals did not have to be driven to the temple before they were
killed, while hunting. Animals that died
of natural reasons or by another animal, could be eaten, but the eater would be
“unclean” until they bathed.
Chapter 18: God draws
sharp distinctions; man is doing what he can to blur, and remove them.
In this chapter, God defines incest, admonishes against
sacrificing children, homosexuality, and bestiality.
A warning comes that for us to avoid things that will make
us unclean, otherwise the land will become unclean and will spit us out.
Chapter 19: Torah within the Torah: Be holy because He is holy, revere your
father and mother, keep the Sabbaths. Do not turn to idols. Explanation of the shelamim offering. Make provision for the poor and the
strangers when farming. Shall not steal. Do not lie.
No swearing falsely using God’s name.
Fraud and robbery explained.
Don’t take advantage of others weaknesses. Do not judge unjustly. Do not spread slander. Do not hate your brother, rebuke your
neighbor, take vengeance or bear a grudge. Do not mix mate your livestock. Don’t have sex with another man’s slave.
Fruit trees, when to plant, how to harvest and not harvest.
Do not eat anything with blood. No divination or fortune-telling. Don’t round your hair at the temples or mar
the edges of your beard. Don’t cut your
flesh when someone dies or get tattoos.
Do not prostitute your daughter. Keep the Sabbaths.
Don’t turn to spirit-mediums or sorcerers. Stand in the presence of the gray haired one,
show respect.
Do no wrong to the foreigner in your land.
Don’t be dishonest when measuring length, weight or
capacity. (Don’t cheat).
Observe His regulations and rulings, and do them.
The poor, are the destitute… NOT the lazy. Laziness was NOT tolerated by God, and
therefore the Israelites.
I think one the most important verses
in Leviticus is 19:33-34 ‘When
a foreigner resides among you in your land, do not mistreat them. The
foreigner residing among you must be treated as your native-born. Love them
as yourself, for
you were foreigners in
Egypt. I am the Lord your God.”
Chapter 20: We get a list of ‘penalties’ if we
go on and do what God said “do not do”.
The purpose of the Torah is to show a redeemed person how to
live a holy life, not to redeem an unredeemed person.
Chapter 21 & 22: Death is deemed unclean. Priests must marry virgins. Priests cannot participate in funerals unless
it is a direct relative, but not his wife.
(A High Priest could attend NONE).
Divorce is only allowed when the woman is sexually immoral.
“If you won’t do as I instruct and prosecute those who
violate My laws, I will! I will cut off by My own hand those who trespass
against Me”
Priests were not allowed to have any form of blemish,
deformity, dwarfism, broken bones ever in their lives.
A Priest could not eat of the holy foods if he was in an
unclean state.
Slaves, ALL slaves, were to be treated fairly.
Chapter 23: God’s Appointed Times
“So many of
the Jewish traditions should not be automatically thorwn out any more than all
Christian traditions should be automatically thrown out. But traditions aren’t God’s commands!”
Sabbath: 7th day is to be observed. Which meant:
Absolute and complete rest from any type of work, the day is to be
designated as holy, and was to be observed by all Israel, wherever they may be.
Pesach: First
month on the 14th day, between sundown and complete darkness. Holy rest.
Offering by fire for 7 days.
Matzah: 15th
day of the first month, you are to eat matzah for 7 days.
First Fruits: Sheaf of first fruits, burnt offering
of a male lamb in its first year. Grain mixed with olive oil is to be
burnt. You are not to eat bread, dried
grain, or fresh grain until this day.
Counting the Omer: Count 7 weeks after the day after
the Sabbath of First Fruits.
Shavuot: The
day after the 7 weeks. Bring two loaves
of bread, 7 lambs, 1 bull and 2 rams.
Day of rest.
Trumpets: 1st
day of 7th month is a complete day of rest to be sounded by the
shofar.
Yom Kippur: 10th
day of the 7th month, is a complete day of rest, and denying oneself
from evening of the 9th day until the following day. Day of Atonement and repentance.
Sukkot: 15th
day of the 7th month for 7 days there is to be no work, living in
booths for 7 days. Waving fruit, palm
fronds and thick branches and river willows to the six directions is to be done
by the priest.
Chapter 24
Verse 22” You are to have the same law for the foreigner and
the native-born. I am the Lord your God.”
This states one law for all, not one for Jews and one for
Christians. ONE law for all!
Chapter 25 The year of the Jubilee is explained.
Chapter 26
We are reminded again to not worship idols, Yehoveh is Lord,
the Shabbats are to be observed and the tabernacle (God’s dwelling place) is to
be scrupulously maintained according to His regulations.
God made a message of these things numerous times, because
these things the Israelites were not doing properly. And they continued to not do them properly
for a long time.
God’s definition of prosperity is abundant food, peace and
security, safety from enemies and beasts that would do harm, having many
children, and God’s perpetual presence in their midst, guaranteeing the
continuation of His covenants. NO where
does it mention that God will make you rich, or give you an abundance of
material wealth.
Chapter 27: Giving
Giving to the “church” was supposed to be monetary. If it wasn’t, then it expected that you would
buy the items back.
Types of giving:
1.
Pledge of service to the Lord… In most cases
these individuals would be bought back.
2.
Giving of animals… for offering, these become
the Lord’s and are not bought back.
3.
Consecrating your house to the Lord…
4.
Consecrating part or all of a tribes fields…
5.
First born and first fruits already belong to
Adonai and cannot be counted as “giving”.
6.
10% tithe is above and beyond ALL other giving.
The value of a shekel is set at twenty gerahs. 2/5th of an ounce.
No person that has been sentenced to die, and thus
unconditionally consecrated, can be redeemed; he must be put to death.
“Perhaps it makes us feel better about ourselves to think
that God solved the problem of sin simply by getting rid of the laws; but it’s
not so. The laws remain, as do their
consequences; it’s just that Y’shua is our substitute; He is the bearer of the
horrific punishments required of those laws.”
Items in quotes have been borrowed from one of two
sources.
Complete Jewish Bible by David H. Stern
Torahclass.com by Tom Bradford
