Leviticus 26 reminds the Israelites that the blessings of God are dependent on their obedience to his statutes and laws.  No one will be able to run them from their land.  They will never face famine or drought.  We know they did.  We also have a record of the fact that they did not follow Jehovah’s rules.

The promises for good from God are only surpassed by the condemnation that will come if they do not follow His path.  As you read this chapter, note the terrible things that are going to happen, when they do not seek Yahweh.  As we trek through the rest of the scriptures, you will see these fulfilled.  The Sabbath rest for the land will be provided by God one way or the other.

With all of this, He still promises forgiveness when they turn back to Him.  That is the promise that we have, today.

As we complete the book of Leviticus with chapter twenty-seven, we see that the Lord will accept things dedicated to Him.   He even sets the value of those people and animals which might need to be redeemed.  The emphasis is on the holiness of those dedicated to Yahweh.  That holiness makes them priceless.

As Christians, we must commit ourselves to the Lord.  Our holiness comes from Christ, not anything we have done.  Just as being the property of Jehovah made an ordinary animal holy and of value, our worth increases through our relationship with Him.

One-tenth of all the products that the land gives the Israelites are God’s.  This is where our modern tithe comes from.  One-tenth seems large if we don’t want to honor God with it.  When we love the Lord, that seems smaller than He deserves.

©Copyright 2020 by Charles Kensinger

Leviticus 24 is quite unusual.  We have instructions for the Show Bread that is to be on the altar every day.  Then a story about stoning a blasphemer is told.  Pomp and circumstance at its best, don’t you think?  Ceremony and discipline.  Jehovah wishes to be honored and respected.  Insulting His name is not permitted.  The entire assembly had to hit him with rocks. That is what stoning is. Over a million people threw a rock at this guy.  How big was that pile when they were done?  Every time they passed back that way, I am sure the story was told until they were sick of hearing about The Blasphemer.  Unfortunately, I don’t think they learned the lesson very well.

Crop rotation is what modern agronomists teach today, but in Leviticus 25 Jehovah instructed the Hebrews to give the land a rest every seventh year.  They never did it.

To compound things, even more, they were to observe a Year of Jubilee every fifty years.  During this fiftieth year celebration, all the property in the promised land was to be given back to those families that it was given to at the time the land was settled.  When selling property, it was to be remembered that God owned all the land and that the Israelites were given it to farm and raise their families on.

Another interesting item in VSS. 35-38 is that Jews were not to charge other Jew’s interest on loans.  If a fellow Israelite needed to borrow money, it was to be loaned without interest.  What If Christians did this today?  The restriction went further in vs. 37.  They were not to sell food at a profit to each other.  I’m sure that is another command that was not heeded.

The chapter ends with a reminder that the Israelites are to be God’s servants.  Followers of Christ have the same commitment.  We are to be Yahweh’s servants by serving others as Christ did.

©Copyright 2020 by Charles Kensinger

Leviticus chapter 22 emphasizes the importance of cleanliness on the part of the priests.  Death is the reward for performing their duties while unclean.  The life of those who minister to the people and to Jehovah have additional restrictions.  This continues today, but many in Christian service rebel against the high standards they are held to.  The call to ministry is special and not to be taken lightly.

In many of the verses, God says, “I am the Lord.”  This is literally translated, “I am that I am.”  This is the name that we transliterate as Jehovah or Yahweh.  It can be stated another way.  “I exist because I exist.”  He is the Creator, not a creation.  Throughout the scriptures, this is stated in various manners.  God is God and there are no others.

The Sabbath is one of the festivals mentioned in Leviticus 23.  These are holidays.  They are days of rest and no work is to be done.  A minimum of one day a week is to be celebrated.  The Passover is the next one mentioned with the Feast of Unleavened bread.  The Festival of First Fruits is to celebrate the beginning of the harvest.

The Festival of Weeks, Trumpets, and Tabernacles, as well as the Day of Atonement, are all times to stop and think about what God has done for them.  We have lost the idea of rest on holidays and focusing on God.  Each holiday has its own regulations just as each of our holidays is celebrated for different reasons.

©Copyright 2020 by Charles Kensinger

The teaching of the scape goat in Leviticus 16 is very interesting.  In addition to having a burnt offering and sacrifice of a goat and a bull before God there is another goat that is left alive.  The sins of all the people are to be placed on the head of the goat.  Just as our sins were placed on Jesus at the cross, the live goat takes away their sins when it is released and runs away. The New Testament tells us that Jesus is both this scape goat and the ultimate perfect Passover lamb that is sacrifice once and for all time.

Leviticus 17 adds more restrictions to the sacrifices that are being offered.  The ban on offerings to idols is reiterated.  Eating meat with the blood still in it is again mentioned.  God does not want us eating or drinking any blood.  The vampire legends probably stem from this and pagan religions that have practiced it since these early times.  The life is in the blood.  There is no forgiveness of sins without the shedding of blood. This was accomplished by Jesus’ death on the cross.

Sex is talked about in Leviticus 18.  Restrictions on sex with relatives is often thought to be because of the possibility of diseases and mutations that can be caused by this.  Daughters-in-law and wives of fathers and sons would not be included in these medical areas.

Homosexuality and bestiality are restricted.  This has not changed in the view of Jehovah in these thousands of years.  The law is ignored because we do not want to listen to anyone who tries to keep us from doing everything we want to do.  Bestiality, incest, and homosexuality are restricted.  Christians who want to follow God’s desires will respect this. Sexual sin is one of this century’s greatest problems. We do not want to restrict any action that we view as pleasurable. We do not consider the effects of these sinful actions. Yahweh is not a party pooper. These instructions are like the ones we give our children not to play in the street or light matches without our supervision. These laws are for our own protection.

©Copyright 2020 by Charles Kensinger