3- The Book of Leviticus
Author
Not written but known to be Moses the prophet
Date
Written around 1400 B.C.
Purpose
Man needs to be reconciled with God. The sacrifices in the Old Testament are the shadow of the cross. One sacrifice is not sufficient to explain Christ redeeming work, 5 different sacrifices are defined. God grants Himself as an inheritance to His people. Through unity with Him they are made holy.
So this is the book of Holiness and how to be holy.
Summary of content (Main Ideas)
The Divisions of the Book
Chapters 1-7: Sacrifices: This shows that sin leads to death and that forgiveness of sin requires the shedding of blood. Also the concept of redemption is introduced
Categorization of sacrifices
- The burnt Sacrifice (Holocaust): A sacrifice of obedience, indicating the obedience and love that the Beloved Son offered on our behalf. Animal is completely burnt
- The Oblation: The communion with God in His Son. Represents Christ’s pure life (The wheat that was crushed on our behalf). Made of flour mixed with oil and oil poured on it. Priests eat from it.
- The Sacrifice of Peace: The life of internal peace and thanksgiving. Priest, the person offering, and his family can eat from this sacrifice.
- The Sacrifice of Sin: Constant washing away of our sins and weaknesses. Offered on the sinful state and not a specific sin. Only the priests can eat from this sacrifice.
- The Guilt Offering: salvation from trespasses we commit. Offered on behalf of a specific sin. Similar to the sin offering.
Chapters 8-10: Consecration of priests. Two of Aaron sons offer s a foreign fire and they die
Chapters 11-15: Laws of purification (Clean animals, circumcision, skin diseases and leprosy )
Chapter 16: The day of Atonement. Only day the high priest enters the holy of holies. Two goats, one sacrificed and one set free (sin is isolated from our lives).
Chapter 17: The altar and the sanctity of blood
Chapters 18-22: Laws of sanctification
Chapters 23-27: Feasts and Vows: God wants us to be happy and joyful, but He should be the center of this joy.
- Saturday: the seventh day (Exod. 20:8-11).
First Group: life in the wilderness before entering the promised land
| Jewish Feast | Christian meaning |
| The feast of Passover (Nisan 14) (23:5) | The Crucifixion of our Lord to save us from eternal death |
| Feast of the unleavened bread (Nisan 15 for 1 week, rest and no work) (23:8) | Abstaining from sin though out our live |
| Feast of the first Fruits (23:10) | The resurrection |
| The feast of the weeks or Pentecost (Wheat harvest. Also, commemorating when Moses received the commandments) (23:15) | The Holy Spirit descends on the Apostles to create the Church. |
Second Group:
| Jewish Feast | Christian meaning |
| Feast of trumpets (7th month) (23:24). Beginning of the new civil year. Consecrating the year and the whole world to God. Remembering God’s victories | We remember God’s victories and His final victory when He comes with the voice of the trumpets. |
| The day of Atonement (10th day) (chap 16) (23:27) | Christ’s redemption despite our failures |
| Feast of the Tabernacles (23:34). Thanking God for all the blessings of the agriculture year. Very joyful festivities. They lived in tents during wondering in Sinai | We are joyful with what God planned for us at the end of our lives. Our life here on earth is all in a tabernacle (2Co 5:1). |
More feasts
Chapter 24: The son of the Egyptian is stoned for disrespecting the Sabbath.
Chapter 25:
The Sabbatical year (Exod. 23:10-11; Lev. 25:1-7).
The Jubilee (the fiftieth Year): the year that comes after counting seven times seven years (Lev. 25:8-22).
Chapter 26: God reminds the Israelites with His promises and covenant
Chapter 27: Consecrating things for God and rule of tithing and the first of everything
Please note that they had two calendars, civil and religious. The religious calendar was off by 7 months.
How to benefit
After salvation we need to live a pure life. To achieve that we need to be purified by the work of the Lord Jesus Christ on the cross. “Without shedding of blood there is no remission” (Heb 9:20).
We should understand that sin has great consequences and its impact is devastating. Only way of purification and reconciling with God is through the blood of Jesus Christ the true sacrifice (Heb 9:28).
God’s role
God is the law giver and He is the one who sanctifies us. God wants us to be joyful by being with Him and celebrating Him.
Symbols in the Book
| Sacrifices | Various aspects of Christ’s role on the cross |
| The priest that offers the sacrifice | Christ is the priest who offered His own sacrifice |
| The person offering the sacrifice | Christ is the one who is offering the sacrifice on behalf of the whole world |
| Type of sacrifice | |
| The bull (Works hard in the fields) | Christ the servant |
| The lamb (most obedient and calm animal) | Christ obeyed all the way to the cross (Isa 53:7) |
| Male goat (represents sin) | He who is without sin became a sin for us (2 Co5:21) |
| Doves and pigeons | Christ’s sacrifice brings peace and gives us the gifts of the Holy Spirit |
Verses to memorize
- And the priest shall take from the meat offering a memorial thereof, and shall burn it upon the altar: it is an offering made by fire, of a sweet savour unto the LORD. (Lev 2:9)
- And he shall put his hand upon the head of the burnt offering; and it shall be accepted for him to make atonement for him. (Lev 1:4)
- And Moses and Aaron went into the tabernacle of the congregation, and came out and blessed the people. And the glory of Jehovah appeared to all the people. (Lev 9:23 )
- and so that you may teach the sons of Israel all the statutes which Jehovah has spoken to them by the hand of Moses. (Lev 10:11)
- Whatever divides the hoof, and is cloven-footed, chewing the cud, among the animals, that you shall eat. (Lev 11:3)
- And you shall keep My statutes and My judgments, which if a man does, he shall live in them. I am (Lev 18:5)
- You shall be holy: for I the LORD your God am (Lev 19:2)
- You shall each man revere his mother and his father, and keep My sabbaths. I am Jehovah your God. (Lev 19:3)
- For any soul who is not humbled in that same day, he shall be cut off from among his people. (Lev 23:29)
- And you shall not profane My holy name. But I will be holy among the sons of Israel. I am Jehovah who is sanctifying you, (Lev 22:32)