The Book Of LEVITICUS
Leviticus 27:34 "These are the commandments, which the LORD commanded Moses for
the children of Israel in mount Sinai."
Verse 1: “And the Lord called unto Moses…”. (Exodus 19:3, 25:22, Numbers 7:89) This book opens right where Exodus left off. The book of Numbers begins on the first day of the second month of the second year after the exodus from Egypt. (Numbers 1:1) The tabernacle was erected on the first day of the first month of the second year (Exodus 40:2), so that means the book of Leviticus was dictated to Moses by God in the first month after the completion of the tabernacle and the ordination and consecration of Aaron and his sons. The other indication that there is no break between the books of Exodus and Leviticus is that verse 1 also states that God speaks to Moses “…out of the tabernacle of the congregation…”, which is right where chapter 40 left off. (Exodus 40:34) Verse 2: “…an offering unto the Lord…”. The first 7 chapters of Leviticus can be summed up in this phrase from verse 2. Remember what God said to Moses right after He called Moses to lead the Israelites out of Egypt: “…I will take you to me for a people, and I will be to you a God…”. (Exodus 6:7) That was the whole point of His promise to Abraham, that his seed would be a great nation. God chose that nation to be His people, and He had brought them to Mount Sinai to initiate His covenant with them. That was step one. Step two was building God a place where He could dwell among his chosen people. Now, here in Leviticus, is step three: instruct the Israelites on the system of sacrifices by which they can properly and rightly worship and fellowship with God. Without this system there is no way for the children of Israel to have that covenantal relationship their Lord and king. Another way to look at this book – and the whole system of the law and sacrifices – is to see it as a way for the Israelites to know God. Until He introduced Himself to Moses at the burning bush (Exodus 3:14-15) God was relatively unknown to the descendants of Jacob and his sons. They were well acquainted, however, with the false gods of Egypt, as evidenced by the incident with the golden calf. The Moody Bible Commentary puts it this way: “Israel may not have lacked a monotheistic perspective, but they may have been deficient in their understanding of God and how to approach Him. These deficiencies needed to be corrected by a clear word from God.” Now that the brazen altar is built, God is instructing Moses on the various sacrifices that the priests will be offering up to the Lord on that altar on behalf of the people. Without adherence to this system of offerings and blood sacrifices there’s no possibility of sinful man being able to approach a holy and righteous God. The five types - or categories - of sacrifices are as follows: Verses 3-17: the burnt offering, a.k.a. burnt sacrifice. (v.3) The animal has to be a “…male without blemish…”. (Exodus 12:5, Leviticus 22:20, Deuteronomy 15:21, Ephesians 5:27, Hebrews 9:14, 1 Peter 1:19) This offering is voluntary, brought forth of one’s own free will, and is to be done at the door of the tabernacle. Both of those things are important to take note of. All the offerings described in this book cannot be done just anywhere. God is specific in his command that the offerings are to be done by a priest at the tabernacle. Furthermore, this one, as well as the grain and fellowship offerings, are voluntary. That means that if one is going to offer up these particular sacrifices, he/she must have a willing heart and a right spirit.
The burnt offering is one of atonement, which means “to cover” or “to appease”. This is why verse 4 instructs the one bringing the animal to the priest to “…put his hand upon the head of the burnt offering; and it shall be accepted for him to make atonement for him.” (Exodus 29:10, 15, 19, Leviticus 3:2, 8, 13, 4:15) In order to cover sin, blood must be shed. If the penalty of sin is death (Romans 6:23), then the sinner’s blood must be shed. God, in His great mercy, established the burnt offering as an atonement, or cover, of man’s sin. “An Israelite presenting his sacrifice held the animal with one hand and slit its throat with the other. The animal died at his own hands, thereby dramatizing that the spilt blood should have been his own. The expiation or purgation of sin through sacrifice resulted in God’s wrath being turned away (see Leviticus 16:16-19). As atonement was made, the relationship between God and man was restored.” God performed the very first blood sacrifice for Adam and Eve's atonement when he provided for them animal skins. (Genesis 3:21) After sprinkling the blood around and upon the altar, the priest will flay the animal and then cut it up. (v.6) The priest is allowed to keep the skin as either clothing or sell it for income. (Leviticus 7:8) This is one of the many ways that God provides for His servants, in much the same way that we today provide the income for our pastors and missionaries by giving to our church our tithes and offerings. Next, the priest will light a fire upon the altar (v.7) and lay the head, the body and the fat on the wood of the fire. (v.8) But before burning the rest of the animal, he must first wash the organs, intestines and legs with water. (v.9) For the burnt offering, the whole animal is sacrificed on the altar, as opposed to some of the other offerings where only some of the animal is to be burned and the rest consumed for food by the priest. This offering is “…a sweet savour unto the Lord.” (v.9) (Genesis 8:21, Ezekiel 20:28, 41, 2 Corinthians 2:15) This is another example of anthropomorphism. God will be pleased when the Israelites offer up a proper and right sacrifice. By obeying His instructions in every detail, it will show their humility and dedication to Him, as well as demonstrating their desire to fellowship with their Lord and king. The same holds true of us today. When we approach God with a humble and contrite heart and a sincere desire to know Him and obey His commandments, He will never refuse us. Our obedience and our prayers of worship are a sweet smelling savor to Him, just as it was back then with the children of Israel. Verses 10-17 describe the other animals that may be used for this offering if one cannot afford a bullock. These include a sheep, a goat, a pair of turtledoves, or a young pigeon. (Genesis 15:9, Leviticus 5:7, 11, 12:8, Luke 2:24) The feathers of the bird are to be plucked out and cast away on the east side of the altar, on top of the ashes, before the animal is sacrificed. (v.16) This is the equivalent of flaying it, per the instructions for all the other animals. Allowing for all these different animals, God is making it possible for even the poorest of His children to properly obey and worship Him. Birds could easily be snared in homemade traps that cost nothing. God does not show favoritism to the wealthy or the poor, but all must come to Him by only one way, as is stated clearly throughout the book of Leviticus. “Even in the offering of smaller animals God intended a lesson for the Israelites: God allows a substitutionary sacrifice to expiate the distance between Himself and His worshipers (v. 3, 10, 14). Every worshiper must bring an acceptable substitute for sacrifice. To be acceptable it had to be an animal without a blemish. A sacrificial animal could have no defects at all. A bull, sheep, or goat without defect could be a costly, prized animal, one that was hard to give up.” (The Moody Bible Commentary) These sacrifices are gifts unto the Lord. They are to be offered up of one’s own free will, and they represent the best of the herd or flock, hence the rule regarding no blemish or spot. God expects us to give of our best to Him, and to Him first before all else in our lives. To do any less is disobedience and shows Him great dishonor. It robs Him of His proper worship, and that is sin. Like the tabernacle, the whole system of burnt offerings and blood sacrifices were a typology and foreshadowing of Jesus Christ and His atoning sacrifice for all of us on the cross at Calvary. Jesus was the perfect lamb, no blemish or spot of any kind, and He fulfilled every letter of the Mosaic Law. He was our penal substitution, and that’s why we go through Him today when we approach God in prayer. For all of us who believe in Christ and accept his sacrifice on the cross as payment for our sins, we receive His righteousness. We are washed in His atoning blood that was shed for us, and God sees our sin no more. That is the very definition of salvation. But until Christ was born, mankind needed this system of animal sacrifice in order to atone daily for his sins. It was messy, it was gory, and it was costly to the sinner, thus demonstrating all the messiness and the stain of sin in one’s daily life. But it was the only way for the Israelites to have fellowship with their perfect, holy, and righteous God.
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