Inspiring Words Knight Vision

We are in chapter eighteen of Leviticus with our word for today. זֶ֫רַעּ seed, sowing, offspring, descendants. It is used 229 times in the Old Testament. Our word is used the most in the sense of descendant. Here is a good example. Genesis 9:9 Behold, I establish my covenant with you and your זַרְעֲכֶ֖ם offspring after you. It is also used in the sense of semen on the analogy of seeds being involved in the reproduction of plants. Leviticus 15:16-18, 32 If a man has an emission of זָ֑רַע semen, he shall bathe his whole body in water and be unclean until the evening. And every garment and every skin on which the זָ֑רַע semen comes shall be washed with water and be unclean until the evening. If a man lies with a woman and has an emission of זָ֑רַע semen, both of them shall bathe themselves in water and be unclean until the evening … This is the law for him who has a discharge and for him who has an emission of זֶ֖רַע semen, becoming unclean thereby. This is how our word is used in our chapter today. Leviticus 18:20 And you shall not lie לְזָ֑רַע [There are two words that are translated sexually into English our word refers to the result. Our word tomorrow refers to the action itself] sexually with your neighbor's wife and so make yourself unclean with her. The original two words that are translated sexually leave no doubt as to what was going on. We are talking about adultery. The word affair is used instead because it sounds like fun instead of something that would cause such an avalanche of pain and negative events. When talking about sexual sin God emphasizes that there are consequences to them. At the same time God reminds us that the corrupted culture around us teaches that there are no consequences to sin. This is why God started our chapter with the warning of not being influenced by Egypt and Canaan. We will look at these consequences in the next few days as we look at more of the details in the rest of the chapter. The seventh commandment, “You shall not commit adultery”, is expressly stated in Leviticus 18:20. A man might argue, “I can enjoy my neighbor’s wife because she isn’t a relative, so it’s legal.” But God said it was wrong, and that settled it. The Bible repeats the stern warnings against adultery. I’ll close with this great reminder. Proverbs 2:16-19 So you will be delivered from the forbidden woman, from the adulteress with her smooth words, who forsakes the companion of her youth and forgets the covenant of her God; for her house sinks down to death, and her paths to the departed; none who go to her come back, nor do they regain the paths of life.

We are in chapter eighteen of Leviticus with our word for today which is a phrase. תְגַלֶּ֖ה עֶרְוָתָֽןּ uncover nakedness. It is used 23 times in the Old Testament, 16 times in our chapter. Every time it is used in the Bible it is used in a negative context. Isaiah 47:3 תִּגָּל֙ עֶרְוָתֵ֔ךְ Your nakedness shall be uncovered, and your disgrace shall be seen. I will take vengeance, and I will spare no one. Our chapter today uses our phrase to start off with one of the several ways a person can sin against God, others and themselves sexually. Let’s look at this first one. Leviticus 18:6-18 “None of you shall approach any one of his close relatives לְגַלּ֣וֹת עֶרְוָ֑ה to uncover nakedness. I am the Lord. You shall not תְגַלֶּ֖ה עֶרְוָתָֽהּ uncover the עֶרְוַ֥ת nakedness of your father, which is the וְעֶרְוַ֥ת nakedness of your mother; she is your mother, you shall not uncover her nakedness. You shall not תְגַלֵּ֑ה uncover the עֶרְוַ֥ת nakedness of your father’s wife; it is your father’s nakedness. You shall not תְגַלֶּ֖ה עֶרְוָתָֽן uncover the nakedness of your sister, your father’s daughter or your mother’s daughter, whether brought up in the family or in another home. You shall not תְגַלֶּ֖ה עֶרְוָתָ֑ן uncover the nakedness of your son’s daughter or of your daughter’s daughter, for their nakedness is your own nakedness. You shall not תְגַלֶּ֖ה עֶרְוָתָֽהּ uncover the nakedness of your father’s wife’s daughter, brought up in your father’s family, since she is your sister. You shall not תְגַלֵּ֑ה uncover the עֶרְוַ֥ת nakedness of your father’s sister; she is your father’s relative. You shall not תְגַלֵּ֑ה uncover the עֶרְוַ֥ת nakedness of your mother’s sister, for she is your mother’s relative. You shall not תְגַלֵּ֑ה uncover the עֶרְוַ֥ת nakedness of your father’s brother, that is, you shall not approach his wife; she is your aunt. You shall not תְגַלֵּ֑ה uncover the עֶרְוַ֥ת nakedness of your daughter-in-law; she is your son’s wife, you shall not תְגַלֶּ֖ה עֶרְוָתָֽהּ uncover her nakedness. You shall not תְגַלֵּ֑ה uncover the עֶרְוַ֥ת nakedness of your brother’s wife; it is your brother’s nakedness. You shall not תְגַלֵּ֑ה uncover the עֶרְוַ֥ת nakedness of a woman and of her daughter, and you shall not take her son’s daughter or her daughter’s daughter לְגַלּ֣וֹת עֶרְוָתָ֔הּ to uncover her nakedness; they are relatives; it is depravity. And you shall not take a woman as a rival wife to her sister, לְגַלּ֧וֹת עֶרְוָתָ֛הּ uncovering her nakedness while her sister is still alive. Our phrase is used to deal with incestuous relationships. These regulations are based on the fact that, in marriage, the man and woman are one flesh. A person who had relations with his stepmother, for example, would be “uncovering the nakedness” of his father; for the father and stepmother would be one. Most modern societies prohibit incestuous marriages, not because of what the Bible says but because of the consequences of such unions. There is a tendency for their children to inherit the recessive detrimental genes and bring out the worst in the family tree rather than the best. When talking about sexual sin God emphasizes that there are consequences to them. At the same time God reminds us that the corrupted culture around us teaches that there are no consequences to sin. This is why God started our chapter with the warning of not being influenced by Egypt and Canaan. We will look at these consequences in the next few days as we look at more of the details in the rest of the chapter. I’ll close with these great reminders. Matthew 19:4-6 He answered, “Have you not read that he who created them from the beginning made them male and female, and said, ‘Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh’? So they are no longer two but one flesh. What therefore God has joined together, let not man separate.” Hebrews 13:4 Let marriage be held in honor among all, and let the marriage bed be undefiled, for God will judge the sexually immoral and adulterous. 

We are rolling into chapter eighteen of Leviticus with our word for today which is a phrase. לֹ֣א תַעֲשׂ֑וּ you shall not do, you shall not make, you shall not worship. It is used 38 times in the Old Testament, twice in our chapter. Our phrase is used the first time in the Bible when God is giving the ten commandments to Moses for the people. Exodus 20:23 לֹ֥א תַעֲשׂ֖וּן You shall not make gods of silver to be with me, לֹ֥א תַעֲשׂ֖וּ nor shall you make for yourselves gods of gold. We also see our phrase used in the prohibition to use the anointing perfume in any other way except for the priests as part of the temple worship. Exodus 30:26, 30-33 And you shall make of these a sacred anointing oil blended as by the perfumer; it shall be a holy anointing oil … You shall anoint Aaron and his sons, and consecrate them, that they may serve me as priests. And you shall say to the people of Israel, ‘This shall be my holy anointing oil throughout your generations. It shall not be poured on the body of an ordinary person, and לֹ֥א תַעֲשׂ֖וּ you shall make no other like it in composition. It is holy, and it shall be holy to you. Whoever compounds any like it or whoever puts any of it on an outsider shall be cut off from his people.’ Our phrase is used in setting up the laws against perverting justice. Leviticus 19:15, 35-37 לֹא־תַעֲשׂ֥וּYou shall do no injustice in court. You shall not be partial to the poor or defer to the great, but in righteousness shall you judge your neighbor … לֹא־תַעֲשׂ֥וּ You shall do no wrong in judgment, in measures of length or weight or quantity. You shall have just balances, just weights, a just ephah, and a just hin: I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt. And you shall observe all my statutes and all my rules, and do them: I am the Lord.” Our phrase is also used in the sense of observing the Sabbath day of rest. Leviticus 23:8 On the seventh day is a holy convocation; לֹ֥א תַעֲשֽׂוּ you shall not do any ordinary work. We find our phrase used to describe a very corrupt immoral culture. Judges 19:23-24 And the man, the master of the house, went out to them and said to them, “No, my brothers, do not act so wickedly; since this man has come into my house, do not do this vile thing. Behold, here are my virgin daughter and his concubine. Let me bring them out now. Violate them and do with them what seems good to you, but against this man לֹ֣א תַעֲשׂ֔וּ do not do this outrageous thing.” This is how our phrase is used twice in our chapter today. Leviticus 18:1-5 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “Speak to the people of Israel and say to them, I am the Lord your God.לֹ֣א תַעֲשׂ֑וּYou shall not do as they do in the land of Egypt, where you lived, and לֹ֣א תַעֲשׂ֔וּyou shall not do as they do in the land of Canaan, to which I am bringing you. You shall not walk in their statutes. You shall follow my rules and keep my statutes and walk in them. I am the Lord your God. You shall therefore keep my statutes and my rules; if a person does them, he shall live by them: I am the Lord. Did you see the contrast and the warning God is giving his people. His laws and statutes are very different than those of both Egypt where they came from and Canaan where they were going. Both of these influences would corrupt the people if they were not careful to reject them and embrace God’s instructions. In the next couple of days as we look at some of the words in the rest of our chapter we will see the clearest teaching from God’s word about what sexual immorality is and how damaging it can be. I’ll close with a couple of passages that remind us of the power of sinful influences around us. Jesus is warning about those who looked good on the outside but instead were leading others away from God. Matthew 16:11-12 Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees.” Then they understood that he did not tell them to beware of the leaven of bread, but of the teaching of the Pharisees and Sadducees. Matthew 23:13-15 But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you shut the kingdom of heaven in people's faces. For you neither enter yourselves nor allow those who would enter to go in. Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you travel across sea and land to make a single proselyte, and when he becomes a proselyte, you make him twice as much a child of hell as yourselves.

We are in chapter seventeen of Leviticus with our word for today which is a phrase. אֶל־פֶּ֛תַח אֹ֥הֶל מוֹעֵ֖ד entrance of the tent of meeting. It is used 20 times in the Old Testament, 4 times in our chapter. Let’s start in our chapter since it is the first time it is used in the Bible and the most often. Leviticus 17:3-5, 8-9 If any one of the house of Israel kills an ox or a lamb or a goat in the camp, or kills it outside the camp, and does not bring it to וְאֶל־פֶּ֜תַח אֹ֣הֶל מוֹעֵד֮the entrance of the tent of meeting to offer it as a gift to the Lord in front of the tabernacle of the Lord, bloodguilt shall be imputed to that man. He has shed blood, and that man shall be cut off from among his people. This is to the end that the people of Israel may bring their sacrifices that they sacrifice in the open field, that they may bring them to the Lord, to the priest at אֶל־פֶּ֛תַח אֹ֥הֶל מוֹעֵ֖ד the entrance of the tent of meeting, and sacrifice them as sacrifices of peace offerings to the Lord … And you shall say to them, Any one of the house of Israel, or of the strangers who sojourn among them, who offers a burnt offering or sacrifice and does not bring it to אֶל־פֶּ֛תַח אֹ֥הֶל מוֹעֵ֖דthe entrance of the tent of meeting to offer it to the Lord, that man shall be cut off from his people. Just like we saw yesterday our phrase today is also used in our chapter in the context of God’s instruction to offer sacrifice just at the tabernacle nowhere else. This was to keep the people from worshiping false gods who were really demons. The priest would ensure that the sacrifice was offered to the true God YWHW the reality God, the eternal living true God. When people were sacrificing everywhere this was not the case. Our chapter spells this out specifically in verse 6 and 7. Leviticus 17:6-7 And the priest shall throw the blood on the altar of the Lord at the פֶּ֖תַח אֹ֣הֶל מוֹעֵ֑ד entrance of the tent of meeting and burn the fat for a pleasing aroma to the Lord. So they shall no more sacrifice their sacrifices to goat demons, after whom they whore. This shall be a statute forever for them throughout their generations. Did you see where YWHW the reality God was? At our phrase. As we have already looked at it is not so much that God himself lived in a tent but that he made himself known there in a special way for the benefit of the people. Here specifically so that they were not worshiping goat demons but rather to the true God himself. The reference to the correct acceptable sacrifice involving blood thrown on the altar and the result of the sacrifice being a pleasing aroma to YWHW reminds us of how the Holy Spirit connects this to Jesus our perfect sacrifice in place of our sins. I’ll close with these great passages. Hebrews 12:24 And to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel. 1 Peter 1:2 in the sanctification of the Spirit, for obedience to Jesus Christ and for sprinkling with his blood: May grace and peace be multiplied to you. Ephesians 5:2 And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.

We are moving into chapter seventeen of Leviticus with our word for today which is a phrase. מִבֵּ֣ית יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל from the house of Israel, of the house of Israel. It is used 6 times in the Old Testament, 3 times in our chapter. Let’s start in our chapter since it is the first time it is used in the Bible and the most often. Leviticus 17:3-4, 8-10 If any one מִבֵּ֣ית יִשְׂרָאֵ֔לof the house of Israel kills an ox or a lamb or a goat in the camp, or kills it outside the camp, and does not bring it to the entrance of the tent of meeting to offer it as a gift to the Lord in front of the tabernacle of the Lord, bloodguilt shall be imputed to that man. He has shed blood, and that man shall be cut off from among his people … And you shall say to them, Any one מִבֵּ֣ית יִשְׂרָאֵ֔לof the house of Israel, or of the strangers who sojourn among them, who offers a burnt offering or sacrifice and does not bring it to the entrance of the tent of meeting to offer it to the Lord, that man shall be cut off from his people. If any one מִבֵּ֣ית יִשְׂרָאֵ֗ל of the house of Israel or of the strangers who sojourn among them eats any blood, I will set my face against that person who eats blood and will cut him off from among his people. So our phrase is used in our chapter in the context of God’s instruction to offer sacrifice just at the tabernacle nowhere else. This was to keep the people from worshiping false gods who were really demons. Our next use points out the need to have an acceptable sacrifice for God. Leviticus 22:18-20 When any one מִבֵּ֨ית יִשְׂרָאֵ֜לof the house of Israel or of the sojourners in Israel presents a burnt offering as his offering, for any of their vows or freewill offerings that they offer to the Lord, if it is to be accepted for you it shall be a male without blemish, of the bulls or the sheep or the goats. You shall not offer anything that has a blemish, for it will not be acceptable for you. Our next uses in Ezekiel show the contrast between the people who’s hearts were connected to Idols instead of the one true God. Ezekiel 14:4-7, 10-11 Therefore speak to them and say to them, Thus says the Lord God: Any one מִבֵּ֣ית יִשְׂרָאֵ֡לof the house of Israel who takes his idols into his heart and sets the stumbling block of his iniquity before his face, and yet comes to the prophet, I the Lord will answer him as he comes with the multitude of his idols, that I may lay hold of the hearts of the בֵּֽית־יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל [this is simply the two words of our phrase not in the genitive form] house of Israel, who are all estranged from me through their idols. “Therefore say to the בֵּ֣ית יִשְׂרָאֵ֗לhouse of Israel, Thus says the Lord God: Repent and turn away from your idols, and turn away your faces from all your abominations. For any one מִבֵּ֣ית יִשְׂרָאֵ֗לof the house of Israel, or of the strangers who sojourn in Israel, who separates himself from me, taking his idols into his heart and putting the stumbling block of his iniquity before his face, and yet comes to a prophet to consult me through him, I the Lord will answer him myself … And they shall bear their punishment —the punishment of the prophet and the punishment of the inquirer shall be alike— that the בֵּֽית־יִשְׂרָאֵל֙house of Israel may no more go astray from me, nor defile themselves anymore with all their transgressions, but that they may be my people and I may be their God, declares the Lord God.” Did you notice that both the leader and the people were to not participate in the worship of idols because they were leading the people away from the true God. It is interesting to look at how Jesus used this phrase. Matthew 10:5-7 These twelve Jesus sent out, instructing them, “Go nowhere among the Gentiles and enter no town of the Samaritans, but go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. And proclaim as you go, saying, ‘The kingdom of heaven is at hand.’ This was before the church started that was given the command to go out into all nations. Before this Jesus started with those from Israel. Did you notice how they were described by Jesus as lost sheep? This is definitely one of the most repeated themes throughout the entire Bible that without God saving people through the work of Christ people are lost and separated from Him. Even during this time before the church’s commandment Jesus is signaling that this is where God is going out to everyone. Matthew 15:21-28 And Jesus went away from there and withdrew to the district of Tyre and Sidon. And behold, a Canaanite woman from that region came out and was crying, “Have mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David; my daughter is severely oppressed by a demon.” But he did not answer her a word. And his disciples came and begged him, saying, “Send her away, for she is crying out after us.” He answered, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.” But she came and knelt before him, saying, “Lord, help me.” And he answered, “It is not right to take the children's bread and throw it to the dogs.” She said, “Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters' table.” Then Jesus answered her, “O woman, great is your faith! Let it be done for you as you desire.” And her daughter was healed instantly. Did you catch that? Jesus didn’t say too bad you’re not an Israelite so no help for you. Not at all he pointed to her faith. It is all about faith not where we come from but if we trust in Jesus as our savior. This desire for our hearts to be given to God reminds us of what Jesus affirmed as the greatest commandment. I’ll close with this great reminder. Matthew 22:37-38 And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. 

We are in chapter sixteen of Leviticus with our word for today. עָנָה be bowed down, afflicted, wretched, emaciated, cringe, be crouched, humble oneself. It is used 79 times in the Old Testament, twice in our chapter. We find our word used to describe how God’s people were treated in Egypt. Genesis 15:13 Then the Lord said to Abram, “Know for certain that your offspring will be sojourners in a land that is not theirs and will be servants there, וְעִנּ֣וּ and they will be afflicted for four hundred years. Exodus 1:11-12 Therefore they set taskmasters over them עַנֹּת֖וֹ to afflict them with heavy burdens. They built for Pharaoh store cities, Pithom and Raamses. But the more יְעַנּ֣וּ they were oppressed, the more they multiplied and the more they spread abroad. And the Egyptians were in dread of the people of Israel. It is also used to describe how Sarai treated her servant. Genesis 16:6 But Abram said to Sarai, “Behold, your servant is in your power; do to her as you please.” Then Sarai וַתְּעַנֶּ֣הָ dealt harshly with her, and she fled from her. Our word is also used in the sense of humbling oneself. This was something that Pharaoh refused to do in spite of God’s destruction of Egypt. Exodus 10:3 So Moses and Aaron went in to Pharaoh and said to him, “Thus says the Lord, the God of the Hebrews, ‘How long will you refuse לֵעָנֹ֖תto humble yourself before me? Let my people go, that they may serve me. God set up specific times for his people to humble themselves which would include fasting and refraining from their normal work chores. Leviticus 23:32 It shall be to you a Sabbath of solemn rest, וְעִנִּיתֶ֖םand you shall afflict yourselves. On the ninth day of the month beginning at evening, from evening to evening shall you keep your Sabbath. This is how our word is used twice in our chapter today. Leviticus 16:29-30 And it shall be a statute to you forever that in the seventh month, on the tenth day of the month, תְּעַנּ֣וּyou shall afflict yourselves and shall do no work, either the native or the stranger who sojourns among you. For on this day shall atonement be made for you to cleanse you. You shall be clean before the Lord from all your sins. It is a Sabbath of solemn rest to you, וְעִנִּיתֶ֖םand you shall afflict yourselves; it is a statute forever. David makes a specific reference to fasting using our word. Psalm 35:13 But I, when they were sick— I wore sackcloth; עִנֵּ֣יתִיI afflicted myself with fasting; I prayed with head bowed on my chest. He also points to the benefit of our word. Psalm 119:71, 75 It is good for me that עֻנֵּ֑יתִיI was afflicted, that I might learn your statutes … I know, O Lord, that your rules are righteous, and that in faithfulness עִנִּיתָֽנִי you have afflicted me. When we go through challenging times whether through humbling ourselves through fasting and taking a day off from work for connecting with God or when God allows us to be humbled. We learn to rely closer to God himself. I’ll close with this great passage that reminds us that Jesus allowed himself to be afflicted for us taking the painful consequences for our sins through his death on the cross. Isaiah 53:4-7 Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed him stricken, smitten by God, וּמְעֻנֶּֽהand afflicted. But he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned—every one—to his own way; and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all. He was oppressed, and he נַעֲנֶה֮was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth.

We are in chapter sixteen of Leviticus with our word for today which is a phrase. אֲשֶׁר־ל֑וֹ for himself, which he, that he had. It is used 41 times in the Old Testament, 3 times in our chapter. We find our phrase used in the sense of what one has. Genesis 25:5 Abraham gave all אֲשֶׁר־ל֖וֹ he had to Isaac. Yesterday we looked at the two goats that were used in the sin offering and how they are a beautiful picture of what Christ has accomplished for us on the cross. One was put to death for sin and the other one was set free. What is interesting with our chapter today is that before the priest can perform this sin offering he first has to take care of something. Leviticus 16:6, 11-14 Aaron shall offer the bull as a sin offering אֲשֶׁר־ל֑וֹ for himself and shall make atonement for himself and for his house … Aaron shall present the bull as a sin offering אֲשֶׁר־ל֔וֹ for himself, and shall make atonement for himself and for his house. He shall kill the bull as a sin offering אֲשֶׁר־לֽוֹ for himself. And he shall take a censer full of coals of fire from the altar before the Lord, and two handfuls of sweet incense beaten small, and he shall bring it inside the veil and put the incense on the fire before the Lord, that the cloud of the incense may cover the mercy seat that is over the testimony, so that he does not die. And he shall take some of the blood of the bull and sprinkle it with his finger on the front of the mercy seat on the east side, and in front of the mercy seat he shall sprinkle some of the blood with his finger seven times. The very next verse the first phrase says then he shall kill the goat for the sin offering. Wow that is a lot he has to do just to get to the place where he can offer the sin offering for the people. Did you also notice the specific reference to the incense that was to be used on the fire to create a cloud to cover the mercy seat so that he would not die. This is in the context of preventing what happened to Aarons sons who approached God on their own terms instead of respecting God and following his directions. So we have a sinful priest with a sinful family that has to offer up the sacrifice and all the blood just to be able to offer the sacrifice for the people. When we think about all of this it makes us so grateful for Jesus and all he has done for us. I like how the Holy Spirit connects all of this in the book of Hebrews. I’ll close with this great passage. Hebrews 9:11-14, But when Christ appeared as a high priest of the good things that have come … he entered once for all into the holy places, not by means of the blood of goats and calves but by means of his own blood, thus securing an eternal redemption. For if the blood of goats and bulls, and the sprinkling of defiled persons with the ashes of a heifer, sanctify for the purification of the flesh, how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without blemish to God, purify our conscience from dead works to serve the living God … For Christ has entered, not into holy places made with hands, which are copies of the true things, but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God on our behalf. Nor was it to offer himself repeatedly, as the high priest enters the holy places every year with blood not his own, for then he would have had to suffer repeatedly since the foundation of the world. But as it is, he has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself. 

We are in chapter sixteen of Leviticus with our word for today. שָׂעִיר he-goat, billy-goat, male goat, buck. It is used 52 times in the Old Testament. Our word is used in the sense of the male of an agile ruminant related to sheep, but having a beard and straight horns. It is interesting that the first time our word is used in the Bible it was killed and used as part of Joseph’s brothers plan to deceive their father. Genesis 37:31 Then they took Joseph's robe and slaughtered a שְׂעִ֣יר goat and dipped the robe in the blood. They did this to deceive their father into thinking that Joseph their brother was dead. You could say that a goat was killed because of Joseph’s brothers sin. This connection with sin is how it is used most of the time in the Old Testament specifically as part of the sin offering as part of the tabernacle worship. Leviticus 9:3 And say to the people of Israel, ‘Take a שְׂעִיר male goat for a sin offering. This is how our word is used in our chapter today. But we actually see two goats instead of just one for the sin offering. Leviticus 16:7-10 Then he shall take the two הַשְּׂעִירִ֑ם goats and set them before the Lord at the entrance of the tent of meeting. And Aaron shall cast lots over the two הַשְּׂעִירִ֖ם goats, one lot for the Lord and the other lot for Azazel. And Aaron shall present הַשָּׂעִ֔יר the goat on which the lot fell for the Lord and use it as a sin offering, וְהַשָּׂעִ֗יר but the goat on which the lot fell for Azazel shall be presented alive before the Lord to make atonement over it, that it may be sent away into the wilderness to Azazel. God continues later in the chapter to describe in detail how these two goats were part of the sacrifice and forgiveness of the people’s sin. But first the priest has make a sacrifice for his own sins. We will look more into this tomorrow. For today let’s look at these two goats. Leviticus 16:15-16 Then he shall kill the שְׂעִ֤יר goat of the sin offering that is for the people and bring its blood inside the veil and do with its blood as he did with the blood of the bull, sprinkling it over the mercy seat and in front of the mercy seat. Thus he shall make atonement for the Holy Place, because of the uncleannesses of the people of Israel and because of their transgressions, all their sins. And so he shall do for the tent of meeting, which dwells with them in the midst of their uncleannesses. So the first goat gets put to death for the sins of the people. What happens to the other goat? Leviticus 16:20-22 And when he has made an end of atoning for the Holy Place and the tent of meeting and the altar, he shall present the live הַשָּׂעִ֥יר goat. And Aaron shall lay both his hands on the head of the live הַשָּׂעִיר֮ goat, and confess over it all the iniquities of the people of Israel, and all their transgressions, all their sins. And he shall put them on the head of הַשָּׂעִ֔יר the goat and send it away into the wilderness by the hand of a man who is in readiness. הַשָּׂעִ֥יר The goat shall bear all their iniquities on itself to a remote area, and he shall let הַשָּׂעִ֖יר the goat go free in the wilderness. This goat is called “the scapegoat”, short for “escape-goat,” that is, the goat that escaped death and escaped into the desert. The Hebrew word is azazel, which could be a compound of the two Hebrew words “goat” and “to go away.” Some connect it with an Arabic word that means “to remove, to banish.” Regardless of the origin of the word, the meaning is clear: The releasing of the goat symbolized the sins of the people being carried away, never to be held against them again. What a beautiful picture of what Christ has done for us. I’ll close with these great passages. Psalm 103:10-12 He does not deal with us according to our sins, nor repay us according to our iniquities. For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west, so far does he remove our transgressions from us. John 1:29 The next day he saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!

We are moving into chapter sixteen of Leviticus with our word for today. קָרֵב get or come closer, approach, come forward, step up to. It is used 280 times in the Old Testament. Our word is used in the sense to offer, to present as an act of worship often in the form of sacrifice. Leviticus 1:3 If his offering is a burnt offering from the herd, he shall offer a male without blemish. He יַקְרִ֣יב shall bring it to the entrance of the tent of meeting, that he may be accepted before the Lord. In our chapter today we have a reference to what happens when we approach God on our own terms. Leviticus 16:1-2 The Lord spoke to Moses after the death of the two sons of Aaron, when בְּקָרְבָתָ֥ם they drew near before the Lord and died, and the Lord said to Moses, “Tell Aaron your brother not to come at any time into the Holy Place inside the veil, before the mercy seat that is on the ark, so that he may not die. For I will appear in the cloud over the mercy seat. We have to approach God on his terms not ours. Both Aarons sons died because they didn’t listen to God and decided to come near to God their own way instead of Gods. That decision was fatal to them. Let’s look at two more examples of people who tried to approach God on their own terms King Saul and King Uzziah. 1 Samuel 13:11-14 Samuel said, “What have you done?” … I said, ‘Now the Philistines will come down against me at Gilgal, and I have not sought the favor of the Lord.’ So I forced myself, and offered the burnt offering.” And Samuel said to Saul, “You have done foolishly. You have not kept the command of the Lord your God, with which he commanded you. For then the Lord would have established your kingdom over Israel forever. But now your kingdom shall not continue. The Lord has sought out a man after his own heart, and the Lord has commanded him to be prince over his people, because you have not kept what the Lord commanded you.” 2 Chronicles 26:16-21 But when he was strong, he grew proud, to his destruction. For he was unfaithful to the Lord his God and entered the temple of the Lord to burn incense on the altar of incense. But Azariah the priest went in after him, with eighty priests of the Lord who were men of valor, and they withstood King Uzziah and said to him, “It is not for you, Uzziah, to burn incense to the Lord, but for the priests, the sons of Aaron, who are consecrated to burn incense. Go out of the sanctuary, for you have done wrong, and it will bring you no honor from the Lord God.” Then Uzziah was angry. Now he had a censer in his hand to burn incense, and when he became angry with the priests, leprosy broke out on his forehead in the presence of the priests in the house of the Lord, by the altar of incense. And Azariah the chief priest and all the priests looked at him, and behold, he was leprous in his forehead! And they rushed him out quickly, and he himself hurried to go out, because the Lord had struck him. And King Uzziah was a leper to the day of his death, and being a leper lived in a separate house, for he was excluded from the house of the Lord. And Jotham his son was over the king's household, governing the people of the land. Both of these resulted bad outcomes. A good example of approaching God on his terms is when God appears to Moses. Exodus 3:4-6 When the Lord saw that he turned aside to see, God called to him out of the bush, “Moses, Moses!” And he said, “Here I am.” Then he said, “Do not תִּקְרַ֣ב come near; take your sandals off your feet, for the place on which you are standing is holy ground.” And he said, “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” And Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look at God. Moses respects God enough to follow his terms of connecting with him. The good news is that today God’s terms of how to connect with him have already been accomplished through Christ. We accept these terms through faith in Christ’s death in our place. Then we can draw near to God in worship. I’ll close with these great passages. John 14:6 Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. Hebrews 4:14-16 Since then we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.

We are in chapter fifteen of Leviticus with our word for today. נִדָּה bleeding, menstruation, impurity, uncleanness. It is used 29 times in the Old Testament, 9 times in our chapter. Let’s look at our chapter since it has the most uses of our word. Leviticus 15:19-21 When a woman has a discharge, and the discharge in her body is blood, she shall be בְנִדָּתָ֔הּin her menstrual impurity for seven days, and whoever touches her shall be unclean until the evening. And everything on which she lies בְּנִדָּתָ֖הּduring her menstrual impurity shall be unclean. Everything also on which she sits shall be unclean. And whoever touches her bed shall wash his clothes and bathe himself in water and be unclean until the evening. Notice that the same thing is to be done for cleansing here as we saw yesterday with a discharge from a man. In verses 19-24 we have natural female discharges addressed. Once again, God wasn’t condemning or punishing the woman for experiencing her normal monthly period, because He made her that way so she could bear children. This regulation declares only that the woman’s discharge made her unclean and therefore she could make others unclean. Rachel used this con when she deceived her father about his household gods (Genesis 31:26–35). During the time of her period and for a week afterward, a woman was unclean and had to be careful where she sat and slept and what she touched. But this confinement was a blessing in disguise since it allowed her to enjoy rest and quiet when she needed it most. If her husband was too aggressive sexually, this law kept him from taking advantage of her at a time when intercourse wouldn’t be especially pleasant to her. If he forced himself on her, both he and the marriage bed would be unclean for a week, and this would separate him from everybody in the family and the camp! It wasn’t worth it. Certainly God created sex for pleasure as well as for procreation, but pleasure that isn’t disciplined soon becomes bondage and then torture. Unmarried people must exercise self-control lest they commit fornication and invite the judgment of God (Hebrews 13:4), but married people also need self-control lest they take advantage of one another and leave God out of their most intimate relationship. God created sex, and wise is the person who permits the Creator to make the rules. Unnatural female discharges are covered in verses 25–33. A prolonged hemorrhage would be both physically painful and religiously disastrous, for the woman would be perpetually unclean. The unknown woman who came to Jesus for help had suffered with this affliction for twelve years (Mark 5:25–34; Luke 8:43–48). Strictly speaking, everybody she touched in that big crowd was defiled by her whether they knew it or not; when she touched our Lord’s garment, He was also defiled. How gracious of Him to heal her and give back to her the normal life she longed for! The ritual for her cleansing reminds us of the ritual for the restoration of a mother after the birth of a baby (Leviticus 12:6–7). These regulations for personal sanctity weren’t just pious suggestions from the religious leaders of the nation. They were holy commandments from the Lord, and it was a serious thing to disobey them (15:31–33). For an unclean person to go to the tabernacle would be to defile the tabernacle and invite judgment (vs. 31). God warned the Israelites that a violation of the law given in Leviticus 15:24 would cause the couple to be “cut off from among their people” (20:18). Whether “cut off” meant death (it’s used that way in Genesis 9:11) or excommunication, whatever the penalty was, it was serious. God’s people today don’t live under the threat of such judgments, although “there is a sin unto death” (1 John 5:16; 1 Corinthians 11:30). But there should be no area in our lives from which God is excluded, and every relationship should be under His control. His words to us are still, “Be holy, for I am holy!”

We are moving into chapter fifteen of Leviticus with our word for today. זוּב flow, drip, suffer a discharge. It is used 42 times in the Old Testament, 24 times in our chapter. Let’s look at our chapter since it has over half of the uses of our word. Leviticus 15:1-3 The Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying, “Speak to the people of Israel and say to them, When any man has a זָ֣ב discharge from his body, his discharge is unclean. And this is the law of his uncleanness בְּזוֹב֑וֹfor a discharge: whether his body runs with זוֹב֗וֹhis discharge, or his body is blocked up מִזּוֹב֔וֹby his discharge, it is his uncleanness. The rest of the chapter explains the various ways one might come into contact with a man who has had a discharge. In all of these cases this is what was to be done. Leviticus 15:5 And anyone who touches his bed shall wash his clothes and bathe himself in water and be unclean until the evening. The human discharge may be natural or unnatural, but it’s still considered unclean and must be dealt with according to the law of God. Personal hygiene and God’s concern for people are certainly involved in these regulations, but the main thrust seems to be that of enforcing personal sanctity. Not everybody is a leper, but all of us have occasional “discharges” that defile us and could defile others. Unnatural male discharges are covered in the first 15 verses of our chapter. These could be anything from diarrhea to discharges caused by a venereal disease. Anything the afflicted man touched or spat upon was unclean. In fact, those defiled by touching him had to wash themselves and their clothes, and they remained unclean until evening. Clay vessels that he touched were to be broken and wooden vessels washed. The possibility of infection was taken very seriously. By the goodness of the Lord, the man with a discharge could get well; when that happened, he had to wait a week and, like the cleansed leper, wash himself and his clothes. On the eighth day, he brought a sin offering and a burnt offering, but he wasn’t required to bring expensive sacrifices, since a bodily discharge wasn’t as serious as leprosy. After that, the man was free to worship the Lord and live a normal life in the camp. There are religious addictions that are quietly spread among unsuspecting people. The image is a biblical one, for Jesus warned about people like the Pharisees who pretended to be holy but were really transmitting defilement to the people who followed them (Matthew 23:25–28). In fact, Paul wrote about people in his own day whose religion was “toxic.” “Avoid godless chatter, because those who indulge in it will become more and more ungodly. Their teaching will spread like gangrene” (2 Timothy 2:16–17). Natural male discharges are then covered in verses 16-18. This paragraph doesn’t even suggest that sexual intercourse within marriage is impure or defiling. As the traditional marriage ceremony puts it, “God established marriage for the blessing and benefit of mankind.” Within the holy and loving bonds of marriage, the husband doesn’t defile his wife nor the wife her husband. “Marriage should be honored by all, and the marriage bed kept pure, for God will judge the adulterer and all the sexually immoral” (Hebrews 13:4). Moses is dealing here with ceremonial uncleanness, not moral uncleanness. Since intercourse involves bodily fluids, and bodily fluids made a person unclean, the husband and wife had to take pains to wash themselves and maintain ceremonial purity. Perhaps the Lord is telling us that, even in a beautiful experience like married love, there is opportunity for our sinful nature to go to work and defile it. The Old Testament couple had to consider God as well as their own desires, and this helped sanctify their relationship. No sacrifices were required for their cleansing, only washing in water. Therefore there was no sin that needed to be atoned for.

We are in chapter fourteen of Leviticus with our word for today. נֶ֫גַע afflicted with a rash or skin disease, leprous, be struck with leprosy. It is used 78 times in the Old Testament, 14 times in our chapter today. Our word is used in the sense of an infection, a state of ill health resulting from the invasion of the body by something harmful. Leviticus 13:45-46 The leprous person who has הַנֶּ֗גַעthe disease shall wear torn clothes and let the hair of his head hang loose, and he shall cover his upper lip and cry out, ‘Unclean, unclean.’ He shall remain unclean as long as he has הַנֶּ֥גַע the disease. He is unclean. He shall live alone. His dwelling shall be outside the camp. We also find our word used in the sense of a substance that contaminates. This is how our word is used 12 out of the 14 times it is used in our chapter today. Leviticus 14:33-45, 48 The Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying, “When you come into the land of Canaan, which I give you for a possession, and I put a case of leprous נֶ֣גַע disease in a house in the land of your possession, then he who owns the house shall come and tell the priest, ‘There seems to me to be some case of כְּנֶ֕גַע disease in my house.’ Then the priest shall command that they empty the house before the priest goes to examine הַנֶּ֔גַע the disease, lest all that is in the house be declared unclean. And afterward the priest shall go in to see the house. And he shall examine הַנֶּ֗גַע the disease. And if הַנֶּ֙גַע֙ the disease is in the walls of the house with greenish or reddish spots, and if it appears to be deeper than the surface, then the priest shall go out of the house to the door of the house and shut up the house seven days. And the priest shall come again on the seventh day, and look. If הַנֶּ֖גַע the disease has spread in the walls of the house, then the priest shall command that they take out the stones in which is הַנָּ֑גַע the disease and throw them into an unclean place outside the city. And he shall have the inside of the house scraped all around, and the plaster that they scrape off they shall pour out in an unclean place outside the city. Then they shall take other stones and put them in the place of those stones, and he shall take other plaster and plaster the house. “If הַנֶּ֙גַע֙ the disease breaks out again in the house, after he has taken out the stones and scraped the house and plastered it, then the priest shall go and look. And if הַנֶּ֖גַע the disease has spread in the house, it is a persistent leprous disease in the house; it is unclean. And he shall break down the house, its stones and timber and all the plaster of the house, and he shall carry them out of the city to an unclean place … But if the priest comes and looks, and if הַנֶּ֙גַע֙ the disease has not spread in the house after the house was plastered, then the priest shall pronounce the house clean, for הַנָּֽגַע the disease is healed. Like we looked at a few days ago the Bible sometimes uses disease as an illustration of the damage and danger of sin. Let’s look at a few more of these. Sin defiles. The word “unclean” is used fifty-four times in Leviticus 13–15. It describes the ceremonial defilement that makes the victim unfit for social life or for participation in worship at the house of God. The Prophet Isaiah confessed that he was “a man of unclean lips” (Isaiah 6:5), and then he spoke for all of us when he wrote, “But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteous deeds are as filthy rags” (64:6). Whatever sin touches, it defiles; only the blood of Jesus Christ can wash away that defilement (1 Corinthians 6:9–11; 1 John 1:7; Revelation 1:5). When you read Psalm 51, David’s prayer of confession, you can’t help but notice how his sins defiled every part of his being: his eyes (vs. 3), his mind (vs. 6), his ears (vs. 8), his bones (vs. 8), his heart (vs. 10), and his mouth (vs. 13–15). His hands were stained with Uriah’s blood (vs. 14), and all he could do was throw himself on the mercy of God and cry out, “Wash me!” (vs. 2, 7) Sin isolates. The leper had to tear his clothes, put a covering on his upper lip, cry “Unclean, unclean!” whenever anybody approached him, and remain outside the camp until either he died or was healed. God struck King Uzziah with leprosy, and he had to dwell in a “separate house,” which was isolated from everybody else (2 Kings 15:5). The consequences of leprosy were temporary, but the consequences of sin are eternal. The Israelites knew no cure for leprosy, but there is a remedy for sin—faith in Jesus Christ, the Savior of the world. 

We are moving into chapter fourteen of Leviticus with our word for today. צָרַע afflicted with a rash or skin disease, leprous, be struck with leprosy. It is used 20 times in the Old Testament, twice in our chapter. Our word is used in the sense of a person afflicted with skin disease, leprosy. Several people are identified in the Bible with this condition such as Miriam, King Uzziah, and Naaman the Syrian. Numbers 12:10 When the cloud removed from over the tent, behold, Miriam מְצֹרַ֣עַת was leprous, like snow. And Aaron turned toward Miriam, and behold, מְצֹרָֽעַת she was leprous. 2 Chronicles 26:21 And King Uzziah מְצֹרָ֣ע was a leper to the day of his death, and מְצֹרָ֔ע being a leper lived in a separate house, for he was excluded from the house of the Lord. 2 Kings 5:1 Naaman, commander of the army of the king of Syria, was a great man with his master and in high favor, because by him the Lord had given victory to Syria. He was a mighty man of valor, but he was מְצֹרָֽע a leper. This is how our word is used twice in our chapter today. Leviticus 14:1-9 The Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “This shall be the law of הַמְּצֹרָ֔ע the leprous person for the day of his cleansing. He shall be brought to the priest, and the priest shall go out of the camp, and the priest shall look. Then, if the case of הַצָּרַ֖עַת leprous disease is healed in הַצָּרֽוּעַthe leprous person, the priest shall command them to take for him who is to be cleansed two live clean birds and cedarwood and scarlet yarn and hyssop. And the priest shall command them to kill one of the birds in an earthenware vessel over fresh water. He shall take the live bird with the cedarwood and the scarlet yarn and the hyssop, and dip them and the live bird in the blood of the bird that was killed over the fresh water. And he shall sprinkle it seven times on him who is to be cleansed of the leprous disease. Then he shall pronounce him clean and shall let the living bird go into the open field. And he who is to be cleansed shall wash his clothes and shave off all his hair and bathe himself in water, and he shall be clean. And after that he may come into the camp, but live outside his tent seven days. And on the seventh day he shall shave off all his hair from his head, his beard, and his eyebrows. He shall shave off all his hair, and then he shall wash his clothes and bathe his body in water, and he shall be clean. The Israelites had no cure for leprosy. If the victim became well, it was a gift of God’s mercy and grace. “And many lepers were in Israel in the time of Elisha the prophet,” said Jesus, “and none of them was cleansed, saving Naaman the Syrian” (Luke 4:27). If we aren’t saved by God’s grace, then we aren’t saved at all; for nobody deserves to be saved. The steps in the leper’s cleansing and restoration picture to us what Jesus Christ has done for sinners. The priest goes to the leper. Since the unclean leper wasn’t permitted to enter the camp, the priest had to go outside the camp to minister to him or her. “For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost” (Luke 19:10). When He ministered here on earth, Jesus was called “a friend of tax collectors and sinners” (Luke 7:34); He compared Himself to a doctor helping his needy patients (Matt. 9:10–13). As God’s Great Physician, Jesus makes “house calls” and comes to sinners right where they are. In the case of the Jewish leper, the priest went out to investigate and determine if indeed the victim was healed; but Jesus comes to us that He might heal us of the sickness of sin. The victim offers the two birds. This unusual ritual pictures to us what Christ did to save a lost world. Birds don’t belong in clay jars; they belong in the heavens. Jesus came down from heaven and became a man (John 3:13, 31; 6:38, 42). As it were, He put Himself into a clay jar so that He might die for our sins. The running water over which the bird was killed reminds us of the Holy Spirit of God (John 7:37–39), for Jesus offered Himself to God “through the eternal Spirit” (Hebrews 9:14). When the blood-stained living bird was turned loose, it pictured our Lord’s resurrection; for the resurrection of Christ is as much a part of the Gospel message as is His death. Only a living Savior can save dead sinners. The blood of the bird that was sacrificed was in the jar and on the living bird, but it also had to be applied to the healed leper. Using the hyssop (Exodus 12:22; Psalm 51:7), the priest sprinkled the blood on the leper seven times and then pronounced the leper clean. “Without shedding of blood is no forgiveness” (Hebrews 9:22). How did the victim know he was clean? The priest told him so! How do believers today know that God has saved us? He tells us so in His Word! No matter how the leper felt or what he looked like, God said he was clean, and that settled it.

We are in chapter thirteen of Leviticus with our word for today. רָאָה see, understand, spy, look at, examine, inspect. It is used 1307 times in the Old Testament, 26 times in our chapter. Our word is used most of the time in the basic sense to see, to perceive by sight or have the power to perceive by sight. A good example is when the king sees Isaac and Rebecca. Genesis 26:8 When he had been there a long time, Abimelech king of the Philistines looked out of a window וַיַּ֗רְא and saw Isaac laughing with Rebekah his wife. Our word is also used in the sense to look, to take into consideration, to direct one’s gaze towards something. This is exactly how it is used the 26 times in our chapter today. Leviticus 13:1-3, 5-6 The Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying, “When a person has on the skin of his body a swelling or an eruption or a spot, and it turns into a case of leprous disease on the skin of his body, then he shall be brought to Aaron the priest or to one of his sons the priests, and the priest וְרָאָ֣הshall examine the diseased area on the skin of his body. And if the hair in the diseased area has turned white and the disease appears to be deeper than the skin of his body, it is a case of leprous disease. When the priest וְרָאָ֥הוּhas examined him, he shall pronounce him unclean … And the priest וְרָאָ֣הוּshall examine him on the seventh day, and if in his eyes the disease is checked and the disease has not spread in the skin, then the priest shall shut him up for another seven days. And the priest וְרָאָה֩shall examine him again on the seventh day, and if the diseased area has faded and the disease has not spread in the skin, then the priest shall pronounce him clean … Leviticus 13:55-56 And the priest וְרָאָ֨ה shall examine the diseased thing after it has been washed. And if the appearance of the diseased area has not changed, though the disease has not spread, it is unclean. You shall burn it in the fire, whether the rot is on the back or on the front. “But if the priest רָאָ֣ה examines, and if the diseased area has faded after it has been washed, he shall tear it out of the garment or the skin or the warp or the woof. Since infection make a person ceremonially unclean, God appointed the priests to act as examiners to determine whether the victim was “unclean” and then had to be separated from the rest of the camp. The person being examined could be isolated for as long as two weeks to give the disease a chance to change for the better or for the worse. Not everything that looked like leprosy actually was leprosy, and it would be cruel to isolate somebody who wasn’t actually infected. Notice also that the investigation included not only people but also clothing and even houses. Here the priest was looking for mildew or fungus that, if allowed to spread, could do serious damage. Since disease is often an illustration of sin in the Bible, we can learn about its damage and dangers in our chapter. The two obvious ones are that sin is deeper than the skin and sin spreads. I’ll close with these two great passages that identify these truths about sin. Matthew 15:19-20 For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false witness, slander. These are what defile a person. But to eat with unwashed hands does not defile anyone. James 1:14-15 But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death. 

We are rolling into chapter thirteen of Leviticus with our word for today. צָרַ֫עַת skin disease, leprosy. It is used 35 times in the Old Testament, 21 times in our chapter more than half the uses. Let’s start with our chapter since it is also the first time it is used in the Bible. Leviticus 13:1-3 The Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying, “When a person has on the skin of his body a swelling or an eruption or a spot, and it turns into a case of צָרָ֑עַת leprous disease on the skin of his body, then he shall be brought to Aaron the priest or to one of his sons the priests, and the priest shall examine the diseased area on the skin of his body. And if the hair in the diseased area has turned white and the disease appears to be deeper than the skin of his body, it is a case of צָרַ֖עַת leprous disease. When the priest has examined him, he shall pronounce him unclean. The rest of the chapter instructs the priests how to deal with this skin disease. While it’s true that our greatest needs are spiritual, God still has the physical well-being of His people at heart. We also find our word used to include not only various skin diseases but even mildew. Leviticus 13:47-49 When there is a case of צָרָ֑עַת leprous disease in a garment, whether a woolen or a linen garment, in warp or woof of linen or wool, or in a skin or in anything made of skin, if the disease is greenish or reddish in the garment, or in the skin or in the warp or the woof or in any article made of skin, it is a case of צָרַ֖עַת leprous disease, and it shall be shown to the priest. Leviticus 14:34-35 When you come into the land of Canaan, which I give you for a possession, and I put a case of צָרַ֔עַת leprous disease in a house in the land of your possession, then he who owns the house shall come and tell the priest, ‘There seems to me to be some case of disease in my house.’ But there’s more to this than simply a description of symptoms and ceremonies. In Scripture, disease is one of the images of sin. Psalm 147:3 He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds. Isaiah 1:5-6 Why will you still be struck down? Why will you continue to rebel? The whole head is sick, and the whole heart faint. From the sole of the foot even to the head, there is no soundness in it, but bruises and sores and raw wounds; they are not pressed out or bound up or softened with oil. Jeremiah 30:12 For thus says the Lord: Your hurt is incurable, and your wound is grievous. Mark 2:17 And when Jesus heard it, he said to them, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. I came not to call the righteous, but sinners. We can learn what sin is like and how God wants us to deal with it. We must look beyond Moses to Jesus Christ, the Great Physician, who was wounded that we might be healed. I’ll close with this great passage Isaiah 53:5 But he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed. 

We are in chapter twelve of Leviticus with our word for today. נְקֵבָה female, woman. It is used 22 times in the Old Testament. Our word is used in the sense of a female animal. Genesis 6:19 And of every living thing of all flesh, you shall bring two of every sort into the ark to keep them alive with you. They shall be male וּנְקֵבָ֖ה and female. Genesis 7:3 and seven pairs of the birds of the heavens also, male וּנְקֵבָ֑ה and female, to keep their offspring alive on the face of all the earth. Leviticus 3:6 If his offering for a sacrifice of peace offering to the Lord is an animal from the flock, male or נְקֵבָ֔ה female, he shall offer it without blemish. Our word is also used in reference to a female human. Numbers 5:1-3 The Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “Command the people of Israel that they put out of the camp everyone who is leprous or has a discharge and everyone who is unclean through contact with the dead. You shall put out both male and נְקֵבָה֙ female, putting them outside the camp, that they may not defile their camp, in the midst of which I dwell.” This is how our word is used in our chapter today. Leviticus 12:1-2, 5 The Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “Speak to the people of Israel, saying … But if she bears a נְקֵבָ֣ה female [literally bears a female the word child is supplied by the translators because we are clearly referring to birth] child, then she shall be unclean two weeks, as in her menstruation. And she shall continue in the blood of her purifying for sixty-six days. As we have seen a couple of days ago just because God made men and women different does not mean they have less value. We find God’s affirming this throughout the Bible even when corrupted culture falls short. He starts where people are at and leads them. Genesis 1:26-27 Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male וּנְקֵבָ֖ה and female he created them. Genesis 5:1-2 This is the book of the generations of Adam. When God created man, he made him in the likeness of God. Male וּנְקֵבָ֖ה and female he created them, and he blessed them and named them Man when they were created. Both of these verses show that both female and male are created in God’s image as his crowning creation over all the creatures in the garden he created. God points out that even though men and women have different roles they are both equally valuable to him and interdependent toward each other. 1 Corinthians 11:11-12 Nevertheless, in the Lord woman is not independent of man nor man of woman; for as woman was made from man, so man is now born of woman. And all things are from God. I’ll close with this great passage that it was grandma and mom that were the people God used to raise Timothy up in the Lord. God used Timothy effectively as a leader in the church. 2 Timothy 1:5-7 I am reminded of your sincere faith, a faith that dwelt first in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice and now, I am sure, dwells in you as well. For this reason I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands, for God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control. 

We are in chapter twelve of Leviticus with our word for today. זָכָר male, man, male person, male animal, ram. It is used 82 times in the Old Testament. Our word is used in the sense of a male animal. A good example is in reference to the law of redemption which we have looked at previously. Exodus 13:11-12, 15 “When the Lord brings you into the land of the Canaanites, as he swore to you and your fathers, and shall give it to you, you shall set apart to the Lord all that first opens the womb. All the firstborn of your animals הַזְּכָרִ֖ים that are males shall be the Lord's … For when Pharaoh stubbornly refused to let us go, the Lord killed all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both the firstborn of man and the firstborn of animals. Therefore I sacrifice to the Lord all הַזְּכָרִ֔ים the males that first open the womb, but all the firstborn of my sons I redeem. Most of the time our word is used in the sense of a human male or man. We see our word used in reference to circumcision. Genesis 17:9-10, 12-14 And God said to Abraham, “As for you, you shall keep my covenant, you and your offspring after you throughout their generations. This is my covenant, which you shall keep, between me and you and your offspring after you: Every זָכָֽר male among you shall be circumcised … He who is eight days old among you shall be circumcised. Every זָכָ֖ר male throughout your generations, whether born in your house or bought with your money from any foreigner who is not of your offspring, both he who is born in your house and he who is bought with your money, shall surely be circumcised. So shall my covenant be in your flesh an everlasting covenant. Any uncircumcised זָכָ֗ר male who is not circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin shall be cut off from his people; he has broken my covenant.” We find our word used in the context of sexual immorality. Leviticus 18:22 You shall not lie with a זָכָ֔ר male as with a woman; it is an abomination. Leviticus 20:13 If a man lies with a זָכָר֙ male as with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination. We also see our word used in the sense of being ceremonially unclean. Leviticus 15:31-33 “Thus you shall keep the people of Israel separate from their uncleanness, lest they die in their uncleanness by defiling my tabernacle that is in their midst.” This is the law for him who has a discharge and for him who has an emission of semen, becoming unclean thereby; also for her who is unwell with her menstrual impurity, that is, for anyone, לַזָּכָ֖ר male or female, who has a discharge, and for the man who lies with a woman who is unclean. This is the sense our word is used in our chapter today. Leviticus 12:1-2 The Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “Speak to the people of Israel, saying, If a woman conceives and bears a זָכָ֑ר male [literally bears a male, the word child is not in the original but supplied by the translators because the context is clearly about birth] child, then she shall be unclean seven days. As at the time of her menstruation, she shall be unclean. This reminds us of Jesus who is God in the flesh because of the incarnation. Galatians 4:4-5 But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons. The reason why Jesus came was to fulfill the requirements of the law. He did this by becoming our sacrifice for sin. I’ll close with these great verses. Leviticus 1:3 If his offering is a burnt offering from the herd, he shall offer a זָכָ֥ר male without blemish. 1 Peter 1:18-19 knowing that you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your forefathers, not with perishable things such as silver or gold, but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without blemish or spot. 

We are moving into chapter twelve of Leviticus with our word for today. טָֽהֳרָה purifying, cleansing, cleanness. It is used 13 times in the Old Testament, twice in our chapter. A good example of our word is in Leviticus chapter 15 where we see how one is made clean. Leviticus 15:13 And when the one with a discharge is יִטְהַ֤ר cleansed of his discharge, then he shall count for himself seven days לְטָהֳרָת֖וֹ for his cleansing, and wash his clothes. And he shall bathe his body in fresh water and shall be clean. Most of the uses of our word involve cleaning from various skin diseases. Leviticus 13:7 But if the eruption spreads in the skin, after he has shown himself to the priest לְטָהֳרָת֑וֹ for his cleansing, he shall appear again before the priest. We also see our word used when one is getting ready to serve God at the temple. Nehemiah 12:45 And they performed the service of their God and the service הַֽטָּהֳרָ֗ה of purification, as did the singers and the gatekeepers, according to the command of David and his son Solomon. Our word is used as part of the instructions when a woman gives birth. This is how our word is used twice in our chapter. Leviticus 12:1-5 The Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “Speak to the people of Israel, saying, If a woman conceives and bears a male child, then she shall be unclean seven days. As at the time of her menstruation, she shall be unclean. And on the eighth day the flesh of his foreskin shall be circumcised. Then she shall continue for thirty-three days in the blood of her טָהֳרָ֑ה purifying. She shall not touch anything holy, nor come into the sanctuary, until the days of her טָהֳרָֽה purifying are completed. But if she bears a female child, then she shall be unclean two weeks, as in her menstruation. And she shall continue in the blood of her purifying for sixty-six days.In giving birth to a baby, the mother experienced bleeding, as well as the secretion of other bodily fluids; and this made her ceremonially unclean. The theme of this chapter is not personal holiness but ritual purification for the mother, without which she could not return to normal life in her home and in the camp. Therefore, nothing in Leviticus 12 should be interpreted to teach that human sexuality is “dirty,” that pregnancy is defiling, or that babies are impure. God created humans “male and female”, and when God declared His creation to be “very good”, that declaration included sex. He commanded our first parents to “be fruitful, and multiply”. There are probably matters of health involved in these instructions. Since the mother was considered to some measure “unclean” for forty days after the birth of a son, or eighty days after the birth of a daughter, it meant that she had opportunity for rest and recuperation before returning to her household duties. This would encourage her own well-being as well as that of the baby. It would also protect her from possible sickness carried by infected people seeking to assist her, or the spread of any infection she might have (that is, childbed fever). Scripture doesn’t explain why twice as much time is assigned to a daughter than to a son. There’s no proof that girl babies are necessarily weaker than boy babies and therefore need a longer time with the mother. Perhaps God established these regulations primarily for the health of the mother and her “bonding” to her daughter. The social structure of Israel was decidedly masculine, and sons were more welcome than daughters. Like we have already looked at with slavery God meets people where they are at then moves them to where they need to go. The good news is that regardless of how things were with God’s people back then they have changed. Now because of Jesus all people regardless of who they are and where they come from have the same opportunity to connect with God. I’ll close with this great passage. Galatians 3:23-29 Now before faith came, we were held captive under the law, imprisoned until the coming faith would be revealed. So then, the law was our guardian until Christ came, in order that we might be justified by faith. But now that faith has come, we are no longer under a guardian, for in Christ Jesus you are all sons of God, through faith. For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. And if you are Christ's, then you are Abraham's offspring, heirs according to promise.

We are in chapter eleven of Leviticus with our word for today. שֶׁ֫רֶץ swarm, swarmer’s, swarming things. It is used 15 times in the Old Testament, 10 times in our chapter. We find our word used as a part of the list of unclean creatures that God instructed his people at that time not to eat. A couple days ago we found in our chapter our word for today used alongside of water creatures. Leviticus 11:10 But anything in the seas or the rivers that does not have fins and scales, of the שֶׁ֣רֶץ swarming creatures in the waters and of the living creatures that are in the waters, is detestable to you. Yesterday we saw in our chapter our word for today used along with insects. Leviticus 11:20-21 All שֶׁ֣רֶץ הָע֔וֹף [literally swarming winged creatures] winged insects that go on all fours are detestable to you. Yet among שֶׁ֣רֶץ הָע֔וֹף the winged insects that go on all fours you may eat those that have jointed legs above their feet, with which to hop on the ground … But all other שֶׁ֣רֶץ הָע֔וֹף winged insects that have four feet are detestable to you. These flying insects that swarm were not to be eaten. Our word is then used to describe swarming insects that crawl on the ground. These are also on the list not to be eaten. Leviticus 11:29-31, 41-45 And these are unclean to you בַּשֶּׁ֖רֶץ הַשֹּׁרֵ֣ץ [literally in the swarming swarmer’s] among the swarming things that swarm on the ground: the mole rat, the mouse, the great lizard of any kind, the gecko, the monitor lizard, the lizard, the sand lizard, and the chameleon. These are unclean to you among all הַשָּׁ֑רֶץ that swarm … Every הַשֶּׁ֖רֶץ הַשֹּׁרֵ֣ץ swarming thing that swarms on the ground is detestable; it shall not be eaten. Whatever goes on its belly, and whatever goes on all fours, or whatever has many feet, any הַשֶּׁ֖רֶץ הַשֹּׁרֵ֣ץ swarming thing that swarms on the ground, you shall not eat, for they are detestable. You shall not make yourselves detestable with any הַשֶּׁ֖רֶץ הַשֹּׁרֵ֑ץ swarming thing that swarms, and you shall not defile yourselves with them, and become unclean through them. For I am the Lord your God. Consecrate yourselves therefore, and be holy, for I am holy. You shall not defile yourselves with any הַשֶּׁ֖רֶץ הָרֹמֵ֥שׂ swarming thing that crawls on the ground. For I am the Lord who brought you up out of the land of Egypt to be your God. You shall therefore be holy, for I am holy.” Notice the explanation God gives for this list of creatures that are not to be eaten. YWHW brought them out of Egypt for the purpose of making them holy. And his reasoning for wanting them to be holy is because he is holy. Again this restriction was for God’s people at that time. Then God was teaching them what it meant to be separated or different from the people that they came from Egypt and different from the people whose land they were heading toward. God is still very much interested in making us holy like himself. But it is different as we have already looked at once Jesus declared all foods clean and was doing something different in and through His church. Paul reinforces Jesus instruction in this way to Timothy who was working in a new church. 1 Timothy 4:1-5 Now the Spirit expressly says that in later times some will depart from the faith by devoting themselves to deceitful spirits and teachings of demons, through the insincerity of liars whose consciences are seared, who forbid marriage and require abstinence from foods that God created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and know the truth. For everything created by God is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving, for it is made holy by the word of God and prayer. Did you catch that? God is saying that it is not these foods or things that make one holy or unclean but rather what one uses them for. God wants us to open our hearts to him without being deceived by blaming things or others for our sin. Instead he wants us come to him with our sin and let Him forgive and transform our hearts by the power of his Spirit. I’ll close with the rest of this passage where Paul declares this instruction that things are not evil in and of themselves nor are they good but rather what people do with them. Do we use them to honor and show love to God and people in our lives. This is what makes someone a good leader. 1 Timothy 4:6 If you put these things before the brothers, you will be a good servant of Christ Jesus, being trained in the words of the faith and of the good doctrine that you have followed.

We are in chapter eleven of Leviticus with our word for today which is a phrase. עוֹף everything that flies, flying creatures, fowl, birds, insects. It is used 71 times in the Old Testament, 5 times in our chapter. Our word is a good example of how the context helps us understand the meaning. Since our word is a general word for everything that flies the context help us understand the specific way the word is being used. We our word translated a couple of different ways in our chapter for today. The first way is in the sense of winged animals or birds. Leviticus 1:14 If his offering to the Lord is a burnt offering of הָע֛וֹף birds, then he shall bring his offering of turtledoves or pigeons. This is the first way our word is used in our chapter. Leviticus 11:1-2, 13-19 And the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying to them, “Speak to the people of Israel, saying … And these you shall detest among הָע֔וֹף the birds; they shall not be eaten; they are detestable: the eagle, the bearded vulture, the black vulture, the kite, the falcon of any kind, every raven of any kind, the ostrich, the nighthawk, the sea gull, the hawk of any kind, the little owl, the cormorant, the short-eared owl, the barn owl, the tawny owl, the carrion vulture, the stork, the heron of any kind, the hoopoe, and the bat. And in this use and the other use of our word in our chapter they both are part of the list of unclean creatures that God instructed his people at that time not to eat. The second way our word is used is in the sense of winged insects. Deuteronomy 14:19 And all winged הָע֔וֹף insects are unclean for you; they shall not be eaten. This is also how our word is used in our chapter today. Leviticus 11:20-24 All winged הָע֔וֹף insects that go on all fours are detestable to you. Yet among the winged הָע֔וֹף insects that go on all fours you may eat those that have jointed legs above their feet, with which to hop on the ground. Of them you may eat: the locust of any kind, the bald locust of any kind, the cricket of any kind, and the grasshopper of any kind. But all other winged הָע֔וֹף insects that have four feet are detestable to you. “And by these you shall become unclean. Then we see our word used in both senses in our chapter to sum up all that the chapter has been talking about. Leviticus 11:46-47 This is the law about beast וְהָע֔וֹף and [literally winged creatures which would include birds and insects] bird and every living creature that moves through the waters and every creature that swarms on the ground, to make a distinction between the unclean and the clean and between the living creature that may be eaten and the living creature that may not be eaten. The whole point is that all flying creatures (birds and insects), along with land and sea creatures that are on God’s list as unclean is given to give the people a distinction. That is so they understand what it means to be holy, separated, or different. Again these laws were for God’s people at that time. Once Jesus declared all foods clean, which we have been looking at over the last few days, we better understand all of these things. It took the early Christians who were originally all Jewish time to understand what God was doing now through His church. This caused conflict especially with the new Gentile Christians coming into the church. The Holy spirit speaking through Paul instructs the believers in this. Romans 14:17 For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking but of righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. 1 Corinthians 8:8 Food will not commend us to God. We are no worse off if we do not eat, and no better off if we do. It’s wrong to judge other Christians on the basis of what they eat because our connection with God is not based on how we follow the rules but rather on our relationship with Christ. I’ll close with this great section. Colossians 2:16–23 Therefore let no one pass judgment on you in questions of food and drink, or with regard to a festival or a new moon or a Sabbath. These are a shadow of the things to come, but the substance belongs to Christ. Let no one disqualify you, insisting on asceticism and worship of angels, going on in detail about visions, puffed up without reason by his sensuous mind, and not holding fast to the Head, from whom the whole body, nourished and knit together through its joints and ligaments, grows with a growth that is from God. If with Christ you died to the elemental spirits of the world, why, as if you were still alive in the world, do you submit to regulations— “Do not handle, Do not taste, Do not touch” (referring to things that all perish as they are used)—according to human precepts and teachings? These have indeed an appearance of wisdom in promoting self-made religion and asceticism and severity to the body, but they are of no value in stopping the indulgence of the flesh.

We are in chapter eleven of Leviticus with our word for today which is a phrase. סְנַפִּ֨יר וְקַשְׂקֶ֜שֶׂת fins and scales. It is used 5 times in the Old Testament, 3 times in our chapter. Our phrase is part of the list of unclean animals that God instructed his people at that time not to eat. Let’s look at the three uses in our chapter which is also the first time it is used in the Bible. Leviticus 11:1-2, 9-12 And the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying to them, “Speak to the people of Israel, saying … These you may eat, of all that are in the waters. Everything in the waters that has סְנַפִּ֨יר וְקַשְׂקֶ֜שֶׂת fins and scales, whether in the seas or in the rivers, you may eat. But anything in the seas or the rivers that does not have סְנַפִּ֣יר וְקַשְׂקֶ֗שֶׂת fins and scales, of the swarming creatures in the waters and of the living creatures that are in the waters, is detestable to you. You shall regard them as detestable; you shall not eat any of their flesh, and you shall detest their carcasses. Everything in the waters that does not have סְנַפִּ֥יר וְקַשְׂקֶ֖שֶׂת fins and scales is detestable to you.  Our next use is also used in the same context of unclean food. Deuteronomy 14:3, 9-10 You shall not eat any abomination … Of all that are in the waters you may eat these: whatever has סְנַפִּ֥יר וְקַשְׂקֶ֖שֶׂת fins and scales you may eat. And whatever does not have סְנַפִּ֥יר וְקַשְׂקֶ֖שֶׂת fins and scales you shall not eat; it is unclean for you. Did you notice the strong language associated with why God’s people of that time were not to eat these? Here in Deuteronomy they are called an abomination and in our chapter in Leviticus they are called detestable. These are two of the strongest words used in the Bible so it is no wonder why Peter had such a hard time letting God change his perspective on what he was now doing through the church. As we have already looked at Jesus made it clear to His disciples that all foods were clean. Let’s look at how God taught this lesson again to Peter before He sent him to minister to the “unclean” Gentiles. I’ll close with this great section from God’s word. Acts 10:9–16 The next day, as they were on their journey and approaching the city, Peter went up on the housetop about the sixth hour to pray. And he became hungry and wanted something to eat, but while they were preparing it, he fell into a trance and saw the heavens opened and something like a great sheet descending, being let down by its four corners upon the earth. In it were all kinds of animals and reptiles and birds of the air. And there came a voice to him: “Rise, Peter; kill and eat.” But Peter said, “By no means, Lord; for I have never eaten anything that is common or unclean.” And the voice came to him again a second time, “What God has made clean, do not call common.” This happened three times, and the thing was taken up at once to heaven.

We are in chapter eleven of Leviticus with our word for today. חֲזִיר swine, boar, hog, pig. It is used 7 times in the Old Testament. We find our word used to describe this animal living in the forest. Psalm 80:13 The חֲזִ֣יר boar from the forest ravages it, and all that move in the field feed on it. All the other uses of our word show its associated with behavior of those sinning against God. A good example of this is the first time it is used in the Bible which is also in our chapter for today. Leviticus 11:1-3, 7 And the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying to them, “Speak to the people of Israel, saying, These are the living things that you may eat among all the animals that are on the earth. Whatever parts the hoof and is cloven-footed and chews the cud, among the animals, you may eat … And הַ֠חֲזִיר the pig, because it parts the hoof and is cloven-footed but does not chew the cud, is unclean to you. Our word is part of the list of unclean animals that God instructed his people at that time not to eat. Our next use is also used in the same context of unclean food. Deuteronomy 14:3, 8 You shall not eat any abomination … And הַ֠חֲזִיר the pig, because it parts the hoof but does not chew the cud, is unclean for you. Their flesh you shall not eat, and their carcasses you shall not touch. Just like the last couple of days we see this list also identified as being an abomination to eat. Did you also notice that the restriction to not even touch their carcasses is now included along with the not eating? Isaiah associates our word with those who are rebelling against God. Isaiah 65:2-4 I spread out my hands all the day to a rebellious people, who walk in a way that is not good, following their own devices; a people who provoke me to my face continually, sacrificing in gardens and making offerings on bricks; who sit in tombs, and spend the night in secret places; who eat הַחֲזִ֔יר pig's flesh, and broth of tainted meat is in their vessels. We also see in the next chapter Isaiah continues to tie our word to those who are involved in immoral activity. Isaiah 66:3, 17 he who presents a grain offering, like one who offers חֲזִ֔יר pig's blood; he who makes a memorial offering of frankincense, like one who blesses an idol. These have chosen their own ways, and their soul delights in their abominations … Those who sanctify and purify themselves to go into the gardens, following one in the midst, eating הַחֲזִ֔יר pig's flesh and the abomination and mice, shall come to an end together, declares the Lord. Solomon uses our word in a proverb to illustrate how evil will end in ruin. Proverbs 11:21-23 Be assured, an evil person will not go unpunished, but the offspring of the righteous will be delivered. Like a gold ring in a חֲזִ֑יר pig's snout is a beautiful woman without discretion. The desire of the righteous ends only in good, the expectation of the wicked in wrath. No one would put something so valuable on a pig because you would lose it. Because the pig has no idea of how valuable the gold ring is. The good news is that God knows how valuable we are and sent his son to die in our place for our sins. I’ll close with Jesus parable of the prodigal or lost son who was lost but comes back home. Notice where he was when he repented as it relates to our word. Luke 15:13-24 Not many days later, the younger son gathered all he had and took a journey into a far country, and there he squandered his property in reckless living. And when he had spent everything, a severe famine arose in that country, and he began to be in need. So he went and hired himself out to one of the citizens of that country, who sent him into his fields to feed pigs. And he was longing to be fed with the pods that the pigs ate, and no one gave him anything. “But when he came to himself, he said, ‘How many of my father's hired servants have more than enough bread, but I perish here with hunger! I will arise and go to my father, and I will say to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son. Treat me as one of your hired servants.”’ And he arose and came to his father. But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and felt compassion, and ran and embraced him and kissed him. And the son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’ But the father said to his servants, ‘Bring quickly the best robe, and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet. And bring the fattened calf and kill it, and let us eat and celebrate. For this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found.’ And they began to celebrate.

We are in chapter eleven of Leviticus with our word for today. אַרְנֶבֶת hare. It is used twice in the Old Testament. Our word is used to describe a swift, timid, long-eared animal larger than a rabbit. Let’s look at both of our uses starting with our chapter since it is also the first time it is used in the Bible. Leviticus 11:1-3, 6 And the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying to them, “Speak to the people of Israel, saying, These are the living things that you may eat among all the animals that are on the earth. Whatever parts the hoof and is cloven-footed and chews the cud, among the animals, you may eat … And הָאַרְנֶ֗בֶת the hare, because it chews the cud but does not part the hoof, is unclean to you. Our word is part of the list of unclean animals that God instructed his people at that time not to eat. Our other use is also used in the same context of unclean food. Deuteronomy 14:3, 7 You shall not eat any abomination … Yet of those that chew the cud or have the hoof cloven you shall not eat these: the camel, הָאַרְנֶ֗בֶתthe hare, and the rock badger, because they chew the cud but do not part the hoof, are unclean for you. Just like yesterday we see this list also identified as being an abomination to eat. It is important for us to remember that these dietary laws were given by God only to the Jewish nation, obeying them did not guarantee a person’s holy character, and the laws were temporary and ended on the cross. Colossians 2:13-14 And you, who were dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with him, having forgiven us all our trespasses, by canceling the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands. This he set aside, nailing it to the cross. We don’t know exactly why God restricted his people at that time not to eat these animals but here is what we do know about our relationship with God through Christ. Jesus made it clear to His disciples that all foods were clean. I’ll close with this great teaching from Jesus. Mark 7:1- 8, 14-23 Now when the Pharisees gathered to him, with some of the scribes who had come from Jerusalem, they saw that some of his disciples ate with hands that were defiled, that is, unwashed. (For the Pharisees and all the Jews do not eat unless they wash their hands properly, holding to the tradition of the elders, and when they come from the marketplace, they do not eat unless they wash. And there are many other traditions that they observe, such as the washing of cups and pots and copper vessels and dining couches.) And the Pharisees and the scribes asked him, “Why do your disciples not walk according to the tradition of the elders, but eat with defiled hands?” And he said to them, “Well did Isaiah prophesy of you hypocrites, as it is written, “‘This people honors me with their lips, but their heart is far from me; in vain do they worship me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.’ You leave the commandment of God and hold to the tradition of men.” … And he called the people to him again and said to them, “Hear me, all of you, and understand: There is nothing outside a person that by going into him can defile him, but the things that come out of a person are what defile him.” And when he had entered the house and left the people, his disciples asked him about the parable. And he said to them, “Then are you also without understanding? Do you not see that whatever goes into a person from outside cannot defile him, since it enters not his heart but his stomach, and is expelled?” (Thus he declared all foods clean.) And he said, “What comes out of a person is what defiles him. For from within, out of the heart of man, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, coveting, wickedness, deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride, foolishness. All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person.”

We are in chapter eleven of Leviticus with our word for today. שָׁפָן hyrax, rock badger, coney, daman. It is used 4 times in the Old Testament. Our word is used in the sense of a small hoofed mammal with rodent-like incisors and feet with hoof like toes. Let’s start with our chapter today since it is the first time it is used in the Bible. Leviticus 11:1-3, 5 And the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying to them, “Speak to the people of Israel, saying, These are the living things that you may eat among all the animals that are on the earth. Whatever parts the hoof and is cloven-footed and chews the cud, among the animals, you may eat … And הַשָּׁפָ֗ן the rock badger, because it chews the cud but does not part the hoof, is unclean to you. This animal is on the list as unclean for God’s people at that time to eat. We find this same instruction in our next use of our word. Deuteronomy 14:3, 7 You shall not eat any abomination. These are the animals you may eat … Yet of those that chew the cud or have the hoof cloven you shall not eat these: the camel, the hare, and הַשָּׁפָ֜ן the rock badger, because they chew the cud but do not part the hoof, are unclean for you. It is interesting that God identifies this list as an abomination to eat. We don’t want to make the mistake in thinking that these animals on this unclean list that are an abomination would mean that God does not value or care for them. We are not talking about their value but rather a boundary that God has set up for his people. In several Psalms we find God’s love and care for all he has created. Here is a good example. Psalm 104:16-18 The trees of the Lord are watered abundantly, the cedars of Lebanon that he planted. In them the birds build their nests; the stork has her home in the fir trees. The high mountains are for the wild goats; the rocks are a refuge לַֽשְׁפַנִּֽיםfor the rock badgers. Did you see that? God provides the rocks for the rock badgers to have protection. In our last use we see again God pointing to the value of these creatures. He uses them to teach people about wisdom. I’ll close with this great Proverb. Proverbs 30:24-28 Four things on earth are small, but they are exceedingly wise: the ants are a people not strong, yet they provide their food in the summer; the שְׁ֭פַנִּיםrock badgers are a people not mighty, yet they make their homes in the cliffs; the locusts have no king, yet all of them march in rank; the lizard you can take in your hands, yet it is in kings' palaces.  

We are in chapter eleven of Leviticus with our word for today. גָּמָל camel. It is used 54 times in the Old Testament. We find our word as part of the accounting of one’s wealth. Genesis 24:34-35 So he said, “I am Abraham's servant. The Lord has greatly blessed my master, and he has become great. He has given him flocks and herds, silver and gold, male servants and female servants, וּגְמַלִּ֖ים camels and donkeys. Did you notice that YWHW was credited as giving Abraham his wealth? This is also true later of Jacob. Genesis 30:43; 31:9, 16 Thus the man increased greatly and had large flocks, female servants and male servants, וּגְמַלִּ֖ים and camels and donkeys … Thus God has taken away the livestock of your father and given them to me … All the wealth that God has taken away from our father belongs to us and to our children.  It is interesting that our word is used the most in Genesis chapter 24 with the account of Abraham’s servant finding a wife for Isaac. It is used an amazing 17 times. This narrative shows us that this was a common means of transportation. Genesis 24:61, 63-64 Then Rebekah and her young women arose and rode on הַגְּמַלִּ֔ים the camels and followed the man. Thus the servant took Rebekah and went his way … Isaac went out to meditate in the field toward evening. And he lifted up his eyes and saw, and behold, there were גְמַלִּ֖ים camels coming. And Rebekah lifted up her eyes, and when she saw Isaac, she dismounted from הַגָּמָֽל the camel. 1 Samuel 30:17 David struck them down from twilight until the evening of the next day, and not a man of them escaped, except four hundred young men, who mounted הַגְּמַלִּ֖ים camels and fled. We also find our word used in the list of unclean animals that are not to be eaten. Deuteronomy 14:7 Yet of those that chew the cud or have the hoof cloven you shall not eat these: הַ֠גָּמָל the camel … are unclean for you. This is how our word is used in our chapter today. Leviticus 11:1-4 And the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying to them, “Speak to the people of Israel, saying, These are the living things that you may eat among all the animals that are on the earth. Whatever parts the hoof and is cloven-footed and chews the cud, among the animals, you may eat. Nevertheless, among those that chew the cud or part the hoof, you shall not eat these: הַ֠גָּמָלThe camel, because it chews the cud but does not part the hoof, is unclean to you. What made camel’s useful for travel was they also were used to carry a lot of goods and equipment. Genesis 37:25 And looking up they saw a caravan of Ishmaelites coming from Gilead, וּגְמַלֵּיהֶ֣ם with their camels bearing gum, balm, and myrrh, on their way to carry it down to Egypt. 1 Chronicles 12:40 And also their relatives, from as far as Issachar and Zebulun and Naphtali, came bringing food on donkeys וּבַגְּמַלִּ֣ים and on camels and on mules and on oxen, abundant provisions of flour, cakes of figs, clusters of raisins, and wine and oil, oxen and sheep, for there was joy in Israel. Isaiah 30:6 They carry their riches on the backs of donkeys, and their treasures on the humps of גְּמַלִּים֙ camels, to a people that cannot profit them. We also see our word used of carrying gifts to be given to others at the end of their journey. Genesis 24:10 Then the servant took ten of his master's גְמַלִּ֜ים camels and departed, taking all sorts of choice gifts from his master; and he arose and went to Mesopotamia to the city of Nahor. 2 Chronicles 9:1 Now when the queen of Sheba heard of the fame of Solomon, she came to Jerusalem to test him with hard questions, having a very great retinue וּ֠גְמַלִּים and camels bearing spices and very much gold and precious stones. 2 Kings 8:9 So Hazael went to meet him, and took a present with him, all kinds of goods of Damascus, forty גָּמָ֑ל camels' loads. Isaiah 60:6 A multitude of גְּמַלִּ֜ים camels shall cover you, the young camels of Midian and Ephah; all those from Sheba shall come. They shall bring gold and frankincense, and shall bring good news, the praises of the Lord. This scene of camel’s carrying gifts reminds us of the gifts that were brought to Jesus after his birth. Our word is not used to describe what the wise men used to transport the gifts but it was more than likely the way they did it. I’ll close with a New Testament reference that is also translated camel. As we have seen wealth is a blessing from God but it is not a guarantee of eternal life. It can become a stumbling block in our relationship with God if we begin to rely on it. The good news is that our salvation is based on what Jesus has done for us on the cross and our faith in His saving work. Luke 18:24-30 Jesus, seeing that he had become sad, said, “How difficult it is for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God! For it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God.” Those who heard it said, “Then who can be saved?” But he said, “What is impossible with man is possible with God.” And Peter said, “See, we have left our homes and followed you.” And he said to them, “Truly, I say to you, there is no one who has left house or wife or brothers or parents or children, for the sake of the kingdom of God, who will not receive many times more in this time, and in the age to come eternal life.”

We are moving into chapter eleven of Leviticus with our word for today. טָמֵא unclean, polluted, defile, profane, tainted with impurities according to regulations and requirements. It is used 88 times in the Old Testament. We find our word used in the context of what the priests were to teach the people. Leviticus 10:10-11 You are to distinguish between the holy and the common, and between הַטָּמֵ֖א the unclean and the clean, and you are to teach the people of Israel all the statutes that the Lord has spoken to them by Moses.” Much later in Ezekiel’s time we find God pointing out the failure of the priests to do this very thing. Ezekiel 22:26 Her priests have done violence to my law and have profaned my holy things. They have made no distinction between the holy and the common, neither have they taught the difference between הַטָּמֵ֥א the unclean and the clean, and they have disregarded my Sabbaths, so that I am profaned among them. Later in Ezekiel’s vision of the future we find this role that would be carried out. Ezekiel 44:23 They shall teach my people the difference between the holy and the common, and show them how to distinguish between the טָמֵ֥א unclean and the clean. This priestly duty is also the context of how our word is used in our chapter today. Leviticus 11:1-8 And the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying to them, “Speak to the people of Israel, saying, These are the living things that you may eat among all the animals that are on the earth. Whatever parts the hoof and is cloven-footed and chews the cud, among the animals, you may eat. Nevertheless, among those that chew the cud or part the hoof, you shall not eat these: The camel, because it chews the cud but does not part the hoof, is טָמֵ֥א unclean to you. And the rock badger, because it chews the cud but does not part the hoof, is טָמֵ֥א unclean to you. And the hare, because it chews the cud but does not part the hoof, is טְמֵאָ֥הunclean to you. And the pig, because it parts the hoof and is cloven-footed but does not chew the cud, is טָמֵ֥אunclean to you. You shall not eat any of their flesh, and you shall not touch their carcasses; they are טְמֵאִ֥יםunclean to you. Jesus made it clear to His disciples that all foods were clean, and God taught this lesson again to Peter before He sent him to minister to the “unclean” Gentiles. Paul affirmed that special days and diets must not be considered either the means or the measure of a person’s spirituality. Since Noah knew about clean and unclean animals, this distinction was part of an ancient tradition that predated the Mosaic Law. Whether a creature was “clean” or “unclean” had nothing to do with the quality of the creature; it all depended on what God said about the animal. When He gave these laws, no doubt the Lord had the health of His people in mind, but the main purpose of the dietary code was to remind the Israelites that they belonged to God and were obligated to keep themselves separated from everything that would defile them. Leviticus 11:44 For I am the Lord your God. Consecrate yourselves therefore, and be holy, for I am holy. Nevertheless, the spiritual principle of separation from defilement applies to the people of God today. The Holy Spirit makes this connection clear in the New Testament when he ties our chapter in Leviticus applying this principle of being different to the church. 1 Peter 1:13-16 Therefore, preparing your minds for action, and being sober-minded, set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ. As obedient children, do not be conformed to the passions of your former ignorance, but as he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, since it is written, “You shall be holy, for I am holy.” The fact that we know God must make a difference in every aspect of our lives. I’ll close with these great reminders. 1 Corinthians 6:19-20; 10:31 Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body … So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.

We are in chapter ten of Leviticus with our word for today. יָטַב go well with, please, be agreeable, be pleasing, be good, to do well. It is used 117 times in the Old Testament. We find our word used in the sense of doing good in someone’s eyes. A great example of this is when the eastern tribes build an altar of witness but are misunderstood by the other tribes. Joshua 22:30-33 When Phinehas the priest and the chiefs of the congregation, the heads of the families of Israel who were with him, heard the words that the people of Reuben and the people of Gad and the people of Manasseh spoke, וַיִּיטַ֖בit was good in their eyes. And Phinehas the son of Eleazar the priest said to the people of Reuben and the people of Gad and the people of Manasseh, “Today we know that the Lord is in our midst, because you have not committed this breach of faith against the Lord. Now you have delivered the people of Israel from the hand of the Lord.” Then Phinehas the son of Eleazar the priest, and the chiefs, returned from the people of Reuben and the people of Gad in the land of Gilead to the land of Canaan, to the people of Israel, and brought back word to them. And the report וַיִּיטַ֣בwas good in the eyes of the people of Israel. And the people of Israel blessed God and spoke no more of making war against them to destroy the land where the people of Reuben and the people of Gad were settled. The people of Reuben and the people of Gad called the altar Witness, “For,” they said, “it is a witness between us that the Lord is God.” This is how our word is used in our chapter today. Leviticus 10:19-20 And Aaron said to Moses, “Behold, today they have offered their sin offering and their burnt offering before the Lord, and yet such things as these have happened to me! If I had eaten the sin offering today, would the Lord הַיִּיטַ֖ב בְּעֵינֵ֥י [we have the word for eye which is not translated and our word so literally eye pleasing or good to the eyes] have approved?” And when Moses heard that, וַיִּיטַ֖ב בְּעֵינָֽיו [we have the same two words together eye pleasing] he approved. This is the context of Aaron just losing his two sons because of their disobedience to God. Because he was grieving he declared that surely YWHW would understand why he didn’t eat the sacrifice as they usually do. And Moses agrees with this reasoning and honors his grief. In this life we deal with loss. God gives us painful emotions as sort of a pressure release value to move us from hurting to healing if we allow ourselves to feel and take those feelings of loss to God in prayer. We see God himself cry when he felt the pain of loss from his friends. John 11:33, 35-36, 38 When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who had come with her also weeping, he was deeply moved in his spirit and greatly troubled … Jesus wept. So the Jews said, “See how he loved him!” … Then Jesus, deeply moved again, came to the tomb. This is amazing in that Jesus knew he was going to raise Lazarus from the dead but he didn’t let that stop him from honoring his friend’s grief by entering into it with them. The Bible reminds us of the value of grieving what we lose. Ecclesiastes 7:2 It is better to go to the house of mourning than to go to the house of feasting, for this is the end of all mankind, and the living will lay it to heart. Ecclesiastes 3:1, 4 For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven … a time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance. I’ll close with these great words of Jesus that show God honoring our grief and working in it. Matthew 5:4 Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. Matthew 11:28-29 Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.

We are in chapter ten of Leviticus with our word for today. תְּנוּפָה swinging, waving, shaking, uplifted offering, wave offering. It is used 30 times in the Old Testament, 3 times in our chapter. Our word is used in the sense of waving something back and forth. In this sense it is seen with God coming to fight against the enemies of his people. Isaiah 19:16-17 In that day the Egyptians will be like women, and tremble with fear before the hand that the Lord of hosts תְּנוּפַת֙ shakes over them. And the land of Judah will become a terror to the Egyptians. Everyone to whom it is mentioned will fear because of the purpose that the Lord of hosts has purposed against them. Isaiah 30:30-32 And the Lord will cause his majestic voice to be heard and the descending blow of his arm to be seen, in furious anger and a flame of devouring fire, with a cloudburst and storm and hailstones. The Assyrians will be terror-stricken at the voice of the Lord, when he strikes with his rod. And every stroke of the appointed staff that the Lord lays on them will be to the sound of tambourines and lyres. Battling with תְּנוּפָ֖ה brandished arm, he will fight with them. Our word is used most of the time as the wave offering as part of the tabernacle worship. This offering involved the breast of the animal that was sacrificed. Exodus 29:26-27 You shall take the breast of the ram of Aaron's ordination וְהֵנַפְתָּ֥ and wave it for a תְּנוּפָ֖ה wave offering before the Lord, and it shall be your portion. And you shall consecrate the breast of the wave offering that is waved and the thigh of the priests' portion that is contributed from the ram of ordination, from what was Aaron's and his sons'. This is how our word is used in our chapter today. Leviticus 10:13-15 You shall eat it in a holy place, because it is your due and your sons' due, from the Lord's food offerings, for so I am commanded. But the breast that הַתְּנוּפָ֜הis waved and the thigh that is contributed you shall eat in a clean place, you and your sons and your daughters with you, for they are given as your due and your sons' due from the sacrifices of the peace offerings of the people of Israel. The thigh that is contributed and the breast that הַתְּנוּפָ֗הis waved they shall bring with the food offerings of the fat pieces to wave for a לְהָנִ֥יף תְּנוּפָ֖הwave offering before the Lord, and it shall be yours and your sons' with you as a due forever, as the Lord has commanded.” I find it interesting that some of the food offering was to be consumed by the priests in a specific holy place as part of the offering to YWHW. This is different than the wave offering that after it was waved to YWHWH this meat was then to be given to the Priest and their family as a way to provide for them since their whole time was serving at the tabernacle worship. This concept of full time service to helping people connect to God in worship is seen throughout the Bible. The Holy Spirit speaking through Paul says this. 1 Timothy 5:17-18 Let the elders who rule well be considered worthy of double honor, especially those who labor in preaching and teaching. For the Scripture says, “You shall not muzzle an ox when it treads out the grain,” and, “The laborer deserves his wages.” We are talking about paying a teaching elder or we would call pastor today to free up his time to focus on leading the church. I’ll close with this great passage about the purpose of the church and the role of a church leader. Notice the reference to the desired result of lifting holy hands. The wave offering involved the priest raising up the sacrifice to God with his hands. When we serve Christ and his church God changes people to be able to life up holy hands to him. 1 Timothy 2:3-8 This is good, and it is pleasing in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all, which is the testimony given at the proper time. For this I was appointed a preacher and an apostle (I am telling the truth, I am not lying), a teacher of the Gentiles in faith and truth. I desire then that in every place the men should pray, lifting holy hands without anger or quarreling.

We are in chapter ten of Leviticus with our word for today which is a phrase. יַ֣יִן וְשֵׁכָ֞ר wine or strong drink. It is used 9 times in the Old Testament. We see our phrase used when God is instructing the priest on how the special Nazarite vow was to be followed. Numbers 6:1-3 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “Speak to the people of Israel and say to them, When either a man or a woman makes a special vow, the vow of a Nazirite, to separate himself to the Lord, he shall separate himself מִיַּ֤יִן וְשֵׁכָר֙ from wine and strong drink. He shall drink no vinegar made from wine or strong drink and shall not drink any juice of grapes or eat grapes, fresh or dried. Samson’s Nazarite vow was even more special in that it was from his very beginning. Judges 13:3-5 And the angel of the Lord appeared to the woman and said to her, “Behold, you are barren and have not borne children, but you shall conceive and bear a son. Therefore be careful and drink no יַ֣יִן וְשֵׁכָ֑ר wine or strong drink, and eat nothing unclean, for behold, you shall conceive and bear a son. No razor shall come upon his head, for the child shall be a Nazirite to God from the womb, and he shall begin to save Israel from the hand of the Philistines.” Because Samson’s vow started “from the womb” even his mother had to follow the Nazarite vow. Judges 13:13-14 And the angel of the Lord said to Manoah, “Of all that I said to the woman let her be careful. She may not eat of anything that comes from the vine, neither let her drink וְיַ֤יִן וְשֵׁכָר֙ wine or strong drink, or eat any unclean thing. All that I commanded her let her observe.” We also see our phrase used as part of the tithe the people were to give as part of their worship to God. Deuteronomy 14:24-26 And if the way is too long for you, so that you are not able to carry the tithe, when the Lord your God blesses you, because the place is too far from you, which the Lord your God chooses, to set his name there, then you shall turn it into money and bind up the money in your hand and go to the place that the Lord your God chooses and spend the money for whatever you desire—oxen or sheep or וּבַיַּ֙יִן֙ וּבַשֵּׁכָ֔רwine or strong drink, whatever your appetite craves. And you shall eat there before the Lord your God and rejoice, you and your household. Did you notice that part of the way the people were to worship God was to eat and drink alcohol if they desired to? We are not talking about getting drunk which God always condemns as sin against him. We find our phrase used associated with foolish and sinful behavior. Hannah was praying so intensely emotionally that the priest accused her of being drunk. 1 Samuel 1:13-16 Hannah was speaking in her heart; only her lips moved, and her voice was not heard. Therefore Eli took her to be a drunken woman. And Eli said to her, “How long will you go on being drunk? Put your wine away from you.” But Hannah answered, “No, my lord, I am a woman troubled in spirit. I have drunk neither וְיַ֥יִן וְשֵׁכָ֖ר wine nor strong drink, but I have been pouring out my soul before the Lord. Do not regard your servant as a worthless woman, for all along I have been speaking out of my great anxiety and vexation.” Another example of our phrase associated with foolish and sinful behavior is Micah’s prophesy against the people. Micah 2:11 If a man should go about and utter wind and lies, saying, “I will preach to you of לַיַּ֖יִן וְלַשֵּׁכָ֑ר wine and strong drink,” he would be the preacher for this people! This is how our phrase is used in our chapter today. Leviticus 10:8-11 And the Lord spoke to Aaron, saying, “Drink no יַ֣יִן וְשֵׁכָ֞רwine or strong drink, you or your sons with you, when you go into the tent of meeting, lest you die. It shall be a statute forever throughout your generations. You are to distinguish between the holy and the common, and between the unclean and the clean, and you are to teach the people of Israel all the statutes that the Lord has spoken to them by Moses.” Did you catch the phrase determine between the holy and the common? Because of what just happened with Nadab and Abihu what more than likely caused their not treating God holy was being under the influence of alcohol. Drinking would be an attitude of a common thing that requires no thought or carefulness. But that is not what helping people connect with God is at all. There is nothing more serious that requires sober mindedness. We see this idea throughout the Bible. Here are some examples in the New Testament that I will close with. 1 Peter 4:7-8 The end of all things is at hand; therefore be self-controlled and sober-minded for the sake of your prayers. Above all, keep loving one another earnestly, since love covers a multitude of sins.  1 Peter 5:8 Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. 1 Thessalonians 5:6-8 So then let us not sleep, as others do, but let us keep awake and be sober. For those who sleep, sleep at night, and those who get drunk, are drunk at night. But since we belong to the day, let us be sober, having put on the breastplate of faith and love, and for a helmet the hope of salvation.

We are in rolling into chapter ten of Leviticus with our word for today which is a phrase. לֹ֦א צִוָּ֖ה had not commanded, has not commanded. It is used 7 times in the Old Testament. We see our word used half of the time to point out the consequences to going ahead and doing what God has not commanded should be done. We see this right at the beginning of the Bible. Genesis 3:11, 17 He said, “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten of the tree of which צִוִּיתִ֛יךָ לְבִלְתִּ֥י I commanded you not to eat?” … Because you have listened to the voice of your wife and have eaten of the tree of which צִוִּיתִ֙יךָ֙ לֵאמֹ֔ר לֹ֥א [literally I commanded you saying not] I commanded you, ‘You shall not eat of it,’ cursed is the ground because of you; in pain you shall eat of it all the days of your life. Everyone who is alive faces these consequences of sin. This idea of doing what God has not commanded and facing the consequences is how our word is used in our chapter. In this example we have Aaron’s sons whose actions prove instantly fatal. Leviticus 10:1-3 Now Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron, each took his censer and put fire in it and laid incense on it and offered unauthorized fire before the Lord, which he לֹ֦א צִוָּ֖ה had not commanded them. And fire came out from before the Lord and consumed them, and they died before the Lord. Then Moses said to Aaron, “This is what the Lord has said: ‘Among those who are near me I will be sanctified, and before all the people I will be glorified.’” And Aaron held his peace. And our last use in this sin against what God already commanded us not to do followed by consequences we have this warning for false prophets and God’s people. Deuteronomy 18:20 But the prophet who presumes to speak a word in my name that לֹֽא־צִוִּיתִיו֙ I have not commanded him to speak, or who speaks in the name of other gods, that same prophet shall die. God loves us and that love is protective. He will be seen as holy which means we need to have the highest respect for his commands. The other 3 uses of our phrase are more of poetic in nature. We find our phrase used in a question. By using the negative in a question it emphasizes the command to be followed. A great example of this is when YHWH or the LORD talks to Joshua after the death of Moses. Joshua 1:9 הֲל֤וֹא צִוִּיתִ֙יךָ֙Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.” Our phrase is used here to give Joshua a charge or challenge to encourage and empower him. In our next example it is used by Deborah to give courage to Barak who is hesitating. Judges 4:6-7 She sent and summoned Barak the son of Abinoam from Kedesh-naphtali and said to him, הֲלֹ֥א צִוָּ֣ה “Has not the Lord, the God of Israel, commanded you, ‘Go, gather your men at Mount Tabor … And I will draw out Sisera, the general of Jabin's army, to meet you by the river Kishon with his chariots and his troops, and I will give him into your hand’?” In our last use it is in reference to God employed to emphasize his power. Lamentations 3:37 Who has spoken and it came to pass, לֹ֥א צִוָּֽה [literally if not sovereign or master has commanded it] unless the Lord has commanded it? It is good to remember that God’s heart is for us. He loves us and wants us to connect with him. The tabernacle worship was set up for people to draw close to God and worship him. When anyone gets in the way of the relationship between God and his people God’s jealousy kicks in. This is why Jesus harshest warnings were on the leaders who were supposed to help people connect with God but instead were getting in the way. I’ll close with these passages. In speaking about the church which is God’s plan to save the lost world and bring people to himself, we have this warning. 1 Corinthians 3:16-17 Do you not know that you are God's temple and that God's Spirit dwells in you? If anyone destroys God's temple, God will destroy him. For God's temple is holy, and you are that temple. Jesus challenges the Pharisees with several indictments then concludes with this judgment. Matthew 23:32-35 You serpents, you brood of vipers, how are you to escape being sentenced to hell? Therefore I send you prophets and wise men and scribes, some of whom you will kill and crucify, and some you will flog in your synagogues and persecute from town to town, so that on you may come all the righteous blood shed on earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah the son of Barachiah, whom you murdered between the sanctuary and the altar. 

We are in chapter nine of Leviticus with our word for today which is a phrase. וַֽיִּפְּל֖וּ עַל־פְּנֵיהֶֽם and fell on their faces. It is used 6 times in the Old Testament. We see our phrase used by those interceding for others who God is angry with. Numbers 16:20-22 And the Lord spoke to Moses and to Aaron, saying, “Separate yourselves from among this congregation, that I may consume them in a moment.”וַיִּפְּל֤וּ עַל־פְּנֵיהֶם֙ And they fell on their faces and said, “O God, the God of the spirits of all flesh, shall one man sin, and will you be angry with all the congregation?” Then the very next day we see the same things happening again. Numbers 16:42-45 And when the congregation had assembled against Moses and against Aaron, they turned toward the tent of meeting. And behold, the cloud covered it, and the glory of the Lord appeared. And Moses and Aaron came to the front of the tent of meeting, and the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “Get away from the midst of this congregation, that I may consume them in a moment.” וַֽיִּפְּל֖וּ עַל־פְּנֵיהֶֽם And they fell on their faces. We also see our phrase used in response to God showing up in a miraculous way. Leviticus 9:24 And fire came out from before the Lord and consumed the burnt offering and the pieces of fat on the altar, and when all the people saw it, they shouted וַֽיִּפְּל֖וּ עַל־פְּנֵיהֶֽם and fell on their faces. This is in response to God sending fire to consume the burnt offering during the ordination of Aaron and his sons as priests. We also see this action of reverence and worship to God in very similar events with Samson’s parents and Elijah with the prophets of Baal. Judges 13:19-20 So Manoah took the young goat with the grain offering, and offered it on the rock to the Lord, to the one who works wonders, and Manoah and his wife were watching. And when the flame went up toward heaven from the altar, the angel of the Lord went up in the flame of the altar. Now Manoah and his wife were watching, וַיִּפְּל֥וּ עַל־פְּנֵיהֶ֖ם and they fell on their faces to the ground. 1 Kings 18:38-39 Then the fire of the Lord fell and consumed the burnt offering and the wood and the stones and the dust, and licked up the water that was in the trench. And when all the people saw it, וַֽיִּפְּל֖וּ עַל־פְּנֵיהֶ֑ם they fell on their faces and said, “The Lord, he is God; the Lord, he is God.” These responses to God’s miraculous way of showing up remind me of miracles that Jesus preformed. Notice the reaction to these two examples that I’ll close with. Luke 17:15-16 Then one of them, when he saw that he was healed, turned back, praising God with a loud voice; and he fell on his face at Jesus' feet, giving him thanks. John 5:7-9 They signaled to their partners in the other boat to come and help them. And they came and filled both the boats, so that they began to sink. But when Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus' knees, saying, “Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord.” For he and all who were with him were astonished at the catch of fish that they had taken.

We are in chapter nine of Leviticus with our word for today which is a phrase. מִלִּפְנֵ֣י יְהוָ֔ה from the presence of YHWH or the LORD, from before YHWH or the LORD. It is used 15 times in the Old Testament. We find our phrase used in the sense of people leaving God. The first time our phrase is used in the Bible is a good example of leaving which we find Cain doing right after he kills his brother. Genesis 4:16 Then Cain went away מִלִּפְנֵ֣י יְהוָ֔ה from the presence of the Lord and settled in the land of Nod, east of Eden. Jonah is another example of leaving. Jonah 1:3, 10 Now the word of the Lord came to Jonah the son of Amittai, saying, “Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and call out against it, for their evil has come up before me.” But Jonah rose to flee to Tarshish מִלִּפְנֵ֖י יְהוָ֑ה from the presence of the Lord. He went down to Joppa and found a ship going to Tarshish. So he paid the fare and went down into it, to go with them to Tarshish, away from the presence of the Lord …  Then the men were exceedingly afraid and said to him, “What is this that you have done!” For the men knew that he was fleeing מִלִּפְנֵ֖י יְהוָֽה from the presence of the Lord, because he had told them. And Jonah found out that there are always consequences to leaving God and his will for your life. Our phrase is used to identify the source of fire on specific occasions. We find our phrase used when executing judgment. Leviticus 10:1-3 Now Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron, each took his censer and put fire in it and laid incense on it and offered unauthorized fire before the Lord, which he had not commanded them. And fire came out מִלִּפְנֵ֥י יְהוָ֖ה from before the Lord and consumed them, and they died before the Lord. Then Moses said to Aaron, “This is what the Lord has said: ‘Among those who are near me I will be sanctified, and before all the people I will be glorified.’” And Aaron held his peace. God had clearly instructed the priests how to offer sacrifices that would honor and glorify him. Aaron’s sons failed to do so and suffered the consequences of their sin. It is vital to not forget how Holy and powerful God truly is as the Holy Spirit reminds us in this Psalm. Psalm 97:5 The mountains melt like wax מִלִּפְנֵ֣י יְהוָ֑ה מִ֝לִּפְנֵ֗י אֲד֣וֹן [literally before YHWH before the lord or master or sovereign] before the Lord, before the Lord of all the earth. We have another reference to fire but this time in a good way with our phrase which we find in reference to the tabernacle worship. Leviticus 16:11-13 Aaron shall present the bull as a sin offering for himself, and shall make atonement for himself and for his house. He shall kill the bull as a sin offering for himself. And he shall take a censer full of coals of fire from the altar מִלִּפְנֵ֣י יְהוָ֔ה before the Lord, and two handfuls of sweet incense beaten small, and he shall bring it inside the veil and put the incense on the fire before the Lord, that the cloud of the incense may cover the mercy seat that is over the testimony, so that he does not die. This is how our phrase is used in our chapter today. Leviticus 9:24 And fire came out מִלִּפְנֵ֣י יְהוָ֔ה from before the Lord and consumed the burnt offering and the pieces of fat on the altar, and when all the people saw it, they shouted and fell on their faces. This is really amazing that God would show himself in such a way. The first time the altar is used God lights the fire himself that consumes the offering. This fire gives credibility to the work which is what an ordination service is all about. There is no more important work than being used by God to help connect to him in worship. One of the first things said about Jesus by John the Baptist at the start his public ministry that would end in his sacrificial death for our sins were these words. John 1:29 The next day he saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! I’ll close with another use of our phrase that ties joy, which is a part of worship, to salvation. 1 Chronicles 16:33-35 Then shall the trees of the forest sing for joy מִלִּפְנֵ֣י יְהוָ֔ה before the Lord, for he comes to judge the earth. Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; for his steadfast love endures forever! … “Save us, O God of our salvation, and gather and deliver us from among the nations, that we may give thanks to your holy name and glory in your praise.

We are in moving into chapter nine of Leviticus with our word for today. כִּפֶּר smear, pitch, cover over, appease, pacify, make amends, make atonement, make good, make propitiation. It is used 102 times in the Old Testament. The basic idea of our word is to cover over. The first time it is used in the Bible is a great example of our word. Genesis 6:14 Make yourself an ark of gopher wood. Make rooms in the ark, וְכָֽפַרְתָּ֥ and cover it inside and out with pitch. It makes sense that this covering over is a great way to describe the idea of atonement or covering over our sin which is all the other uses of our word. Our word is used the most in the book of Leviticus which is not surprising because it gives a lot of details to the priest in regard to the sacrifices for tabernacle worship. This is how our word is used in our chapter. Leviticus 9:7 Then Moses said to Aaron, “Draw near to the altar and offer your sin offering and your burnt offering וְכַפֵּ֥ר and make atonement for yourself and for the people, and bring the offering of the people וְכַפֵּ֣ר and make atonement for them, as the Lord has commanded.” We see in the New Testament the Holy Spirit picks up on this and ties it to Christ as our sacrifice for sins. Hebrews 7:26-28 For it was indeed fitting that we should have such a high priest, holy, innocent, unstained, separated from sinners, and exalted above the heavens. He has no need, like those high priests, to offer sacrifices daily, first for his own sins and then for those of the people, since he did this once for all when he offered up himself. For the law appoints men in their weakness as high priests, but the word of the oath, which came later than the law, appoints a Son who has been made perfect forever. Not only is Christ better than these Old Testament priests because he doesn’t have to make a sacrifice for his own sins because he never sinned. This is why he can be our sacrifice and become sin for us. The Holy Spirit goes on to explain another aspect of Christ being better than the Old Testament priestly system. Hebrews 9:25-28 Nor was it to offer himself repeatedly, as the high priest enters the holy places every year with blood not his own, for then he would have had to suffer repeatedly since the foundation of the world. But as it is, he has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself. And just as it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment, so Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time, not to deal with sin but to save those who are eagerly waiting for him. Did you catch that? The priests in the Old Testament brought in blood to sacrifice that was not their own but Christ offers his own blood as the sacrifice for our sins. He died for us in our place. I’ll close with one more use of our word that is part of prophecy that predicted Christ coming to be our cornerstone of salvation. Isaiah 28:16, 18-19 Thus says the Lord God, “Behold, I am the one who has laid as a foundation in Zion, a stone, a tested stone, a precious cornerstone, of a sure foundation: ‘Whoever believes will not be in haste.’ … Then your covenant with death וְכֻפַּ֤ר will be annulled, and your agreement with Sheol will not stand. Ephesians 2:19-22 So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone, in whom the whole structure, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord. In him you also are being built together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit. 1 Peter 2:4-5 As you come to him, a living stone rejected by men but in the sight of God chosen and precious, you yourselves like living stones are being built up as a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. 

We are in chapter eight of Leviticus with our word for today. בָּשַׁל boil, seethe, grow ripe, cook, roast. It is used 28 times in the Old Testament. Our word is used in the sense of to be ripe, to be fully developed or matured and ready to be eaten or used. Joel 3:13 Put in the sickle, for the harvest בָשַׁ֖ל is ripe. Go in, tread, for the winepress is full. We also see our word referring to the ripening process. Genesis 40:9-10 So the chief cupbearer told his dream to Joseph and said to him, “In my dream there was a vine before me, and on the vine there were three branches. As soon as it budded, its blossoms shot forth, and הִבְשִׁ֥ילוּ the clusters ripened into grapes. We find our word used in the sense to roast, to cook with dry heat over a fire. 2 Chronicles 35:13 וַֽיְבַשְּׁל֥וּ And they roasted the Passover lamb with fire according to the rule; and they בִּשְּׁל֗וּ boiled the holy offerings in pots, in cauldrons, and in pans, and carried them quickly to all the lay people. Did you see that our word is used twice in this verse but in two different senses? The other sense is how our word is used most of the time which is to boil, to immerse or be immersed in a boiling liquid. And most of these uses refer to the offerings of sacrifice as part of the tabernacle and temple worship. This is how our word is used in our chapter today. Leviticus 8:31-32 And Moses said to Aaron and his sons, בַּשְּׁל֣וּ “Boil the flesh at the entrance of the tent of meeting, and there eat it and the bread that is in the basket of ordination offerings, as I commanded, saying, ‘Aaron and his sons shall eat it.’ And what remains of the flesh and the bread you shall burn up with fire. Notice the detail instructions that anything left over was to be burned. This was a special ordination offering to consecrate the priests. Again the whole point of all of this was to connect people to God in worship through the sacrificial system set up during that time period. Here is a bad example of priests who failed to serve God in connecting people to him through worship. 1 Samuel 2:12-17 Now the sons of Eli were worthless men. They did not know the Lord. The custom of the priests with the people was that when any man offered sacrifice, the priest's servant would come, while the meat כְּבַשֵּׁ֣ל was boiling, with a three-pronged fork in his hand, and he would thrust it into the pan or kettle or cauldron or pot. All that the fork brought up the priest would take for himself. This is what they did at Shiloh to all the Israelites who came there. Moreover, before the fat was burned, the priest's servant would come and say to the man who was sacrificing, “Give meat for the priest to roast, for he will not accept boiled meat from you but only raw.” And if the man said to him, “Let them burn the fat first, and then take as much as you wish,” he would say, “No, you must give it now, and if not, I will take it by force.” Thus the sin of the young men was very great in the sight of the Lord, for the men treated the offering of the Lord with contempt. The reason this was so evil was that the very people who were to help others connect to God in worship we actually getting in the way. We see another similar situation when Jesus notices those who were supposed to help people connect to God in worship but instead were making it more difficult and were getting in the way. I’ll close with this great passage. Matthew 21:12-13 And Jesus entered the temple and drove out all who sold and bought in the temple, and he overturned the tables of the money-changers and the seats of those who sold pigeons. He said to them, “It is written, ‘My house shall be called a house of prayer,’ but you make it a den of robbers.”

We are in chapter eight of Leviticus with our word for today. שָׂרַף burn completely. It is used 115 times in the Old Testament. We find our word used in the sense to bake, prepare with dry heat in an oven. Genesis 11:3 And they said to one another, “Come, וְנִשְׂרְפָ֖ה לִשְׂרֵפָ֑ה [literally burn bricks to burning] let us make bricks, and burn them thoroughly.” And they had brick for stone, and bitumen for mortar. Our word is used in the sense to destroy, attempt to destroy or be destroyed by fire. We find our word referring to destroying or damaging cities. 1 Samuel 30:3 And when David and his men came to the city, they found it שְׂרוּפָ֖ה burned with fire. Isaiah 1:7 Your country lies desolate; your cities שְׂרֻפ֣וֹת are burned with fire. Jeremiah 38:17 Then Jeremiah said to Zedekiah, “Thus says the Lord, the God of hosts, the God of Israel: If you will surrender to the officials of the king of Babylon, then your life shall be spared, and this city shall not תִשָּׂרֵ֖ף be burned with fire, and you and your house shall live. We find our word used in referring to destroying idols. 1 Chronicles 14:12 they left their gods there, and David gave command, וַיִּשָּׂרְפ֖וּ and they were burned.  Micah 1:7 All her carved images shall be beaten to pieces, all her wages יִשָּׂרְפ֣וּ shall be burned with fire, and all her idols I will lay waste. Most of the time our word is seen in the context of the sacrificial offerings for worship, 99 out of the 115 times. Leviticus 16:27 And the bull for the sin offering and the goat for the sin offering, whose blood was brought in to make atonement in the Holy Place, shall be carried outside the camp. Their skin and their flesh and their dung וְשָׂרְפ֣וּ shall be burned up with fire. This connection with the sin offering is also how our word is used in our chapter today. Leviticus 8:16-17 And he took all the fat that was on the entrails and the long lobe of the liver and the two kidneys with their fat, and Moses burned them on the altar. But the bull and its skin and its flesh and its dung שָׂרַ֣ףhe burned up with fire outside the camp, as the LORD commanded Moses. We also see our word used when God allowed His own people to go into exile because of their constant sin against Him. 2 Chronicles 36:16-19 But they kept mocking the messengers of God, despising his words and scoffing at his prophets, until the wrath of the Lord rose against his people, until there was no remedy. Therefore he brought up against them the king of the Chaldeans … And all the vessels of the house of God, great and small, and the treasures of the house of the Lord, and the treasures of the king and of his princes, all these he brought to Babylon.וַֽיִּשְׂרְפוּ֙ And they burned the house of God and broke down the wall of Jerusalem and burned all its palaces with fire and destroyed all its precious vessels. I find it interesting that God allowed this special place where He gave specific instructions to Moses. As we have looked at this great care was taken because it was where people would connect with God in worship. But now God allows it to be destroyed by fire. When we go to the New Testament we find Jesus making a declaration about the destruction of the temple. The good news is that now we can worship God anywhere because of Jesus saving work on the cross. I’ll close with this great passage. John 2:19-22 Jesus answered them, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.” The Jews then said, “It has taken forty-six years to build this temple, and will you raise it up in three days?” But he was speaking about the temple of his body. When therefore he was raised from the dead, his disciples remembered that he had said this, and they believed the Scripture and the word that Jesus had spoken.

We are in chapter eight of Leviticus with our word for today. פֶּ֫רֶש contents of the gut, feces, offal, dung. It is used 7 times in the Old Testament. I’ll start with a form of our word פַּרְשְׁדֹ֑נָה [our word is in the root] that helps use understand our word better. Judges 3:21-22 And Ehud reached with his left hand, took the sword from his right thigh, and thrust it into his belly. And the hilt also went in after the blade, and the fat closed over the blade, for he did not pull the sword out of his belly; and הַֽפַּרְשְׁדֹֽנָה the dung came out. All of the uses of our word make reference to the sacrificial offerings. Leviticus 16:27 And the bull for the sin offering and the goat for the sin offering, whose blood was brought in to make atonement in the Holy Place, shall be carried outside the camp. Their skin and their flesh and פִּרְשָֽׁם their dung shall be burned up with fire. This connection with the sin offering is also how our word is used in our chapter today. Leviticus 8:16-17 And he took all the fat that was on the entrails and the long lobe of the liver and the two kidneys with their fat, and Moses burned them on the altar. But the bull and its skin and its flesh and פִּרְשׁ֔וֹ its dung he burned up with fire outside the camp, as the Lord commanded Moses. Notice the contrast that our word is not to be used as the sacrifice for the sin offering but rather burned outside the camp. So we are looking at something that is not worthy. I find interesting that in the New Testament this idea of discarding what is not worthy is applied to Paul himself. His past life of accomplishments all add up to something that you discard and throw away when you compare it to being in a saving relationship with Christ. I’ll close with this great passage. Philippians 3:4-9 though I myself have reason for confidence in the flesh also. If anyone else thinks he has reason for confidence in the flesh, I have more: circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; as to the law, a Pharisee; as to zeal, a persecutor of the church; as to righteousness under the law, blameless. But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ. Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith.

We are in chapter eight of Leviticus with our word for today which is a phrase. אֶת־הָאוּרִ֖ים וְאֶת־הַתֻּמִּֽים The Urim and the Thummim. It is used 2 times in the Old Testament. Both of these uses are when these items are placed in the breastpiece of the special priestly garments worn by the priests while serving at the tabernacle worship. Leviticus 8:8 And he placed the breastpiece on him, and in the breastpiece he put אֶת־הָאוּרִ֖ים וְאֶת־הַתֻּמִּֽים the Urim and the Thummim. Exodus 28:30 And in the breastpiece of judgment you shall put אֶת־הָאוּרִים֙ וְאֶת־הַתֻּמִּ֔ים the Urim and the Thummim, and they shall be on Aaron's heart, when he goes in before the Lord. Thus Aaron shall bear the judgment of the people of Israel on his heart before the Lord regularly. Let’s also look at each of the words in our phrase. אוּרִים Urim. It is used 7 times in the Old Testament. תֻּמִּים Thummim, innocence, innocent. It is used 5 times in the Old Testament. Let’s start by looking at the other uses where we find both words together from our phrase. With this first use we have for the only time the order of the words reversed. Deuteronomy 33:8 And of Levi he said, “Give to Levi תֻּמֶּ֥יךָ וְאוּרֶ֖יךָ your Thummim, and your Urim to your godly one. This was when Moses was blessing Israel before his death. This makes sense that he would reference our words since they were the tribe with the priests who were to wear it in their breastpiece. Our next uses shows that it was used to help determine direction from God. Ezra 2:63; Nehemiah 7:65 The governor told them that they were not to partake of the most holy food, until there should be a priest to consult לְאוּרִ֥ים וּלְתֻמִּֽים Urim and Thummim. We don’t know why they are not mentioned together in two passages. We do know that both were still in existence during Ezra and Nehemiah’s time both were contemporaries. So the reason why they were not both mentioned was not that the Thummim was lost. My guess is that the two references are just shortened by using the first word to refer to both. And since no one really knows what they were exactly it could be that it was one object referred to normally with both words. Now let’s look at the two uses that just have Urim without Thummim. The context is the commissioning of Joshua to succeed Moses. Numbers 27:18-23 So the Lord said to Moses, “Take Joshua the son of Nun, a man in whom is the Spirit, and lay your hand on him. Make him stand before Eleazar the priest and all the congregation, and you shall commission him in their sight. You shall invest him with some of your authority, that all the congregation of the people of Israel may obey. And he shall stand before Eleazar the priest, who shall inquire for him by the judgment of הָאוּרִ֖ים the Urim before the Lord. At his word they shall go out, and at his word they shall come in, both he and all the people of Israel with him, the whole congregation.” And Moses did as the Lord  commanded him. He took Joshua and made him stand before Eleazar the priest and the whole congregation, and he laid his hands on him and commissioned him as the Lord directed through Moses. We don’t know exactly what role the Urim played in this commissioning. All we know was that the priest inquired for him by the judgement of the Urim. It probably has something to do with God using this Urim to communicate his confidence in his hearts motives. We really don’t know. The other use is when Saul is now without Samuel who used to advise him and he the Philistine army is coming. 1 Samuel 28:5-6 When Saul saw the army of the Philistines, he was afraid, and his heart trembled greatly. And when Saul inquired of the Lord, the Lord did not answer him, either by dreams, or בָּאוּרִ֖ים by Urim, or by prophets. This passage helps us understand how it was used. It was one of the ways God set up to communicate to his people where they could ask for guidance. We don’t know how it worked but what this verse does tell us is that God was not speaking to Samuel because of his sin. This shows us that it was not a magic device where one could avoid being holy but still have access to divine guidance. I’ll close with this great passage that helps us keep our relationship with God close and connected. It has everything to do with obeying his clear will for all of us communicated in His word the Bible. If we sacrifice our fleshly desires putting them on his altar as living sacrifices then we will be able to do the next thing. This is the renewing of our minds which is also a process. Then the last part we will be able to test his will for us. In other words the specifics of what God wants us to individually do will be able to be tested for us to find them out over time. Tests take time they just don’t happen immediately. But the good thing is that our confidence in God’s will for us will be more and more confident because it will be approved as true. Romans 12:1-2 Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.

We are moving into chapter eight of Leviticus with our word for today. הָעֵדָ֖ה הַקְהֵ֑ל assemble the congregation. It is used 5 times in the Old Testament, twice in our chapter. We’ll start with our chapter since it is also the first time it is used in the Bible. Leviticus 8:3-4 And הָעֵדָ֖ה הַקְהֵ֑ל assemble all the congregation at the entrance of the tent of meeting.” And Moses did as the Lord commanded him, וַתִּקָּהֵל֙ הָֽעֵדָ֔ה [this is our phrase just with the words in reverse order] and the congregation was assembled at the entrance of the tent of meeting. This occasion for the gathering was to consecrate Aaron and his sons to serve in the tabernacle worship as priests. We see our phrase in the context of gathering together for war. Judges 20:1, 11-13 Then all the people of Israel came out, from Dan to Beersheba, including the land of Gilead, וַתִּקָּהֵ֨ל הָעֵדָ֜ה [this is our phrase just with the words in reverse order] and the congregation assembled as one man to the Lord at Mizpah … So all the men of Israel gathered against the city, united as one man. And the tribes of Israel sent men through all the tribe of Benjamin, saying, “What evil is this that has taken place among you? Now therefore give up the men, the worthless fellows in Gibeah, that we may put them to death and purge evil from Israel.” We also find our phrase used when God called the people to take a census. Numbers 1:17-19 Moses and Aaron took these men who had been named, and on the first day of the second month, הָעֵדָ֜ה הִקְהִ֗ילוּ they assembled the whole congregation together, who registered themselves by clans, by fathers' houses, according to the number of names from twenty years old and upward, head by head, as the Lord commanded Moses. So he listed them in the wilderness of Sinai. Our last use of our phrase we find it not initiated by God nor for a good purpose like our other uses were. It is when the people complain for lack of water. Numbers 20:1-8 And the people of Israel, the whole congregation, came into the wilderness of Zin in the first month, and the people stayed in Kadesh. And Miriam died there and was buried there. Now there was no water for the congregation. And לָעֵדָ֑ה וַיִּקָּ֣הֲל֔וּ they assembled themselves together against Moses and against Aaron. And the people quarreled with Moses and said, “Would that we had perished when our brothers perished before the Lord! Why have you brought the assembly of the Lord into this wilderness, that we should die here, both we and our cattle? And why have you made us come up out of Egypt to bring us to this evil place? It is no place for grain or figs or vines or pomegranates, and there is no water to drink.” Then Moses and Aaron went from the presence of the assembly to the entrance of the tent of meeting and fell on their faces. And the glory of the Lord appeared to them, and the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “Take the staff, and assemble the congregation, you and Aaron your brother, and tell the rock before their eyes to yield its water. So you shall bring water out of the rock for them and give drink to the congregation and their cattle.” This reminds me of what happened in the Corinthian church when people got together. 1 Corinthians 11:17-22 But in the following instructions I do not commend you, because when you come together it is not for the better but for the worse. For, in the first place, when you come together as a church, I hear that there are divisions among you. And I believe it in part, for there must be factions among you in order that those who are genuine among you may be recognized. When you come together, it is not the Lord's supper that you eat. For in eating, each one goes ahead with his own meal. One goes hungry, another gets drunk. What! Do you not have houses to eat and drink in? Or do you despise the church of God and humiliate those who have nothing? What shall I say to you? Shall I commend you in this? No, I will not. I’ll close with this Psalm that encourages the worship of God as the reason to gather using the word congregation from our phrase. Psalm 111:1 Praise the Lord! I will give thanks to the Lord with my whole heart, in the company of the upright, in the וְעֵדָֽה congregation.

We are in chapter seven of Leviticus with our word for today. תּוֹדָה thanksgiving, song of thanksgiving or praise, choir, doxology, communal sacrifice, offering of thanks. It is used 32 times in the Old Testament, 3 times in our chapter. Our word is used several times in the sense of singing songs of thanksgiving to God. Psalm 100:1, 4 A לְתוֹדָ֑ה Psalm for giving thanks. Make a joyful noise to the LORD, all the earth! … Enter his gates בְּתוֹדָ֗ה with thanksgiving, and his courts with praise! Give thanks to him; bless his name! Psalm 95:1-2 Oh come, let us sing to the Lord; let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation! Let us come into his presence בְּתוֹדָ֑ה with thanksgiving; let us make a joyful noise to him with songs of praise! Our word is used in connection with the peace offering for the purpose of thanksgiving. Psalm 107:20-22 He sent out his word and healed them, and delivered them from their destruction. Let them יוֹד֣וּ thank the Lord for his steadfast love, for his wondrous works to the children of man! And let them offer sacrifices of תוֹדָ֑ה thanksgiving, and tell of his deeds in songs of joy! Psalm 116:16-17 You have loosed my bonds. I will offer to you the sacrifice of תּוֹדָ֑ה thanksgiving and call on the name of the Lord. This is how our word is used 3 times in our chapter today. Leviticus 7:11-15 And this is the law of the sacrifice of peace offerings that one may offer to the Lord. If he offers it for a תּוֹדָה֮ thanksgiving, then he shall offer with הַתּוֹדָ֗ה the thanksgiving sacrifice unleavened loaves mixed with oil, unleavened wafers smeared with oil, and loaves of fine flour well mixed with oil. With the sacrifice of his peace offerings for תּוֹדַ֥ת thanksgiving he shall bring his offering with loaves of leavened bread. And from it he shall offer one loaf from each offering, as a gift to the Lord. It shall belong to the priest who throws the blood of the peace offerings. And the flesh of the sacrifice of his peace offerings for תּוֹדַ֣ת thanksgiving shall be eaten on the day of his offering. He shall not leave any of it until the morning. As we have seen the purpose of these sacrifices with the tabernacle worship is to connect people to God. I’ll close with this great passage that is a prediction of Jesus work on the cross. Our word is used in the first part referring to the people’s response to God bringing them back to their land but then we have our Messianic Prophecy that points to Jesus who solves our ultimate problem of being separated from God because of our sin. He is the sacrifice because he is the only one able to approach God because he is without sin. Jeremiah 30:18-19, 21-22 “Thus says the Lord: Behold, I will restore the fortunes of the tents of Jacob and have compassion on his dwellings; the city shall be rebuilt on its mound, and the palace shall stand where it used to be. Out of them shall come songs of תּוֹדָ֖ה thanksgiving, and the voices of those who celebrate … Their prince shall be one of themselves; their ruler shall come out from their midst; I will make him draw near, and he shall approach me, for who would dare of himself to approach me? declares the Lord. And you shall be my people, and I will be your God.”

We are in chapter seven of Leviticus with our word for today. כָּבֵד liver, liver-divination. It is used 14 times in the Old Testament. We see our word used as a means to invoke false gods for guidance or divination. Ezekiel 21:21 For the king of Babylon stands at the parting of the way, at the head of the two ways, to use divination. He shakes the arrows; he consults the idols; he looks בַּכָּבֵֽד [literally looks in the liver] at the liver. We also see our word in reference to intense grieving from one’s inner most self. Lamentations 2:11 My eyes are spent with weeping; my stomach churns; כְּבֵדִ֔י my bile is poured out to the ground because of the destruction of the daughter of my people, because infants and babies faint in the streets of the city. Most of the uses of our word are in the sense of the large and complicated reddish-brown glandular organ located in the upper right portion of the abdominal cavity. Our word is used a lot in reference to the various sacrifices as part of the tabernacle worship. This is how our phrase is used in our chapter today. Leviticus 7:1-6 This is the law of the guilt offering. It is most holy. In the place where they kill the burnt offering they shall kill the guilt offering, and its blood shall be thrown against the sides of the altar. And all its fat shall be offered, the fat tail, the fat that covers the entrails, the two kidneys with the fat that is on them at the loins, and the long lobe of הַכָּבֵ֔ד the liver that he shall remove with the kidneys. The priest shall burn them on the altar as a food offering to the LORD; it is a guilt offering. Every male among the priests may eat of it. It shall be eaten in a holy place. It is most holy. It is interesting that part of this guilt offering has to do with the inner part of the animal as a sacrifice for guilt. The tabernacle worship was set up so people could connect with God from their inner part. There are many ways our heart can be turned away from God. We see this happen several times in the Bible. This definitely happened to Solomon. 1 Kings 11:2-8 Solomon clung to these in love. He had 700 wives, who were princesses, and 300 concubines. And his wives turned away his heart. For when Solomon was old his wives turned away his heart after other gods, and his heart was not wholly true to the Lord his God, as was the heart of David his father. For Solomon went after Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, and after Milcom the abomination of the Ammonites. So Solomon did what was evil in the sight of the Lord and did not wholly follow the Lord, as David his father had done. Then Solomon built a high place for Chemosh the abomination of Moab, and for Molech the abomination of the Ammonites, on the mountain east of Jerusalem. And so he did for all his foreign wives, who made offerings and sacrificed to their gods. What is interesting is that the man that God used to write the book of Proverbs that warns against such things ends up later in his life falling into them himself. The good news is that the Holy Spirit wrote the Bible so regardless of the sinfulness of the people God used he still used them to record his true and powerful words. Let’s look at this warning from God in Proverbs. Again God’s motive for all his warnings is for us to be connected to him and enjoy all his blessings. I’ll close with this passage that contains our word. Proverbs 7:1, 4-7, 10-11, 13, 17-23 My son, keep my words and treasure up my commandments with you; keep my commandments and live … call insight your intimate friend, to keep you from the forbidden woman, from the adulteress with her smooth words … I have seen among the simple, I have perceived among the youths, a young man lacking sense … And behold, the woman meets him, dressed as a prostitute, wily of heart. She is loud and wayward … She seizes him and kisses him, and with bold face she says to him … I have perfumed my bed with myrrh, aloes, and cinnamon. Come, let us take our fill of love till morning; let us delight ourselves with love. For my husband is not at home; he has gone on a long journey; he took a bag of money with him; at full moon he will come home.” With much seductive speech she persuades him; with her smooth talk she compels him. All at once he follows her, as an ox goes to the slaughter, or as a stag is caught fast till an arrow pierces כְּֽבֵד֗וֹ its liver; as a bird rushes into a snare; he does not know that it will cost him his life.

We are in chapter seven of Leviticus with our word for today. כִּלְיָה kidneys, reins, innermost, most secret part of man. It is used 31 times in the Old Testament. Our word is used in the sense of conscience a person’s inmost being where people know right from wrong and experience feelings conceived of as the kidneys. Job 19:27 כִלְיֹתַ֣י My heart faints within me! Psalm 16:7 I bless the Lord who gives me counsel; in the night also כִלְיוֹתָֽי my heart instructs me. Our word is used in the sense of either two bean-shaped excretory organs that filter wastes (especially urea) from the blood and excrete them in water in urine. Lamentations 3:13 He bent his bow and set me as a target for his arrow. He drove בְּכִלְיוֹתָ֔י into my kidneys the arrows of his quiver. Job 16:13 His archers surround me. He slashes open כִּ֭לְיוֹתַיmy kidneys and does not spare. We find our phrase used with the guilt offering. This is how our phrase is used in our chapter today. Leviticus 7:1-6 This is the law of the guilt offering. It is most holy. In the place where they kill the burnt offering they shall kill the guilt offering, and its blood shall be thrown against the sides of the altar. And all its fat shall be offered, the fat tail, the fat that covers the entrails, the two הַכְּלָיֹ֔ת kidneys with the fat that is on them at the loins, and the long lobe of the liver that he shall remove with the kidneys. The priest shall burn them on the altar as a food offering to the LORD; it is a guilt offering. Every male among the priests may eat of it. It shall be eaten in a holy place. It is most holy. It is interesting that part of this guilt offering has to do with the inner part of the animal as a sacrifice for guilt. The tabernacle worship was set up so people could connect with God from their inner part. Because of sin our inner selves become hardened toward God and he needs to find a way to get our hearts working again. He does this by poking or pricking our conscience with pain. Psalm 119:67, 70-71 Before I was afflicted I went astray, but now I keep your word … their heart is unfeeling like fat, but I delight in your law. It is good for me that I was afflicted, that I might learn your statutes. Let’s look at another use of our word that shows this exact thing God does to get our hearts open toward him. Psalm 73:21-26 When my soul was embittered, when I was pricked לְבָבִ֑י וְ֝כִלְיוֹתַ֗י [literally in heart and kidney because we have both words used] in heart, I was brutish and ignorant; I was like a beast toward you. Nevertheless, I am continually with you; you hold my right hand. You guide me with your counsel, and afterward you will receive me to glory. Whom have I in heaven but you? And there is nothing on earth that I desire besides you. My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever. Notice that this pain in the conscience or heart or kidney was used by God to bring David to himself. We see this same pain of conscience or being pricked in the heart leading to connection with God when the church started in Acts. The point of Peter’s sermon was that Jesus who you crucified is the Messiah. Notice the reaction of those that heard this truth. I’ll close with this great passage. Acts 2:37-39 Now when they heard this they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?” And Peter said to them, “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is for you and for your children and for all who are far off, everyone whom the Lord our God calls to himself.” 

We are rolling into chapter seven of Leviticus with our word for today. הַחֵ֖לֶב הַֽמְכַסֶּ֥ה אֶת־הַקֶּֽרֶב the fat that covers the entrails, the fat covering the entrails. It is used 6 times in the Old Testament. The first two uses of our phrase is in the context of the ordination service for Aaron and his sons to serve as priests. Exodus 29:1, 10-11, 13, 22-24 Now this is what you shall do to them to consecrate them, that they may serve me as priests … Aaron and his sons shall lay their hands on the head of the bull. Then you shall kill the bull before the Lord at the entrance of the tent of meeting … And you shall take all הַחֵלֶב֮ הַֽמְכַסֶּ֣ה אֶת־הַקֶּרֶב֒ the fat that covers the entrails, and the long lobe of the liver, and the two kidneys with the fat that is on them, and burn them on the altar. You shall also take the fat from the ram and the fat tail and הַחֵ֣לֶב הַֽמְכַסֶּ֣ה אֶת־הַקֶּ֗רֶב the fat that covers the entrails, and the long lobe of the liver and the two kidneys with the fat that is on them, and the right thigh (for it is a ram of ordination) … You shall put all these on the palms of Aaron and on the palms of his sons, and wave them for a wave offering before the Lord. Our phrase is also used with the peace and food offerings. Leviticus 3:3 And from the sacrifice of the peace offering, as a food offering to the Lord, he shall offer the fat covering the entrails and all הַחֵ֙לֶב֙ הַֽמְכַסֶּ֣ה אֶת־הַקֶּ֔רֶב the fat that is on the entrails. We find our phrase used with the guilt offering. This is how our phrase is used in our chapter today. Leviticus 7:1-6 This is the law of the guilt offering. It is most holy. In the place where they kill the burnt offering they shall kill the guilt offering, and its blood shall be thrown against the sides of the altar. And all its fat shall be offered, the fat tail, הַחֵ֖לֶב הַֽמְכַסֶּ֥ה אֶת־הַקֶּֽרֶב the fat that covers the entrails, the two kidneys with the fat that is on them at the loins, and the long lobe of the liver that he shall remove with the kidneys. The priest shall burn them on the altar as a food offering to the Lord; it is a guilt offering. Every male among the priests may eat of it. It shall be eaten in a holy place. It is most holy. It is interesting that part of this guilt offering has to do with the inner part of the animal as a sacrifice for guilt. The tabernacle worship was set up so people could connect with God from their inner part. The good news is that Jesus is our guilt and sin offering to clean us from our inner most being. Hebrews 9:14 How much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without blemish to God, purify our conscience from dead works to serve the living God. I’ll close with these great Psalms that have our word for inner part from our phrase. Psalm 51:9-12 Hide your face from my sins, and blot out all my iniquities. Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit בְּקִרְבִּֽי within me. Cast me not away from your presence, and take not your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of your salvation, and uphold me with a willing spirit. Psalm 103:1-5 Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all that is קְ֝רָבַ֗י within me, bless his holy name! Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits, who forgives all your iniquity, who heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit, who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy, who satisfies you with good so that your youth is renewed like the eagle's.

We are in chapter six of Leviticus with our word for today. כָּבַס tread, wash, full, clean clothes, clean, cleanse. It is used 51 times in the Old Testament. Most of the uses of our word are in the sense to wash, to cleanse with a cleaning agent, such as soap and water, sometimes only with water. Jeremiah 2:22 Though תְּכַבְּסִי֙ you wash yourself with lye and use much soap, the stain of your guilt is still before me, declares the Lord God. Malachi 3:2 But who can endure the day of his coming, and who can stand when he appears? For he is like a refiner's fire and like מְכַבְּסִֽים fullers' soap. We find our word used of washing clothes. Leviticus 11:39-40 And if any animal which you may eat dies, whoever touches its carcass shall be unclean until the evening, and whoever eats of its carcass יְכַבֵּ֥ס shall wash his clothes and be unclean until the evening. And whoever carries the carcass יְכַבֵּ֥ס shall wash his clothes and be unclean until the evening. This is how our word is used in our chapter today. Leviticus 6:26-27 The priest who offers it for sin shall eat it. In a holy place it shall be eaten, in the court of the tent of meeting. Whatever touches its flesh shall be holy, and when any of its blood is splashed on a garment, תְּכַבֵּ֖ס you shall wash that on which it was splashed in a holy place. We also see a very specific way our word is used in regard to washing one’s clothes when people are to meet God or be in his presence in a special way. Exodus 19:10-11, 14, 17 The Lord said to Moses, “Go to the people and consecrate them today and tomorrow, וְכִבְּס֖וּ and let them wash their garments and be ready for the third day. For on the third day the Lord will come down on Mount Sinai in the sight of all the people … So Moses went down from the mountain to the people and consecrated the people; וַֽיְכַבְּס֖וּ and they washed their garments … Then Moses brought the people out of the camp to meet God, and they took their stand at the foot of the mountain. The people were to prepare themselves to meet with God who showed himself in a special way to them. This was part of the people consecrating themselves, setting them apart for God. This concept of holiness in order to meet God is seen throughout the Bible. A good example is in Jesus parable of the wedding garment. Matthew 22:11-14 But when the king came in to look at the guests, he saw there a man who had no wedding garment. And he said to him, ‘Friend, how did you get in here without a wedding garment?’ And he was speechless. Then the king said to the attendants, ‘Bind him hand and foot and cast him into the outer darkness. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’ For many are called, but few are chosen.” I’ll close with these great passages in Revelation and Psalms that remind us that God is the one who makes us clean, holy and acceptable to himself if we are willing to let him do so. Revelation 7:13-14 Then one of the elders addressed me, saying, “Who are these, clothed in white robes, and from where have they come?” I said to him, “Sir, you know.” And he said to me, “These are the ones coming out of the great tribulation. They have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. Revelation 22:14 Blessed are those who wash their robes, so that they may have the right to the tree of life and that they may enter the city by the gates. Psalm 51:2, 7 כַּבְּסֵ֣נִי Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin! … Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean; תְּ֝כַבְּסֵ֗נִי wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.

We are in chapter six of Leviticus with our word for today. חֶ֫רֶשׂ scorched clay, earthenware, potsherd. It is used 17 times in the Old Testament. Our word is used in the sense of a potsherd, a shard of pottery. A couple of good examples are found when Job uses one and describing the consequences of Israel’s sin. Job 2:7-8 So Satan went out from the presence of the Lord and struck Job with loathsome sores from the sole of his foot to the crown of his head. And he took חֶ֔רֶשׂ a piece of broken pottery with which to scrape himself while he sat in the ashes. Isaiah 30:13-14 Therefore this iniquity shall be to you like a breach in a high wall, bulging out and about to collapse, whose breaking comes suddenly, in an instant; and its breaking is like that of a potter's vessel that is smashed so ruthlessly that among its fragments not a חֶ֔רֶשׂ shard is found with which to take fire from the hearth, or to dip up water out of the cistern. We also see our word used in the sense of a clay vessel used for holding liquids. Isaiah 45:9 Woe to him who strives with him who formed him, a חֶ֖רֶשׂ pot among חֶ֖רֶשׂ earthen pots! Does the clay say to him who forms it, ‘What are you making?’ or ‘Your work has no handles’? Our word is used in the context of instructions for the sin offering which is how it is used in our chapter today. Leviticus 6:27-28 When any of its blood is splashed on a garment, you shall wash that on which it was splashed in a holy place. And the חֶ֛רֶשׂ earthenware vessel in which it is boiled shall be broken. But if it is boiled in a bronze vessel, that shall be scoured and rinsed in water. Did you notice that the earthenware was to be broken after it was used to clean the priest garment of blood that was splashed on it. This reminds us of Christ who’s body was broken to cleans us from sin. We see this imagery when Christ refers to his death as his body being broken when setting up the Lord Supper or Communion (1 Corinthians 11:24). There is an interesting use of our word. It is in a prediction of Christ death on the cross made a thousand years before it happened. I’ll close with some sections from this great Psalm. Also notice the other predictions describing Christ sacrifice for us on the cross. Psalm 22:1, 14-21, 27-28 My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Why are you so far from saving me, from the words of my groaning? … I am poured out like water, and all my bones are out of joint; my heart is like wax; it is melted within my breast; my strength is dried up like a כַּחֶ֨רֶשׂ potsherd, and my tongue sticks to my jaws; you lay me in the dust of death. For dogs encompass me; a company of evildoers encircles me; they have pierced my hands and feet — I can count all my bones— they stare and gloat over me; they divide my garments among them, and for my clothing they cast lots. But you, O Lord, do not be far off! O you my help, come quickly to my aid! Deliver my soul from the sword, my precious life from the power of the dog! Save me from the mouth of the lion! You have rescued me from the horns of the wild oxen! … All the ends of the earth shall remember and turn to the Lord, and all the families of the nations shall worship before you. For kingship belongs to the Lord, and he rules over the nations.

We are in chapter six of Leviticus with our word for today. לְבֹנָה Frankincense. It is used 21 times in the Old Testament. Our word is used in the sense of a yellowish, ground aromatic gum resin obtained from various Arabian or East African trees especially used for incense. We actually see our word translated as incense because its purpose was so closely connected to it. 1 Chronicles 9:29 Others of them were appointed over the furniture and over all the holy utensils, also over the fine flour, the wine, the oil, וְהַלְּבוֹנָ֖ה the incense, and the spices. Our word is one of the main ingredients of the special incense that God instructed to be made as part of the tabernacle worship. Exodus 30:34-37 The Lord said to Moses, “Take sweet spices, stacte, and onycha, and galbanum, sweet spices with pure וּלְבֹנָ֣ה frankincense (of each shall there be an equal part), and make an incense blended as by the perfumer, seasoned with salt, pure and holy. You shall beat some of it very small, and put part of it before the testimony in the tent of meeting where I shall meet with you. It shall be most holy for you. And the incense that you shall make according to its composition, you shall not make for yourselves. It shall be for you holy to the Lord. We find our word referenced with the sin offering. Leviticus 5:11 But if he cannot afford two turtledoves or two pigeons, then he shall bring as his offering for the sin that he has committed a tenth of an ephah of fine flour for a sin offering. He shall put no oil on it and shall put no לְבֹנָ֔ה frankincense on it, for it is a sin offering. It is interesting that frankincense was not to be included in the sin offering. We see our word used as part of the food offering. Leviticus 24:7 And you shall put pure לְבֹנָ֣ה frankincense on each pile, that it may go with the bread as a memorial portion as a food offering to the Lord. It is also used as part of the grain offering. Leviticus 2:1 When anyone brings a grain offering as an offering to the Lord, his offering shall be of fine flour. He shall pour oil on it and put לְבֹנָֽה frankincense on it. This is how our word is used in our chapter today. Leviticus 6:14-15 And this is the law of the grain offering. The sons of Aaron shall offer it before the Lord in front of the altar. And one shall take from it a handful of the fine flour of the grain offering and its oil and all הַלְּבֹנָ֔ה the frankincense that is on the grain offering and burn this as its memorial portion on the altar, a pleasing aroma to the Lord. It is interesting that we see gold referenced with our word. Isaiah 60:6 A multitude of camels shall cover you, the young camels of Midian and Ephah; all those from Sheba shall come. They shall bring gold וּלְבוֹנָה֙ and frankincense, and shall bring good news, the praises of the Lord. Did you notice that both gold and our word are brought as gifts along with bringing good news. This reminds us of Jesus birth that has all of these gold, frankincense and good news. I’ll close with this great passage. Matthew 2:9-11 behold, the star that they had seen when it rose went before them until it came to rest over the place where the child was. When they saw the star, they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy. And going into the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother, and they fell down and worshiped him. Then, opening their treasures, they offered him gifts, gold and frankincense and myrrh. 

We are moving into chapter six of Leviticus with our word for today. מוֹקְדָה  hearth, on the hearth. It is used just this one time in the Old Testament. It is used in the sense of an open recess where a fire could be built and used for cooking. Let’s look at our one use. Leviticus 6:8-9 The Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “Command Aaron and his sons, saying, This is the law of the burnt offering. The burnt offering shall be on the מוֹקְדָ֨ה hearth on the altar all night until the morning, and the fire of the altar shall be kept burning on it. The idea is that our word describes a place that can handle fire burning on it continually. Another form of our word מוֹקֵד is used twice in the Old Testament in the sense of a furnace, an enclosed chamber in which heat is produced for various reasons. Here are the two uses. Isaiah 33:14 The sinners in Zion are afraid; trembling has seized the godless: “Who among us can dwell with the consuming fire? Who among us can dwell with everlasting מוֹקְדֵ֥י burnings?” Again notice the idea of continual burning. The other use is in the context of a prayer. Psalm 102:1-5, 12-13, 18-20 Hear my prayer, O Lord; let my cry come to you! Do not hide your face from me in the day of my distress! Incline your ear to me; answer me speedily in the day when I call! For my days pass away like smoke, and my bones burn כְּמוֹקֵ֥ד like a furnace. My heart is struck down like grass and has withered; I forget to eat my bread. Because of my loud groaning my bones cling to my flesh … But you, O Lord, are enthroned forever; you are remembered throughout all generations. You will arise and have pity on Zion; it is the time to favor her; the appointed time has come … Let this be recorded for a generation to come, so that a people yet to be created may praise the Lord: that he looked down from his holy height; from heaven the Lord looked at the earth, to hear the groans of the prisoners, to set free those who were doomed to die. Notice how our word is used to describe the condition of suffering. That it was like burning in his bones in a place of continual burning. We would say today in a fireplace. But also notice the hope that one has in God’s deliverance using the ideas of favor and setting prisoners free. This description sounds a lot like what Jesus said he came to do. I’ll close with Jesus quoting from Isaiah 61 and applying it to himself. Luke 4:17-21 And the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was given to him. He unrolled the scroll and found the place where it was written, “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor.” And he rolled up the scroll and gave it back to the attendant and sat down. And the eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on him. And he began to say to them, “Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.” 

We are in chapter five of Leviticus with our word for today which is a phrase. בְּשֶֽׁקֶל־הַקֹּ֖דֶשׁ according to the shekel of the sanctuary, by the shekel of the sanctuary. It is used 25 times in the Old Testament. Our phrase is first used in the context of the census in the sense of explaining what is due as an offering to YWHW. Exodus 30:13 Each one who is numbered in the census shall give this: half a shekel בְּשֶׁ֣קֶל הַקֹּ֑דֶשׁ according to the shekel of the sanctuary (the shekel is twenty gerahs). We also find our phrase used in regards to how the tabernacle worship was originally furnished (Exodus 30:23-24). We find our phrase used in determining the amount given when taking vows. Leviticus 27:2-3 Speak to the people of Israel and say to them, If anyone makes a special vow to the Lord involving the valuation of persons, then the valuation of a male from twenty years old up to sixty years old shall be fifty shekels of silver, בְּשֶׁ֥קֶל הַקֹּֽדֶשׁ according to the shekel of the sanctuary. We see our phrase used in regard to the year of jubilee. Leviticus 27:24-25 In the year of jubilee the field shall return to him from whom it was bought, to whom the land belongs as a possession. Every valuation shall be בְּשֶׁ֣קֶל הַקֹּ֑דֶשׁ according to the shekel of the sanctuary: twenty gerahs shall make a shekel. Our phrase is used in the context of the redemption of the first born. (Numbers 3:46-50; Numbers 18:16). Our phrase is used the most when the temple was consecrated in that each of the twelve tribes are listed with their gift and its valuation. Here is a summary of all the offerings. Numbers 7:84-85 This was the dedication offering for the altar on the day when it was anointed, from the chiefs of Israel: … all the silver of the vessels 2,400 shekels בְּשֶׁ֥קֶל הַקֹּֽדֶשׁ according to the shekel of the sanctuary, the twelve golden dishes, full of incense, weighing 10 shekels apiece בְּשֶׁ֣קֶל הַקֹּ֑דֶשׁ according to the shekel of the sanctuary. This leads us to our chapter today. Notice that in all of our uses our phrase is used as a standard of price. Leviticus 5:14-15 The Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “If anyone commits a breach of faith and sins unintentionally in any of the holy things of the Lord, he shall bring to the Lord as his compensation, a ram without blemish out of the flock, valued in silver shekels, בְּשֶֽׁקֶל־הַקֹּ֖דֶשׁ according to the shekel of the sanctuary, for a guilt offering. This was the cost of the sacrifice that was to be given for the guilt offering. This standard was a specific cost that everyone knew and expected. This reminds us of the true cost of our sin that had to be paid so that we could be free from the consequences of life separated from God. I’ll close with these great reminders of what it cost God to save us. Isaiah 53:5-6, 10, 12 But he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned—every one—to his own way; and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all. … Yet it was the will of the Lord to crush him; he has put him to grief; when his soul makes an offering for guilt … he poured out his soul to death and was numbered with the transgressors; yet he bore the sin of many, and makes intercession for the transgressors. John 3:16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.

We are in chapter five of Leviticus with our word for today which is a phrase. כֶּֽסֶף־שְׁקָלִ֥ים shekels of silver, in silver shekels. It is used 3 times in the Old Testament. Let’s look at our uses starting with our chapter since it is also the first time it is used in the Bible. Leviticus 5:14-15 The Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “If anyone commits a breach of faith and sins unintentionally in any of the holy things of the Lord, he shall bring to the Lord as his compensation, a ram without blemish out of the flock, valued כֶּֽסֶף־שְׁקָלִ֥ים in silver shekels, according to the shekel of the sanctuary, for a guilt offering. This was the cost of the sacrifice that was to be given for the guilt offering. Our next use of our phrase we also see a defined cost associated with a sacrifice to God for sin. After David sinned by counting the fighting men we find our phrase used while David is purchasing the land for a sacrifice to God. 2 Samuel 24:21-22, 24-25 “Let my lord the king take and offer up what seems good to him … But the king said to Araunah, “No, but I will buy it from you for a price. I will not offer burnt offerings to the Lord my God that cost me nothing.” So David bought the threshing floor and the oxen for fifty בְּכֶ֖סֶף שְׁקָלִ֥ים shekels of silver. And David built there an altar to the Lord and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings. Our last use is in reference to taxes again like all the uses mentioning a specific cost. Nehemiah 5:14-15 Neither I nor my brothers ate the food allowance of the governor. The former governors who were before me laid heavy burdens on the people and took from them for their daily ration forty כֶּֽסֶף־שְׁקָלִ֣ים shekels of silver. Even their servants lorded it over the people. But I did not do so, because of the fear of God. These passages that use our phrase to communicate a specific amount or cost of silver remind us of another exact payment. That would be what Judas was willing to take in order to give the authorities information about where Jesus would be so he could be arrested. Before we look at this account let’s look at a close variation on our phrase. Zechariah 11:12-13 “If it seems good to you, give me my wages; but if not, keep them.” וַיִּשְׁקְל֥וּ [the word for shekel means a weight] And they weighed out as my wages thirty pieces of כָּֽסֶף [so we have both our words in our phrase in a different order] silver. Then the Lord said to me, “Throw it to the potter”—the lordly price at which I was priced by them. So I took the thirty pieces of הַכֶּ֔סֶף silver and threw them into the house of the Lord, to the potter. Now let’s look at how the Holy Spirit ties this together in the New Testament account which I will close with. Matthew 26:14-16, 47-50; 27:3-10 Then one of the twelve, whose name was Judas Iscariot, went to the chief priests and said, “What will you give me if I deliver him over to you?” And they paid him thirty pieces of silver. And from that moment he sought an opportunity to betray him … Now the betrayer had given them a sign, saying, “The one I will kiss is the man; seize him.” And he came up to Jesus at once and said, “Greetings, Rabbi!” And he kissed him ... They came up and laid hands on Jesus and seized him …  Judas ... changed his mind and brought back the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and the elders, saying, “I have sinned by betraying innocent blood.” ... And throwing down the pieces of silver into the temple, he departed ... The chief priests, taking the pieces of silver, said, “It is not lawful to put them into the treasury, since it is blood money.” So they took counsel and bought with them the potter's field as a burial place for strangers ... Then was fulfilled what had been spoken by the prophet ... they took the thirty pieces of silver, the price of him on whom a price had been set by some of the sons of Israel, and they gave them for the potter's field.”

We are in chapter five of Leviticus with our word for today which is a phrase made out of both the noun and verb forms of the same word. תִמְעֹ֣ל מַ֔עַל commits a breach of faith. It is used 9 times in the Old Testament. The root word of both the noun and verb forms is מָעַל disloyalty, infidelity, fraud, be untrue, violate one’s legal obligations. The noun is used 29 times and the verb 35. Let’s look at our uses of our phrase with the noun and verb together. We find our word used in the context of people breaking faith with each other. In Numbers within the marriage relationship. Numbers 5:27 She has defiled herself וַתִּמְעֹ֣ל מַ֣עַל and has broken faith with her husband. Another example of people breaking faith with each other is with neighbors. Leviticus 6:2 If anyone sins וּמָעֲלָ֥ה מַ֖עַל and commits a breach of faith against the Lord by deceiving his neighbor in a matter of deposit or security, or through robbery, or if he has oppressed his neighbor. It is interesting that even in the context of neighbors notice how the breaking of faith is described as being against YHWH. Because he loves people and takes offense when we treat them the opposite of his will. All the other uses of our phrase are in regards to one’s relationship with God. Our chapter is a great example of this where it is also used for the first time in the Bible. Leviticus 5:14-15 The Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “If anyone תִמְעֹ֣ל מַ֔עַל [literally unfaithfully unfaithful] commits a breach of faith and sins unintentionally in any of the holy things of the Lord, he shall bring to the Lord as his compensation, a ram without blemish out of the flock. Notice how the word sin is accompanied with our phrase for being unfaithful or breaking faith with God. Here is another example of this. Numbers 5:6 Speak to the people of Israel, When a man or woman commits any of the sins that people commit לִמְעֹ֥ל מַ֖עַל by breaking faith with the Lord. We also see the consequences of such action spelled out in these passages. Joshua 22:20 Did not Achan the son of Zerah מָ֤עַל מַ֙עַל֙ break faith in the matter of the devoted things, and wrath fell upon all the congregation of Israel? Ezekiel 15:8 And I will make the land desolate, because מָ֣עֲלוּ מַ֔עַל they have acted faithlessly, declares the Lord God. 2 Chronicles 28:19 For the Lord humbled Judah because of Ahaz king of Israel, for he had made Judah act sinfully וּמָע֥וֹל מַ֖עַל and had been very unfaithful to the Lord. In our last use of our phrase notice the influence of the nations around his people that God refers to. 2 Chronicles 36:14 All the officers of the priests and the people likewise לִמְעֹ֥ל מַ֖עַל were exceedingly unfaithful, following all the abominations of the nations. And they polluted the house of the Lord that he had made holy in Jerusalem. This is a good reminder that God sets up things to protect us and others in our lives. When we follow his will and directions we all experience his love and goodness. But when we break faith with these then things get bad. The good news is that God knows how to bring good out of bad. And even when we break faith God finds a way for us to come back to him. I’ll close with this great passage. Acts 2:23-24, 32-33, 36-39 This Jesus God raised up, and of that we all are witnesses. Being therefore exalted at the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, he has poured out this that you yourselves are seeing and hearing … Let all the house of Israel therefore know for certain that God has made him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom you crucified.” Now when they heard this they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?” And Peter said to them, “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.”

We are in chapter five of Leviticus with our word for today which is several variations of a phrase all translated the same way. לֹ֨א תַגִּ֣יע יָדוֹ֮ דֵּ֣י not touch the hand enough, not strike the hand sufficiently. It is used just once in the Old Testament. Our next variation is: לֹא֩ תַשִּׂ֨יג יָד֜ו not reach the hand enough. This one is used twice in the Old Testament. Our chapter has both of these phrases in them. Let’s look at these. Leviticus 5:7, 11 Anyone לֹ֨א תַגִּ֣יע יָדוֹ֮ דֵּ֣י [literally not touch the hand enough or as we would say light or empty handed] who cannot afford a lamb is to bring two doves or two young pigeons to the Lord as a penalty for their sin—one for a sin offering and the other for a burnt offering … If, however, לֹא֩ תַשִּׂ֨יג יָד֜וֹ [literally not reach the hand enough] they cannot afford two doves or two young pigeons, they are to bring as an offering for their sin a tenth of an ephah of the finest flour for a sin offering. Here is the other use of our second variation not in our chapter. Leviticus 14:32 These are the regulations for anyone who has a defiling skin disease and לֹֽא־תַשִּׂ֥יג יָד֖וֹ [literally not reach the hand enough] who cannot afford the regular offerings for their cleansing. Here is another variation of our phrase. Leviticus 12:8 But if לֹ֨א תִמְצָ֣א יָדָהּ֮ דֵּ֣י [Literally not find the hand enough] she cannot afford a lamb, she is to bring two doves or two young pigeons, one for a burnt offering and the other for a sin offering. In this way the priest will make atonement for her, and she will be clean. And let’s look at our last variation of our phrase. Leviticus 14:21 If, however, they are poor ה֗וּא וְאֵ֣ין יָדוֹ֮ [literally not their hand we would say not in hand this time we have the word poor to help us understand the meaning clearly] and cannot afford these, they must take one male lamb as a guilt offering to be waved to make atonement for them, together with a tenth of an ephah of the finest flour mixed with olive oil for a grain offering, a log of oil. I find it interesting that we have not touch, reach, find or be in the hand enough. All to basically say that one can’t afford or doesn’t have access to what is required. We are talking about an offering to give to God. In the Old Testament God found a way for people who didn’t have access to what was required to give for their sin God made a way for them to participate. God wants everyone to be connected to him through worship. As we have seen no one has access to what they need to give as a sacrifice to truly take away our sins that separated us from God. Only Christ death in our place was able to pay the price that we didn’t have access to. I’ll close with this great passage that reminds us of our reality that we were poor in that we didn’t have access to God but because of God’s love for us we were made rich. 2 Corinthians 8:9 For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you through his poverty might become rich.