Leviticus

Perry Yoder

• Publisher: Herald Press
• Year: 2017
• ISBN:
  9781513802466
• Topic: Theology & Religion
• Subtopic: Biblical Commentary

God is gracious, holy, and present. As a book about how to worship and how to live, Leviticus unfurls these critical characteristics of God in relation to humanity. In the thirty-third volume in the Believers Church Bible Commentary series, Old Testament scholar Perry B. Yoder argues that the oft-neglected book of Leviticus discloses valuable truths, symbols, and practices of the New Testament. Traversing difficult interpretive territory such as the sacrificial system, purity laws, and priestly instructions, Yoder writes with a clarity and nuance that will interest a wide swath of readers. He eloquently poses for readers the focal question of Leviticus: how to live in the presence of God.

Part 1

Rituals for God’s Presence

Leviticus 1:1-2a

Introduction

PREVIEW

The book of Exodus ends with a question mark. God had promised Moses that after the completion of the tabernacle, God would meet him there and give him “all of my commandments for the Israelites” (Exod 25:22 NRSV). At the end of Exodus we find that the tabernacle had been built and was now shrouded with a cloud and filled with God’s presence. Moses did not dare to enter it (Exod 40:35). How was God’s promise to Moses to be fulfilled? The first verse of Leviticus addresses this problem: And [God] summoned Moses (AT).

Beginning a book with the word And, as well as a verb without a stated subject, is awkward in English. The English translations resolve this problem by omitting the And, then supplying the LORD as a subject for the verb. These changes obscure the fact that the beginning of Leviticus assumes and continues the book of Exodus.

In ancient times, Scriptures were written on scrolls. These scrolls could comfortably contain only a certain amount of material. The book of Isaiah, for example, was about as much text as would fit conveniently on a single scroll. Think of all the rolling and unrolling needed to find a particular passage. The material in the Torah, the first five books of the Bible, was divided among five scrolls, leading to the later title in Greek, Pentateuch, which means “five scrolls.” Leviticus was the third scroll. The first verse of Leviticus indicates that this scroll continues the scroll of Exodus and presupposes its ending.

OUTLINE

Title, 1:1a

Location, 1:1b

Commission, 1:2a

EXPLANATORY NOTES

Title 1:1a

In the Hebrew text of the Pentateuch, the book of Leviticus is named after its first word, which means “to call out, summon.” In ancient times, scrolls were named after their first word or words. Genesis, for example, was named “Beginning.” If we were to imitate this practice in English, the name of Leviticus would be “Summoned.”

In the book of Exodus, God had summoned Moses four times. The first time was at the burning bush at Mount Sinai (Exod 3–4), where God commissioned Moses to lead God’s people out of Egypt. The second and third times were when Moses and the Israelites arrived at Mount Sinai (Exod 19:3, 20). There Moses was summoned to declare to the Israelites that if they obeyed God’s commands, they would be God’s people, a kingdom of priests (Exod 19:5-6), in effect, a commissioning of the people. The final time God summoned Moses, he was to ascend into the cloud shrouding Mount Sinai in order to receive the commandments of God (Exod 24:16). Each of these passages represents a key event. The summons of Moses in Leviticus 1:1a thus indicates that an important message from God will follow.

Location 1:1b

God summons Moses to the tent of meeting. God will no longer speak to Moses on Mount Sinai: the cloud of God’s presence has come down from the mountain and taken up residence in the tent of meeting. God now speaks to Moses from the tent and in full view of the people.

The coming of God to God’s people is a revolutionary development. God is no longer out there on top of a mountain, hidden by a cloud. God is present just outside the camp. God’s new location necessitates the central question of Leviticus: How do God’s people live in the light of God’s presence?

The terms “tabernacle” (miškan) and “tent of meeting” (ʾohel moʿed) are used interchangeably in Exodus (see 40:34). Leviticus, however, uses “tent of meeting,” as here, with four exceptions. “Tabernacle” occurs in 8:10, the consecration of the shrine; in 15:31, the summation of the laws of purity; and in 17:4 and 26:11, which precede the promise I will walk among you and be your God, and you will be my people (v. 12). The use of the word “tabernacle” in these four passages seems to give them an air of solemnity and importance [The Tabernacle, p. 317].

The word translated meeting has the nuance of a place of meeting and of a time or date to be kept. Putting these two connotations together, the tent was the place where Moses would keep his appointments with God.

Commission 1:2a

Having summoned Moses, God commissions him to relay the following words to all the people. While verse 1 looks back to Exodus, verse 2 looks forward to what will follow: Speak to the Israelites and say to them. This commissioning statement completes the link between the end of Exodus and the beginning of Leviticus.

(TBC and TLC appear in the section on ch. 3.)

Leviticus 1:2b-17

Rituals for Pleasing God: The Whole Burnt Offering

PREVIEW

How do we begin to worship God? Where do we start? Leviticus begins with rituals for pleasing God. This unadorned beginning reminds us that worship begins with God and our relationship to God, and not with ourselves. The ritual instructions given in Leviticus are formulated as if they were case law [Law, p. 304]. In Hebrew, case laws begin with an “if” or “when” (ki), which introduces the general case: “When you buy a male Hebrew slave, he shall serve six years, but in the seventh he shall go out a free person, without debt” (Exod 21:2 NRSV, emph. added). But what if his master gives him a wife and they have children? Do they also go free in the seventh year as well? Such subcases are introduced by “if” (ʾim) (see Exod 21:1-4).

When anyone among you brings an offering is the general case. Three subcases follow in verses 3, 10, and 14. First comes the ritual using a herd animal; second, an animal from the flock; and third, a bird. The cases begin with the most costly, an animal from the herd, and end with the least costly, a bird. This is a graded offering. Everyone, regardless of economic status, could voluntarily offer a sacrifice to please God.

The distinguishing characteristic of the whole burnt offering is that it is wholly given over to God and, except for the hide, is entirely burned on the altar. The priest retains the hide. The worshiper gains nothing from the sacrifice.

OUTLINE

Introduction, 1:2b-c

1:2b	Audience
1:2c	General Case

Whole Burnt Offerings, 1:3-17

1:3-9	Cattle
1:10-13	Sheep or Goats
1:14-17	Birds

EXPLANATORY NOTES

Introduction 1:2b-c

1:2b Audience

When anyone among you brings an offering to the LORD. Moses, having been summoned to the tent of meeting, is now given instructions for the sacrificial rituals. These instructions are addressed to the entire Israelite people, both men and women. Elsewhere in the ancient Near East, laws regulating temple rituals were not common knowledge but remained in the hands of religious specialists like priests (for sources, see Milgrom 1991: 143–44). In Leviticus, however, we find these instructions addressed to all Israelites. This “all” who might bring a sacrifice includes women (12:6) and even sojourners, the Gentiles who reside in the community (17:8; 22:18). Specialists were a necessary and integral part of these rituals, but the entire community heard the instructions for them.

1:2c General Case

The sacrifice brought is called an “offering” or “gift” (qorban). The gift may be an animal, as here in chapter 1; a grain offering, as in chapter 2; or even gold or silver (Num 31:50; 7:13). Since obligatory offerings are usually termed a “sacrifice” (zebaḥ; e.g., 4:10, 26, 31 NJPS, NET; but NIV, offering), the use of the term “gift offering” may reinforce the notion that these animals were brought by choice.

Whole Burnt Offerings 1:3-17

1:3-9 Cattle

The first subcase is a whole burnt offering of a herd animal. Some have translated the Hebrew word ʿolah as whole offering (burnt offering, NIV). We will label it a whole burnt offering because the animal’s carcass is wholly consumed by fire on the altar: it is wholly given over to God. This distinguishes the whole burnt offering from the peace offering in chapter 3, in which the meat of the offered animal is retained by the one offering the sacrifice.

The first step is to choose an animal. The herd animal must be a male without a blemish (v. 3). It may be that males were more expendable than females for the continuation of the herd. The word “unblemished” is the opposite of blemished. What constitutes a blemish is spelled out in 22:21-25. If worshipers choose to bring an offering to please God, they are not to use it as an opportunity to cull their herd.

Interpreters differ in their understanding of the last phrase of verse 3. The NIV translates so that it will be acceptable to the LORD (also see NET and note), meaning the animal is presented so that it can be accepted as a legitimate offering for God, having no blemish. The NRSV and NJPS read for acceptance on your/his behalf, which could mean the animal is presented so that it will be accepted for the sake of the worshiper. In this context it seems best to follow the simpler interpretation of the NIV and read The layperson shall present it for its acceptance before the LORD (v. 3b AT). The selected animal is brought into the courtyard and presented before the altar as a suitable animal for a sacrifice to God. The ritual (vv. 4-9a) has the following elements:

1. First, we find a gesture that probably indicates a claim of ownership (v. 4a). The reason for this assumption is that comparative cultural studies suggest the meaning “This is my sacrifice.” (For more information on “hand leaning,” see the discussion in Milgrom 1991: 150–53). The sacrifice must belong to the one offering it in order for it to be accounted as their sacrifice. This ritual action should not be confused with placing both hands on an animal and having words spoken over it, as in 16:21. There, Aaron’s actions are part of an obligatory ritual of elimination in which the goat is not sacrificed but rather is turned loose outside the camp to bear away (eliminate) the sins of the community. Here, by contrast, the ritual is entirely voluntary: it is offered by a layperson, no words are spoken, and the goal is pleasing God [Aaron, p. 287].

The phrase to make atonement for you (v. 4b) employs the word kipper (to make atonement/expiation, i.e., to wipe or wipe away) with voluntary offerings, a usage not found elsewhere in Leviticus. The goal of these rituals is to please God, not to gain forgiveness from sin. As we will see in chapter 4, the goal of the rituals for sin is explicitly forgiveness. Neither the noun “sin” nor the verb “to sin” is mentioned with the voluntary offerings in chapters 1–3. Only with the obligatory offerings for sin do we find “sin” or “to sin” (Lev 4 and following). (See the Preview to chapter 4 for the marked change in vocabulary between chs. 1–3 and 4, as well as Atonement as Transfer, p. 291.)

However, we do find whole burnt offerings occurring with an obligatory ritual for sin. In one case the whole burnt offering, the offering of the two birds in 5:7-10, is a part of an offering necessitated by sin. Two birds are brought. One becomes an “expiation” offering, and the other, offered right after it, becomes a whole burnt offering (5:7-10 below). As is the norm, the whole offering comes after expiation for sin is made (see 8:16-18; 9:7-12, 22). Thus the whole burnt offering is not intended to remove sin and obtain forgiveness. Rather, it is an offering that comes temporally after forgiveness and expresses the joy of the one being forgiven. The sequence of rituals set out in the text of Leviticus is not necessarily the sequence performed in actual practice.

2. The animal is now slaughtered (v. 5a). The one presenting the sacrifice evidently kills the animal. The verb “slaughter” is also used in 2 Kings 10:7, where it refers to the killing of seventy men whose heads were then placed in a basket. Perhaps this verb has the nuance “to cut at the throat, decapitate.” The blood from the animal is then collected by the priests in a container and brought to the altar and dashed on it (Lev 1:5b). Here the blood is offered back to God because, having life, it is sacred. This, as we shall see, is the point of chapter 17. Thus, in all offerings the blood must be disposed of properly.

The hide of the animal is removed and the animal butchered (1:6 AT). After the dashing of the blood, or perhaps beginning after the collection of the blood, the animal is skinned, perhaps by the layperson. The deposition of the skin is not prescribed here. However, we learn from 7:8 that the officiating priest retains the hide for his labors. Once the hide is removed, the animal is cut into pieces and placed on the altar by the priest.

3. The priest then places fire on the altar and arranges wood over it (v. 7). This action is chronologically out of place. The priests prepare the altar by placing wood on the altar fire that is kept burning day and night (6:9). They build up this eternal fire while the layperson is skinning and butchering the sacrificial animal. The pieces of meat and the rest of the animal are then placed on the altar (1:8, 9a). The word translated fat (NIV; suet, NRSV) is a rare word in Hebrew, occurring again in 8:20. It may refer to the fat around the kidneys. Next, the entrails and legs are washed and placed on the altar (1:9a). The washing was done earlier so that all parts o...

Table of contents

• Front Cover
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Dedication
• Abbreviations
• Series Foreword
• Author’s Preface
• Introduction to Leviticus
• PART 1 (1:1–15:33): RITUALS FOR GOD’S PRESENCE 1A (1:1–7:38): Sacrificial Rituals
• The Installation of the Priesthood, 8:1-36
• The Dedication of the Sanctuary, 9:1-24
• A Tragic Act of Worship, 10:1-20
• 1C (11:1–15:33): Rituals for Purity
• Rituals for Food Impurity, 11:1-47
• Birthing Rituals, 12:1-8
• Rituals for Blemishes, 13:1–14:57
• Rituals for Reproductive Impurities, 15:1-33
• PART 2 (16:1–17:16): A HINGE The Day of Cleansing, 16:1-34
• PART 3 (18:1–27:34): LIVING IN LIGHT OF GOD’S PRESENCE 3A (18:1–22:33): Holy Living
• Outline of Leviticus
• Essays
• Map of Palestine for Leviticus
• Map of the Ancient Near East for Leviticus
• Bibliography
• Selected Resources
• Index of Ancient Sources
• The Author