Month: December 2025

Leviticus 19

Leviticus 19

Leviticus 19:1 And Yahveh spoke to Moses, and this is what he said,

Leviticus 19:2 “Speak to all the congregation of the people of Israel and say to them, you will be sacred, because I Yahveh your God am sacred.

Leviticus 19:3 Every one of you will revere his mother and his father, and you will keep my Sabbaths: I am Yahveh your God.

Leviticus 19:4 You will not turn to idols or make for yourselves any gods of cast metal: I am Yahveh your God.

Leviticus 19:5 “When you offer a sacrifice for healthy relationships to Yahveh, you will offer it so that you may be accepted.

Leviticus 19:6 It will be eaten the same day you offer it or on the day after, and anything left over until the third day will be burned up with fire.

Leviticus 19:7 If it is eaten at all on the third day, it is tainted; it will not be accepted,

Leviticus 19:8 and everyone who eats it will be responsible for his violation, because he has profaned what is sacred to Yahveh, and that throat will be eliminated from his people.

Leviticus 19:9 “When you reap the harvest of your land, you will not reap your field right up to its edge, neither will you gather the gleanings after your harvest.

Leviticus 19:10 And you will not strip your vineyard bare, neither will you gather the fallen grapes of your vineyard. You will leave them for the poor and for the temporary resident: I am Yahveh your God.

Leviticus 19:11 “You will not steal; you will not deal falsely; you will not lie a man against his associate.

Leviticus 19:12 You will not swear by my name falsely, and so profane the name of your God: I am Yahveh.

Leviticus 19:13 “You will not exploit your neighbor or rob him. The wages of a hired worker will not remain with you all night until the morning.

Leviticus 19:14 You will not curse the deaf or put a stumbling block at the face of the blind, but you will fear your God: I am Yahveh.

Leviticus 19:15 “You will do no injustice in judgment. You will not be partial to the poor or defer to the great, but you will judge your associate ethically.

Leviticus 19:16 You will not go around as a slanderer among your people, and you will not stand up against the blood of your neighbor: I am Yahveh.

Leviticus 19:17 “You will not hate your brother in your heart, but you will reason frankly with your associate, or you will be responsible for a failure because of him.

Leviticus 19:18 You will not take vengeance or bear a grudge against the sons of your own people, but you will love your neighbor as yourself: I am Yahveh.

Leviticus 19:19 “You will keep my prescriptions. You will not let your animals breed with a different kind. You will not plant your field with two kinds of seed, nor will you wear a garment of cloth made of two kinds of material.

Leviticus 19:20 “If a man lies sexually with a woman who is a slave, assigned to another man and not yet ransomed or given her freedom, a distinction will be made. They will not be put to death, because she was not free;

Leviticus 19:21 but he will bring his reparation to Yahveh, to the entrance of the conference tent, a ram for a reparation offering.

Leviticus 19:22 And the priest will provide reconciliation for him with the ram of the reparation offering to Yahveh’s face for his failure, and he will be forgiven for the failure.

Leviticus 19:23 “When you come into the land and plant any kind of tree for food, then you will regard its fruit as if it had a foreskin. Three years it will be uncircumcised to you; it must not be eaten.

Leviticus 19:24 And in the fourth year all its fruit will be sacred, an offering of praise to Yahveh.

Leviticus 19:25 But in the fifth year you may eat of its fruit, to increase its yield for you: I am Yahveh your God.

Leviticus 19:26 “You will not eat any flesh with the blood in it. You will not interpret omens or tell fortunes.

Leviticus 19:27 You will not round off the hair on your temples or mar the edges of your beard.

Leviticus 19:28 You will not make any throat cuts on your skin or tattoo yourselves: I am Yahveh.

Leviticus 19:29 “Do not profane your daughter by making her a prostitute, or else the land will fall into prostitution and the land will become full of immorality.

Leviticus 19:30 You will keep my Sabbaths and reverence my sanctuary: I am Yahveh.

Leviticus 19:31 “Do not turn to mediums or necromancers; do not seek them out, and so make yourselves contaminated by them: I am Yahveh your God.

Leviticus 19:32 “You will stand up before the gray head and honor the face of an old man, and you will fear your God: I am Yahveh.

Leviticus 19:33 “When a foreign guest is a temporary resident with you in your land, you will not do him wrong.

Leviticus 19:34 You will treat the foreign guest who is a temporary resident with you as the native among you, and you will love him as yourself, because you were foreign guests in the land of Egypt: I am Yahveh your God.

Leviticus 19:35 “You will do no wrong in judgment, in measures of length or weight or quantity.

Leviticus 19:36 You will have ethical balances, ethical weights, an ethical ephah, and an ethical hin: I am Yahveh your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt.

Leviticus 19:37 And you will observe all my prescriptions and all my judgments and do them: I am Yahveh.”

Leviticus 19 quotes:

“The Jesus who put Deuteronomy 6:5 and Leviticus 19:18 together and gave them great importance was the same Jesus who loved God with all his heart, soul, mind. and strength and who loved his neighbor as himself.”

Patrick, M. W. (1984). The love commandment : how to find its meaning for today. CBP Press. p. 31.

“The whole thrust of the Leviticus 19:2-18 passage is to remind Israel that they are called to be a holy people, to reflect in their being and doing the very image of God who is holy and who created them in the first place.”

Foskett, M. F. (2004). Moral teachings of Jesus. Abingdon Press. p. 45.

“Leviticus 19 introduces in the Scriptures what we call the Golden Rule: love your neighbor as yourself (v. 18). This chapter also mandates care for the poor by leaving a portion of one’s crops behind at harvest time (vv. 9-10), and honesty in keeping with the Ten Commandments (vv. 11-12). Rules of sexual conduct serve to maintain integrity in the family and social harmony in the community. Blood and its shedding are closely regulated because life is in the blood (17:11). All the sacrifices, holy days, dietary laws, rules of sexual relations and other bodily contacts, and charity to the poor serve to draw one closer to God. All these instructions are rooted in God’s covenant as human obligation: “These are the commandments which the Lord gave Moses on Mount Sinai for the Israelites” (27:34). This intentionality colors all that we read in Leviticus.”

Owens, J. E. (2011). Leviticus. Liturgical Press. p. 9.

Leviticus 19 links:

ACST 50- The Sacrifice

BE HOLY – jeffersonvann
culture clashers
fairness and faith
highest motivation
it’s complicated
keeping current
Loving Our Neighbours
Making Disciples
reflecting God’s considerate love
reflecting God’s impartial love
reflecting God’s particular purity
second class citizens and the covenant
uncircumcised trees

LEVITICUS in Jeff’s library

Leviticus 18

Leviticus 18

Leviticus 18:1 And Yahveh spoke to Moses, and this is what he said,

Leviticus 18:2 “Speak to the people of Israel and say to them, I am Yahveh your God.

Leviticus 18:3 You will not do as they do in the land of Egypt, where you stayed, and you will not do as they do in the land of Canaan, to which I am bringing you. You will not walk in their prescriptions.

Leviticus 18:4 You will follow my judgments and keep my prescriptions and walk in them. I am Yahveh your God.

Leviticus 18:5 You will therefore keep my prescriptions and my judgments; if a human does them, he will live by them: I am Yahveh.

Leviticus 18:6 “None of you will approach any one of his close relatives to uncover nakedness. I am Yahveh.

Leviticus 18:7 You will not uncover the nakedness of your father, which is the nakedness of your mother; she is your mother, you will not uncover her nakedness.

Leviticus 18:8 You will not uncover the nakedness of your father’s wife; it is your father’s nakedness.

Leviticus 18:9 You will not 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.

Leviticus 18:10 You will not uncover the nakedness of your son’s daughter or of your daughter’s daughter, because their nakedness is your own nakedness.

Leviticus 18:11 You will not uncover the nakedness of your father’s wife’s daughter, brought up in your father’s family, since she is your sister.

Leviticus 18:12 You will not uncover the nakedness of your father’s sister; she is your father’s relative.

Leviticus 18:13 You will not uncover the nakedness of your mother’s sister, because she is your mother’s relative.

Leviticus 18:14 You will not uncover the nakedness of your father’s brother, that is, you will not approach his wife; she is your aunt.

Leviticus 18:15 You will not uncover the nakedness of your daughter-in-law; she is your son’s wife; you will not uncover her nakedness.

Leviticus 18:16 You will not uncover the nakedness of your brother’s wife; it is your brother’s nakedness.

Leviticus 18:17 You will not uncover the nakedness of a woman and of her daughter, and you will not take her son’s daughter or her daughter’s daughter to uncover her nakedness; they are relatives; it is an immoral act.

Leviticus 18:18 And you will not take a woman as a rival wife to her sister, uncovering her nakedness while her sister is still alive.

Leviticus 18:19 “You will not approach a woman to uncover her nakedness while she is in her menstrual contamination.

Leviticus 18:20 And you will not lie sexually with your associate’s wife and so make yourself contaminated with her.

Leviticus 18:21 You will not give any of your children to sacrifice them to Molech, and so profane the name of your God: I am Yahveh.

Leviticus 18:22 You will not lie with a male as with a woman; it is an abomination.

Leviticus 18:23 And you will not lie with any animal and so make yourself contaminated with it, neither will any woman give herself to an animal’s face to lie with it: it is perversion.

Leviticus 18:24 “Do not make yourselves contaminated by any of these things, because by all these the nations I am driving out from your face have become contaminated,

Leviticus 18:25 and the land became contaminated, so that I punished its violation, and the land vomited out those who stayed there.

Leviticus 18:26 But you will keep my prescriptions and my judgments and do none of these abominations, either the native or the foreign guest who is a temporary resident among you

Leviticus 18:27 (because the people of the land, who were at your face, did all of these abominations, so that the land became contaminated),

Leviticus 18:28 or else the land vomit you out when you make it contaminated, as it vomited out the nation that was at your face.

Leviticus 18:29 Because everyone who does any of these abominations, the throats who do them will be eliminated from among their people.

Leviticus 18:30 So keep my charge never to practice any of these abominable prescriptions that were practiced at your face, and never to make yourselves contaminated by them: I am Yahveh your God.”

Leviticus 18 quotes:

“The word detestable (to‘ebah) also appears in the prohibitions against homosexual behavior in Leviticus 18:22 and 20:13. In addition, Jude says that Sodom and Gomorrah and the surrounding towns gave themselves up to sexual immorality and perversion. They serve as an example of those who suffer the punishment of eternal fire (Jude 7). The sexual license of Sodom and Gomorrah is also recounted by the apostle Peter (2 Peter 2:6-9).”

Stewart, David. What Does the Bible Say About Homosexuality? Stewart Publications, 1997. p. 14.

“The universal scope of Leviticus 18 is emphasized by the motif of the land ‘vomiting out’ the pre-Israelite inhabitants, who should have known better even without the benefit of the spoken or written Torah.”

Ash, Christopher. Marriage : Sex in the Service of God. Inter-Varsity Press, 2003. p. 92.

“Others have argued that the prohibition of homosexuality is rooted in the arbitrariness of the Jewish people regarding sexual matters, and that there is no reason for it in terms of social consequences (i.e., it does not harm society or violate the rights of others). Such thinking contradicts the divine authorship of the law.33 If, contrary to the views of Jesus and Paul,34 the moral code of Leviticus 18-20 is not received as inspired of God, then it is superfluous to debate its binding character. But if it is deemed to be divine in origin, then it is arbitrary on the part of the critic to renounce the sections unfavorable to his preconceived notions.”

Bahnsen, Greg L. Homosexuality, a Biblical View. Baker Book House, 1978. pp. 37-38.

“The biblical call to holiness is often repeated in the Old Testament, but nowhere is it given more frequently than in the “Law of Holiness” of Leviticus 18-20. The standard for the good, the right, the just, and the acceptable is nothing less than the person of the living God: “Be holy because I the Lord your God am holy” (italics added, Lev. 19:2, 9, 14; ef. Matt. 5:48). Deities of other nations indulge in many, if not all, of the vices of their worshipers, but Yahweh’s character is revealed in Habakkuk’s prayer, “Your eyes are too pure to look on evil; you cannot tolerate wrong” (Hab. 1:13).”

Kaiser, Walter C. Toward Old Testament Ethics. Zondervan, 1983. p. 6.

Leviticus 18 links:

abominable prescriptions
DECIDE TO DO SOMETHING
devotion and sexuality
shameful exposure
The Gospel of Redemption (Gal. 3-10-14)
the impossibility of pluralism

LEVITICUS in Jeff’s library

YESTERDAY’S SONG

YESTERDAY’S SONG

Psalm 77 NET.

 For the music director, Jeduthun; a psalm of Asaph.

1 I will cry out to God and call for help! I will cry out to God, and he will pay attention to me. 2 In my time of trouble, I sought the Lord. I kept my hand raised in prayer throughout the night. I refused to be comforted. 3 I said, “I will remember God while I groan; I will think about him while my strength leaves me.” ( Selah) 4 You held my eyelids open; I was troubled and could not speak. 5 I thought about the days of old, about ancient times. 6 I said, “During the night I will remember the song I once sang; I will think very carefully.” I tried to make sense of what was happening. 7 I asked, “Will the Lord reject me forever? Will he never again show me his favor? 8 Has his loyal love disappeared forever? Has his promise failed forever? 9 Has God forgotten to be merciful? Has his anger stifled his compassion?” 10 Then I said, “I am sickened by the thought that the sovereign One might become inactive. 11 I will remember the works of the LORD. Yes, I will remember the amazing things you did long ago! 12 I will think about all you have done; I will reflect upon your deeds!” 13 O God, your deeds are extraordinary! What god can compare to our great God? 14 You are the God who does amazing things; you have revealed your strength among the nations. 15 You delivered your people by your strength — the children of Jacob and Joseph. ( Selah) 16 The waters saw you, O God, the waters saw you and trembled. Yes, the depths of the sea shook with fear. 17 The clouds poured down rain; the skies thundered. Yes, your arrows flashed about. 18        Your thunderous voice was heard in the wind; the lightning bolts lit up the world; the earth trembled and shook. 19 You walked through the sea; you passed through the surging waters, but left no footprints. 20 You led your people like a flock of sheep, by the hand of Moses and Aaron.

The words to that Beatles song keep coming to my mind as I think about today’s text. Asaph was a musician, and like the Beatles in 1965, he sang about yesterday. He was grateful for his past, because that was a time when all his troubles seemed so far away. But, as he prepares to write this psalm, that is no longer the case. Now, his troubles look as though they’re here to stay. Asaph believed in yesterday, and he penned this psalm, which I call Yesterday’s Song.

Asaph was a popular musician and music leader during the reigns of King David and King Solomon. He, along with those associated with him, wrote twelve of the Psalms found in the Old Testament. He led a music school with 148 students. One hundred twenty-eight of his descendants returned from Babylon and continued the tradition of providing music and song for the nation.

Asaph did not write popular love songs. He wrote songs about God’s people struggling during difficult times. In today’s passage, we hear the voice of a man who had lived during wonderful times, but was now facing less-than-wonderful times.

  • When his prayers failed him, Asaph sang yesterday’s song (1-5).

Asaph prayed the way people were accustomed to in his day. He raised his hands and prayed with his eyes raised toward heaven. In his time of trouble, he prayed and kept on praying through the night.  Some times call for simple sentence prayers. But when our hearts are breaking and there is nothing else we can do, we stay in prayer.

Jacob wrestled all night in prayer, and his persistence resulted in a new direction for his life and a new name. Jesus prayed all night before choosing the men who would become his twelve apostles. Night is a time for rest, usually, but occasionally, it is appropriate for us to decide against the norm. There comes a time when normal has to be sacrificed for something more urgent and more critical.

We preachers talk about prayer all the time. I think sometimes we overstate the case for prayer. We give people the impression that if they pray hard enough or long enough, the sky will open up and a miracle will make everything right again. That was not Asaph’s experience. He records no miracle happening in his life in this psalm. There was no breakthrough. He prayed all night, and there was no magic in the morning.

The magic happened not after he prayed but while he was praying. His mind went back to the past. His song about yesterday went back over all the songs and stories he had heard before. They were songs and stories about how God had done amazing things and delivered his people from danger and death time after time. Asaph was not in danger of being overwhelmed and obliterated by his present troubles. His problem was discouragement. His prayers led him to focus on who God is and what he had already done for his people. The song about yesterday that became part of his prayer was what Asaph needed to encourage him.

  • When he could not make sense of today, Asaph sang yesterday’s song (6-9).

Asaph admitted that he had tried to understand what was happening to him. He could not figure out how his present difficult experiences could be within God’s will. But it looked like God was rejecting him. He wondered if this could be permanent. He asked, “Will the Lord reject me forever? Will he never again show me his favor? Has his loyal love disappeared forever? Has his promise failed forever? Has God forgotten to be merciful? Has his anger stifled his compassion?” 

Those are some serious questions. They are actually theological questions. When we are trying to figure God out, we look to the Bible and our own experience and ask those important questions for the first time. When they do that, people conclude that God is all-powerful, immortal, and immeasurable, and that he never changes into anything else. He is always the same. They also conclude that God is good and his goodness is just as permanent as his greatness. So, his holiness, righteousness, faithfulness, and mercy are just as constant as his great power.

The Bible provides the content that allows theologians to discover those things about him. It also records the experiences of the Israelites and the New Testament believers that confirm the content. This is important because sometimes what we are experiencing in our everyday lives tempts us to draw a different conclusion.

When we woke up this morning, we lived in a universe controlled by an all-powerful and all-loving God. But when we got into the shower, the handle came off, and water went everywhere. That happened to me last Sunday morning. I have to admit, when I was standing there with the handle to the cold water in my hand, and not being able to put it back on, I was temporarily questioning my theology.

Asaph had some experiences that led him to think similar thoughts. We will all deal with problems like that. That is the beauty of his song. He is giving us advice. He is telling us what to do when the world no longer seems to be what we know it is. He is showing us how to deal with the problems that make us question what we think we know about God and his commitment to us.

  • When he was tempted to doubt God’s power, Asaph sang yesterday’s song (10-20).

Asaph admits that he was sickened by the thought that the Most High might become inactive. Some people boast about the idea that God is dead, but that was not true of Asaph. He chose to go back to the record book. This Bible we are reading is a record of what God has done. When tempted to be uncertain about who God is, Asaph got out his Bible and started reading.

He told himself, “I will remember the works of the LORD. Yes, I will remember the amazing things you did long ago.”

As he recounted each story, miracle after miracle presented itself to his memory. All the impossible things that were part of his people’s history flashed before his eyes. He saw God create the world and plant a garden in it for his creatures. He saw God destroy that world by a flood and rescue one family to repopulate it. He saw God build a nation from one man, then exercise his great power to deliver that nation from the clutches of enslavement. He saw this amazing, powerful God tame the forces of wind and water to shepherd his people through the Red Sea. He saw a loving God lead his people by the hand of Moses and Aaron.

He promised God, “I will think about all you have done; I will reflect upon your deeds.”

As he thought about what God had done, his anxiety about his present predicament seemed to calm down a bit. Singing yesterday’s song helped Asaph get through the uncertainties of today. It helped him continue to believe that there would be a tomorrow, and that it would be as glorious as God promised it would be.

Biblical faith is not always demonstrated by a show of God’s miraculous power. Sometimes, it is revealed by believers who dare to testify that the same God they trusted in yesterday will get them through the difficulties of today.

You might remember that a few years ago, we had a series of messages based on Chapter 11 of the Book of Hebrews. We discovered that the people of faith described in that chapter could be divided into two categories. Some had faith and received displays of God’s power. Others had the same faith but did not receive such displays. But both groups were included in the hall of faith. When facing difficult times, both sang yesterday’s song, reminding themselves of the greatness and faithfulness of their God. That is what yesterday’s song is for.

Communion Meditation.

“Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever!” – Hebrews 13:8 NET.

When we are discouraged today, there are two places we can look for hope. We can sing yesterday’s song, remembering what God has done for us in the past. We can also look forward to the culmination of all things at Christ’s return.

As we remember the Savior’s sacrifice on Calvary’s cross, we also remember that today, with all its troubles, will not last. Little Orphan Annie was not correct. Tomorrow is not always a day away. One Day, tomorrow will come. One Day, our Savior will come. In the meantime, He who is the same yesterday, today, and forever is worthy of our worship and worthy of our trust.

Leviticus 17

Leviticus 17

Leviticus 17:1 And Yahveh spoke to Moses, and this is what he said,

Leviticus 17:2 “Speak to Aaron and his sons and to all the people of Israel and say to them, this is the thing that Yahveh has commanded when he said,

Leviticus 17:3 that if any one from the house of Israel kills an ox or a lamb or a goat in the camp, or kills it outside the camp,

Leviticus 17:4 and does not bring it to the entrance of the conference tent to offer it as a gift to Yahveh in the face of the tabernacle of Yahveh, that man will be recognized as guilty of bloodshed. He has shed blood, and that man will be eliminated from among his people.

Leviticus 17:5 This is so that the people of Israel may bring their sacrifices that they sacrifice in the face of the field, that they may bring them to Yahveh, to the priest at the entrance of the conference tent, and sacrifice them as sacrifices for healthy relationships to Yahveh.

Leviticus 17:6 And the priest will throw the blood on the altar of Yahveh at the entrance of the conference tent and burn the fat for a pacifying aroma to Yahveh.

Leviticus 17:7 So they will no more sacrifice their sacrifices to goat demons, after whom they lust. This will be a permanent prescription for them throughout their generations.

Leviticus 17:8 “And you will say to them, any one from the house of Israel, or from the foreign guests who are temporary residents among them, who offers an ascending offering or sacrifice

Leviticus 17:9 and does not bring it to the entrance of the conference tent to offer it to Yahveh, that man will be eliminated from his people.

Leviticus 17:10 “If any one from the house of Israel or from the foreign guests who are temporary residents among them eats any blood, I will set my face against that throat who eats blood and will eliminate him from among his people.

Leviticus 17:11 Because the throat within the skin is in the blood, and I have given it for you on the altar to provide reconciliation for your throats, because it is the blood that provides reconciliation for the throat.

Leviticus 17:12 Therefore I have said to the people of Israel, no throat among you will eat blood, neither will any foreign guest who is a temporary resident among you eat blood.

Leviticus 17:13 “Any one also from the people of Israel, or from the foreign guests who are temporary residents among them, who takes in hunting any beast or bird that may be eaten will pour out its blood and cover it with land.

Leviticus 17:14 Because the throat within everyone’s skin is its blood: its blood is its throat. Therefore, I have said to the people of Israel, you will not eat the blood of any creature, because the throat within everyone’s skin is its blood. Whoever eats it will be eliminated.

Leviticus 17:15 And every throat who eats what dies of itself or what is torn by beasts, whether he is a native or a temporary resident, will wash his clothes and bathe himself in water and be contaminated until the evening; then he will be clean.

Leviticus 17:16 But if he does not wash them or bathe his body, he will be responsible for his violation.”

Leviticus 17 quotes:

“Leviticus 17—20 deals with four special areas of life that must be respected and kept holy: the sanctity of blood, or life (chap. 17); the sanctity of sex (chap. 18); the sanctity of the law (chap. 19); and the sanctity of judgment (chap. 20).”

Wiersbe, Warren W. Leviticus : Becoming “Set Apart” for God. First edition, David C Cook, 2015. p. 77

“We really. don’t want to know about such things, “TMI” (too much information) is probably the response of many. Blood, however, is important; for blood and life are intimately connected. In ancient Israel, blood was considered the_ source of power for animals, including humans.”

March, W. Eugene. Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers. Abingdon Press, 2012. p. 60.

“Leviticus 17:1-9 reminded Israel that the central sanctuary is the only place where sacrifices were to be brought. Those who sacrificed elsewhere were to be cut off from the people (17:3-4). Israel had been sacrificing in open fields (17:5). Some of the people had been bringing offerings to idols (17:7). Such actions had to stop (17:8-9).”

House, Paul R. Leviticus/Numbers. Broadman & Holman, 1999. p. 37

Leviticus 17 links:

given for you
only one place for sacrifice
respect for animal life
singular devotion

LEVITICUS in Jeff’s library

Leviticus 16

Leviticus 16

Leviticus 16:1 Yahveh spoke to Moses after the death of the two sons of Aaron, when they drew near to Yahveh’s face and died,

Leviticus 16:2 and Yahveh said to Moses, “Tell Aaron your brother not to come at any time into the Sacred Place inside the veil, at the face of the mercy seat that is on the ark, so that he may not die. Because I will appear in the cloud over the mercy seat.

Leviticus 16:3 But in this way, Aaron will come into the Sacred Place: with a bull from the herd for a failure offering and a ram for an ascending offering.

Leviticus 16:4 He will put on the sacred linen shirt and will have the linen undergarment over his skin, and he will tie the linen sash around his waist and wear the linen turban; these are the sacred garments. He will bathe his body in water and then put them on.

Leviticus 16:5 And he will take from the congregation of the people of Israel two male goats for a failure offering, and one ram for an ascending offering.

Leviticus 16:6 “Aaron will offer the bull as a failure offering for himself and will provide reconciliation for himself and for his house.

Leviticus 16:7 Then he will take the two goats and set them to Yahveh’s face at the entrance of the conference tent.

Leviticus 16:8 And Aaron will cast lots over the two goats, one lot for Yahveh and the other lot for entire removal.

Leviticus 16:9 And Aaron will present the goat on which the lot fell for Yahveh and use it as a failure offering,

Leviticus 16:10 but the goat on which the lot fell for entire removal will be presented alive to Yahveh’s face to provide reconciliation upon it, that it may be sent away into the open country for entire removal.

Leviticus 16:11 “Aaron will present the bull as a failure offering for himself and will provide reconciliation for himself and for his house. He will kill the bull as a failure offering for himself.

Leviticus 16:12 And he will take a censer full of coals of fire from the altar to Yahveh’s face, and two handfuls of sweet incense beaten small, and he will bring it inside the veil

Leviticus 16:13 and put the incense on the fire to Yahveh’s face, that the cloud of the incense may cover the mercy seat that is over the reminder,[1] so that he does not die.

Leviticus 16:14 And he will take some of the blood of the bull and spritz it with his finger on the front of the mercy seat on the east side, and in the face of the mercy seat he will spritz some of the blood with his finger seven times.

Leviticus 16:15 “Then he will kill the goat of the failure 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, spritzing it over the mercy seat and in the face of the mercy seat.

Leviticus 16:16 Thus he will provide reconciliation for the Sacred Place, because of the contamination of the people of Israel and because of their transgressions, all their mistakes. And he will do the same for the conference tent, which dwells with them in the midst of their contamination.

Leviticus 16:17 No human may be in the conference tent from the time he enters to provide reconciliation in the Sacred Place until he comes out and has provided reconciliation for himself and for his house and for all the collected assembly of Israel.

Leviticus 16:18 Then he will go out to the altar that is to Yahveh’s face and provide reconciliation for it and will take some of the blood of the bull and some of the blood of the goat, and put it on the horns of the altar all around.

Leviticus 16:19 And he will spritz some of the blood on it with his finger seven times, and cleanse it and consecrate it from the contamination of the people of Israel.

Leviticus 16:20 “And when he has made an end of providing reconciliation for the Sacred Place and the conference tent and the altar, he will present the live goat.

Leviticus 16:21 And Aaron will lay both his hands on the head of the live goat and confess over it all the violations of the people of Israel, and all their transgressions, all their mistakes. And he will put them on the head of the goat and send it away into the open country by the hand of a man who is standing ready.

Leviticus 16:22 The goat will carry all their violations on itself to a remote area, and he will let the goat go free in the open country.

Leviticus 16:23 “Then Aaron will come into the conference tent and will take off the linen garments that he put on when he went into the Sacred Place and will leave them there.

Leviticus 16:24 And he will bathe his body in water in a sacred place and put on his garments and come out and offer his ascending offering and the ascending offering of the people and provide reconciliation for himself and for the people.

Leviticus 16:25 And the fat of the failure offering he will burn on the altar.

Leviticus 16:26 And he who lets the goat go for entire removal will wash his clothes and bathe his body in water, and afterward he may come into the camp.

Leviticus 16:27 And the bull for the failure offering and the goat for the failure offering, whose blood was brought in to provide reconciliation in the Sacred Place, will be carried outside the camp. Their hides and their flesh and their dung will be burned up with fire.

Leviticus 16:28 And he who burns them will wash his clothes and bathe his body in water, and afterward he may come into the camp.

Leviticus 16:29 “And it will be a permanent prescription to you that in the seventh month, on the tenth day of the month, you will discipline your throats and will do no work, either the native or the foreign guests who are temporary residents among you.

Leviticus 16:30 Because on this day will reconciliation be provided for you to cleanse you. You will be clean to Yahveh’s face from all your mistakes.

Leviticus 16:31 It is a Sabbath of solemn rest to you, and you will discipline your throats; it is a permanent prescription.

Leviticus 16:32 And the priest who is anointed and consecrated as priest in his father’s place will provide reconciliation, wearing the sacred linen garments.

Leviticus 16:33 He will provide reconciliation for the sacred sanctuary, and he will provide reconciliation for the conference tent and for the altar, and he will provide reconciliation for the priests and for all the people of the collected assembly.

Leviticus 16:34 And this will be a permanent prescription for you, that reconciliation may be provided for the people of Israel once in the year because of all their mistakes.” And Aaron did as Yahveh commanded Moses.

[1] עֵדוּת  = reminder. Leviticus 16:13; 24:3.

Leviticus 16 quotes:

“While the screen at the door separated the priests and Levites from the remaining children of Israel, the veil separated the high priest from the other priests and Levites. Only the high priest entered God’s presence in the most holy place, but even Aaron was limited to one day of entering God’s presence behind that veil for the entire year, the Day of Atonement (Leviticus 16). Thus, the veil clearly set forth the alienation between God and the children of Israel, including the priests and Levites. In short the veil evidenced entrance into God’s presence, was restricted to one person, and he in turn entered only on one day. Only in Christ did that alienation come to an end and reconciliation take place. In Christ the privilege of one is opened to all, the blessing of one day is available every day.”

Zehr, Paul M. God Dwells with His People : A Study of Israel’s Ancient Tabernacle. Herald Press, 1981. p. 98.

“Once the hands have been laid on, there was no turning back on this “dead-end road”—the animal had to be presented. According to Leviticus 16:21, the laying on of hands could also be practiced together with the confession of sin. In the purification offering this would acknowledge the transfer of sin from the sinner to the innocent animal”

Probstle, Martin T. Where God and I Meet : The Sanctuary. Review and Herald Publishing Association, 2013. p. 56.

“According to Leviticus 16, on the Day of Atonement the high priest cast lots over two carefully selected goats in order to distinguish the ‘‘Lord’s goat’’ from the ‘‘scapegoat’’ (K.J.V.). He then slew the Lord’s goat and carried some of its blood through the holy place into the most holy place, where he sprinkled it on the floor in front of the ark of the covenant and on the ark itself. (It is helpful to notice that Leviticus 16 calls the most holy place simply the ‘‘holy place’’ and calls the sanctuary as a whole the ‘‘tent of meeting.’’)”

Maxwell, C. Mervyn. God & His Sanctuary. Pacific Press Publishing Association. 1983. p. 32.

Leviticus 16 links:

apply the blood
Azazel devotion
cloudy with a chance of death
entire removal
forgiveness, access, ongoing benefits
he set the day
holiness or hell
priest in his father’s place
sending away the other goat

Maranatha Daily Devotional – Wednesday, April 5, 2023

LEVITICUS in Jeff’s library