Jefferson Vann

Leviticus 20

Leviticus 20

Leviticus 20:1 Yahveh spoke to Moses, and this is what he said,

Leviticus 20:2 “Say to the people of Israel, any one of the people of Israel or of the foreign guests who are temporary residents in Israel who sacrifices any of his children to Molech will surely be put to death. The people of the land will stone him with stones.

Leviticus 20:3 I myself will set my face against that man and will eliminate him from among his people, because he has sacrificed one of his children to Molech, to make my sanctuary contaminated and to profane my sacred name.

Leviticus 20:4 And if the people of the land do in any way close their eyes to that man when he sacrifices one of his children to Molech, and do not put him to death,

Leviticus 20:5 then I will set my face against that man and against his clan and will eliminate them from among their people, him and all who follow him in lusting after Molech.

Leviticus 20:6 “If a throat turns to mediums and necromancers, lusting after them, I will set my face against that throat and will eliminate him from among his people.

Leviticus 20:7 Consecrate yourselves, therefore, and be sacred, because I am Yahveh your God.

Leviticus 20:8 Keep my prescriptions and do them; I am Yahveh who sanctifies you.

Leviticus 20:9 Because anyone who curses his father or his mother will surely be put to death; he has cursed his father or his mother; his blood is upon him.

Leviticus 20:10 “If a man commits adultery with the wife of his neighbor, both the adulterer and the adulteress will surely be put to death.

Leviticus 20:11 If a man lies with his father’s wife, he has uncovered his father’s nakedness; both of them will surely be put to death; their blood is upon them.

Leviticus 20:12 If a man lies with his daughter-in-law, both of them will surely be put to death; they have committed perversion; their blood is upon them.

Leviticus 20:13 If a man lies with a male as with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination; they will surely be put to death; their blood is upon them.

Leviticus 20:14 If a man takes a woman and her mother also, it is an immoral act; he and they will be burned with fire, that there may be no immorality among you.

Leviticus 20:15 If a man lies with an animal, he will surely be put to death, and you will kill the animal.

Leviticus 20:16 If a woman approaches any animal and lies with it, you will kill the woman and the animal; they will surely be put to death; their blood is upon them.

Leviticus 20:17 “If a man takes his sister, a daughter of his father or a daughter of his mother, and sees her nakedness, and she sees his nakedness, it is a disgrace, and they will be eliminated in the sight of the children of their people. He has uncovered his sister’s nakedness, and he will be responsible for his violation.

Leviticus 20:18 If a man lies with a woman during her menstrual period and uncovers her nakedness, he has made naked her fountain, and she has uncovered the fountain of her blood. Both of them will be eliminated from among their people.

Leviticus 20:19 You will not uncover the nakedness of your mother’s sister or of your father’s sister, because that is to make naked one’s relative; they will be responsible for their violation.

Leviticus 20:20 If a man lies with his uncle’s wife, he has uncovered his uncle’s nakedness; they will be responsible for their failure; they will die destitute.

Leviticus 20:21 If a man takes his brother’s wife, it is impurity. He has uncovered his brother’s nakedness; they will be destitute.

Leviticus 20:22 “You will therefore keep all my prescriptions and all my judgments and do them, that the land where I am bringing you to stay may not vomit you out.

Leviticus 20:23 And you will not walk in the prescriptions of the nation that I am driving out from your face, because they did all these things, and therefore I detested them.

Leviticus 20:24 But I have said to you, ‘You will inherit their land, and I will give it to you to possess, a land flowing with milk and honey.’ I am Yahveh your God, who has divided you from the peoples.

Leviticus 20:25 You will therefore separate the pure animal from the contaminated, and the contaminated bird from the pure. You will not make your throats taboo by animal or by bird or by anything with which the ground crawls, which I have divided for you to consider contaminated.

Leviticus 20:26 You will be sacred to me, because I Yahveh am sacred and have divided you from the peoples, that you should be mine.

Leviticus 20:27 “A man or a woman who is a medium or a necromancer will surely be put to death. They will be stoned with stones; their blood will be upon them.”

Leviticus 20 quotes:

“In the Bible’s warnings about the wrong use of sexual desire (outside of marriage), it speaks of sexual intercourse as though it were “uncovering the nakedness” of a person (cf Leviticus 18). Leviticus 20:11, in dealing with incest, says, “The man who lies with his father’s wife has uncovered his father’s nakedness; both of them shall surely be put to death.” The words “imcover the nakedness” are not simply references to nudity, but are primarily statements dealing with sexual intercourse outside of Imarriage.”

Hocking, D. L. (1990). The moral catastrophe. Harvest House Publishers. p. 119.

“Having sexual relations with an animal (bestiality) is a sin condemned in strong language here and in other places in Scripture. One of the laws given by God shortly after the giving of the Ten Commandments said, “Anyone who has sexual relations with an animal must be put to death” (Exodus 22:19). The same penalty is demanded in Leviticus 20:15,16. Later after the Israelites had settled in the land of Canaan one of the curses to be spoken by the people assembled on Mount Ebal was “Cursed is the man who has sexual relations with any animal” (Deuteronomy 27:21).”

Lenz, Mark J. Leviticus. Northwestern Pub. House, 1988. p. 164.

“In Leviticus 19, the Ten Commandments are applied to various areas of life; in Leviticus 20, the penalties are stated that must be imposed on those who disobey His commandments. God expected His people to take His law seriously and to apply the penalties obediently and without favoritism.”

Wiersbe, Warren W. Leviticus : Becoming “Set Apart” for God. First edition, David C Cook, 2015. p. 81.

Leviticus 20 links:

both of them
consecrate or curse
devotion and separation
just looking
modern Molech
no immorality among you
they did all these things

Maranatha Daily Devotional – Thursday, April 4, 2019
Maranatha Daily Devotional – Tuesday, April 6, 2021

LEVITICUS in Jeff’s library

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. ³I said, “I will remember God while I groan; I will think about him while my strength leaves me.” ( Selah) ⁴You 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. ⁷I 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?” ¹⁰Then I said, “I am sickened by the thought that the sovereign One might become inactive. ¹¹I will remember the works of the LORD. Yes, I will remember the amazing things you did long ago! ¹²I will think about all you have done; I will reflect upon your deeds!” ¹³O God, your deeds are extraordinary! What god can compare to our great God? ¹⁴You are the God who does amazing things; you have revealed your strength among the nations. ¹⁵You 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. ¹⁷The 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. ¹⁹You walked through the sea; you passed through the surging waters, but left no footprints. ²⁰You 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