Learning God

Leviticus

Worship God

Summary  |  About  |  Why You Should Read it  |  Author  |  When Written |  Context  |  Timeline  |  Location  |  Outline  |  Observations  |  Resources


Summary

Leviticus serves as a manual for the Israelites on how to live as a holy people in covenant with God. Leviticus focuses on laws, rituals, and priestly duties, emphasizing the importance of holiness, purity, and obedience to God’s commandments. The key themes include the following:

  1. Sacrificial System (Chapters 1-7)
  2. Priestly Duties and Consecration (Chapters 8-10)
  3. Laws on Cleanliness (Chapters 11-15)
  4. Day of Atonement (Chapter 16)
  5. Holiness Code (Chapters 17-26)
  6. Blessings and Curses (Chapter 26)
  7. Vows and Dedications (Chapter 27)

The following table provides a summary of the structure and contents of the book of Leviticus.


About

Leviticus is the third book of the Torah (Hebrew), also known as the Pentateuch (Greek), written by Moses.  This collection is commonly referred to as “The Law”.  


Why You Should Read It

Leviticus, though often seen as a challenging book due to its detailed laws and rituals, holds significant value for Christians. According to leading Christian scholars, here are several reasons why Christians should read Leviticus:

  1. Understanding God’s Holiness: Leviticus emphasizes the holiness of God and His desire for His people to be holy. This theme helps Christians grasp the seriousness of sin and the lengths God goes to make a way for people to approach Him. It reveals God’s character—His justice, mercy, and the requirement for holiness.
  2. Foreshadowing Christ’s Sacrifice: The sacrificial system outlined in Leviticus points forward to Jesus Christ’s ultimate sacrifice on the cross. The various offerings, especially the sin and guilt offerings, prefigure the atonement made by Christ. Understanding these sacrifices deepens appreciation for the work of Jesus as the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.
  3. Learning about Worship and Reverence: Leviticus teaches principles of worship, showing that approaching God is not to be taken lightly. For Christians, this underscores the importance of worshipping God with reverence, gratitude, and obedience.
  4. Moral and Ethical Living: The laws in Leviticus cover various aspects of moral and ethical living, such as honesty, justice, sexual purity, and care for the poor. These principles, though given to Israel, reflect God’s unchanging standards of righteousness and provide timeless guidance for Christian living.
  5. Seeing God’s Concern for Community and Justice: Leviticus includes laws that protect the vulnerable, promote social justice, and ensure community well-being. These laws highlight God’s heart for justice and compassion, encouraging Christians to care for others, especially the marginalized.
  6. Understanding the Concept of Clean and Unclean: The laws about cleanliness and uncleanliness teach about separation from sin and the need for spiritual purity. They serve as a vivid reminder of the importance of being spiritually clean before God, a concept fulfilled in Christ.
  7. Learning the Value of Obedience: The blessings and curses section demonstrates the importance of obedience to God’s commands. For Christians, this underscores that obedience leads to blessings and that faith must be lived out in action.
  8. Appreciating the Continuity of Scripture: Reading Leviticus helps Christians see the continuity between the Old and New Testaments. It shows how the Old Testament law, rituals, and priesthood find their fulfillment in Jesus Christ, deepening one’s understanding of the Bible as a unified story of God’s redemption plan.

Overall, Leviticus enriches a Christian’s faith by providing a deeper understanding of God’s holiness, the gravity of sin, and the beauty of Christ’s redemptive work. It challenges believers to live lives of holiness, gratitude, and reverence for God.


Author

Despite all of the debate over this topic, there is a simple and clear answer to this question, assuming you believe Jesus is the Son of God.  Jesus said himself, the answer is Moses, when he said, “And beginning at Moses and all the prophets, he expounded unto them in all the scriptures the things concerning himself.” (Luk 24:27 KJV).  It is generally accepted that Moses is the author of the first 5 books, known in Hebrew as the Torah and in Greek as the Pentateuch.   

There are those who argue against this.  The Documentary Hypothesis (Graf-Wellhausen Hypothesis) says that the Torah was compiled by later editors: J (Jehovahist, Yahwist); E (Elohist); D (Deuteronomic source); and, P (Priestly source). This hypothesis was created without any compelling historical, linguistic or textual evidence and has been shredded by Oswalt T. Allis, R.N. Whybray, E.J. Young, Umbertos Cassuto, R.K. Harrison, Kenneth A. Kitchen and others.

“Do not think that I will accuse you to the Father: there is one that accuseth you, even Moses, in whom ye trust. For had ye believed Moses, ye would have believed me: for he wrote of me. But if ye believe not his writings, how shall ye believe my words?” – John 5:45-47


When Written

1446 – 1406 BC

This topic is hotly debated among the best Christian scholars because there is more than one way to interpret the chronology.  The issue is that most of the ways result in issues with one or more of the biblical statements regarding such dating.  What is presented here is our best understanding of the various chronologies that enable the logic and mathematics to align so that all biblical statements are true and accurately add up to the dates presented.  As such, the dating of the Exodus used by LearningGod.org assumes it took place in 1446 B.C. as shown in the timeline below.  The timeline shows from the birth of Abraham, which is shortly before the dating related verses begin.  The timeline reflects the 430 year period referred to Exodus 12:40 and the 400 year period of Genesis 15:13 and Acts 7:6.  It also shows the 480 year period after the Exodus until the building of the Temple referred to in 1st Kings 6:1.

Leviticus was written following the giving of the Law in Exodus 20.  Moses wrote and compiled the contents of all five books of the Law by the end of the wilderness wanderings, before the Israelites entered into the promised land, as described in the verse below.

“Take this Book of the Law, and put it beside the ark of the covenant of the LORD your God, that it may be there as a witness against you;” – Deu 31:26


Context

Moses had been called out of his own personal exile to lead a family of slaves to freedom from a harsh empire.  Egypt was at the pinnacle of their power at this time and was ruler of the known world.  The family descended from Abraham and had grown exponentially during their roughly 400 years of captivity.  This family knew nothing but slavery and Moses was challenged with getting Pharaoh to free them.  Moses was the second in command in Egypt before fleeing into exile 40 years earlier.  He was familiar with the Egyptian might and knew he had a challenging task before him.  It was only by the power of God that they would be freed. 


Timeline

The timeline below shows from the birth of Abraham until the Temple.


Location

Leviticus was written after Moses received the Law at Mt Sinai and before the Israelites entered Canaan.  Archeological evidence suggests that Mt Sinai, also known biblically as Mt Horeb, is east of the Sinai Peninsula. 


Outline

I.   The Five Main Offerings (chs. 1-7)

  1. The Burnt Offering (ch. 1)
  2. The Grain Offering (ch. 2)
  3. The Fellowship Offering (ch. 3)
  4. The Sin Offering (4:1;5:13)
  5. The Guilt Offering (5:14;6:7)

II.  Additional Regulations for the Offerings (6:8;7:38)

  1. The Installation and Ministry of Aaron and His Sons (chs. 8-10)
  2. The Ordination of Aaron and His Sons (ch. 8)
  3. The Ministry of the Priests (ch. 9)
  4. The Death of Nadab and Abihu and Attendant Regulations (ch. 10)

III. The Distinction Between Clean and Unclean (chs. 11-15)

  1. Clean and Unclean Food (ch. 11)
  2. Purification After Childbirth (ch. 12)
  3. Regulations for Skin Diseases (13:1-46)
  4. Regulations for Mildew (13:47- 59)
  5. Cleansing from Skin Diseases (14:1-32)
  6. Cleansing from Mildew (14:33- 57)
  7. Discharges That Cause Uncleanness (ch. 15)

IV. The Annual Day of Atonement (ch. 16)

V.   Holy Living (chs. 17-26)

  1. Eating Blood Prohibited (ch. 17)
  2. Unlawful Sexual Relations (ch. 18)
  3. Various Laws for Holy Living (ch. 19)
  4. Punishments for Sin (ch. 20)
  5. Regulations for Priests (21:1;22:16)
  6. Acceptable and Unacceptable Sacrifices (22:17-33)
  7. The Annual Feasts (ch. 23)
  8. Rules for Oil and Bread in the Tabernacle (24:1-9)
  9. Punishment for Blasphemy (24:10-23)
  10. The Sabbath and Jubilee Years (ch. 25)
  11. Covenant Blessings and Curses (ch. 26)

VI.  Regulations for Offerings Vowed to the Lord (ch. 27)


Observations

  • Leviticus is God’s guidebook for His newly redeemed people. It shows the Israelites:
    • How to worship God.
    • How to serve God.
    • How to obey God.
  • Leviticus does not deal with the Levites as a whole, but more with a segment of the Levites . . . the priests.
  • 56 times in the 27 chapters of Leviticus, it is stated that God imparted these laws to Moses.
  • No geographical movement takes place in Leviticus. The Israelites remain at Mt. Sinai.
  • Leviticus contains very little narrative. It consists almost entirely of regulations for governing the relationship between God and Israel.
  • A major message of Leviticus is the holiness of God and how sinful man can approach Him.
  • The idea of “holiness” appears some 87 times in Leviticus.
  • To be holy means to be “set apart” or “Separated.” The Israelites were to be separated from other nations unto God.
  • The way to God was through a blood sacrifice.
    • Leviticus 17:11 – “For the life of the flesh is in the blood, and I have given it to you upon the altar to make atonement for your souls; for it is the blood that makes atonement for the soul.”
    • The blood sacrifices remind the worshippers that because of sin, the Holy God requires the costly gift of life.”
    • The blood of the innocent sacrificial animal become the substitute fo the life of the guilty offender.
  • Various kinds of offerings in Leviticus include:
    • Burnt offerings
    • Meal offerings
    • Peace offerings
    • Sin offerings

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