Bible in 90 Days - Day 9 (Leviticus 14:33-26:26)

Guide us, O God,

by your Word and Spirit,

that in your light we may see light,

in your truth find freedom,

and in your will discover your peace,

through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.

 

 

There are some challenging laws in today's reading – laws that are very foreign to our ears. How do we put these in some sort of framework that makes sense for us? We believe, as we read in 2 Timothy 3:16-17, that “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that all God’s people may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.” Somehow these passages are given to us by God for those purposes. There are some people who divide the Bible into pieces and say that some pieces were only relevant during certain time periods. As Reformed Christians we don’t do that. We see all of the Bible as God’s unfolding of his grace and the story of salvation. Some part of the salvation story is being unfolded here, even if we aren’t bound by the details of these laws anymore.

God’s means of relating to his people is his covenant. God makes promises to his people, and he tells his people what is required on their part. The Law is the blueprint for the people to live within the covenant. The Law shows people what it means to be set apart for God (“holy” means “set apart”). At the end of all of the explanation of the Law, God tells what the blessing will be for keeping it (26:3-13), what the penalty will be for breaking it (26:14-39), and how God remains faithful and waiting (26:40-45). The important thing is that all of this is framed within the covenant. God remains faithful to the covenant even when the people aren’t. “LORD” or “YHWH” is God’s covenant name. Did you notice that from chapter 18 to the end of 26 God says, “I am the LORD” 50 times? It is as if every time there is some rule that seems arbitrary where the people might say, “really?” God is reminding them of this promise: “I am your God; you are my people.”

The Law also tells how to keep the camp safe for God’s presence to stay in it. Leviticus 16:16 is a good picture of how this all ties together. The high priest must “make atonement for the Most Holy Place because of the uncleanness and rebellion of the Israelites, whatever their sins have been. He is to do the same for the Tent of Meeting, which is among them in the midst of their uncleanness.” The sin of the people taints even the most holy place of the tabernacle, so the people must always be aware that holiness and sin do not live together. Sin must be cleansed for God’s presence to be welcome.

Two other interesting notes:

1. The Festival of Weeks that begins in 23:15 is the festival known in the New Testament as Pentecost. That was the reason that we read in Acts 2:5 “Now there were staying in Jerusalem God-fearing Jews from every nation under heaven.” That was one of the times when Jews were commanded to gather at the temple.

2. God has a different idea of “private property” than we have in our country: 25:23-24 – “The land must not be sold permanently, because the land is mine and you are but aliens and my tenants. Throughout the country that you hold as a possession, you must provide for the redemption of the land.” That puts real perspective on what we mean when we say that everything we have is really God’s. He is simply lending it to us.

Keep on keeping on, and may God bless you as you read his Word.