Ancient Israel’s Guide to

Religion 101: History and Religion of Israel

THE BOOK OF LEVITICUS: Israel’s Guide to Holy Living Hammurabi receiving the law

from Shamash

Religion 101: History & Religion of Israel

THE BOOK OF LEVITICUS

Ancient Israel’s Guide to

Holy Living


THE BOOK OF LEVITICUS: Israel’s Guide to Holy Living

Clean Unclean

Holy eating at Topanga Mall

• Hamburgers

• Roast beef sandwich

• Chicken sandwich;

fried chicken

• Pizza with cheese,

vegetables, anchovies

• French fries

• Gyro sandwich; shish-

ka-bob

• Pizza with sausage,

pepperoni, or

Canadian bacon

• Shrimp, crab, lobster

• Baked potato with

bacon or chili/cheese

• Egg roll with pork;

sweet and sour pork

• Alligator or rattlesnake



The holiness cycle

Common Holy

Clean Unclean

Profane Defile

Sanctify Cleanse

Chart adapted from A. Hill & J. Walton, A Survey of the Old Testament (Zondervan, 1991)



Sacrifices

Purify

sanctuary

Purification

(“Sin”) Offering

Pay reparations Guilt Offering

Celebrate God’s

care

Shalom (“Peace”)

Offering

Gift to God Cereal Offering

Daily gift to

God

Whole Burnt

Offering

Purpose Sacrifice

Thanks-

giving

Votive

Freewill



Cleansing a “leper” • First day

– Ensure disease is gone

– Kill bird; dip second bird, wood, string in blood

– Sprinkle blood on “leper”

– Wash clothes, shave, bathe

– Live outside tent 7 days

• Seventh day – Wash clothes, shave, bathe

• Eighth day – Guilt offering + grain offering

– Purification (“sin”) offering

– Burnt offering



The ritual calendar

Wilderness

guidance

Fall (Sept 20–27,

2002)

Booths

(Sukkot)

Forgiveness Fall (Sept 16,

2002)

Day of Atonement

(Yom Kippur)

Beginning of

grain harvest

Late Spring (May

16–18, 2002)

Weeks

(Shavuot)

Exodus from

Egypt

Spring (March 28–

Apr 4, 2002)

Passover (Pesach)

Celebrates Time of Year Festival



Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur)

• Killed

• Blood into sanctuary

• Blood used for

“atonement”

• No confession

• For uncleanness of

sanctuary (Lev 16:16)

• Carries no sin

• Exiled alive

• Blood not shed

• Blood not used at all

• Confession of sin

• For offenses of people

(Lev 16:21)

• Carries sin away

The Lord’s goat Azazel’s goat



Structure of Leviticus 26

Equity 27

Redemption

1-9

Things given to

the Lord 10

Holy Place

defiled

11

Blemish

16

Atonement

18

Sex, Molech 19

Equity

20

Sex, Molech

21-22

Blemish

23

Atonement

24

Holy Name

defiled

25

Things belonging

to the Lord



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