The Literary Structure of Leviticus (TBH)

TheBiblicalHistorian2/1(2006)11—28

-11-

THELITERARYSTRUCTUREOFLEVITICUS

MosheKlinechaver.com

ABSTRACTMary Douglas argues in Leviticus as Literature

thatʺBible studentshave tochoosebetweenacceptingthe muddle made by imposing a Western linearreadinguponanarchaictext,ortryingtoreadthebookthroughitsownliteraryconventions.”Shegivesmanyexamples of how to read a text “through its ownliterary conventions,” as well as a broad overview inthe form of an analogical reading. In this paper, Isubstantiate Douglas’ approach by systematicallydefining the twenty‑two literary units that composeLeviticus,aswellas the larger structure that connectsthem.Eachof the twenty‑twounitshasa similarnon‑linear structure that can be viewed as a table. Theinclusive structure of Leviticus is composed of threeconcentric arrays of units, with Lev 19 at the focus.Each array has a common organizing element. Theoutermost array is place‑oriented; themiddle array istime‑oriented; the inner array is person‑oriented. Thefocus,chapter19,isholiness.Theimagecreatedbythisarrangement is a holy core that emanates outwardsthrough successive arrays of person, time and place.This structure can be interpreted as an analogicalrepresentation of the Tabernacle with chapter 19paralleltotheArkoftheCovenant,theinnerarraytheHoly ofHolies, themiddle array theHolyPlace, andthe outer array the courtyard. The experience ofreadingLeviticus,accordingtothisanalogy,placesthereaderinapositionanalogoustotheHighPriestonthe

Day of Atonement. Like the High Priest, the readerfollows the innerpath to holiness at the center of thebook, passing through the courtyard and the HolyPlacetotheHolyofHolies.Thispathisreversedinthesecondhalfasthereader‑HighPriestreturnstosocietywhenexitingtheTabernacle.

INTRODUCTION

Anotherpossibilityagain[forexplainingthesourceof Leviticus] is suggested by the studied eleganceand powerfully contrived structure. A literarycompositionthatissoimpressivecouldsuggestthatwriting a theological treatise was the fullachievement.Theskepticallikelihoodthatthebookis a beautiful fantasy, a vision of a life that neverwas,hangsheavilyovertheinterpretation.1

Likeananthropologistcuttingthroughthebushtodiscovera lost civilization,MaryDouglas has openedupanewpathforBiblicalresearch,throughthejungleof source criticism. In the first four chapters ofLeviticus as Literature she demonstrates that ʺBiblestudentshavetochoosebetweenacceptingthemuddlemade by imposing aWestern linear reading upon anarchaictext,ortryingtoreadthebookthroughitsownliterary conventions.” 2 She argues for an ʺanalogicalʺreadingofLeviticusmost convincingly, displayinganextraordinarily far‑reaching scholarship. Doubtless,such a reading will lead to places yet to be explored

1MaryDouglas,LeviticusasLiterature,(Oxford:OUP,1999)7.2ibid.,51.

TheBiblicalHistorian

-12-

and theories that will conflict with the currentlyacceptedʺmuddleʺ.

InthelastthreechaptersofLeviticusasLiterature(10—12),Douglas offers her own analogical overviewofthewholeofLeviticus,comparingittothestructureof the Tabernacle. Intuitively, the imagery fits. Theredactor of Leviticus could not have found a moreappropriate structural analogy than the Tabernacle.Thiscompellinganalogyinvitesfurtherexplorationofthe structure of Leviticus. Douglas herself has statedthe ground rule for structural analysis: ʺEverythingdepends on how clearly the units of structure areidentified.ʺ3 She explains the importance of clearlydefinedunits inherbookonNumbers: ʺIf theanalystcan manage not to take responsibility either forselecting theunitsofstructure,orfortheprinciplesofrelationshipbetweentheunitsof the text, theanalysisof the structurewillbemore secure. The safeguard isto have some principle of selection that makes theinterpretationaworkofdiscovery,notofcreation.ʺ4Inthispaper,IwillattempttoexpandDouglasʹargumentwith a clear definition of the units of structure thatmake the interpretation of Leviticus a work ofdiscovery. Based on these units, I will offer amodificationofheranalogicalreading.

THELITERARYUNITS

Leviticus contains twenty‑two well‑defined

literaryunits,whereasprintedBibles divide the bookinto twenty‑sevenchapters.Toavoidconfusion, IwillrefertomyunitsasUnitsandmarkthemwithRomannumerals.Nearlyallof thediscrepanciesare found inthefirsttenchapters,whichreducetofourUnits.UnitIincludeschapters1—3,IIincludes4—5,IIIspans6—7, and IV covers 8—10. The first threeUnits describedifferent aspects of the sacrificial system. The fourthcontains an extendednarrativedescribedbyMilgromasʺtheinaugurationofthecult.”5Anotherplacewherethe division by chaptersmust be modified is chapter22.IreadthischapterastwoUnits,consistingofverses1—25 and 26—33, respectively. Thisdivision is basedon the subjectmatter of the twoUnits.Oncewehaveidentified22:26—33asaseparateUnit,itssimilarityto

3MaryDouglas,InTheWilderness(Oxford,OUP,2001),PrefacetothePaperbackEdition,xxiii4ibid,945JacobMilgrom,Leviticus1—16(NewYork,TheAnchorBible,1991)491

chapter12becomesapparent.Bothconsistofjusteightverses, containing birth, seven days after birth, theeighthday,andsacrifice.ThesimilaritybetweenthesetwoUnitswillplayanimportantroleinidentifyingtheoverall structure.Aminoradjustmenthas tobemadebetween chapters 13 and 14. While they remain twoliteraryUnits,theendofchapter13,verses47—59areproperlypartoftheUnitthatincludeschapter14.

AsrecommendedbyDouglas,theidentificationofthe literary Units is based upon “some principle ofselection that makes the interpretation a work ofdiscovery, not of creation.” The principle of selectionthat I have employed to identify the Units is itself adiscovery. Each of theUnits has its ownwell‑definedstructure. IhavedefinedeachUnitas such,onlyafterfirst identifying its internal structure. At this point, itmaysoundasifwearelookingatapotentialregressioadinfinitum.IhaveproposedidentifyingthestructureofLeviticusby identifying itsUnits.NowI claim thateachof theseUnitshas its ownstructure.Moreover, Iwill further state that the structure of each Unit isdefined in turnby the structure of its components! Inordertoavoidtheregression,Iwillintroduceaformof“literarycalculus.”

Leviticusdisplaysleveluponleveloforganizationina“powerfullycontrived structure.”6Therefore, it isnotcomposedofasinglesetofunits,butratherasetofsets. Each level oforganization isbasedupon its ownset of units. In order to speak about “the structure ofLeviticus,”wemusthaveanunderstandingof severallevelsoforderandthesetofunitsassociatedwitheachlevel. Once we have established the levels oforganization, we can apply the “literary calculus” todefinethemostusefulsetofparametersfordescribingtheoverallstructureofLeviticus.

As I have mentioned, on one level Leviticusdivides into twenty‑two structurally similar Units. IwillrefertotheinternalorganizationoftheseUnitsasthemicrostructures ofLeviticus,and thearrangementoftheUnitstogetherasthemacrostructure.Thekeytoapplying Douglas’ “discovery” method to Leviticusappeared when I discovered that the macrostructureemploys the same rules of organization as themicrostructures.Thedevelopmentofacommonsetofrulesforthesetwolevelsofstructureistheresultofananalyticprocess that I haveplayfully termed“literarycalculus.”Thesimilaritytothetruecalculusisfoundin

6Douglas,Leviticus,7

Kline:Leviticus

-13-

theneedtopostulateasmallestquantum,orintextualterms,“theprimepericope.”Thisisthesmallestblockof text which is structurally significant. Like a primenumber, it can not be divided into factors. I willexplain now in basic outline just how these primepericopes are organized in six levels of ascendingcomplexity. For consistencywith later sections of thisarticle, Iwill refer to somegroupsof textualelementsas“rows”and“tables”. Iwill explain thesignificanceofthesetermsafterIpresentallsixlevelsoforder.

THELEVELSOFORDER

a.PrimePericope

1 b.RowofPrimePericopes(dyadsortriads)

1 2 or

1 2 3 c.TableofPrimePericopes:Unit

1 2 3 4 5 6 = Unit 7 8 9

Thefirstthreelevelsoforderareillustratedabove,

beginning with the prime pericope (a). The secondlevel of organization (b) connects two or three primepericopes in a set, or row.All of theprimepericopescombinewith one or two other consecutivepericopestoformeitheradyadoratriad.Thenextleveloforder(c) combines consecutive rows of pericopes in tables.ThisisthelevelwhichIhavetermedUnits.EachUnitismadeupofdyad‑rowsortriad‑rows.Ofthetwenty‑two Units, only two combine both dyads and triadswithin the same Unit. The other twenty are allhomogenous, eleven containing only triads and nineonlydyads.Thearrangementof thedifferent types ofUnits is one of the objective criteria for defining thestructure.Forexample, the first threeUnitsall consistexclusively of triads, while the next three consistexclusively of dyads. We will now see how the

macrostructure, the arrangement ofUnits, reflects themicrostructure,thestructureofasingleUnit.

c.Unit

Unit

d.RowofUnits

U1

U2

U3

e.TableofUnits

U1

U2

U3

U4

U5

U6

U7

U8

U9

TheUnitsare tothemacrostructureasthe“primepericopes”are to themicrostructure.Justas theprimepericopes (a) of the microstructure form rows (b), sotoodotheUnits(c)combinetoformrowsofUnits(d)in the macrostructure. One difference between therowsof consecutiveprimepericopes (b)and the rowsof consecutive Units (d) is that the Unit‑rows are alltriads, while the pericope‑rows are divided betweentriads and dyads. For clarity, Iwill refer to theUnit‑rows asUnit‑triads. TheUnit‑triad (d) combineswithtwo more Unit‑triads to create a table of Unit‑triadscontainingthreeUnit‑triads(e).

We can now see that the organization of themacrostructure in levels c—e precisely reflects theorganizationofthemicrostructureinlevelsa—c.Thereis one more level of order (f) to take into account inordertograsptheoverallplanofLeviticus.ThelargeststructureinthebookisbasedontwonineUnittables.


-14-

Thetwotablesformanintroversionaroundchapter19,asthefollowingdiagramillustrates:

f.Thenineteen‑Unitintroversion

U1 U2 U3 U4 U5 U6 U7 U8 U9

Chapter 19 U91 U81 U71 U61 U51 U41 U31 U21 U11

Thisstructureaccountsfornineteenofthetwenty‑two Units. The three remainingUnits are not part oftheintroversion.Interestingly,thethree“superfluous”Unitsalldealexclusivelywithimpurities.Itisasiftheredactor had stated that the symmetrical structure ispure,and that theasymmetry createdby theadditionof the Units on impurities makes the structure itselfimpure. The reader, like the priest, must remove theimpurefromthecamp(structure)inordermaintainitspurity.Iwilldevelopthispointtowardstheendofthisarticle when discussing my analogical reading ofLeviticus.

MULTIPLECONTEXTS

Wehavenowcompletedthepreliminarysurveyof

the six levels of order that are utilized to create thestructureofLeviticus.Altogether,eachprimepericopecombineswithotherpericopestoformfiveadditionallevelsoforder(b—f).Eachlevelofordercreatesanewcontext within which a given pericope has to beunderstood. It follows, that the redactor formulatedand honed each pericope to functionwithin multiplestructural contexts. Any given term within thepericopecanserve to connect thepericopewith otherpericopesonanyofthelevelsoforder;multiplelevelsoforganizationcreatemultiplecontexts.Douglas’wasquite accurate in describing Leviticus as having a“powerfully contrived structure.”7 Iwill explain nowtwomorestructural contexts in the tablesof levels (c)and(e).


TABLES

TheUnits of themicrostructure (c) and the tablesofthemacrostructure(e)shareaformalsimilarity;theycanbothbereadastables.Iwillillustratethispointbymeansofthefollowingdiagram.

L

M

R

א אLא (1)Mא (2)R(3) ב בLב (4)Mב (5)R(6) ג גLג (7)Mג (8)R(9)

Table1.LiteraryTable

The rowsoftheabove table representconsecutiveblocks of text (as indicated by the numbers inparentheses) and are marked by consecutive letters,.ג—א The columns aremarked asL(eft)M(iddle) andR(ight). When the text is arranged in this format,consistencies appear in the columns as well as in therows.ThecontentofeachprimepericopeinaUnit(c),aswellas thecontent ofeachUnit ina table ofUnits(e), is a function of the intersection of two planninglines, its rowandcolumn.Thecompoundlabels, suchas ,Lא indicate that the specific element, primepericopeorUnit, isacompoundcomposedof the”א“conceptwhich includesMא,Lאand,Rא and the “L”concept,whichincludesLב,Lאand.LגInthismanner,thetablescanbeseenas“conceptualspace”,Cartesiancoordinate systems inwhich eachpoint (element of atable) isafunctionoftheintersectionoftwoconcepts,itscolumnandrow.

The columns of the Units (c) and the columns ofthe tables ofUnits (e) thus create twomorestructuralcontexts. This brings the total number of structuralcontexts to seven: levels (b)—(f) plus the columns ofthe two levels of tables. The rows of the tables arelevels (b) and (d). A full analysis of the structure ofLeviticus should include a reading of each of thetwenty‑two Units as a table. However, due toconstraints of space, I will discuss only the tables oflevel(e).

CATALOGOFUNITS

In order to facilitate the discussion of the overall

structureofLeviticus,Iwillfirstpresentabriefcatalog

Kline:Leviticus

-15-

ofthetwenty‑twoUnits.Ihaveindicatedinthecatalogthatallof theUnitsexceptXIIIformUnit‑triads(leveld) and have marked these triads A—G in order tomakeiteasiertofollowthenextsectionsofthisarticle.The catalog consists of a structural outline of each ofthe twenty‑two Units indicating the verses of eachprime pericope, a brief heading to each Unit, and ashort descriptions of each pericope‑row. I tried to

followMilgrom’s section headings as far as possible.WhereIchangedhisheadingoraddedadescription,Iindicatedthisbybrackets.Theseoutlinesshouldproveuseful for anyone desiring to investigate theUnits asself‑contained textual elements. The completeformattedHebrewtextcanbedownloadedat:

http://chaver.com/Torah/StructuredLeviticus.htm

THETWENTY‑TWOUNITS

Unit ‑triadA:TheSacrific ia lSystem—allper icoperowstriads

I(1—3)ThreeSpontaneouslyMotivatedPrivateSacrifices

1:1—9 1:10—13 1:14—17 theburntoffering[entirelyforthealtar] 2:1—3 2:4—13 2:14—16 thecerealoffering[primarilyforthepriest] 3:1—5 3:6—11 3:12—17 thewell‑beingoffering[primarilyforthedevotee]

II(4—5)SacrificesRequiredforExpiation

4:1—21 4:22—26 4:27—35 purificationoffering[classifiedbysinners] 5:1—6 5:7—10 5:11—13 graduatedpurificationoffering[classifiedbyobject

offered] 5:14—16 5:17—19 5:20—26 reparationoffering[classifiedbysins]

III(6—7)AdministrativeOrder

6:1—6 6:7—11 6:12—16 [priestlyofferings] 6:17—23 7:1—6 7:7—10 [offeringsofexpiation] 7:11—21 7:22—27 7:28—38 [well‑beingoffering]

Unit ‑triadB–al lpericoperowsdyads

IV(8—10)InaugurationoftheCultandAftermath

8:1—36 9:1—24 consecrationandinauguralservice 10:1—7 10:8—11 [deathforimproperentrytotheTentofMeeting] 10:12—15 10:16—20 eatingofpriestlyportion

V(11)DietLaws

11:1—23 11:24—40 [animals] 11:41—42 11:43—47 [insects]

VI(12)Childbirth

12:1—4 12:5 [lengthofimpurity] 12:6—7 12:8 [purification]


-16-

Unit ‑triadC: ImpuritiesandPurification

VII(13:1—46)[Impurityfrom]ScaleDisease

13:1—8 13:9—17 [“Whenapersonhas…itshallbereported”] 13:18—23 13:24—28 [“Theskinofone’sbody”] 13:29—37 13:38—39 [“Ifamanorawoman”] [צרוע] 46—13:45 44—13:40

VIII(13:47—14:57)Purification

13:47—50 13:51—55 13:56—59 fabrics 14:1—9 14:10—20 14:21—32 [people] 14:33—38 14:39—47 14:48—57 [buildings]

IX(15)GenitalDischarges

15:1—15 15:16—18 male 15:19—24 15:25—33 female

Unit ‑triadD–a l lpericoperowstriads

X(16)DayofPurgation

16:1—2 16:3—22 16:23—28 theritual 16:29—32 16:32—33 16:34 thedate

XI(17)TheSlaughterandConsumptionofMeat

17:1—7 17:8—9 17:10—12 [sacrificial] 17:13—14a 17:14b 17:15—16 [non‑sacrificial]

XII(18)IllicitSexualPractices

18:1—2 18:3—4 18:5 openingexhortation 18:6—16 18:17—21 18:22—23 theprohibitions 18:24—25 18:26—29 18:30 closingexhortation

FocalUnit

XIII(19)Holiness

19:1‑2 19:3 19:4 19:5‑10

19:11‑12 19:13‑14 19:15‑16 19:17‑19a

19:19b 19:20‑22 19:23‑25 19:26‑27 19:28‑30 19:31

19:32 19:33‑34 19:35‑37

Kline:Leviticus

-17-

This Unit has a unique structure, which mirrors

thestructureofthewholebook.It isdividedintotwoblocks,offourpairsandthreepairsrespectively,byaunique triad(19:19b—25).ThismirrorsthedivisionofthebookintosevenUnit‑triads,dividedintoblocksof

four Unit‑triads (A—D) and three Unit‑triads (E—G)by theuniqueUnitXIII. ThisUnit is thesubject ofanarticlewhichcanbeseenindraftat:

http://chaver.com/Torah/TheStoneTabletsofLeviticus19.htm

Unit ‑triadE–al lpericoperowstriads

XIV(20)PenaltiesforMolekWorship,Necromancy,andSexualOffenses

20:1—5 20:6—8 20:9 opening exhortation including penalties for Molekworshipandnecromancy

20:10—12 20:13—16 20:17—21 penaltiesforsexualoffenses 20:22—24 20:25—26 20:27 closingexhortation

XV(21)InstructionsforthePriests

21:1—6 21:7—8 21:9 [allpriests] 21:10—12 21:13—15 21:16—24 theHighPriest

XVI(22:1—25)[SanctifiedObjects]

22:1—2 22:3 22:4—8 [peoplesanctify] 22:9 22:10—16 22:17—25 [Godsanctifies]

Unit ‑triadF–a l lper icoperowsdyads

XVII(22:26—33)[AnimalBirth]

22:26—27 22:28—30 [animalbirth] 22:31 22:32—33 [closingexhortation]

XVIII(23)TheHolidayCalendar

23:1—3 23:4—8 [sevendays] 23:9—14 23:15—22 firstbarleyandwheatofferings 23:23—25 23:26—32 alarmblastsandpurgation 23:33—38 23:39—44 thefestivalofBooths

XIX(24)TabernacleOilandBread;TheCaseofBlasphemy

24:1—4 24:5—9 oilandbread:[thepermanentdisplayintheTentofMeeting] 24:10—12 24:13—23 thecaseoftheblasphemerandtalionlaws

Unit ‑triadG:Redemption

XX(25)Jubilee

25:1—7 25:8—17 25:18—24 [theland] 25:25—28 25:29—34 [property] 25:35—38 25:39—46 25:47—55 [persons]


-18-

XXI(26)BlessingsCursesandtheRecalloftheCovenant

26:1 26:2 [Israel’scommitmenttoGod] 26:3—13 26:14—41 [interactionbetweenGodandIsrael,blessingsandcurses] 26:42—44 26:45—46 [God’scommitmenttoredeemIsrael]

XXII(27)ConsecrationsandtheirRedemption

27:1—8 27:9—13 27:14—15 [requiringpriestlyjudgment] 27:16—25 27:26—29 27:30—34 [notrequiringpriestlyjudgment]

The sizes of pericope‑rows (b) used in the Unit‑triadscreatearecurringpattern.Unit‑triadAcontainsonly triads in its pericope‑rows;Unit‑triad B containsonly dyad pericope‑rows; and Unit‑triad C containsboth dyad and triad pericope‑rows. This pattern isrepeatedinUnit‑triadsE—G:Econtainsonlytriads,FonlydyadsandGbothtypesofpericope‑rows.

THEHOLYPUZZLE

Once the Units have been identified, Leviticus

looks likeapuzzle spreadout on the tablewaiting tobeput together.Ithaswelldefinedparts that seemtolackathematicornarrativethread.Still,itisnottotallylacking in structural hints. The division of the firstseven chapters as they appear in the opening Unit‑triad (A) is generally accepted. The closingUnit‑triad(G) has already been identified by others, includingDouglasandMilgrom,“whereasLev25and27speakofIsrael’sredemptiveresponsibility,Lev26focusesonYHWH’s responsibility, by virtue of the covenant, toredeem Israel.”8 Surely there must be a correlationbetween XII (18) and XIV (20), both ofwhich containextensive lists of forbidden sexual relations. Also, thesimilaritiesinVI(12)andXVII(22:26—33)couldpointto a structural link between them. So too, we canexpecttheretobeaformalconnectionbetweenthetwonarratives,IVandXIX.

Thisconcludestheintroduction.The remainderofthis article has three parts. First, I will outline thestructureofthebookofLeviticusbasedonthetwenty‑two Units. Afterwards I will outline the process ofsolving the puzzle, the process that leads to thediscoveryofLeviticusʹ formal structure.Finally, Iwill 8JacobMilgrom,Leviticus23‑27(NewYork,TheAnchorBible,2000),2409.

brieflyconsider theanalogical reading inherent in thestructure. I will begin now with an outline of thestructurethatwillbedevelopedduringtheanalysis.

PART1: ANOVERVIEWOFTHESTRUCTURE

Unit‑Triads Units

A I II III B IV V VI C VII VIII IX D X XI XII XIII E XIV XV XVI F XVII XVIII XIX G XX XXI XXII

Table2.StructuralOutlineofLeviticus

The outline above showshow theUnits group intoseven triads and one singularUnit, XIII. The analogicalstructuredoesnotincludeUnit‑triad(C),whichcontainsonly material on impurities. The six remaining Unit‑triads compose the two tables of Units in level (e) andcombine to form the level (f) inversion. The twodimensionalnatureofthetablesisbasedonaconsistentrelationshipbetweentheUnitsofeachUnit‑triad.InA,B,andD, thefirstUnitofeachUnit‑triadcanbedescribedas“oriented”towardsGod,asopposedtothethirdUnitwhich is oriented towards people. The middle Unit ofthese Unit‑triads contains material indicating aninteraction between God and people. For example, inUnit‑triadA,UnitIisGod‑oriented,usingthephrase“totheLord”overtwentytimes.UnitIII,ontheotherhand,is people oriented, focusing on priestly prebends. Themiddle Unit, II, demonstrates the connection betweenpeople who sin and God who provides the means forexpiation.Theconsistencyofthisthree‑partarrangementleads to reading Unit‑triads A, B, and D as a table inwhich the columns have the values marked in thefollowingillustration.

Kline:Leviticus

-19-

Unit‑Triads

Units

GodOriented

ConnectingGodandPeople

PeopleOriented

A I II III B IV V VI D X XI XII

Table3.TheOrientationoftheUnitsintheFirstUnit‑Table

The Units in Unit‑triads E—F have a similarrelationship,buttheorderisreversed.

Unit‑Triads

Units

PeopleOriented

ConnectingGodandPeople

GodOriented

E XIV XV XVI F XVII XVIII XIX G XX XXI XXII

Table4.TheOrientationoftheUnitsintheSecondUnit‑Table

The reversed orientation in table 4 is one of thereasonsthatIrefertothestructurethatcombinesthetwotables as an “inversion”. The other components of theinversionareinvertedcontentparallels,chiasms,betweenUnit‑triadsAandG,BandF,andDandE.EachofthesepairsofUnit‑triadscreatesastructuralelementthatIwillcall an “array”. The two Unit‑triads of each array arechiastic. The array is yet another structural context,making a total of eightwith the five hierarchical levels(b—f)andthecolumnsofthetwolevelsoftables(cande). Table 5 demonstrates how the Unit‑triads will beconnectedintheanalogicalreading.

ThreeArrays

The analogical structure consists of three concentricarrays. Eacharray includes twoUnit‑triads:AandG,BandF,DandE.(IwillexplainlaterwhyCisnotincludedin the analogical structure.) The three arrays can bedescribedbytheirrelativepositionsasʺouter,ʺAandG,ʺmiddle,ʺ B and F, and ʺinnerʺD and E. These relativepositions are comparable to the three divisions of theTabernacle. The outer array is parallel to the court, themiddle to theHolyPlace, and the inner to theHoly ofHolies.AtthefocusisXIII(19);itisparalleltotheArkoftheCovenant.ThefirstUnitofeacharrayisconnectedtothepartoftheTabernaclewhichisparalleltothepositionof the array. Unit I, the first Unit in the outer array, ismadeupof sacrifices at the altar in the courtyard.UnitIV, the first Unit of the middle array, includes the firstentry into the Holy Place. Unit X, the first Unit of theinner array, details the entry into the Holy of Holies.Theseare the textual linksconnectingeachof thearrayswith a specific area of the Tabernacle. However, eacharrayalsohasabroaderconceptassociatedwithitwhichmay shed light on the philosophical basis for thearrangementoftheTabernacle.

Eacharrayhasitsownprincipleoforganization.Theouterarrayisdiscernedbyitsplacemarkers: ʺMt.SinaiʺandʺfromtheTentofMeeting.ʺThemiddlearrayistimeoriented:fiveofitsUnitsincludereferencestosevenandeightdays.Theinnerarrayconcernspersons.Fiveofitssix units contain personal obligations or limitationsdeterminedby familial association.At the focus, in XIII(19)isanimperativeforholinesswhichisalsoanimitatiodeus, ʺYou shall be holy, for I, YHWH your God, am

Arrays: Unit‑Triads: Units:

OrganizingPrinciples: Orientation: Place Time Person God G+P People Outer A I

(1—3) II

(4—5) III

(6—7) Middle B IV

(8—10) V (11)

VI (12)

Inner D X (16)

XI (17)

XII (18)

Focus XIII (19)

Inner E XVI (22:1—25)

XV (21)

XIV (20)

Middle F XIX (24)

XVIII (23)

XVII (22:26—33)

Outer G XXII (27)

XXI (26)

XX (25)

Table5.OverviewoftheAnalogicalStructureofLeviticusNotes:1.TheorderofUnitsXIV—XXIIwithintheirrespectiveUnit‑triadsisreversed.2.Unit‑triadC,containingUnitsVII—IX(13—15),hasbeenremoved.


-20-

holy.ʺTakingthefocalpointasthedivinesource,wecanview the movement outward (in both directions) as aseries of Plotinus‑like emanations: person (inner array),time (middle array) and place (outer array). This, inbroad strokes, is the philosophical framework of thethree‑array structure that includes the Tabernaclestructure as one of its parts. An investigation of thenature of thearraysand the relationshipsbetween theirpartswouldthusleadtoanunderstandingofLeviticusasa philosophical/theological treatise. Such a view ofLeviticuswouldjustifyDouglasʹintimation,withwhichI

openedthisarticle,thatʺAliterarycompositionthatissoimpressive could suggest that writing a theologicaltreatisewasthefullachievement.ʺ

TheorganizationofLeviticusinconcentricarraysofinverseparallels issimilartothearrangementofExodusand Numbers which divide into two inversely parallelsections. The first part of Exodus (ch. 1—24) and thesecond part of Numbers (ch. 10—35) contain thehistoricalnarrative.ThesecondpartofExodus(ch.25—40) and the first part of Numbers (ch. 1—9) containTabernacle related material. Therefore, we can see thatorganization in concentric blocks is a fundamental

principleacrossthethreecentralbooksoftheTorah,andnotjustinLeviticus.

The divisions of Exodus and Numbers, takentogether with those of Leviticus, create a structureanalogous to thedesertencampment. Leviticus,with itsthree‑array structure is like the camp of the divinepresence, containing the Tabernacle and its court. Thesecond half of Exodus and the first part of Numbers,which deal with the mechanics of constructing theTabernacleandthefunctionsoftheLevites,areparalleltothe Levitical camp. The first part of Exodus and the

secondpartofNumbers,containingthehistoricalIsraelitenarrative,areparallel to the Israelite camp.So the threecentralbooksoftheTorahcanbeseenasacomplexsetofconcentricarrayssimilartothedesertencampment.

Thetable6demonstratesthatthebooksofExodus,Leviticus and Numbers can be viewed as fiveconcentric arrays around Lev 19 at the focus. Thesecond row of the chart indicates the three largedivisions of Exodus, Leviticus and Numbers: thehistorical narrative, the Tabernacle narrative, and theholy core. The third row points to the encampmentanalogy, which is further detailed in the fourth row.

Book: Exodus‑1Numbers‑2

Exodus‑2Numbers‑1

Leviticus

BookContent:

HistoricalNarrative

TabernacleNarrative

HolyCore(Seeabove)

BookAnalogous

to:

IsraeliteEncampment

LeviticalEncampment

TabernacleEncampment

Concentr icArrays:

Array1:Israelite

Encampment

Array2:Levitical

Encampment

Array3: Courtyard

Array4: HolyPlace

Array5: HolyofHolies

Focus: Ark

Exodus‑1 Exodus‑2 I—III IV—VI X—XII XIII XIV—XVI

XVII—XIX

XX—XXII Numbers‑1 Numbers‑2

Table6.Leviticus’ContextualArrays

Kline:Leviticus

-21-

NowIwilldemonstratehowthestructureofLeviticusisdiscovered,assuggestedbyDouglas.

PART2: DISCOVERINGTHESTRUCTURE

Unit ‑TriadsAandG:TheFramework

When thepartsofapuzzlehavebeenlaidoutforinspection, a person experienced with puzzles looksfor the corners and edge pieces that determine theframework. This approach worked for the Leviticuspuzzle as well. It, too, has four well‑defined corners.The first seven chapters forma coherent block of textthat contains two“corners” in the formofmarkers ofphysicallocation.Theonlytwoplacesinthesechapterswhich refer to God speaking in a specific place arefoundatthebeginning(1:1)andattheend(7:37—38).ThesectionbeginswithGodcallingoutfromtheTentofMeeting:“TheLordsummonedMosesandspoketohim from the Tent of Meeting” (1:1). It ends with areferencetoGodaddressingMosesatMt.Sinai(7:37—38):“Thisistheritualfortheburntoffering,thecerealoffering, the purification offering, the reparationoffering, the ordination offering, and the sacrifice ofwell‑being, which the Lord commanded Moses onMount Sinai, when he commanded the Israelites topresenttheirofferingstotheLord,intheWildernessofSinai” (7:37—38).9 The seven chapters make up threeliteraryUnits,allofwhichdescribedetailsofsacrifices:chapters 1—3describe freewill offerings; 4 and 5 linkspecific sins to sacrifices;6and7describe thepriests’shares of sacrifices. Thisgivesus theupperborder ofthe puzzle. If there is any doubt that we have foundthe upper border, it will be dispelled by the lowerborder.

It was not necessary to look beyond a sectionpreviously identified as a triad by Douglas andMilgrom,Lev25—27, inorder todetermine the lowerborder of the puzzle.10 In this case, each chapter is asingle Unit by my division. The three Units have“redemption” in common. The word itself, gaal,appears tens of times in chapters 25 and 27. It is theend,thefinalstageofdivinehistory,in26.Evenifch.26 does not exactly lend itself to a “redemption”theme,it couldcertainlybeincludedina“reckoning”theme.All threeunits dealwith reckoningpayments,

9Milgrommakesthepointthat“intheWildernessofSinai”referstotheTentofMeeting,creatingclosurewith1:1.SeeMilgrom,Leviticus1—16,438.10Douglas,Leviticus,219;MilgromLeviticus23—27,2409.

monetary payments in 25 and 27, and divine“payments” (rewards and punishments) in 26. Thisbottom row of thepuzzle alsohas clearly identifiableplacemarkersforcorners.Thesectionbothbeginsandends with references to God’s speech at Mt. Sinai:“YHWH spoke to Moses on Mount Sinai” (25:1);“These are the commandments that YHWHcommandedMoses for the Israelites onMount Sinai”(27:34). These “corners” not only fix the limits of theclosingsection,theyalsoverifythe“corners”wefoundon the opening section. The redactor has linked theextremesbymeansofaliterarydevice:themarkersofphysicallocationofdivinespeeches.

The fact that both the opening, I—III (1—7) andclosing XX—XXII (25—27) sections consist of threeUnits, together with the parallel use of “corners”,suggest that we should compare the two triads. Thecomparison leads to the discovery that they form aninvertedparallel,orchiasm.

The first Unit of the upper border, I (1—3),parallels the thirdUnit of the lowerborder,XXII (27).Both describe gifts given to God by a privateindividual. The phrase “for (to) God” appears overthirtytimesinthe two.Similarly,thethirdUnitoftheopeningsection,III(6—7),parallelsthefirstUnitoftheclosing section, XX (25). Both refer to God’s gifts tomen. In III (6—7) He gives the priests shares of Hisofferings.InXX(25)Hegiveslandandfreedomtothepoorand indentured.The centralUnitof the openingtriad, II (4—5) details certain sins, their associatedofferings, and divine forgiveness. The parallel centralUnit in the closing section, XXI (26), details Israel’srewards for observing God’s commandments andpunishment for sins against God. The two triadsdemonstrateacommonplan.Eachcontainsa“mantoGod” vector (I and XXII), a “God to man” vector (IIIand XX), and a central Unit which points to aninteraction between man and God (II and XXI). Theclear chiasticparallels, togetherwith the commonuseof “corners” assure us that we are facing a well‑plannedbook,andapuzzlethatcanbesolved.

Finally,we shouldnote the“places” connected tothe two Unit‑triads (A and G) other than the placeswhere God speaks. All of Unit‑triad A is connectedwiththealtarinthecourtyardoftheTabernacle.Unittriad G contains laws that apply in the land of Israelafter the conquest and not the Tabernacle. Thedistinction between these two places will becomesignificant in the analogical reading.Wewill see that


-22-

the reader, like the High Priest on the Day ofAtonement, begins by focusing inward towards theTabernacle.ContinuingthepathfollowedbytheHighPriest,thereaderturnsaroundinthemiddleandfacesoutwardstowardsthewaitingnation.

Unit ‑TriadsBandF:WithintheFramework

After layingout theupperand lowerborders,we

will continue by trying to fit the inner pieces to theframework. Themethod for findingwhere additionalpieces fit, involves looking for matching shapes, aswell as utilizing the parts of the emerging picture.Nowthatwehaveidentified thechiasticborderrows,we are drawn to compare the first pieces within the

border, IV (8—10) on the top, and XIX (24) on thebottom.Theyhavesimilarbeginnings.

IV(Lev8—10) XIX(Lev24) 8:2 Take (kach) Aaronand his sons with him,the vestments, theanointing oil, thebullof purification offering,the two rams, and thebasket of unleavenedbread

24:2 Command theIsraelitestobring(kach)youclearoil of bea ten olives … 5 You shall take (kach )semolina and bake it(into)twelveloaves

BothUnitshavecommandstobringoilandbreadnear the beginning. These Units include the onlynarrativesinLeviticus,thedeathsofAaron’ssonsandtheEgyptian’s son.MaryDouglashasidentified thesenarratives as turning points or milestones withinLeviticussincetheymarkthebeginningandendofthematerial within the framework defined by the

TOPBORDER

Corner Corner A I(1—3) II(4—5) III(6—7)

Place

Referen

ce

1:1 The Lord summoned Mosesand spoke tohim from theTentofMeeting

7:38whichtheLordcommandedMosesonMountSinai,whenhecommanded the Israelites topresent their offerings to theLord,intheWildernessofSinai.

Vector

FrommantoGod ʺForYHWHʺappears21times

BetweenGodandman4:2Whenapersoninadvertentlydoes wrong in regard to any ofthe Lordʹs prohibitivecommandments 4:22 Thus the priest shall effectpurgation for them that theymaybeforgiven

FromGodtoman 6:10 I have assigned it as theirportionfrommyfoodgifts(andsimilar)

BOTTOMBORDER

G XX(25) XXI(26) XXII(27)

Vector

FromGodtoman25:23 Furthermore, the landmust not be sold beyondreclaim, for the land is mine;you are but resident aliensundermyauthority

BetweenGodandman26:3 If you followmy laws andkeep my commandments andobserve them, 4 I will grant yourains in their season, so that theearthwillyielditsproduce…

FrommantoGodʺForYHWHʺappears16times

Place

Referen

ce

1 YHWH spoke to Moses onMountSinai

34Theseare the commandmentsthat YHWH commanded MosesfortheIsraelitesonMountSinai

Corner Corner Table7.TheBorders

Kline:Leviticus

-23-

referencestoSinai,ourUnit‑triads(A)and (G).11 Thenarratives createtransition pointsto and from theframework, whichis locked in placeby the divinespeech‑placemarkers. Unit IV,containing theinaugural service,marks the firstreference inLeviticustopriestsentering the Tentof Meeting. UnitXIX, containing the description of the permanentdisplay inside the Tent, marks the last reference inLeviticus to the interior of the Tent. The talion lawsincluded in thisUnit emphasize the movement awayfrom the laws of holiness to social concerns. Thetransition points are associatedwith death; the deathinsidetheTentofMeetingof“thoseneartome”(10:3),Aaron’ssons,andthedeathoutsidethecampofGod’senemy,theEgyptian’sson,forblasphemy.

ForthemomentwewillskipthenextUnitsineachdirection,V and XVIII, to consider twoUnits that, aswe have already noted, bear a striking similarity, VI(12) and XVII (22:26—33). They both speak of birth,reinforcingthe“transitions”themewhilebalancingthedeaththemecommontoIVandXIX.

VI(12) XVII(22:26—33)

12:2…whenawomanatchildbirth bears amale, she shall beimpureforsevendays;she shall be impure asduringtheperiodofhermenstrual infirmity. 3On the eighth day theforeskin of his membershall be circumcised… 6 On the completion ofher period ofpurification, for eitherson or daughter, sheshall bring a yearlinglamb for a burnt offering

22:27Wheneveranoxora sheep or a goat isborn, it shall remainseven days with itsmother, and from theeighth day on it willbeacceptableasafood‑gift offering toYHWH.


These Unitsbeginwithabirth;continue with aseven‑day hiatus,and then a detailof the eighth dayand an offering.Another similaritybetweenthesetwoUnits is theirlength. Bothcontain only eightverses, makingthem the smallestUnits in Leviticusbyawidemargin.It seems that theredactor has gonetogreat lengths tocreatetheparallels

in order to define another section of our puzzle/text.The emphasis on seven and eight returnsus toUnitsIV (8—10) and XIX (24). The investment ritual in IVconsists of a seven‑daypreparatoryperiodbefore theappearanceofthedivinefireontheeighthday.InXIX,theshowbread is lefton the table in thesanctuary forsevendaysuntilitiseatenbythepriestsontheeighthday. The full significance of the use of “seven andeight” becomes clearer when we look at the currentstateofthepuzzle.

Justastheouterrowswerelockedinplaceby theplace markers in the corners, the next rows aredetermined by the time markers of seven and eightdays.AsIhavenotedintable8,XXI(26)inthebottomrow also includes a reference to Mt. Sinai, the onlyremaining reference to Sinai in Leviticus. Similarly,XVIII(23)containsa“sevenandeight”:theseven‑dayfestival of Tabernacles and the “eighth day ofassembly”.Botharraysseemtohaveapiecemissingatthesameplace,themiddleofthetoprow.

Triad AnomalousUnits

A I(1—3) Place

II(4—5) No“Place”

III(6—7) Place

B IV(8—10)

Time 7/8

V(11)

No“7/8”

VI(12) Time 7/8

F XVII(22:26—33)

Time 7/8

XVIII(23) Time 7/8

XIX(24) Time 7/8

G XX(25) Place

XXI(26) Place

XXII(27) Place

Table9. Anomalous Units

Unit‑TriadA

I(1—3) Place:TheTent Godoriented

II(4—5)

III(6—7) Place:Mt.Sinai Humanoriented

B

IV(8—10) Time:7and8

PriestlyCeremony,

DeathNarrative

V(11) VI(12) Time:7and8 HumanBirth

F

XVII(22:26—33) Time:7and8 AnimalBirth

XVIII(23) Time:7and8

XIX(24) Time:7and8

PriestlyCeremony,

DeathNarrative G

XX(25) Place:Mt.Sinai

ForMan

XXI(26) Place:Mt.Sinai

BetweenmanandGod

XXII(27) Place:Mt.Sinai

ForGod

Table8.PlaceandTime


-24-

The outer array, theframework, has no placereference in II. Similarly,there is no ʺseven andeightʺ in V. Theseapparent ʺmissing linksʺmaybeahookcreatedbythe redactor in order toverify that the puzzle isbeing put togetherproperly,sincetheyareinthe same place in botharrays,therebytestifyingtotheparallelconstructionofthearrays.

TheVectors

Therelationshipsbetweenboththeborderrows,A

andG, and thepenultimate rows, B andF, are basedon invertedparallelism.Wenoted in the borders thatthe basis for the chiasm was the interplay betweenvectorsofoppositedirections:mantoGod,andGodtoman. The middle Unit of the Unit‑triads seemed tocombinethevectorsoftheextremes.Thechiasmofthepenultimaterowsisevenmorepronounced.Itisbasedon the parallels between the two narrative sections,whichincludedeaths,IVandXIX,andthetwobirths,VI and XVII. Let us see whether the vectors of theborder rows are useful for understanding the nextrows.

The narratives of the insiders, Aaron’s sons, andthe outsider, the Egyptian’s son, both include thepunishmentofdeath foranoffenseagainstGod.Bothof these narratives are placed within Units thatdescribe parts of the sacrificial system, so it wouldseem that they continue the man‑to‑God vector. Thebirth of new creatures, on the other hand, seems tocontinuetheGod‑to‑manvector,asGodis consideredthe source of life. The central element of the secondupper row (V) has two separate parts, dealing withanimalsfromtwodifferentperspectives.Onepartliststhe animals that are permitted to be eaten. The otherpart listsways inwhich animals can be the source ofritual impurity.Food,comingfromGod,indicates theGod‑to‑manvector.Ritualimpurityindicatestheman‑to‑God vector. So here too themiddleUnit combinesthe vectors. Unit XVIII also mixes the vectors, asindicated by its theme: ʺYHWH spoke to Moses,

saying: Speak to theIsraelitesandsaytothem:(Asfor) thefixed timesofYHWH, which you shallproclaim as sacredoccasions, these are myfixed times.” (23:1—2)GodgivesHistimestotheIsraelites (God to man)who then observe thetimes by offering

sacrificestoGod(mantoGod).

The picture is taking shape. We have twoconcentric arrays so far. The outer array is place‑oriented and the next array is time oriented. Eachconsists of twoUnit‑triads.All theUnit‑triads consistof a God‑oriented Unit on one end and a human‑orientedUnitontheotherend.TheUnitinthemiddleofeachUnit‑triad isaconceptualmiddlebetween thetwo poles of orientation. Thus, the relationshipbetween man and God is the recurring theme thatappearsacrossthefourUnit‑triadswehaveplaced.

The discovery of two chiastic arrays containingtwelve of the twenty‑two Units creates certainexpectations regarding the remaining tenUnits. If theremainingUnitsfollowthepatternthathasdeveloped,they too should form concentric chiastic arrays.However, two more arrays like the two we haveidentified would require twelve Units and thereremainonlytentoarrange.OneoftheUnits,XIII(19),is unique collection of laws unlike anything else inLeviticus.SinceitcannotbepairedwithanotherUnit,it could be the focus of the arrays and the literarycenterofLeviticus.ApossiblesignthatitisthecenteristheextremesimilarityofXII(18)andXIV(20),bothof which have extensive lists of forbidden unions.Taking Lev 19 as the center divides the remainingpieces (Units) of the puzzle unequally. It leaves sixUnits unaccounted for before the middle, VII—XII(13—18),andthreeafterit,XIV—XVI(20—22:25).Thisisaproblem.If thestructureis infact symmetrical,asthe chiasms and focal text seem to indicate, how canthere be six more Units to place on one side of thecenterandonlythreeon theother?Beforeweaddressthisproblem,letushaveacloserlookattheremainingpieces and their relationship to the two concentricarrayswehavealreadydetermined.

Unit‑triad

God

Oriented Conceptual

Middle HumanOriented

A Place I(1—3) II(4—5) III(6—7) B Time IV(8—10) V(11) VI(12) Human

Oriented God

Oriented F Time XVII

(22:26—) XVIII(23) XIX(24)

G Place XX(25) XXI(26) XXII(27) Table10.Orientation

Kline:Leviticus

-25-

Unit ‑TriadsDandE:TheThirdArrayUnitsXII(18)andXIV(20)areobviouscandidates

forpartofachiasmsincetheyaresosimilar.UnitXIIlists forbidden relationships and XIV lists thepunishments for them. These two pieces mustsomehow fit together. If they areparts of an array ofUnit‑triads, similar to the two that we have alreadyidentified, the Units that complete the chiasmwouldbeX—XIandXV—XVI:

D X(16) XI(17) XII(18) XIII(19) E XIV(20) XV(21) XVI(22:1—25)

UnitX(16)describestheritualthattheHighPriest

must perform when entering the Holy of Holies, inorder toavoiddeath.Theprospectivechiastic‑parallelUnit,XVI(22:1—25),warnstheprieststhattheirritualresponsibilitiestowardsGodandtheirfellowIsraelitesarelifethreatening.Thismakesaverygoodfitforthechiasm,inlinewiththeoppositeorientationswehavealreadynoted,namelythefirstUnitinUnit‑triadD,X,and the last Unit in Unit‑triad E, XVI, are both Godoriented. Both X and XVIwarn the priests that theycoulddie if theydonotperform their duties towardsGod properly: “The Lord said to Moses: Tell yourbrotherAaron that he is not to come at will into theShrinebehind the curtain, in front of the cover that isupontheark,lesthedie;forIappearinthecloudoverthecover”(16:2);“TheyshallkeepMycharge,lesttheyincur guilt thereby and die for it, having committedprofanation: I theLord consecrate them (22:9).”UnitsXII and XIV are human oriented, limiting sexualunions.

D X(16) DayofAtonement priestlyservice ʺlesthedieʺ

XI(17)

XII(18)ForbiddenIntercourse

XIII(19)

E XIV(20)ForbiddenIntercourse

XV(21)

XVI(22:1—25)Priestsmustbecareful

ʺlestthey…dieʺTable11.ChiasminUnitsDandE

TheUnit‑triadsareinfactchiastic,creatingathirdarray. By comparing them to the chiastic arrays wehave already identified, we can see the similaritybetween them. We have noted that each of the fourpreviousUnit‑triadscontainsdivineorientationononeextreme and human orientation on the other. Both Xand XVI discuss priestly functions vis‑à‑vis thesacrificial system. Units XII and XIV, on the otherhand, deal with the sexual activities of privateindividuals. Again, we see an opposition based onʺGodorientedʺasopposed toʺpeopleoriented.ʺAs intheprevioustwochiasms,theGod‑orientedUnitisontheleftintheupperrowandontherightinthelowerrow.WestillneedtoverifythatXI(17)andXV(21)areconceptualmiddles.

UnitXI(17)dealswithslaughteringanimals.Ithastwo parts. The first part (vv. 1—12) has a ritualcomponent missing in the second part, the altar. Thebloodorfleshoftheanimalcanbeofferedatthealtar.Thesecondsection(vv.13—16)relatestotheanimalasfood; it has no reference to the altar. Thus, the Unitcombines the two orientations. Unit XV (21) is acollection of laws regulating the personal lives of thepriests.Assuch,it isaconceptualmiddlebetweenthesecularlawsofintimacyforindividualsinXIV(20)andthe laws concerning holy foods eaten by the priestsand their households in XVI (22:1—25). We are nowready to see whether the third array continues the“missing‑link”patternwenotedinthefirsttwoarrays.

Triad AnomalousUnits A I(1—3)

PlaceII(4—5)NoPlace

III(6—7)Place

B IV(8—10)Time7/8

V(11)NoTime

VI(12)Time7/8

D X(16)Family

XI(17)NoFamily

XII(18)Family

E XIV(20)

FamilyXV(21)Family

XVI(22:1—25)Family

F

XVII(22:26—33)Time7/8

XVIII(23)Time7/8

XIX(24)Time7/8

G

XX(25)Place

XXI(26)Place

XXII(27)Place

Table12.CommonElementsinArrays


-26-

Ifthethirdarraycontinuesthepatternestablishedbythefirsttwoarrays,thenweshouldfindacommonelement inUnits X, XII, and XIV—XVI. This elementshouldbemissing fromUnitXI.At firstglance, thereappeartobetwoseparatethemesinthefiveUnitsthatshould have a common link: regulations concerningpriests, and regulations limiting sexual intercourse.Upon closer inspection, it can be seen that the fiveUnits all contain references to family relationships.This is obvious in XII, XIV, XV and XVI. It is lessobvious in X, where the high priest’s household ismentioned in 16:6 and 17.His sons are mentioned in16:1 and 32. Therefore, the third array also has asubjectthatappearsinfiveofitssixunits,family.Theanomalous Unit is in the same position as in theprevious two arrays, in the middle of the first triad,Unit XI. The three arrays are locked together by themissing link that appears at the same place in eacharray. The middle and inner arrays are more closelyconnectedthanthemiddleandouterarrays.Thecloseconnectioncanbeseenintable13.

DevelopingtheAnalogy:theCourtyardand

theTent

B

IV(8—10)DeathinTabernacle

V(11)

VI(12)Birth

D X(16)PotentialDeathin

Tabernacle

XI(17)

XII(18)Intercourse

E XIV(20)

IntercourseXV(21)

XVI(22:1—25)

PotentialDeathforDesecration

F

XVII(22:26—33)Birth

XVIII(23)

XIX(24)DeathforBlasphemy

Table13.ConnectionsBetweenInnerArrays

The two inner arrays are tightly linked by birthanddeath.Intercourseintheinnerarray,XIIandXIV,isparalleltobirthinthemiddlearray,VIandXVII.Awarning concerning death in the inner array, X andXVI, isparalleltoanactualdeathinthemiddlearray,IV and XIX. These connections lead to twoobservations.First, theinnerarraysarelinkedlike thechambersoftheTabernacle.Theouterarrayislikethecourtyard, which is open to the sky, while the twochambers of the inner arrays (Tabernacle) share asingle tent. This strengthens the analogy between the

structure ofLeviticusand theTabernacle.Second, theconceptual flow of the text is apparently from themiddle outwards. Reading it this way, intercourseprecedesbirthandthewarningagainstlife‑threateningacts precedes death. This substantiates our earlierobservation that the arrays point to a Plotinus‑likeseries of emanations from the divine core. Takentogether,theseobservationsindicatehowdifferentthenon‑linear reading of Leviticus is from a linearreading.

TheAnomalousUnitsasaKey

The three anomalous Units, II, V, and XI, verify

our observation concerning the close connectionbetween the two inner arrays, aswell as providing akey to theway the redactor viewed the arrays. Thesethree Units have a common subject, animals. In theinner array, Unit XI focuses on the blood ofslaughteredandhuntedanimals. In themiddlearray,UnitVisconcernedwiththefleshofanimals.Thecloserelationship between the inner and middle arraysappears in theconnectionbetweenblood, innerarray,andflesh,middlearray.Theouterarray,UnitII,dealswith the role of animals as offerings, which is afunctionofthespecificmisdeedsofthepersonofferingthe animal. Thus, the threeUnits point to the soul orlife force (nefesh) inXI, body inV and function in II,supportingourviewthatthelogicalorderofthearraysisfromtheinsideout.

TheinsightprovidedbythethreeanomalousUnitspresents Leviticus in an entirely new light. It is notonlyabookaboutholinessandthedivineservice;itisa book of metaphysics. The core concepts are“innerness” and “outerness”, or perhaps immanentand transcendent. The metaphysical concepts are notpartofanexegesisoftheTabernacleanditsfunctions.TheTabernacleisanexemplificationoftheunderlyingmetaphysics,anillustrationofthenatureofbeing.Thestructure thatwehavebegun todiscoveraccordingtothe guidelines set by Mary Douglas should perforceleadtoanentirelynewexegesisofLeviticus.

The new exegesis will take into account the non‑linear plan according to which Leviticus wasconstructed.Wehavebeguntoseehowthenon‑linearstructureisdiscovered.Iwillsummarizenowthemostsignificant features of the three‑array structure. Webeganouranalysisby identifying thebuildingblocks,the Units. They combine to form sub‑structures on

Kline:Leviticus

-27-

threelevels.TheprimarysubstructureistheUnit‑triad.The formal composition includes six Unit‑triads. Thesecond level of organization combines theUnit‑triadsin chiastic pairs, or arrays. The third level integratesthe three pairs of chiastic Unit‑triads into a coherentthree‑array structure. One more element oforganization must be taken into account in the newexegesis.

Triads UnitsA I II IIIB IV V VI

Tablex D X XI XII

E XIV XV XVIF XVII XVIII XIX

Tabley G XX XXI XXIITable14.TwoUnit‑Tables

ThesixUnit‑triadsformtwotables,xandy.A,B,

andDareinx,E—Gareiny.Eachofthesetableshastwo‑dimensionalsense.Boththerowsandthecolumnsrepresent rules of organization. The character of eachUnit is determined by its place in the table; it is afunctionoftheintersectionofitsrowanditscolumn.Iwillillustratethislastpointintable15.

Table15demonstrateshow the fabricofLeviticusiswoven. EachUnit‑triad—A,B, andD—has its owncharacter,whichisassociatedwithitsrelativeposition,outside,middle and inside. Each column has its ownorientation. The left column is God oriented and therightcolumnishumanoriented.Themiddlecolumnisa conceptual middle between the left and right.Column M contains the three Units we marked asanomalous, each focusing on different aspects ofanimals. These threeUnits function as intermediariesbetweentheorientationsoftheleftandrightelementsin each row. Animals are used by the redactor asintermediaries between the God‑oriented and thehuman‑oriented,notjustinthealtarUnit‑triad,A,but

inUnit‑triadsBandDaswell.AsimilarweavecanbeseenintriadsE—G.

The fact that there is a chiastic relationshipbetween the first set of threeUnit‑triads, table x, andthesecondset, tabley, indicates thattheredactorwasworkingwithatleastthreedimensionsinweavingtheUnits of Leviticus into a macrostructure. Eachindividual Unit has three positional attributes thatcontribute to determining its content: its Unit‑triad(row), its placewithin itsUnit‑triad (column), and itstable.

ExtraParts

We have discovered three concentric arrays

focusedonLev19andthebeginningsofananalogicalreading. Where does that leave our puzzle? Threepieces do not seem to fit, Units VII—IX (13—15).Wearelikethemechanicwhohasrebuiltthemotoronlytofind that he has parts left over. Where did he gowrong? How can he correct the situation? Will themotor run anyway? The motor does indeed runbeautifullywithouttheextraparts;sowell,infact,thatone could easily conclude thatUnitsVII—IX (13—15)aretotallysuperfluoustotheoverallplanofLeviticus.

There are some indications that the redactorforesaw the predicament of a reader attempting todecipherthestructureofLeviticus.Oneofthemis theeditorialcommentatthebeginningofLev16(X):ʺafterthe death of the two sons of Aaron who died whenthey encroached upon the presence of the Lord.ʺAccording to the three array structure that we havefound, (without VII—IX), Unit X does in fact comeʺafterthedeathofAaronʹstwosonsʺinIV.However,Iamusingʺafterʺinthesenseofplaceratherthantime.UnitXisplaceddirectlyafterUnitIVinthethree‑arraytable.Infact,aswehaveseen,allthreeUnitsintriadDarecloselylinkedtotheirparallelsintriadB.

Triad Position/Character

Identifier GodOriented ConceptualMiddleAnimalasIntermediary

HumanOriented

L M RA Outside Place I(1—3) II(4—5) III(6—7)B Middle Time IV(8—10) V(11) VI(12)D Inside Person X(16) XI(17) XII(18)

Table15.IntersectingConcepts


-28-

Triad B IV

thedeathV

animalsfoodandritual

impurity

VIbirth

D Xʺafterthedeathʺ

XIanimals

foodandritualobjects

XIIintercourse[beforethe

birth]Table16.LinksBetweenUnit‑TriadsBandD

OnceUnitXhasclickedintoplaceʺafterthedeathʺ

inIV,theremainingUnitsofDalsopairwithUnitsinB.BothVandXIlookatanimalsasfoodandasritualobjects.XIIandVIareconnectedthroughtheircontent,intercourse and birth. The relationship between theextremes is striking.Not onlyare IVandXconnectedbyarelationshipofbeforeandafter,soareXIIandVI.While X comes after the death in IV, Unit XII,intercourse comes after the birth in VI. Unit‑triads BandDaresocloselyknitthatUnit‑triadChasnoplacebetween them. The redactor has made it quite clearthatUnit‑triadCistobeseenasapartofthetextthathas to be ignored when studying the meticulouslyorganizedthree‑arraystructure.

PART3: THEANALOGICALREADING

TheReaderasHighPr iest

We have finished discoveringmost of the formal

structureofLeviticus. Inorder toexplain thefunctionoftriadC,Iwilloutlineapossibleanalogical reading.The reading is based on the connection between thelocationsofthethreearraysinthetextandthelocationofthesubjectsofthefirstUnitofeacharray,I, IVandX,thecourt,theHolyPlaceandtheHolyofHolies.

Thethreearraysareanalogoustothethreeareasofthe Tabernacle; the outer array to the courtyard, themiddlearray to theHolyPlace,andtheinnerarraytotheHolyofHolies.Thefocus,chapter19isanalogousto the Ark. The ʺmovementʺ through a readingaccording to this structure is analogous to themovements of the High Priest on the Day ofAtonement.OnlyhemayentertheHolyofHoliesandstandbeforethedivinepresence.Thetextisformattedto replicate his movements inward in the first threeUnit‑triads and his movement outwards in the lastthreeUnit‑triads.Accordingtothisanalogy,Unit‑triad

Cwouldappear justbefore theHighPriestenters theHoly of Holies. At that point, he is commanded tocreate a smoke screen that hides the innermostchamber. Triad C could then be seen as a literarysmokescreen.Alternatively,itcouldbeunderstoodasthe screen that must be lifted to enter the innersanctum.

PositingthatthestructureofLeviticusisanalogousto the movements of the High Priest on the Day ofAtonement explains more than the anomalous Unit‑triadC.Itadsthecomponentofdirectionality:inwardsfromAtoDandoutwardfromEtoG.TheHighPriestturns inward, both physically and figuratively, tostand alone before God in the Holy of Holies. Afterexperiencing the divine presence, he reverses hisdirection to move away from the intimacy with Godtowards his fellows, both priests and Israelites. Thiswould explain the appearance of social legislationtowards theendofLeviticus.This reading invites thereader to travel the path of God’s laws by turninginwardsliketheHighPriesttothefocalpointtoacceptthe yoke of holiness (Unit X, ch. 19). From this pointhe/shegraduallyreturnstothecommunity,ultimatelytoparticipateinthedivinehistoryofch.26bycreatingthejustsocietyportrayedinthelawsofch.25.

Documents

The Literary Structure of Leviticus (TBH)