This week we
will continue to study the Book of Leviticus.
From Chapter 11 through Chapter 15, the Lord speaks through Moses and/or Aaron about Uncleanness and its Treatment:
I. Dietary rules — three categories
- Land creatures (11:1-8)
- Sea creatures (11:9-12), and
- Air-flying creatures (11:13-23)
II. Pollution and its Treatment
- Land creatures (11:24-28)
- Swarm creatures (11:29-43), and
- Reason given (11:44-45)
III. Summary Exhortation (11:46-47)
Let’s combine each type and consider it briefly and reflectively:
(1) Eating of Animals on land (11:1-8 and 11:24-28)
a. What are the three criteria given in v.3?
b. Partially meeting these three criteria is not sufficient; the animals are still considered ceremonially unclean.
c. Why do the following not qualify?
d. What other animals are being added to this category by v. 27?
e. What results if they are eaten or their carcasses are touched?
f. For how long is it and what should one do? (11:24-25)
(2) Eating of fish and water creatures(11:9-12)
a. Which water creatures are not to be eaten?
b. While a creature is not allowed for eating, why is it to be “detested”? (v. 10)
(3) Eating of flying creatures (birds—11:13-19; flying insects—11:20-23)
a. Read the list of “detested” birds given in vv. 13-19. You may or may not see what might be common among them, but give it a try.
b. What kind of flying creatures that hop can be eaten?
(4) Eating of ground animals (the swarming animals—11:29-38; others—11:41-43)
a. Read the list of prohibited swarming animals in vv. 29-30. They are normally not eaten anyway in civilized society. What might be the common-sense reason for not eating them?
b. Since these are small and creeping animals that could be found inside or around the house, what additional rules are being given for contact with their carcasses? What might be the common-sense reason for their treatment?
c. What are being reiterated and added concerning the ground animals (vv. 41-43)?
(5) Clean, but dead animals (11:39-40)
a. If a clean animal is dead, why can't a person eat or touch it?
b. What should one do if such a rule is infringed upon?
(6) Having read these dietary rules and prohibitions above, consider the following:
a. What impressions do you have?
- More specifically, what questions have they raised?
- What emphases might be apparent to you?
b. What reason is being given by God in vv. 44-45 and 47?
c. What might result in the absence of such rules for the nation of Israel?
(7) What is the main message to you today and how may you apply it to your life?
Note:
You may wish to read today’s meditative reflection article for more food for thought.
“Do not make yourselves unclean by any creature that moves about on the ground. I am the Lord who brought you up out of Egypt to be your God, therefore be holy, because I am holy.” (Lev. 11:44-45)
The reasons for the giving of dietary rules in Leviticus by the Lord have been the subject of many speculations even before the Christian era, and till today, there is no consensus among scholars even within the conservative camp. But in the search for possible reasons, I find it very disturbing to read, even from supposedly Evangelical scholars (whether in their endorsement or rejection of a certain view), words like, “according to the human authors of Scripture”. It is as if these words were human inventions and not those of divine inspiration.
In any case, allow me to share with you briefly some speculations by scholars over the years for your own consideration and for your reflection:
1. The more modern speculation is for hygienic reasons and the promotion of good health and the avoidance of diseases. I have to agree that it makes a lot of sense. Pork carries trichinosis, and rabbit tularemia. According to some commentators, fish without fins and scales tend to burrow into the mud and become sources of dangerous bacteria. The types of birds that cannot be eaten are generally birds of prey that feed on carrion. Even the carcasses of so-classified clean birds should not be touched because of the avian flu. However, wild boars seldom carry trichinosis; pork properly cooked would do no harm and some animals which chew the cud “are a host for parasites” (Hartley, 142). To Christians, the New Testament has totally done away with such distinctions (Mk. 7:14-20; Acts 10:9-16).
2. The older speculation (as represented by Origen) is for a cultic reason that seeks to separate Israel from its idol-worshipping neighbors in that many of the unclean animals were used in pagan worship. Such a speculation does not seem to be well-founded, as many of the Canaanites sacrificed very much the same kinds of animals as the Israelites. However, these dietary rules do separate the Israelites from the Canaanites and would virtually eliminate the likelihood of them socializing together over a meal.
3. An equally old speculation sees such laws as carrying symbolic meanings. Philo likens the cud-chewing animals as examples for pupils allowing the teachings they hear to pass into their hearts for further apprehension; and the split hoof symbolizes the need for discernment. While such interpretation carries spiritual merits, it certainly opens up the mind to all kinds of wild speculations that do not have textual support of any kind.
4. Hartley cites the opinion of J. Milgrom as “intriguing” in that Milgrom proposes that “the system of dietary laws was instituted to prevent human from degenerating into random killers. These laws ingrained in the covenant people a deep reverence of life by reducing the number of edible animals to a few, requiring humane manner of slaughter, and prohibiting the partaking of blood” (Hartley, 143, quoting from Milgram, SCTT, 104-18).
5. Modern Evangelical scholars appear to endorse the social anthropological view of Mary Douglas in that since holiness denotes wholeness, completeness and normality, animals so sacrificed have to be complete, without defects. Priests had to be free from physical deformity (Leviticus 21); the people have to maintain a way of life characterized by purity, integrity and thus holiness through a distinction between clean and unclean food. Such a distinction has to do with whether the creatures “use a means of propulsion appropriate to the sphere in which they live" (Douglas, Purity, 55), and thus, “Each sphere has a particular mode of motion associated with it. Birds have two wings with which to fly, and two feet for walking; fish have fins and scales with which to swim; land animals have hoofs to run with. The clean animals are those that conform to these standard pure types” (Wenham, 169).
6. Some rabbis opine that the reason of these
laws is only known to God and it is futile for us to try to understand. It is
simply a test of absolute obedience that God demands from His people. While I tend to agree with them, I tend to
think that God has in mind all of the above for the
benefits of His people for these reasons:
a. In ancient times, such dietary rules did much for the health and longevity of the people of Israel even if they did not understand them fully. Their obedience did them tremendous good. Such is still the case today, when we seek to defy the moral laws of God in so many ways, it is still to our own detriment.
b. These dietary laws, indeed, served to help the people avoid social contacts with pagan nations which was key for Israel to maintain their loyalty to Yahweh and His worship.
c. While symbolic interpretation of each rule might lead to a wild interpretation, the central spiritual implication is unmistakable: The people of God must do everything to maintain their separation unto God as His people, not just at the time of worship, but in their everyday life. That is the basic meaning of holiness which, unfortunately, is much watered down if not ignored by Christians today.
As we read these regulations concerning childbirth, it may be helpful to read from the lens of the sacredness of life and the importance of both the symbolic and real function of blood:
(1) What might cause a woman to be ceremonially unclean because of pregnancy and childbirth (see Lev. 15:18-19 also)?
(2) How many days in total would she remain unclean if she gives birth to a son?
(3) How many days in total would she remain unclean if she gives birth to a daughter?
(4) What can she not do during the period of uncleanness (or days of purification)?
(5) Upon the completion of her days of purification, what sacrifice does she need to make to atone for her sin? Why does she need to atone for sin?
(6) Do you think that her
period of uncleanness is necessarily an unfair treatment of a woman, or that it served one of the following purposes?
a. It is a recognition of the sacredness of the giving of a new life through the woman.
b. It is a time for recuperation for a woman after childbirth (which involves the loss of blood).
c. It is a time of protection of the woman from being touched or having to resume household or pastoral work after giving birth.
(7) What do the ceremonies required for her purification point to?
(8) Why do you think the time of uncleanness for the birth of a daughter is longer than that for a boy?
(9) What is the main message to you today and how may you apply it to your life?
“A woman who becomes pregnant and gives birth to a son will be ceremonially unclean for seven days just as she is unclean during her monthly period…the woman must wait thirty three days to be purified from her bleeding...” (Lev. 12:2, 4)
The reason for why a woman who gives birth to a baby is considered unclean is stated very clearly. It is because of the discharge of blood, just as when she is unclean during her monthly period. However, after the seven days of uncleanness, “the mother is no longer technically unclean”, and yet she has to wait another thirty days (at home) in order to be purified from her bleeding, and if the baby is a daughter, the initial period of uncleanness is two weeks and the waiting period is sixty-six days.
Much has been said of the apparent discrimination or unfairness toward the mother and the baby daughter.
I believe the basic principle of such apparently tedious and unfair regulations has to be the sacredness that God has placed on life, especially human life.
As we shall see in chapter 15, when a man lies with a woman which is the cause for pregnancy in the first place, both are considered unclean (15:18). Then, at the birth of the child, the mother is considered unclean as blood is discharged. In both cases, the elements that God uses to give life are involved. Human reproduction has never been considered a sin, and the giving of life is a blessing, not a curse from God. I believe it is the sacredness of the giving of life which comes from God that sinful man and woman are now a part that makes them unclean. While the former discharge involves both man and woman, the latter is entirely the mother’s and because of this, she is considered unclean and requires atonement through the sacrifice prescribed.
However, the seclusion of the woman after birth carried great benefits for her in that, in ancient times, childbirth was a risky business and the mother needed time to recover. With the additional 33 or 66 days of waiting time after the initial period, the woman would not have to resume household chores or pastoral work right away, and she was prevented from being touched for an extended period of time, especially if the child is a daughter. Girls do carry privileges—although, Macht, a physician, proves that “the discharges after bearing a girl are a little longer than for a boy”—meaning the longer period is for a practical purpose (Hartley, quoting from Macht, JBL 52 [1992] 253-60).
As we reflect on the regulations concerning skin disease, allow me to point out that the Hebrew word for “skin disease” in my NIV Bible is exactly the same word for “spreading mildew” on clothing. This Hebrew word, tsara, is translated in the Greek Bible (LXX) as lepra, from which the English word leprosy is derived. But it is clear from the description of this chapter that the kinds of disease being addressed are not leprosy, but some other kinds of skin disease (the principle of their dealing obviously applies to leprosy as well).
13:2-46—Human skin disease
(1) Twenty-one cases of skin diseases are being mentioned in these verses (Wenham). It is not important for us in our days to distinguish them one by one. But as you read, see if you discern a certain pattern in these instructions, especially to the priests.
(2) Given the ancient times, how important were these instructions in the following areas?
a. Early detection of infectious skin disease
b. The prevention of misdiagnosis
c. The proper treatment if it proved to be the case
(3) How are these “lepers" treated? What impact would these diseases have on them socially, economically, emotionally and spiritually?
(4) In what ways does such a disease portray “sin” in us?
(5) Why should such a responsibility fall on the priests?
13:47-59—Spreading mildew on clothing
(6) In our treatment of fungus or mildew on clothing, what will we normally do?
(7) As for Israel, they are not to wash it right away, but take it to the priest for examination. Why?
(8) In the course of his examination, what should the priest do?
(9) If the priest determines that the article in question is indeed unclean, what should be done to the article?
(10) What spiritual lessons can you draw from the above in the dealing with sin (yours and another’s) which could affect the entire faith community?
(11) What is the main message to you today and how can you apply it to your life?
“(A)nd if the contamination in the clothing, or leather or woven or knitted material, or any leather article, is greenish or reddish, it is a spreading mildew and must be shown to the priest.” (Lev. 13:49)
As much as the “skin disease” described in Leviticus chapter 13 does not necessarily denote a disease as physically serious as leprosy, the social, emotional and spiritual consequences are similar in that the person is being isolated from the community—having to live outside the camp; the loneliness and rejection last as long as the disease remains; and he is considered unclean—cut off from the presence of the Holy God. In other words, he is experiencing a living death. We all know that this is a vivid picture of someone living in sin.
However I find that we often associate such a condition to sinners who have yet to repent and believe in Jesus Christ; we seldom see this condition in ourselves. Therefore I find the spiritual application of “spreading mildew” on clothing by the 6th-7th century father, Paterius, quite refreshing. Allow me to share an excerpt from his exposition on the subject with you in which he calls “spreading mildew” a “roaming and wandering leprosy” according to the Vulgate:
“A roaming and wandering leprosy lays hold of a garment when, by an unreformed fault, guilt takes hold of that soul that seems to be faithful. Let’s suppose someone boasts when he possesses riches in the world but then hears from the mouth of a preacher that all these material things are going to perish; he then distributes what he has to the poor. But when he does so, pride swells up in his heart. First, he took pride in possessions; then he took pride in his generosity! This is analogous to the leprosy changing its place on the garment….it is like a roaming and wandering leprosy which left the place it had and occupied a place it had not had.”
(ACMOS, III, 181)
I wonder if we have any “roaming and wandering leprosy” in our lives today!
The rituals involved in the restoration of a person healed of his infectious disease are amazingly complex, highlighting, perhaps, the joy and significance of being restored both to a right relationship with God and to the community. If the contracting of the disease amounts to being a living dead, then its healing is to be a resurrection from the dead:
14:1-9—Examination outside the camp
(2) Once a person is examined and determined to have been healed, a ceremony is to be held to pronounce him clean. The priest orders the following:
a. Kill one clean bird over fresh (living) water in a clay pot;
b. Dip a live bird into the blood of the killed bird together with cedar wood, scarlet yarn and hyssop;
c. Sprinkle (blood) on the healed person 7 times;
d. Then pronounce him clean
e. Release the live bird into the open field (see similarity to the scape goat in 16:21-22)
Since this ceremony is not part of any of the “standard" sacrifices that follow, what might be the meaning and significance of this ceremony?
(3) After he is pronounced clean, the person is to do the following:
a. He still has to wash his clothes, shave off all his hair and bathe with water.
b. Then he will be ceremonially clean and allowed to enter the camp, but not his home.
c. He will have to stay outside his tent (home) for 7 days.
d. On the 7th day, he must shave again—this time his head, his beard, his eyebrows and the rest of his hair.
e. He must wash his clothes and bathe with water (again).
f. Then, he will be clean!
What are the extra seven days meant for?
What might be the reasons for the re-shaving, re-washing and re-bathing?
14:10-32—Sacrifices subsequent to his being pronounced clean:
(4) Guilt offering: (14:12-18)
a. Consists of one male lamb + log of oil = The priest waves them (as wave offering)
b. Belongs to the priest = As most holy (7:7)
c. Some of the blood (of lamb) is put on right earlobe, right hand thumb and right big toe of offerer (see Priest’s ordination in 8:23).
d. Oil is sprinkled before the Lord 7 times.
e. Oil is put (on top of the blood) on the offerer’s earlobe, right hand thumb and right big toe; then the rest of the oil is put on his head.
Such an act resembling the anointing of the priest is obviously significant. What might be the message here?
(5) 14:19-31—Sin offering, burnt offering and cereal offering:
a. They are made with the remaining one male lamb, one ewe lamb and 3/10 of an ephah of fine flour mixed with oil;
b. The poor can substitute the lambs with two doves or two young pigeons—one for sin offering, the other one for burnt offering.
(6) Guilt offering is made for unintentional offense against “holy things” (5:14) or intentional defrauding against neighbors (6:2-3). How might this occasion fit in?
(7) The putting of blood on the right earlobe etc. is part of the ordination ceremony for the priest. Why is it done here to the person now pronounced clean?
(8) What’s more, oil is being put on top of the blood as well. What does it signify?
(9) Before the offering of these sacrifices, the person is declared clean (14:7) and ceremonially clean already (14:8) outside the camp. What then is the purpose and significance of all these sacrifices and ceremonies at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting?
(10) What is the main message to you today and how may you apply it to your life?
“After that, the priest shall slaughter the burnt offering and offer it on the altar, together with the grain offering, and make atonement for him and he will be clean.” (Lev. 14:19-20)
The plight of a person who is considered unclean because of infectious skin disease is so horrific that he is reduced to a life of a living dead, driven away from his family, his community, his work and the sanctuary of the Lord. Once he is healed of the disease, his restoration could almost be compared to a resurrection from the dead!
The rules in chapter 14 of Leviticus take a very cautious approach in order to officially pronounce
such a person truly clean. The
procedures involve the following:
- The going out of the camp by the priest to inspect his condition;
- A less public ceremony to affirm his cleanness, with the sacrifice (not in the form of an official, sacrificial rite) of a bird and the sprinkling of its blood on the cured with cedar and hyssop; plus the freeing of the other bird after its contact with the blood of the killed bird;
- Though pronounced clean, the person has to wash his clothes, shave off all his hair and bathe in the water before being pronounced “ceremonially clean”;
- A seven-day period follows before he can go home;
- On the 7th day, he is to shave all over again, wash his clothes again and bathe himself again;
- Then he presents a guilt offering, a sin offering, a burnt offering and a grain or cereal offering.
- When all these are done, he is restored not only to his home and community, but he is also admitted back into the worship of the Lord.
I find these
procedures very fitting in describing the conversion of a believer. Consider the following:
- We are often helped in our decision to confess our sins and to receive Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior in a more private setting, but we are most often helped to say the sinner’s prayer by someone more experienced in Christ or a pastor. With the little biblical knowledge we had at the time, we were affirmed of our new life in Christ by the pastor or the one who led us to Christ. This is not unlike the more private ceremony performed outside of the camp by the priest. The sprinkling of the blood, the freeing of the bird and all the washing of clothes and body seek to affirm the fact of the complete cleanness of the person cured;
- However, a 7-day waiting period still has to take place, just to play it safe, and this ensures that he is healed for good. Such also is the caution that is normally taken by the church before admitting a new believer into baptism; and
- The public sacrifices that follow amount to a testimony of the healed expressing his gratefulness and dedication to the Lord, and with the completion of these ceremonies, he is restored back to his home, his family, his community and to the worship of the Lord. Such is also the significance attached to the public testimony through baptism of a new believer in Christ of his commitment and gratitude to the Lord, and his admission into the family of God.
However, what I find most striking is that in the midst of such a public ceremony, the person so healed, has put upon him both the blood of the sacrifice and the oil on his right earlobe, his right thumb and the big toe of his right foot. The former is something unique to the ordination ceremony of the priest (8:23), the latter is simply unparalleled. In other words, this healed man is a totally new person whose healing is not to be taken lightly but as a unique grace of God. He is healed not just to be restored to the person he was before, but someone dedicated to God and anointed to be used by God.
God’s complete and honored acceptance of this person should send a powerful message to those who might hesitate to accept a former “leper-like” person back into the community.
These instructions are rather unique in that they deal with regulations that the people have to observe when they enter into the Promised Land. Therefore, they serve not only as laws and regulations but also as a promise.
(1) Read v. 33-34 carefully: Why would the Lord say that it is He that puts “a spreading mildew in a house”?
(2) What criteria should the priest use in his judgment?
(3) Apart from closing the house for 7 days, what would the priest do as the mildew has spread on the walls? (14:40-42)
(4) Commentators of former generations see significant spiritual lessons from the above. What spiritual applications can you draw from the above concerning how to deal with sins?
(5) What should be done to the entire house if the mildew reappears? What is the importance of such an action, from both practical and spiritual perspectives?
(6) What are the procedures for atoning and for pronouncing the house clean?
(7) In the dealings with infectious diseases, whether in the case of individual skin disease on clothing or mildew in a house, how do these regulations given by the Lord differ from ancient pagan practices?
(8) What is the main message to you today and how may you apply it to your life?
“In this way, he (the priest) will make atonement for the house, and it will be clean.” (Lev. 14:53)
As we read the instructions given by the
Lord to Moses and/or Aaron concerning how to deal with potentially infectious
(skin) diseases “for an itch, for mildew in clothing or in a house and for a swelling,
a rash or a bright spot” (14:54-56) among the people, we can see the wisdom of
God. These regulations provided the following:
- A safeguard for misdiagnosis or panic among the people
- A careful approach to safeguard the spread of disease
- A cautious approach in readmitting the supposedly healed individuals back into the community
- A heightened sense of God’s holiness, and
- A total restoration of a former-disease-carrier, now healed.
Apart from some great spiritual lessons we can draw from these instructions (especially concerning how seriously we should deal with sins, the harmful effect of sins affecting the community if not dealt with seriously, the need for repentance and cleansing by the blood of Christ and the absolute holiness of God), it is also important to understand the role of the priest.
The priest acts like a health inspector, but more than that, he acts on God’s behalf to maintain the distinction between the clean and the unclean, and thus the profane and the holy. However, unlike pagan priests, he is never asked to perform any healing — no magical rituals, no holy drinks of any kind. The underlying assumption is that healing belongs to the Lord, and at the time of healing, repentance, thanksgiving and re-commitment are expressed through the various acts initiated by the individual and performed by the priest.
This chapter brings the regulations on uncleanness to a conclusion, and in the view of most commentators, it deals with the defilement associated with the reproductive process:
15:2-18—Discharges by men
(1) Longer-term discharge—the symptoms (15:2-3): Since no blood is mentioned, hemorrhoids are being ruled out by most commentators who view the entire section as dealing with sexual organs. Gonorrhea (a sexually transmitted, contagious disease which can also be contracted through saliva), may be the subject. Its symptoms seem to fit the description of these verses. If this is the case, this is a disease which “occurs most often in people who have many sex partners” (WebMD). Do you then agree that such discharge should make a person unclean?
(2) The consequences
of longer-term discharge (15:4-15): It makes the following unclean:
a. The bed he lies on
b. Anything he sits on or rides on
c. Any person who touches his bed or anything he sits or rides on
d. Anyone who touches him
e. Anyone who is being spat on by him
f. Anyone being touched by his un-rinsed hands
- What should the contaminated person do?
- What should be done to the clay pot so touched?
- What is the rationale behind the above?
g. Upon being cleansed from his discharge, apart from the waiting period of 7 days, what needs to be done by him?
h. What is the purpose of these rituals?
(3) Short-term discharge (15:16-18):
a. In the reproductive process, how important is the discharge of semen?
b. Upon its discharge, what is the reason for uncleanness that affects the man, and even the woman?
c. What is the practical result for being declared unclean until the evening (especially in terms of not being able to participate in the worship of the Lord)?
d. How does such a regulation distinguish Yahweh worship from pagan worship in their temples, many of which involved prostitution?
15:19-30—Discharges by women
(4) Short-term discharge (15:19-24):
a. Why would the discharge of blood make her unclean? (see Lev. 17:11)
b. How does the “monthly period” serve as a relief for the woman and a deterrence of unrestrained sexual activities?
c. What is the consequence for a man who lies with a woman during her period?
d. The regulation here simply defines uncleanness, but Leviticus 18:19, 29 and 20:18 impose a very severe penalty. What do you think is the reason for the severity of the penalty?
(5) Longer-term discharge (15:25-30): Unlike gonorrhea, such longer-term discharge of blood by a woman is usually not contagious, and yet the treatment is similar to 15:13-15. What might be the reason?
15:31-33—The purpose of these regulations
(6) The emphasis appears to be focused on not defiling God’s “dwelling place”; read Exodus 19:10-15 as well. How do these regulations caution us about sexual purity?
(7) What is the main message to you today and how may you apply it to your life?
“You must keep the Israelites separate from things that make them unclean, so they will not die in their uncleanness which is among them.” (Lev. 15:31)
Many commentators see that the stringent regulations concerning discharges (by sexual organs) point not only to the absolute necessity of separation of Israel from their pagan neighbors, but also as protection for the women. Allow me to quote from Wenham:
“But where rules about discharge were respected, they certainly had implications for morality and religion…they would tend to encourage restraint in sexual behavior. This is most obvious in the rules concerning sexual intercourse (v.18) and the monthly period (vv. 19-24). Because sexual intercourse made both parties unclean, and therefore unable to participate in worship for a whole day, this regulation excluded the fertility rites and cult prostitution that were such a feature of much Near Eastern religion. It also served to make ordinary prostitutes social outcasts…therefore helped to undergird the stability of family life. Similarly the prohibition on intercourse in war should have protected conquered women from abuse (cf. Num. 25).”
(Wenham, 223)
As we come to a close to the various regulations concerning uncleanness, it is important also to note that not only could men could approach the Tent of Meeting to present their sacrifices, but women too, could do so, whether after childbirth (12:6) or after what was prescribed for her cleansing after her discharge (15:29).
For the significance of the Day of Atonement in Judaism, read the meditative reflection article for today:
16:1-2—Introduction
(1) Why was this Day of Atonement given with the death of the two sons of Aaron as background?
(2) Why couldn’t Aaron, being the High Priest, enter the Holy of Holies as he “chooses”?
(3) What does the “atonement cover” represent?
16:3-5—Personal preparation
(4) Aaron's preparation before he could enter into the sanctuary:
a. What sacrifices should he prepare for himself?
b. What sacrifices should he prepare for the people?
c. Why is it important for him to put on his sacred garment?
16:6-10—Summary of Liturgy for this Day
(5) What is the purpose of the bull?
(6) What is the purpose of the first goat?
(7) What is the purpose of the second goat?
(8) How does the death of Christ on the cross fulfill the functions of the two goats? (See how powerful a symbol the 2nd goat was to David in Ps. 103:12.)
16:11-19—Outline of the order of the ritual (Part I)
(9) The bull is to be sacrificed first: Why should Aaron make atonement for himself (and his household) first before he could atone for the sin of the people?
(10) How does the smoke from the censer prevent Aaron from death before the Lord?
(11) In what significant ways does our Lord Jesus differ from Aaron as the High Priest? (See Heb. 4:14-16; 7:27)
(12) After having atoned for his own sin, Aaron is to atone for the sins of the people:
a. What kinds of sin are being mentioned?
b. How important, therefore, is the Day of Atonement for the Israelites?
c. What is Aaron to do with goat #1?
(13) Apart from the Holy of Holies, the rest of the Tent of Meeting and especially the altar were to be sanctified by the sprinkling of both the bull’s and the goat’s blood seven times, and the wiping of the blood on all the horns. Why is the sanctification of the altar of such importance? What important lesson may we learn from such an emphasis?
(14) What is the main message to you today and how may you apply it to your life?
“But those sacrifices are an annual reminder of sins. It is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins… But when this priest [Jesus Christ] had offered for all time one sacrifice for sins, He sat down at the right hand of God.” (Heb. 10:3, 4, 12)
As we reflect on the importance of the Day of Atonement in Leviticus 16, I would like to share with you an excerpt from Wikipedia which reflects what is still practiced in Judaism as they continue to reject Christ and His accomplished work on the cross. Bear in mind that there isn’t a temple to perform the sacrifices as prescribed by Moses these days:
“Yom Kippur—also known as Day of Atonement, is the holiest day of the year for the Jewish people. Its central themes are atonement and repentance. Jewish people traditionally observe this holy day with an approximate 25-hour period of fasting and intensive prayer, often spending most of the day in synagogue services.
“Yom means 'day' in Hebrew and Kippur comes from a root that means 'to atone'. Thus Yom Kippur has come to mean ‘day of atonement’. Some say there is a link to kapporet, the 'mercy seat' or covering of the Ark of the Covenant. Abraham Ibn Ezra states that the word indicates the task and not just the shape of the ark cover; since the blood of the Yom Kippur sacrifice was sprinkled in its direction, it was the symbol of propitiation.
“Yom Kippur is 'the tenth day of [the] seventh month' (Tishrei) and also regarded as the 'Sabbath of Sabbaths'. Rosh Hashanah (referred to in the Torah as Yom Teruah) is the first day of that month according to the Hebrew calendar. They also ask God for the forgiveness of their sins.
“Yom Kippur completes the annual period known in Judaism as the High Holy Days or Yamim Nora’im ('Days of Awe') that commences with Rosh Hashanah.
“According to Jewish tradition, God inscribes each person's fate for the coming year into a book, the Book of Life, on Rosh Hashanah, and waits until Yom Kippur to ‘seal’ the verdict. During the Days of Awe, a Jew tries to amend his or her behavior and seek forgiveness for wrongs done against God and against other human beings. The evening and day of Yom Kippur are set aside for public and private petitions and confessions of guilt. At the end of Yom Kippur, one hopes that they have been forgiven by God.”
As the Jews continue to hope, we, who have believed in Christ, have received the forgiveness by God through Jesus Christ (1 Jn. 2:2, Eph. 1:7).