The Grand Sweep - Large Print. J. Ellsworth Kalas
Tabernacle.
| LEVITICUS 1–3 | Week 6, Day 3 |
The tribe of Levi became the spiritual leaders of the nation. As such, they lost their tribal identity; their place among the twelve was now taken by the dividing of Joseph’s descendants into the tribes of Ephraim and Manasseh. The Levites were to find their portion in the Lord rather than in a unit of land.
This book is largely a guide for the Levites in their work, but as such it mattered to all of Israel—perhaps in the same way the Constitution of the United States matters to all its citizens, even though it is the particular responsibility of the courts.
This is especially true for those of us who believe in the Protestant doctrine of the priesthood of all believers. Not that we are instructed by the details of conduct at the altar of sacrifice or proper methods of preparing animals for burning, but by the spirit and commitment with which the Levites were expected to do their work.
A grain offering, for instance, was to “be of choice flour”; and if one brought an animal before the Lord, it should be “one without blemish” (2:1; 3:1). God is to receive the first fruits (2:14), not the leftovers and not what is not good enough for the commercial market. If I sing, I will give my best at the church, preparing as earnestly as if it were for a secular concert; whatever I do, it shall be an offering that will be a “pleasing odor to the LORD” (1:9).
PRAYER: Let me be your priest, O Lord, offering my life and my daily duties as my sacrifice of love to you; in your name I pray.
So many intricate details go into the Levitical order of worship. What significance does this hold for you in your own life of prayer and worship?
| LEVITICUS 4–6 | Week 6, Day 4 |
The blood sacrifices of ancient Israel are usually offensive to our modern sensitivities. But they help us understand the seriousness of sin. Dietrich Bonhoeffer warned against “cheap grace”; all of us are susceptible to such a disposition, especially in a time when society seems to suggest that “anything goes.” Leviticus makes clear, by its system of sacrifices, that sin is an affront to God. This, even beyond what our misdeeds do to others and to our own bodies and psyches, is why we must treat sin seriously. Yes, Leviticus has something to teach us.
A lovely provision is made for those who are poor. “If you cannot afford a sheep, you shall bring to the LORD . . . two turtledoves or two pigeons” (5:7); and “if you cannot afford two turtledoves or two pigeons, you shall bring . . . one-tenth of an ephah of choice flour” (5:11). But while provision is made for economic limitations, everyone is expected to bring something. No one is exempt from the recognition of sin or from dealing with it.
What is our responsibility to the persons we may have harmed? When Israelites defrauded or deceived a neighbor, the Law required that they “repay the principal amount and . . . add one-fifth to it” (6:5); but then the guilty party must also bring to the priest a guilt offering to clear the soul before God. Our sins have both a horizontal and a vertical dimension; we deal with them before God and whatever injured party.
PRAYER: I am sometimes casual about the wrong I have done; thank you for reminding me of my blood-guilt; and save me, through your Son. Amen.
Why is it necessary to deal with sins that were committed “unintentionally”? In what sense is something a sin if it wasn’t intentional?
| LEVITICUS 7–9 | Week 6, Day 5 |
Israel was called to be a holy people—that is, a people separated to God and to God’s purposes. But if there is to be a holy people, a particular burden rests upon those who are called to lead to holiness. Thus the ceremony is long and complex, with details that may easily seem tedious to us.
But the end of the matter is cleansing. Those who would serve God must be God’s clean people, and the physical and ritual events merely emphasize the issue of spiritual purity. “It will take seven days to ordain you,” Moses warns (8:33). The Scriptures often use numbers in a symbolic way, to make some significant point. Seven is the number of completeness or perfection, so the seven-day ceremony conveys the idea of a completed act of dedication and a finished holiness.
The consummation of it all is found in 9:22-24, in the blessing of the people. When Moses and Aaron come out of the tent of meeting (the tabernacle) to bless the people, “the glory of the LORD” appears. The writer of Leviticus recalls it as such an awesome sight that the people shout and fall on their faces.
We shout at sporting events, and applaud and sometimes even call “bravo” at an opera or a concert, but we do not often feel such excitement at the presence of God, and even less often do we show it. It may be, again, that Leviticus has something to say to us.
PRAYER: When I serve, O Lord, let it be with purity of heart; and when I worship, let it be with holy excitement; in Jesus’ name. Amen.
References are made several times to an “elevation offering.” Do we have anything in contemporary public worship that is comparable?
| LEVITICUS 10–11; PSALMS 33–34 | Week 6, Day 6 |
The teaching of Chapters 8 and 9 is dramatically demonstrated in this story of Nadab and Abihu. As Aaron’s sons, they were in the highest ranks of the priesthood, yet somehow the awesome responsibility hadn’t fully gotten to them.
They violated their office by offering “unholy fire,” and they died. Aaron, who it seems had himself erred far more seriously in the making of the golden calf, “was silent,” and Moses instructed Aaron and his sons Eleazar and Ithamar not to mourn.
Nadab and Abihu’s misconduct apparently sprang from their being intoxicated (10:8-11). If it is hazardous to drive a high-powered engine after drinking, how much more, Aaron’s sons proved, to deal with holy things with less than our best ability.
The subject of clean and unclean foods may seem mundane after the Nadab and Abihu story, but for the writer of Leviticus they are all of a piece. Holiness is an issue not only while ministering in the tabernacle but in all of life. The rules were pragmatic. Maintaining health and sanitation in a desert world, among essentially nomadic peoples, was not simple. Every precaution had to be taken. Many foods that can be safely prepared in our time were a hazard in that time and setting.
The spiritual issue of dietary regulations became an issue early in the Christian church, especially as non-Jews came into the fellowship. The discussion arises often in the Book of Acts.
PRAYER: Help me, I pray, to treat all of life with a sense of awe, lest I thoughtlessly handle holy things in a common way. Amen.
Why were Aaron and his other sons not to mourn the death of Nadab and Abihu? (See also Leviticus 21:10-12.)
| LEVITICUS 12–13; PSALM 35 | Week 6, Day 7 |
Religion at its best involves all of life: a healthy spirit fed by a healthy mind dwelling in a healthy body. The New Testament tells us that our bodies are the temple of the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 6:19). The laws of Leviticus teach us the same thing in another way by their often