Leviticus: Types & Shadows (PDF)
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TYPES & SHADOWS Zack Flipse An Oostburg CRC Media production © 2020 Bibliography 1. Scripture quotations taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION. Copyright © 1984 by International Bible Society 2. Allis, Oswald T., et al. The New Bible Commentary. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1968. 3. Fausset, A. R., et al. Jamieson, Fausset & Browns Commentary on the Whole Bible. Zondervan Pub. House, 1961. 4. Josephus, Flavius, and William Whiston. The Complete Works. T. Nelson Publishers, 1998. 5. Mitchell, Alexander Ferrier. The Westminster Confession. Thomas Paton, Printer. 6. The Heidelberg Catechism. CRC Publications, 1988. 7. Carson, D. A., et al. New Bible Commentary. Inter-Varsity Press, 1998. 8. Henry, Matthew, et al. The NIV Matthew Henry Commentary in One Volume: Based on the Broad Oak Edition. Zondervan Pub. House, 1992. 9. Packer, J.I. Concise Theology: A Guide to Historic Christian Beliefs. Tyndale, 1984. 10. Kaiser, Walter C. Preaching and Teaching from the Old Testament: a Guide for the Church. Baker Academic, 2003. 11. Alexander, T. Desmond. From Paradise to the Promised Land: An Introduction to the Main Themes of the Pentateuch. Pateernoster, 1995. 12. Youngblood, Ronald F. The Heart of the Old Testament: A Survey of Key Theological Themes. Baker Books, 2009. 13. Bartholomew, Craig G., and Michael W. Goheen. The Drama of Scripture: Finding Our Place in the Biblical Story. Baker Academic, 2008. 14. Wolf, Herbert M. An Introduction to the Old Testament Pentateuch. Moody Press, 1991. 15. Wilson, Marvin R. Our Father Abraham Jewish Roots of the Christian Faith. Eerdmans, 1989. 16. Scott, J. Julius. Customs and Controversies: Intertestamental Jewish Backgrounds of the New Testament. Baker Books, 1995. 17. Heschel, Abraham Joshua. The Sabbath: Its Meaning for Modern Man. Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2005. 18. Schreiner, Thomas R. 40 Questions About Christians and Biblical Law. Kregel, 2010. 19. Gushee, David P., and Glen Harold Stassen. Kingdom Ethics: Following Jesus in Contemporary Context. Eerdmans, 2016. 20. Cook, F. C., and J. M. Fuller. The Bible Commentary: Exodus-Ruth. Baker Book House, 1975. 21. Hahn, Scott. Kinship by Covenant: A Biblical Theological Study of Covenant Types and Texts in the Old and New Testaments. 1995. 22. Cover by Zack Flipse © Oostburg CRC Media 2020. 1. Important Framework…...……………..................5 Introduction Setting Theology 2. Symbol of Sacrifice (Leviticus 1-6:7)…………...15 3. Kingdom of Priests (Leviticus 6:8-9:24)………...31 4. Strange Fire (Leviticus 10)………………………..49 5. Distinctly Kosher (Leviticus 11)………………….57 6. Birthing and Cursing (Leviticus 12).…………...67 7. Disease, ‘Dew, & Discharge (Leviticus 13-15)…73 8. Scapegoat Jesus (Leviticus 16-17)…………....89 9. Sex & Sexuality (Leviticus 18-20)……………....99 10. Infirmities & Invitations (Leviticus 21-22)…..…113 11. Celebrate Good Times (Leviticus 23, 25)…....119 12. Stoned (Leviticus 24)….………..…...….............131 13. Promised Redemption (Leviticus 26-27)……..135 3 4 Introduction Leviticus is often called strange or outdated. It contains rules and laws for the Israelites that are awkward and uncomfortable. At some points, it feels harsh or even unjust. Because of its supposed oddities, it serves as a lightning rod for scrutiny, doubt, and misapplication. Outside the church, Leviticus is often cited as a reason for unbelief. o It’s strange (How could you believe that book when the rules in Leviticus say…?). o It’s inconsistent (How come you can pick and choose what laws to obey?). Inside the church, it’s misunderstood in all sorts of ways. o It’s misrepresented by people who want to enforce certain laws as “hammer texts” and condemn certain sins beyond others. o It’s misrepresented by people who want to throw all of it out as though none of it applied. How we understand Leviticus and the role of the law closely informs how we think about God, morality, justification, and sanctification. We need to get this right. Without a clear understanding of what God is doing for and through Israel here, we’ll miss out on the beautiful story it tells about the Triune God, His holiness, and His grace. Our goal in this study guide is to take away the “weird” and “harsh” labels so often applied to Leviticus and replace them with “familiar” and “gracious.” We’ll try to understand what’s at the heart of these rules and regulations, and determine how Jesus brought that out of the shadows. o Hebrews 10:1 – “The law is only a shadow of the good things that are coming—not the realities themselves.” o Hebrews 8:5 – “[Priests] serve at a sanctuary that is a copy and shadow of what is in heaven.” 5 o Colossians 2:16-17 –“[Because of the Cross] do not let anyone judge you by what you eat or drink, or with regard to a religious festival, a New Moon celebration or a Sabbath day. These are a shadow of the things that were to come; the reality, however, is found in Christ.” We’ll also routinely discover how Jesus is a better Priest and better Sacrifice. Setting “The Lord called to Moses and spoke to him from the Tent of Meeting.” (Leviticus 1:1) The Hebrew title for Leviticus means “and God called,” the first line of the book. It’s meant to be read as a continuation of Exodus. In Exodus, God rescued His people Israel from slavery in Egypt. The people follow God through the wilderness in search of their new Promised Land. “Leviticus must, therefore, be read in conjunction with Exodus, both books forming part of the continuous and carefully composed narrative which comprises the Pentateuch.” (Alexander, 110) By God’s instruction, the Israelites build a mobile temple called The Tabernacle. At the very end of Exodus, God’s glory comes down and rests in the Tent of Meeting—a room inside The Tabernacle. (courtesy of Naylor, 173) 6 The Tabernacle is an important piece to all of these rules. If the people want to stay near to this Holy God, they’re required to stay holy themselves. Since Moses clearly authored Exodus, most agree he likely authored Leviticus as well. These rules come to the people at Mt. Sinai (Leviticus 7:38). It is unknown where exactly Mt. Sinai is located, but this law seems to have come to the people about one year in (Exodus 40:17) on their journey from Goshen (Egypt) to Jericho (Canaan). (map adapted from Alexander, 104) 7 Leviticus begins with “and” as a continuation of the story just finished in Exodus. These laws come to the people in a specific context: o God saved them; o God dwells among them; o and the people now live a certain way in light of those truths. In this place (Ancient Near East) and time, religious devotion was not a new thing. The surrounding nations had their own gods, priests, laws, and sacrifices. “Almost a hundred years ago the cuneiform Code of Hammurapi was discovered in Persia in the ruins of the old Elamite capital of Susa. It dates from the eighteenth century B.C., hundreds of years before Moses was born. Since its discovery, three separate and still more ancient cuneiform law codes have come to light. All of these legal materials demonstrate conclusively that much of what we read in the stipulations of the law of Moses, in many cases with certain modifications to be sure, was already common currency in the ancient Near East by the time Moses and his compatriots arrived at Sinai” (Youngblood, 71). This is important to rightly understand the place of Leviticus in history. It is not strange, as it’s often misunderstood by western readers today. Rather, the regulations and prescriptions found here were very familiar. “Indeed, it is possible that what God does on Mount Sinai is not to give his people a wholly new law, but to take what they know already of law and reshape it, rejecting some parts of it and developing others. The law God gives to Moses for the Israelites bears all the marks of being genuine ancient Near Eastern law. God is not calling his people to live in an eccentric, unhistorical fashion: they are to be genuine people of their own historical time and place. And yet God recasts common law to reflect his own character and creational intentions, and so it has some quite distinctive elements. For example, while some law of that time valued property above people and made the punishment for stealing greater than that for murder, Israel’s law always places the value of people above that of mere property, for only people, of all God’s creations, have been fashioned in his own image” (Goheen, 68) 8 God’s law was familiar, but not copied. In it, we discover unique distinctions that would set apart His people from the surrounding nations. This is exactly what Moses was looking for when he asked “How will anyone know that you are pleased with me and with your people unless you go with us? What else will distinguish me and your people from all the other people on the face of the earth?” (Exodus 33:16). God answers those questions in Leviticus. o How you will know I’m pleased o How you will live if I am with you o How you will be distinguished from other people At its core, the law intends to physically protect and spiritually edify the people. God put in place serious punishment for disobedience because He’s serious about this nation’s health and success. Throughout their journey, we see how easily the people are influenced by the gods and customs of the Egyptians, Philistines and Canaanites. If they can’t submit to God’s law, they’ll end up serving other gods.