Leviticus Commentaries & Sermons
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Leviticus Commentaries & Sermons EXODUS NUMBERS LEVITICUS RESOURCES Leviticus Commentary, Sermon, Illustration OVERVIEW CHART OF BOOK OF LEVITICUS Click chart to enlarge Chart from recommended resource Jensen's Survey of the OT - used by permission Another Overview Chart of Leviticus - Charles Swindoll A third Overview Chart of Leviticus LEVITICUS: INTRODUCTORY COMMENTS LEVITICUS THE BOOK OF SANCTIFICATION AND WORSHIP Adapted and modified from C. Swindoll Leviticus 1-17 Leviticus 18-27 The Way to God The Walk with God Access Lifestyle The Approach: Offerings Practical Guidelines The Representative: Priest Chronological Observances The Laws: Cleansing Severe Consequences Physically & Spiritually Verbal promises Ritual for Worship Practical for Walking Worshipping a Holy God Living a Holy Life Location: Mt Sinai for one full year Theme: How sinful humanity can approach and worship a holy God Key Verses: Lev 17:11, 19:2, 20:7-8 Christ in Leviticus: In every sacrifice, every ritual, every feast Time: about 1446BC Key words: Holy - 90x/76v (with forms of the root for holy 152x) more than in any OT book (Lev 2:3, 10; 5:15f; 6:16f, 25-27, 29f; 7:1, 6; 8:9; 10:3, 10, 12f, 17; 11:44-45; 14:13; 16:2-4, 16f, 20, 23f, 27, 32f; 19:2, 8, 24; 20:3, 7, 26; 21:6-8, 22; 22:2-4, 6f, 10, 14-16, 32; 23:2-4, 7f, 20f, 24, 27, 35-37; 24:9; 25:12; 27:9f, 14, 21, 23, 28, 30, 32f); Atonement - 51x/45v - (Lev 1:4; 4:20, 26, 31, 35; 5:6, 10, 13, 16, 18; 6:7, 30; 7:7; 8:15, 34; 9:7; 10:17; 12:7f; 14:18-21, 29, 31, 53; 15:15, 30; 16:6, 10f, 16-18, 24, 27, 30, 32-34; 17:11; 19:22; 23:27f; 25:9) Offering - 326x/199v (Lev 1:2-4, 6, 9f, 13f, 17; 2:1-16; 3:1-3, 5-9, 11f, 14, 16; 4:3, 7f, 10, 14, 18, 20f, 23-26, 28-35; 5:6-8, 15f, 18f; 6:5f, 9f, 12, 14f, 17f, 20f, 23, 25, 30; 7:1f, 5, 7-11, 13-16, 18, 20f, 25, 29f, 32-35, 37f; 8:2, 14, 18, 21, 27-29, 31; 9:2-4, 7f, 10, 12-18, 21f, 24; 10:12-17, 19; 12:6, 8; 14:10, 12-14, 17, 19-22, 24f, 28, 31; 15:15, 30; 16:3, 5f, 9, 11, 15, 24f, 27; 17:4f, 8; 19:5, 21f, 24; 21:6, 21; 22:12, 18, 21-23, 25, 27; 23:8, 12-14, 25, 27, 36-38; 24:7, 9; 27:9, 11) Tent of meeting - 43x/41v (Lev 1:1, 3, 5; 3:2, 8, 13; 4:4f, 7, 14, 16, 18; 6:16, 26, 30; 8:3f, 31, 33, 35; 9:5, 23; 10:7, 9; 12:6; 14:11, 23; 15:14, 29; 16:7, 16f, 20, 23, 33; 17:4ff, 9; 19:21; 24:3) Law - 16x/16v; (Lev 6:9, 14, 25; 7:1, 7, 11, 37; 11:46; 12:7; 13:59; 14:2, 32, 54, 57; 15:32) Sacrifice - 41x/34v; (Lev 3:1, 3, 6, 9; 4:10, 26, 31, 35; 7:11-13, 15-18, 20f, 29, 32, 34, 37; 9:4, 18; 10:14; 17:5, 7f; 19:5; 22:21, 24, 27, 29; 23:19, 37) Anoint - 17x/15v; (Lev 4:3, 5, 16; 6:20, 22; 7:36; 8:2, 10-12, 30; 10:7; 16:32; 21:10, 12) Sin - 111x/90v (Lev 4:2f, 8, 14, 20-29, 32-35; 5:1, 5-13, 15-18; 6:2-4, 17, 25f, 30; 7:7, 37f; 8:2, 14; 9:2f, 7f, 10, 15, 22; 10:16- 19; 12:6, 8; 14:13, 19, 22, 31; 15:15, 30; 16:3, 5f, 9, 11, 15f, 21, 25, 27, 30, 34; 19:17, 22; 20:20; 21:21; 22:9; 23:19; 24:15; 25:1, 27; 26:18, 21, 24, 28, 46; 27:34) Iniquity - 10x/8v (Lev 7:18; 16:21f; 19:8; 26:39-41, 43) Death - 17/16v (Lev 16:1; 19:20; 20:2, 4, 9-11, 15f, 27; 24:16f, 21; 27:29) Die - 15x/15v (Lev 7:24; 8:35; 10:2, 6f, 9; 11:39; 15:31; 16:1f, 13; 17:15; 20:20; 22:8f) Blood - 86x/65v (Lev 1:5, 11, 15; 3:2, 8, 13, 17; 4:5-7, 16-18, 25, 30, 34; 5:9; 6:27, 30; 7:2, 14, 26f, 33; 8:15, 19, 23f, 30; 9:9, 12, 18; 10:18; 12:4f, 7; 14:6, 14, 17, 25, 28, 51f; 15:19, 25; 16:14f, 18f, 27; 17:4, 6, 10-12; 18:6, 12f, 17; 19:26; 20:18f; 25:49) Sabbath - 13x/10v (Lev 16:31; 23:3, 11, 15f, 32; 24:8; 25:2, 4, 6) The LORD spoke to Moses - 28x/28v - (Lev 4:1; 5:14; 6:1, 8, 19, 24; 7:22, 28; 8:1; 12:1; 13:1; 14:1; 16:1; 17:1; 18:1; 19:1; 20:1; 21:16; 22:1, 17, 26; 23:9, 23, 26, 33; 24:1, 13; 27:1) Jubilee - 20x/18v (Lev 25:10-13, 15, 28, 30f, 33, 40, 50, 52, 54; 27:17-18, 21, 23-24) Consecrate - 24x/23v - (Lev 6:18, 27; 7:35; 8:10-12, 15, 30; 11:44; 12:4; 16:19; 20:7; 21:8, 10; 25:10; 27:14-19, 22, 2) Covenant - 10x/8v (Lev 2:13; 24:8; 26:9, 15, 25, 42, 44f) Fat - 52x/33v (Lev 3:3f, 9f, 14-17; 4:8f, 19, 26, 31, 35; 6:12; 7:3f, 23-25, 30f, 33; 8:16, 25f; 9:10, 19f, 24; 10:15; 16:25; 17:6) Why Study Leviticus? "In Genesis, we see humanity ruined by the fall. In Exodus, God's people are redeemed from bondage. In Leviticus, those people are revived through worship. Being the least popular of the first five Bible books, Leviticus is frequently passed off as an unimportant document of out-of-date details. Because the book is directly related to Israelites under the Mosaic Law, many Christians today choose to ignore its contents. But God has preserved Leviticus for a particular purpose. As is the case with other Old Testament books, it is filled with pictures of the Lord Jesus Christ. Without exception, every offering and every feast provides a vivid portrait of Christ, God's sacrificial Lamb, “who takes away the sin of the world” (John 1:29). To study Leviticus apart from these portraits painted by the Spirit is to be bored with an ancient series of regulations. But when we see all of this in light of Christ's provision at Calvary, it becomes both interesting and enlightening." (Insight for Living) Samuel Balentine is surely correct when he says that Leviticus "is perhaps the most neglected of the neglected biblical books.” W. Graham Scroggie said "Exodus begins with sinners, but Leviticus begins with saints, that is, as to their standing." Collin Hansen - I'm going to take a chance and suggest that delight is not the first word that comes to mind. Perhaps drudgery would be more accurate. How many well-intentioned Bible reading plans have crashed and burned in this book filled with detailed descriptions of how Israelites could worship and what they could eat and wear? Yet as Christians we understand that Leviticus is God's word for our good. Indeed, we believe that Leviticus—like the rest of the Old Testament—helps us understand the work of Christ. (Daring to Delight in Leviticus) W A Criswell - Leviticus is one of the most important books of the Old Testament. Without an understanding of the principles of atonement and holiness found in Leviticus, much of the New Testament has no foundation on which to rest. To say that Leviticus is one of the "most New Testament" books of the Old Testament would hardly be an exaggeration, for it foreshadows the Person and work of Christ in a most remarkable and elucidating manner. Dr. William Barrick, OT scholar asks - "Why would we want to study a book that dedicates seven chapters to the sacrificial system of ancient Israel and five chapters to details concerning indelicate matters like the emission of a variety of bodily fluids?" (Introduction to the Book of Leviticus) (See also Arie Leder's article - Leviticus - Reading and Hearing Leviticus - Why Is It Not Preached) Irving Jensen - The book of Leviticus is God’s manual for His people on how to approach Him and live pleasing in His sight. In the experience of the Israelites, encamped on Mount Sinai, the laws of Leviticus were the guideposts which they needed for life on the wilderness journey ahead, and for settling in Canaan. The key command, “Ye shall be holy,” pervades the book, revealing something of the awesome message which God always wants all His people to hear and obey… It was the custom of the Jews to call each book of their Scriptures by its first word in the Hebrew text. For Leviticus this was wayyiqra, meaning “and he called.” Obviously this title does not indicate what Leviticus is about. The Greek Septuagint (Lxx) version, which was the first translation of the Old Testament, assigned the title Leuitikon, meaning “that which pertains to the Levites.” The reason for such a title is that much of the book concerns the ministry of the priests, who were an important segment of the tribe of Levi (cf.