LEVITICUS Lesson 1 – Introduction The title of the book of Leviticus, itself, tells us much about what it offers. It is named after the tribe of Levi……pronounced “Leh-vee”….one of the original 12 tribes of Israel (who were formed, if you recall, by the 12 sons of Jacob). But, this…

LEVITICUS Lesson 2 – Introduction Continued Last week we looked at some basics about Leviticus to set the stage for our study. This week, before we get into the details of the “burnt offering” which is the first subject of the first chapter of Leviticus and a very specific type…

LEVITICUS Lesson 3 – Chapter 1 We spent the first 2 weeks of our Leviticus study simply preparing the background and laying the groundwork to make Leviticus more understandable, enjoyable, and hopefully, meaningful. I would like to reiterate from an earlier lesson a few principles that we need to keep…

LEVITICUS Lesson 4 – Chapter 2 In Leviticus chapter 1, we looked at the sacrificial ritual call in Hebrew ‘Olah ……what we typically translate as the “burnt offering”. And we saw that this offering concerned the burning up of animals, from Bulls, to Sheep, to birds and this burning was…

LEVITICUS Lesson 5 – Chapter 3 We have now looked at the two types of burnt offerings; that is, two types of sacrifices that were placed onto the Brazen Altar and consumed by fire. And those were the ‘Olah and the Minchah. The ‘Olah involved the burning up of animals,…

LEVITICUS Lesson 6 – Chapter 4 Let’s review a little. So far, we’ve looked at 3 different sacrifices, also called “offerings”: the ‘Olah……the burnt offering; the Minchah……the grain offering; and the Zevah…..the peace offering. Each had different purposes and occasions for their use. All had in common that the offering,…

LEVITICUS Lesson 7 – Chapter 4 Continued We left off studying Leviticus chapter 4. And, in chapter 4 we get a new kind, a new type, of sacrificial offering called the Hatta’at…….the Purification Offering. Some translators call this the Sin Offering. However, I think this translated name misses the point…

LEVITICUS Lesson 8 – Chapter 5 We should see Chapter 5 as but a continuation of Chapter 4. In fact, the specific sacrificial ritual of Chapter 4 extends into the first 13 verses of Chapter 5……but then it changes. Put another way, the uses for the Hatta’at sacrifice, the Purification…

LEVITICUS Lesson 9 – Chapters 5 and 6 We began last week to deal with a new class of sacrificial offerings, the asham , that covered another aspect of sin and atonement: making reparations for what one had done whether the offense was intentional and known, or inadvertent and the…

LEVITICUS Lesson 10 – Chapters 6 and 7 We have a lot of detail to discuss today, so please do your best to stay focused. This is not unlike learning your multiplication tables; it at times seems tedious while you’re doing it but if you have any hope of being…

LEVITICUS Lesson 11 – Chapter 8 Just as chapters 6 and 7 were a unit, so is Leviticus chapters 8, 9, and 10. These 3 chapters will present us with the ordination of the first priesthood of Israel. To be clear, all the previous chapters of Leviticus, including the last…

LEVITICUS Lesson 12 – Chapters 9 and 10 As we go through Leviticus chapter 9, it points out a whole variety of God-principles that a simple and quick reading can easily overlook. So, while we won’t spend much time on the details of the rituals, we will look more closely…

LEVITICUS Lesson 13 – Chapters 10 and 11 We’re going to continue this evening with the story of Aaron’s children, Moses’ nephews, Nadav and Avihu. Nadav and Avihu were priests who immediately following the consecration of the priesthood into operation were engaged in a ritual at the Tabernacle when suddenly…

LEVITICUS Lesson 14 – Chapter 11 We ended last time with the proposition that to understand the Hebrew dietary laws (given to them by Yehoveh on Mt. Sinai) we must understand that in doing so God placed diet directly at the center of holiness and purity as He defines it.…

LEVITICUS Lesson 15 – Chapter 11 Continued We began Leviticus chapter 11 last time and we’ll continue it this week. The study of chapter 11 centers around the subjects of clean versus unclean and holy versus common. It is interesting to me that it is only Judaism where these words…

LEVITICUS Lesson 16 – Chapter 11 Continued 2 Sometimes in order to make sense out of all we’ve been studying in Torah it’s necessary to take the time to step back and from a broader view examine some things about the nature of Holy Scripture that are not so obvious.…

LEVITICUS Lesson 17 – Chapter 11 Continued 3 Last week we ended the section of Leviticus chapter 11 that discussed the subject of animals that were divinely declared clean and unclean for food. Further we talked about the hopelessness of trying to determine WHY certain animals were set apart as…

LEVITICUS Lesson 18 – Chapter 11 Conclusion We’re going to continue the very complex issue of clean and unclean, holy and common, and kosher and non-kosher diet today. I want to begin by stating that I don’t pretend to have all the truth on these matters. Entire denominations and Jewish…

LEVITICUS Lesson 19 – Chapters 12 and 13 We finished up the very difficult issue of Kosher eating last week, and moved into preparation for Leviticus chapter 12. But unfortunately we find ourselves out of the frying pan right into the fire, as we must face the matter of clean…

LEVITICUS Lesson 20 – Chapter 13 Before we get back into Leviticus 13, let me take a moment to make a couple of observations which, I hope, help to keep us on track and keep what it is we are studying in proper context and perspective. First I’d like to…

LEVITICUS Lesson 21 – Chapter 14 Chapter 13 was spent with Yehoveh, through Moses, teaching about how to identify Tzara’at in its many forms; even tzara’at on clothing and objects made from leather. It was ALWAYS the job of a priest to make such a judgment…..a common Israelite could only…

LEVITICUS Lesson 22 – Chapters 14 and 15 We’ve been dealing with the subject of Tzara’at. The principle behind Tzara’at is that it is caused by an act of God whereby the Lord determines that He wants to make visible an evil or unclean spiritual condition of a person. We’ve…

LEVITICUS Lesson 23 – Chapter 16 One of the greater challenges that faces Believers who are slowly awakening to our Hebrew faith roots and the undeniable reality that our Messiah Jesus is fully Jewish, is how to deal with the purely and entirely Hebrew cultural context of the Word of…

LEVITICUS Lesson 24 – Chapters 16 and 17 Last week we looked at Leviticus chapter 16 that covered the topic of the Day of Atonement, Yom Kippur. I’d like to flesh that out a little further this week (especially since we’re only a few days from the beginning of the…

LEVITICUS Lesson 25 – Chapters 17 and 18 As we resume our study of Leviticus 17, we left off on a discussion of the topic of blood. And the context was that while up to the Great Flood man could on occasion kill animals that it was ONLY for the…

LEVITICUS Lesson 26 – Chapters 18 and 19 As we open our study today in Leviticus 18, this is a chapter that deals primarily with human sexuality and what is expected of Israel in that regard as opposed to what the rest of the world does during this time in…

LEVITICUS Lesson 27 – Chapter 19 We just got started last time in Leviticus chapter 19, a chapter that focuses on the holiness of the worshipper. Let’s re-read part of the chapter. READ LEVITICUS CHAPTER 19:1 – 18 We see that 6 of the 10 Commandments are directly addressed in…

LEVITICUS Lesson 28 – Chapter 19 Continued We’ll continue today with Leviticus chapter 19. If there is one single principle of God that the entire world has violated, and that is the greatest single cause (outside of sin itself) for the global chaos that we watch on the evening news…

LEVITICUS Lesson 29 – Chapters 19 and 20 We began to touch on the subject of death and the afterlife at the end of last week’s lesson. Because since about the 4th century A.D. Christianity has worked backwards by taking what was revealed in the New Testament and then trying…

LEVITICUS Lesson 30 – Chapters 20 and 21 We began Leviticus chapter 20 last week, and it’s purpose is NOT to repeat the same laws that have been set down in the previous couple of chapters (although at first glance it may seem so); rather this is what our modern…

LEVITICUS Lesson 31 – Chapter 21 We got a little way into Leviticus 21 last week and the thrust of those first few verses dealt with death and the uncleanness of death. Let’s be clear that this passage is speaking to the Levites and Priests of Israel NOT to the…

LEVITICUS Lesson 32 – Chapter 22 This chapter contains a series of rules about priests and their families eating the food sacrificed to Yehoveh. Remember that the priests’ chief food supply was those things brought by the people of Israel for sacrifice in the Tabernacle and later the Temple. What…

LEVITICUS Lesson 33 – Chapter 23 Baruch Levine aptly names Leviticus 23 as “The Calendar of Sacred Time”. So we get a detailed schedule of religious events as ordained by Yehoveh and given to the people of Israel in this chapter. These religious events are most recognizable to us as…

LEVITICUS Lesson 34 – Chapter 23 Continued As we continue our examination of Leviticus chapter 23 it is all about the Biblical Feasts also known as the appointed (or designated) times. We’ve looked at Passover and the Feast of Matza so far, and we’ll continue the order of the Feasts…

LEVITICUS Lesson 35 – Chapter 23 Conclusion Leviticus chapter 23 is where the 7 Biblical Feasts are ordained and explained. We’ve covered the first 4 of them thus far: the 3 Spring Feasts of Passover, Unleavened Bread, and Firstfruits, and then the 1 Summer Feast called Shavuot in Hebrew, known…

LEVITICUS Lesson 36 – Chapter 24 Leviticus chapter 24 presents us with a somewhat diverse collection of ordinances and rules about various subjects. The first few verses deal with matters concerning the Sanctuary of Yehoveh that is for this era of Leviticus the mobile tent called the Wilderness Tabernacle, and…

LEVITICUS Lesson 37 – Chapter 25 If there is a single word that defines what we’re about to read and examine, it is “Jubilee”. This is the place in the Torah where we receive instruction on that somewhat mysterious “year of Jubilee” that most of us have heard about; and…

LEVITICUS Lesson 38 – Chapter 25 Continued We’ll continue today in our study of Leviticus chapter 25. Among many principles present in this chapter are ones that every Believer needs to pay attention to: release and redemption. It is in the Torah that the basics and the details about release…

LEVITICUS Lesson 39 – Chapter 25 Conclusion We’ll finish up Leviticus 25 today. In Leviticus 25 we studied the all-important Jubilee, which has the nickname of “the favorable year of the Lord”. I have been asked several questions about the Jubilee and just how faithful and scrupulous Israel might have…

LEVITICUS Lesson 40 – Chapter 26 Basically we’re done now with law giving and the establishment of holy rituals. So chapter 26 sort of stands back and says: IF you will FOLLOW what I’ve told you to do then there will be many blessings heaped upon you. If you do…

LEVITICUS Lesson 41 – Chapters 26 and 27 As we finish up Leviticus 26 today let me begin by recalling for you that unlike all the earlier chapters of Leviticus where laws and ordinances were established chapter 26 says, ‘here’s what will happen if you obey all those laws and…

LEVITICUS Lesson 42 – Chapter 27 (End of Book) Today we study the last chapter of the book of Leviticus, and bring Leviticus to a close. We might run a tad long in order to finish up. It is interesting that the final few matters talked about in Leviticus revolve…