LEVITICUS
Week 6 Ch. 16 Atonement
Ch. 17 Miscellaneous laws of sacrifice
Discuss Study Questions Week 5
1.Over and over, God commands us to be holy because He is holy. To be holy means to be separate, distinct and different from the general population. To be clear, we are not to APPEAR holy, but to BE holy. Jesus came and lived a sinless life, a holy life. He is our role model in how to live. What about Jesus marked Him as different, what did he say, do, think, for example? What are things He said or did that we can emulate?
2. In the Talmud, the interpretation of Hebrew scripture by generations of rabbis, they discuss at length how long before going into the tent of meeting could they drink strong drink. An hour? A half day? etc. What is wrong with quantifying such measures? Why doesn’t God ever give us a specific level of observance that is acceptable to Him?
3. Have you ever said or done what you thought was right and it turned up wrong? What was the outcome? How does knowing that God looks at your heart, rather than what comes out of your mouth or what you do affect the way you live?
Chapter 16 The Day of Atonement
As we have seen in the first chapters, the sin and guilt offering were to be brought daily. Once a year every year, on the Day of Atonement, Yom Kippur, the tenth day of the seventh month (vs 29) the high priest was to make atonement for himself, for his family, and for the whole “House of Israel”, for all of the people at once. Unlike Jews today, who think Yom Kippur is it, the day they are absolved, we know that they and we need to offer sacrifices daily, mourning our shortcomings and asking forgiveness for them.
Read Lev. 16:1-14
One day a year. If the high priest goes into the Holy of Holies any other
time, for any reason, he will die.( vs. 2) There are special clothes for this
special day, even down to the underwear. (vs.4)
vs. 6-10 designates the different sacrifices. He makes a sacrifice for himself and his family first (vs. 6-14) This has implications for us and our society that will be explored in the Study Questions.
Read vs. 10, 20-22 These verses are about the scapegoat. You see symbolically the sins of the people being transferred to the goat (vs. 22) This is a picture of Jesus. He, too, had our sins laid upon, transferred to Him. (Read Is. 53:4-6) He was led out of the city, to die beyond the gate, just as the scape goat was.
Verses 23-28 describe the high priests in the Holy of Holies, leaving the linen garment there, and coming out and offering the bull and sacrificial goat sacrifices. Unlike any other time of year, on the Day of Atonement, they are to take the goat and bull outside the camp and burn them completely (vs. 27) and that all of the priests who participate need to wash themselves and their clothes.
The purpose is the crux of the whole sacrificial system. Read Lev. 16:29-31
Others laws about sacrifice
ALL of the animals are His, not just the perfect ones brought to be sacrificed. Read Lev. 17: 1-6 Killing an animal out in the field is much easier, can be done in any old way. In verses 2-4 God makes clear the animal is still to be brought so the blood and the fat are sacrificed.
The punishment, again, is to be cut off from his people. That is the next greatest punishment besides death.
The rest of the chapter repeats that the life is in the blood and allows for animals which have died, but not by the person killing it, after the blood is poured out, the flesh can be eaten. The animal does not have to be brought to the tent of Meeting. There is a “however”. Eating such an animal renders the person unclean and he/she must bathe and stay apart until evening.
LEVITICUS
Study Questions Week 6: Ch. 16-17
Chapter 16 Day of Atonement
1. Chapter 16 contains special restrictions on the high priest. In chapters 21 and 22 are laws pertaining to all the priests. These were men who stood between the people and God. The Catholic church still adheres to this system, but in all churches there is a structure, deacons, elders, pastors. What do these verses say about how all of the leaders in the church should act? What typically happens to a church when one or more of the leaders betray the trust of the congregation? How do we hold them accountable?
2. Should we hold all of our elected officials morally accountable? Why or why not? What recourse do we have if our elected officials betray our trust?
3. Our husbands are to be the moral leaders in our families. How would the American family be different if all husbands understood and accepted this standard?
4. Chapter 17 begins with the hypothesis of a man killing an animal out in the field, that is, not designated as a perfect sacrifice. God knows the hearts of people. Many of them/us will do no more than is required. Who wants to drag an animal that has been killed in the field to the tent of meeting to have the blood and fat sacrificed? Is there a parallel in our giving? Is tithing required? On what scripture do you base your answer? What does this say to giving beyond a tithe, be it in time, energy and/or money?
5. The punishment for not bring the animal that has been killed in the field is
to be cut off from his people. Read Matt. 18: 15-17. How and when should
this be accomplished in the church? Read Luke 17:3-4 How such a person
can be let back in to the church?