Leviticus 21 and 22 Notes

Hey friends, we're back in business! Here are some of my notes from Leviticus 21 and 22. And I have one question at the bottom I'd like you to think about as you read . . .

Leviticus 21
The mourning of priests is limited because they must limit their interaction with death (21:1-4). Some of the culturally appropriate mourning rituals are off limits because it would make the priests unable to serve God during that time (or even suggest that there is something more important), and they have been set aside for that purpose alone. Some of the mourning rites here (shaving, cutting the flesh) were common amongst Israel’s neighbors and are off-limits for all Israelites (as they were involved in worshipping the dead). Note that the wife is missing from the list of people who they can mourn; this is offensive to modern people but it must be recalled that marriage was not an institution built on romantic love in ancient Israel. Even into the Roman world siblings were generally closer and was a more important relationship than the husband-wife relationship.

Note that in 21:6 sacrifice is referred to as “the food of their God”, linking it with the worldview of the ancient world and giving credence to our notion of sacrificial feasts as sharing God’s table.

The priestly line is to be closely guarded and symbolic for holiness and purity, hence the stipulations about who priests can marry (21:8).

The High Priest who is consecrated is not allowed to mourn anyone outwardly (21:10-12). Note that the High Priest cannot leave the Tabernacle while he has his vestments on, which points to the threat of being in a land contaminated by sin.

Note that in vv.16-23 that while a “blemished” priest cannot serve in the Tabernacle, he is still entitled to eat from what is sacrificed. These people with biological handicaps or injuries are not rejected by God or not cared for, but they are not “whole” symbolically . . . there is disorder which cannot interact safely with order.

Note also that the list of “blemishes” for priests is exactly the same as the “blemishes” for animals. There is a connection here . . . the lists mirror each other because the priests themselves are in some sense the “first-fruits” of the people who are offered to God for His service.

Leviticus 22
Leviticus 22 functions as the counterpart to Leviticus 21. We first dealt with what is the acceptable behavior of priests, and now we deal with the acceptable sacrifice that priests are to offer.
The first “offering” we deal with is that of the priests themselves (really this begins in 21:16, but continues here in 22:3-9). Leviticus conceives of the priests and Levites themselves as the “first-fruits” of Israel which are given to the Lord. This concept is confirmed by Deut. 10:8-9, which explains that God Himself is their “inheritance” as a reward for their service. Because they are a sacrifice, all the rules of purity and order follow.

22:10-16 essentially functions to protect the priests’ and Levites’ share of the sacrifices. Note also the injunction for daughters who lose their husband and have no children- they are allowed to essentially become daughters again and to be cared for (an example of God’s mercy trumping ritual concern). If they have children then the deceased father’s household has the responsibility to care for them.

Note the concern for creational order in 22:26-28. If an animal is killed prior to the first week of life ending it is as if the parents “fruitfulness” is jeopardized, and any death or disorder in reproduction is a curse. I think the same considerations hold true for sacrificing an animal with its young on the same day- that would extinguish a family line and threaten “fruitfulness” as well.

Again, thanksgiving sacrifices are meant to be shared (22:29-30).

BIG QUESTION:
If the priests and Levites are the "first-fruits" of Israel who are "offered" to God in the OT, who are the "priests and Levites" who are offered to God in the New Testament?