Classes - Pentateuch - Leviticus 17-20

Pentateuch: Leviticus 17-20

A study on the book of Leviticus

Learn how you can use the guide here.

The Demand for Personal Holiness

The first half of Leviticus (Leviticus 1 to 16) focuses on how the Israelites were able to live with God’s holy presence in their midst because of the sacrificial system and the purity laws that were put in place for them. The second half of Leviticus has often been called the Holiness Code (Leviticus 17 to 26) because of how often God calls for holy living from the people of Israel on the basis of His own holiness.

All instructions in this part of the book must thus be set in this context of reflecting God’s holiness, first with personal conduct and accountability, and then moving on to the corporate responsibility of the people of God (Leviticus 21 to 24) in reflecting God’s holiness and glory to the surrounding nations.

Pre-Video Reading

Read Leviticus 17-20.

Watch the video

Application Questions

Leviticus 17 opens with commands concerning the slaughter of livestock (v1-9). These laws are followed by rules about consuming blood (v10-12). Two commands sum up this discussion about blood. First, the people could only make sacrifices at the Tabernacle before God (v3-4). Second, the people were forbidden from eating an animal whose blood was not properly drained (17:10). They were not to eat their blood.

a. Why were the people not allowed to sacrifice their livestock outside the Tabernacle? Why must it be done at the Tabernacle?

b. Why do you suppose the laws governing the spilling or eating of blood in Leviticus 17 were treated like an attack on human blood (v11)?

c. What does Leviticus 17:1-16 teach us about personal worship? What is the right posture to have when we approach God in worship?
Leviticus 18 is about sexuality. Here we see that God cares about marriage, women, children, and how we handle our bodies. The commands of sexual purity were a matter of loyalty to God who had redeemed His people. In this chapter’s list of prohibitions, any sexual expression outside the context of a monogamous marriage sidesteps God’s intentions and His commands. Therefore, it is a sin against God.

How does this chapter parallel the New Testament instructions in Matthew 5:28, 1 Corinthians 6:18-20, 1 Thessalonians 4:1-8, 2 Timothy 2:22). What does this tell you about how God views sexual purity and staying faithful?
Amongst the chapters on sexual holiness, Leviticus 19 presents an additional collection of wide-ranging laws on being holy as God is holy (v2). Leviticus 19 describes holiness in contrast with the kinds of sins and temptations Israel was to face in the land of Canaan. These laws are presented in the table below.

Most people think the term holiness refers to a constraining, abstract ideal. But Leviticus 19 repeatedly emphasizes that holiness is not abstract but relational.

Read through the list and pick 2 or 3 laws to ponder further and record your insights.

4. Leviticus 18-20:27 highlights the individual aspect of holiness and is punctuated throughout with the repeated phrase “I am the LORD your God,” used almost fifty times within these three chapters. This highlights the fact that a genuine commitment to God will be demonstrated through personal holiness, and with it our resulting distinctiveness from the cultures of the world.

Think about the same high calling to God-like holiness as it contrasts with our culture today. How do we exercise holy living in our daily lives?

Closing Reflection

Is there an inner desire to live a holy life within your Christian faith? If so, what drives that desire within you? Is that desire a sufficient reason for you to submit the desires of your flesh under its demands?

Prayer: Connecting with God

End the time with prayer.

Give thanks that the blood of Christ, the perfect Lamb of God, was given on the cross to make atonement for us (Leviticus 17:11). We have the joy of confessing our union with him at every service when we take communion. Praise God for this gift now and reflect on the lessons of this passage in your heart the next time you participate in communion.

Humble your heart before God in a prayer of repentance, and let the promise of holiness through Christ’s atonement also fill your prayer with praise.

Song for meditation: Holy Forever, by Chris Tomlin