Leviticus 19:19-29

VARIOUS ORDINANCES 19:19-29
TEXT 19:19-29

19

Ye shall keep my statutes. Thou shalt not let thy cattle gender with a diverse kind: thou shalt not sow thy field with two kinds of seed: neither shall there come upon thee a garment of two kinds of stuff mingled together.

20

And whosoever lieth carnally with a woman, that is a bondmaid, betrothed to a husband, and not at all redeemed, nor freedom given her; they shall be punished; they shall not be put to death, because she was not free.

21

And he shall bring his trespass-offering unto Jehovah, unto the door of the tent of meeting, even a ram for a trespass- offering.

22

And the priest shall make atonement for him with the ram of the trespass-offering before Jehovah for his sin which he hath sinned: and the sin which he hath sinned shall be forgiven him.

23

And when ye shall come into the land, and shall have planted all manner of trees for food, then ye shall count the fruit thereof as their uncircumcision: three years shall they be as uncircumcised unto you; it shall not be eaten.

24

But in the fourth year all the fruit thereof shall be holy, for giving praise unto Jehovah.

25

And in the fifth year shall ye eat of the fruit thereof, that it may yield unto you the increase thereof: I am Jehovah your God.

26

Ye shall not eat anything with blood: neither shall ye use enchantments, nor practise augury.

27

Ye shall not round the corners of your heads, neither shalt thou mar the corners of thy beard.

28

Ye shall not make any cuttings in your flesh for the dead, nor print any marks upon you: I am Jehovah.

29

Profane not thy daughter, to make her a harlot; lest the land fall to whoredom, and the land become full of wickedness.

THOUGHT QUESTIONS 19:19-29

432.

Is there some difference between statutes and commandments?

433.

Is there some practical or moral reason for not mixing seed, cattle or cloth?

434.

To commit adultery with a female slave was a sad offense. What was to be done?

435.

What happened to the slave? to the child, i.e. if one were born?

436.

God had some very practical laws concerning horticulture. What were they?

437.

Does Leviticus 19:26 speak against present-day horoscopes?, Discuss.

438.

Leviticus 19:27 seems to have little present-day meaning. Discuss.

439.

Is it a sin to be tattooed?

PARAPHRASE 19:19-29

Obey My laws: do not mate your cattle with a different kind; don-'t sow your field with two kinds of seed; don-'t wear clothes made of half wool and half linen, If a man seduces a slave girl who is engaged to be married, they shall be tried in a court but not put to death, because she is not free. The man involved shall bring his guilt offering to the Lord at the entrance of the Tabernacle; the offering shall be a ram. The priest shall make atonement with the ram for the sin the man has committed, and it, shall be forgiven him. When you enter the land and have planted all kinds of fruit trees, do not eat the first three crops, for they are considered ceremonially defiled. And the fourth year the entire crop shall be devoted to the Lord, and shall be given to the Lord in praise to Him. Finally, in the fifth year, the crop is yours. I am Jehovah your God! You must not eat meat with undrained blood; nor use fortune telling or witchcraft. You must not trim off your hair on your temples or clip the edges of your beard, as the heathen do. You shall not cut yourselves nor put tattoo marks upon yourselves in connection with funeral rites; I am the Lord. Do not violate your daughter's sanctity by making her a prostitute, lest the land become full of enormous wickedness.

COMMENT 19:19-29

Leviticus 19:19-29 (1) Prohibition against hybridsLeviticus 19:19; (2) Sin of a betrothed bondmaidLeviticus 19:20-22; (3) The first-fruit of the trees in CanaanLeviticus 19:23-25; (4) Abstention from heathen ritesLeviticus 19:26-29.

We appreciate Bruce Oberst's comment on the companion reference of Deuteronomy 22:9-11: Note the basic concept of separation which runs throughout these verses. The fact that two kinds of seed might grow quite well together, or that one could plow together quite well with an ox and an ass, or that linen (originating from flax) and wool might make a durable, warm, and nice-looking garment when combined, was nothing to the point! God had said they were not to be mixed! His word was to be respected and honored.

As a separated people, they were to live separated lives (Cf. 1 Kings 8:53, etc.). Such laws as this would also distinguish and identify them as God's own people, different from all others.

Separation is as much a New Testament doctrine as Oldnot the separation here spoken of, but the separation from the world and its ways that has always characterized God's true children. It is still very necessary that the child of God distinguish and differentiate in this worldan ability he develops more and more as he matures and grows into the likeness of his Master. Mature Christians should see the difference between light and darkness, sham and sincerity, truth and falsehood.

The -unequal yoke-' of the ox and ass (Leviticus 19:10) perhaps were in the very mind's eye of the apostle when he exhorted the Corinthian Christians, -Be not unequally yoked with unbelievers, for what fellowship have righteousness and iniquity. -' etc. (see 2 Corinthians 6:14, Leviticus 7:1).

What a pathetic use of position to use it in seducing a slavemost especially one who is betrothed! This bond woman might be of either one of the intermediate kind, that is, one whose redemption money had been partially paid, or belong to that class who had no prospects of a free discharge. It could be such a female slave was espoused to a Hebrew slaveboth of whom were owned by the master who was guilty of this seduction. When this happens, the woman is also held responsible; she was therefore given 40 stripes.
Punishment by death was the penalty ordinarily inflicted: Cf. Leviticus 20:10; Deuteronomy 22:23. However because she was degraded to the condition of private property to only be used to satisfy the lusts of her master, a lesser punishment was permitted. She was exempted from offering the sacrifice. The man must bring a ram for a trespass offering. A slave had no property, therefore no sacrifice was required. The sacrifice being made according to the prescribed ritual (Cf. Leviticus 4:20; Leviticus 4:26), he was forgiven of his sin.

There are four references in Leviticus where regulations are given in anticipation of entering Canaan: (1) Leviticus 14:34the promise of leprosy in their houses; (2) Leviticus 19:23the planting of fruit trees in the land; (3) Leviticus 23:10the law of the first fruits of the land; (4) Leviticus 25:2keeping a sabbath day in the land. In the mind of God. Canaan was already a possession. In the mind of God we are already in our eternal promised land enjoying all the bounties of that place.

The trees of Canaan were: (1) all manner of citrus trees: oranges, lemons, etc.; (2) olive trees; (3) fig trees. In the first three years the trees were to be regarded as uncircumcised i.e. unclean for use as food. Some see a metaphorical use of this word in the cutting or plucking off the buds or early fruit during the first three years. On the fourth year the whole harvest was to be given to the Lord and eaten in joyful worship before Him. The fifth year could be the first year of use for Israel. Such treatment of the trees would yield the highest possible harvest by the fifth year.

Leviticus 19:26-29 discuss abstinence from certain heathen rites. Evidently the eating of blood in this instance was associated in some manner with idolatry. There are various possible explanations, but since all of them are conjectural, we will forego reference to them.

The practice of magic or enchantments as used here refers to certain kinds of incantations, according to some to prophecy obtained from observing snakes. The practice of augury is called the observing of days or of times by other translations. Some authorities refer this to taking notice of the seasons and days, and saying this is a good day to begin a journey, tomorrow will be a lucky day to make a purchase.
The reference to haircuts and the care of beards sounds strangely familiar in our day. Of course present day hair trimming and beard care does not have such a direct relation to the deity involvedhuman pride seems to be the god in view today. In the day of Moses the hair was shaved off around the temples and behind the ears, so as to leave the head bald except for a dish-like tuft upon the crown of the head. This, according to those who did it, imparted to the head the form and shape of a hemisphere. This was done by the Arabs, and other worshippers of the god Orotal. The Arabs are ironically called those with the corner of their hair polledas is rightly rendered in the margin. Cf. Jeremiah 9:26; Jeremiah 25:23; Jeremiah 49:32.

The beard was regarded by the Hebrews and other eastern nations as the greatest ornament of a man, and was as dear to them as life itself. It was the object of salutation, Cf. 2 Samuel 20:9, and the mutilation of it was looked upon as the greatest disgrace and most degrading punishment. Cf. 2 Samuel 10:4; Isaiah 7:20; Ezra 5:1-5. It was only in seasons of sorrow that the Hebrews neglected their beards; and sometimes, to show how deeply they were afflicted, they covered them up, or even cut them off, or tore them out. Cf. 2 Samuel 19:24; Isaiah 15:2, Jeremiah 51:5. Because it was so precious a treasure it was customary among some of the ancients to present to their gods the firstlings of their beards. The prohibition in this verse refers to this practice. (Ginsburg)

The worshippers of Baal in the contest of Elijah on Mount Carmel cut themselves with knives and lances until the blood gushed out upon them. Cf. 1 Kings 18:28. This was a custom of many idol worshippers when mourning for the dead as well as when calling upon their god for fire from heaven. The Israelite was to respect his body as the creation of God not to disfigure it. Cf. Leviticus 21:6; Deuteronomy 14:1.

The practice of tattooing is as old as the history of nations. Incisions or punctures were made in the skin in the form of words or pictures and some type of ink was impressed upon the incisions. Slaves bore the tattooed name of their masters, soldiers of their captain, and worshippers of their gods. Were the phylacteries which the Hebrews were to bind on the head and hands as a memorial a reaction or accommodation to tattooing? Cf. Exodus 13:9; Exodus 13:16; Deuteronomy 6:8; Deuteronomy 9:18.

Daughters were given to Astarte to serve in her temple as prostitutes. Astarte was the goddess of fertility and prostitution was a part of her worship. The Jews became so degraded that fathers thought it was an honor to thus give their daughters. Here is a plain word from God against such a practice.

FACT QUESTIONS 19:19-29

444.

Why not inter-breed cattle as in Leviticus 19:19? Aren-'t present day cattle evidence that such is a good practice? Discuss.

445.

Why not stone the adulterers described in Leviticus 19:20?

446.

God anticipates the activities in Canaan in four references. What regulations are given?

447.

In the first three years the trees were uncircumcised. In what regard?

448.

Wasn-'t it selfish of God to refuse the fruit for four years?

449.

Eating of blood here is different than earlier references, i.e. the purpose was different. What was it?

450.

How were magic or incantations used?

451.

The care of hair and beards became very important in the days of Moses. How so? Discuss.

452.

Cutting and tattooing was used for what purpose?

453.

Why would any father consider giving his daughter to prostitution?