Leviticus 22:1-10

PRIESTLY SEPARATION FROM CEREMONIAL UNCLEANNESS 22:1-10
TEXT 22:1-10

1

And Jehovah spake unto Moses, saying,

2

Speak unto Aaron and to his sons, that they separate themselves from the holy things of the children of Israel, which hallow unto me, and that they profane not my holy name: I am Jehovah.

3

Say unto them, Whosoever he be of all your seed throughout your generations, that approacheth unto the holy things, which the children of Israel hallow unto Jehovah, having his uncleanness upon him, that soul shall be cut off from before me: I am Jehovah.

4

What man soever of the seed of Aaron is a leper, or hath an issue; he shall not eat of the holy things, until he be clean. And whoso toucheth anything that is unclean by the dead, or a man whose seed goeth from him;

5

or whosoever toucheth any creeping thing, whereby he may be made unclean, or a man of whom he may take uncleanness, whatsoever uncleanness he hath;

6

the soul that toucheth any such shall not eat of the holy things, unless he bathe his flesh in water.

7

And when the sun is down, he shall be clean; and afterward he shall eat of the holy things, because it is his bread.

8

That which dieth of itself, or is torn of beasts, he shall not eat, to defile himself therewith: I am Jehovah.

9

They shall therefore keep my charge, lest they hear sin for it, and die therein, if they profane it: I am Jehovah who sanctifieth them.

10

There shall no stranger eat of the holy thing: a sojourner of the priest'S, or a hired servant, shall not eat of the holy thing.

THOUGHT QUESTIONS 22:1-10

488.

How is it that the priests are here commanded to stay away from the very things dedicated for their use?

489.

Did the nation of Israel dedicate the sacrifices or the priests? Discuss.

490.

Leviticus 22:2 explains Leviticus 22:1. God has a purpose in this regulation. What is it?

491.

If leprosy wasn-'t contagious from where did it come?

492.

What is a discharge?

493.

Begin reading in Leviticus 22:4 b and read through Leviticus 22:6. Mention the three causes of uncleanness.

494.

If a priest touched the unclean in the morning he might become very hungry before sundown. Why?

495.

The manner and purpose of killing animals became very important. Why?

496.

What was the penalty of disobedience?

497.

Three persons were refused a place at the table. Who were they?

PARAPHRASE 22:1-10

The Lord said to Moses, Instruct Aaron and his sons to be very careful not to defile My holy name by desecrating the peoples-' sacred gifts; for I am Jehovah. From now on and forever, if a priest who is ceremonially defiled sacrifices the animals brought by the people or handles the gifts dedicated to Jehovah, he shall be discharged from the priesthood. For I am Jehovah! No priest who is a leper or who has a running sore may eat the holy sacrifices until healed. And any priest who touches a dead person, or who is defiled by a seminal emission, or who touches any reptile or other forbidden thing, or who touches anyone who is ceremonially defiled for any reasonthat priest shall be defiled until evening, and shall not eat of the holy sacrifices until after he has bathed that evening. When the sun is down, then he shall be purified again and may eat the holy food, for it is his source of life. He may not eat any animal that dies of itself or is torn by wild animals, for this will defile him. I am Jehovah. Warn the priests to follow these instructions carefully, lest they be declared guilty and die for violating these rules. I am the Lord who sanctifies them. No one may eat of the holy sacrifices unless he is a priest; no one visiting the priest, for instance, nor a hired servant, may eat this food.

COMMENT 22:1-10

Leviticus 22:1-2 The last chapter discussed the persons who were not qualified to be priests; this chapter discusses the limitations of those who are qualified. A certain portion of the sacrifice belonged to the priest. Cf. Leviticus 7:20-21. But the priest must remember that he cannot eat of this unless he is clean. Under penalty of death he must remember he must be clean before he eats of the holy things of God. Eating of the showbread in the holy place or handling the vessels of the sanctuary carried the same regulation Be ye clean, that bear the vessels of the Lord. Isaiah 52:11. The purpose behind this was to teach the priests to sustain a holy respect for the services of God. The priest is to act as a priest at all times and not treat the holy as if it were common. We like the words of Bonar on these verses: Ministers may learn from this law to act for God at all times and in every place. Ministers of God must beware of letting their spirituality be injured by domestic occurrences. They must not let domestic comforts unhinge their soul, so as to lead them to speak of holy things too familiarly. Ministers are specially under God's eye. He sees whether they walk in the steps of Jesus in their chambers and at their studies. They must be ever separated to the Lord.

Leviticus 22:3-7 Leviticus 22:3 contains a very strong word: shall be cut off from my presence. This seems to suggest that disobedience or neglect of this law would result in the same punishment suffered by Nadab and Abihu. At the least such a one would be excluded from the services of the tabernacle. This would surely prevent a priest from going into the holy place in a careless or thoughtless frame of mind. There is no greater need today than that of a tender sensitiveness or awareness of the presence of God as we minister for Him; whether it is in public, in private, or in our closet. What we say of the preacher we say of the people, for this very cause many are weak and sick and some have died. 1 Corinthians 11:30. We refer to the casual attitude too often present in eating the Lord's supper.

Leviticus 22:4-7 Since the priest began his day with the morning sacrifices, he would be uncleanand also hungryall day, if he was unfit to offer the morning oblation. There were various forms of leprosy, so the priest needs to be constantly conscious of indications of this disease in his person. Cf. Leviticus 13:3. The running issue has been described in Leviticus 15:2. We have also commented on contact with the dead (Cf. Numbers 19:11-14). Unclean creatures, however small, such as creeping things must be avoided. It is one thing to serve others on behalf of God; it is quite another to serve God on our own behalf. Thou therefore that teachest another, teachest thou not thyself? Cf. Romans 2:21. These words of Paul carry the principle of constant self-evaluation in the light of what we share with others. Such is the same principle of this section of Leviticus.

Leviticus 22:8-10 The ordinary Israelite would be unclean if he ate of a clean animal which had died in the wrong manner, i.e. was killed by accident. Cf. Leviticus 17:15. However, the priest was not only unclean but unable to serve in the tabernacle.

The above laws were to be kept under penalty of death. The manner in which such a sentence is stated, i.e.: lest they bear sin for it, and die therein, if they profane it, seems to say that God would strike them dead as He did the two sons of Aaron.

The three persons unqualified to eat of the priest's portion should be clearly identified: (1) no strangerone who was not a descendant of Aaron, even if he were from Levihe was yet a stranger to the promise of communing with God in this particular sense. Cf. Leviticus 7:30; (2) a sojournerthis could have been a Hebrew servant who chose to have his ear pierced and belong to the priest until the year of jubilee. Cf. Exodus 21:6. The priest would need to supply other food for him; (3) a hired servantthis was the Hebrew who was hired for six years and left free. Cf. Exodus 21:2. Neither of them was the property of the priest, though his labor belonged to him. As these Hebrew servants could not be bought with money like a heathen slave, they were treated like strangers, or non-Aaronites, and hence could not partake of the holy food. (ibid)

FACT QUESTIONS 22:1-10

503.

How does chapter 22 relate to chapter 21?

504.

What is the basic lesson of Leviticus 22:1-10?

505.

There is a grand principle in this section for the minister of the gospel. What is it?

506.

What is meant by the phrase cut off from my presence?

507.

What is the great need today of those who minister? (and for the people to whom we minister?)

508.

To be unclean was also to be hungry. Explain. The priest was taught to serve God on his own behalf. How?

509.

Identify the three unqualified persons.