Leviticus 26:1

Leviticus 26:1 says, Ye shall make you no idols nor graven image, neither rear you up a standing image, neither shall ye set up any image of stone in your land, to bow down unto it: for I am the LORD your God.  This is about as clear of a warning against idolatry as there could be.  There were to be no graven images, no standing imagine, nor any stone set up as an idol.  This has not changed.  Verse two adds, Ye shall keep my sabbaths, and reverence my sanctuary: I am the LORD.  The people of Israel were to keep the Sabbath and reverence God's sanctuary.  Since as followers of Christ our bodies are the temple of the Holy Spirit, we should live with reverence to God.  Verse three continues, If ye walk in my statutes, and keep my commandments, and do them;  Then verse four states, Then I will give you rain in due season, and the land shall yield her increase, and the trees of the field shall yield their fruit.  God offered a conditional promise, stating if the people of Israel would obey Him, then He would bless them.  This would happen in due season.  If we obey God's laws, then He will bless us in due season.  We cannot demand a blessing any time we want one, but must put everything in God's hands.  Verse five adds, And your threshing shall reach unto the vintage, and the vintage shall reach unto the sowing time: and ye shall eat your bread to the full, and dwell in your land safely.  God promised that their crops would be abundant when they obeyed Him.  Verse six continues, And I will give peace in the land, and ye shall lie down, and none shall make you afraid: and I will rid evil beasts out of the land, neither shall the sword go through your land.  God promised the people of Israel peace, and if we are faithful in our relationship with God today, He will give us everlasting peace even in the chaos of the world.  Verse seven says, And ye shall chase your enemies, and they shall fall before you by the sword.  God promised them victory over their enemies, not because of their abilities in, but because of their God.  If we are looking for victory today as Christians, we must look to God for guidance and strength.  Verse eight adds, And five of you shall chase an hundred, and an hundred of you shall put ten thousand to flight: and your enemies shall fall before you by the sword.  Again, this ability to fight successfully was based on their faith in God and not their own ability, just as we must rely on God to be successful today.  Verse nine continues, For I will have respect unto you, and make you fruitful, and multiply you, and establish my covenant with you.  God told the people of Israel that He would respect them if they were faithful to Him, just as He will those who put their faith in Jesus Christ today.  Verse ten states, And ye shall eat old store, and bring forth the old because of the new.  Verse eleven adds, And I will set my tabernacle among you: and my soul shall not abhor you.  God would provide for their needs and set His tabernacle before them and His soul would not abhor them as would be the case if they were not faithful to Him.  Verse twelve continues, and I will walk among you, and will be your God, and ye shall be my people.  Such a great promise and it is still true for Christians today.  By the Holy Spirit, God walks among us and we are His people.  Verse thirteen concludes, I am the LORD your God, which brought you forth out of the land of Egypt, that ye should not be their bondmen; and I have broken the bands of your yoke, and made you go upright.  Just as God delivered the people of Israel from bondage in Egypt all those years ago, He delivers us from the bondage of sin today.

Leviticus 25:38

Leviticus 25:38 says, I am the LORD your God, which brought you forth out of the land of Egypt, to give you the land of Canaan, and to be your God.  God simply reminded the people of Israel Who He was, and He is still the same God today.  Verse thirty-nine adds, And if thy brother that dwelleth by thee be waxen poor, and be sold unto thee; thou shalt not compel him to serve as a bondservant:  Verse forty continues, But as an hired servant, and as a sojourner, he shall be with thee, and shall serve thee unto the year of jubile:  If a man's brother became so poor that he sold himself to another, then he was to be treated as a hired hand and not a bond servant until the year of jubilee.  Verse forty-one states, And then shall he depart from thee, both he and his children with him, and shall return unto his own family, and unto the possession of his fathers shall he return.  At the year of jubilee, the man and his family were to be freed to return to his own family and to the possession of his father.  Our year of jubilee will be when Christ returns and we go to our heavenly home, the land of our Father.  Verse forty-two adds, For they are my servants, which I brought forth out of the land of Egypt: they shall not be sold as bondmen.  The people of Israel were God's servants who He had freed from bondage in Egypt and they were not to be bondservants in Israel.  We are freed from sin when we put our faith in Jesus Christ as our Savior and Lord and we should never again allow ourselves to come under the bondage of sin.  Verse forty-three continues, Thou shalt not rule over him with rigour; but shalt fear thy God.  The one in power was not to mistreat the one who had sold himself but was to treat him fairly because they were all under God's power.  Verse forty-four says, Both thy bondmen, and thy bondmaids, which thou shalt have, shall be of the heathen that are round about you; of them shall ye buy bondmen and bondmaids.  Those people from other countries who were in Israel could be bought as bondsmen and handmaids.  There was a difference between God's chosen people and the rest of the world, as there should be between Christians and the rest of the world today.  Verse forty-five adds, Moreover of the children of the strangers that do sojourn among you, of them shall ye buy, and of their families that are with you, which they begat in your land: and they shall be your possession.  Verse forty-six continues, And ye shall take them as an inheritance for your children after you, to inherit them for a possession; they shall be your bondmen for ever: but over your brethren the children of Israel, ye shall not rule one over another with rigour.  Foreigners bought into slavery would remain the bondsmen forever, even to be inherited by the children of the man who bought them, but the men of Israel were not to be treated the same.  Verse forty-seven states, And if a sojourner or stranger wax rich by thee, and thy brother that dwelleth by him wax poor, and sell himself unto the stranger or sojourner by thee, or to the stock of the stranger’s family:  Then verse forty-eight adds, After that he is sold he may be redeemed again; one of his brethren may redeem him:  If a stranger in the land of Israel became rich and a man of Israel sold himself to that man, he could be redeemed by one of his brethren.  If we today find our self once again under the bondage of sin as followers of Christ, we simply have to turn to Him once again for restoration.  Of course, we don't have to be redeemed again.  Verse forty-nine continues, Either his uncle, or his uncle’s son, may redeem him, or any that is nigh of kin unto him of his family may redeem him; or if he be able, he may redeem himself.  The man could be redeemed by a close relative or could even redeem himself.  We can only be redeemed by Jesus Christ, and we must accept Him personally in order to be redeemed.  Verse fifty states, And he shall reckon with him that bought him from the year that he was sold to him unto the year of jubile: and the price of his sale shall be according unto the number of years, according to the time of an hired servant shall it be with him.  The amount paid to redeem the man was going to be determined by the years left until the jubilee;  The price paid for our redemption is always the same, and that is the death of Christ on the cross.  Verse fifty-one adds, If there be yet many years behind, according unto them he shall give again the price of his redemption out of the money that he was bought for.  Verse fifty-two continues, And if there remain but few years unto the year of jubile, then he shall count with him, and according unto his years shall he give him again the price of his redemption.  This just restates that the price of redemption was to be based on the years left to jubilee. Verse fifty-three says, And as a yearly hired servant shall he be with him: and the other shall not rule with rigour over him in thy sight.  Again, the man of Israel who sold himself into bondage was not to be treated badly.   Verse fifty-four adds, And if he be not redeemed in these years, then he shall go out in the year of jubile, both he, and his children with him.  If the man was not redeemed before, then at the year of jubilee he and his family were to be freed.  Verse forty-five concludes.  For unto me the children of Israel are servants; they are my servants whom I brought forth out of the land of Egypt: I am the LORD your God.  The people of Israel were to be God's servants since he was the one who brought them out of Egypt.  We today are God's servants if we have accepted Jesus Christ as our Savior and Lord, and we are bought with the price of Jesus' sacrifice on the cross. 

Leviticus 25:29

Leviticus 25:29 says, And if a man sell a dwelling house in a walled city, then he may redeem it within a whole year after it is sold; within a full year may he redeem it.  If a man sold a dwelling house in a walled city, he had a whole year to redeem it.  Verse thirty adds, And if it be not redeemed within the space of a full year, then the house that is in the walled city shall be established for ever to him that bought it throughout his generations: it shall not go out in the jubile.  If the man did not redeem the house within a year, it could not be redeemed, even in the year of jubilee.  Today, if we do not accept Christ as our Savior and Lord during our life time, we can never become a part of the family of God.  Verse thirty-one continues,  But the houses of the villages which have no wall round about them shall be counted as the fields of the country: they may be redeemed, and they shall go out in the jubile.  Houses in cities with out walls were to be considered the same as houses in the country and could be redeemed during the jubilee.  Verse thirty-two declares, Notwithstanding the cities of the Levites, and the houses of the cities of their possession, may the Levites redeem at any time.  These rules did not apply to the cities of the Levites, which could have houses redeemed at any time.  There was a difference for the priests, just as there is a difference for the priesthood of believers today.  Verse thirty-three adds, And if a man purchase of the Levites, then the house that was sold, and the city of his possession, shall go out in the year of jubile: for the houses of the cities of the Levites are their possession among the children of Israel.  Any house sold by the priests, wherever it was located, would be returned to him during the jubilee.  Verse thirty-four continues, But the field of the suburbs of their cities may not be sold; for it is their perpetual possession.  The Levites could not sell their fields, since they were a perpetual possession given to them by God.  For believers today, salvation is a perpetual gift from God and cannot be bought or sold.  Verse thirty-five says, And if thy brother be waxen poor, and fallen in decay with thee; then thou shalt relieve him: yea, though he be a stranger, or a sojourner; that he may live with thee.  The people of Israel were expected to help the poor, even to the point of having them live with them and even if they were a stranger.  Verse thirty-six adds, Take thou no usury of him, or increase: but fear thy God; that thy brother may live with thee.  They were not to charge the one that they had taken in because they respected God and would need to bring honor to Him.  I am not sure how well this would be received today by the Christians of the world, especially those living in their big mansions.  Verse thirty-seven continues, Thou shalt not give him thy money upon usury, nor lend him thy victuals for increase.  If the host were to be repaid, it would only be for what had been given, with no interest on the money or increase in the amount returned for anything given.   

Leviticus 25:18

Leviticus 25:18 says, Wherefore ye shall do my statutes, and keep my judgments, and do them; and ye shall dwell in the land in safety.  This was the condition stated, that the people of Israel were to live by God's commandments if they were to dwell in the land safely.  Even as followers of Christ, we are still to live by God's law.  The laws do not save us, but they do keep us safely under God's protection by showing our obedience to Him.  Verse nineteen adds, And the land shall yield her fruit, and ye shall eat your fill, and dwell therein in safety.  When the people of Israel were faithful to God, they would have their needs met and would live in peace.  Verse twenty continues, And if ye shall say, What shall we eat the seventh year? behold, we shall not sow, nor gather in our increase:   God said they might question what they were going to eat in the seventh year, just as we may sometimes question God when we feel that we are in in need of something in our life. Verse twenty-one declares, Then I will command my blessing upon you in the sixth year, and it shall bring forth fruit for three years.  God said he would give enough increase in the sixth year to provide for three years.  Like the people of Israel, God has made a provision for our needs to be met, and all we have to do is put our faith in Him.  Verse twenty-two adds, And ye shall sow the eighth year, and eat yet of old fruit until the ninth year; until her fruits come in ye shall eat of the old store.  The people of Israel were to eat of the provisions that God had provided until the new crops planted in the eighth year were ready to harvest.  Verse twenty-three continues, The land shall not be sold for ever: for the land is mine; for ye are strangers and sojourners with me.  God said that the land could not be sold forever because it belonged to Him,  Everything that we own today as followers of Christ  should be viewed as belonging to God.  Verse twenty-four says, And in all the land of your possession ye shall grant a redemption for the land.  If they bought land, they were to allow for redemption for it.  Verse twenty-five adds, If thy brother be waxen poor, and hath sold away some of his possession, and if any of his kin come to redeem it, then shall he redeem that which his brother sold.  There was also a provision for a man's kinsmen to redeem the land.  Verse twenty-six continues, And if the man have none to redeem it, and himself be able to redeem it;  Verse twenty-seven states, Then let him count the years of the sale thereof, and restore the overplus unto the man to whom he sold it; that he may return unto his possession.  If there were no kinsman to redeem the land, the individual himself was to be given the opportunity to redeem it.  Verse twenty-eight adds, But if he be not able to restore it to him, then that which is sold shall remain in the hand of him that hath bought it until the year of jubile: and in the jubile it shall go out, and he shall return unto his possession.  If no one could redeem the land, then it would remain the possession of the one who bought it until the year of jubilee, when it would be restored to the family who sold it.  When we accept Jesus Christ as our Savior and Lord, we are His forever, but we must personally accept His salvation.

Leviticus 25:8

Leviticus 25:8 says, And thou shalt number seven sabbaths of years unto thee, seven times seven years; and the space of the seven sabbaths of years shall be unto thee forty and nine years.  The people were to number seven sabbath years, every seven years being considered a sabbath of years just as every seven days was considered a sabbath of days.  Then the people of Israel were to count another sabbath of the seven years, making a total of forty-nine years.  Verse nine adds, Then shalt thou cause the trumpet of the jubilee to sound on the tenth day of the seventh month, in the day of atonement shall ye make the trumpet sound throughout all your land.  On the tenth day of the seventh month of this fortieth year, the day of atonement, they were to sound the trumpet.  Verse ten continues, And ye shall hallow the fiftieth year, and proclaim liberty throughout all the land unto all the inhabitants thereof: it shall be a jubile unto you; and ye shall return every man unto his possession, and ye shall return every man unto his family.  The year of jubilee was to be a year of liberty throughout the land, and every man's possessions were to be returned to him.  This was a time of restoration to the people of Israel, just as we have a day of restoration when we accept Jesus Christ as our Savior and Lord, but we never have renew our salvation. Still, if we allow sin into our lives after we accept Him, then we have to confess our sins so that there will be nothing separating us from Him. Verse eleven declares, A jubile shall that fiftieth year be unto you: ye shall not sow, neither reap that which groweth of itself in it, nor gather the grapes in it of thy vine undressed.  The year of jubilee was to be a year when no planting or harvesting was to be done.  Verse twelve adds, For it is the jubile; it shall be holy unto you: ye shall eat the increase thereof out of the field.  They were not to plant or reap as normal, but were to eat of the increase of the field as they had need.  They would have to rely on God to provide for their physical needs due to their spiritual relationship with him,  As Christians today, we should rely on God to meet our physical needs because of our spiritual relationship with Him.  Verse thirteen continues, In the year of this jubile ye shall return every man unto his possession. Verse fourteen says, And if thou sell ought unto thy neighbour, or buyest ought of thy neighbour’s hand, ye shall not oppress one another:  Things bought from neighbors were to be returned to them during the year of jubilee, and if they had bought a person, that person was to be set free.  Verse fifteen adds, According to the number of years after the jubile thou shalt buy of thy neighbour, and according unto the number of years of the fruits he shall sell unto thee:  There was a provision for accounting for the price due to the number of years until jubilee.  Verse sixteen continues, According to the multitude of years thou shalt increase the price thereof, and according to the fewness of years thou shalt diminish the price of it: for according to the number of the years of the fruits doth he sell unto thee.  This was the condition of prorating the price as just stated.  Verse seventeen concludes, Ye shall not therefore oppress one another; but thou shalt fear thy God.  The year of jubilee was instituted to keep anyone from being oppressed, and today our salvation through Christ keeps us from being spiritually oppressed.

Leviticus 25 :1

Leviticus 25:1 says, And the LORD spake unto Moses in mount Sinai, saying,  Verse two adds, Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them, When ye come into the land which I give you, then shall the land keep a sabbath unto the LORD.  God spoke to Moses on Mt. Sinai, when Moses was alone with God.  Sometimes we may need to get alone with God in order to hear what He has to say to us.  God told Moses to tell the people of Israel when they came into the land He was giving them that they were to observe His Sabbath.  Whatever we have today as followers of Christ is a gift from God, and we should keep His commandments.  Verse three continues, Six years thou shalt sow thy field, and six years thou shalt prune thy vineyard, and gather in the fruit thereof;  The people of Israel were to sow and reap for six years.  Verse four declares, But in the seventh year shall be a sabbath of rest unto the land, a sabbath for the LORD: thou shalt neither sow thy field, nor prune thy vineyard.  The seven year was to be a year long Sabbath to God.  The land was to lay fallow.  Today, we don't even want to allow one day a week to be totally dedicated to God, much less ever seventh year.  Verse five adds, That which groweth of its own accord of thy harvest thou shalt not reap, neither gather the grapes of thy vine undressed: for it is a year of rest unto the land.  Even anything that grew on its own was to be left unharvested by the landowner.  When God said it was to be a year of rest for the ground, He meant it, but the land could still produce on its own or by the provision of God.  Verse six continues, And the sabbath of the land shall be meat for you; for thee, and for thy servant, and for thy maid, and for thy hired servant, and for thy stranger that sojourneth with thee,  Verse seven concludes, And for thy cattle, and for the beast that are in thy land, shall all the increase thereof be meat.  Matthew Henry says that this meant that all the people and animals were to have all the things that grew that year in common, just as the early church had all things in common.  They were to rely on God, just as we should today. 

 

Leviticus 24:10

Leviticus 24:10 says, And the son of an Israelitish woman, whose father was an Egyptian, went out among the children of Israel: and this son of the Israelitish woman and a man of Israel strove together in the camp;  The son of an Israelite woman was striving with a man of Israel.  She would have violated the command of God to not merry so from another country.  Verse eleven adds  And the Israelitish woman’s son blasphemed the name of the LORD, and cursed. And they brought him unto Moses: (and his mother’s name was Shelomith, the daughter of Dibri, of the tribe of Dan:)  The woman's son blasphemed the name of the Lord and was brought before Moses.  We are told that the woman was of the tribe of Dan.  Verse twelve states And they put him in ward, that the mind of the LORD might be shewed them.  They evidently locked the man up while seeking God's guidance.  When we have someone who has blasphemed God, we should always seek His guidance for how we deal with him or her.  Verse thirteen declares, And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,  Then verse fourteen adds, Bring forth him that hath cursed without the camp; and let all that heard him lay their hands upon his head, and let all the congregation stone him.  God told Moses to have the people bring the man outside the camp and have those that had heard him curse God to lay their hands on his head and then for the people to stone him.  He was not condemned by rumor, but by witnesses, and this was a very serious offense worthy of death.  Verse fifteen declares,  And thou shalt speak unto the children of Israel, saying, Whosoever curseth his God shall bear his sin.  Then verse sixteen adds, And he that blasphemeth the name of the LORD, he shall surely be put to death, and all the congregation shall certainly stone him: as well the stranger, as he that is born in the land, when he blasphemeth the name of the LORD, shall be put to death.  God said that all who blasphemed the name of the LORD bore their sin, whether an Israelite or a stranger and they should be put to death.  There would be a great reduction in the population if this were done today, and I believe that God is still as,serious about this sin.  Verse seventeen says, And he that killeth any man shall surely be put to death.  This would more accurately be interpreted murders any man, and it was definitely capital punishment.  Verse eighteen states, And he that killeth a beast shall make it good; beast for beast. If a man killed the animal of someone else, he was to replAce it with the same type animal.  Verse nineteen declares, And if a man cause a blemish in his neighbour; as he hath done, so shall it be done to him;  If a personified someone else, they were to be likewise injured.  This may seem rather severe, but I believe that these laws were given to ensure that people treated the possessions of others and other people themselves as valuable.  Verse twenty continues Breach for breach, eye for eye, tooth for tooth: as he hath caused a blemish in a man, so shall it be done to him again.  I know that we have heard an eye for an eye, but this also limited what could be done.  Verse twenty-one says, And he that killeth a beast, he shall restore it: and he that killeth a man, he shall be put to death.  An animal that was killed was to be replaced, and a man that murdered someone was to be put to death.  Verse twenty-two declares, Ye shall have one manner of law, as well for the stranger, as for one of your own country: for I am the LORD your God.  The law was to apply to the people of Israel as,well as to the stranger, because it was God's law, and God's law still applies to everyone today, because it is God's law.  Verse twenty-three concludes, And Moses spake to the children of Israel, that they should bring forth him that had cursed out of the camp, and stone him with stones. And the children of Israel did as the LORD commanded Moses.  Moses told the people of Israel what God said they should do, and they did it.  This is what we as followers of Christ should always do. We should always listen to what God tells us to do, and then we should do it.

Leviticus 24:1 says,  And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,  Verse two adds, Command the children of Israel, that they bring unto thee pure oil olive beaten for the light, to cause the lamps to burn continually.  God through Moses commanded the people of Israel to bring pure olive oil to light the lamps of the tabernacle so they could burn continually.   We today are to let the light of Christ shine continually in our lives, and faith provides the oil to allow us do so .  Verse three says, Without the vail of the testimony, in the tabernacle of the congregation, shall Aaron order it from the evening unto the morning before the LORD continually: it shall be a statute for ever in your generations.  It was the responsibility of the priests to keep the lamps burning, just as it is our responsibility as the priesthood of believers to keep the gospel light burning bright today.  It was a daily requirement for them and it still is for us.  Verse four adds, He shall order the lamps upon the pure candlestick before the LORD continually.  The priests were to keep the lamps in good shape, and we must make sure that the gospel remains pure and in good shape today.  Verse five says, And thou shalt take fine flour, and bake twelve cakes thereof: two tenth deals shall be in one cake.  Then verse six adds, And thou shalt set them in two rows, six on a row, upon the pure table before the LORD.  The priests were also to follow God's instructions for the display of the bread dedicated to God.  As followers of Christ, we are in charge of caring for the bread of life, the gospel of Christ, today.  Verse seven states, And thou shalt put pure frankincense upon each row, that it may be on the bread for a memorial, even an offering made by fire unto the LORD.  Incense was to be put on the bread as a memorial for God and it was to be an offering made by fire to God.  This bread had nothing to do with meeting physical needs, but had only to do with meeting spiritual requirements of God.  Accepting Christ has nothing to do with physical needs, but has everything to do with meeting spiritual needs, because until we accept Him as our Savior and Lord we cannot be obedient to God.  Verse eight declares, Every sabbath he shall set it in order before the LORD continually, being taken from the children of Israel by an everlasting covenant.  This bread was to be set in order before the LORD every sabbath, and it was an everlasting covenant.  Jesus is the bread of life today, and He is before the heavenly Father as an everlasting covenant for those who put their faith in Him.  Verse nine adds, And it shall be Aaron’s and his sons’; and they shall eat it in the holy place: for it is most holy unto him of the offerings of the LORD made by fire by a perpetual statute.  The priests could eat of the bread, but even then it was to viewed as most holy and I believe was to therefore be eaten with their hearts and minds focused on God.  When God does provide for us physically today, we must still keep our hearts and minds dedicated to bringing honor and glory to Him in the way that we use His gifts.