Leviticus 27:14

Leviticus 27:14 says, And when a man shall sanctify his house to be holy unto the LORD, then the priest shall estimate it, whether it be good or bad: as the priest shall estimate it, so shall it stand.  A man could sanctify his house to the LORD.  This was the house itself and not the people, and the priest would estimate the value for the man to pay to redeem it.  Verse fifteen adds, And if he that sanctified it will redeem his house, then he shall add the fifth part of the money of thy estimation unto it, and it shall be his.  To redeem the house, the man who sanctified it had to add twenty percent to the estimated value.  Of course, everything is really God's to start with, but when we sanctify, or set aside, something that is ours in the view of the world for God's use, if we later decide to use it for our own purpose, we should expect it to cost us more than what it is valued at.  Verse sixteen continues, And if a man shall sanctify unto the LORD some part of a field of his possession, then thy estimation shall be according to the seed thereof: an homer of barley seed shall be valued at fifty shekels of silver.  Matthew Henry says this is land that was inherited.  This had to do with set a value on a part of a field sanctified to God.  The value would be based on the yield of the field.  Verse seventeen states, If he sanctify his field from the year of jubile, according to thy estimation it shall stand.  Verse eighteen continues, But if he sanctify his field after the jubile, then the priest shall reckon unto him the money according to the years that remain, even unto the year of the jubile, and it shall be abated from thy estimation.  Once more, the year of the jubilee would come onto play.  If the land was dedicated in the year of jubilee, it would be redeemed for the price, but if after the year of jubilee, it would be reduced by a percentage based on the years left to the next jubilee.  Verse nineteen says, And if he that sanctified the field will in any wise redeem it, then he shall add the fifth part of the money of thy estimation unto it, and it shall be assured to him.  Again, the redemption price was a fifth more than the valuation price.  Verse twenty adds, And if he will not redeem the field, or if he have sold the field to another man, it shall not be redeemed any more.  If the man would not redeem the land or had sold it to another then it could no longer be redeemed.  Verse twenty-one continues, But the field, when it goeth out in the jubile, shall be holy unto the LORD, as a field devoted; the possession thereof shall be the priest’s.  A field unredeemed at jubilee would be God's forever, just as when we are redeemed by Christ we are God's forever.  There is no reduction in the value of our redemption, no matter how long we may have lived, but the redemption of any individual cost the same, and that is the death of Christ on the cross.  Verse twenty-two states, And if a man sanctify unto the LORD a field which he hath bought, which is not of the fields of his possession;   This had to do with land the man had purchased and not with inherited land.  Verse twenty-three adds, Then the priest shall reckon unto him the worth of thy estimation, even unto the year of the jubile: and he shall give thine estimation in that day, as a holy thing unto the LORD.  The man giving the land would pay the estimated value of the land to the priest and it would be considered a holy thing.  Verse twenty-four continues, In the year of the jubile the field shall return unto him of whom it was bought, even to him to whom the possession of the land did belong.  In the year of jubilee the land would be returned to the one who had originally owned it.  This I believe would prevent the one who purchased the land from simply claiming to give the land to God knowing that revert to the original owner in jubilee.  The one donating it would still be out the cost of the estimation.  We should be wary of trying to claim to give something to God because we figure that it is going to be lost to us anyway.  Verse twenty-five concludes, And all thy estimations shall be according to the shekel of the sanctuary: twenty gerahs shall be the shekel.  This once again was just assigning a monetary value to the land.

Leviticus 27:1

Leviticus 27:1 says. And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,  Verse two adds, Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them, When a man shall make a singular vow, the persons shall be for the LORD by thy estimation.  God was addressing people who made vows to Him and letting them know that God would set the value of their vow.  These were vows where a person dedicated themselves to service in the tabernacle according to Matthew Henry and were not something required by God but were voluntary vows.  It is good to do what God asks of us, but it is even better when we willingly go above and beyond what He asks.  Verse three continues, And thy estimation shall be of the male from twenty years old even unto sixty years old, even thy estimation shall be fifty shekels of silver, after the shekel of the sanctuary.  Matthew Henry says that this was the value to redeem the person from their vow, so that the priests would have money to fund the tabernacle.  The amount of the redemption depended on the age and gender of the person making it.  Through Christ, all people are valued the same regardless of age or gender, and He paid the price to redeem each individual.  Verse four states, And if it be a female, then thy estimation shall be thirty shekels.  The price to redeem a female was less than the price to redeem a male in his prime.  Verse five adds, And if it be from five years old even unto twenty years old, then thy estimation shall be of the male twenty shekels, and for the female ten shekels.  Then there was the amount set to redeem a child between five and twenty, with the different amounts for the male and female.  These amounts were set based on the amount of work it was believed that the person could do, and once again these were voluntary vows made to God.  Verse six continues, And if it be from a month old even unto five years old, then thy estimation shall be of the male five shekels of silver, and for the female thy estimation shall be three shekels of silver.  Since children of this age would not be able to make a vow, it would have to be assumed that their parents were the ones making the vow.  When the children were dedicated to God, they could be redeemed for a price.  The price of redemption today so that we can be dedicated to God is the same for all individuals, and that is accepting Jesus Christ as one's Savior and Lord.  Verse seven says, And if it be from sixty years old and above; if it be a male, then thy estimation shall be fifteen shekels, and for the female ten shekels.  The redemption value between a man and a woman over sixty were still different, but the woman was considered to be of a closer value to the man.  Verse eight adds, But if he be poorer than thy estimation, then he shall present himself before the priest, and the priest shall value him; according to his ability that vowed shall the priest value him.  If a person was poor, then the priest was to set the value of their redemption if they made a vow to God.  Matthew Henry says this was to teach the people to not make rash vows, because a vow made to God had value.  We today likewise should not make rash vows to God.  Verse nine continues, And if it be a beast, whereof men bring an offering unto the LORD, all that any man giveth of such unto the LORD shall be holy.  If a person vowed an animal to the Lord, then it was to be considered holy, or set aside for God.  Verse ten states, He shall not alter it, nor change it, a good for a bad, or a bad for a good: and if he shall at all change beast for beast, then it and the exchange thereof shall be holy.  Once an animal was vowed, it could not be exchanged, but if a person attempted to exchange another animal for the one vowed, then both would be considered holy, or set apart for God.  Once we come to Christ vowing our faith to Him, we are forever His.  Verse eleven adds, And if it be any unclean beast, of which they do not offer a sacrifice unto the LORD, then he shall present the beast before the priest:  Unclean animals that were vowed to God, that could not be sacrificed, were to have a redemption value for them set by the priest.  Verse twelve continues, And the priest shall value it, whether it be good or bad: as thou valuest it, who art the priest, so shall it be.  Verse thirteen concludes, But if he will at all redeem it, then he shall add a fifth part thereof unto thy estimation.  The animal, if unclean, was to be for the use of the priest, and if the man vowing it wanted to redeem it, he would have to pay an additional twenty percent over the value.  God expects us to take our vows seriously.

Leviticus 26:40

Leviticus 26:40 says, If they shall confess their iniquity, and the iniquity of their fathers, with their trespass which they trespassed against me, and that also they have walked contrary unto me;  God told Moses that there was a way to restoration and that it began by the people confessing their sins.  In order for us to be restored to God today, we must confess our sins and ask His forgiveness by putting our faith in Jesus Christ as our Redeemer.  Verse forty-one adds, And that I also have walked contrary unto them, and have brought them into the land of their enemies; if then their uncircumcised hearts be humbled, and they then accept of the punishment of their iniquity:  God said that when the people of Israel failed to live up to their part of the covenant relationship that He established with them, then He no longer walked with them.  God then added that a part of the restoration required the people of Israel to humble their uncircumcised hearts and accept punishment for their iniquities.  If we today as followers of Christ allow sin back into our lives, we must humble our hearts and confess them to God and accept responsibility for them.  Verse forty-two continues, Then will I remember my covenant with Jacob, and also my covenant with Isaac, and also my covenant with Abraham will I remember; and I will remember the land.  I don't believe that this means that God ever forgot these covenants, but instead that He would again fulfill His part of the covenants.  The covenants always were conditional, based on the people being obedient to their part of the covenant, since God was always faithful to His when they were.  Verse forty-three states, The land also shall be left of them, and shall enjoy her sabbaths, while she lieth desolate without them: and they shall accept of the punishment of their iniquity: because, even because they despised my judgments, and because their soul abhorred my statutes.  God said that the land would enjoy her sabbaths until the people confessed and returned to Him.  There was quite an indictment against the people of Israel, God's chosen people.  They had despised God's judgments and abhorred His statutes.  As God's people today, we cannot just ignore His laws and then expect everything in life to be good.  Verse forty-four adds, And yet for all that, when they be in the land of their enemies, I will not cast them away, neither will I abhor them, to destroy them utterly, and to break my covenant with them: for I am the LORD their God.  God said that even when He removed His protective hand and the people of Israel were carried away into the land of their enemies that He would not cast them away, because He is God and He had made a covenant with them.  I believe that once we enter into a covenant relationship with God by putting our faith in Jesus Christ that the covenant is an everlasting covenant.  We may suffer problems if we allow sin back in our lives, but we will never lose our salvation, because it is secured by God.  Verse forty-five continues, But I will for their sakes remember the covenant of their ancestors, whom I brought forth out of the land of Egypt in the sight of the heathen, that I might be their God: I am the LORD.  God said that He would never forget the covenant that He made with the people of Israel when He brought them out of the land of Egypt, and He will never forget the covenant that He makes with us when we accept Christ as our Savior and Lord.  Verse forty-six concludes, These are the statutes and judgments and laws, which the LORD made between him and the children of Israel in mount Sinai by the hand of Moses.  These were the statutes and judgments and laws made by the LORD between Him and the people of Israel as given to Moses on Mt. Sinai.  We today can have a relationship with God only through accepting the way of salvation given by God when Jesus Christ died on the cross for our sins and arose victorious over all sin, which was and is the only way to salvation.

Leviticus 26:30

Leviticus 26:30 And I will destroy your high places, and cut down your images, and cast your carcases upon the carcases of your idols, and my soul shall abhor you.  This is a continuation of what God said He would do to the people of Israel if they did not obey Him and chased after idols.  God would tear down their idols and cast their dead bodies on the idols.  If we do not accept Jesus as our Savior and Lord and follow after false gods instead, we will one day have our spiritually dead bodies cast away into hell.  Verse thirty-one adds,  And I will make your cities waste, and bring your sanctuaries unto desolation, and I will not smell the savour of your sweet odours.  God said that He would destroy their cities and sanctuaries and not accept their sacrifices.  Just because we say that we are sacrificing something to God does not mean that He has to accept it.  Verse thirty-two continues, And I will bring the land into desolation: and your enemies which dwell therein shall be astonished at it.  God told the people of Israel that He would bring their land to desolation and that their enemies that lived in the land would be astonished by it.  We should not be surprised that the enemies of God live in our midst, even if we call our self a Christian nation.  Verse thirty-three states, And I will scatter you among the heathen, and will draw out a sword after you: and your land shall be desolate, and your cities waste.  God said if the people of Israel did not obey His laws that He would once again scatter them among the heathen and leave their land desolate.  God had called them to be His people and had gathered them together in the promised land, and He could remove His protection and allow them to once again be a scattered and defeated people.  We are God's people today because of His calling us to salvation and providing it for us, and we must follow His guidance if we are to be spiritually powerful in the world.  Verse thirty-four adds, Then shall the land enjoy her sabbaths, as long as it lieth desolate, and ye be in your enemies’ land; even then shall the land rest, and enjoy her sabbaths.  God said that if the people of Israel did not give the land its sabbaths that He would.  This should be a warning to us to keep the Lord's Day, our sabbath, devoted to God.  Verse thirty-five continues, As long as it lieth desolate it shall rest; because it did not rest in your sabbaths, when ye dwelt upon it.  Again, God told them that when He allowed them to be defeated that the land would have its sabbaths, which the people would have not observed.  Verse thirty-six declares, And upon them that are left alive of you I will send a faintness into their hearts in the lands of their enemies; and the sound of a shaken leaf shall chase them; and they shall flee, as fleeing from a sword; and they shall fall when none pursueth.  God said that when He removed His protection from them instead one man of Israel chasing many that they would become so weak that they would flee when their wasn't even anyone chasing them.  Verse thirty-seven adds, And they shall fall one upon another, as it were before a sword, when none pursueth: and ye shall have no power to stand before your enemies.  Without God, the people of Israel would be powerless before their enemies.  Without the empowerment of the Holy Spirit in our lives we are also powerless before the enemies that we face.  We must rely on God's guidance and empowerment if we are to be spiritually successful in the world today.  Verse thirty-eight continues, And ye shall perish among the heathen, and the land of your enemies shall eat you up.  Then verse thirty-nine concludes, And they that are left of you shall pine away in their iniquity in your enemies’ lands; and also in the iniquities of their fathers shall they pine away with them.  Those of the people of Israel who remained would live in the lands of their enemies and pine away in the iniquities of the land.  Until we accept Jesus Christ as our personal Savior and Lord, we will be enemies of heaven and will never be content in life but will always pine away wanting something more.

Leviticus 26:14

Leviticus 26:14 says, But if ye will not hearken unto me, and will not do all these commandments;  Now, God issued the warning.  Obedience or disobedience were both possible, because God gives us free will, but disobedience has a penalty.  Verse fifteen adds, And if ye shall despise my statutes, or if your soul abhor my judgments, so that ye will not do all my commandments, but that ye break my covenant:  God's warning continues to be spelled out.  When we defy God's law, we in effect show that we despise Him.  Verse sixteen continues, I also will do this unto you; I will even appoint over you terror, consumption, and the burning ague, that shall consume the eyes, and cause sorrow of heart: and ye shall sow your seed in vain, for your enemies shall eat it.  Again. I believe that when God removed His protective hand that these things happened more than that He caused them to happen, but the result is the same.  Without God's power behind them, the people of Israel were not really a powerful nation at all, just as we are spiritually powerless without the Holy Spirit guiding us.  Verse seventeen states, And I will set my face against you, and ye shall be slain before your enemies: they that hate you shall reign over you; and ye shall flee when none pursueth you.  When God set His face against them, the people of Israel would realize how powerless they were, fleeing from even non-existent enemies.  How often today do we flee from imagined enemies because we are not looking to God for guidance and strength?  Verse eighteen adds, And if ye will not yet for all this hearken unto me, then I will punish you seven times more for your sins.  God said that as long as the people continued to rebel against Him that they would continue to be punished.  As long as we refuse to accept Jesus Christ as our Savior and Lord, we will be under the judgment of God, and we will stand guilty.  Verse nineteen continues, And I will break the pride of your power; and I will make your heaven as iron, and your earth as brass:  God said that He would break the pride that they had in their power.  Until we admit that we are helpless to save our self, we never accept God's salvation made available through faith in Jesus Christ, which is the only way to salvation. Verse twenty says, And your strength shall be spent in vain: for your land shall not yield her increase, neither shall the trees of the land yield their fruits.  God had given them a land flowing with milk and honey, but He said that even that would cease to exist if they did not obey His laws.  As followers of Christ, we know that we have a home in heaven, but if we disobey God's law after we accept Christ, then life here may become less than blessed.  Verse twenty-one adds, And if ye walk contrary unto me, and will not hearken unto me; I will bring seven times more plagues upon you according to your sins.  Then verse twenty-two continues, I will also send wild beasts among you, which shall rob you of your children, and destroy your cattle, and make you few in number; and your high ways shall be desolate.  God had freed them from Egypt by sending plagues on the people there, ending with the death of their children, and God said that He could allow the same thing to happen to the people of Israel if the would not obey Him.  They were not a special people because of who they were but because of who God is, and the same is true of Christians today.  Verse twenty-three states, And if ye will not be reformed by me by these things, but will walk contrary unto me;  God said that there was a way to avoid this, and that was to be reformed by Him.  We must always come to God on His terms.  The next few verses continue to pronounce God's warning.  Verse twenty-four adds, Then will I also walk contrary unto you, and will punish you yet seven times for your sins.  If the people of Israel turned away from God then He would turn away from them.  Verse twenty-five continues, And I will bring a sword upon you, that shall avenge the quarrel of my covenant: and when ye are gathered together within your cities, I will send the pestilence among you; and ye shall be delivered into the hand of the enemy.  God said that He would allow other nations to defeat Israel.  Verse twenty-six says, And when I have broken the staff of your bread, ten women shall bake your bread in one oven, and they shall deliver you your bread again by weight: and ye shall eat, and not be satisfied.  The people would not be able to satisfy their physical needs.  Verse twenty-seven adds, And if ye will not for all this hearken unto me, but walk contrary unto me;  Verse twenty-eight continues, Then I will walk contrary unto you also in fury; and I, even I, will chastise you seven times for your sins.  If we do not accept God's salvation and obey His laws, then we can expect His judgment.  Verse twenty-nine concludes. And ye shall eat the flesh of your sons, and the flesh of your daughters shall ye eat.  I don't believe that this means that they would literally eat the flesh of their children, but when we fail to obey God then we may cause our children to face eternity without accepting Jesus Christ as their Savior and Lord, which is a greater punishment.

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.