Leviticus focuses on the worship and walk of the nation of God. In Exodus, Israel was redeemed and established as a kingdom of priests and a holy nation. Leviticus shows how God’s people are to fulfill their priestly calling. They have been led out of bondage (Exodus), and into the sanctuary of God (Leviticus); now they must move on from redemption to service, from deliverance to dedication.
Leviticus is God’s guidebook for His newly redeemed people, showing them how to worship, serve, and obey a holy God. Both access to God (through the sacrifices) and fellowship with God (through obedience) show the awesome holiness of the God of Israel. Indeed “you shall be holy; for I [the Lord] am holy” (11:44).
Introduction and Title
Leviticus is God’s guidebook for His newly redeemed people, showing them how to worship, serve, and obey a holy God. Fellowship with God through sacrifice and obedience show the awesome holiness of the God of Israel. Indeed, “ ‘You shall be holy, for I the LORD your God am holy’ ” (19:2).
Leviticus focuses on the worship and walk of the nation of God. In Exodus, Israel was redeemed and established as a kingdom of priests and a holy nation. Leviticus shows how God’s people are to fulfill their priestly calling.
The Hebrew title is Wayyiqra, “And He Called.” The Talmud refers to Leviticus as the “Law of the Priests,” and the “Law of the Offerings.” The Greek title appearing in the Septuagint is Leuitikon, “that which pertains to the Levites.” From this word, the Latin Vulgate derived its name Leviticus which was adopted as the English title. This title is slightly misleading because the book does not deal with the Levites as a whole but more with the priests, a segment of the Levites.
Author
The kind of arguments used to confirm the Mosaic authorship of Genesis and Exodus also apply to Leviticus because the Pentateuch is a literary unit. In addition to these arguments, others include the following:
External Evidence: (1) A uniform ancient testimony supports the Mosaic authorship of Leviticus. (2) Ancient parallels to the Levitical system of trespass offerings have been found in the Ras Shamra Tablets dating from about 1400 B.C. and discovered on the coast of northern Syria. (3) Christ ascribes the Pentateuch (which includes Leviticus) to Moses (cf. Matt. 8:2–4 and Lev. 14:1–4; Matt. 12:4 and Lev. 24:9; see also Luke 2:22).
Internal Evidence: (1) Fifty-six times in the twenty-seven chapters of Leviticus it is stated that God imparted these laws to Moses (see 1:1; 4:1; 6:1, 24; 8:1). (2) The Levitical code fits the time of Moses. Economic, civil, moral, and religious considerations show it to be ancient. Many of the laws are also related to a migratory life-style.
Date and Setting
No geographical movement takes place in Leviticus: the children of Israel remain camped at the foot of Mount Sinai (see 25:1–2; 26:46; 27:34). The new calendar of Israel begins with the first Passover (Ex. 12:2); and, according to Exodus 40:17, the tabernacle is completed exactly one year later.
Leviticus picks up the story at this point and takes place in the first month of the second year. Numbers 1:1 opens at the beginning of the second month. Moses probably wrote much of Leviticus during that first month and may have put it in its final form shortly before his death in Moab, about 1405 B.C.
Theme and Purpose
The clear theme of Leviticus is holiness (11:45; 19:2). It teaches that one must approach a holy God on the basis of sacrifice and priestly mediation, and that one can only walk with a holy God on the basis of sanctification and obedience. God’s chosen people must approach Him in a holy manner.
Leviticus was written to show Israel how to live as a priestly kingdom and a holy nation in fellowship with God. It provides a guide for worship, a law code, and a handbook on holiness for the priests. In Genesis man was ruined and Israel was born; in Exodus people were redeemed and Israel delivered; in Leviticus people were cleansed and Israel consecrated to the service of God.
Keys to Leviticus
Key Word: Holiness
Key Verses (17:11; 20:7–8)—“ ‘For the life of the flesh is in the blood, and I have given it to you upon the altar to make atonement for your souls; for it is the blood that makes atonement for the soul’ ” (17:11).
“Sanctify yourselves therefore, and be holy, for I am the LORD your God. And you shall keep My statutes, and perform them: I am the LORD who sanctifies you” (20:7–8).
Key Chapter (16)—The Day of Atonement (“Yom Kippur”) was the most important single day in the Hebrew calendar as it was the only day the high priest entered into the Holy of Holies to “make atonement for you, to cleanse you, that you may be clean from all your sins before the LORD” (16:30).
Christ in Leviticus
The Book of Leviticus is replete with types and allusions to the person and work of Jesus Christ. Some of the more important include: (1) The five offerings: The burnt offering typifies Christ’s total offering in submission to His Father’s will. The meal offering typifies Christ’s sinless service. The peace offering is a type of the fellowship believers have with God through the work of the Cross. The sin offering typifies Christ as our guilt-bearer. The trespass offering typifies Christ’s payment for the damage of sin. (2) The high priest: There are several comparisons and contrasts between Aaron, the first high priest, and Christ, our eternal High Priest. (3) The seven feasts: Passover speaks of the substitutionary death of the Lamb of God. Christ died on the day of Passover. Unleavened Bread speaks of the holy walk of the believer (1 Cor. 5:6–8). Firstfruits speaks of Christ’s resurrection as the firstfruit of the resurrection of all believers (1 Cor. 15:20–23). Christ rose on the day of the Firstfruits. Pentecost speaks of the descent of the Holy Spirit after Christ’s ascension. Trumpets, the Day of Atonement, and Tabernacles speak of events associated with the second advent of Christ. This may be why these three are separated by a long gap from the first four in Israel’s annual cycle.
Contribution to the Bible
For some readers Leviticus appears dull. It has no action or plot except for the death of Nadab and Abihu in chapter 10. It is heavy with rules, regulations and repetition. Its content seems outmoded and difficult to apply. But in reality Leviticus is rich in spiritual truth. It develops a number of doctrinal and practical themes centering on the questions of pardon for guilt and fellowship with God. It reveals how God in His grace accepts the death of a substitute as payment for the penalty of sin. And it has a number of types and portraits of the coming Messiah. The predictive types and symbols in this book are fulfilled in the New Testament, particularly in Hebrews.
Survey of Leviticus
It has been said that it took God only one night to get Israel out of Egypt, but it took forty years to get Egypt out of Israel. In Exodus, Israel is redeemed and established as a kingdom of priests and a holy nation; and in Leviticus, Israel is taught how to fulfill their priestly call. They have been led out from the land of bondage in Exodus and into the sanctuary of God in Leviticus. They move from redemption to service, from deliverance to dedication. This book serves as a handbook for the Levitical priesthood, giving instructions and regulations for worship. Used to guide a newly redeemed people into worship, service, and obedience to God, Leviticus falls into two major sections: (1) sacrifice (1–17), and (2) sanctification (18–27).
Sacrifice (1–17): This section teaches that God must be approached by the sacrificial offerings (1–7), by the mediation of the priesthood (8–10), by the purification of the nation from uncleanness (11–15), and by the provision for national cleansing and fellowship (16–17). The blood sacrifices remind the worshipers that because of sin the holy God requires the costly gift of life (17:11). The blood of the innocent sacrificial animal becomes the substitute for the life of the guilty offerer: “without shedding of blood there is no remission” (Heb. 9:22).
Sanctification (18–27): The Israelites serve a holy God who requires them to be holy as well. To be holy means to be “set apart” or “separated.” They are to be separated from other nations unto God. In Leviticus the idea of holiness appears eighty-seven times, sometimes indicating ceremonial holiness (ritual requirements), and at other times moral holiness (purity of life). This sanctification extends to the people of Israel (18–20), the priesthood (21–22), their worship (23–24), their life in Canaan (25–26), and their special vows (27). It is necessary to remove the defilement that separates the people from God so that they can have a walk of fellowship with their Redeemer.
Wilkinson, B., & Boa, K. (1983). Talk thru the Bible (pp. 20–24). Nashville: T. Nelson.