Leviticus

Purpose and Message

Leviticus 11:44–45 (ESV)

For I am the Lord your God. Consecrate yourselves therefore, and be holy, for I am holy.

Leviticus is essentially a manual for how God’s people, the Israelites can live in holiness before the holy God that delivered them from slavery in Egypt.

So long as they will obey God’s Word, He will bless them.

The outline of book of Leviticus:

Chapters 1—10

Approaching a Holy God — We must realize that God is perfectly holy, and we are not. Therefore we must be purified. This is the reason that God instituted…

Laws about sacrifices — Rather than leave the Israelites to themselves, God made a way for them to be able to live in the presence of a holy God. Someone has to pay for the penalty for sin. Hebrews 9:22 “Indeed, under the law almost everything is purified with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins.”

Laws about consecration of priests — Those who serve God must be specific individuals, those in the line of Aaron. And they must be consecrated in service to God. They must be set apart.

Chapters 11—25

Living in the Presence of a Holy God — Once again, we see that God desires to dwell among His people. But because He is holy and they are not, there must be rules in place. God is holy, pure, undefiled, and therefore cannot be in the presence of sin. So God gave His people…

Laws about “Clean” and “Unclean” Things — There are things that are clean and there are things that are unclean. Things that are clean can be made unclean, and things that are unclean can be made clean. The Israelites needed to be aware of this, as they worshipped a perfectly holy God.

Laws about Holiness — God’s requirement was that His people would be perfectly holy. This means that they would be fully devoted to Him, not worshipping other gods. They were to give the best to God, in reverence and worship to Him.

Chapter 26 — READ THIS CHAPTER!!!

Covenant Blessings and Curses — The Israelites

Chapter 27

Appendix: Laws about Vows and Gifts