Tag Archives: Gordon Wenham

Bible Interpretation, Difficult Bible Passages, Sunday School

Commentary on Numbers 25-31 (Vengeance on the Midianites)

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Following the prophecies of Balaam in chapters 22-24, the author of Numbers, in chapter 25, records the last rebellion against God before the Israelites enter the Promised Land. Verses 1-4 describe the catastrophe that occurred. The Israelite men are seduced by Moabite (and also Midianite, as we’ll learn later) women. These women, by the thousands, offer themselves to the men of Israel as sexual partners. The text then tells us that sexual immorality quickly moved to formal worship of other gods, Baal of Peor in particular.

R. Dennis Cole writes:

Milgrom suggests some kind of covenant agreement was enacted in the process by which the Israelites were permitted (after being invited) to engage in the various forms of debauchery associated with the Baal cult. By engaging in such worship practices, the Israelites had violated both the first and second Commandments—to have no other gods and to worship no other deities by bowing down and serving them in the cult (Exod 20:2–5; Deut 5:7–9). Abrogation of any one of the Ten Commandments was punishable by death, and hence the punishment to be meted out against the idolatrous Israelites was severe.

God instructs Moses to execute the leaders of the men who have worshiped Baal, but Moses instead instructs the judges of Israel to execute those men known to have worshiped Baal. It is not clear whether Moses is disobeying God or not, as the text simply doesn’t tell us, but it certainly looks like Moses softens the command from God, perhaps leading to the plague that spreads throughout the camp.

In verse 6, Moses has gathered the leaders of Israel in front of the tabernacle entrance in repentance when something shocking happens right in front of them. An Israelite family leader (Zimri son of Salu) walks right by the assembled crowd with a Midianite woman and takes her to a tent where, evidently, ritualistic sex would occur between the two of them. In other words, the goal of their encounter was to “worship” Baal right in the midst of the Israelite camp.

Phinehas, the son of Eleazar the high priest, sees the couple and follows them. He finds them having sex and he drives a spear through both of them. This act by Phinehas stops the plague that is killing the Israelites, but already 24,000 had died.

God is pleased with Phinehas’s quick action to put an end to the Baal worship within sight of the tabernacle. He tells Moses to tell Phinehas that “he and his descendants will have a covenant of a lasting priesthood, because he was zealous for the honor of his God and made atonement for the Israelites.”

Why would God be pleased that Phinehas killed these two people? Gordon Wenham explains that

because Phinehas executed the sinner, expressing so clearly and visibly God’s own anger through his deed, [God’s] anger was turned away. . . .  To make atonement (kipper) is the usual phrase to describe the effect of sacrifice (e.g. Lev. 1:4; 4:20; 5:16). In normal circumstances the animal died in place of the guilty man. Here the sinners themselves are put to death and consequently animal sacrifice is unnecessary. . . . Israel had broken the covenant by worshipping foreign gods. Phinehas had restored that covenant by his deed, and is therefore rewarded with the covenant of a perpetual priesthood a reward that mirrors the sin atoned for.

The chapter concludes with God proclaiming that the Midianites were to be treated as enemies because of their treachery. The seduction of the Israelite men by the Midianite women led to the deaths of thousands of Israelites. Israel has once again broken its covenant with Yahweh.

Chapter 31 picks up where chapter 25 leaves off. God tells Moses to take vengeance on the Midianites, so Moses calls for 1000 soldiers from each of the 12 tribes of Israel to join the fighting force. Phinehas leads them into battle.

The Israelites kill all of the men of the Midianite clans involved in the treachery against Israel. Cole writes:

Taken in the historical context of this being a divinely directed follow-up campaign after the sinful Baal Peor incident (25:16–18; 31:3–8), this crusade was directed at the tribes or clans of Midianites who dwelled in the central and northern Transjordan highlands, in the vicinity of the lands of the Moabites, Ammonites, and Amorites. The Midianites of the southern regions, such as those of Moses in-laws, were on better terms with the Israelites or were not involved on this occasion.

They also execute the 5 tribal leaders, or kings, of these Midianite clans. In addition, we see that Balaam, the prophet from chapters 22-24, is also killed. We discover in verse 16 that Balaam stayed with the Midianites and counseled them to seduce the men of Israel with the women of Midian.

Verses 9-12 describe the aftermath of the battle:

The Israelites captured the Midianite women and children and took all the Midianite herds, flocks and goods as plunder. They burned all the towns where the Midianites had settled, as well as all their camps. They took all the plunder and spoils, including the people and animals, and brought the captives, spoils and plunder to Moses and Eleazar the priest and the Israelite assembly at their camp on the plains of Moab, by the Jordan across from Jericho.

Moses, however, is unhappy with the soldiers who bring back the women of Midian as captives. He instructs them to kill all of the women and only keep alive young girls who are virgins.

Bible Interpretation, Sunday School

Commentary on Numbers 22-23 (Balak Hires Balaam)

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The Israelites have traveled around the borders of Edom and have arrived in the land of Moab, across the Jordan River from the city of Jericho. As they traveled, they encountered two kings who attacked them: Sihon, king of the Amorites, and Og, king of Bashan. Both armies were completely defeated by the Israelites. Having captured the lands of these two kings, the Israelites settle in their territories.

At the beginning of chapter 22, a third king, Balak of Moab, is extremely concerned after seeing what the Israelites have accomplished against Sihon and Og. Balak confers with the Midianites, another group of people living nearby, and they decide to send for Balaam, an internationally known expert in divination.

Why did Balak not attack Israel as the other two kings had? It seems that Moab was controlled by Sihon during his reign, so the fact that Sihon was defeated did not bode well.  R. Dennis Cole explains that Balak

saw as his only resort to reach beyond the confines of his kingdom and thus the realm of his god Chemosh and his consort Ashtar for obtaining divine intervention into his impossible situation. His gods had been ineffective against Sihon of the Amorites and would have thus been even less effective against the Israelites and their God Yahweh.

Balak’s gods had already been defeated by Sihon’s gods, and Israel’s god had defeated Sihon’s gods, so Balak surmised that he needed supernatural help.

In verses 4-7, Balak sends a delegation to Balaam, who lived approximately 400 miles away, or about a 25-day journey. Once the delegation reaches Balaam, they are to ask him to come back with them, so that he can curse the nation of Israel, and thus give Balak military victory. In return, he will be paid a fee for his services. This was a standard procedure for divine men in the ancient near east.

Balaam instructs the delegation to spend the night so that he can consult with the God of Israel. God does indeed speak to Balaam and tells him that he cannot curse Israel because God has blessed them. Balaam is not allowed to go with the delegation back to Moab.

The delegation returns to Moab and informs Balak that Balaam refused to come. Balak, thinking the issue is with the payment, sends another delegation to Balaam and tells him that he will be rewarded handsomely if he will only come and curse Israel. Again Balaam consults with God, but this time God tells Balaam to go with the delegation, but “do only what I tell you.”

Up to this point, the reader is led to believe that Balaam might be a true pagan prophet of God. God has certainly spoken to pagans in other biblical narratives, so perhaps Balaam is a true believer. There are hints, though, that he is not a true believer. The fact that he expects to be paid for his services is disturbing, and the fact that his international fame has been gained by cursing and blessing through many different gods is also ominous. Verses 21 and following finally clarify that Balaam is not the spiritual man of God that we might think he is.

Balaam saddles up his donkey and travels back to Moab with the second delegation. Along the way, God becomes angry with him and places an angelic messenger in his path. Why did God become angry with Balaam after telling him to go with the Moabite delegation? We can’t know for sure, but some scholars have speculated that God became angry because Balaam still thought he might curse the people of Israel. He thought that perhaps with the proper sacrifices, he might change God’s mind. After all, sacrifices were a common method for manipulating the pagan gods.

Three times the angel of the Lord, with a drawn sword in his hand, stands in the path in front of Balaam and his donkey. Twice the donkey turns aside to avoid the angel, and the third time the donkey simply stops and sits on the ground because there is no way to avoid the angel.

Why does the donkey see the angel of the Lord, but not Balaam? The clear implication is that Balaam is not as spiritually astute as we thought. In fact, that a donkey, which was considered to be one of the stupidest animals, could see the angel, but not Balaam, is quite an indictment. To make matters worse, Balaam beats the donkey mercilessly, even though the donkey saved his life!

After the third beating, God has the donkey speak to Balaam and ask him why he is beating the donkey when the donkey has faithfully served him. Suddenly, Balaam’s eyes are opened and he sees the angel of the Lord and falls down on the ground. The angel tells Balaam that he would have killed Balaam if the donkey had not turned aside.

Balaam admits his sin, and offers to return to his homeland and not continue the journey. The angel tells him to go to Moab, but reminds him once again: “Go with the men, but speak only what I tell you.”

What is the point of this story of the talking donkey? Why is it here? Balaam’s sin, the thought that he was in control of the situation, that he could determine whether to bless or curse Israel, led him to  acute spiritual blindness. Cole writes, “A female donkey, presumably the epitome of stupidity and stubbornness in that day, was more spiritually perceptive than this renowned prophet.”

Cole quotes D. Olson, who believes that Balaam has learned

that the life of a prophet is like riding a donkey. Balaam’s own personal ability to steer the course of history and see what lies ahead is minimal, less than the animal on which he rides. Lest Balaam have any thought he can make an end run around God, the angel teaches Balaam that he must lay down his own initiative in cursing or blessing Israel and allow God to use him as God sees fit.

In verses 36-41, Balak greets Balaam and chastises him for not coming sooner. Balaam reminds Balak the hard lesson that he has learned about the God of Israel: “But can I say just anything? I must speak only what God puts in my mouth.”

During the following days, Balaam will prophesy three times at the behest of Balak. Even though Balak’s goal is for Balaam to curse Israel, Balaam will instead only prophesy what God tells him to prophesy. Chapter 23 (verses 1-12) recounts the first oracle of Balaam. Due to limited time, we will only discuss the first oracle, but I encourage you to read through chapter 24 to understand everything that God speaks through Balaam, the pagan prophet.

Each of the three oracles follows the same sequence:

  1. Balak takes Balaam to an observation point to view Israel.
  2. Balaam instructs Balak to offer sacrifices to the God of Israel.
  3. Balak obeys Balaam by sacrificing the prescribed animals.
  4. Balaam tells Balak to stand by his offering altars.
  5. Balaam goes alone and Yahweh reveals himself.
  6. Balaam returns to Balak, who is standing by his offering.
  7. Balaam obeys Yahweh and speaks the oracle.

After the first sequence occurs, Balaam returns from his communion with God and speaks what God has revealed. One could paraphrase the first oracle in the following way: “Balak asked me to come and curse Israel, but I cannot curse those whom God has not cursed. I see that they are a multitude that cannot be counted, a group of people separated from all others. I wish that I could die a righteous death, just like these people!”

What is the significance of this oracle? Gordon Wenham notes the following:

Through the Spirit Balaam is able to appreciate Israel’s peculiar character. Because God has chosen her, she is different from the other nations. Therefore she lives apart from them and is conscious of her distinctiveness, not reckoning itself among the nations. Here Balaam alludes to a fundamental principle of Old Testament theology: God’s choice of Israel to be his own people (cf. Exod. 19:5–6; Deut. 7:6ff.; Rom. 9).

In addition, Balaam refers back to the promises made to Abraham by God: “I will make your descendants as the dust of the earth; so that if one can count the dust of the earth, your descendants also can be counted.”

Finally, the phrase, “Let me die the death of the righteous, and let my end be like his,” could be, according to Wenham, “construed as an example of Genesis 12:3: Balaam, a non-Israelite, prays to be as blessed as the children of Abraham.”

The most curious aspect of chapters 22-24 in Numbers is that we have a non-Israelite prophet, speaking the words of God instead of Moses. Why is this? Recall that in chapter 20 of Numbers Moses sins against God and is banned from entering the Promised Land. Chapters 22-24 demonstrate, according to R. Dennis Cole, that “even when the leadership of the nation fails, as in the case of Moses’ sin of violating the holiness of God (Num 20:11–12), God will use whatever means necessary, even a pagan divination expert, to accomplish his desire of blessing the nation.”

Archaeology, Bible Interpretation

Why Don’t We Know the Exact Route of the Exodus?

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The Bible describes the place-names and geography of the route that Israel took from Egypt to the plains of Moab, across from the city of Jericho, during the 40 years in the wilderness. So why is it that archaeologists and biblical scholars cannot agree on the exact route that was taken?

Gordon Wenham, in his commentary Numbers, summarizes the problems that scholars face. Even though we have plenty of place-names in the Bible,

place-names survive only if there is a continuity of settlement at the places concerned. Even then there may be changes of name for social, political or religious reasons (e.g. 32:38; Gen. 28:19; Judg. 18:29). And if a name has survived from biblical times to the present, it can often have become attached to a different place.

Old Testament Jericho is now called Tell es-Sultan: the name Jericho survives in the Arab town (er-Riḥa), not far from the ancient mound. But in the case of Arad and Heshbon (Num. 21:1, 26) there are no remains of the conquest period at the modern sites bearing these names, and it looks as though the biblical sites must have been elsewhere.

In the wilderness the problems are compounded. The inhabitants have been fewer and more mobile and there is very little assurance of the biblical names having been preserved at all, let alone always attached to the correct site. And there is always the suspicion that when a biblical-sounding name is found, it may not rest on ancient tradition but have been coined by a local trying to help a pilgrim searching for the holy sites.

The fact that we have these problems does not stop scholars from looking for new archaeological evidence and from proposing new theories about the exodus route. But, in the end we must concede that we may never know where the “Israelites crossed the Red Sea, received the law, or ate the manna.”

Wenham puts this in perspective for us when he explains that

from a theological point of view, this uncertainty is of no greater moment than that surrounding the site of Calvary or the ascension. That these things happened is vital: to know where they occurred may provide food for thought, but is not of the essence of our faith.

Bible Interpretation, Sunday School

Commentary on Leviticus 23 (The Feasts of Israel)

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In chapter 23 of Leviticus, God summons the Israelites to worship and to celebrate seven annual feasts he has appointed. Walter Kaiser and Duane Garrett, in the NIV Archaeological Study Bible: An Illustrated Walk Through Biblical History and Culture,  explain that “during these holy convocations the priests presented sacrifices and other offerings, while the common people rested from their daily labor, sometimes fasting and sometimes feasting, and celebrated the seasonal blessings of God and the great redemptive moments in the lives of his people.”

Verse 5 kicks off the calendar of feasts with the Passover celebration. Kaiser and Garrett write:

Passover was celebrated on the fourteenth day of the first month of the Hebrew calendar (our late March to early April). According to Exodus 12:26–27, when subsequent generations inquired about the meaning of the Passover, they were to be told that it commemorated the manner in which the Lord had spared the Israelites the night he struck down the Egyptians’ firstborn sons (Ex 12:29–30 ).

Verses 6-8 describe the second feast, the Feast of Unleavened Bread. Kaiser and Garrett explain the significance of this festival:

The Feast of Unleavened Bread immediately followed the Passover (Ex 12:15–20) and lasted for one week. In the context of the exodus, eating bread without yeast signified hasty preparation and a readiness to depart. Yeast, which was studiously avoided during this feast, became a symbol of the pervasive influence of evil (cf. Mk 8:15 ; 1 Co 5:7–8 ).

Verses 9-14 describe the third spring festival, the Offering of Firstfruits.

The Offering of Firstfruits took place at the beginning of the barley harvest and signified Israel’s gratitude to and dependence upon God. It occurred seven weeks before [the next festival of] Pentecost, but there was also an offering of firstfruits associated with the Feast of Weeks or Pentecost . . . in celebration of the wheat harvest (Num 28:26–31).

Verses 15-22 describe the fourth spring festival, the Feast of Weeks, also called Pentecost.

The Feast of Weeks or Pentecost, occurring seven weeks after Passover, was a day of sacred assembly in which no work was allowed. Its primary focus was an expression of gratitude to God for the wheat harvest.

Verses 23-25 describe the first fall festival, the Feast of Trumpets.

The Feast of Trumpets, celebrated on the first day of the seventh Hebrew month, marked the end of the agricultural year. The seventh month was important because it also included two major holy days— the Day of Atonement and the Feast of Booths. The blasting of trumpets announced the commencement of this special month.

The Israelites associated the sound of trumpets with the theophany (visible manifestation of God) on Mount Sinai (Ex 19:16–19). Priests had also sounded trumpets prior to the destruction of Jericho (Jos 6:16), and trumpets were regularly used in Israel as a military signal (2 Sam 2:28). Thus, the blast of trumpets at the onset of the seventh month added to the solemnity of this sacred season.

Verses 26-32 describe the second fall festival, the Day of Atonement. Recall that the Day of Atonement was carefully examined in chapter 16 of Leviticus.

The Day of Atonement focused exclusively on atonement for the sins of the people. This ceremony took place on the tenth day of the seventh month. The high priest made atonement first for himself and his family and finally for all the people. Coming at the end of the agricultural year, this feast symbolized a final reckoning before God.

The seventh and final festival of the year is described in verses 33-44, The Feast of Tabernacles.

The Feast of Booths (also called the Feast of Tabernacles or Sukkoth) took place five days after the Day of Atonement (Num 29:12–40). The people “camped out” in small huts during this time in order to recall their temporary living quarters prior to taking the land of Canaan. This joyous week was a time of final celebration and thanksgiving for the year’s harvest (Deut 16:14–15 ). As the seventh and last annual feast, the Feast of Booths also represented the Sabbath principle.

The significance of these festivals is commonly missed by evangelical Christians. Consider the words of Gordon Wenham in The Book of Leviticus (The New International Commentary on the Old Testament):

Three of the principal OT feasts were taken over directly by the Christian Church: passover = Good Friday, unleavened bread = Easter, weeks = Pentecost. The three most significant events in Christ’s redemptive ministry coincided with these festivals. That they no longer always coincide today is because of various modifications to the calendar introduced since the first century.

The linkages between the feasts and Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection are unmistakable. Wenham explains,

The last supper seems to have been a passover meal (cf. Matt. 26:17), and John implies that our Lord was the true passover lamb whose bones were not to be broken (John 19:36 quoting Exod. 12:46; cf. John 19:14). Easter Sunday was probably the day the first sheaf was offered as a dedication offering. It is this ceremony of offering the firstfruits which led Paul to speak of Christ in his resurrection as the firstfruits (1 Cor. 15:23). Elsewhere he uses another aspect of the festival of unleavened bread as an incentive for holiness: as all yeast had to be cleared out of the home in preparation for the feast of unleavened bread, so sin must be put out of the Christian community.

When did the Holy Spirit come to the church? On the Feast of Weeks, or Pentecost. It occurred the 50th day after Easter. Wenham continues:

Recognition of the OT background to these Christian festivals could perhaps give greater depth to Christian worship. When we celebrate Good Friday we should think not only of Christ’s death on the cross for us, but of the first exodus from Egypt which anticipated our deliverance from the slavery of sin. At Easter we recall Christ’s resurrection and see in it a pledge of our own resurrection at the last day, just as the firstfruits of harvest guarantee a full crop later on (1 Cor. 15:20,23). At . . . Pentecost we praise God for the gift of the Spirit and all our spiritual blessings; the OT reminds us to praise God for our material benefits as well.

Bible Interpretation, Sunday School

Commentary on Leviticus 18-20 (Laws and Punishments)

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Chapters 18-20 of Leviticus give moral instruction to the Israelites that separate them from the surrounding cultures. Chapter 18 deals primarily with the institution of marriage and sets strict boundaries around sexual intercourse. Chapter 19 gives positive instruction to the people about how to treat each other in their everyday lives. Chapter 20 spells out the maximum punishments that were to be given for the most serious offenses (mostly from chapter 18).

Beginning in chapter 18, verses 1-6, we read the overall purpose for the following chapters. The Israelites are prohibited from following the practices of the Egyptians (from where they came) and the Canaanites (where they are going).

Why? Because “I am the LORD your God.” Three times God reminds them in these verses that He is the “LORD your God.” In fact, in chapters 18-20, the phrase “I am the LORD your God,” or something close to it, is repeated almost 50 times! This phrase would communicate at least three things to the Israelites, according to Gordon Wenham.

First, “it looks back to the redemption of Israel from slavery in Egypt.” It is a reminder that he brought them out of Egypt.

Second, “Israel, as the people of God, was expected to imitate God, to be holy. ‘For I am the Lord your God, and you must sanctify yourselves and be holy, because I am holy’ (Lev. 11:44).”

Third, “this phrase often provides the motive for observing a particular law. Under the covenant the people of God were expected to keep the law, not merely as a formal duty but as a loving response to God’s grace in redemption.”

Verse 6 states the main thrust of chapter 18, to prohibit marriage, and therefore sexual intercourse, between close relatives. Verses 6-18 spell out the incest prohibitions in detail. Wenham explains the basic principles underlying the rules in verses 6–18: “a man may not marry any woman who is a close blood relation, or any woman who has become a close relative through a previous marriage to one of the man’s close blood relations. All the relationships prohibited here can be seen to be out-workings of these two basic principles.”

So why are so many verses dedicated to incest in chapter 18? Mark Rooker explains:

“But the issue of incest in Israel was more problematic than in other cultures. This was due to two separate but related factors. First, the Israelites were not allowed to intermarry with foreigners, particularly the Canaanites. This obviously greatly reduced the number of possible marriage candidates. Second, the lands that a family or clan inherited were to remain inside the family or clan, necessitating that marriages take place between relatives. These two restrictions made incest laws indispensable. Sexual energies had to be subordinated to God’s will.”

Verses 19-23 identify other pagan customs that were to be avoided by Israel. These included sex during menstruation, adultery, child prostitution/sacrifice, homosexual acts, and bestiality.

Verses 24-30 record the curses that will fall upon the nation if they follow the pagan practices outlined in the previous verses. God warns Israel that he will drive them out of the land, just as he is driving out the Canaanites for the sins they have committed. The picture given is that of the land literally vomiting out its inhabitants for their sins. Several hundred years later, the Israelites would indeed be exiled from Canaan for their sins.

In chapter 19, God tells the people how to treat each other in their daily lives. Chapter 19 repeats almost all of the Ten Commandments, expanding upon them. Remember that the Ten Commandments are the foundational moral principles for Israel, and that all of the laws and rules coming after the Commandments are details meant to help the Israelites apply them to their lives.

Verses 9-18 are illustrative of the kinds of behaviors God desires from his people. These actions are what will make the people of Israel holy, just as God is holy. God expects the Israelites to: 1) leave food for the poor who have no land, 2) not steal from each other, 3) not lie to each other, 4) not defraud or rob each other, 5) not hold back earned wages, 6) not take advantage of the disabled, 7) not show partiality in legal matters, 8) not slander each other, 9) not endanger each other’s lives, 10) confront each other about sins, 11) not seek revenge against each other.

The final culmination of all these instructions is in verse 18: “love your neighbor as yourself.” Mark Rooker writes:

“This statement, ‘love your neighbor as yourself,’ forms a climax to this first major section, and it was regarded by some as the central principle of the Law. The significance of the verse is also highlighted by the fact that Jesus and Paul both cited this verse as a summary of the duties one has to his fellow man (Matt 22:39–40, Rom 13:9).”

“Love your neighbor as yourself” is also repeated in several other New Testament passages, showing how important Lev 19:18 is to the New Testament writers: Matt 19:19; Mark 12:31; Luke 10:27; Gal 5:14; and Jas 2:8.

Finally, in chapter 20, God describes the punishments for the most serious sins listed in previous chapters. Keep in mind that God has already commanded the people to not commit these sins, so chapter 20 answers the question: “what do we do with people who commit these sins?”

Most, but not all, of the punishments in chapter 20 either call for the offender to be put to death by the community (stoning being the most prevalent method), or by God “cutting them off.” In the cases where God promised to “cut them off,” this was understood to be a death sentence to be executed by God himself. The community would not, in this case, execute the offender, but leave matters in God’s hands.

What kinds of sins deserved the death penalty? Those crimes that were committed against religion and against the family unit. God considers these sins to be the most serious. Verses 2-6 cover religious sins and verses 9-21 cover sins against the family.

In verses 1-5, we see the first religious offense deserving of the death penalty. “Any Israelite or any alien living in Israel who gives any of his children to Molech must be put to death. The people of the community are to stone him.” So what does giving children to Molech mean?

There are two practices from Israel’s neighbors that are likely prohibited here. First, some parents would dedicate their daughters, at birth, to become a temple prostitute for the god Molech. Second, some parents would offer their children to be sacrificed to Molech. Generally, the children would be killed, and then burned in the “arms” of a Molech statue.

In verse 3, God explains that his name is profaned when his people worship Molech by offering their children. To the outside world, God would be no different from any of the other false pagan gods worshipped in the ancient near east.

In verses 4-5, we see that God will also place a death sentence on any people who know that child sacrifice to Molech is occurring, but who don’t report it. Thus God makes the entire community responsible for rooting out this particular form of evil.

The remainder of chapter 20 lists many other sins that are punishable by death. By calling out these particular sins, God is clearly communicating how seriously he takes these offenses to be.

Bible Interpretation, Sunday School

Commentary on Leviticus 8-10 (The Ordination of Aaron and His Sons)

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The first seven chapters of Leviticus regulate the offerings to be given to God. Now that these instructions have been given, it is time for Aaron, the brother of Moses, and his four sons, to be anointed as the first Israelite priests under the new Mosaic covenant.

Since there are no priests yet, Moses acts in the role of high priest to anoint Aaron and his sons, according to the commands of God. In verses 1-3, God gives Moses instructions to begin the anointing ceremony. The following people and items are needed: 1) Aaron and his four sons, 2) the garments that were made for them as specified by God in the book of Exodus, 3) anointing oil, 4) a bull for a sin offering, 5) two rams and bread without yeast for additional offerings, and 6) the elders representing all of the tribes and clans of Israel. Everyone was to gather in the tabernacle courtyard to witness what was about to happen.

In verse 5, Moses says, “This is what the Lord has commanded to be done.” The entire process of ordination was detailed in Exodus 29, and Leviticus 8 and 9 confirm that Moses, Aaron, and the elders of Israel, did exactly as God had earlier commanded. Verses 6-29 recount the first day of the ordination of the first High Priest (Aaron) and his sons.

Gordon J. Wenham, in The Book of Leviticus (The New International Commentary on the Old Testament), explains the significance of the role of high priest and his garments. “The nation of Israel as a whole was called to be a kingdom of priests (Exod. 19:6), and the church is also (1 Pet. 2:5; Rev. 1:6). Israel could see in the glorious figure of the high priest the personal embodiment of all that the nation ought to be both individually and corporately.”

As we pick up at verse 30, we see Moses completing the first day’s ceremonies. Moses takes anointing oil and blood from the altar (placed there during the sacrifices of the bull and rams) and sprinkles Aaron and his sons with them. This completed the first day of the ordination (which would last 7 days).

For the next 6 days, Aaron and his sons would have to offer sacrifices for themselves every day. Moses commands them not to leave the tabernacle courtyard for the remainder of the 7-day period, lest they become unclean.

Moses explains to Aaron and his sons, in verse 34, that the ordination rituals just completed were to make atonement for their sins. After all, the primary duty of the High Priest was to atone for the sins of Israel so that Israel could remain in relationship with God. But the High Priest cannot make atonement for the people before he atones for his own sins. That was the purpose of the day’s sacrifices. Again, we see in verse 36 that they “did everything the Lord commanded through Moses.”

Wenham brings out a central theme of chapter 8, the pervasiveness of sin. He writes,

In this section one doctrine emerges very clearly: the universality and pervasiveness of sin. The men chosen to minister to God in the tabernacle pollute the tabernacle and therefore purification offerings have to be offered. Their clothes and bodies are stained with sin and they must be smeared with blood to purify them. These sacrifices are not offered just once; they have to be repeated, because sin is deep-rooted in human nature and often recurs. There is no once-for-all cleansing known to the OT. It is the incorrigibility of the human heart that these ordination ceremonies bring into focus.

In chapter 9, we have moved ahead to the 8th day of the ordination of Aaron and his sons. Now that they have atoned for their sins, it is time for them to atone for the sins of all of Israel. In verses 1-5, Moses explains all of the offerings that must be made for the people. The purpose for the sacrifices is stated in verse 6: “This is what the Lord has commanded you to do, so that the glory of the Lord may appear to you.” Once the sins of Aaron and sons were atoned for, and then the sins of the rest of Israel were atoned for, God would appear and confirm his presence and covenant with Israel.

In verse 22 of chapter 9, Aaron completes the sacrifices for the people of Israel. With the process completed Moses and Aaron go into the tabernacle. When they come back out, God’s glory appears in the form of fire on the brazen altar that instantly consumes all of the remaining offering. The elders of Israel react as any of us would when confronted with the God of the universe. They fell flat on their faces and shouted for joy!

Why was the whole process of sacrifices and ordination necessary for God’s presence to be made known? Wenham comments:

Aaron’s gorgeous garments, the multiplicity of animal sacrifices, were not ends in themselves but only means to the end, namely, the proper worship of God. These elaborate vestments and sacrifices helped simple human minds appreciate the majestic holiness of God. But all the ritual in the OT would have been pointless if God had not deigned to reveal himself to the people. The clothing and the sacrifices merely helped to put the worshippers in a state of mind that was prepared for God’s coming, and removed the obstacles of human sin that prevented fellowship, but they did not necessarily ensure God’s presence.

Throughout all of chapters 8 and 9, we are reminded that every command of God was followed with exactitude. In the first three verses of chapter 10, however, we see what happens when the newly anointed priests disobey God’s commands.

Aaron’s two oldest sons, Nadab and Abihu, offer incense to God, but they do it in a way that is unauthorized, that is contrary to God’s commands. The text is not clear as to their exact violation. Some scholars have speculated that they performed a Canaanite or Egyptian ritual. Regardless, it seems they knew what they were doing and they paid for their disobedience with their lives.

Fire consumed both of them, fire from God. Moses, in verse 3, explains to Aaron that the priests must honor God because he is holy, with the implication being that Nadab and Abihu did not honor God. Rather than dispute what Moses said, Aaron remained silent.

What are we to make of the death of Aaron’s sons? It seems that the closer a man is to God (Levite priest being very close indeed) the stricter is the standard by which he will be judged. The New Testament reiterates this teaching. Consider Luke 12:48: “Everyone to whom much is given, of him will much be required.” Peter said in 1 Pet 4:17, “Judgment begins with the household of God.” James said in James 3:1, “We who teach shall be judged with greater strictness.” Christians in visible leadership are held to a higher standard.

Sunday School

Commentary on Leviticus 1 (Sacrifices)

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The book of Leviticus opens with God calling to Moses from the Tent of Meeting. God wants Moses to instruct the Israelites how to bring offerings to Him, now that the tabernacle complex (God’s home among the Israelites) has been constructed. Remember that offerings had been made to God as early as Abraham, so it wasn’t that God was introducing new kinds of offerings to the people, but He was instead teaching them how to do these offerings now that there is a new covenant between them (represented by the stone tablets containing the Ten Commandments).

There are five kinds of offerings that are regulated in Leviticus: burnt, grain, fellowship, sin, and guilt. We will only dig into the burnt offering, as it is the most important and the first to be regulated.

The person who wants to give a burnt offering to God may choose between 3 kinds of domesticated animals: 1) cattle, 2) sheep or goats, or 3) doves and pigeons. Cattle were worth more than sheep and goats, but sheep and goats were worth more than doves and pigeons. Which animal was offered depended on the relative wealth of the person giving the burnt offering. In each case, however, the offering was a significant economic sacrifice. These domesticated animals provided food, clothing, and many other essential things for people living at this time. To give up one of these animals was painful.

In verses 3-9, the instructions for the sacrifice of cattle is given. These verses teach us important truths about the process. First, in verse 3, we see that the cow must be a male without defect. Male cattle (bull) were more valuable than female and a bull without defect was worth more than a bull with defects. Only the best was allowed for the burnt offering to God.

Continuing in verse 3, the person making the sacrifice is to bring it to the entrance of the tabernacle courtyard (“entrance curtain” in this illustration – http://www.karbelmultimedia.com/portfolio/the-tabernacle/).

In verse 5, the person offering the bull must place his hands on the head of the bull so that the bull’s sacrifice can make atonement for the offerer. What does atonement refer to here? According to Gordon J. Wenham in The Book of Leviticus (The New International Commentary on the Old Testament), “The worshipper acknowledged his guilt and responsibility for his sins by pressing his hand on the animal’s head and confessing his sin. The lamb [or bull or bird] was accepted as the ransom price for the guilty man.”

Verses 5-9 dictate that the person giving the burnt offering must kill the bull himself, skin the bull, cut the bull into pieces, and then wash the parts of the bull in water. The Levite priests will capture dripping blood from the animal and sprinkle the blood on the brazen altar (see illustration above). After the offerer has completed the above steps, the priests will arrange the pieces of the bull on the brazen altar and burn all of it.

Gordon Wenham explains the significance of the ritual to those participating:

Using a little imagination every reader of the OT soon realizes that these ancient sacrifices were very moving occasions. They make modern church services seem tame and dull by comparison. The ancient worshipper did not just listen to the minister and sing a few hymns. He was actively involved in the worship. He had to choose an unblemished animal from his own flock, bring it to the sanctuary, kill it and dismember it with his own hands, then watch it go up in smoke before his very eyes. He was convinced that something very significant was achieved through these acts and knew that his relationship with God was profoundly affected by this sacrifice.

The rest of Leviticus 1 explains similar processes for the offering of goats, sheep, doves, and pigeons. The only difference for the birds is that because they are so small, the priests end up performing most of the ceremony.

So what is the overall purpose of the burnt offering? Wenham summarizes for us:

The burnt offering was the commonest of all the OT sacrifices. Its main function was to atone for man’s sin by propitiating God’s wrath. In the immolation of the animal, most commonly a lamb, God’s judgment against human sin was symbolized and the animal suffered in man’s place. The worshipper acknowledged his guilt and responsibility for his sins by pressing his hand on the animal’s head and confessing his sin. The lamb was accepted as the ransom price for the guilty man.

The daily use of the sacrifice in the worship of the temple and tabernacle was a constant reminder of man’s sinfulness and God’s holiness. So were its occasional usages after sickness, childbirth, and vows. In bringing a sacrifice a man acknowledged his sinfulness and guilt. He also publicly confessed his faith in the Lord, his thankfulness for past blessing, and his resolve to live according to God’s holy will all the days of his life.