The Third Book of Moses, called Leviticus
Leviticus 22
Chapter XXII · Vol. I, pp. 399–401
1 The priests in their uncleanness must abstain from the holy things. 6 How they shall be cleansed. 10 Who of the priest's house may eat of the holy things. 17 The sacrifices must be without blemish. 26 The age of the sacrifice. 29 The law of eating the sacrifice of thanksgiving.
1 AND the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,
2 Speak unto Aaron, and to his sons, that they a separate themselves1 from the holy things of the children of Israel, and that they profane not my holy name in those things which they hallowb unto me: I am the LORD.
a ch. 15.31; ver. 3, 15, 32; ch. 18.21.
1 That is to say, when they have contracted any defilement, they must separate themselves from, and not touch, any 'holy things.' The 'holy things' were the sacrifices given to the priests, the show-bread, and whatever was presented to the Lord. When under any uncleanness contracted by their own fault, they must not so much as eat of those things. The priests, or those of the family of the priests, who had a natural blemish, though they could not serve as priests, yet were allowed as their maintenance to eat of the 'holy things.'—I.
3 Say unto them, c Whosoever he be of all your seed, among your generations, that goeth unto the holy things, which the children of Israel hallow unto the LORD, having his uncleanness upon him, that soul shall be d cut off from my presence: I am the LORD.
c ch. 7.20, 21.
d Die, or be excluded from serving in the sanctuary, Ge. 4.16. Ps. 96.6, 8; 26.8.
4 Whate man soever of the seed of Aaron is a leper, or hath a running issue,2 he shall not eat of the holy things, until he be clean. And whoso toucheth any thing that is unclean by the dead, or a man whose seed goeth from him;
e Nu. 18.11, 19. ch. 13.2; 15.2, 16. Nu. 19.11, 14.
2 Heb. running of the reins.
5 Or f whosoever toucheth any creeping thing, whereby he may be made unclean, or a man of whom he may take uncleanness, whatsoever uncleanness he hath;
f ch. 11.24, 31; 13.45; 15.5, &c.
6 The g soul which hath touched any such shall be unclean until even, and shall not eat of the holy things, unless he wash his flesh with water.
g ch. 11.24, 25; 15.5; 16.24, 26, 28. Nu. 19.7, 21. 1 Co. 6.11. Re. 1.5, 6. Ps. 26.6.
7 And when the sun is down,3 he shall be clean, and shall afterward eat of h the holy things; because it is his food.
3 Uncleanness was not removed till the going down of the sun. Sin is not removed but by Christ going down to the grave, Ro. 10.7. 1 Co. 15.3, 4.—C.
h Nu. 18.9-19. ch. 7.6, 9, 14. De. 18.3, 4.
8 Thati which dieth of itself, or is torn with beasts, he shall not eat, to defile himself therewith: I am the LORD.
i Ex. 22.31. ch. 17.15; 11.40. De. 14.21. Eze. 44.31; 4.14. Lu. 21.34. Tit. 2.11, 12. 2 Ti. 2.22.
9 They shall therefore keep mine ordinance, lest they k bear sin for it, and die therefore, if they profane it:4 I the LORD do sanctify them.
k ch. 19.17; 20.17, 19; 10.1, 2. Ex. 28.43.
4 They are again warned of their danger if they eat the holy thing in their uncleanness, ver. 9, 'lest they bear sin, and die therefore.'—Note, (1) Those contract great guilt who profane sacred things by touching them with unhallowed hands. Eating the holy things signified an interest in the atonement; but if they ate of them in their uncleanness, they were so far from lessening their guilt that they increased it; they shall 'bear sin.' (2) Sin is a burden which, if infinite mercy prevent not, will certainly sink those that bear it; they shall 'die therefore.'—Henry.
10 There shall no l stranger eat of the holy thing: a sojourner of the priest, or an hired servant, shall not eat of the holy thing.
11 But if the priest m buy any soul with his5 money, he shall eat of it, and he that is born in his house; they shall eat of his meat.
m Ge. 17.13. Ex. 12.44. Nu. 18.11. Ep. 2.12, 13. Re. 5.9.
5 Heb. with the purchase of his money.
12 If the priest's daughter also n be married unto o a stranger, she may not eat of an offering of the holy things.
13 But if p the priest's daughter be a widow, or divorced, and have no child, and is returned unto her father's house, as in her youth, she shall eat of her father's meat; but there shall no stranger eat thereof.6
p ch. 10.14. Je. 3.1, 4, 14, 22. Hos. 2.6, 7; 3.5; 14.1.
6 The slaves or servants that abode in the priest's house, and made part of his stated family, might eat of the holy things as they were permitted. But hired labourers, sojourners, or persons not permanently connected with the family, might not.—I.
14 And if a man eat of the holy thing q unwittingly, then he shall r put the fifth part thereof unto it, and shall give it unto the priest with the holy thing.
q ch. 4.2, 13, 22, 27; 5.15, 17. Nu. 15.24. De. 19.4. He. 9.7; 5.2. 1 Ti. 1.13.
r ch. 5.16; 6.4, 5. :27. 13, 15, 19, 27. Mat. 22.21.
15 And they shall not s profane the holy things of the children of Israel, which they offer unto the LORD;
s ver. 3, 10.
16 Or suffer them to bear the iniquity of trespass when they eat7 their holy things;8 for I the LORD t do sanctify them.
7 Or, load themselves with the iniquity of trespass in their eating.
8 If any one inadvertently ate of the holy things, who was not of the priest's stated family, he was required to make restitution, adding a fifth part more, doubtless as a warning and motive to guard against such inconsideration. If it was done presumptuously, then was he liable to the judgment of God for his offence. The priests were charged not to suffer them thus to bring guilt upon themselves by so acting in violation of the divine law.—I.
t Set them apart to my sacred relation and service, ver. 9; ch. viii.; 20.8; 21.8, 23. Ex. xxviii. xxix.; 19.5, 6.
17 And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,
18 Speak unto Aaron, and to his sons, and unto all the children of Israel, and say unto them, u Whatsoever he be of the house of Israel, or of the strangers in Israel, that will offer his oblation for all his vows, and for all his free-will-offerings, which they will offer unto the LORD for a burnt-offering;
u ch. 17.10, 13, 15; 7.16; i. iii.
19 Ye shall offer x at your own will a male without blemish, of the beeves, of the sheep, or of the goats.
x ch. 1.2, 3, 10. Ex. 12.5; 29.1. Eze. 46.4. Mal. 1.14. He. 7.26; 9.14. 1 Pe. 1.19; 2.22. 2 Co. 5.21.
20 Buty whatsoever hath a blemish, that shall ye not offer; for it shall not be acceptable for you.
y De. 15.21; 17.1. Mal. 1.8, 13, 14. ver. 22-25; ch. 21.17-23.
21 And whosoever offereth a z sacrifice of peace-offerings unto the LORD to accomplish his vow, or a free-will-offering in beeves or a sheep, it shall be perfect to be accepted; there shall be no blemish therein.9
z ch. iii. Nu. 15.3, 8; vii. xxviii. xxix.
a Or, goats, see ver. 19.
9 As the priest must be without blemish, so must the offering be perfect and unblemished. This requirement well represents him 'who offered himself without spot to God,' He. 9.14; while it also reminds us of the perfect and unreserved mortification of the deeds of the body, and of the perfect and unreserved love and obedience which the gospel requires, Ga. 2.20; 5.24; 6.14. 1 Jn. 2.5; 4.12, 16-18. 2 Jn. 6. Ro. 8.39.—C.
22 Blind,b or broken, or maimed, or having a wen, or scurvy, or scabbed, ye shall not offer these unto the LORD, nor make an offering by fire of them upon the altar unto the LORD.
b ch. 21.18-21. Christ and his oblation had no blemish or imperfection, and those of his people ought to have none.
23 Either a bullock or a lamb1 that hath any thing superfluous or lacking in his parts, that mayest thou offer for a c free-will-offering; but for a vow it shall not be accepted.
1 Or, kid.
c ch. 7.16. The imperfect services of gratitude are accepted through Christ.
24 Ye shall not offer unto the LORD that which is bruised, or crushed, or broken, or cut; neither shall ye make any offering thereof in your land.
25 Neither from a d stranger's hand shall ye offer the e bread of your God of any of these; because their corruption is in them, and blemishes be in them: they shall not be accepted for you.2
A.M. 2514. B.C. 1490.
d Ex. 12.43. ch. 19.34; 21.6. Ezr. 6.8-10.
e Sacrifices wherewith he is pleased, ch. 21.6, 8, 17, 21.
2 Lest it should be thought that the command to offer perfect and unblemished animals in sacrifice was binding upon the Israelites alone, and not on such strangers as might live among them, and conform to the Jewish faith, this explicit command was given. The same law applied to all, whether Jews or proselytes.—P.
26 And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,
27 When a bullock, or a sheep, or a goat, is brought forth, then it shall be f seven days under the dam; and from the eighth day, and thenceforth, it shall be accepted for an offering made by fire unto the LORD.
f Ex. 22.30; 23.19; 34.26; 29.30, 35, 37. De. 14.21. ch. 19.23, 24; 8.33, 35; 9.2; 14.8-10. Nu. 19.11, 12, 19.
28 And whether it be cow or ewe,3 ye shall not kill it g and her young both in one day.
3 Or, she-goat.
g De. 22.6.
29 And when ye will offer h a sacrifice of thanksgiving unto the LORD, offer it at your own will.
h ch. 7.12.
30 On the same day it shall be eaten up; ye shall leave i none of it until the morrow:4 I am the LORD.
32 Neither shall ye l profane my holy name; but I will be hallowed among the children of Israel: m I am the LORD which hallow you,
l ch. 28.21; 10.3. Ex. 20.7. Is. 5.16. Mat. 6.9.
m ch. 11.44, 45; 20.8; 21.8, 15. Ex. 19.5, 6. 1 Co. 6.11. Tit. 2.14. 1 Pe. 2.9.
Notes
[Ver. 2. To abuse official privileges is the tendency of every order of men; a tendency from which Satan will not permit the servants of God to be exempt, 1 Sa. 2.13; Mat. 20.21; Ac. 20. 29, 30. Against this tendency the Lord directs the provisions of this law. Accordingly the order to the priests to separate themselves from the holy things, imports, that the priests presume not to plead any exemption from the law relating to the use of holy things, upon any plea of office; but rather that they should consider their office as imposing an obligation to a more scrupulous observance of the divine precepts, 1 Ti. 4.12; Phi. 3.17; 2 Th. 3.9; 1 Pe. 5.3. The extension of this law, and its privileges, to the priest's purchased and permanent servants, as well as family, ver. 11, 13, shadows out the ingathering of the Gentiles to the 'purchased possession,' Ep. 1.14, and inculcates upon Christians an impressive lesson of the necessity not merely of personal but of family religion. C.]
Ver. 23. [Why this distinction? A vow was a solemn promise made to God, of which it is said, 'The Lord will surely require it,' De. 23.21; see Ps. 65.1; 76.11; Ec. 5.4. Now, while requiring it, God requires neither more nor less; consequently the sacrifice must present an exact image of the vow; even as the work of Christ was in exact correspondence with the promise of the heavenly grace, 'Lo, I come to do thy will, O God,' He. 10.7. But the free-will-offering, being, as its very name imports, free, an emblematic freedom, was not rejected on account of a natural defect or superfluity. But let it be remembered this free-will-offering was to death; and then the consolatory doctrine of God's compassion to our natural defects and superfluities, while it furnishes consolation to the tempted and troubled spirit, Ro. 7.8-10, 13, 15, 18, 21, 23, 24, totally excludes every unhallowed presumption of 'continuing in sin, that grace might abound,' Ro. 6.1, and irresistibly enforces the fact, that true believers, whilst they 'become dead to the law by the body of Christ,' are 'married to him who is raised from the dead, that they should bring forth fruit unto God,' Ro. 7.4. C.]
Ver. 25. [Though by instruction, example, and prayer, believers may aid one another, yet no man can be converted for another; and 'except ye be converted, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven,' Mat. 18.3. Religion cannot be by proxy, it must be personal. C.]
Reflections.—Beholding in these figures the perfect and permanent purity of my Redeemer's person and nature; the persevering exactness of his obedience; the absolute perfection of his sacrifice of himself, and its unfailing virtue for saving all who believe in Jesus Christ; we may observe that it is altogether necessary to exclude wicked persons, and even scandalous saints, from the more sacred provision of the church, the seals of God's covenant; that every person or work, dedicated to the service of God, should be devoted to him in holiness; and the greatest care be used in meddling with holy things; for cursed is the deceiver that offereth unto the Lord things corrupt or unripe. But especially must we remember, that all delay of the cordial reception and improvement of Jesus Christ, and his fulness, offered for our comfort in the gospel, is infinitely sinful and dangerous, for thus only can we secure access to God; and nothing can powerfully influence us to obedience but a firm faith and deep sense of his redeeming love.