Priestly Laws

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Priestly Laws
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Religious Officials In IsraelLevites and Priests

• The difference between Levite and priest
• All members of the tribe of Levi are Levites.
• Only descendants of Aaron (a Levite) are priests.
• All have religious functions.
• Priests perform more sanctified functions.
• General Functions of Levites
• Construct and transport tabernacle. Num 150-51
• Serve from age 25 to 50. Num 824-25

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Restrictions For PriestsLeviticus 21

• Any priests
• Approach no dead body but very close relative
  1-6
• Not marry a harlot or a divorced woman 7
• High priest
• Not show mourning even for parents 10-12
• Marry only an Israelite virgin 13-15
• Any priest making sacrifices
• No deformity blind, lame, disfigured face or
  limb, broken foot or hand no hunchback or dwarf
  no defected eye, eczema, scab, crushed testicles
  16-24

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Types of Offerings

• Burnt Offerings
• Grain and Peace Offerings
• Sin and Guilt Offerings
• Tithes

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Types of Offerings

• Burnt Offerings Lev 11-9 68-13
• Completely burned up none left to eat
• Unblemished male from flock or herd hands on
  its head (pigeon for the poor)
• Atonement (Being made right with God)
• Continually offered and specially discarded
• Also offered on special occasions
• Only at doorway of Tabernacle

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Types of Offerings

• Grain and Peace OfferingsLev 2-3 614-23
  711-36 2217-30 27
• (Grain Substance. Peace Purpose.)
• Sub-types Thanks, Fellowship, Vow, Freewill
• Grain with oil, frankincense, and salt no leaven
  or honey
• Handful is offering the remainder to the priests
• Thanksgiving and Votive offerings include meat
  and bread
• Particular parts for the priests
• The rest eaten that day or the next then
  left-overs burned
• Sort of a mix of ritual and cook-out.

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Types of Offerings

• Sin and Guilt OfferingsLev 4-7 624-30 71-6
  126-8 1412-18Num 191-10
• Both public and private occasions
• For unintentional sins, with restitution 20
• Ram or goat for individual bull for priest or
  congregation
• Elders hands on head for congregation
• Atonement

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Types of Offerings

• TithesLev. 2730-34 Num. 1821-26 Deut.
  1422-29
• One-tenth of your produce and/or livestock to
  Levites
• One-tenth plus 20 if sparing a certain animal
• One-tenth of your increase
• Levites give a tithe of their tithe
• Eat it at the tabernacle with the priests.
• Keep it at home every 3rd year for the needy.
• Probably not during 7th (Sabbatical) year

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Holy Days

• Texts Behind Last Weeks Summary

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Leviticus 23

• 1-3 Sabbath
• Complete rest
• Holy Convocation
• 4-8 Passover and Unleavened Bread
• Day One Sacred assembly and no work
• All Seven Days Sacrifices and no yeast Bread
• Day Seven Sacred assembly and no work
• 9-22 First Fruits / Feast of Weeks
• Take in a modest offering from first produce
  before eating
• Count 7 weeks to feast with offerings
• 33-44 Tabernacles
• Sacred assembly and offerings
• Live in booths 7 days
• Rest on Day one and Day Eight

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Personal consecrationReview

• Next Time

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Yom Kippur Today

• 10 Days of Penitence or Days of Awe
• From Rosh Hashanah to Yom Kippur, in the Fall
  (Sept 12 22, 2007)
• God is recording who will see good and evil in
  the coming year.
• Greet people with May you be inscribed and
  sealed for a good year."
• Reflect on sins and repent before Yom Kippur.
• Pray and do good deeds.
• Customary (but uncommon) on Day before Yom Kippur
• Chicken Ritual, Feast, Mikvah
• Yom Kippur Day of Atonement (Sunset Sept 21 to
  Night fall Sept 22, 2007)
• Recite the Kol Nidrei to usher in the day
• Abstinence as in Biblical times
• Prayers at synagogue

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Institution of Yom KippurLeviticus 23

• 27"On exactly the tenth day of this seventh month
  is the day of atonement it shall be a holy
  convocation for you, and you shall humble your
  souls and present an offering by fire to the
  LORD.
• 28"You shall not do any work on this same day,
  for it is a day of atonement, to make atonement
  on your behalf before the LORD your God. . . .
• 31"You shall do no work at all. It is to be a
  perpetual statute throughout your generations in
  all your dwelling places.
• 32"It is to be a sabbath of complete rest to
  you, and you shall humble your souls on the
  ninth of the month at evening, from evening until
  evening you shall keep your sabbath."

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Original Yom Kippur RitualLeviticus 16

• Preparation of the high priest
• 4 Special clothing and bath for high priest.
• 6 Bull offering
• Sacrifices for the people
• 7-11 Sacrificial goat and scapegoat (Azazel)
• 12-13 Cloud of incense on the incense altar
• 14-19 Blood from sacrifices on the mercy seat
• 20-22 Scapegoat carries peoples sins to a
  deserted place.
• Annual ritual 29-34

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Summary

• Laws of Moses

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10 Categories of Jewish LawsGroup One

• 1. Belief in G-d Ex. 202
• 2. Prohibition of Improper Worship Ex 203-6
• Prohibition against the worship of other gods as
  well as improper forms of worship of the one true
  G-d, such as worshiping G-d through an idol.
• 3. Prohibition of Oaths Ex 207
• Prohibitions against perjury, breaking or
  delaying the performance of vows or promises, and
  speaking G-d's name or swearing unnecessarily.
• 4. Observance of Sacred Times Ex 208-11
• Encompasses all mitzvot related to Shabbat,
  holidays, sacred time.

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10 Categories of Jewish LawsGroup Two

• 5. Respect for Parents and Teachers Ex 2012
• 6. Prohibition of Physically Harming a Person Ex
  2013
• Derived from "You shall not murder."
• 7. Prohibition of Sexual Immorality Ex 2014
• Derived from "You shall not commit adultery."
• 8. Prohibition of Theft Ex 2015
• Includes theft by deception and unethical
  business also kidnapping
• 9. Prohibition of Harming a Person through Speech
  2016
• Includes all forms of lashon ha-ra (sins relating
  to speech).
• 10. Prohibition of Coveting Ex 2017