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Remember as you read Leviticus that the LORD is pulling Israel out to be separate from the nations around them. Not only are they to avoid the detestable practices of their neighbors, but they were to live and worship according to the very specific way that he prescribed.

Our reading today begins with an address toward one of the detestable practices of the day, giving one’s child up to the god Molech. Notice that the LORD flows right into soliciting mediums, and then into cursing one’s father or mother. This is followed by a list of penalties for all the sexual sins outlined in chapter 18. There are three stages of punishment: those who are to remain childless, those who are “cut off,” or put out of the community, and those who are to be killed for their sin.

Just as in yesterday’s reading, the instructions for priests in Chapters 21 and 22 are bookended by the LORD’s affirmation of His role in sanctifying Israel. To sanctify is not just to cleanse, but to set apart – to move into another category – so completely that one can stand to be in the presence of the LORD.

The expanse of His power and the integrity of His name is so profound that they cannot be approached unless the LORD Himself prepares them. It is not simply that the LORD is a stronger version of a human, but that His power is wholly outside of human experience. The LORD is set apart, holy, in a category all to Himself.

So read these instructions, perhaps, through the lens of a compassionate God who is making a way for the people of Israel to have His presence among them. And read these instructions to the priests through a lens of just how set apart the people’s representatives to the LORD should be.

Our verse for this week is Romans 5:6: For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly.

Leviticus chapters 20 through 22. Now let’s read it!

Leviticus 20 - 22

Jehovah spoke to Moses, saying, "Moreover, you shall tell the children of Israel, 'Anyone of the children of Israel, or of the strangers who live as foreigners in Israel, who gives any of his offspring to Molech shall surely be put to death. The people of the land shall stone that person with stones. I also will set my face against that person, and will cut him off from among his people, because he has given of his offspring to Molech, to defile my sanctuary, and to profane my holy name. If the people of the land all hide their eyes from that person when he gives of his offspring to Molech, and don't put him to death, then I will set my face against that man and against his family, and will cut him off, and all who play the prostitute after him to play the prostitute with Molech, from among their people. "'The person that turns to those who are mediums and wizards, to play the prostitute after them, I will even set my face against that person, and will cut him off from among his people. "'Sanctify yourselves therefore, and be holy; for I am Jehovah your God. You shall keep my statutes, and do them. I am Jehovah who sanctifies you. "'For everyone who curses his father or his mother shall surely be put to death. He has cursed his father or his mother. His blood shall be upon himself. "'The man who commits adultery with another man's wife, even he who commits adultery with his neighbor's wife, the adulterer and the adulteress shall surely be put to death. "'The man who lies with his father's wife has uncovered his father's nakedness. Both of them shall surely be put to death. Their blood shall be upon themselves. "'If a man lies with his daughter-in-law, both of them shall surely be put to death. They have committed a perversion. Their blood shall be upon themselves. "'If a man lies with a male, as with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination. They shall surely be put to death. Their blood shall be upon themselves. "'If a man takes a wife and her mother, it is wickedness. They shall be burned with fire, both he and they, that there may be no wickedness among you. "'If a man lies with an animal, he shall surely be put to death; and you shall kill the animal. "'If a woman approaches any animal and lies with it, you shall kill the woman and the animal. They shall surely be put to death. Their blood shall be upon them. "'If a man takes his sister--his father's daughter, or his mother's daughter--and sees her nakedness, and she sees his nakedness, it is a shameful thing. They shall be cut off in the sight of the children of their people. He has uncovered his sister's nakedness. He shall bear his iniquity. "'If a man lies with a woman having her monthly period, and uncovers her nakedness, he has made her fountain naked, and she has uncovered the fountain of her blood. Both of them shall be cut off from among their people. "'You shall not uncover the nakedness of your mother's sister, nor of your father's sister, for he has made his close relative naked. They shall bear their iniquity. If a man lies with his uncle's wife, he has uncovered his uncle's nakedness. They shall bear their sin. They shall die childless. "'If a man takes his brother's wife, it is an impurity. He has uncovered his brother's nakedness. They shall be childless. "'You shall therefore keep all my statutes and all my ordinances, and do them, that the land where I am bringing you to dwell may not vomit you out. You shall not walk in the customs of the nation which I am casting out before you; for they did all these things, and therefore I abhorred them. But I have said to you, "You shall inherit their land, and I will give it to you to possess it, a land flowing with milk and honey." I am Jehovah your God, who has separated you from the peoples. "'You shall therefore make a distinction between the clean animal and the unclean, and between the unclean fowl and the clean. You shall not make yourselves abominable by animal, or by bird, or by anything with which the ground teems, which I have separated from you as unclean for you. You shall be holy to me, for I, Jehovah, am holy, and have set you apart from the peoples, that you should be mine. "'A man or a woman that is a medium or is a wizard shall surely be put to death. They shall be stoned with stones. Their blood shall be upon themselves.'" Jehovah said to Moses, "Speak to the priests, the sons of Aaron, and say to them, 'A priest shall not defile himself for the dead among his people, except for his relatives that are near to him: for his mother, for his father, for his son, for his daughter, for his brother, and for his virgin sister who is near to him, who has had no husband; for her he may defile himself. He shall not defile himself, being a chief man among his people, to profane himself. "'They shall not shave their heads or shave off the corners of their beards or make any cuttings in their flesh. They shall be holy to their God, and not profane the name of their God, for they offer the offerings of Jehovah made by fire, the bread of their God. Therefore they shall be holy. "'They shall not marry a woman who is a prostitute, or profane. A priest shall not marry a woman divorced from her husband; for he is holy to his God. Therefore you shall sanctify him, for he offers the bread of your God. He shall be holy to you, for I Jehovah, who sanctify you, am holy. "'The daughter of any priest, if she profanes herself by playing the prostitute, she profanes her father. She shall be burned with fire. "'He who is the high priest among his brothers, upon whose head the anointing oil is poured, and who is consecrated to put on the garments, shall not let the hair of his head hang loose, or tear his clothes. He must not go in to any dead body, or defile himself for his father or for his mother. He shall not go out of the sanctuary, nor profane the sanctuary of his God; for the crown of the anointing oil of his God is upon him. I am Jehovah. "'He shall take a wife in her virginity. He shall not marry a widow, or one divorced, or a woman who has been defiled, or a prostitute. He shall take a virgin of his own people as a wife. He shall not profane his offspring among his people, for I am Jehovah who sanctifies him.'" Jehovah spoke to Moses, saying, "Say to Aaron, 'None of your offspring throughout their generations who has a defect may approach to offer the bread of his God. For whatever man he is that has a defect, he shall not draw near: a blind man, or a lame, or he who has a flat nose, or any deformity, or a man who has an injured foot, or an injured hand, or hunchbacked, or a dwarf, or one who has a defect in his eye, or an itching disease, or scabs, or who has damaged testicles. No man of the offspring of Aaron the priest who has a defect shall come near to offer the offerings of Jehovah made by fire. Since he has a defect, he shall not come near to offer the bread of his God. He shall eat the bread of his God, both of the most holy, and of the holy. He shall not come near to the veil, nor come near to the altar, because he has a defect; that he may not profane my sanctuaries, for I am Jehovah who sanctifies them.'" So Moses spoke to Aaron, and to his sons, and to all the children of Israel. Jehovah spoke to Moses, saying, "Tell Aaron and his sons to separate themselves from the holy things of the children of Israel, which they make holy to me, and that they not profane my holy name. I am Jehovah. "Tell them, 'If anyone of all your offspring throughout your generations approaches the holy things which the children of Israel make holy to Jehovah, having his uncleanness on him, that soul shall be cut off from before me. I am Jehovah. "'Whoever of the offspring of Aaron is a leper or has a discharge shall not eat of the holy things until he is clean. Whoever touches anything that is unclean by the dead, or a man who has a seminal emission, or whoever touches any creeping thing by which he may be made unclean, or a man from whom he may become unclean, whatever uncleanness he has-- the person that touches any such shall be unclean until the evening, and shall not eat of the holy things unless he bathes his body in water. When the sun is down, he shall be clean; and afterward he shall eat of the holy things, because it is his bread. He shall not eat that which dies of itself or is torn by animals, defiling himself by it. I am Jehovah. "'They shall therefore follow my commandment, lest they bear sin for it and die in it, if they profane it. I am Jehovah who sanctifies them. "'No stranger shall eat of the holy thing: a foreigner living with the priests, or a hired servant, shall not eat of the holy thing. But if a priest buys a slave, purchased by his money, he shall eat of it; and those who are born in his house shall eat of his bread. If a priest's daughter is married to an outsider, she shall not eat of the heave offering of the holy things. But if a priest's daughter is a widow, or divorced, and has no child, and has returned to her father's house as in her youth, she may eat of her father's bread; but no stranger shall eat any of it. "'If a man eats something holy unwittingly, then he shall add the fifth part of its value to it, and shall give the holy thing to the priest. The priests shall not profane the holy things of the children of Israel, which they offer to Jehovah, and so cause them to bear the iniquity that brings guilt when they eat their holy things; for I am Jehovah who sanctifies them.'" Jehovah spoke to Moses, saying, "Speak to Aaron, and to his sons, and to all the children of Israel, and say to them, 'Whoever is of the house of Israel, or of the foreigners in Israel, who offers his offering, whether it is any of their vows or any of their free will offerings, which they offer to Jehovah for a burnt offering: that you may be accepted, you shall offer a male without defect, of the bulls, of the sheep, or of the goats. But you shall not offer whatever has a defect, for it shall not be acceptable for you. Whoever offers a sacrifice of peace offerings to Jehovah to accomplish a vow, or for a free will offering of the herd or of the flock, it shall be perfect to be accepted. It shall have no defect. You shall not offer what is blind, is injured, is maimed, has a wart, is festering, or has a running sore to Jehovah, nor make an offering by fire of them on the altar to Jehovah. Either a bull or a lamb that has any deformity or lacking in his parts, that you may offer for a free will offering; but for a vow it shall not be accepted. You must not offer to Jehovah that which has its testicles bruised, crushed, broken, or cut. You must not do this in your land. You must not offer any of these as the bread of your God from the hand of a foreigner, because their corruption is in them. There is a defect in them. They shall not be accepted for you.'" Jehovah spoke to Moses, saying, "When a bull, a sheep, or a goat is born, it shall remain seven days with its mother. From the eighth day on it shall be accepted for the offering of an offering made by fire to Jehovah. Whether it is a cow or ewe, you shall not kill it and its young both in one day. "When you sacrifice a sacrifice of thanksgiving to Jehovah, you shall sacrifice it so that you may be accepted. It shall be eaten on the same day; you shall leave none of it until the morning. I am Jehovah. "Therefore you shall keep my commandments, and do them. I am Jehovah. You shall not profane my holy name, but I will be made holy among the children of Israel. I am Jehovah who makes you holy, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, to be your God. I am Jehovah."

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