SACRIFICE AND HOLINESS IN THE SCHEME OF LEVITICUS

Lev 17-25 Laws on holy living Lev 26 Blessings and punishments Lev 27 Laws on vows and offerings At the end of Exodus, Moses sets up the tabernacle and the glory of Yahweh fills it: “So the cloud of Yahweh was over the tabernacle by day, and fire was in the cloud by night, in the s ight of all the house of Israel during all their travels” Exod 40:38. The book of Leviticus then starts with a waw-consecutive, indicating clearly that this is the next part of the same story: “Then Yahweh called to Moses and spoke to him from the meeting tent, saying: Speak to the sons of Israel: When a man among you brings an offering to Yahweh from animals ... ” my translation. Setting the Levitical sacrifices in this context helps to determine their essential purpose. Yahweh’s desire was to have a dwelling among the people he had rescued from slavery. He set out in great detail how the tabernacle and its furnishings should be constructed. Finally, he took up residence there. However, there is still an unresolved tension: there remains a barrier preventing the intimate relationship that God intended to have with man, made in his image Gen 1:27, pictured at the start of the Pentateuch in the Garden of Eden. The barrier is the rebellion of man, for “every inclination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil all the time” Gen 6:6. The rift is so widespread that even Moses cannot enter the meeting tent because it was filled with God’s glory Exod 40:35. If even Yahweh’s spokesman cannot enter, what hope is there for the future of the relationship? Yet, Leviticus emphasises that there is hope. “You shall be holy for I, the LORD your God, am holy” 19:2 has been termed the motto of the book. 73 The tension is resolved as Yahweh provides a way for the people to be holy and to enjoy again an intimate relationship with him, and that way has at its heart the system of sacrifices. 73 Wenham, Gordon J., The Book of Leviticus, The New International Commentary on the Old Testament; Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1979, p.18. 4.2 WHAT DOES HOLINESS MEAN IN LEVITICUS? As holiness is such a key concept, it is essential to examine what it means before going on to study the different sacrifices in detail. Milgrom defines holiness as “that which is unapproachable except through divinely imposed restrictions” or “that which is withdrawn from common use.” 74 He examines holiness in Semitic polytheism where natural objects such as certain trees or rivers have supernatural force and are unpredictably dangerous. 75 He contrasts this with the Bible. “Holiness there is not innate. The source of holiness is assigned to God alone. ... If certain things are termed holy ... they are so by virtue of divine dispensation.” 76 The holiness of God God describes himself as holy Lev 11:44,45; 19:2; 20:20; 21:8. He is certainly different ontologically from man, but as Cole comments, “The separateness or difference of God from men is not merely that of two different orders of b eing. It is in His moral nature that the God of Israel is different: therefore ‘holiness’ in Israel has a moral content. ” 77 He reveals something of his character in the ten commandments Exod 20. God’s holiness has two ramifications for Israelite sacrifice. First, all offerings are to be brought to Yahweh Lev 1:2. He brooks no rival: no other deity, heavenly creature or intermediary is to receive any sacrifice. Second, the method of sacrifice is determined by God and not according to the wishes or imagination of the people. Leviticus prohibits the sacrifice of children to the deity Molech as it would breach both these principles and profane God’s name Lev 20:2f. When two of Aaron’s sons make an unauthorised offering and are consumed by a fire from Yahweh, “Moses said to Aaron: this is what the LORD spoke of when he said: ‘Among those who approach me I will show myself holy; In the sight of all the people I will be honoured. ’” Lev 10:3 There is little else that directly defines what is meant by the holiness of God, but as Malina comments, “God-talk or theology necessarily consists in comparisons drawn from human experience. God, too, will be described in terms of the concerns 74 Quoted in Sawyer, John F.A., ed., Reading Leviticus, A Conversation with Mary Douglas, Journal for the Study of the Old Testament Supplement Series 227; Sheffield: JSOT Press, 1996, p.65. 75 In Sawyer, Reading Leviticus, A Conversation with Mary Douglas, p.65. 76 In Sawyer, Reading Leviticus, A Conversation with Mary Douglas, p.65f. 77 Cole, Alan, Exodus, An Introduction and Commentary; IVP: Leicester, 1973, p.22. of society ... God will be described as complete, whole, perfect, and this perfection will be discernible in God’s relationship to God’s people and God’s world.” 78 So as we look at what holiness means as it is worked out in Israelite society, we will at the same time gain a fuller picture of God’s holiness. Holy people, things, times and places Apart from God, members of certain domains in the human world have the potential to be holy: people, priests, garments, offerings, places, and occasions. Since God is holy, then anything associated with him or his service is also considered holy. The location for the sacrifices: the tabernacle The drama of the Israelite sacrifices was to take place in the environment of the tabernacle Lev 17:8-9 where God dwelt, also known as the tent of meeting the place where God met with his people or their leader or the sanctuary. Yahweh gave Moses detailed construction plans Ex. 25:8- 9. “The tabernacle was tripartite: one entering the outer court could proceed directly forward to the holy place, and the most holy place the holy of holies is dire ctly behind the holy place.” 79 This most holy place contained the ark of the covenant, a chest containing the tablets inscribed with the decalogue. A slab of pure gold rested on top, with a cherub at each end resting on top. These symbolised a throne with God enthroned above them. The most expensive colours and metals were used nearest the ark, as a symbol of its holiness. As one moved away from the ark, less valuable materials were used. The priesthood One of the twelve tribes of Israel, Levi, was set aside to assist in the performance of religious rites, and to educate the people on what God expected of them Lev 1:2. Within the tribe, the family of Aaron was given special status as high priests and the responsibility of serving in the holy place and the most holy place in the tabernacle. The close connection between the priests and the tabernacle was emphasised symbolically by similar colours in priestly clothing and tabernacle cloth. 78 Malina, B., The New Testament World: Insights from Cultural Anthropology; Westminster: John Knox Press, 1993, p.158. 79 Ryle, Wilbert and Tremper Longman III, eds., Dictionary of Biblical Images; Leicester and Illinois: IVP, 1998, p.837.