Leviticus Chapter 16 Discussion

Thank you S. Spencer.

We can also talk on this thread about ways we show we treasure the shedding of our Lord's blood as being more precious than anything else.

I am thinking that we show this positive mindset about the blood of Christ by speaking truthfully about His person and His work and how His shed blood affects us.

We can show this positive mindset by praying for opportunities to share the gospel fully and completely with someone who is lost and then do it when the opportunity comes to us.

We can show that we treasure the blood of Jesus when we admit our absolute need for it for our salvation, admitting that we are sinners in need of atonement and the removal of our sin and guilt from us along with a desire to be right with God through the blood of our Savior, the only begotten Son.

We can show that the blood of Jesus is precious to us whenever we approach the throne of grace to draw near to the FAther knowing that it is the blood of Jesus that permits this.

I am sure others have very good thoughts on this, too. Looking forward to reading them.

Thanks Gigi.

Great topic.

Wilful sin is a big issue as the article mentioned.

Hebrews 10:26-27. For if we sin wilfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins,

But a certain fearful looking for of judgment and fiery indignation, which shall devour the adversaries.

Here's also a commonly looked over sin.

James 4:17. Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin.

Sometimes we as Christians think we have the balances in our hands to tell the degree of the offence so we weigh the sin against another man's sin. That seems to give us comfort to continue in our folly.

We should understand that we have been bought/Redeemed with the blood of Christ!

Here is where we examine ourselves to see if Christ Lords over our life.

Galatians 2:20-21. I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.

I do not frustrate the grace of God: for if righteousness come by the law, then Christ is dead in vain.

This righteousness is not just Positionally it is practical. It should be on display "BECAUSE" it is energized by the Spirit.

This is not how well we serve, it's WHO we serve and WHO is glorified.

It's the outward act that shows the inward parts. ( The regenerated heart.)

If we count the blood of Christ dear to us we should have a fear of offending the grace of God, so his word and our our worship should line up with scripture.

Our walk and zeal confirms our attitude towards the ransom.

Another way to treat the blood of Christ as if it wasn't enough and try to add to it is to say "You don't except it or perhaps don't believe it.

God bless.

"The Preciousness of the Blood"

Part 3

"A part of this was surely that the blood, as symbolized in the wine (of which some drank too much, vs. 21), was disregarded and profaned.

Not only is misconduct at the Lord's Table profaning the blood of Christ, but also absence from the Lord's Table. There are many who view communion as a ritual best to be endured, and then only occasionally. The New Testament saints remembered the Lord daily ( Acts 2:42-46), and later it was weekly ( Acts 20:7; 1 Cor.11:2 cf. 16:2). Those who consistently failed to commemorate the Lord's death not only disobeyed the command of the Lord ( Lk. 22:19-20) but they profane the blood He shed by valuing it so little that they fail to commemorate His death as He has instructed us. ....

There is essentially but one way in which non-Christians profane the blood of Jesus Christ, and that is esteeming it of so little worth that they seek acceptance with God on the basis of their own works, in place of the atonement, in which Christ shed His own blood. Imagine standing before the judgment seat of God (the Great White Throne) and having God ask you but one question, the answer to which determines whether you spend eternity in heaven or in hell. The question, I assure you, will be this, WHAT HAVE YOU DONE WITH THE BLOOD OF MY SON?"

God cares nothing for what you have to offer, but only what He Himself has offered you, His only begotten Son: "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have eternal life." ( Jn. 3:16). How dare any man think he could offer God anything for his own redemption, when God has paid the price in full at the cost of the blood of His own Son."

I just thought that this portion of this article was so well said and worth consideration.

We may be able to think of other ways we can profane the blood of Jesus.

I think of when a believer shows acceptance of non-christian by Jesus without conversion. More ideas?

"The Preciousness of the Blood"

Part 2

"If we truly treasure the blood of Christ, we will not defile it. the preciousness of the blood of Christ is a very pertinent factor in the life of the Christian. Peter maintains that the preciousness of the blood is to be the Christian's motivation for purity--for avoiding profaning the price of our redemption. In other words, to resist the goal for which the blood of Christ was shed is to profane the price which was paid to realize the goal: purity and holiness. Put differently, the degree to which the blood of Christ is precious is also the measure of the penalty for profaning it.

The regulations that God gave to the Israelites in Chapter 17 of the book of Leviticus were intended to prevent the profaning of the blood of living creatures. It should be granted, then, that what is precious should not be profaned. Are there ways in which the precious blood of Jesus Christ, our Lord, is profaned? I believe so.

First, the believer profanes the blood of Christ by persisting in the very sin from which the precious blood was intended to cleanse us. Listen to these most sobering words from the book of Hebrews:

"How much severer punishment do you think he will deserve who has trampled underfoot the Son of God, and has regarded as unclean the blood of the covenant by which he has been sanctified, and has insulted the Spirit of grace?...It is a terrifying thing to fall into the hands of the living God." ( Heb. 10:29.31)

A second way in which a Christian can profane the precious blood of Christ is by a disregard for the Lord's Table, or by misconduct in your remembrance of the Lord's death. You will recall that in the 11th Chapter of 1 Corinthians, the misconduct of the Corinthian saints was described. The result was that some were judged by sickness and some by death ( 1Cor. 11:30). The reason given by Paul was that the saints did not "judge" the body rightly" (vs. 29).

Continued in Part 3

Hello, recently I posted for responses to my query of how we can defile or honor as precious the blood of Jesus. I am thankful for Chris' reply.

I had cited an article "The Preciousness of the Blood" by Bob Diffinbaugh. I was really impressed with what he wrote on this topic so I would like to quote this article today.

"Blood is not precious in its own right, but because it is equated with life. The principle conveyed first in Leviticus 17 is that "the life is in the blood". Pressing this matter further, then, we can safely conclude that God values life as precious. Blood is the instrument through which atonement is made, which spares the life of the sinner. Life is this precious to God, as well it can be for it was God who created all life. ( Gen. 1-2)

If blood, (and, as we have seen, life) is precious then there are several areas of application. The first application is that God values all life. Let the abortionist take note! Let those who talk about "quality of life" beware. God is the giver of life, Satan, through sin, seeks to destroy it. Let us prove to be on God's side by seeking to save life, rather than destroy it.

Pressing the fact that God values all lie to its personal level, we can say with great conviction, God values your life. God values your life so much more highly than you do. The measure of the value which God has placed on your life is the price which He was willing to pay to save it; the precious blood of His only Son, Jesus Christ. According to this standard, God has placed infinite value on your life. May you and I value our life in the light of the value God has ascribed to it.

Further, knowing the value which God has assigned to life enables us to better grasp the evil of sin, which seeks to destroy life by producing death. Cin can only be appraised in the light of tits ultimate result--death, and death can only be evaluated in light of its opposite--life. How ugly sin is in the light of the value of the life which it seeks to destroy."

Thank you, Chris. Good food for thought.

Hello GiGi. Thanks for your very good commentaries on these chapters, and as in this chapter 17 on sacrifices conducted by the priests, your emphasis being on the blood.

Your question intrigued me, as true believers, endued with God's Spirit, will always consider Christ's Sacrifice & the necessary shedding of His Blood as most vital for their forgiveness & transformation, the other part of your question, of "ways believers can defile or profane the blood of Jesus, thus trampling it underfoot", I wondered about. I doubt whether genuine believers can ever "defile or profane" the Sacrifice that Jesus made for them.

Your statement took me to Hebrews 10:29: "Of how much sorer punishment, suppose ye, shall he be thought worthy, who hath trodden under foot the Son of God, and hath counted the blood of the covenant, wherewith he was sanctified, an unholy thing, and hath done despite unto the Spirit of grace?" Though there are opinions on this epistle, mine continues to focus on it being sent to the Hebrews, i.e. those of Jewry who have turned to Christ & meeting in various congregations outside of Palestine. But some, having left Judaism behind & drawn to Christ, were not necessarily converted. They may have confessed their faith, been baptized in water, even some demonstration of a heart change & 'gifts' used in the Church. But a large portion of this letter is an apologetic to the superiority of Christ to that of the Old Covenant & Laws, which the Hebrews writer would not address in such detail unless there was some problem amongst those who were considering abandoning the 'faith' & returning to Judaism.

Though this letter is an encouragement to them, it also came as a grave warning. And here in Hebrews 10:29 (as also seen elsewhere), the warning was to those in such a spiritual state, that to return to Judaism effectively meant that they have determined that Jesus & His Sacrifice meant nothing & Judaism was the only answer. No further sacrifice availed for them.

Last words on Leviticus 17

I know that God brings such things to us to draw us into holiness before Him. I am thankful He does this.

I was hoping some of you may share ways y believers demonstrate that they esteem the blood of Jesus as so precious and also ways believers can defile of profane the blood of Jesus, thus trampling it underfoot.

Again on Leviticus 17

Then Abraham offered animal sacrifices to God for atonement of sins. God called him to offer Isaac, Abrahams beloved son of the promise of God. God did not allow Abraham to follow through with this sacrifice but it showed that the sacrifice of a beloved Son was what will truly atone for sin and cleanse mankind from sin.

Now in the wilderness, YHWH speaks more about the killing of animals and the value of the blood. He forbids them to continue to offer any sacrifices in any way but bringing them to the tent of meeting. This would keep them from offering sacrifices to pagan idols like those around them, especially to Pan/Mendes, the goat idol of fertility, which was present in Egypt and in Canaan. The Israelites were to understand that in order for their sacrifice and their meat to be clean they were to present it unto God first. This reminds me of 1 Timothy 4:3-5 which tells us that we are to give thanks to God for our food and in thus doing it is deemed clean.

But even more deep is the preciousness of the blood of Jesus, our sacrifice for sin. AS the article I mentioned above speaks to, we are to hold as precious His blood shed for us and not defile or profane it in any way. Unbelievers do this by refusing to come before God by the blood of the Lamb thinking that they can present themselves before God acceptably any other way but through the blood of Jesus. Their refusal to receive the one remedy for their fallenness that God has ordained shows that they do not see the blood of Jesus as absolutely precious and lifegiving.

We, on the other hand, know this about the blood of Jesus cleansing us and giving us life, atoning for our sin and bringing forgiveness that we do not deserve. But I wonder that there are times when believers do not esteem His blood as precious as it truly is. Do we profane it or depreciate it's value in the way we speak of act? These thoughts to me really hit home. So, I examine myself before the Lord and repent.

More on Leviticus Chapter 17

I just finished reading a good commentary on this chapter titled, "The Preciousness of the Blood". It was such a great commentary. I recommend it. Go to Bible .org and type in the title.

I knew before reading this commentary that there was still more that God wanted me to glean from this chapter and I was thinking about the significance of singling out the blood in this chapter as being so important. so, being led to this article was a very good answer to the prompting of the Holy Spirit.

God has determined before the foundation of the world that blood is precious. It is in every creature He created. It is life determining. He emphasized this in Chapter 17 of Leviticus when it came to killing animals for consumption and for sacrifice. He emphasized that these animals are to be brought before the LORD at the tent of meeting so that the priest can butcher them properly, draining the blood and sprinkling it upon the altar. God cares about every animal he created. And when one dies he knows. Death is unclean, it defiles the body of the creature that once was alive. This is a very good depiction of what sin does in us. It defiles us because it brings death to us. It makes us unclean because it causes us to decay and become unwholesome.

The blood of creatures is precious because it keeps them alive. Not only the whole body, but each part of the body needs blood or else it will die even if the whole creature still lives. Sin causes death in different aspects of our lives. It is like a lack of blood flow to a body part. Life is in the blood, as the LORD decreed.

Before creation the Godhead determined that the shedding of blood to the death of one is the means of bringing atonement from sin. whether it was the animal God sacrificed in Genesis 3 to cover Adam and Eve's "nakedness" or the sacrifices Noah made after leaving the Ark to atone for the corruption of the earth from sin that brought on the flood. Blood cleansed and atoned.

Lev. 16 cont. ...

and the ones who removed the carcasses are to wash themselves and his clothes and put on clean clothes before returning to the tabernacle that evening.

This ceremony was done on the 10th day of Tishri every year in perpetuity in order to atone for the sins of the people for the preceding year.

Yom Kippur is the Holy Day that typifies Christ so vividly. Not only is Jesus the High Priest that entered the Holy Place to make atonement upon the mercy seat of heaven, but it was His blood that was sprinkled on the heavenly mercy seat, and this was done once and for all, doing away with the rites mentioned in this chapter. And also, Jesus remains in the Holy of Holies in heaven to every intercede for us.

On the cross, Jesus was the bull offered for Himself, who became sin for us, and the goat who was offered for the sins of the whole world, and the scapegoat, who took our sins from us and put them away in a far place never to return to us. In Jesus all that was required of God to expiate, propitiate, atone, forgive, remove, and cleanse us from our sins, sinfulness, transgressions and impureness before God. He took the wrath of God for us. He died for us, In the tomb He the sins of the world were released from Him and left in the grave. In the resurrection He justified us making us alive to God and presenting us to God in His righteousness. In all of this, along with His sinless perfect human life and perfect eternal all sufficient divine life He broke the curse of sin on all of mankind and opened the way to paradise and eternal life eternally.

Those who believe this is true indeed receive all of the merits, promises, and treasures of the work of Christ in His incarnation. Those who refuse to believe this is all true cannot have these things appropriated to themselves and will die in their sins and spend eternity in hell. So sad for them. Yet so overjoyed for the elect of God in Christ! The salvation of God is immeasurable and completely sufficient!

Leviticus 16 continued.

Considering that the deaths of his sons Nadab and Abihu are mentioned in verse 1, drives home this point of not adding to or substituting anything not proscribed by YHWH in this service. Nothing was mentioned about tying a rope to the ankle of the priest and Him having bells on the bottom hem of his garment for the purpose of determining if he survived this rite in the Holy of Holies. So, I do not know when this was included nor if it was taught by YHWH or not.

After performing the atoning rites for himself, the High Priest then exits the Holy of Holies and 2 goats are brought to him. having previously cast lots as to which one would be killed for an offering for sin and which one would be the scapegoat to run off into the wilderness with the sins of the people imputed on it. The High Priest will be present the two goats before the Lord at the door of the tabernacle, not inside it, first the one to be sacrificed. He will slay it and place it on the altar on top of the bull. He will then take some of the blood of the bull and some of the blood of the goat anoint the horns on the altar of sacrifice and, thus cleansing it from the impureness and sin of the people who brought their sinfulness to be atoned for. Next, Aaron took the live goat and placed both hands upon its head and recited all of the sins of all the people over it. That must have been a lengthy list and most likely took a long time. Then the designated person would carry the goat out into the wilderness and released to run away with the sins of the whole nation upon it.

Next, Aaron will return the tabernacle of meeting, remove the linen clothing, bathe, and put back on the High Priestly garments, and come out to the tabernacle and offer the burnt offering for himself and another for the people. The carcasses of the bull and the goat shall be taken outside the camp, not burned on the altar, but burned outside the camp. Both the one who released the scapegoat ....cont.

Leviticus Chapter 16

This chapter returns to the topic of the duties of the High Priest. In this chapter, YHWH gives instructions that institute the holy day of Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement that is but once a year on the 10th day of Tishri, (Sept-Oct.) the 7th month from the beginning of the religious year (Nissan).

This is a Most Holy Day, indicating it to be day that God determines is of most importance for the Israelites. This day is for the covering of the sins of the people. It is preceded by 10 days of repentant pray a and fasting. On this day the High Priest enters the Holy of Holies Pries bring the blood of the sin sacrifices, a bowl of coals from the altar of sacrifice, and a handful of incense finely ground for use in approaching YHWH there on behalf of the whole nation of Israel. Only the High Priest can do this rite. It is done only once a year and all the other days of the year, no one can enter the Holy of Holies.

The offerings are a bull offered for the sins of the high priest. This is done first, for he is the one who presents Himself before God and needs to have his sins atoned for before the sins of the people can be atoned for. The High Priest must fully wash himself before entering the Holy of Holies. He is not to wear his entire priestly attire when bringing the blood of the bull for himself of the LORD, coming not as the High Priest, but as a penitent needing and seeking mercy and forgiveness. Therefore, he dresses in a simple linen robe. His sins must be atoned for first sin no sin can be brought into the presence of YHWH. After slaying the bull, he is to take a bowl of live coals from the brazen altar along with blood from the bull. the coals would be smoldering and giving off smoke. He also brought a handful of incense. He enters the Holy of Holies and sprinkles the blood upon the altar 7 times. It does not say that he is to say anything. This is a very solemn rite of service ordained by God. So, he would not dare add anything else

In the first half of Leviticus 10 we read of the death of Nadab and Abihu . Keeping things in context helps our understanding and I think , can give us clues to things unspoken . After their deaths , in the same chapter , verses 9 - 11 , we read that God prohibits anyone from entering the tabernacle if they have partaken of alcohol . These verses , coming right after the deaths of Aaron's sons , may indicate that part of the reason they behaved so recklessly was because they had had some alcohol in their systems . This is not stated in the narrative , though I have always been inclined to believe that that is what happened .

Hello Tekoa. According to Leviticus 10:1,2, Aaron's sons, Nadab & Abihu offered "strange fire before the LORD". As sons of Aaron & set apart for the service of the Tabernacle, they, as all those who served there, had to be meticulous in their service, abiding with the minutest instruction of God.

There seems to be a few errors committed by these two men.

a. "they took either of them his censer." Not any censer that were present with certain people, but the one holy censer ( Hebrews 9:4) that always remained in the Tabernacle, was to be used. And only one person was permitted to do this work.

b. These men erroneously assumed the work of the High Priest, since the Law stated that only the High Priest could perform this work ( Leviticus 16:11-13).

c. "offered strange fire before the LORD, which he commanded them not." It seems that they took the fire from an ordinary source & not from the holy fire off the Altar ( Leviticus 16:12). So, it could be that this "strange fire" coupled with their unauthorized work & use of illegal implements, angered the LORD that brought on their immediate judgement & punishment. This also has a lesson for us: our salvation & the new life that Jesus has given us was both undeserved & so precious - we need to take it seriously & live carefully before our Heavenly Father - something those two sons were very careless with.

Tekoa, Sister GiGi, who is presently sharing her observations & thoughts on this Book of Leviticus, is giving some great material to consider & learn from. You may care to follow her presentations, starting from Chapter 1.

why did Aarons sons died

Hi Richard Cain.

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Tank you

This is all I know about it:

Now when these things were thus ordained, the priests went always into the first tabernacle, accomplishing the service of God.

But into the second went the high priest alone once every year, not without blood, which he offered for himself, and for the errors of the people:

The Holy Ghost this signifying, that the way into the holiest of all was not yet made manifest, while as the first tabernacle was yet standing:

Which was a figure for the time then present, in which were offered both gifts and sacrifices, that could not make him that did the service perfect, as pertaining to the conscience;

Which stood only in meats and drinks, and divers washings, and carnal ordinances, imposed on them until the time of reformation.

But Christ being come an high priest of good things to come, by a greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this building;

Neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood he entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us.

For if the blood of bulls and of goats, and the ashes of an heifer sprinkling the unclean, sanctifieth to the purifying of the flesh:

How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God? ( Hebrews 9:6-14)

Why was the day of atonement necessary if sacrifices were made all year long?

Where in the bible Azazel was mentioned?

The meaning of azazel

In the New Testament Christ acknowledged the Sabbath, however he was not a Sabbath keeper. He was often accused of breaking the Sabbath. Christ went about healing the sick and feeding the hungry on the Sabbath Day.

The Bible is clear, the Sabbath is a day of rest for all people. Exodus 20: 8-11 Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy. Mark2:27,28- the Sabbath was made for man and not man for the sabbath. Therefore the Son of man is Lord of the Sabbath. Ex. 16:18-20, Christ a Sabbath keeper, Luke 4: 16. Luke 23:52-54-56. Throughout the new testament the Christians kept the Sabbath. Acts 13:14, Acts 13:42-44, Acts 16:11-13.

Is it ok to wash clothes on Saturday (SABBATH)?

I researched the term "High Priest" but found no reference that Jesus is a High Priest" My references come from from KJV. Please read Mark Ch: 14 Vs-53, John CH:18 verses 15, 24, and 19.

Christ "died" for our sins when he was crucified on the cross, he became sin itself that is why God looked away from Jesus. When he arose on the 3rd day he was clean again. Jesus could not carry our sins into heaven because God cannot be in the presence of sin. When we repent "all our sin" Jesus gives our name to God our name is put in the book of life. Be of pure heart mind when yourepent

Lev. 16:27 - On the day of atonement, the priests did not eat the bodies of the sacrificial animals as on other days (Lev.10:16-18); they took them outside the camp and burned them ( Lev. 16:27). Sacrifices on the Day of Atonement portrayed the death of Jesus; the priests were not permitted to eat the flesh of these. Cont.

yes there was a rope and also bells attached to him because our God is so Holy the priest couldn't go into the Holy of Holies with sin in him or he would die.If the bell stopped ringing the people would know he's dead,and pull him out by the rope.

i hope i am right but this is where he went for atonmenment yon kippur for the sins of the nation no I do not think he had bells at the bottem of his robe but please check.

Was there or was there not a rope attached to the priest when he went into the holy of holies ?
Also did he wear bells at the bottom of his tunic ?