Leviticus 19:11-22 (CLICK HERE FOR BIBLE VERSES)
Hi GAMErs,
Today’s passage is Leviticus 19:11-22. With a humble heart, see what sticks out to you in this passage. Is there a verse, a phrase, or a lesson you think the Holy Spirit may be highlighting for you in this passage? After you’ve thought about the passage yourself a bit, read the GAME sharing below. Let’s go!
Leviticus 19:11-22 (NIV)
11 “‘Do not steal. “‘Do not lie. “‘Do not deceive one another.
12 “‘Do not swear falsely by my name and so profane the name of your God. I am the LORD.
13 “‘Do not defraud your neighbor or rob him. “‘Do not hold back the wages of a hired man overnight.
14 “‘Do not curse the deaf or put a stumbling block in front of the blind, but fear your God. I am the LORD.
15 “‘Do not pervert justice; do not show partiality to the poor or favoritism to the great, but judge your neighbor fairly.
16 “‘Do not go about spreading slander among your people. “‘Do not do anything that endangers your neighbor’s life. I am the LORD.
17 “‘Do not hate your brother in your heart. Rebuke your neighbor frankly so you will not share in his guilt.
18 “‘Do not seek revenge or bear a grudge against one of your people, but love your neighbor as yourself. I am the LORD.
19 “‘Keep my decrees. “‘Do not mate different kinds of animals. “‘Do not plant your field with two kinds of seed. “‘Do not wear clothing woven of two kinds of material.
20 “‘If a man sleeps with a woman who is a slave girl promised to another man but who has not been ransomed or given her freedom, there must be due punishment. Yet they are not to be put to death, because she had not been freed.
21 The man, however, must bring a ram to the entrance to the Tent of Meeting for a guilt offering to the LORD.
22 With the ram of the guilt offering the priest is to make atonement for him before the LORD for the sin he has committed, and his sin will be forgiven.
On verses 11-22: What do we do with a passage like Leviticus 19:11-22? On one hand, the first half (verses 11-18) lists commands that are easy for us to understand and that we can easily see applying just as much today as in Moses’ time: do not steal, do not lie, do not pervert justice, do not slander others, etc. You’ll find that in verses 11-18, every other verse is punctuated with the statement “I am the LORD”, encouraging us to remember who it is who gives these commands and who it is we are accountable to – not just anyone, but God Himself.
But then in the second half (verses 19-22) we come across commands that may sound strange and foreign to us. For example, verse 19 says to not plant two kinds of seed in the same field. Is it wrong for you to plant tomatoes AND cucumbers in your backyard? And how about this: do not wear clothing woven with two kinds of material (verse 19)? Is God offended if I wear a shirt that is 50% cotton and 50% polyester?
To what extent do the regulations in Leviticus apply to Christians today? This was something the early church had to come to terms with (see Acts 15). Based on the wise teaching of others, here’s how I try to approach the regulations we find in Leviticus:
1. If a regulation in Leviticus has been revoked in the New Testament, that regulation no longer applies to us. (For example, the restrictions on food in Leviticus are emphatically revoked in the Gospels and Acts.)
2. If a regulation in Leviticus is repeated and affirmed in the New Testament, that regulation applies to us today. (For example, all of the commands in Leviticus 19:11-18 are re-affirmed in the New Testament and therefore apply to us still.)
3. If a regulation in Leviticus is neither revoked or repeated in the New Testament, we should ask, “Were these regulations primarily moral or civic/ceremonial rules that were specific to Israelite culture and society at that time?” If they are moral rules, then we should do our best to apply them (since God’s morals do not change). If they are civic, ceremonial, or cultural rules, then we must ask whether they are still in any way relevant in our current context. As part of this, we should ask, “Is there a timeless principle or a spiritual lesson behind this regulation that we can still apply today?”
So, for example, the regulation not to plant two kinds of seed in a field or not to wear clothing made of two kinds of material is not specifically revoked or repeated in the New Testament. It’s also not an obvious moral law. So is there a spiritual lesson or a timeless principle we can glean from this regulation? Here are a couple thoughts:
– When Leviticus 19:19 tells us not to wear clothing made of two kinds of material, perhaps the timeless principle here is that God wants us to live our lives simply, and not to complicate or crowd our lives with too many commitments.
– When Leviticus 19:19 tells us not to plant two kinds of seed, the spiritual lesson here may be that God’s Word, which is described as a seed (Luke 8:11-15), must not be mixed and combined with the seed (teachings) from other religions.
Praise God! Just as Paul prayed for Timothy, I pray that you would be a lover of God’s Word and someone who correctly handles God’s Word (2 Timothy 2:15), including those tough to understand passages you find in Leviticus.
Heavenly Father, thank You for the power of Your Word. May I have wisdom to know how to read, interpret and apply Your Word to my life. In Jesus’ name, AMEN!
copyright © 2022 Justin Lim. All rights reserved.
