Commands of YAHAVAH

Okay, we are covering chapters 19-20 of Leviticus today, which is a whole bunch of commands YAHAVAH gives and seems to explain in greater detail the commands He first gave them on Sinai through Moses BEFORE the making of the Golden Calf.

The phrase, “I am the LORD,” (or I am YAHAVAH) is used more in Chapter 19 of Leviticus than in any other chapter of the Bible. Still, that phrase is used 33% more in the Book of Ezekiel than in any other whole book.

Bottom Line – by adding, I AM THE LORD, or better put, “I am YAHAVAH,” to most of the things He will say here means, “Do these things or do not do these things if you love and recognize me as YAHAVAH Almighty.” The longer I live, the more I realize that the whole of our existences is based on who wants to, seeks to, do the will of YAHAVAH from the heart. This does NOT always mean from the pew of a church nor does it mean through a certain set of doctrines, but it’s always in contradiction to our doing our own will or eating from the Tree of Knowledge of GOOD and EVIL – which leads to deathSeparation from God—now overcome. Physical death remains, but it no longer separates us from life with God..

Holiness in Action

The first thing YAHAVAH says in the first two verses of 19 are,

19:1 And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, 2 Speak unto all the congregation of the children of Israel, and say unto them, Ye shall be holy: for I the LORD your God am holy.

This idea will be repeated a couple of times in these two chapters, including in verse 20:7-8 Sanctify yourselves therefore, and be ye holy: for I am the LORD your God. And ye shall keep my statutes, and do them: I am the LORD which sanctify you.

20:26 And ye shall be holy unto me: for I the LORD am holy, and have severed you from other people, that ye should be mine.

Apostolic Guidance

In the apostolic record, Peter will cite these general citations when he says,

1st Peter 1:13 Wherefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ; 14 As obedient children, not fashioning yourselves according to the former lusts in your ignorance: 15 But as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation; 16 Because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy.

The question becomes, how? We are reading about How God wanted them to be holy today in specifics. But the Apostolic Record clearly shows that personal holiness does not come by or through the Law.

This caused Paul to write to the believers at Galatia:

Galatia 5:1 Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage.

What is the yoke of bondage to which Paul refers? The Law, which he also boldly stated,

Romans 7:4 Wherefore, my brethren, ye also are become dead to the law by the body of Christ; that ye should be married to another, even to him who is raised from the dead, that we should bring forth fruit unto God.

In these passages, we can see that being holy could and would only come about by faith in Christ, and not trying to impose what we are reading here in Leviticus on one another. That said, what is said here in Leviticus can serve to pollute the minds of people, which can ultimately lead them from looking to Christ as Lord – and the turning from Him can ultimately lead a person to the sinMissing the mark of faith and love—no punishment, just lost growth or peace. of unbelief.

For this reason, and as a warning, we read in Hebrews 3:12:

“Take heed, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief, in departing from the living God.”

And then three chapters later adding,

Hebrews 6:4 For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Ghost, 5 And have tasted the good word of God, and the powers of the world to come, 6 If they shall fall away, to renew them again unto repentance; seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open shame.

The falling away, to me today, is to become faithless as this is the means by which we are all made holy.

The Impossibility of Obeying the Law Fully

Find it impossible to obey the Law “unto holiness” but again, these laws were put in place to indicate to them that they were wandering, not as a laundry list of musts because these musts – collectively – were impossible to keep. This caused Peter to say at the first apostolic council when some were trying to put new Christians under the Law with respect to circumcision,

Acts 15:10 Now therefore why tempt ye God, to put a yoke upon the neck of the disciples, which neither our fathers nor we were able to bear?

That said, faith in Him was always possible even under the Law, and the Law provided the means for them to be “sanctified” when they failed to obey it. Unfortunately, most of the Nation would turn from faith on Him alone as the things He is about to command of them led them quickly into having an evil heart of unbelief. So, this is the danger with sin today – if you will. It can lead a person to disbelief.

Human Nature and the Law

Now, most of the contents of Leviticus 19-20 are amplifications of, or have a relationship too, the commandments YAHAVAH gave the Nation at Sinai via Moses. Now, let me iterate a point that I am not so sure I have fully articulated in the past – human beings are mammals. Yes, we are made in God’s image but as “MAMMALS” so while we have the capacity to choose, create and manipulate in advanced ways, our nature – especially post the Fall was seen as the nature of a beast.

I am intrigued by the processes we endure to help us forget about these facts. The shampoos, the soap, the scrubbing, the shaving, the wiping, perfuming, hairstyling, and attire to wrap ourselves in. So we can see that as mammals we also bear about some intelligence and identity that exists outside these mammalian facts we try to obscure. As mammals we have oxygen, water and food needs which without we will die and FROM THIS STATE of really only being mammals that rely on sustenance there are some people who discount and deny a creator who is superior to them. BLOWS MY MIND.

YAHAVAH and His People

Anyway, what YAHAVAH seems to be doing here is first creating anew a people He created from Abraham. He allowed them to be taken into captivity and to be subjected to all sorts of influences. And when He led them out by the hand of Moses, and gave them His name, and made a covenant to be to them a husband, they were not entirely broken yet. In the face of these responses, He imposed laws. Now, as He prepares them to enter into the Promised land, it might be seen as akin to taking an enlightened boy or girl from their primary education and putting them into a jungle with all the tribes and animals which would surround them.

Over years of exposure, these circumstances and surroundings would partially envelop them and so what God is doing here is teaching them all sorts of things that they should avoid which they would see the other seven nations doing. This is the basis for chapters 19-20 of Leviticus. So, this will be a bit unusual approach for us but I will first read a specific of one of the ten commands given in Exodus 20 (after He gives them the Ten Word ketubah agreement) and then we will read through each reference to one or more of the ten found in Leviticus 19-20.

The Ten Words

So, from Exodus 20 when the Ten Word Ketubah was given broken down into what people call the Ten Commandments we first read, The Ten Words, which are:

ONE

Exodus 20:2 I am the LORD thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage.
3 Thou shalt have no other gods before me.

Verse 4 from chapter 19 speaks to this and the second on making graven images by saying:

19:4 Turn ye not unto idols, nor make to yourselves molten gods: I am the LORD your God.

After the Ten Words we read in Exodus

4 Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth:
5 Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me;
6 And

The Ten Commandments and Their Amplification in Leviticus

The Ten Commandments serve as a foundational moral code in biblical texts, further reinforced and expanded upon in various other scriptures such as Leviticus. This blog post outlines the connection and amplification of these commandments with corresponding passages in Leviticus chapters 19 and 20.

Verse 4 of Leviticus 19 states:

19:4 Turn ye not unto idols, nor make to yourselves molten gods: I am the LORD your God.

Integrity and Reverence

The third Commandment states,

7 Thou shalt not take the name of the LORD thy God in vain; for the LORD will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain.

In Leviticus 19:12, it reads:

12 And ye shall not swear by my name falsely, neither shalt thou profane the name of thy God: I am YAHAVAH.

This highlights the importance of using His name with reverence and not in vanity for our purposes.

FOUR
8 Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy.
9 Six days shalt thou labor, and do all thy work:
10 But the seventh day is the sabbath of the LORD thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates:
11 For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the LORD blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.

In Leviticus, we read:

19:3 Ye shall fear every man his mother, and his father, and keep my sabbaths: I am the LORD your God.

19:30 Ye shall keep my sabbaths, and reverence my sanctuary: I am the LORD.

Honor and Respect

FIVE
12 Honor thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee.

19:3 Ye shall fear every man his mother, and his father… "and keep my sabbaths: I am the LORD your God."

This indicates respect for every parent, whether they are your own or not.

20:9 For every one that curseth his father or his mother shall be surely put to death: he hath cursed his father or his mother; his blood shall be upon him.

SIX
13 Thou shalt not kill.

Interestingly, there is nothing about killing in Leviticus 19-20, as this command was perhaps perceived differently due to historical context.

SEVEN
14 Thou shalt not commit adultery.

20:10 And the man that committeth adultery with another man's wife, even he that committeth adultery with his neighbor's wife, the adulterer and the adulteress shall surely be put to death.

EIGHT
15 Thou shalt not steal.

19:11 Ye shall not steal, neither deal falsely, neither lie one to another.

19:13 Thou shalt not defraud thy neighbor, neither rob him: the wages of him that is hired shall not abide with thee all night until the morning.

19:35 Ye shall do no unrighteousness in judgment, in meteyard, in weight, or in measure. 36 Just balances, just weights, a just ephah, and a just hin, shall ye have: I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt.

Honesty and Fairness

NINE
16 Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor.

19:35 Ye shall do no unrighteousness in judgment, in meteyard, in weight, or in measure. 36 Just balances, just weights, a just ephah, and a just hin, shall ye have: I am the LORD your God, which brought you out of the land of Egypt.

TEN
17 Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's house, thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor any thing that is thy neighbor's.

Interestingly, adherence to this tenth commandment could potentially ensure the observance of most other commandments.

Then in Chapters 19-20, we find 18 “additions” or amplifications to the Exodus 20 content, providing a more extensive moral guideline.

On sacrifices we read:
19:5 And if ye offer a

Sacrifices and Offerings

Sacrifice of peace offerings unto the LORD, ye shall offer it at your own will. It shall be eaten the same day ye offer it, and on the morrow: and if ought remain until the third day, it shall be burnt in the fire. And if it be eaten at all on the third day, it is abominable; it shall not be accepted. Therefore every one that eateth it shall bear his iniquity, because he hath profaned the hallowed thing of the LORD: and that soul shall be cut off from among his people.

And when ye reap the harvest of your land, thou shalt not wholly reap the corners of thy field, neither shalt thou gather the gleanings of thy harvest. And thou shalt not glean thy vineyard, neither shalt thou gather every grape of thy vineyard; thou shalt leave them for the poor and stranger: I am the LORD your God.

I see this reference to vineyards and gleanings and leaving some for the poor as evidence of first-fruits in the Kingdom which goes to show how all will be gathered.

Social Justice and Fair Treatment

On the deaf and blind we read:

19:14 Thou shalt not curse the deaf, nor put a stumblingblock before the blind, but shalt fear thy God: I am the LORD.

Looking to Deuteronomy 27:18 we read, “Cursed be he that maketh the blind to wander out of the way. And all the people shall say, Amen.” Is this not but an extension of not stealing, bearing false witness, or simply not TAKING advantage of others who are reliant on us to aid them rather than prey upon them. I think it is.

Then we read on being judgmental of social status we read:

19:15 Ye shall do no unrighteousness in judgment: thou shalt not respect the person of the poor, nor honor the person of the mighty: but in righteousness shalt thou judge thy neighbor.

This is reiterated by James in his epistle when he wrote:

James 2:1 My brethren, have not the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory, with respect of persons. For if there come unto your assembly a man with a gold ring, in goodly apparel, and there come in also a poor man in vile raiment; And ye have respect to him that weareth the gay clothing, and say unto him, Sit thou here in a good place; and say to the poor, Stand thou there, or sit here under my footstool: Are ye not then partial in yourselves, and are become judges of evil thoughts? Hearken, my beloved brethren, Hath not God chosen the poor of this world rich in faith, and heirs of the kingdom which he hath promised to them that love him? But ye have despised the poor. Do not rich men oppress you, and draw you before the judgment seats? Do not they blaspheme that worthy name by the which ye are called? If ye fulfil the royal law according to the scripture, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself, ye do well: But if ye have respect to persons, ye commit sin, and are convinced of the law as transgressors. For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all.

The same principle is mentioned all the way back in Leviticus!

Neighborly Love

“Related” to Bearing False witness we read:

19:16 Thou shalt not go up and down as a talebearer among thy people: neither shalt thou stand against the blood of thy neighbor: I am the LORD.

On loving neighbor, we read:

19:17-18 Thou shalt not hate thy brother in thine heart: thou shalt in any wise rebuke thy neighbor, and not suffer sin upon him.

THE Revised puts it this way, saying,

Leviticus 19:17 (RSV) "You shall not hate your brother in your heart, but you shall reason with your neighbor, lest you bear sin because of him.”

Then we read, Thou shalt not avenge, nor bear any grudge against the children of thy people, but thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself: I am the LORD.

We recall Yeshua saying to His apostles:

John 15:12 This is my commandment, That ye love one another, as I have loved you. Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.

In Leviticus, the command was to love neighbor as they loved themselves; Yeshua revamped it to say that they should love neighbor as He has loved them, and laid His life down for them.

The Principle of Separation

Ye shall keep my statutes. Thou shalt not let thy cattle gender with a diverse kind: thou shalt not sow thy field with mingled seed: neither shall a garment mingled of linen and woollen come upon thee.

Ours is an age where we hybrid everything – obviously different from God’s commands in that day. This prohibition to mix is reiterated in Deuteronomy 22:9-11 which says:

9 Thou shalt not sow thy vineyard with divers seeds: lest the fruit of thy seed which thou hast sown, and the fruit of thy vineyard, be defiled.
10 Thou shalt not plow with an ox and an ass together.
11 Thou shalt not wear a garment of divers sorts, as of woollen and linen together.

What’s the deal? I tend to think that the principle is one that that continues today as it's important because we don’t just throw seeds of every kind in a given place – we row them together – carrots, turnips. Yes, we can have blends, but the old stronger weaker principle in that day did not allow for such – like new wine in old bottles kind of thing. And when it comes to animals, “kind for kind” was the order and the commend.

Sexual Relations and Prohibitions

Understanding the Rules

On fornication and sexual relations of many sordid sorts, we read 8 different prohibitions or rules, including:

19:20 And whosoever lieth carnally with a woman, that is a bondmaid, betrothed to an husband, and not at all redeemed, nor freedom given her; she shall be scourged; they shall not be put to death, because she was not free.

The thinking is this – Had she been free, the law required that she should be put to death; (see De 22:24;) but as she was a slave, she is supposed to have less self-command, and therefore less guilt: but as it is taken for granted she did not make resistance, or did consent, she is to be scourged, and the man is to bring a ram for a trespass-offering. And the offering for this is included.

21 And he shall bring his trespass offering unto the LORD, unto the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, even a ram for a trespass offering.
22 And the priest shall make an atonement for him with the ram of the trespass offering before the LORD for his sin which he hath done: and the sin which he hath done shall be forgiven him.

THEN we read in chapter 20:

20:11 And the man that lieth with his father's wife hath uncovered his father's nakedness: both of them shall surely be put to death; their blood shall be upon them.

At the church of Corinth, this was the exact situation and Paul says nothing about putting them to death, showing the rules of the game had changed.

20:12 And if a man lie with his daughter in law, both of them shall surely be put to death: they have wrought confusion; their blood shall be upon them.

Confusion seems to be the thing to avoid and a man sleeping with his daughter in law certainly would lend to this.

19:29 Do not prostitute thy daughter, to cause her to be a whore; lest the land fall to whoredom, and the land become full of wickedness.

20:13 If a man also lie with mankind, as he lieth with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination: they shall surely be put to death; their blood shall be upon them.

20:14 And if a man take a wife and her mother, it is wickedness: they shall be burnt with fire, both he and they; that there be no wickedness among you.

20:19-21 are all about uncovering each other, starting with And thou shalt not uncover the nakedness of thy mother's sister, nor of thy father's sister: for he uncovereth his near kin: they shall bear their iniquity.

20 And if a man shall lie with his uncle's wife, he hath uncovered his uncle's nakedness: they shall bear their sin; they shall die childless.
21 And if a man shall take his brother's wife, it is an unclean thing: he hath uncovered his brother's nakedness; they shall be childless.

Punishment for Bestiality

20:15 And if a man lie with a beast, he shall surely be put to death: and ye shall slay the beast.

16 And if a woman approach unto any beast, and lie down thereto, thou shalt kill the woman, and the beast: they shall surely be put to death; their blood shall be upon them.

Death for bestiality – for the animal and the human – which is…

Biblical Teachings on Ethical and Moral Conduct

Prohibitions and Ethical Practices

Interesting because it sort of speaks to pollution of the order.

20:17 And if a man shall take his sister, his father's daughter, or his mother's daughter, and see her nakedness, and she see his nakedness; it is a wicked thing; and they shall be cut off in the sight of their people: he hath uncovered his sister's nakedness; he shall bear his iniquity.

20:18 And if a man shall lie with a woman having her sickness, and shall uncover her nakedness; he hath discovered her fountain, and she hath uncovered the fountain of her blood: and both of them shall be cut off from among their people.

Instructions on Agricultural Practices

On trees and the harvest of their fruit we read 19:23 And when ye shall come into the land, and shall have planted all manner of trees for food, then ye shall count the fruit thereof as uncircumcised: three years shall it be as uncircumcised unto you: it shall not be eaten of. 24 But in the fourth year all the fruit thereof shall be holy to praise the LORD withal. 25 And in the fifth year shall ye eat of the fruit thereof, that it may yield unto you the increase thereof: I am the LORD your God.

Dietary Restrictions and Customs

On eating blood we read 19:26 Ye shall not eat any thing with the blood: This was specific to paganism and not against eating animals that had blood.

On using “enchantments” or “observing times” we read 19:26.B . . . neither shall ye use enchantment, nor observe times. (which we will talk about more in a moment)

Cultural and Religious Practices

On facial hair we read 19:27 Ye shall not round the corners of your heads, neither shalt thou mar the corners of thy beard.

On cutting or marking the flesh we read 19:28 Ye shall not make any cuttings in your flesh for the dead, nor print any marks upon you: I am the LORD. (explain)

On animal consumption we read 20:25 Ye shall therefore put difference between clean beasts and unclean, and between unclean fowls and clean: and ye shall not make your souls abominable by beast, or by fowl, or by any manner of living thing that creepeth on the ground, which I have separated from you as unclean.

On consulting with familiar spirits and wizards we read 19:31 Regard not them that have familiar spirits, neither seek after wizards, to be defiled by them: I am the LORD your God. And 20:6 And the soul that turneth after such as have familiar spirits, and after wizards, to go a whoring after them, I will even set my face against that soul, and will cut him off from among his people. 20:27 A man also or woman that hath a familiar spirit, or that is a wizard, shall surely be put to death: they shall stone them with stones: their blood shall be upon them.

Extemporaneous talk here. I stumble at talking about this but I have given this subject a lot of thought. FIRST AND FOREMOST, the warning states shows/proves that there is such a thing as familiar spirits, wizards. The discussion is long and deep and I am presently diving deep into it because of some circumstantial items pushing me in this area. But for the moment we are reading right here that God did not want them resorting to their wiles. And I would merely suggest that believers today take the advice of John wrote in 1st John 4:1

“Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world.”

There is a whole biblical approach we might talk about in the near future to testing these spirits. But for now know that we are dealing with some thangs.

On honoring the elderly, we read 19:32 Thou shalt rise up before the hoary head, and honor the face of the old man, and fear thy God: I am the LORD.

On strangers we read 19:33 And if a stranger sojourn with thee in your land, ye shall not vex him. 34 But the stranger that dwelleth with you shall be unto you as one born among you, and thou shalt love him as thyself; for ye were strangers in the land of Egypt: I am the LORD your God.

Onto chapter 20 we read “On Sacrifices to Molech” Leviticus 20:1 And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, 2 Again, thou shalt say to the children of Israel, Whosoever he be of the children of Israel, or of the strangers that sojourn in Israel, that giveth any of his seed unto Molech; he shall surely

Punishments for Idolatry

be put to death: the people of the land shall stone him with stones.

3 And I will set my face against that man, and will cut him off from among his people; because he hath given of his seed unto Molech, to defile my sanctuary, and to profane my holy name. 4 And if the people of the land do any ways hide their eyes from the man, when he giveth of his seed unto Molech, and kill him not: 5 Then I will set my face against that man, and against his family, and will cut him off, and all that go a whoring after him, to commit whoredom with Molech, from among their people.

Instructions for Living in the Promised Land

On general behavior in the promised land we read

And with that we will move on to chapter 21 and beyond next week.

Prayer for Guidance

20:22-24 Ye shall therefore keep all my statutes, and all my judgments, and do them: that the land, whither I bring you to dwell therein, spue you not out. 23 And ye shall not walk in the manners of the nation, which I cast out before you: for they committed all these things, and therefore I abhorred them. 24 But I have said unto you, Ye shall inherit their land, and I will give it unto you to possess it, a land that floweth with milk and honey: I am the LORD your God, which have separated you from other people.