Presentation Transcript

1. Leviticus 18 - 20

   Laws of Sexual Morality [“The Holiness Code”]
2. Leviticus 18: Laws of Sexual Morality 1 – 18: Incest 19 – 23: Other Sexual Immorality 24 – 30: Urgency to Obey God’s Commands
3. Leviticus 19: Additional Various Laws 1 – 2: General call to Holiness 3: Respect Parents 4: Law against Idolatry 5 – 8: Law Regarding Offerings 9 – 10: Providing for the Poor 11 – 13: Honest Dealing 14: Human Compassion Commanded 15 – 16: Laws regarding Justice and Truth 17 – 18: Command to Love One’s Neighbor 19: Response to Pagan Practices 20 – 22: Penalty for Unlawful Intercourse with a Concubine 23 – 25: Law Regarding the Fruit in the Land of Canaan 26 – 31: Laws to Insure Separation from Pagan Practices 32 – 37: Additional Laws of Kindness and Justice
4. Leviticus 20: Punishments for Laws 1 – 5: Molech Worship 6 – 8: Occult Involvement 9: Cursing a Parent 10: Adultery 11 – 12: Incest 13: Homosexuality 14: Marrying a Woman and Her Mother 15 – 16: Bestiality 17 – 21: Other Sexual Sins 22 – 26: Why God Called Israel to Holiness
5. Leviticus 18: Laws of Sexual Morality 1 – 18: Incest 19 – 23: Other Sexual Immorality 24 – 30: Urgency to Obey God’s Commands
6. Leviticus 18: Laws of Sexual Morality Read V 1 – 5 Israelites freed from slavery in pagan Egypt; was going into pagan Canaan What is emphasized three times? Why? Read V 6 – 9 “To uncover his nakedness” used 17 times in Ch18 Has less to do with nudity than with sex or “sex parts” What sexual relations are prohibited? Why?
7. Leviticus 18: Laws of Sexual Morality Read V10 – 18 What sexual relations between family relationships does God condemn? Why? Read V19 – 20 Read Leviticus 15: 19 Had the Israelites heard V20 before? Read V21
8. Molech Leviticus 18: 10 Also Moloch, Malik, Baal-melech or Tophet (Jer 7: 31) "A detestable Semitic deity honored by the sacrifice of children, in which they were caused to pass through or into the fire. Palestinian excavations have uncovered evidences of infant skeletons in burial places around heathen shrines. Ammonites revered Molech as a protecting father. Worship of Molech was stringently prohibited by Hebrew law. (Lev. 18:21; 20:1-5) Solomon built an altar to Molech at Tophet in the Valley of Hinnon. Manasseh in his idolatrous orgy also honored this deity. Josiah desecrated the Hinnom Valley altar, but Jehoiakim revived the cult."  Unger's Bible Dictionary by Merrill F. Unger (Chicago: Moody Press, 1957); page 416.  False god of the Ammonites Fire god of ancient Canaan Ashtoreth: Fertility goddess consort of Moloch
9. Molech Molech was worshiped by heating a metal statue until is was red hot then a living infant was placed on the outstretched arms of the statue while drum beating droned out the scream of the child until it burned to death. God provides forewarning of child sacrifice What do we call it today? Jumping Ahead: What was the punishment for child sacrifice ? Read Leviticus 20: 2 – 5
10. Leviticus 18: Laws of Sexual Morality Read V22 – 23 Read Romans 1: 24 – 32 Read 1 Kings 14: 24; 15: 12 and 22: 46 Read V24 – 30 What becomes defiled? What will the land do if the Israelites defile themselves? Why use such descriptive language?
11. Leviticus 19: Additional Various Laws 1 – 2: General call to Holiness 3: Respect Parents 4: Law against Idolatry 5 – 8: Law Regarding Offerings 9 – 10: Providing for the Poor 11 – 13: Honest Dealing 14: Human Compassion Commanded 15 – 16: Laws regarding Justice and Truth 17 – 18: Command to Love One’s Neighbor 19: Response to Pagan Practices 20 – 22: Penalty for Unlawful Intercourse with a Concubine 23 – 25: Law Regarding the Fruit in the Land of Canaan 26 – 31: Laws to Insure Separation from Pagan Practices 32 – 37: Additional Laws of Kindness and Justice
12. Leviticus 19: Additional Various Laws Read V 1 – 8 Why were the Israelites called to be holy? (V2) Who is called to revere parents? Read Deuteronomy 6:5; John 14: 15 What is God reviewing with the Israelites? (V3) Read Exodus 20: 1 – 17 Note: Word for idols means “nothing”; “something that is empty’; (V4) Read Isaiah 44:10 What should the attitude be when making a peace offering? V5-8) What do you think is illustrated by eating the freshly cooked peace offering?
13. Leviticus 19: Additional Various Laws Read V9 - 18 How are the Israelites to provide for the poor? (V9-10) How are the Israelites to deal with one another in V 11 – 13? Recommend reading Ruth 2 How were the Israelites to treat the handicapped , weak and unfortunate? (V14) Read James 1:27 What is a “talebearer”? (V15-16) Read 1 Thessalonians 4:11 Read Proverbs What does God command in V17-18? Read Matthew 7:12
14. Leviticus 19: Additional Various Laws Read V19 – 22 Why is or would God be opposed to mixing livestock, seeds, and fabrics of pagans? Remember: Israelites departed and are about to enter pagan lands. Mixing the aforementioned was usually seen by pagans to be a source of magical power What sin is addressed in V 20-22? Woman was a slave; not yet free to marry the man to whom she is engaged What is the punishment?
15. Leviticus 19: Additional Various Laws Read V23-25 What does it mean, infer or imply to count the fruit as “uncircumcised”? What is God preparing the Israelites for? Horticultural speaking, not harvesting the fruit for the first 3-4 years is beneficial for both the trees and the surrounding land and result in more productive fruit trees
16. Leviticus 19: Additional Various Laws Read V26 – 37 V26: In light of Leviticus 17, why is eating blood regarded so seriously? V26: Why does the Lord forbid divination and sorcery? What attitudes lie behind such practices? Acts 8: 9 – 25 V27-28: Is there anything wrong with having tattoos today? V29: Why does the Lord place blame for prostitution on the men? What are the consequences of prostitution for the woman and for the land? V30: What is the connection between Sabbath observance and reverence for the Lord’s sanctuary? V31: Why are people defiled by those who speak to the dead or to spirits? Leviticus 21: 11 – 12
17. Leviticus 19: Additional Various Laws V32: Why is reverence for God tied to reverence for the elderly? V33-34: How should we treat foreigners in our society today? V35-36: How do honest business practices show that the Lord’s people have been redeemed? V37: Why do so many of these laws end with a statement like “I am the Lord”?
18. Leviticus 20: Punishments for Laws 1 – 5: Molech Worship 6 – 8: Occult Involvement 9: Cursing a Parent 10: Adultery 11 – 12: Incest 13: Homosexuality 14: Marrying a Woman and Her Mother 15 – 16: Bestiality 17 – 21: Other Sexual Sins 22 – 26: Why God Called Israel to Holiness
19. Leviticus 20: Punishment of Laws Read V5 and Leviticus 18: 21 What will God do to Molech worshippers? Read 1 Kings 11: 7; 2 Kings 16: 3; 2 Kings 17: 17; 2 Kings 21: 6; 2 Kings 23: 10 Read V6-21: What are God’s punishments for sins addressed in these verses? Read V22-26 Why are the Israelites called to such holiness?
20. Leviticus 20: Punishment of Laws
21. Application Who and what must we must obey? Eph 4: 17 – 24; Rom 12: 1 – 2; James 1: 22 Immorality closely connected to idolatry which is rebellion against God Eph 5: 5; 1 Cor 6: 9 Immorality closely connected to disobedience or disrespect for parents 2 Tim 3: 1 – 5 Love for fellow humans inconsistent with immorality 1 Thess 4: 1 – 2 How serious is God about the serious nature of disobedience? Rom 6: 23; 1 Cor 5: 5; 1 John 5: 16 Are you pursuing holiness? Are you obeying God’s Word and bowing to His will? What gods and sexual sin do you need to remove from your life to be able to stand in judgment before Our Almighty and All Powerful God?