Getting Involved with Leviticus: Part 2

I discovered something very helpful this morning - the Read the Bible for Life iPhone app, which includes a reading plan for Reading God's Story. I downloaded this app when I began this project but found it a little confusing, so I didn't explore what it can do at the time. I still get the feeling I've only figured out about 10% of what the app can do, but it's the 10% that's most helpful to me. You can track your progress in the reading plan and check off the days that you have read. Then you can look up the reading for the day and read it right on your phone and mark it as read. Usually I will read out of my physical Bible, but on days when I have to get to church really early or when I'm away from home, I can stay up to date through this app.

Read the Bible for Life App



I usually think of Leviticus as dragging along, but with this reading plan it flew by. Now that Leviticus is behind us, you might wondering, what was that all about? I have been reviewing what I learned about Leviticus from Dr. Ellen Davis, and I've gleaned some insights from her that might help us to understand this challenging book.

Whereas the end of Exodus focuses on the building of the tabernacle, Leviticus focuses on the Torah - which is best translated not as "law," as we normally think, but as teaching or instruction. The Torah gives instructions about how Israel should live in and around that tabernacle.

Dr. Davis addressed the difficulty we can have in relating to Leviticus by pointing out that the writers of Leviticus tend to think in symbols. We often use symbols when we are trying to speak about something we can't get a handle on, something that is a mystery. She describes the mystery with which Leviticus wrestles in this way: "How can Israel host the radical presence and dangerous holiness of God? How do we get back into the presence of God without being burnt to a crisp?"

Leviticus gives two answers to that question: the sacrificial system, and the regulations about purity. If you've been reading Leviticus, you've no doubt noticed that it is loaded with descriptions of both. Both of these are systems of symbols that acknowledge God as the Creator of all material things and the responsibility of humanity to mediate between God and the rest of creation. We saw that humans were given this role of steward and priest back in Genesis 1. Humans blew it in Genesis 3 and failed to live up to their calling. Here we see Israel being called back into that role, but now that role is less simple and straightforward and beautiful than it was intended to be. Now it is fraught with the complications brought about by the unholiness of humanity and creation compared with God's holiness.

There are also several themes begun here in Leviticus that will find their fulfillment in Christ. In particular, the idea of shedding blood as atonement for human life is central to Leviticus and is also central to how we understand what Christ has done for us.