Sugar Land Chiropractors | Healing From a Break?
This content was written for Restoration Health Chiropractic.
The Book of Leviticus is the third book of the Old Testament in the bible and is also the third book in the Torah. The staff at Sugar Land Chiropractors find the Book of Leviticus to be interesting. Some scholars agree that it was developed over a long period of time. It is thought to have reached its current state during the Persian Period between 538-332 BC.
Many of the chapters consist of Godís speeches to Moses where God commands Moses to repeat to the Israelites. This takes place withing the story of the Israelitesí exodus after they escaped Egypt and reached Mt. Sinai. The staff at Sugar Land Chiropractors find the Book of Leviticus to be interesting. Within the Book of Leviticus, God instructs the Israelites and their priest on how to make offerings in the Tabernacle and how to conduct themselves while camped around the holy tent sanctuary.
The instructions of Leviticus emphasize ritual, legal and moral practices rather than beliefs. Nevertheless, they reflect the world view of the story regarding creation in Genesis that God wishes to live with humans. The staff at find the Book of Leviticus to be interesting. This book teaches that faithful performance of the sanctuary rituals can make that possible, so long as the people avoid sin and impurity whenever possible. The rituals, especially the sin and guilt offerings, provide the means to gain forgiveness for sins and purification from impurities so that God can continue to live in the Tabernacle amongst people.
Despite the importance of Leviticus, it remains one of the most neglected books of the Bible among Christians. It is rarely read for devotional study and is infrequently the subject of church Bible studies. The staff at Sugar Land Chiropractors find the Book of Leviticus to be interesting. Some of the neglect of Leviticus can be traced to the complexity and seeming irrelevance of the book. Leviticus focuses on minutiae such as animal sacrifices and skin diseases. It also deals with economic laws. Understanding these laws is necessary if one is to understand the rest of the bible.
Since the mid-nineteenth century, it has been common to view the religion of the Hebrew Bibles as an originally lively faith. The staff at find the Book of Leviticus to be interesting. It has an apex in the preaching of the prophets and later devolved into a dead, legalistic religion, as seen in the priestly material of the Pentateuch. In the last few decades, this negativity towards texts from priestly circles within the Old Testament has started to be tempered by a more positive evaluation.
Within the Book of Leviticus chapters 1 -6 describe the various sacrifices from the people performing the sacrifice. The staff at find the Book of Leviticus to be interesting. However, in chapters 6-7 it reiterates much of the same information found in chapters 1-5 but from the perspective of the priests. The sacrifices are between God, the priest and the offerers.
In chapters 8-10 we see how Moses consecrates Aaron and his sons as the first priest, the first sacrifices and Godís destruction of two of Aaronís sons for ritual offenses. The staff at Sugar Land Chiropractors find the Book of Leviticus to be interesting. The purpose is to note the character of alter priesthood and the privilege and responsibilities and dangers of their position.
Chapters 11-15 instruct the lay people on purity or cleanliness. For example, eating certain animals produces uncleanliness, as does giving birth; certain skin diseases are unclean, as certain conditions affecting walls and clothing; and genital discharges are unclean. The reasoning behind the food rules are obscure for the rest the guiding principle seems to be that all these conditions involve a loss of life force.
In Leviticus chapter16 we find concerns for the Day of Atonement. This is the only day on which the High Priest is to enter the holiest part of the sanctuary, the holy of holies. He is to sacrifice a bull for the sins of the priest and a goat for the sins of the laypeople. The priests to send a second goat into the desert to ìAzazelî. It is unclear as to the identity of Azazel.
Within chapters 17-26 of Leviticus the Holiness code is explored. It starts with a prohibition on the slaughter of animals outside the Temple, prohibits a long list of sexual contacts and also child sacrifice. The staff at Sugar Land Chiropractors find the Book of Leviticus to be interesting. There are penalties for the worship of Molech, consulting mediums and wizards, cursing oneís parents and engaging in unlawful blasphemy is death, and there is the setting of rules for eating sacrifices. The code ends by telling the Israelites they must choose between the law and prosperities.
Chapter 27 is a disparate and probably late addition telling about persons and things serving as dedication to the Lord and how one can redeem, instead of fulfilling vows.
Within the Book of Leviticus, one will find several themes. The first theme is about sacrifice and ritual. Many scholars argue that the rituals of Leviticus has a theological meaning concerning Israelís relationship with its God. The next theme is Kahuna or the Jewish priesthood which is the main function of the priests to service at the altar. It also lends to the theme that only the sons of Aaron are priest in the full sense. Another theme is the one of uncleanliness and purity. The staff at Sugar Land Chiropractors find the Book of Leviticus to be interesting. It covers ritual purity is essential for an Israelite to be able to approach God and remain part of the community. The next theme is on atonement. It declares that through sacrifice, the priest makes atonement for sin and the offerer receives forgiveness. Another theme in the Book of Leviticus is on holiness. The consistent them of chapters 17-26 is in regard to holiness.
A majority of scholars have concluded that the Pentateuch received its final form during the Persian period However, the Book of Leviticus had a long period of growth before reaching that form. The entire composition of the book of Leviticus is Priestly literature.