L-INTRO-1: Why Leviticus is one of the least understood books in the Bible

Alrighty folks, it’s about to get all LEVITICAL up in here!!!

If there’s one book in the Bible that derails earnest Bible students from reading through the entire Scriptures, it’s this one.

Trust me, I’ve been there.

Time and again, I’ve set out to read through all of Scripture and understand every word (or at least most of it).

Then I hit Leviticus.

And fall flat on my face.

Why?

Because this book is practically NEVER taught in the churches.

Gentiles receive practically zero education on this portion of the Bible.

Contrast this with a Jewish child.

Wanna know which book of the Bible Jewish children study first in Shabbat school?

That’s right, homies.

It’s LEVITICUS!

That’s a huge difference in theological training and understanding.

One that begins in a person’s formative years.

Here’s what happened.

During the Middle Ages, I’d say starting from around the 5th century AD and continuing for a period of about 1000 years, it was illegal to own and study Scripture.

That’s right.

The anti-Semitic Popes and Bishops at the time held a tight grip on Biblical “knowledge and truth.”

At the same time, they stomped out any attempts to explore Biblical events that occurred before the birth of the church.

The so-called “Old Testament” became locked away and rendered obsolete.

And issues dealing with the Biblical sacrificial system were especially avoided because they were too Jewish!

So what happened as a result?

By the time most of you reading this article were born, Christianity had pretty much relegated the “Old” Testament to the outer limits of infinity.

And the New Testament had been reduced to little else than the four gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John.

The truth be told, the basis of faith for the modern Christian, especially those of the evangelical ilk, ain’t really the Bible, homies.

Rather, it’s a set of principles watered down from the Scriptures into what are called “Church doctrines.”

I went to a Bible college and had to take a bunch of “systematic theology”classes.

So I know what I’m talking about here.

What’s even funnier is that these so-called “church doctrines” actually vary quite a bit depending on which of the few thousand Christian sects or denominations you’re a member of.

It’s a huge mess.

If you’re genuinely seeking to understand the Book of Leviticus and how it points to the Messiah, you’ve come to the right place.

We’re gonna meticulously study this book verse-by-verse.

And when we’re done, I think you’re gonna find it life-changing.

Whenever I read through the book of Leviticus…

I come away deeply impressed…

And overwhelmed with…

The awesome holiness of the eternal God we worship.

And from a scholarly perspective, we who are living in this day and age have an extreme advantage.

Why?

Over the last 20 years or so, scholars have made major breakthroughs in archaeology and the study of ancient Hebrew and Akkadian.

As a result, many of the rituals in Leviticus that once seemed mysterious are now much easier to understand.

The reason many people get stuck when they reach Leviticus is simple.

They don’t understand it.

Well, that’s all about to change.

And I can honestly say without any reservations that this is MY FAVORITE book in all of the Torah.

So you’re in good hands.

Now to be fair, I’ve leveled quite a bit of criticism at the church.

But there’s another side to the story.

In traditional Judaism, the Hebrew Bible (Tanakh) often takes a back seat to the Talmud.

That’s the massive collection of rabbinic writings that serves as the primary source of religious authority.

However, the dramatic rebirth of Israel in 1948 has compelled many of us to return to God’s Word and examine it more closely, especially the “Old Testament.”

The prophecies and principles contained in the Torah are being examined again with fresh eyes.

These are things which have been neglected for centuries.

So God’s eternal WORD is making a comeback, folks.

See, here’s the thing.

When you truly study God’s Word, you begin to realize that many concepts are not clearly reflected or addressed in traditional Christian theology.

The “Trinity” is a prime example.

And neither do they jive with many of the teachings of Rabbinical Judaism, which more often than not can be philosophical, humanistic, sectarian, and political rather than Scriptural in their viewpoint.

Man, I’ve been waiting for this day, just counting the days until I would finally get to Leviticus.

So let the roller coaster ride begin!

First, the title of the Book of Leviticus itself makes it pretty apparent what this book is all about.

This book is named after the Tribe of Levi.

If you recall, Levi was one of the original 12 Tribes of Israel.

But this tribe was special in that God separated LEVI away from all the other tribes of Israel.

In other words, Levi was adopted away from Jacob, just as Jacob adopted Manasseh and Ephraim away from Joseph.

Levi was to become a special tribe, a tribe of priests unto the Lord.

Before Leviticus was named “Leviticus”, it was called “TORAT KOHANIM.”

“TORAT” means “teaching” and “COHANIM” means “priests.”

So literally the Book of Leviticus is all about the “priestly teachings” or “priestly instructions.”

However, the Hebrew title for this book today is VAYIKRA.

This means “Now He called”.

These are just the first few words that start off the Book of Leviticus.

The Hebrews eventually adopted the opening phrase of each Torah book as its title.

Now, as you may suspect, a great deal of Leviticus deals primarily with animal sacrifices.

However, historically speaking, the destruction of Herod’s Temple in Jerusalem about 2000 years ago put a temporary end to the priesthood and the sacrifices.

The purpose of the priests was to officiate over and perform the rituals that could only be carried out at the Temple in Jerusalem.

However, the Temple no longer exists (though I believe it will be rebuilt soon).

And after the Romans destroyed it, the Jewish people were scattered throughout the Gentile world.

These events, along with the loss of Hebrew thought within much of the Gentile church, have made it darn near impossible to fully understand the Lord’s teachings and instructions in the book of Leviticus.

So we’ve gotta long but thrilling ride ahead of us.

I’ll stop here for now.

But stay tuned.

You’re about to be exposed to knowledge that very few Bible teachers, preachers, or pastors are even aware exists.