Final Exam Flashcards
Two dominant threads of Leviticus
- Goal of holiness for Israel
- Need for forgiveness
(The book explains what is demanded of Israel as a holy or devoted nation)
Holiness
Best understood as consecration or devotion, not moral purity or transcendence
Structure of Leviticus
- Laws concerning sacrifice (1-7)
- Institution of the Priesthood (8-10)
- Laws of clean and unclean (11-15)
- Day of Atonement (16)
- Holiness code (17-26)
- Laws concerning dedications (27)
Divine institution of sacrifice
Clearly given within the framework of the covenant given in Exodus. Not a means why which God can be approached, but a way to maintain and repair covenant relationship.
Leviticus sin classifications:
Unpremeditated (“unwitting”)
Premeditated (“with a high hand”)
The order of the sacrifices
Different in different passages, but includes:
- burnt
- cereal
- sin
- guilt
- peace
Burnt offering
-By itself effects atonement (although perhaps in a more general sense than sin and guilt or propitiatory offerings)
-Also witnesses to the worshipper’s faith and commitment
(Totally consumed on the altar)
Cereal offering
- Normally accompanied the burnt offerings, but could be alone
- Since the term used to describe the cereal offering is “tribute,” it has been suggested that this offering exemplifies the master/servant relationship in which the covenant had placed Israel
Peace offering
- Shared between worshipper and priests
- Only kidneys and the fat covering the liver were burned on the altar
Levitical Priesthood
- The role of priesthood and the progressive degree of approach to divine presence points to the distinction that Israel was supposed to maintain between the sacred and the profane
- Often argued that the Levitical specialization was a gradual development
- The distinction between priests and Levites was probably an original and basic one
“Cleanness”
Recent studies suggest that “cleanness” was a broad term, referring to what we would label as normal or acceptable
Day of Atonement
- perhaps the most significant day in the national calendar, the day on which the national sins were symbolically atoned for by cleansing the sanctuary
- “To atone” translated as “to propitiate” in the Septuagint; this is important because it is the same language as the NT uses for Christ’s death
- purging and propitiating
Leviticus 19
-All of the commands come from the Decalogue
-All of the commands are grounded in 19:2, “Be holy for I am holy”
-Complete devotion to Yahweh means:
(1) identifying with his ethics and morality
(2) sharing his concern for the broken in the community
(NT makes it clear that Christ has already devoted us to himself, showing the two points above)
Leviticus 18:5
Does not support salvation through legalism; it only refers to obedience within the covenant relationship
Numbers’ structure
- Israel at Sinai: Legislation for the ideal Israel
- Rebellion in the Wilderness
- In the plains of Moab
- Balaam
- Preparations for the entry into Canaan
Numbers
What happens when Israel doesn’t live like a devoted nation
-discipline, self-control, and divine national regulation
Numbers’ Conclusion
So far, the book of Numbers implores us to ask about our faithfulness. So given that we are under the New Covenant, how is our faithfulness and obedience? We will see that the NT holds out the same command to enter into God’s rest. Believers must persevere.
Psalm 95
- David reflecting on God’s greatness
- warning not to harden hearts
- refers to when Moses struck the rock for water and Yahweh’s oath that none will enter the Promised Land (it was the culmination of Israel’s stubbornness that caused them not to enter)
Hebrews 4
- typological fulfillment of Psalm 95
- connects the rest of the promised land with God’s rest on the 7th day of creation
- Motive to remain faithful: eternal rest with God is at stake
- warning not to fall into the same type of disobedience as the Israelites
Plains of Moab
- Balaam oracles: reference to human king in fulfillment of Abrahamic promise
- God’s establishment of his kingdom through covenant is found even in the wilderness wandering
Two sides of Numbers
- Somber side of judgment
- Sharp contrast between profane and sacred
(If Israel wants to enjoy the blessing of the Promised Land, then they need to fully devote themselves to God)
Two conclusions from Numbers
- Jesus in the desert = wilderness wandering. He is obedient, Israel is disobedient. If we are trusting in Christ today, we pass the test and have entered the rest of God.
- Yet, we must make every effort to enter into the rest , lest we fall like the Israelites.
Deuteronomy
- Three mosaic speeches written in covenant form
- Covenant renewal of the covenant at Sinai, but also an addition to it
Deuteronomy preamble
- Identifies Deuteronomy as a covenant from the 15th-14th centuries
- gracious Suzerain-Vassal covenant patterned after the Hittite treaties
Historical Prologue
Summarized the previous relationship between the suzerain and the vassal in order to cause the vassal to have gratitude and exclusive loyalty toward the suzerain
- Often times the prologue would recount the benevolence and favor
- Yahweh’s grace is shown throughout; Israel’s rebellion and disobedience
Deuteronomy 4
I. Exhortation to be loyal to Yahweh
-Blessings for obedience (entrance into the land, they saw God’s judgment at Beth Peor and lived, and the Torah is a gift)
-Take care lest you forget
-Consequences for forgetting, and promise for restoration
II. The Incomparable Yahweh
-Yahweh is faithful
-God loved the fathers
General Stipulation
Theme: covenant loyalty to Yahweh expressed through exclusive worship (10 commandments)
Specific stipulations
Detail the obligations of the vassal to the king; loyalty would be measured by obedience
- Authority (No other gods, honor your parents)
- Relational holiness (name in vain; murder, adultery, stealing, false witness)
- Rights and privileges (Keep the Sabbath, coveting)
Mosaic Speeches
- Historical Prologue
- General Stipulation, Specific Stipulation
- Document Clause, Appeal to witnesses, blessings and curses
Document clause
Specifies that the treaty document be placed in the temple and read publicly
- also instructions to build an altar and rejoice
- in Deuteronomy, no specific instruction to place in temple (no temple yet) or read aloud (but Joshua did read it to the people)
Appeal to Witnesses
Strictly covenant enforcement
-Here, God is the enforcer
Shema
- First command given after the material repeated from Exodus
- Foundation to all requirements of the covenant
- Heart: feelings (joyful, glad), reasoning, will; makes plans and decisions
