| Chapter 5 | |
| Summary: | Moses gathers the people of Israel and said to them, "Hear, the people of Israel, the laws and judgment which I speak to you on this day, that you learn and obey them. The Lord our God made a covenant with us in Mount Horeb, and he made this covenant not with our forefathers, but with us who all of us are here alive to this day.Moses then restates the ten commandments:
"These words the Lord spoke to all of you at the mountain, from the midst of fire, from the cloud, and in thick darkness with a great voice - he added no more, but wrote them down onto two tablets of stone, and delivered them to me. |
| Thoughts: | Moses gathers the Israelites and prepares them to listen to his retelling of the "ten commandments" that we first encountered in Exodus: Chapter 20. Moses tells the people that these commandments differ from most of God's covenants, since the people this covenant was made with are still alive and listening to Moses' speech this day. However, this couldn't be possible considering that this speech occurs after the last generation of Israelites - the one who were present in Mount Horeb - were made to wander around the desert for forty years, and they had all died out since then. Moses states that God spoke to the Israelites "face to face" from the midst of fire upon the mountain, and also claims that he served as an intermediary between God and the people, because they were afraid of the fire, and did not go up the mountain - which might very well have something to do with the fact that they were threatened with death if they were to attempt to approach the mountain. Moses then retells the ten commandments, which is almost identical to how they appear in Exodus: Chapter 20 with only some slight differences to the wording of the fourth commandment, with an additional reminder of God's rescue of the people from slavery in Egypt. Moses tells the people that these commandments were written by God onto two stone tablets that were delivered to Moses. He then mentions that the people were frightened of hearing God's voice and somehow couldn't shake the apparently common superstitious fear of the time, being that you apparently are not supposed to be able to hear the voice of God and live. The Israelites, according to Moses, asked Moses to be their middle man, delivering God's message to them, so that they would not have to fear God's voice speaking out of the flames again. Obviously this sets Moses up in a position of power that is easily abused - as now anything that Moses claims is "God's word" is to be believed as such, without any way of discerning whether what is being said is in fact "God's word" or Moses' own personal agenda. The Israelites aren't even allowed to venture up near the foot of the mountain, nor are they allowed within the tabernacle, both under the penalty of death. Thereby creating a "man behind the curtain" facade in which Moses and the priests can take advantage of the blind trust the people have in that the edicts they receive are the "word of God", the privacy they are afforded by having areas that are off limits to the public - enforced with capital punishment, and very little recourse for anyone to dispute their leadership. The biggest problem with religion is that it discourages critical thinking, that people are not to question authority for any reason, and that laws are not to be amended or adapted to evolve alongside of societal changes. Over time we find that many laws simply serve no function to us any longer, or were unjust from the very beginning (such as slavery) but were kept on the books to avoid civil unrest between proponents and the opposition. As we discover new technologies that alter the way we live - such as the automobile, radio, telephone, and the internet - we need new laws to regulate the usage of these technologies to protect people's safety. We simply can't rely upon the laws that were in effect in 1776 to govern the modern world in 2009. It's even more unfathomable to attempt to live as people did in the bronze age over 3000 years ago did, yet that is exactly what religion attempts to encourage. The Catholic church is against the use of contraception and carries this message even when dealing with HIV stricken countries like Africa where condom usage would better help contain the further spread of the disease than simply telling people to practice abstinence - which obviously doesn't work very well with their own priests and their ensuing sexual abuse scandals. Moses tells the Israelites that even God himself approves of the Israelites suggestion of having Moses play middleman, and says that life will be peachy and keen so long as they follow all of God's commandments. God tells Moses to send the congregation of people back to their tents so that he can speak with Moses alone and give him all the commandments, statutes and judgments for him to teach the Israelites. Moses finishes off the chapter by stating that these laws are to be obeyed exactly as God commanded them, and not to be added to or subtracted from, or altered in any way. |
Showing posts with label sabbath. Show all posts
Showing posts with label sabbath. Show all posts
Monday, November 23, 2009
DEUTERONOMY: Chapter 5
Friday, October 23, 2009
NUMBERS: Chapter 28
| Chapter 28 | |
| Summary: | God speaks to Moses, telling him to command the people of Israel that animal and grain sacrifices made by fire (for a "sweet savor") shall be observed in their due season. God tells Moses to instruct the people to offer a continuous animal sacrifice of two yearling lambs ("without spot"), one to be sacrificed in the morning, and the other to be sacrificed in the evening. Along with each lamb, a tenth part of an ephah (approximately three quarts) of flour mixed with a fourth part of a hin (approx. 3 pints) of beaten olive oil is to be offered, as well as a "drink offering" consisting of a fourth part of a hin (approx. 3 pints) of "strong wine". All of this is to be a continual "burnt offering", which God claims was ordained in Mount Sinai for a "sweet savor" made by fire for him. On the sabbath day, an additional two yearling lambs are to be sacrificed along with two tenth deals (approx. six quarts) of flour mixed with oil and a drink offering. This "burnt offering" of the sabbath is to be offered in addition to the "continual burnt offering" and "drink offering". On the first day of each month, the people will have to sacrifice two young bulls, a ram, and seven* yearling lambs without defect. Along with each animal, a "grain offering" and a "drink offering" is to be offered:
In addition to all of those animals and the regular daily sacrifices, a male goat is to be slaughtered for a "sin offering" on the first day of each month as well. God then repeats that the celebration of Passover is to celebrated on the fourteenth day of the first month, and that on the fifteenth day of the month is a seven day feast of unleavened bread. On the first day of the feast a sabbath is to be observed, and no manner of servile work is to be done therein - except for sacrificing two young bulls, a ram, and seven yearling lambs (without defects). Along with each animal, a "grain offering" is to be offered:
On the Day of the Firstfruits* when the people are to bring newly harvested crops to God, the people should also have a "holy convocation" and no servile work is to be done - except for sacrificing two young bulls, a ram, and seven yearling lambs. Along with each animal, a "grain offering" is to be offered:
|
| Notes: | 1.) Yet another occurrence of the mystical number seven in the bible. 2.) Also called the "Festival of Weeks" or "Pentecost". |
| Thoughts: | This chapter returns us to God's laws on animal sacrifices (which he states no less than eleven time alone in this chapter as being a "sweet savor") and sets up a new "continual burnt offering" sacrifice. Each day, two yearling lambs are to be sacrificed (one in the morning, and one in the evening) alongside a "grain offering" consisting of three quarts of flour mixed with three pints of beaten olive oil. God tacks on two more yearling lambs that have to be sacrificed each week on the sabbath (in addition to the regular pair) along with six quarts of flour and a "drink offering". Now on the first day of each month, God requires you to sacrifice two young bulls, a ram, and seven (again with that number) yearling lambs along with a "grain offering" and "drink offering" for each animal. 9 quarts of flour and six pints of wine for each bull; six quarts of flour and four pints of wine with the ram; and and unspecified amount of flour and three pints of wine for each lamb. All of this has to be sacrificed in addition to the two other yearling lambs sacrificed for the "continual burnt offering". So, once a month the priests get to dine on nine lambs, two bulls, a ram, 13 and a half quarts of wine, and well over 24 quarts of flour(!) - that's a lot of food and wine! God then repeats his annual "Passover" animal sacrifice demands, that during the "Feast of Unleavened Bread" the people will have to sacrifice two young bulls, a ram, and seven yearling lambs on each of the seven days of the feast. Along with each animal a "grain offering" is to accompany it - the same amounts corresponding to the first day of the month sacrifice. On top of that, a male goat also has to be sacrificed for a "sin offering". These sacrifices again are in addition to, and not replacing, the daily "continuous burnt offerings". On the "Day of the Firstfruits" when the people sacrifice the first of their crops to God, the people will also have to sacrifice two young bulls, a ram, seven yearling lambs, and a goat (for a "sin offering") along with a corresponding amount of flour for each animal. So, pulling out our calculator we come to the count that God demands the sacrifice of 967 yearling lambs - without defects(!), 40 bulls, 20 rams, and 8 male goats each year as a minimum. This is not including the animals that need to be sacrificed for various "sins" throughout God's laws. |
Sunday, August 30, 2009
NUMBERS: Chapter 15
| Chapter 15 | |
| Summary: | God speaks to Moses telling him to speak to the people of Israel. Moses is to tell them that when they (meaning those who are actually allowed to enter the "promised land") are offering animal sacrifices by fire, whether a "burnt offering", a sacrifice in performing a vow, a "freewill offering", or a sacrifice during solemn feasts, to make a "sweet savor" for God, the animal must come from one of the Israelite's herds or flocks. Each sacrifice by fire is also to be accompanied by a "grain offering":
God also states that once the people of Israel inhabit the "promised land", and "eat of the bread of the land", that they will have to make a "heave offering" to God. The Israelite will have to offer up a loaf of bread from the first of their dough, each year, which is a permanent law throughout the generations. God continues on, stating that if the people of Israel have erred and have not observed these commandments that he has given to Moses, due to ignorance, then they will have to offer a young bull for a "burnt offering" - which is a "sweet savor" to God - along with a "grain offering", "drink offering", and a young goat as a "sin offering". The priest will make atonement for the people of Israel and they'll be forgiven as long as they sacrifice some animals by fire. If any single person sins by ignorance, then they'll have to bring a female yearling goat to the tabernacle for a "sin offering". The priest will make atonement for them and they will be forgiven - for the price of sacrificing a yearling female goat. (This applies whether the person was born in the land, or is a foreigner living amongst the people.) However, anyone who "sins" deliberately is to be excommunicated from their people, as apparently they "despise" God's word by breaking their commandment, and their iniquity will be upon them.  Meanwhile, as the people of Israel were camped in the wilderness they spotted a man gathering sticks on the sabbath day. The man was brought to Moses and Aaron in front of all of the people of Israel, and was subsequently jailed as it was not declared what should be done to him.God tells Moses that the man is to be dragged out to the outskirts of the camp and stoned to death. The people of Israel then brought the man outside of the camp and stoned him until he died. God now tells Moses to have the people make fringes upon their garments attached with blue ribbons (which is to be continued to be practiced by future generations) as a reminder of God's commandments. God continues, stating that the people of Israel are to follow all of God's commandments and not to seek after their own hearts and their own eyes - after which they "use to go a whoring". The fringes are again to remind the people to remember and follow God's commandments to be "holy" unto him. God once again reminds the people of Israel that he brought them out of Egypt to be their god. |
| Notes: | 1.) Approximately three quarts. 2.) Approximately three pints. 3.) Approximately six quarts. 4.) Approximately four pints. 5.) Approximately nine quarts. 6.) Approximately six pints. |
| Thoughts: | After our last chapter in which God had told the people of Israel that none of them over the age of twenty will live to inherit the "promised land", he now sets out some guidelines for the people who will be allowed (eventually - aside from Joshua and Caleb) to "inherit" the land. Perhaps it's just me, but I find this a bit bizarre that after sentencing the people of Israel to wander around in the desert for forty years, to allow the current generation to die off, that God immediately gives a bunch of laws to Moses concerning the "promised land", and tells him to relay these to the people, of whom the majority will never live to see the "promised land". Anyways, not surprisingly, the laws are more regulations regarding animal sacrificing. The first of which being that the sacrificial animal must come from one of the Israeli flocks or herds - apparently non-Israeli animals won't do. Next up God demands that all sacrifices by fire (which again are noted to be a "sweet savor" to God) are to be accompanied by a "grain offering" (flour mixed olive oil) and a "drink offering" (wine) set to a sliding scale based on the size of the animal being sacrificed. When sacrificing a lamb, the "grain offering" is to contain three quarts of flour (a tenth of a deal) mixed with three pints of olive oil (a fourth of a hin), accompanied by three pints of wine. Whereas sacrificing a bull requires a "grain offering" to contain nine quarts (three tenths a deal) of flour mixed with six pints of olive oil, and accompanied by six pints of wine. We can probably assume that this sliding scale is to ensure that the rather earthly priests have enough side dishes and wine to wash down the meal you've given them with your animal sacrifices. God tacks on that his sliding scale of side dishes and drinks apply to both the people of Israel and the foreigners living amongst them, and is to be a permanent law. God's next law for the people who actually get to reside in the "promised land", is that they'll also be expected to offer up a loaf of bread for a "heave offering" annually from the first of their bread dough. Basically each year they'll have to bring their first loaf of bread down to the tabernacle to wave around in the air, which of course the priests will benefit from getting to eat the bread afterward. This too is a permanent law to be observed by all future generations. God now states that if the people of Israel "sin unintentionally" then they can be forgiven as long as they sacrifice a young bull as a "burnt offering", a young goat as a "sin offering", and bring along a "grain offering" with some wine. A single individual "sinning" through ignorance can be forgiven for the price of sacrificing a female yearling goat, but anyone who "sins" deliberately is to be excommunicated for "despising" God's laws. Next up we're treated to a story about a man found gathering sticks on the sabbath day - which seems fairly reminiscent of the story from Leviticus Chapter 24 about the "blasphemer". The stick gathering man is brought before Moses and Aaron and then jailed, with the chapter stating that "it was not declared what should be done to him" - which brings into question the time line of this story, as God clearly states both in Exodus 31:14-15: 31:14 Ye shall keep the sabbath therefore; for it is holy unto you: every one that defileth it shall surely be put to death: for whosoever doeth any work therein, that soul shall be cut off from among his people....as well as:Exodus 35:2: 35:2 Six days shall work be done, but on the seventh day there shall be to you an holy day, a sabbath of rest to the LORD: whosoever doeth work therein shall be put to death.Perhaps this story we're being told here - or perhaps even this whole chapter - might possibly occur before Exodus Chapter 31, but it's curious as to why it is included here in the book of Numbers considering that it has been repeated numerous times throughout Exodus, Leviticus, and Numbers God's stressed importance on his laws concerning the sabbath. In this context, this story (and actually the entire chapter) seems out of place with the continuity of our story. Of course, considering that we've already read both Exodus Chapter 31 and Exodus Chapter 35, it comes as no surprise that God's answer as to what to do with the man caught gathering sticks on a Saturday is to drag him out to the outskirts of the camp and stone him to death. I suppose that's one way to get him to stop picking up sticks on Saturdays, but one can't help but question that perhaps keeping him in jail would accomplish the same thing with a lot less bloodshed. God immediately shifts gears away from stonings to now tell Moses to have the people create fringes on their garments to remind them of God's commandments. However, I would think the blood stains on their garments from stoning people to death would serve as a much more effective reminder. In any event, God states that these fringes will remind the people of Israel to follow God's laws instead of following their heart's desires, which he states leads them to "go a whoring". He ends the chapter by once again reminding everyone that he was the guy who got everybody out of Egypt - which although God has stated this numerous times throughout Exodus and Leviticus, we oddly haven't yet heard God state this in the book of Numbers. This may be yet another reason to suspect that this chapter may actually occur prior to Exodus Chapter 31. |
Monday, July 20, 2009
LEVITICUS: Chapter 26
| Chapter 26 | |
| Summary: | God commands (again) that no one is to make any idols, carved images, or erect statues to worship. He commands that all of his sabbaths are to be observed and followed, and that all of his laws, rules, and commandments are to be followed and obeyed. If the people of Israel can follow these instructions, then God will provide them rain in due season, which will yield an abundance of crops, trees ripe with a surplus of fruit, and grapes growing past their usual harvesting time. The people of Israel will have plenty to eat and will live in safety. God will give peace in the land so that the Israelis can sleep without fear. God will rid the land of "evil" animals, and will protect the land from the sword of the enemy. God says that the people of Israel shall chase their enemies and that they shall fall before them by the sword. Five Israeli soldiers will be able to drive off one hundred enemies, and a hundred Israeli soldiers will be able to drive off ten thousand enemies, who will all die by the sword of Israel. God will respect the people of Israel and cause them to grow and multiply while establishing a covenant with them. The people will eat from the abundance of food, and have to get rid of some of the old food to make room for the surplus of new food that has harvested. God even says that he'll be able to live amongst the people of Israel in his tabernacle, and not have to hate them all(!) He says that he'll be able to walk amongst them, and will be their god and that the Israelis will be his people. He tells the people (yet again) that he is the one that got the people of Israel out of their slavery in Egypt, breaking the bonds of their slavery and made them dignified again. But... If the people of Israel do not follow and obey all of God's laws and commandments, thereby breaking God's covenant with them, God will fill the people of Israel with terror, consumption, disease that will burn and consume your eyes, cause sorrow to your heart, and farmers will sow their crops in vain, while their enemies will eat whatever manages to grow*. God will set his face against the people of Israel, and they shall be slain before their enemies. The enemies of Israel will reign over them, and the people of Israel will be so filled with terror that they will panic and flee even when they're not in danger. If the people of Israel still won't comply with God's demands then God will punish them seven times more for their "sins". God will break the people of Israel's pride with burden, making the skies feel as "heavy as iron" and the "earth as brass". Farmers will toil in vain as their land will not yield their crops, nor will the trees yield their fruit. If the people still won't obey God's rules and laws, and won't listen to him, then God will bring seven* times more plagues upon the people according to their "sins". God will send wild animals among the people of Israel to kill their children, destroy their cattle, and dwindle the population. The city roads will become desolate. If the people of Israel still will not reform their ways and still walk contrary to God, then God will walk contrary to them and punish them another seven* times for their "sins". God will "bring a sword upon" (wage war upon) the people, that will avenge the argument over God's covenant. God will send pestilence among the people of Israel and will deliver the people to the hands of their enemies. God will destroy their food supply so that as it will take "ten women" to bake enough bread in "one oven", that even once eaten will never be enough to satisfy one's hunger. And if after all this, the people of Israel will still not listen, God will walk contrary to them in fury and will chastise the people seven* times for their sins. The people of Israel will be forced to resort to cannibalism to survive. God will tear down any temples, altars, or idols they have created for other gods, and cast the corpses of the people of Israel onto the corpses of their gods, and God will abhor the people of Israel. God will waste their cities, and bring their temples into desolation, while refusing to acknowledge any "animal sacrifices" people might make to God - God will refuse to "smell the savor" of their "sweet odor". God will turn the land into a wasteland and the enemies of the Israelis that will inhabit the land will be astonished at what has been done to the land. God will scatter the people of Israel among the "heathen" nations and wage war against the people as they flee. God says that the land laying desolate will finally get to enjoy it's sabbaths, while the people of Israel have fled to the lands of their enemies. God adds that the land lying desolate will finally have its rest, as it (apparently) didn't rest when the people of Israel denied the land its sabbaths. Anyone that has survived God's wrath God will curse with fear as they live amongst their enemies. The sound of a shaken leaf will cause them to run as if they were fleeing from a sword, and that they shall fall when no one is pursuing them. They will stumble upon each other as they flee and will have no courage to stand up to their enemies. The surviving people of Israel will perish among their "heathen" enemies, and those that manage to survive will pine away in their "sins" and the "sins" of their fathers. If at last the survivors might confess their "sin", and the "sins" of their fathers, and that they have trespassed and walked contrary to God; if then their "uncircumcised hearts" are truly humble and accept the punishment for their "sins", then God will remember his covenant with Jacob*, Isaac, and Abraham, and the "promised land". God says that the land will still be left to them, because even though these surviving descendants of Israel have "despised" God's judgments and laws, and were driven into the lands of their enemies due to their "sins", God will not cast them away. No will God abhor them, or destroy them completely, as this would break his covenant with them. God will remember his covenant with their ancestors, whom once again God "reminds" that he was the one who brought them out of the land of Egypt - in sight of the "heathens" - so that he could rule over the people as their god. These are the laws (and threats) which God made between himself and the people of Israel that were given to Moses. |
| Notes: | 1.) The exact line as written in the King James version is "and ye shall sow your seed in vain, for your enemies shall eat it." This could possibly be alluding to cannibalism if we compare the usage and phrasing of "your seed" to other verses, such as Leviticus 20:2 - "...that giveth any of his seed unto Molech..." In this verse "his seed" is referring to an infantile offspring. 2.) Yet more repetition of the significance of the mystical number seven. 3.) Again, although renamed by God himself, God refers to Israel as "Jacob", yet he refers to Abram by the name Abraham which was also a given name by God. |
| Thoughts: | This chapter can basically be summed up as such: do exactly as God commands and your cities and people will prosper with enormous wealth, but break any of God's laws and he'll kill you all - but if any of you happen to survive and say your sorry (and really mean it) then God will forgive you. God starts out restating his first commandment - that no one is to make any idols, carved images, or statues to worship - and reminds everyone to observe his sabbaths as well as to obey all of his laws and commandments. If the people can follow these rules to the letter, then God will "bless" them with lots of rain, which in turn will "bless" them with an abundance of crops. In addition, the people of Israel will protect them from "evil" animals and enemy armies. The first issue I take here is that animals do not follow any sense of "good" or "evil" - even animals that are dangerous to humans are not "evil" in any sense of the word. Animals attack usually only when either themselves, their young, or their territory is threatened. They don't hunt or prey upon humans by entering their habitats with the intention of killing people. When they do enter a human's territory it is generally in a quest to find food or nesting materials, and not simply to attack from a sense of "evil" intent. Anyways, God claims that the soldier amongst the people of Israel will be able to repel enemy army in rather ridiculous ratios - that five soldiers will be able to repel an army of one hundred, and that 100 soldiers will be able to repel 10,000 enemies. Apparently, in a battle against 100 soldiers you'll need to match five percent of their army, but going against an army of 10,000, you'll only need to match one percent of the enemy army(!) It's not made clear here if Aaron's "Rod of God" will be necessary to win these battles. God continues on saying that he'll "bless" the people of Israel by allowing them to multiply and grow in population and that everyone will have plenty to eat. He even goes on to say that he'll actually feel comfortable living amongst the people in the tabernacle and won't hate the people(!) God will be happy to walk amongst the people (providing they do everything he tells them to do) and to rule over them as their god. He remind them (yet again) that he was the guy who got them out of their slavery in Egypt and made them dignified again. However, now God changes gears and spends the rest of the chapter threatening the people with what he will do if the people don't follow his laws and commandments. The first thing God has planned for disobedience is to instill terror and disease among the people - a disease that will "burn and consume" their eyes, and cause sorrow in their hearts. He'll also make it so that farmers will be sowing their crops in vain, while allowing enemy civilizations to come in and eat whatever they do manage to grow. God will set his face against the people and this will see them slaughtered by the hands of their enemies. The people of Israel will be so consumed by terror that they'll become paranoid and flee even when they're not in danger. If the people of Israel don't get the message the first time, then God will punish them seven times more for their "sinning". (Every time God ups the ante in this chapter it will be by seven times.) Next up, God will break the people's pride with heavy burden and curse the farmers even more while their crops and fruit trees fail to provide food. This doesn't exactly "seven times worse" but God still has more in store. If the people of Israel still don't mend their ways, then God will bring them seven times more plagues for their "sinning". (Making this fourteen times the punishment?) He'll send wild (evil?) animals amongst the people to kill their children, cattle, and to dwindle their population. Their city roads will become desolate due to the population loss. If the people of Israel still don't mend their ways, then God will punish them seven more times for their "sinning". (Making this twenty one times the punishment?) God will wage war against the people of Israel and send pestilence throughout the land, and will deliver the people into the hands of their enemies. God will also destroy all of their food supply and makes a strange, silly, and slightly chauvinistic analogy about "ten women" baking bread "in one oven, and they shall deliver you your bread again by weight: and ye shall eat, and not be satisfied." If after all this the people still don't respond to God's punishments, then God will "walk contrary to them in fury" and will chastise the people seven more times. (Making this twenty eight times the punishment?) This time the people will be so undernourished and starved that God says they'll resort to cannibalism - and will eat their sons and daughters. God somehow is confident that the people will be "sinning" by putting up altars and erecting statues to other gods, and says that he will tear them down and let the people of Israel's corpses rot amongst the ruins. If the people try to give God any animal sacrifices, he's not even going to acknowledge them despite their "sweet odor". The "promised land" will be so devastated and desolate that the "heathens" will be astonished at the condition of the land when they inhabit it. God will scatter the people of Israel among the "heathen" nations that surround them, and wage war against them as they flee. With the land laying desolate, God says that it will finally get its rest and "sabbaths" as apparently God has already assumed that the people weren't observing this law either. God will continue to curse any survivors amongst the people of Israel with fear, stating that the sound of a shaking leaf will cause them to flee in paranoia as if they were being chased by a sword wielding enemy. The people will apparently be so paranoid as to trip over each other as they flee and they will have lost all their courage to even stand up to their enemies at all. They will perish at the hands of their enemies and those that survive will pine away in their "sins", as well as the "sins" of their fathers. The problem with God's threats is that he assumes that if the people are breaking his laws that they're breaking all of his laws, and he also makes the assumption that all of the people are guilty, much like we saw with his judgment upon the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah. With God, everything is in terms of absolutes, all or nothing, and this is not an example of being "just". However, the world is never comprised of absolutes, and thereby we must judge things on specific terms - not by lumping people together. Just because a majority of people might be guilty of breaking a law - such as "speeding" in our modern world - does not make the whole of the people criminals. You couldn't punish the entire state of Vermont with life in prison if 98% of the population had traffic tickets on their licenses, just because a few of those people had felony offenses. The "speeders" shouldn't be lumped in with the handful of criminals with felony records simply because on paper all of them broke the law in some respect. Treating people with broad strokes like this is not "justice" at all. Quite clearly the first dozen or so verses are a form of "bribery" in rewarding the people for following God's laws, while the next two dozen or so verses are a form of "extortion" - to strike fear into the people to obey, or else. If anything this chapter shares a lot in common with criminal racketeering, that provide "protection" to their rackets for "paying up", and resorting to violence and property damage when their rackets don't "pay up". I just cannot see any other way to view these passages as anything but forms of practicing bribery and extortion in order to get submission and compliance. However, even after all these nasty things God says he will do to the people of Israel, he wraps things up by saying that if there's anybody left that survived all of his famines, diseases, wild animal attacks, and invading armies, and if they're really sorry and sincere about it, they can accept God's punishment and he'll let them have the "promised land" again - because after all, he did promise this land to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and a promise is a promise - as long as it's on God's terms. Before closing out the chapter God once again states that it was him that brought the people of Israel out of Egypt. |
Friday, July 17, 2009
LEVITICUS: Chapter 25
| Chapter 25 | |
| Summary: | Up on Mount Sinai God speaks to Moses telling him more things to pass on to the people of Israel. God first states that when the people arrive in the "promised land" that they are to observe a sabbath for the land every seventh* year. For six years the people shall sow the fields, prune their vineyards, and harvest the fruit, but that the seventh year will be a year of rest for the land. No one is to sow the fields or prune their vineyards for their own personal gain in this seventh year. Anything that grows on it's own accord is not to be harvested for personal gain as it is a year of rest for the land. Whatever does manage to grow in the land shall be free to everyone - the people of Israel, as well as their servants, their slaves, and any stranger that travels amongst them. Cattle and wild animals shall be allowed to graze freely among the land during this year of sabbath. The people shall count sabbaths until they reach their seventh. On the seventh sabbath, forty nine years shall have passed, and on the "Day of Atonement" of that year the "trumpets of jubilee" shall fill the land. For the fiftieth year is a year to proclaim liberty throughout the land and to all of the inhabitants thereof*. Every man (except those enslaved for life) shall be cleared of their debts and returned to their families. The fiftieth year shall be the "Year of Jubilee" to the people of Israel, and no crops are to be sown nor reaped, nor shall any grapes be gathered. Only the excess food that grows wild in the fields shall be eaten. Every man shall return to his original family possessions - if he had sold his family home, it now will belong to him once again. Due to this, if any land is sold during the preceding forty nine years, a fair price must be arrived upon depending on how many years remain until the next "Year of Jubilee". According to the number of years before the "Year of Jubilee", the higher the number of years, the higher the price is set, with the prices diminishing until the next celebration. The people are not to oppress their neighbors with a higher than fair price, with a fair price being determined upon by the amount of crops that can be grown from the land. God claims that he is to be feared, and that those who wish to live "safely" (probably more aptly put as "those who simply wish to remain alive, and not be brutally killed") need to follow and obey all of God's laws. God also addresses the possible question the people might have about what they're supposed to eat in the seventh year, the year of sabbath, if they're not allowed to sow any crops. God answers this hypothetical question by promising to "bless the land" with surplus crops in the sixth year that will bring forth enough food for three years. Then as the crops of the eighth year are being sown, the people will still be eating the old food (from the surplus in the sixth year) in the ninth year and continue doing so until the new crops have been stored. God now tells the people of Israel that they are not allowed to permanently sell the land, as it doesn't belong to them - it belongs to God, and the people of Israel are simply just tenants. God continues on by stating that there will always be a "buy back clause" on all sales of land among the people of Israel. If a man becomes poor and sells his land to someone else, either he himself (when he's able to afford it) or his family can buy it back at any time at a price proportionate until the next "Year of Jubilee". If the man, or his family, however cannot afford to reclaim the property, he will have to wait until the next "Year of Jubilee" to reclaim the land. However, if a man sells a house within the city walls, he has only up to a year to buy it back. After a year has lapsed, it will now permanently belong to the new owner and will not have to be returned in the "Year of Jubilee". This does not apply to village houses outside of the city walls, as they will be counted the same as the fields, and can be redeemed at any time, and must be returned at the next "Year of Jubilee". God however makes an exception for the city houses belonging to the Levites, which even if residing within the city walls may be redeemed at any time and also must be returned at the next "Year of Jubilee". God says that he makes this exception for the Levites as they are not permitted to sell any of their fields - they are to remain permanent possessions of the tribe of Levi and to never belong to anyone else. God states that if a man's brother becomes poor, he is to help his brother and invite him to live with them. A man's brother is not to be turned away, nor is a man allowed to charge interest on any money lent to his brother. Anything a man sells to his brother must be sold at cost and not profited upon. God punctuates this by once again stating that he's the guy who freed the people from their slavery in Egypt, and that he has given them the "promised land" of Canaan, and has agreed to be their god. If your brother that now lives with you due to his poverty, or any other Israeli, sells himself into slavery, he must not be treated as a regular slave (this means no beating your brother, as you're allowed to do with your regular slaves) but must instead be treated like a "hired servant" or a guest in your home. He is only to serve until the "Year of Jubilee", both he and his children with him, may then return to his family and unto the land that is his family's possession. God states the people of Israel are his personal servants and therefore must not be treated like ordinary slaves (which may be beaten into submission.) The "ordinary" slaves which the people of Israeli shall have, shall be of the "heathens" that live in the surrounding areas. Of them you shall buy slaves from. Also the children and family of foreigners living amongst the land of Israel shall be bought and become possessions of the people of Israel. These slaves shall be given as inheritance to the children of the slave's master - to inherit them as a possession, and they shall be slaves forever. However, as for the people of Israel, they are not to be rule over one another with such rigor. If an Israeli sells himself into slavery to a foreigner that is richer than himself, after he is sold into slavery he can be redeemed at any time by either his uncle, his cousin (his uncle's son), or by anyone that is a close family relative - or he may buy his own freedom if he can later afford to do so. The price of his freedom (like the price of land sold in the "promised land") must be in proportion to the number of years until the next "Year of Jubilee". If there are many years until the next "Year of Jubilee", then the price of his freedom should be close to the price he was bought for, likewise if the "Year of Jubilee" is only a few years away, then again the price of his freedom shall be set accordingly. An Israeli sold into slavery to a foreigner is to be treated as a "hired servant" and not as rigorously as an "ordinary slave" would. All Israeli slaves that have not been bought out of their slavery will become free in the "Year of Jubilee", both the slave and his children amongst him. God claims that the people of Israel belong to him and are in fact his servants - who (he once again reminds us) that he "brought forth from out of the land of Egypt". |
| Notes: | 1.) Yet more repetition of the significance of the mystical number seven. 2.) Liberty in this sense does not apply to those slaves who are bound in lifetime enslavement. Those slaves are considered property and not really people. |
| Thoughts: | God begins this chapter explaining his seven year sabbaths, before moving onto his further stipulations of property laws, including his laws on slavery which appear to contradict on one of the laws set down in Exodus: Chapter 21. Continuing on with the bible's obsession with the mystical significance of the number seven, not only are the Israeli people to observe a sabbath from working every seven days, once they reach and settle into the "promised land", they are to observe another form of a sabbath by not doing any farming or harvesting of crops every seventh year. After seven of these seven year sabbaths, they are to mark this passing on the "Day of Atonement" - which in the Hebrew calendar falls on the tenth day of the seventh month (September) - with the sounds of trumpets throughout the land marking the arrival of the fiftieth year, as seven seventh year sabbaths equal forty nine years having passed. On this grand fiftieth year anniversary of settling in to the "promised land", and for every subsequent fifty year anniversary afterward, the people are to celebrate a "Year of Jubilee". The main premise behind this "Year of Jubilee" celebration surprisingly has nothing to do with sacrificing animals, but is actually a year in which all debts incurred by the people of Israel are to be wiped clean - except for those poor unfortunate folks that have been enslaved for life simply to keep their families together. While nobody can farm their land during the "Year of Jubilee" - just like they can't during their seven year sabbaths - any Israeli that has sold any of their family property gets to reclaim it during the "Year of Jubilee". Basically God's system of "selling" property is more akin to leasing it instead. If you find yourself in debt or would just like some extra spending cash, you lease out your land to someone else for a price that is relative to the number of years left until the next "Year of Jubilee". If you need cash or need to pay someone back, and it is some forty years or so until the next "Year of Jubilee", you can get a lot more money than you would if it were only a few years until the next "Year of Jubilee". Your asking price is basically determined on the worth of the amount of crops the land can produce per year, multiplied by the number of years until the next "Year of Jubilee". God threatens anyone's "safety" if they try and overcharge anyone for this - and I'm sure we can all imagine what this threat probably entails when we see how he deals with people who speak his name in a way in which he doesn't approve. God, figuring that people must be scratching their heads trying to figure out how they're going to be able to have enough food to eat if they have to stop farming every seven years (and in both the forty-ninth and fiftieth years during the "Year of Jubilee" celebrations), answers this hypothetical question with his promise to "bless" the land in the year prior to the year-long sabbaths. This "blessing", God guarantees, will provide enough food to last for three years, so that everyone will be covered, even in sabbath years that lead straight into a "Year of Jubilee". God clarifies his stances on land "ownership", stating that no one can ever sell their land permanently, because it in fact doesn't truly belong to them - it's God's land, and once he's given it to someone, they and their offspring and descendants are stuck with it forever - unless God excommunicates you and gives your land to someone else. (You can lease it anytime you like, but you can never leave...) That being said, because of that, God states that every piece of land has a "buy back clause", where the original owners can buy the land back at anytime they like or can afford to do so, with the price again being proportionate with the amount of years left until the next "Year of Jubilee". The "buy back clause" can also be redeemed by close relatives of the seller, so hypothetically, if your uncle happens to be a terrible gambler and loses his family's farm, grandpa can come to the rescue and buy the farm back from his bookie. However, God's rules for houses within the walls of the city are quite different. If you sell your city house, you've only got a year to change your mind and buy it back, otherwise it permanently belongs to the new owner. Houses outside the city in villages however are treated like the land out in the fields, and can be bought back whenever and will return back to it's original owner when the "Year of Jubilee" arrives. God makes an exception for the Levites, who can buy back their city house whenever they choose, since God will not allow them to "sell" (or more aptly, lease) their farmland, as the land given to the Levites is never to be owned by any "commoner". God now moves on to the subject of personal debt and states that if your brother somehow manages to go broke, you have to take him in to live with you. If you loan him any money, you're not to tack on any interest, and anything you might sell to him you are not allowed to profit from - you must sell it to him at cost only. God rubs in the whole "remember that I'm the guy who got you out that whole slavery business in Egypt, and I was nice enough to simply give you this land - so don't try and profit off of my 'generosity'" bit. Now if your brother, or any other Israeli for that matter, sells himself into slavery, you're not actually allowed to treat him like a "common slave" - i.e. referring to the beatings you're allowed to deal out in accordance with Exodus: Chapter 21, and according to verse 43 - "thou shalt not rule over him with rigour". Israeli "slaves" are only to serve until either theirper debt is paid (by the slave himself or by family of the slave) or until the "Year of Jubilee". This appears to contradict Exodus 21:2 which states: "If thou buy an Hebrew servant, six years he shall serve: and in the seventh he shall go out free for nothing."However, the law in Exodus 21 might perhaps only apply to slavery before the Israelis settle in the "promised land" of Canaan, where the law here in Leviticus might only apply to the Israelis after they reach and settle in Canaan. Whichever it may be, it is certainly not clear by what we have read. A common apologist defense of God condoning slavery in the bible is that they claim that slavery was viewed and applied differently back in biblical times, and that therefore "slavery" was more more akin to "indentured servitude" - unless we're referring to the Egyptian enslavement of the Hebrews, in which they will readily admit was just as bad (if not worse?) than the more modern enslavement of Africans in the Americas. However, this is only true when applied to Hebrew slaves either owned by other Hebrews or owned within the land of Canaan by foreigners. God won't condone the Israelites to be treated like ordinary slaves, giving the explanation that the people of Israel are God's personal servants and therefore exempt from being treated like "ordinary" slaves. However, God's view of non-Israeli slaves is vastly different and not only more in line with the common modern definition of slavery, but God makes it clear that not only does he condone slavery, he's also encouraging it! He tells the people of Israel that they may enslave any of the "heathens" from the surrounding areas of Canaan - or the children of any foreigner living in Canaan - and that these "heathen slaves" are to be considered slaves for life (meaning any children the "heathen slaves" might have will also become born into slavery) and are deemed as permanent property that is to be inherited by the slave master's descendants. The exact verses in the King James bible for Leviticus 25:44-46 are: 25:44 Both thy bondmen, and thy bondmaids, which thou shalt have, shall be of the heathen that are round about you; of them shall ye buy bondmen and bondmaids.By God specifically stating that Israeli slaves are not to be "ruled over with rigor" unlike the "heathen slaves" - who God specifically says are "property", and shall be "slaves forever" - this firmly refutes the explanation of comparing biblical slavery to indentured servitude. Famous skeptic and creator of the website and Discovery Channel program "How Things Work", Marshall Brain, wrote a very thorough article concerning God's stances on slavery in the bible which sums up the argument eloquently. Quite simply, it's impossible to conceive of a "benevolent" deity who not only accepts but condones the oppression and cruelty of human slavery. The two stances are in complete opposition to one another. One only needs to compare the repugnant and oppressive nature of this chapter in combination with the story from Genesis: Chapter 16 of Abraham, Sarah, and God condoning Sarah's beating of her pregnant slave Hagar - who was carrying Abraham's baby, and the following verses from Exodus Chapter 21: 21:20 And if a man smite his servant, or his maid, with a rod, and he die under his hand; he shall be surely punished.Human slavery is simply not excusable no matter what the circumstance, and it is only worsened when one group of people are of the mindset to oppress other people due to their differences in culture, race, or for worshiping the wrong "god". Continuing on, God claims that none of the people of Israel are to ever be treated as "ordinary slaves", even if they sell themselves into slavery to a foreigner, and that close family relatives can buy an Israeli out of slavery at any time (unlike the "heathen slaves" who are themselves and their offspring who are doomed to a life of slavery) or that they will be simply freed at the next "Year of Jubilee". Again, Hebrew slaves are to be treated as "hired servants", as God proclaims that every Israeli is first and foremost a servant to God - but apparently other people are okay to oppress at the right price. |
Thursday, July 16, 2009
LEVITICUS: Chapter 24
| Chapter 24 | |
| Summary: | God speaks to Moses, telling him to command the people of Israel to bring pure olive oil to make an "eternal flame" for the golden lamps outside the veil in the tabernacle. Aaron is to supply these lamps with fresh oil each morning and evening to keep the fire burning continuously, which is to be maintained by all future generations. Also, twelve loaves of bread are to be baked from two tenth deals* of fine flour. The bread shall be placed in two rows, six in each row, upon the golden table in the tabernacle. Pure frankincense shall be sprinkled along each row, and the bread will be a memorial offering by fire made to God each sabbath as an everlasting covenant between God and the people of Israel. Aaron and his sons shall eat this bread in a "holy place", for it is most "holy" being made by fire, and this shall be a permanent statute. Moving back into a narrative, a son of an Israeli woman (whose father was an Egyptian* and got into a dispute with an Israeli man within the camp. The Israeli woman's son "blasphemed" God's name and cursed. He was then brought before Moses by the people of Israel (it is mentioned that his mother's name was Shelomith, the daughter of Dibri, of the tribe of Dan) and he was jailed until God's judgment of him could be decided. God tells Moses to bring the blasphemer outside of the camp and have everyone that heard him blaspheme to place their hands upon his head - before having all of the congregation stone him. God tells Moses to relay to the people of Israel that whomever curses God shall bear his "sin", and that anyone who blasphemes God shall surely be put to death - all of the congregation shall certainly stone him. This applies to any Israeli or foreigner in the land - he who blasphemes God's name shall be put to death. God adds that "he who killeth any man shall surely be put to death" and "he that killeth an animal" shall replace it. God also states that any man that injures another shall be injured the same himself - "breach for breach, eye for eye, tooth for tooth". God repeats that he that kills an animal shall replace it, and he that kills a man shall be put to death. The people of Israel shall keep the same law for those who are born in the land and for foreigners to the land as well. Moses spoke to the people of Israel that they should bring the one who blasphemed out of the camp and to stone him to death. The people of Israel did as God had commanded Moses. |
| Notes: | 1.) Approximately a fifth of a bushel. 2.) Most likely the mention of an Egyptian father is to remove any possible sympathy for the Israeli woman's son - as the Egyptians are typically portrayed as villainous heathens throughout the bible. |
| Thoughts: | God tells Moses to have the people of Israel gather some pure olive oil to light an "eternal flame" in the golden lamps hanging outside the veil in the tabernacle. He tells Moses that Aaron is (as well as his future descendants are) to supply the lamps with fresh oil twice a day - once in the morning, once in the evening - to keep the fire continuously burning. Twelve loaves of bread are to be be made every week on the sabbath and placed on the golden table in the tabernacle as well. Arranged in two rows of six, frankincense is to be sprinkled on the loaves of bread and this somehow is to symbolize the covenant between God and the Israeli people. Aaron and his sons, of course, get to eat the loaves of bread - but only in a "holy place". This tradition is also to be a permanent statute. Strangely, this chapter of Leviticus now shifts away from God decreeing laws to Moses and turns into a narrative story about the son of an Israeli woman, who we can tell is going to end badly when it is mentioned that he is also the son of an "evil" heathenistic Egyptian. It is not stated how old this son of the Israeli woman (who is given the name Shelomith, and is noted to be the daughter of Dibri, whom apparently descended from the tribe of Dan) might be, but God seems rather indifferent towards whether children should be tried on the same terms as an adult anyways. The half-breed child (note that half-breed children are also usually frowned upon in the bible) gets into a dispute with a full blooded Israeli and during the conflict apparently curses God. The blasphemer is now brought before Moses and jailed while Moses consults God on how to deal with him - which should already be apparent to Moses considering he's the one who supposedly brought the "ten commandments" down from Mount Sinai. God's punishment for improperly or irreverantly using his name is of course a vicious brutal death by stoning. Simply because someone was using his name improperly and "insulting" him. Now, of course God admits many times (including within the ten commandments itself) that he is a vengeful and jealous God, but to place so much self-importance on someone incorrectly using or "insulting" your name that you have to impose a brutal death sentence of being stoned to death upon them, and then not even doing the killing yourself, but making the people of Israel do it for him? In the United States of America one of the greatest freedoms we have is the First Ammendment of the Constitution which guarrantees the right to free speech. While it protects the rights of people to criticize their government and its leaders, it also allows people with messages of hate to also voice their opinion, such as the charming Westboro Baptist Church who picket funerals of gays, the U.S. Military, and others with picket signs proclaiming that "God hates Fags" and "God hates America". As ugly and ignorant as these people are, I support their rights to be idiots as long as they can remain peaceful. The late George Carlin said it best, proclaiming that "there are no bad words" only bad intents in their meanings and expression. Language should never be punished and certainly never by death, and especially when it's some "benevolent" leader who's somehow offended that someone used his name in a manner in which he doesn't approve of. It often confuses me when people describe the God of the bible as a "loving", "just", and "benevolent" supernatural being when we're confronted with such stories such as this one. I often wonder how we could possibly be reading the same bible and seeing completely different viewpoints on the nature of God. Perhaps my idea of "benevolence" just doesn't include having a bunch of people stone somebody else to death for using God's name in a way that he disapproves of. God hammers the point home by stating that anyone - not just half-breed people of partial Egyptian heathen bloodlines - who "blasphemes" God's name is to be put to death - presumably, just as brutally by a good ol' stoning. He tacks on that "he who kills any man shall surely be put to death" - presumably there is an exception for people that kill on God's command. He follows up his vengeful logic with that any man that injures another should be injured the same way - "an eye for an eye, tooth for a tooth", which is quite different from the message Jesus will later preach, concerning "turning the other cheek" (however, Jesus also has some pretty vengeful things to say later on, as we'll come across much later). So, Moses delivers God's message to the people of Israel and the people drag the blasphemer out to the outside of the camp and stone him to death - simply for uttering God's name in a manner that God found offensive. |
Wednesday, July 15, 2009
LEVITICUS: Chapter 23
| Chapter 23 | |
| Summary: | God speaks to Moses, with laws for the people of Israel concerning his "holy feasts". God begins by restating the sabbath again - that six days of work are to be done, and that the seventh is a day of rest in which no work is to be done. He follows this up with listing some "holy feasts" that are to be observed each year.
Also in the fifteenth day of the seventh month *, when the people are done harvesting the fruit of the land, the people must keep God's feast for seven days - on the first and eighth days, there shall be an observed sabbath. On the first day the people are to take boughs of fruit trees, branches of palm trees, the boughs of thick trees, and willows of the brook, and the people shall rejoice before God for seven days. This seven day annual event is a permanent statute to be followed forever through future generations in the seventh month (meaning September, in our modern calendar). All of the people who are native Israelis are to live in "booths" (tents, or simple shelters) for these seven days. God claims that this will serve as a reminder to the people of Israel of how God brought the people of Israel out of the land of Egypt and made them live in "booths". And so Moses announced these festivals - God's feasts - to the people of Israel. |
| Notes: | 1.) Approximately late March in our current calendar. 2.) Another example of the mystical significance of the number 7 in the bible. 3.) Approximately mid-September in our current calendar. 4.) Approximately September 30th in our current calendar. |
| Thoughts: | God now gives Moses a list of mandatory "festivals" for the people of Israel to "celebrate" - and if you guessed correctly, God's definition of "celebrate" in this sense calls for yet even more animal sacrificing. Before God begins his list, he makes sure to restate yet again that the normal sabbaths are to be upheld weekly, and that absolutely no work is to be done on the seventh day - it is a day of rest. He then begins to list his annual "festivals", beginning with restating the celebration of Passover, which he outlined in Exodus: Chapter 12. He follows this up with restating the "Festival of Unleavened Bread", celebrated the day after Passover, in which the people have to eat bread made without yeast for the following seven days. The first and last days in this festival are sabbaths in which no work is to be done. Next up is the "Festival of First Fruits" in which the people of Israel, after reaching the "promised land" must bring the first of the crops from their fruit trees and bring them to the tabernacle. The priests will wave the fruit in the air, thereby symbolically "giving them to God" as a gift. However, your first fruit crop is not enough, you must also bring God a yearling lamb for a "burnt offering", a tenth of a bushel of finely ground flour mixed with olive oil, and three pints of wine(!) Setting all of this stuff on fire on the altar is a "sweet savor" to God. The people of Israel are not to eat any of their crops (apparently of any kind) until they've offered up this sacrifice to God. This is a permanent law to be followed by the people forever, and wherever they may reside. Fifty days later the real fun begins with the "Festival of Pentecost". Not only will you have to bring a sample of your newly harvested grains and crops for God, you'll have to tack on two loaves of bread - made from fine flour and made with yeast, a total of ten sacrificial animals (including seven lambs, two rams, and a bull) for ten "burnt offerings", and another three pints of wine for God to wash everything down with. This sacrifice of ten animals, samples of your finest crops, two loaves of bread, and three pints of wine seems a bit suspect for God's appetite - but we're not done yet. In addition to all this food that God wants, he also wants you tack on a goat and two more lambs for mandatory "sin offerings" and "peace offerings". Not surprisingly the priests get to keep all these foods for themselves, making one wonder if at least these parts (if not all) of the book of Leviticus were written by some greedy priests. Obviously, I don't believe the bible is the work of a supernatural being, and as it is obviously placing a lot of power and perks into the pockets of priests, it is reasonable to suspect that people seeking to govern a tribe of people - as priests - certainly have a strong motive to command these "permanent" festivals of massive amounts of animal meats, bread, crops, and wine going into the coffers of the priests working in the tabernacle. Even if we can get past the lack of evidence supporting the assertion that a magical diety wrote or inspired the bible and assume that it is a plausible assertation, what is to say that priests might not have tacked on some of their own additions to these "laws" to benefit themselves? Continuing on with the "Festival of Pentecost", God tacks on that this "feast" (for the priest) will also be observed as another sabbath day - where no work is to be done. This is yet another permanent law to followed by all future generations. God also tacks on one of his "good laws" from Leviticus: Chapter 19 about leaving behind some of your crops for the poor and for those traveling through. Next up is God's "Festival of Trumpets" in which the people are to observe a memorial day of sabbath - by means of blowing trumpets - in the middle of September. Again, no one is to do any work on this day, and they have to make another "sacrifice by fire". Nine days later (in the evening and until the following evening), the next "festival" is the "Day of Atonement" calling for yet another "sacrifice by fire". Again, this is a sabbath, so no working for the people of Israel. This is backed by the threat of excommunication if someone doesn't atone themselves with a sacrifice, and the threat of death if they're caught working on this day. It is another permanent law. Finally, five days after the "Day of Atonement", we have the "Festival of Tabernacles" where God makes the people of Israel live in tents for the next week - to remind them of their Exodus in the desert (which currently we're still reading about in the book of Leviticus - we have yet to reach the "promised land"). The first day and the eighth(?) day are again sabbath days, and during each of the seven days (as well as the mysterious eighth day) yet more sacrifices by fire are to be made. All of these festivals are to be observed in addition to the regular sabbaths and animal sacrifices made either by freewill or by God's insistence for "sinning". God interjects another rule about the first day of the "Festival of Tabernacles", that the people are to gather the boughs of their fruit trees, palm tree branches, boughs of thick trees, and willows, and rejoice before God for the following seven days. Again, this is another permanent law to be followed for all future generations. |
Saturday, July 11, 2009
LEVITICUS: Chapter 19
| Chapter 19 | |
| Summary: | God speaks to Moses telling him to tell the people of Israel that they must be "holy", because God himself is "holy". The people must fear their mothers and fathers and keep and observe God's sabbath days. The people are reminded again that they are not to turn to or create idols, or "molten gods". When a person offers a "peace offering" animal sacrifice, they shall do so at their own accord but follow God's rules. It shall be eaten the same day it is offered, or the following day at the latest. If any remains on the third day it must be burned. If any of it is eaten on the third day, God considers it "abominable", and the sacrifice will not be accepted. Any one eating on the third day shall be guilty of "sin", as they have profaned the "holiness" of God, and the person will be excommunicated. When a person harvests their crops, they are not to reap the corners of their field, nor pick up any stray grains of wheat from the ground. The person is also not to glean all of the grapes from their vineyard, nor to gather any grapes that have fallen to the ground. These are to be left for the poor and those traveling through. God also instructs the people of Israel not to lie to, steal from, or defraud one another. The people must also not swear by God's name falsely, nor profane God's name. A person must not defraud, oppress, or rob anyone you they have hired of the wages the employee has earned, and they are to promptly pay them. A person is not to curse the deaf or trip up a blind man, or they shall fear the wrath of God for doing so. Judges should never do unrighteousness their judgment, and should have no regard to the defendant's wealth or lack thereof. Only in regards to righteousness shall one judge their neighbor. A person is not to earn a reputation as a talebearer or gossiper, nor shall a person falsely accuse their neighbor. A person shall not hate their brother in their heart, but shall rebuke their sins or they will suffer upon them as well. A person shall not avenge nor bear any grudge against the children of their people, and shall love their neighbor as they do themselves. God says that the people shall keep his laws, and shall not breed their cattle with a different kind, they shall not sow their fields with mingled seeds, nor shall they wear garments mingled with both linen and wool. Whomever has sexual relations with a slave girl who is engaged to another but not yet married, she shall be scourged (whipped), but neither shall be put to death - because she was not a free woman. The man will have to bring a "guilt offering" of a ram to the door at the entrance to the tabernacle. The priest shall make atonement for him by slaughtering the ram for the "sin" he has committed, and the "sin" shall be forgiven. When the people have settled in the "promised land" and begin planting trees for their fruit, the first three years of fruit shall be considered "uncircumcised" and shall not be eaten. The fourth year all of the fruit is considered "holy" and must be sacrificed to God, as the fruit "belongs to him". Finally in the fifth year, the fruit the people have planted may finally be eaten. People may not eat anything with or containing blood; neither shall they use enchantment nor observe times. Men must not "round the corners of their heads" (meaning trimming off the hair on your temples) or mar the corners of their beards. People must also not make any cutting in their flesh in connections with funeral rights, nor print any mark upon their flesh. People are not to prostitute their daughters, lest the land become overrun with whoredom and wickedness. God reminds the people again to observe his sabbath days and to also have reverence for his sanctuary in the tabernacle. The people are not to regard other people who have "familiar spirits", nor to seek after wizards, lest they be defiled by them. People shall rise up and honor the elderly, fearing God if they do not. If you have a visitor to your land, you are not to wrong them, but to treat them as if they were born in the land themselves - remembering that you were strangers yourselves in the land of Egypt. People shall be honest in their judgment in the measurements of length, weight, and volume. Proper balances, weights, and such shall you use - reminding the people again that God himself is their god that had brought them out of the land of Egypt. Therefore the people should observe and obey all of God's laws. |
| Thoughts: | This chapter, although peppered with a few questionable rules in places, is actually generally one of the nicer chapters in the bible. I find this a little odd as it stands in stark contrast to most of the rest of the book of Leviticus which deals with vilifying the people of Israel as "sinful" people who need to sacrifice animals for a variety of trivial offenses such as a woman simply menstruating. There are actually many verses here in this chapter that are very positive and instill a sense of community spirit among the people of Israel that is still relevant to today's society. However, we start will off a little slow in that regard with God being a bit of his typical self for the first eight verses. God begins listing some more rules to Moses explaining that because God himself is "holy", that means that the people of Israel need to become "holy" as well. He begins by saying the people need to be "fearful" of their parents and to continue to observe God's sabbath days (something that is repeated ad-naseum throughout the chapter). They are not to turn to, or create idols, or "molten gods". When people sacrifice animals for a "peace offering", God restates his demands that the animal's meat is not to be eaten after the second day since it had been sacrificed. The third day the remains need to be burned, and those who eat any of the "peace offering" on the third day (or afterward, I'd assume) is guilty of a "sin", has profaned God, and will be excommunicated. God finally makes a very noble and generous law, stating that when a person harvests their crops that they are to leave a little for the poor and for anyone traveling through town. They are not to reap the crops on the corners of the field or pick up any stray grains, or grapes from their vineyards, that may have fallen to the ground. These surplus crops are to be left behind for the poor and for travelers. He continues on in this vein, stating that people are not to lie to, steal from, or defraud other people, before tacking on that the people must not ever swear falsely by God's name or "profane" it by any means. God has a bizarre arrogance about how his name is to be used in human speech and seems to get rather vindictive if his name isn't used properly for some reason. God continues on with another few honorable laws stating that people are not to defraud, oppress, or rob any employee of the wages they've earned, adding on that one should also pay their employees promptly. He also adds that people are not to curse or discriminate against the deaf or the blind, or they will face the wrath of God for doing so. God states that judgments must be impartial and fair, and they are not to be swayed by the wealth - or lack thereof - of a defendant. People are also not to gossip or falsely accuse other people. People also should not hate their neighbors if they "sin", but should rebuke their sin lest they be guilty themselves. Unfortunately, I feel a little torn about this law in itself. Even taking my problems with the notion of "sin" aside, I do agree that people should not hate other people - even if they have broken a law or made a mistake. We're all human, and even those with the best of intentions can occasionally do the wrong things or break laws. Regardless of intent, it is never right to persecute people. That isn't to say that people who have done wrong shouldn't be dealt justly with, however justice is not a set of rules set forth by a single solitary ruler - in this case God, but this applies equally as well for any human dictator as well. Justice is very conditional upon what is in the best interests for a group of people at large, and excessive punishments such as stoning people to death for working on a Saturday, is not dealing with a law "justly" by any means. By the wording of God's law here, someone sticking up for John Doe who is about to be brutally killed for having worked on a Saturday should not also be dragged out and stoned for not "rebuking" John's "sin". God continues on a much better track by stating that people are not to seek vengeance, or bear grudges, and that they are treat their fellow man as they would themselves. This may possibly be the best verse the bible has to offer, and something I am in complete agreement with. God however follows this up with a strange law insisting that people are not to cross breed either their cattle or their crops, and even stranger, that garments that are to be worn are not to be made out of both linen and wool. What purpose this law serves is completely lost on me, unless it is warning that the offspring of crossbred animals tend to be sterile - how this would extend to crops and clothing is even more puzzling. Unfortunately, God's "good laws" are pretty much done for this chapter and he follows things up with this gem about what to do about people having sex with female slaves. If a man has sex with a female slave who is engaged to another man, neither shall be put to death (God's usual punishment for adultery) because the slave girl is not a free person. However, the slave girl shall be flogged with a whip, while the man will have to bring a ram for an an animal sacrifice at the tabernacle and all we be forgiven. So, the woman gets her punishment commuted from a stoning to being scourged, yet the man can walk away after he gives a ram to a priest to be slaughtered - demonstrating yet another example of misogyny in the bible. God comes up with another strange law concerning fruit trees, stating that when the people of Israel are finally led to their "promised land", they are not to reap any of the fruit for the first three years, as apparently God considered the fruit "uncircumcised" during these first three years. On the fourth year, the fruit is fine, but God is claiming it for himself and demands that it be brought to the tabernacle for a "sacrifice". From the fifth year on, it's finally okay to eat the fruit from the trees you've planted. God now reminds people again that people are not to eat anything containing blood, possibly alluding to that all animals that are to be eaten need to be drained of their blood beforehand. He follows this up in the same sentence with banning the people from using "enchantment" and from "observing times". Most likely this is another xenophobic attack on staying away from other "pagan" religions, but can be construed many ways if the two parts of the sentence are taken separately. Most curious is God forbidding the "observing [of] time", which is commonly thought to mean "fortune telling", but is also vague enough to encompass possibly the usage of calendars, sundials, and clocks. God now dictates men's fashions by forbidding them from shaving the hair away from their temples (unless they contract and are "healed" of leprosy, where they must shave their entire head, eyebrows, and facial hair) or trimming the corners of their beards. In addition God bans any flesh cutting that is connected to funeral rights, and tattoos in general. Men are not allowed to prostitute their daughters because it will turn the land into a whoredom of wickedness. (However, nothing is mentioned about women who turn to prostitution on their own, which I'm sure that God probably frowns upon as well.) He follows this up with another reminder that he demands that his sabbath days are to be obeyed (over-stressing the importance of this law) and that the people must have reverence for his tabernacle that they built for him. God's next law states that people are not to "regard other people who have familiar spirits" (most commonly thought to mean the consultation of spiritual medium) nor to seek out wizards. Doing so will defile the person. God round out the rest of his laws with a few final "good laws". People are to respect and honor their elders (or face God's wrath if they do not), to treat visitors in their land the same as they do their neighbors (reminding them again that they themselves were "strangers" when they lived in Egypt), and to be honest in their treatment of measurements. He furthers that the people are to use proper measurement tools for lengths, weights, and volume - before yet again strangely reminding them that he's the same god who led them out of Egypt, so therefore everyone has to obey all of these laws. This last part is a bit troubling to me as it implies that being saved or rescued somehow means that the people being saved are somehow indebted to their rescuer without argument. Following this argument, would a person rescued by perhaps a criminal have to repay their debt by doing something that might go against their morals? If a woman has a flat tire and a creepy man stops to help her change her tire, if he asks for a sexual favor afterward is the woman indebted to oblige him? Of course not, it's ridiculous to place that kind of expectation upon someone after the fact, just because the woman happened to have been in need before he helped her. There is a difference between making your expectations known before and after the fact. If the creep above offered to change the woman's tire on the condition that she give him some sort of sexual favor, she could either turn the man down (perhaps calling the police afterward) and deal with her flat tire herself, or she can choose to accept the man's offer - at perhaps the expense of her morals or dignity - if she was desperate enough, or if she placed little value upon the sexual favor as harming her morals or dignity. While it may seem that I'm making a rather harsh comparison between the sexual pervert in my example and a god that most people view as "benevolent" and "loving" (despite that I tend to disagree with both of those descriptions) the point is that the people of Israel are being given these laws after the fact, and therefore it's not very ethical of God to keep rubbing in that line of "I'm the guy who got you out of your slavery in Egypt, so you need to follow my laws" every time he hands out his demands. Maybe some of the Israelis might not have went along with the "Exodus" if they might have known what they were getting into ahead of time. If God gave these laws to Moses before the "Exodus from Egypt" and told the Israelis, "Hey, God's going to rescue you guys from your slavery, but once we're out of here, he's got a couple of laws that he want you all to follow..." maybe not all of the Israelis would have agreed to go along with it. |
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