Leviticus - Chapters 21-27

Chapters 21 & 22 cover regulations for Aaron, the High Priest, and his sons, the priests, on how to live a holy life unto the Lord, and how not to profane His name. Chapter 23 covers the Jewish Feasts: The Sabbath which was a day of rest each week; The Passover which celebrated how the angel of death passed over the Jewish houses that had the blood of the Lamb on the doorpost; The Feast of Unleavened Bread which was the week following Passover because it celebrated their freedom from Egypt and how they left so quickly they could not let their bread rise; The Feast of First Fruits which celebrated the grain harvest; Fifty days later was the Feast of Weeks (Also known as the Pentecost) which celebrated the end of the harvest; The Feast of Trumpets, which after the Jewish Exile, is now called Rosh Hashanah or New Years Day; and the Feast of Tabernacles which celebrated the Lord's provision while they wandered in the wilderness. Chapter 24 commanded the people to bring clear oil for the lamp in the Holy Place, and then each week 12 new loaves of unleavened bread was to be brought before the Lord, and the priests could eat the bread weekly. There also was a story of a young man whose mother was Jewish and Father Egyptian, and he blasphemed "The Name" with a curse. Since he did not honor the Lord, he was put to death. The last three chapters, 25-27 cover instructions when the people take the promised land. Every seven years they are to let the land rest, and after seven years of seven (49), on the 50th year they were to celebrate the Year of Jubilee, where debts and land and people could be set free. Chapter 26 is called the Retribution Principle which means if the people would obey the Lord, He will bless them, if not, then He will curse them. Chapter 27 covered the people's dedication of people and things as a vow to the Lord. Dr. Betts, Prof. of OT at SBTS said, "Leviticus ends with a promise of recovery and hope, and a reminder that the Lord God will not reject them or forget His covenant that He has made with them."