LEVITICUS 46


     We will begin this lesson in Leviticus 19:15  "Ye shall do no
unrighteousness in judgment: thou shalt not respect the person of the
poor, nor honour the person of the mighty: [but] in righteousness
shalt thou judge thy neighbour."

     So many people in our society today have gone overboard in siding
in with the poor people. In the Scripture above, we are told to judge
righteously. In should not matter whether a person is poor or rich,
when we are judging a matter. Judgement should be made impartially by
weighing out the facts. Jesus taught not to be a respecter of persons.
Many people are swayed in judgement by a person's great wealth.
Possibly when they do that, they are expecting something in return.
To judge the rich or the poor, because of their position in life, is
wrong. We should judge anything by what is right and that only.
Acts 10:34 "Then Peter opened [his] mouth, and said, Of a truth I
perceive that God is no respecter of persons:"  If God is no respecter
of persons, then neither should we be a respecter of persons.
James 2:9 "But if ye have respect to persons, ye commit sin, and are
convinced of the law as transgressors."

     Leviticus 19:16  "Thou shalt not go up and down [as] a talebearer
among thy people: neither shalt thou stand against the blood of thy
neighbour: I [am] the LORD."

     One of the most important reasons to receive the Holy Spirit of
God, is so that God will have control of the most evil part of your
body {the tongue}. James 3:6 "And the tongue [is] a fire, a world of
iniquity: so is the tongue among our members, that it defileth the
whole body, and setteth on fire the course of nature; and it is set on
fire of hell." The tongue is evil, until we turn it over to God. I
will quote a few Scriptures from Proverbs on talebearers. They explain
much better than I can. Proverbs 18:8 "The words of a talebearer [are]
as wounds, and they go down into the innermost parts of the belly."
Proverbs 20:19 "He that goeth about [as] a talebearer revealeth
secrets: therefore meddle not with him that flattereth with his lips."
Proverbs 26:20 "Where no wood is, [there] the fire goeth out: so where
[there is] no talebearer, the strife ceaseth."  You should never do
anything against your neighbor. Jesus said to love your neighbor.
Mark 12:31 "And the second [is] like, [namely] this, Thou shalt love
thy neighbour as thyself. There is none other commandment greater than
these."

     Leviticus 19:17  "Thou shalt not hate thy brother in thine heart:
thou shalt in any wise rebuke thy neighbour, and not suffer sin upon
him."

     Jesus said, if you hate your brother in your heart, you have
committed the sin of murder in your heart. Notice, there are two
thoughts in the verse above. The second thought is if your brother has
done something against you, go to him and settle it with him. If he
won't listen, then you take someone with you. If even that does not
work, then bring it before the church. Proverbs 27:5 "Open rebuke [is]
better than secret love."  Matthew 18:15  "Moreover if thy brother
shall trespass against thee, go and tell him his fault between thee
and him alone: if he shall hear thee, thou hast gained thy brother."
Matthew 18:16 "But if he will not hear [thee, then] take with thee one
or two more, that in the mouth of two or three witnesses every word
may be established." Matthew 18:17 "And if he shall neglect to hear
them, tell [it] unto the church: but if he neglect to hear the church,
let him be unto thee as an heathen man and a publican."

     Leviticus 19:18  "Thou shalt not avenge, nor bear any grudge
against the children of thy people, but thou shalt love thy neighbour
as thyself: I [am] the LORD."

     Romans 12:19 "Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but [rather]
give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance [is] mine; I will
repay, saith the Lord."  We must be kind to all people, even those who
are not kind in return. That is what makes us Christians. A Christian,
is someone who is a believer in and a follower of the Lord Jesus
Christ. The following Scriptures are what Jesus said about this very
thing. Matthew 5:44 "But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them
that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which
despitefully use you, and persecute you;"  Matthew 5:45 "That ye may
be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his
sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just
and on the unjust." We find that when we do this, God will avenge for
us. Romans 12:20 "Therefore if thine enemy hunger, feed him; if he
thirst, give him drink: for in so doing thou shalt heap coals of fire
on his head."  Why should we do this?  Because God said to do it.
When you love your neighbor as yourself, you have fulfilled God's law
the way He intended.

     Leviticus 19:19  "Ye shall keep my statutes. Thou shalt not let
thy cattle gender with a diverse kind: thou shalt not sow thy field
with mingled seed: neither shall a garment mingled of linen and
woollen come upon thee."

     God does not say, you can keep my statutes, if you want to. He
says, you will keep them. If we do not keep His statutes, we will feel
His wrath. Verse 19 above is teaching a very special lesson on
separation. The following Scripture is one of the most important
separations that God would have. II Corinthians 6:14 "Be ye not
unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath
righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with
darkness?" I believe the not letting cattle gender with another kind
is like having a buffalo and a cow have a beefalo. It is as if we are
trying to improve on God's creation. God did not make any mistakes,
when he made the different things. The mingled seed could mean so many
things. I believe the Scripture has a literal meaning not to mingle
seed, but I believe it has a spiritual meaning, as well. The seed is
called the Word of God. We must not mix Christianity with other
religions. We should keep it pure. In this Scripture it, also, appears
to me that this means that God has made people, foods, and
Christianity, the way He wants it. We should leave God's creation
alone. This does not mean that one seed is not as good as another. It
means God made it the way He wants it, leave it alone. Fine linen has
to do with righteousness. Revelation 19:8 "And to her was granted that
she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine
linen is the righteousness of saints."  Nothing can be mingled with
righteousness to improve it.

     Leviticus 19:20  "And whosoever lieth carnally with a woman, that
[is] a bondmaid, betrothed to an husband, and not at all redeemed, nor
freedom given her; she shall be scourged; they shall not be put to
death, because she was not free."

     This is speaking of a man having sexual relations with his slave
girl. This reminds me so much of the bondwoman that bore Abraham a son
{Ishmael}. Galatians 4:23 "But he [who was] of the bondwoman was born
after the flesh; but he of the freewoman [was] by promise."  This
bondwoman, nor her master, would be killed for the act of adultery,
because she had been bought by him, and was his servant. Notice, they
will be punished, but not as severely as death which was the usual
punishment for both when they committed adultery. Scourging could be
stripes received in whipping. There could be up to 40 stripes. There
would be an investigation to see if the woman was willing, before she
would be whipped. If she was not willing, she would not be whipped.

     Leviticus 19:21 "And he shall bring his trespass offering unto
the LORD, unto the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, [even]
a ram for a trespass offering." Leviticus 19:22 "And the priest shall
make an atonement for him with the ram of the trespass offering before
the LORD for his sin which he hath done: and the sin which he hath
done shall be forgiven him."

     A trespass was less than a full fledged sin, but was indeed
wrong. This is still a sin, but not as bad a sin. We have already
covered the offerings for trespass in a previous lesson. We do not
find any fine for the slave girl being paid to the person she has
promised to marry. This is probably because the slave girl was
possibly promised to another slave that was owned by the man who
committed the trespass.

     To sum up this lesson, we might say that God is absolute. He has
a way that is above the ways of man. Life would be a whole lot simpler
for all of us, if we would just do things His way. Everything in this
world was created by God for a specific purpose. We should find what
that purpose is, and not try to change things to fit our purpose. His
plan works, our plans fail.









                             Questions 46

1.  We shall do no _____________ in judgement.
2.  Thou shalt not respect the person of the _____.
3.  Thou shalt not honor the person of the ______.
4.  How should judgement be made?
5.  God is no respecter of ________.
6.  If ye have respect to persons, ye commit ___.
7.  Thou shalt not go up and down as a ___________.
8.  What is one of the most important reasons to receive the Holy
    Spirit?
9.  In James, we read the tongue is a ______.
10. When does the tongue stop being evil?
11. What does Proverbs say about a talebearer?
12. Where there is no talebearer, the strife_______.
13. How should we love our neighbor?
14. When you hate your brother in your heart, what sin have you
    committed?
15. If a neighbor sins against you, what are you to do?
16. Open rebuke is better than secret ____.
17. Chapter 5 verse 44 of Matthew says, _____ your enemies.
18. If we do this, we are called whom?
19. If thine enemy huger, ______ ___.
19. Why should we do this?
20. What happens to those who do not keep God's statutes?
21. What are you forbidden to let your cattle gender with?
22. Thou shalt not sow thy field with _________ _____.
23. What 2 materials shall a garment not be mingled with?
24. What is one of the most important separations that God teaches?
25. What are we saying, when we mix two kinds of animals to make a new
    breed?
26. What is the seed many times symbolic of in the Bible?
27. Fine linen symbolizes what in the Bible?
28. What is meant by lying carnally with a woman?
29. What is the punishment for lying with a bondwoman?
30. Why were they not stoned to death, since that is the usual
    punishment for adultery?
31. What does scourging mean?
32. If this happened against the woman's will, what was her
    punishment?
33. What type of offering did the man have to make at the sanctuary?
34. Why was the man not made pay the person the bondwoman was
    betrothed to, for his loss?
35. God's ways are above _____ ways.
36. Everything in this world was created by God for a _______ _______.