Confessional Lutheran Ministerium

Leviticus 13:21-46 NKJV

²¹ But if the priest examines it, and indeed there are no white hairs in it, and it is not deeper than the skin, but has faded, then the priest shall isolate him seven days; ²² and if it should at all spread over the skin, then the priest shall pronounce him unclean. It is a leprous sore. ²³ But if the bright spot stays in one place, and has not spread, it is the scar of the boil; and the priest shall pronounce him clean.

²⁴ “Or if the body receives a burn on its skin by fire, and the raw flesh of the burn becomes a bright spot, reddish-white or white, ²⁵ then the priest shall examine it; and indeed if the hair of the bright spot has turned white, and it appears deeper than the skin, it is leprosy broken out in the burn. Therefore the priest shall pronounce him unclean. It is a leprous sore. ²⁶ But if the priest examines it, and indeed there are no white hairs in the bright spot, and it is not deeper than the skin, but has faded, then the priest shall isolate him seven days. ²⁷ And the priest shall examine him on the seventh day. If it has at all spread over the skin, then the priest shall pronounce him unclean. It is a leprous sore. ²⁸ But if the bright spot stays in one place, and has not spread on the skin, but has faded, it is a swelling from the burn. The priest shall pronounce him clean, for it is the scar from the burn.

²⁹ “If a man or woman has a sore on the head or the beard, ³⁰ then the priest shall examine the sore; and indeed if it appears deeper than the skin, and there is in it thin yellow hair, then the priest shall pronounce him unclean. It is a scaly leprosy of the head or beard. ³¹ But if the priest examines the scaly sore, and indeed it does not appear deeper than the skin, and there is no black hair in it, then the priest shall isolate the one who has the scale seven days. ³² And on the seventh day the priest shall examine the sore; and indeed if the scale has not spread, and there is no yellow hair in it, and the scale does not appear deeper than the skin, ³³ he shall shave himself, but the scale he shall not shave. And the priest shall isolate the one who has the scale another seven days. ³⁴ On the seventh day the priest shall examine the scale; and indeed if the scale has not spread over the skin, and does not appear deeper than the skin, then the priest shall pronounce him clean. He shall wash his clothes and be clean. ³⁵ But if the scale should at all spread over the skin after his cleansing, ³⁶ then the priest shall examine him; and indeed if the scale has spread over the skin, the priest need not seek for yellow hair. He is unclean. ³⁷ But if the scale appears to be at a standstill, and there is black hair grown up in it, the scale has healed. He is clean, and the priest shall pronounce him clean.

³⁸ “If a man or a woman has bright spots on the skin of the body, specifically white bright spots, ³⁹ then the priest shall look; and indeed if the bright spots on the skin of the body are dull white, it is a white spot that grows on the skin. He is clean.

⁴⁰ “As for the man whose hair has fallen from his head, he is bald, but he is clean. ⁴¹ He whose hair has fallen from his forehead, he is bald on the forehead, but he is clean. ⁴² And if there is on the bald head or bald forehead a reddish-white sore, it is leprosy breaking out on his bald head or his bald forehead. ⁴³ Then the priest shall examine it; and indeed if the swelling of the sore is reddish-white on his bald head or on his bald forehead, as the appearance of leprosy on the skin of the body, ⁴⁴ he is a leprous man. He is unclean. The priest shall surely pronounce him unclean; his sore is on his head.

⁴⁵ “Now the leper on whom the sore is, his clothes shall be torn and his head bare; and he shall cover his mustache, and cry, ‘Unclean! Unclean!’ ⁴⁶ He shall be unclean. All the days he has the sore he shall be unclean. He is unclean, and he shall dwell alone; his dwelling shall be outside the camp.

This chapter contains God’s instructions for the diagnosis and treatment of lepers. The skin disease of leprosy was the only disease to which such elaborate instructions were attached, so clearly God had something important to teach the people through these laws.

Leprosy was an infection of the flesh, one that spread, one that stubbornly refused to heal. The priests, as those who were to be most familiar with the instructions of the Law, were the ones in charge of diagnosing this disease, not for the purpose of curing it, nor for the purpose of preventing the spread of it, but for the purpose of guarding the tabernacle and the community from ceremonial uncleanness. So serious was God about preserving the ceremonial cleanness of the community that He ordered the lepers to live outside the camp and shout their uncleanness as a warning to all who passed by.

We miss the point if we view these laws purely, or even principally, as medicinal guidelines for preventing the spread of disease. The truth is, God permitted some people to be infected with leprosy to teach the community a vital lesson about “the flesh,” that is, the sinful, infected, diseased flesh that all men inherit from their parents, going back to sinful Adam and Eve.

Lepers exhibited on the outside the disease that infects all men on the inside, the inborn corruption of our very souls. It’s not only the sinful words we speak or the sinful deeds we do, but also the ugly, raw, diseased state of our natural soul that makes us unclean before our God. It’s the natural lack of true fear, love, and trust in God, and the natural presence of evil desires and hostility toward God that infect us and make us unable to approach God in His holiness.

But as the Lord Jesus displayed many times during His earthly ministry, He came to cleanse the lepers, too. He came to wash sinners clean by His blood, through Holy Baptism, cleansing us not only of the things we’ve done, but of the sinful people we are by nature. Now let us daily drown the Old Man through contrition and repentance and allow the New Man to arise and live forever before God in righteousness and purity. Let us pray: Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew me with a willing spirit to serve You always. Amen.

Leviticus 12:1-8; 13:1-20 NKJV

12 Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, ² “Speak to the children of Israel, saying: ‘If a woman has conceived, and borne a male child, then she shall be unclean seven days; as in the days of her customary impurity she shall be unclean. ³ And on the eighth day the flesh of his foreskin shall be circumcised. ⁴ She shall then continue in the blood of her purification thirty-three days. She shall not touch any hallowed thing, nor come into the sanctuary until the days of her purification are fulfilled.

⁵ ‘But if she bears a female child, then she shall be unclean two weeks, as in her customary impurity, and she shall continue in the blood of her purification sixty-six days.

⁶ ‘When the days of her purification are fulfilled, whether for a son or a daughter, she shall bring to the priest a lamb of the first year as a burnt offering, and a young pigeon or a turtledove as a sin offering, to the door of the tabernacle of meeting. ⁷ Then he shall offer it before the Lord, and make atonement for her. And she shall be clean from the flow of her blood. This is the law for her who has borne a male or a female.

⁸ ‘And if she is not able to bring a lamb, then she may bring two turtledoves or two young pigeons—one as a burnt offering and the other as a sin offering. So the priest shall make atonement for her, and she will be clean.’ ”

13 And the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying: ² “When a man has on the skin of his body a swelling, a scab, or a bright spot, and it becomes on the skin of his body like a leprous sore, then he shall be brought to Aaron the priest or to one of his sons the priests. ³ The priest shall examine the sore on the skin of the body; and if the hair on the sore has turned white, and the sore appears to be deeper than the skin of his body, it is a leprous sore. Then the priest shall examine him, and pronounce him unclean. ⁴ But if the bright spot is white on the skin of his body, and does not appear to be deeper than the skin, and its hair has not turned white, then the priest shall isolate the one who has the sore seven days. ⁵ And the priest shall examine him on the seventh day; and indeed if the sore appears to be as it was, and the sore has not spread on the skin, then the priest shall isolate him another seven days. ⁶ Then the priest shall examine him again on the seventh day; and indeed if the sore has faded, and the sore has not spread on the skin, then the priest shall pronounce him clean; it is only a scab, and he shall wash his clothes and be clean. ⁷ But if the scab should at all spread over the skin, after he has been seen by the priest for his cleansing, he shall be seen by the priest again. ⁸ And if the priest sees that the scab has indeed spread on the skin, then the priest shall pronounce him unclean. It is leprosy.

⁹ “When the leprous sore is on a person, then he shall be brought to the priest. ¹⁰ And the priest shall examine him; and indeed if the swelling on the skin is white, and it has turned the hair white, and there is a spot of raw flesh in the swelling, ¹¹ it is an old leprosy on the skin of his body. The priest shall pronounce him unclean, and shall not isolate him, for he is unclean.

¹² “And if leprosy breaks out all over the skin, and the leprosy covers all the skin of the one who has the sore, from his head to his foot, wherever the priest looks, ¹³ then the priest shall consider; and indeed if the leprosy has covered all his body, he shall pronounce him clean who has the sore. It has all turned white. He is clean. ¹⁴ But when raw flesh appears on him, he shall be unclean. ¹⁵ And the priest shall examine the raw flesh and pronounce him to be unclean; for the raw flesh is unclean. It is leprosy. ¹⁶ Or if the raw flesh changes and turns white again, he shall come to the priest. ¹⁷ And the priest shall examine him; and indeed if the sore has turned white, then the priest shall pronounce him clean who has the sore. He is clean.

¹⁸ “If the body develops a boil in the skin, and it is healed, ¹⁹ and in the place of the boil there comes a white swelling or a bright spot, reddish-white, then it shall be shown to the priest; ²⁰ and if, when the priest sees it, it indeed appears deeper than the skin, and its hair has turned white, the priest shall pronounce him unclean. It is a leprous sore which has broken out of the boil.

For today’s devotion, we’ll focus on the laws concerning a woman’s uncleanness and purification after giving birth. Leviticus 12 reminds us that ceremonial uncleanness was not always the result of sin or disobedience. In the case of a mother giving birth, the uncleanness was purely ceremonial, as was the atonement that had to be made for her “flow of blood” (12:7). By adding these regulations, God was in no way discouraging the children of Israel from having children. Instead, He was teaching them certain lessons through these external laws, lessons that were to keep them watching and waiting eagerly for the birth of a very special Child.

First, they were to pay attention to the fact that there was a difference depending on whether the woman gave birth to a boy or a girl. Her purification time was cut in half if she gave birth to a boy. Therefore, the Israelites should expect the long-promised Savior, through whom all nations would be blessed, to be a boy, and should eagerly await His birth, through whom alone can man’s spiritual uncleanness before God be removed.

Second, the uncleanness connected to a woman’s flow of blood was to remind them that there was something special about blood, a primary purpose for it, even more important than giving birth, even more important than flowing through one’s veins and keeping a person alive. They were to associate blood with atonement and the forgiveness of sins. As the writer to the Hebrews notes, “According to the law almost all things are purified with blood, and without shedding of blood there is no remission” (Heb. 9:22). In this case, the most precious blood in the world would be the blood that the Messiah would shed, for “with His own blood He entered the Most Holy Place once for all, having obtained eternal redemption. For if the blood of bulls and goats and the ashes of a heifer, sprinkling the unclean, sanctifies for the purifying of the flesh, how much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without spot to God, cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?” (Heb. 9:12-14). Let us pray: Lord God, we thank You for redeeming us, not with gold or silver, but with the holy, precious blood of Your beloved Son. Amen.

Leviticus 11:24-47 NKJV

²⁴ ‘By these you shall become unclean; whoever touches the carcass of any of them shall be unclean until evening; ²⁵ whoever carries part of the carcass of any of them shall wash his clothes and be unclean until evening: ²⁶ The carcass of any animal which divides the foot, but is not cloven-hoofed or does not chew the cud, is unclean to you. Everyone who touches it shall be unclean. ²⁷ And whatever goes on its paws, among all kinds of animals that go on all fours, those are unclean to you. Whoever touches any such carcass shall be unclean until evening. ²⁸ Whoever carries any such carcass shall wash his clothes and be unclean until evening. It is unclean to you.

²⁹ ‘These also shall be unclean to you among the creeping things that creep on the earth: the mole, the mouse, and the large lizard after its kind; ³⁰ the gecko, the monitor lizard, the sand reptile, the sand lizard, and the chameleon. ³¹ These are unclean to you among all that creep. Whoever touches them when they are dead shall be unclean until evening. ³² Anything on which any of them falls, when they are dead shall be unclean, whether it is any item of wood or clothing or skin or sack, whatever item it is, in which any work is done, it must be put in water. And it shall be unclean until evening; then it shall be clean. ³³ Any earthen vessel into which any of them falls you shall break; and whatever is in it shall be unclean: ³⁴ in such a vessel, any edible food upon which water falls becomes unclean, and any drink that may be drunk from it becomes unclean. ³⁵ And everything on which a part of any such carcass falls shall be unclean; whether it is an oven or cooking stove, it shall be broken down; for they are unclean, and shall be unclean to you. ³⁶ Nevertheless a spring or a cistern, in which there is plenty of water, shall be clean, but whatever touches any such carcass becomes unclean. ³⁷ And if a part of any such carcass falls on any planting seed which is to be sown, it remains clean. ³⁸ But if water is put on the seed, and if a part of any such carcass falls on it, it becomes unclean to you.

³⁹ ‘And if any animal which you may eat dies, he who touches its carcass shall be unclean until evening. ⁴⁰ He who eats of its carcass shall wash his clothes and be unclean until evening. He also who carries its carcass shall wash his clothes and be unclean until evening.

⁴¹ ‘And every creeping thing that creeps on the earth shall be an abomination. It shall not be eaten. ⁴² Whatever crawls on its belly, whatever goes on all fours, or whatever has many feet among all creeping things that creep on the earth—these you shall not eat, for they are an abomination. ⁴³ You shall not make yourselves abominable with any creeping thing that creeps; nor shall you make yourselves unclean with them, lest you be defiled by them. ⁴⁴ For I am the Lord your God. You shall therefore consecrate yourselves, and you shall be holy; for I am holy. Neither shall you defile yourselves with any creeping thing that creeps on the earth. ⁴⁵ For I am the Lord who brings you up out of the land of Egypt, to be your God. You shall therefore be holy, for I am holy.

⁴⁶ ‘This is the law of the animals and the birds and every living creature that moves in the waters, and of every creature that creeps on the earth, ⁴⁷ to distinguish between the unclean and the clean, and between the animal that may be eaten and the animal that may not be eaten.’ ”

Part of remaining “clean” for the Israelites was avoiding carcasses. Slaughtering (clean) animals for sacrifice, or preparing an animal to be eaten, didn’t make a person unclean, but touching the dead body of an animal that died on its own or was killed by another animal rendered an Israelite unclean.

God knew that touching a carcass was not always avoidable, so He gave them a simple procedure whereby the unclean could become clean again. A person who touched a carcass had to wash his clothes and wait until evening. Then he would be clean again. But a dead mouse, for example, would contaminate other household items it touched, so the Israelites constantly had to be diligent about keeping death away from their dwellings. Death made things unclean.

And there we see the lesson God was teaching Israel through this Levitical law. Death contaminates. It’s unnatural. It was not part of God’s original design for this world, neither for animals nor for human beings. But man’s sin brought death into the world, and all the Israelites would die one day, for they, like all people, had all sinned. But through the promise of the coming Messiah, God had rescued His people from sin and death. They were not to return to it! They were to keep themselves away from it. “For I am the LORD your God. You shall therefore consecrate yourselves, and you shall be holy; for I am holy…I am the LORD who brings you up out of the land of Egypt, to be your God. You shall therefore be holy, for I am holy.”

Under the New Testament, Christians are not made unclean by touching carcasses. But we are still called to be holy, set apart from the world, set apart from sin and death. As Paul says to the Romans, “How shall we who died to sin live any longer in it? Or do you not know that as many of us as were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death? Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life” (Rom. 6:2-4).

Let us pray: Heavenly Father, You have made us alive with Christ and set us apart as holy. Grant us Your Spirit, that we may grow in sanctification and avoid the works that lead to death. Amen.

Leviticus 11:1-23 NKJV

11 Now the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying to them, ² “Speak to the children of Israel, saying, ‘These are the animals which you may eat among all the animals that are on the earth: ³ Among the animals, whatever divides the hoof, having cloven hooves and chewing the cud—that you may eat. ⁴ Nevertheless these you shall not eat among those that chew the cud or those that have cloven hooves: the camel, because it chews the cud but does not have cloven hooves, is unclean to you; ⁵ the rock hyrax, because it chews the cud but does not have cloven hooves, is unclean to you; ⁶ the hare, because it chews the cud but does not have cloven hooves, is unclean to you; ⁷ and the swine, though it divides the hoof, having cloven hooves, yet does not chew the cud, is unclean to you. ⁸ Their flesh you shall not eat, and their carcasses you shall not touch. They are unclean to you.

⁹ ‘These you may eat of all that are in the water: whatever in the water has fins and scales, whether in the seas or in the rivers—that you may eat. ¹⁰ But all in the seas or in the rivers that do not have fins and scales, all that move in the water or any living thing which is in the water, they are an abomination to you. ¹¹ They shall be an abomination to you; you shall not eat their flesh, but you shall regard their carcasses as an abomination. ¹² Whatever in the water does not have fins or scales—that shall be an abomination to you.

¹³ ‘And these you shall regard as an abomination among the birds; they shall not be eaten, they are an abomination: the eagle, the vulture, the buzzard, ¹⁴ the kite, and the falcon after its kind; ¹⁵ every raven after its kind, ¹⁶ the ostrich, the short-eared owl, the sea gull, and the hawk after its kind; ¹⁷ the little owl, the fisher owl, and the screech owl; ¹⁸ the white owl, the jackdaw, and the carrion vulture; ¹⁹ the stork, the heron after its kind, the hoopoe, and the bat.

²⁰ ‘All flying insects that creep on all fours shall be an abomination to you. ²¹ Yet these you may eat of every flying insect that creeps on all fours: those which have jointed legs above their feet with which to leap on the earth. ²² These you may eat: the locust after its kind, the destroying locust after its kind, the cricket after its kind, and the grasshopper after its kind. ²³ But all other flying insects which have four feet shall be an abomination to you.

One of the main purposes of the Law of Moses was to create and maintain a separation between Israel and the other nations, so that Israel might be reminded every day that the Lord had set them apart from the world to be His own special people. While many of the Levitical laws served to accomplish this obvious, outward separation, two laws stood out in a very practical way. One was the Sabbath law, forcing the Israelites to rest on one day out of seven while the rest of the world worked away. The other was the law concerning clean and unclean foods.

In today’s reading, God defines for the Israelites which foods were clean and unclean. Clean land animals both had cloven hooves and chewed the cud. Clean sea creatures had both fins and scales. Clean birds were not birds of prey or birds that feed on carcasses of dead animals. Clean insects were the ones that hopped. All other creatures were to be “an abomination to you.”

In what sense an abomination? There was nothing inherently or morally bad about the unclean animals. Since the days of Noah after the Flood, God had made all animals potential food sources for mankind, and God had created all creatures, calling them all “good” in the beginning. Likewise, there was nothing inherently bad about the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. But just as God had branded that tree as “off limits” to Adam and Eve, so He now branded the unclean animals as “off limits” to Israel.  They were to be viewed as detestable by the Israelites simply because, under the Mosaic Covenant, God had labeled them as such, forcing the Israelites to think carefully each and every day, so that their every decision, even what foods they should or shouldn’t eat, was in line with God’s Word.

Under the New Testament, Christians are to be separate from the world, too, but our separation is not a matter of food and drink. It is the much more important separation of faith in Christ instead of unbelief, cherishing God’s Word instead of dismissing it, righteous living instead of sinful living, living for God and our neighbor instead of living for ourselves, speaking the truth instead of fostering the lie. In all these things, may your life be a testimony to the world that God has set you apart! Let us pray: O Lord, sanctify us by Your truth. Your Word is truth! Amen.

Leviticus 10:1-20 NKJV

10 Then Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron, each took his censer and put fire in it, put incense on it, and offered profane fire before the Lord, which He had not commanded them. ² So fire went out from the Lord and devoured them, and they died before the Lord. ³ And Moses said to Aaron, “This is what the Lord spoke, saying:

‘By those who come near Me
I must be regarded as holy;
And before all the people
I must be glorified.’ ”

So Aaron held his peace.

⁴ Then Moses called Mishael and Elzaphan, the sons of Uzziel the uncle of Aaron, and said to them, “Come near, carry your brethren from before the sanctuary out of the camp.” ⁵ So they went near and carried them by their tunics out of the camp, as Moses had said.

⁶ And Moses said to Aaron, and to Eleazar and Ithamar, his sons, “Do not uncover your heads nor tear your clothes, lest you die, and wrath come upon all the people. But let your brethren, the whole house of Israel, bewail the burning which the Lord has kindled. ⁷ You shall not go out from the door of the tabernacle of meeting, lest you die, for the anointing oil of the Lord is upon you.” And they did according to the word of Moses.

⁸ Then the Lord spoke to Aaron, saying: ⁹ “Do not drink wine or intoxicating drink, you, nor your sons with you, when you go into the tabernacle of meeting, lest you die. It shall be a statute forever throughout your generations, ¹⁰ that you may distinguish between holy and unholy, and between unclean and clean, ¹¹ and that you may teach the children of Israel all the statutes which the Lord has spoken to them by the hand of Moses.”

¹² And Moses spoke to Aaron, and to Eleazar and Ithamar, his sons who were left: “Take the grain offering that remains of the offerings made by fire to the Lord, and eat it without leaven beside the altar; for it is most holy. ¹³ You shall eat it in a holy place, because it is your due and your sons’ due, of the sacrifices made by fire to the Lord; for so I have been commanded. ¹⁴ The breast of the wave offering and the thigh of the heave offering you shall eat in a clean place, you, your sons, and your daughters with you; for they are your due and your sons’ due, which are given from the sacrifices of peace offerings of the children of Israel. ¹⁵ The thigh of the heave offering and the breast of the wave offering they shall bring with the offerings of fat made by fire, to offer as a wave offering before the Lord. And it shall be yours and your sons’ with you, by a statute forever, as the Lord has commanded.”

¹⁶ Then Moses made careful inquiry about the goat of the sin offering, and there it was—burned up. And he was angry with Eleazar and Ithamar, the sons of Aaron who were left, saying, ¹⁷ “Why have you not eaten the sin offering in a holy place, since it is most holy, and God has given it to you to bear the guilt of the congregation, to make atonement for them before the Lord? ¹⁸ See! Its blood was not brought inside the holy place; indeed you should have eaten it in a holy place, as I commanded.”

¹⁹ And Aaron said to Moses, “Look, this day they have offered their sin offering and their burnt offering before the Lord, and such things have befallen me! If I had eaten the sin offering today, would it have been accepted in the sight of the Lord?” ²⁰ So when Moses heard that, he was content.

What crime did the sons of Aaron commit? They took it upon themselves to enter the Lord’s holy tabernacle and to offer incense on the incense altar at a time and in a manner that God had never prescribed. You may recall the meticulous designs and procedures God had given to Moses with regard to the tabernacle, its furnishings, and all the priestly duties that were to be performed there. The priests, and especially Aaron and his sons, were given the highest calling in Israel: to carry out God’s commands for the ministry of the tabernacle, to the letter, and thus to teach the people to know God rightly and to tremble before His word. When Nadab and Abihu failed to be an example of obedience, God made an example of them.

Even after this severe judgment, Aaron and his two remaining sons were expected to show, by their example, that they accepted the Lord’s punishment. They were to continue ministering in the temple, which they did, although they were unable to eat the meat of the sacrifices that belonged to them, due to their grief. The Lord did not hold this against them.

This is one of the texts that the devil likes to twist, trying to make it seem as though God were too strict, too judgmental, trying to convince people that they are more righteous than God. But we must not give in to the devil’s lies. The Lord had given clear instructions to His chosen priests, and His chosen priests decided to do their own thing, as if they didn’t need to listen to Him. They exalted themselves above God’s Word, and, as Jesus says repeatedly, “Whoever exalts himself will be humbled.”

If you thought God was kidding about His commandments, He isn’t. See how serious He is! See how much He expects of His ministers, because they are the ones who teach the people, by word and deed, to understand and to obey God’s Word! If the teacher teaches falsely, then the people will believe falsely, and that can have deadly consequences for everyone. Likewise, if you thought you could justify yourself by keeping God’s Law, you can’t. It’s far too strict. Instead, look to Christ alone for God’s acceptance, and you will have it!

Let us pray: Lord God, truly You are a consuming fire. But You have given Your Son to atone for our sins. Forgive us for His sake, and teach us to tremble at Your Word. Amen.

Psalm 87:1-7 NKJV

87 His foundation is in the holy mountains.
² The Lord loves the gates of Zion
More than all the dwellings of Jacob.
³ Glorious things are spoken of you,
O city of God! Selah

⁴ “I will make mention of Rahab and Babylon to those who know Me;
Behold, O Philistia and Tyre, with Ethiopia:
‘This one was born there.’ ”

⁵ And of Zion it will be said,
“This one and that one were born in her;
And the Most High Himself shall establish her.”
⁶ The Lord will record,
When He registers the peoples:
“This one was born there.” Selah

⁷ Both the singers and the players on instruments say,
“All my springs are in you.”

Psalm 87 is a song about God’s deep and fervent love for “His city,” which, in Old Testament times, was called “Zion.” Properly speaking, Zion was a hill within the larger city of Jerusalem. But the name is almost always used to represent the whole city, the “city of God,” which symbolized the whole people of Israel whom God had redeemed from slavery in Egypt and adopted as His own son. To be born in Zion, where God had placed His temple and His altar, placed a person within God’s holy Church, and thus placed him above all the nations of the earth. Yes, the nations had reason to be jealous of those who were born in Zion. Such love God had for them! Such earthly and heavenly blessings God had promised them!

It’s no wonder, then, that Jesus wept and grieved for the city of God during Holy Week (cf. Matthew 23:37). After a thousand years of God’s devotion to His beloved city, it turned out that the city of God failed to love Him back. Instead, they were about to crucify the Son of God and reject Him forever. And, therefore, instead of being established by God forever, the city of God would be rejected by God forever.

But the true city of God is not the city of Jerusalem. It’s a spiritual city, without geographical borders. It’s a city into which people are not born, but reborn, when they are baptized in the name of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. It’s the kingdom of God throughout all the world, the Church catholic, where the Lord Christ reigns in the hearts of believers, and feeds and governs His people with Word and Sacrament, preached, applied, and administered by the ministers He has sent. Over this city God still rejoices. Of this city God still approves. And to this city God still makes a promise, to establish it forever, for the gates of Hades will not prevail against it.

“Glorious things are spoken of you, O city of God!” Yes, the Son of God loved you and gave Himself for you, and has pledged you to Himself as His beloved bride. Give thanks to God for giving you rebirth into His city, and make it your life’s purpose to remain in it, and to gather others into it. Let us pray: Lord, we rejoice in You, even as You have rejoiced in us. Keep us in Your city forever, for Jesus’ sake. Amen.

Psalm 83:1-18 NKJV

Asaph, on inspiration from the Holy Spirit, pleads with God not to be silent, not to hold His peace, and not to be still. He laments that God’s enemies are crafty, that they hate God, and have lifted up their heads against the Lord.

As you have heard a few times in these devotions, the psalms teach you how to pray; they give voice to the many concerns that you have as a Christian in this evil world. Through the psalms – and today’s is another good example – Asaph almost seems to be informing God of things He may not know about: the enemies are crafty, they consult together, they rally against Him. God most certainly knows all these things, for He is omniscient, and nothing ever surprises Him. And neither does He need you or anyone else to supposedly give Him information about anything.

But the psalms teach you to call out to God in all things – not, of course, for God’s sake, but for yours. Jesus Himself taught His disciples and you to pray in all circumstances. God knows that it is good for you to voice your concerns, grievances, and fears to Him, for prayer is the marvelous gift God gives to you to “let it all out” and cry to Him who is the only one that can and will hear you and answer according to His good and gracious will for your life. I John 5:14 says, “Now this is the confidence that we have in Him, that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us.” And in the Our Father, Jesus gave you the very words to use in prayer. Further, Luther teaches us that “I should be certain that these petitions are pleasing to our Father in heaven and are heard by Him; for He Himself has commanded us to pray in this way and has promised to hear us” (Small Catechism, Lord’s Prayer, Conclusion).

It is always right to ask God. It is always right to seek His counsel, and to read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest His Word. He loves you in Christ and will hear and answer according to His will for you.

Let us pray: Lord Jesus, help me to pray more fervently and in true faith to You for all my fears and needs. Amen.

Leviticus 9:1-24 NKJV

9 It came to pass on the eighth day that Moses called Aaron and his sons and the elders of Israel. ² And he said to Aaron, “Take for yourself a young bull as a sin offering and a ram as a burnt offering, without blemish, and offer them before the Lord. ³ And to the children of Israel you shall speak, saying, ‘Take a kid of the goats as a sin offering, and a calf and a lamb, both of the first year, without blemish, as a burnt offering, ⁴ also a bull and a ram as peace offerings, to sacrifice before the Lord, and a grain offering mixed with oil; for today the Lord will appear to you.’ ”

⁵ So they brought what Moses commanded before the tabernacle of meeting. And all the congregation drew near and stood before the Lord. ⁶ Then Moses said, “This is the thing which the Lord commanded you to do, and the glory of the Lord will appear to you.” ⁷ And Moses said to Aaron, “Go to the altar, offer your sin offering and your burnt offering, and make atonement for yourself and for the people. Offer the offering of the people, and make atonement for them, as the Lord commanded.”

⁸ Aaron therefore went to the altar and killed the calf of the sin offering, which was for himself. ⁹ Then the sons of Aaron brought the blood to him. And he dipped his finger in the blood, put it on the horns of the altar, and poured the blood at the base of the altar. ¹⁰ But the fat, the kidneys, and the fatty lobe from the liver of the sin offering he burned on the altar, as the Lord had commanded Moses. ¹¹ The flesh and the hide he burned with fire outside the camp.

¹² And he killed the burnt offering; and Aaron’s sons presented to him the blood, which he sprinkled all around on the altar. ¹³ Then they presented the burnt offering to him, with its pieces and head, and he burned them on the altar. ¹⁴ And he washed the entrails and the legs, and burned them with the burnt offering on the altar.

¹⁵ Then he brought the people’s offering, and took the goat, which was the sin offering for the people, and killed it and offered it for sin, like the first one. ¹⁶ And he brought the burnt offering and offered it according to the prescribed manner. ¹⁷ Then he brought the grain offering, took a handful of it, and burned it on the altar, besides the burnt sacrifice of the morning.

¹⁸ He also killed the bull and the ram as sacrifices of peace offerings, which were for the people. And Aaron’s sons presented to him the blood, which he sprinkled all around on the altar, ¹⁹ and the fat from the bull and the ram—the fatty tail, what covers the entrails and the kidneys, and the fatty lobe attached to the liver; ²⁰ and they put the fat on the breasts. Then he burned the fat on the altar; ²¹ but the breasts and the right thigh Aaron waved as a wave offering before the Lord, as Moses had commanded.

²² Then Aaron lifted his hand toward the people, blessed them, and came down from offering the sin offering, the burnt offering, and peace offerings. ²³ And Moses and Aaron went into the tabernacle of meeting, and came out and blessed the people. Then the glory of the Lord appeared to all the people, ²⁴ and fire came out from before the Lord and consumed the burnt offering and the fat on the altar. When all the people saw it, they shouted and fell on their faces.

The faithful reader of God’s Word understands that the Old Testament priestly system, inaugurated here in Leviticus, was completely fulfilled by Christ through His own perfect keeping of the Law and by His sacrificial and substitutionary death on the cross to atone for all sin.  All the rites and sacrifices proscribed by God through Moses to Aaron and his sons served to point God’s people to the fulfillment of them all in Christ. And it’s important to note that it wasn’t the sacrifices and rites themselves that brought about atonement for sin, but rather, as it always has been, faith and belief in the God who commanded them. As it was said of Abraham, he “believed God and it was accounted/credited to him as righteousness” (Rom 4:3).

As Moses inaugurated the OT service, Jesus inaugurated the Divine Service in the new covenant. He was, one could say, its ritual founder. Christ brought the OT service to its divine goal which was open access to God and His presence in the heavenly sanctuary.

Jesus, who was made the perfect Priest through His sufferings inaugurated the new and living way into His Father’s presence. By His presence and activity as High Priest, our Lord changes the orientation and shape of the Divine Service. Since He has made satisfaction for the sins of the world by His sacrifice of atonement, there is now no need for any further acts of atonement for those involved in the Divine Service.

Christ atoned for the sins of all mankind. He now offers full forgiveness to all who, by faith alone, believe in Him and His work on the cross. Receive Christ in all the ways He wants you to have Him – Baptism, Absolution, Gospel, and Supper – so that your faith my be strengthened and that you may receive a constant flow of forgiveness until you are received into the life of the world to come.

Let us pray: Dear Jesus, thank You for fulfilling all the Old Testament rituals and sacrifices by Your own sacrifice on the cross.  In Your mercy, keep me in that one true faith unto life everlasting. Amen.

Leviticus 8:18-36 NKJV

¹⁸ Then he brought the ram as the burnt offering. And Aaron and his sons laid their hands on the head of the ram, ¹⁹ and Moses killed it. Then he sprinkled the blood all around on the altar. ²⁰ And he cut the ram into pieces; and Moses burned the head, the pieces, and the fat. ²¹ Then he washed the entrails and the legs in water. And Moses burned the whole ram on the altar. It was a burnt sacrifice for a sweet aroma, an offering made by fire to the Lord, as the Lord had commanded Moses.

²² And he brought the second ram, the ram of consecration. Then Aaron and his sons laid their hands on the head of the ram, ²³ and Moses killed it. Also he took some of its blood and put it on the tip of Aaron’s right ear, on the thumb of his right hand, and on the big toe of his right foot. ²⁴ Then he brought Aaron’s sons. And Moses put some of the blood on the tips of their right ears, on the thumbs of their right hands, and on the big toes of their right feet. And Moses sprinkled the blood all around on the altar. ²⁵ Then he took the fat and the fat tail, all the fat that was on the entrails, the fatty lobe attached to the liver, the two kidneys and their fat, and the right thigh; ²⁶ and from the basket of unleavened bread that was before the Lord he took one unleavened cake, a cake of bread anointed with oil, and one wafer, and put them on the fat and on the right thigh; ²⁷ and he put all these in Aaron’s hands and in his sons’ hands, and waved them as a wave offering before the Lord. ²⁸ Then Moses took them from their hands and burned them on the altar, on the burnt offering. They were consecration offerings for a sweet aroma. That was an offering made by fire to the Lord. ²⁹ And Moses took the breast and waved it as a wave offering before the Lord. It was Moses’ part of the ram of consecration, as the Lord had commanded Moses.

³⁰ Then Moses took some of the anointing oil and some of the blood which was on the altar, and sprinkled it on Aaron, on his garments, on his sons, and on the garments of his sons with him; and he consecrated Aaron, his garments, his sons, and the garments of his sons with him.

³¹ And Moses said to Aaron and his sons, “Boil the flesh at the door of the tabernacle of meeting, and eat it there with the bread that is in the basket of consecration offerings, as I commanded, saying, ‘Aaron and his sons shall eat it.’ ³² What remains of the flesh and of the bread you shall burn with fire. ³³ And you shall not go outside the door of the tabernacle of meeting for seven days, until the days of your consecration are ended. For seven days he shall consecrate you. ³⁴ As he has done this day, so the Lord has commanded to do, to make atonement for you. ³⁵ Therefore you shall stay at the door of the tabernacle of meeting day and night for seven days, and keep the charge of the Lord, so that you may not die; for so I have been commanded.” ³⁶ So Aaron and his sons did all the things that the Lord had commanded by the hand of Moses.

The rites and ceremonies of the ordination of the first Old Testament priests continue to be revealed in today’s reading. Of special note is the application of the ram’s blood on certain body parts of Aaron’s sons. In this unique act of purification, they were specifically cleansed for their service as priests. By the purification of these body parts, the priests were purified so completely that they were qualified to share in the Lord’s holiness, without desecrating it by their impurity. The right ear of each candidate was purified to hear and obey the Word of the Lord. The right thumb of each candidate was purified to handle the holy things of God. The right big toe of each candidate was purified to walk on holy ground. This rite of ordination involved the Lord’s admission of the priests into His presence and His acceptance of them as priests.

The Lord makes clear here in Leviticus 8 that His priests are not only specifically chosen by Him, but also that those same priests are to do exactly as God has ordered, and not to deviate from those orders in any way. At the very least we understand that God wants things done orderly while worshipping Him so that God’s people are rightly focused on Him. And He wants only men – not all, but some – to carry out the rites and sacrifices appropriate to their Office as priests.

To be sure, the rites and sacrifices given to and carried out by the OT priests all pointed to and were fulfilled by Christ Himself as the Great High Priest through His Passion, suffering, death, and resurrection as He atoned for the sins of the world. Hebrews 9:11 states, “But Christ came as High Priest of the good things to come, with the greater and more perfect tabernacle not made with hands, that is, not of this creation.”  Christ continues to serve you through your pastor/priest in pronouncing forgiveness in Holy Absolution, washing you clean in Holy Baptism, proclaiming Christ crucified for you in the preaching, and delivering His own body and blood in, with, and under the bread and wine in the Supper

Let us pray: Lord Jesus, thank You for your sacrifice for my sins. Strengthen my faith in You alone. Amen.

Leviticus 8:1-17 NKJV

8 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: ² “Take Aaron and his sons with him, and the garments, the anointing oil, a bull as the sin offering, two rams, and a basket of unleavened bread; ³ and gather all the congregation together at the door of the tabernacle of meeting.”

⁴ So Moses did as the Lord commanded him. And the congregation was gathered together at the door of the tabernacle of meeting. ⁵ And Moses said to the congregation, “This is what the Lord commanded to be done.”

⁶ Then Moses brought Aaron and his sons and washed them with water. ⁷ And he put the tunic on him, girded him with the sash, clothed him with the robe, and put the ephod on him; and he girded him with the intricately woven band of the ephod, and with it tied the ephod on him. ⁸ Then he put the breastplate on him, and he put the Urim and the Thummim in the breastplate. ⁹ And he put the turban on his head. Also on the turban, on its front, he put the golden plate, the holy crown, as the Lord had commanded Moses.

¹⁰ Also Moses took the anointing oil, and anointed the tabernacle and all that was in it, and consecrated them. ¹¹ He sprinkled some of it on the altar seven times, anointed the altar and all its utensils, and the laver and its base, to consecrate them. ¹² And he poured some of the anointing oil on Aaron’s head and anointed him, to consecrate him.

¹³ Then Moses brought Aaron’s sons and put tunics on them, girded them with sashes, and put hats on them, as the Lord had commanded Moses.

¹⁴ And he brought the bull for the sin offering. Then Aaron and his sons laid their hands on the head of the bull for the sin offering, ¹⁵ and Moses killed it. Then he took the blood, and put some on the horns of the altar all around with his finger, and purified the altar. And he poured the blood at the base of the altar, and consecrated it, to make atonement for it. ¹⁶ Then he took all the fat that was on the entrails, the fatty lobe attached to the liver, and the two kidneys with their fat, and Moses burned them on the altar. ¹⁷ But the bull, its hide, its flesh, and its offal, he burned with fire outside the camp, as the Lord had commanded Moses.

The next few days of readings focus on the ordination of the Old Testament priests. As the divinely appointed founder of the OT divine service, Moses conducted the inaugural rite of ordination for Aaron and his sons. Moses’ instructions are from God Himself. Even though he was not a priest, Moses officiated in this rite as the divine lawgiver and so established the priesthood as an institution in Israel. Even though he did all this only once, his actions set a precedent for all subsequent rites of ordination.

The members of the congregation were present for the ordination because the priests were ordained to represent them before God. God is the most important agent because He ultimately is the one who ordained the priestly candidates. He gave the instructions that are carried out in the ordination rite. He authorized the priests to minister on His behalf to Israel, and to represent them to Him.

Dr. John Kleinig, in his Leviticus commentary, writes: “Through his anointing, the high priest received the right of access to the tabernacle, the altar, and the basin. Through the anointing of their vestments, the priests received their right of access to the altar and the food from the altar. Hence, each day during the week of ordination, the daily ritual for their ordination ended with a sacred meal in the sanctuary” (pp. 201-202).

God still calls a man to the Office of the Holy Ministry through the means of a congregation of His people. No Call, no Office. When a man has been put into the Office, he is therefore obligated to speak and act for God – He must preach God’s Word rightly and administer the Sacraments faithfully, so that God can gift and bless His people. The Office of the Holy Ministry, therefore, is Christ Himself coming to you to forgive the sins you repent of, and to strengthen your faith by virtue of your Baptism as well as His body and blood given and shed for you for the forgiveness of your sins.

Let us pray: Lord Jesus, thank You for the pastoral Office through which You work and by which You bless Your people. Amen.