LEVITICUS 1-2: Yesterday at the end of Exodus, the worship in the completed and dedicated tabernacle was started. Leviticus is a continuation of Exodus, in the same way that Exodus is a continuation of Genesis. Leviticus also starts with the word 'And'. The title once again comes from Latin Vulgate which was based on the name in the Septuagint. So the name does not come from the Hebrew. Because of the name, many think that this book is a handbook only for the priests. Not so. Wenham (from Constable) states: "It would be wrong, however, to describe Leviticus simply as a manual for priests. It is equally, if not more, concerned with the part the laity should play in worship. Many of the regulations explain what the layman should sacrifice. They tell him when to go to the sanctuary, what to bring, and what he may expect the priest to do when he arrives. Most of the laws apply to all Israel: only a few sections specifically concern the priests alone, e.g., chs. 21—22. The lay orientation of the legislation is particularly noticeable in ch. 23, where the whole emphasis lies on the days that must be observed as days of sabbath rest." Many New Testament concepts are foreshadowed in this book, such as the seriousness of sin in God's sight, the necessity of atonement of sin, the holiness of God, and the necessity of a mediator between God and Man. H.C. Mears says, "In Genesis we see humanity ruined, in Exodus, humanity redeemed, and in Leviticus, humanity worshipping." One can't read this book without being thankful to Christ Jesus for His sacrifice which fulfills the incredibly detailed laws about sacrifice for us. PSALM 10: E.C. Olsen says this Psalm has "a triple theme: the silence of God, the despair of the humble, and the pride of the wicked." This Psalm doesn't give us all the answers, but we know God understands how we feel about these things. LUKE 8: At the end of Luke 7 we read about how Jesus was anointed by a sinful woman, and how Jesus answered the silent criticism of Simon, the pharisee. NLT Translation notes: Lev. 1:12 Then [you/0] cut the animal in pieces, and the priests will arrange the pieces of the offering, including the head and fat, on the wood burning on the altar. [Modern readers tend to think that the priests did all the messy bloody work. Not so!] ==== Ps. 10:2 The wicked arrogantly hunt down the poor. [Why not let/Let] them be caught in the evil they plan for others[?!/.] 4 The wicked are too proud to seek [You, O God!// God.] They seem to think that [You are dead!//God is dead.] [Compare with CEV on using 2nd person here.] 8 They lurk in ambush in the villages, waiting to murder innocent people [(like me)!//.] 10 Their helpless victims [(like me)//0] are crushed; they fall beneath the strength of the wicked. 12 Arise, O L ORD ! Punish the wicked, O God! Do not ignore [us helpless people/the helpless people]! 13 Why do the wicked get away with despising [You, O//0] God? They think, "God will never call us to account." 14 But you [really do//0] see the trouble and grief they cause. You take note of it and [will/0] punish them. The helpless put their trust in you. You [really do] defend the orphans[!/.] 15 [Oh, break//Break] the arms of these wicked, evil people! Go after them until the last one is destroyed. 17 LORD , you [really do//0] know the hopes of the helpless!. Surely you will hear [our/their] cries and comfort [us/them]. ==== Luk. 8:7 Other seed fell among thorns that grew up [with the tender young plants and choked them out.//it and choked out the tender plants.] 8 Still other seed fell on fertile soil. This seed grew and produced a crop that was a hundred times as much as had been planted!" When he had said this, he called out, ["You people have ears to hear with, don't you?! Well then, listen and understand!"//Anyone with ears to hear should listen and understand.] [Seed is a collective noun, therefore plural!] 9 His disciples asked him what this parable meant. 10 He replied, "You are permitted to understand the secrets a of the Kingdom of God. But I use parables to teach the others so that the Scriptures might be fulfilled [where God said//0]: 'When they look, they won't really see. When they hear, they won't understand.' 25 Then he asked them, "[Whatever happened to the idea of your believing in Me?!"//Where is your faith?] The disciples were terrified and amazed. "[What kind of man is this?!//Who is this man?]" they asked each other. "When he gives a command, even the wind and waves obey him!" 30 Jesus demanded, "What is your name?" "[Batalion/Legion]," he replied, for he was filled with many demons. 32 There happened to be a large herd of pigs feeding on the hillside nearby, and the demons begged him to let them enter into the pigs. [0/So] Jesus gave them permission. [The Greek 'kai' (and) is frequently left untranslated on purpose. I definitely don't like the addition of a 'So' logical connector here.] 34 When the herdsmen saw [what happened//it], they fled to the nearby town and the surrounding countryside, spreading the news as they ran. 35 People rushed out to see what had happened. A crowd soon gathered around Jesus, and they saw the man who had been freed from the demons. He was sitting at Jesus' feet, fully clothed and perfectly sane, and they [all we overcome with fear//all became afraid//were afraid]. 48 "[0//Daughter]," he said to her, "[You are now healed because you believe fully in Me.//your faith has made you well.] Go in peace." [Jesus does call her 'daughter' in Greek. But people can often get the wrong impression from that. One common wrong implication would be that this woman was younger than Jesus. If the translator changes to something like 'woman', then there are other problems with wrong implications. Other options I have thought of sound unnatural. For naturalness sake, it sounds best and most natural to me to just leave the word out.] 50 But when Jesus heard what had happened, he said to Jairus, "Don't be afraid. [Just keep believing fully in Me//Just have faith], and she will be healed." Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
