Leviticus & Sacrifice
Religious Studies: KS3, topic 1.1.13
Leviticus and Sacrifice
The Israelites were to become “a Kingdom of priests and a holy nation” {Exodus 19}. The Israelites were destined to set up a model country based on God’s laws in the Holy Land of Israel. Some of these laws are written in the book of Leviticus, part of the Torah (Jewish Scripture).
The Torah
- The laws in the Torah are rules about everyday life as well as duties to show loyalty to God (like prayer, fasting & studying scripture).
- God wanted the Israelites to be “Holy”.
- Holy means different things to different people.
- Scholars say that holy means being self-controlled.
- God wanted his people to live normally, to eat, drink, marry, have families, work and earn money.
- At the same time, all this must be done with control and within the rules set by God.
Leviticus
- The third book of the Torah, Leviticus, teaches very specific laws to do with animal sacrifices.
- A person who sinned deliberately, had to make one kind of sacrifice.
- A person who sinned accidentally had to make a different kind of sacrifice.
- If a person wanted to thank God for good fortune they would bring another kind of sacrifice.
Sacrifice
- Sacrifice can be hard for us to understand - the idea of taking something of value and giving it away.
- In fact, the Hebrew word Korban (which is often translated as sacrifice) means to come close.
Sacrifice rituals
- When you love someone and share what you have with them, you build a relationship and feel closer to them.
- Leviticus doesn't mean that God wants animal sacrifices.
- It is about the giving of valuable things to others.
- Through these rituals, a person could be forgiven by God, strengthening their connection to God.
Test yourself on Leviticus & Sacrifice
What is the key focus of the teaching in Leviticus?