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Ask a Questionall the tithe of the land, whether of the seed of the land--This law gave the sanction of divine authority to an ancient usage (Ge14:20; 28:22). The whole produce of the land was subjected to the...
The daily sacrifice of a lamb is chiefly referred to. The priest must take care of the fire upon the altar. The first fire upon the altar came from heaven, ch. 9:24; by keeping that up...
but his inwards and his legs shall he wash in water, &c.--This part of the ceremony was symbolical of the inward purity, and the holy walk, that became acceptable worshippers. a sweet savour unto...
a meat offering of thy first-fruits--From the mention of "green ears," this seems to have been a voluntary offering before the harvest--the ears being prepared in the favorite way of Eastern...
if a soul swear--a rash oath, without duly considering the nature and consequences of the oath, perhaps inconsiderately binding himself to do anything wrong, or neglecting to perform a vow to do...
Take Aaron and his sons--The consecration of Aaron and his sons had been ordered long before (Ex 29:1-46), but it is now described with all the details of the ceremonial, as it was gone through...
Aaron lifted up his hand...and blessed them--The pronouncing of a benediction on the people assembled in the court was a necessary part of the high priest's duty, and the formula in which it was to...
Uncover not your heads--They who were ordered to carry out the two bodies, being engaged in their sacred duties, were forbidden to remove their turbans, in conformity with the usual customs of...
the camel--It does to a certain extent divide the hoof, for the foot consists of two large parts, but the division is not complete; the toes rest upon an elastic pad on which the animal goes; as a...
whatsoever man...hunteth--It was customary with heathen sportsmen, when they killed any game or venison, to pour out the blood as a libation to the god of the chase. The Israelites, on the...
I...have separated you from other people--Their selection from the rest of the nations was for the all-important end of preserving the knowledge and worship of the true God amid the universal...
there shall no stranger eat thereof--The interdict recorded (Le22:10) is repeated to show its stringency. All the Hebrews, even the nearest neighbors of the priest, the members of his family...
Six days shall work be done: but the seventh day is the sabbath of rest--(See on Ex 20:8). The Sabbath has the precedence given to it, and it was to be "a holy convocation," observed by families...
thou shalt not make clean riddance of the corners of thy field when thou reapest, &c.--(See on Le 19:9). The repetition of this law here probably arose from the priests reminding the people, at the...
he that killeth any man shall surely be put to death--These verses contain a repetition of some other laws, relating to offenses of a social nature, the penalties for which were to be inflicted,...
Ye shall not oppress one another, but thou shalt fear thy God--This, which is the same as Le 25:14, related to the sale or purchase of possessions and the duty of paying an honest and equitable...
when a man shall sanctify his house to be holy unto the Lord, &c.--In this case, the house having been valued by the priest and sold, the proceeds of the sale were to be dedicated to the sanctuary....
Our houses, lands, cattle, and all our substance, must be used to the glory of God. It is acceptable to him that a portion be given to support his worship, and to promote his cause. But God would...
part it in pieces, and pour oil thereon--Pouring oil on bread is a common practice among Eastern people, who are fond of broken bread dipped in oil, butter, and milk. Oil only was used in the meat...
Moses called Mishael and Elzaphan--The removal of the two corpses for burial without the camp would spread the painful intelligence throughout all the congregation; and the remembrance of so...
the coney--not the rabbit, for it is not found in Palestine or Arabia, but the hyrax, a little animal of the size and general shape of the rabbit, but differing from it in several essential...
All fowls that creep, &c.--By "fowls" here are to be understood all creatures with wings and "going upon all fours," not a restriction to animals which have exactly four feet, because many...
the weasel--rather, the mole. the mouse--From its diminutive size it is placed among the reptiles instead of the quadrupeds. the tortoise--a lizard, resembling very nearly in shape, and in the hard...
the days of her purifying--Though the occasion was of a festive character, yet the sacrifices appointed were not a peace offering, but a burnt offering and sin offering, in order to impress the...
bald...forehead bald--The falling off of the hair, when the baldness commences in the back part of the head, is another symptom which creates a suspicion of leprosy. But it was not of itself a...
if he be poor, and cannot get so much; then he shall take one lamb--a kind and considerate provision for an extension of the privilege to lepers of the poorer class. The blood of their smaller...
the vessel of earth, that he toucheth which hath the issue, shall be broken--It is thought that the pottery of the Israelites, like the earthenware jars in which the Egyptians kept their water, was...
every soul that eateth that which died of itself (Ex 22:31; Le 7:24; Ac 15:20), be unclean until the even--that is, from the moment of his discovering his fault until the evening. This law,...
if a stranger sojourn with thee in your land, ye shall not vex him--The Israelites were to hold out encouragement to strangers to settle among them, that they might be brought to the knowledge and...
if a man eat of the holy thing unwittingly--A common Israelite might unconsciously partake of what had been offered as tithes, first-fruits, &c., and on discovering his unintentional error, he was...