A Pilgrim's Search

Introduction

A casual reading of the Pentateuch leaves one with the impression that, for some unexplained reason, God created a line of priests to mediate between Him and His rescued Hebrews, and laid out in meticulous detail an intricate and fully-developed sacrificial system, tabernacle, and culture.

A more careful reading, however, at the very least calls into question the God-ordained pedigree of these details and practices.  Scholars, theologians, Rabbis and regular Bible readers have noted these issues for centuries[i]^,[ii].  And, we know that we have biblical textual scholars telling us that most of the Pentateuch was authored between the 8^th and 6^th centuries BC, not at the foot of Sinai, a period during which the first temple was already operational and had been for hundreds of years.

We’ll study several texts that appear to display evidence of (late) revisions to earlier texts, some specifically to insert temple sacrifice as an ongoing prescription from YHWH.

We’ll also thoughtfully consider what it may mean if we do, in fact, find evidence of such editing.  I don’t think it is nearly as devastating as some may initially think.  But it does require a somewhat more nuanced perspective on “God’s Word” than most of us have grown up with.  (This piece serves as a kind of “Part II” to my earlier “Did God Want a Temple, Sacrifices or a Monarchy?”)

Disclaimer

Before continuing, I should first state my views on the origins of the Hebrew Bible plainly.  First, I believe all of the Bible was prompted by God, YHWH.  And while He didn’t dictate to some ancient stenographers, He did prompt (or at least permit) its authors to write what they ended up writing.  How do we know this?  Because we can hold it in our hands today.  If God didn’t want said what is said, it wouldn’t say it.  And, I believe the Pentateuch was written by several authors of different political and religious backgrounds, certainly not solely by Moses.  If this offends your beliefs or sensibilities, by all means, don’t continue reading.

Two Versions of God

In reading the Hebrew Bible one gets the distinct impression that there are two dramatically different versions of God, and His will for Israel, being portrayed. 

The Levitical[iii] God

In the first version, God dictates an elaborate, meticulous set of ritual procedures, physical objects (e.g. the tabernacle and its furnishings, the Ark, etc.), offerings, ritual hygiene practices, allowable foods, festivals, etc. that will comprise the religion of Israel.  In this version, God continually threatens the people with His judgment for their disobedience, while displaying virtually no interest in their well being or attitude toward Him and one another (i.e. “heart”).  We see this version also preeminently concerned with conveying God’s holiness, with documenting the genealogy of Israel’s key figures, and being quite compulsive about emphasizing the land promises made by God to Abram and Israel’s Fathers.

As a classic example of this version, have a look at Exodus 34:10-15

[10] And he said, “Behold, I am making a covenant. Before all your people I will do marvels, such as have not been created in all the earth or in any nation. And all the people among whom you are shall see the work of the LORD, for it is an awesome thing that I will do with you.

[11] “Observe what I command you this day. Behold, I will drive out before you the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites. [12] Take care, lest you make a covenant with the inhabitants of the land to which you go, lest it become a snare in your midst. [13] You shall tear down their altars and break their pillars and cut down their Asherim [14] (for you shall worship no other god, for the LORD, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God), [15] lest you make a covenant with the inhabitants of the land, and when they whore after their gods and sacrifice to their gods and you are invited, you eat of his sacrifice,

Notice the emphasis on God’s superiority and holiness, and on His particular instructions for what not to do.  (It’s worth noting that all this instruction narrative is happening before Moses goes up the mountain to get the second copy of the ten words following the molten calf incident.  It’s almost as if to the author of this version of God’s nature and will, the Ten Commandments are of secondary importance.)

The Non-Levitical God

The other version of God, His nature, and will for His people, is typically identified with the book of Deuteronomy in as much as His nature and heart are most clearly communicated in this book.  This God is exemplified by His concern for His people, His desire for their sincere devotion, and their care for their less fortunate brethren.  This version of God is also not shy about disclaiming the temple and sacrifices, let alone the existence of a human king for Israel (see 1 Sam 8:7).

 We see an example of this version of God in Deuteronomy 26:12-13:

[12] “When you have finished paying all the tithe of your produce in the third year, which is the year of tithing, giving it to the Levite, the sojourner, the fatherless, and the widow, so that they may eat within your towns and be filled, [13] then you shall say before the LORD your God, ‘I have removed the sacred portion out of my house, and moreover, I have given it to the Levite, the sojourner, the fatherless, and the widow, according to all your commandment that you have commanded me. I have not transgressed any of your commandments, nor have I forgotten them.

And, of course, in Deuteronomy 6:5-7

[5] You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. [6] And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. [7] You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise.

So, at the risk of gross oversimplification, perhaps we could say that the first version of God is the God of the people’s religion (they being separated from their God, and its priesthood), and the second version is the God yearning for the people’s hearts to turn to Him in devotion, and to extend grace to their brethren.

The core of my thesis here is that God wanted a relationship with His people (initially Israel, but ultimately everyone) that is simply not reflected in vast tracts of the Pentateuch known variously as the Priestly or Levitical Torah (parts of Genesis, Exodus, most of Leviticus and Numbers), and that He wanted for them to live in accordance with His instructions (which are perhaps quite different from the Levitical instructions re: sacrifice and purity) for their own good (e.g. “choose life”).

What Did God Desire (Rather Than Simply Command)?

The following is a representative survey of verses that highlight God’s desire as He, Himself, is said to present it.

The People’s Love and Obedience

1. Deut 6:5

[5] You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might.

2. Deut 10:12-16

[12] “And now, Israel, what does the LORD your God require of you, but to fear the LORD your God, to walk in all his ways, to love him, to serve the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul, [13] and to keep the commandments and statutes of the LORD, which I am commanding you today for your good? [14] Behold, to the LORD your God belong heaven and the heaven of heavens, the earth with all that is in it. [15] Yet the LORD set his heart in love on your fathers and chose their offspring after them, you above all peoples, as you are this day. [16] Circumcise therefore the foreskin of your heart, and be no longer stubborn.

3. Deut 11:1

[11:1] “You shall therefore love the LORD your God and keep his charge, his statutes, his rules, and his commandments always.

4. Deut 13:3

[3] you shall not listen to the words of that prophet or that dreamer of dreams. For the LORD your God is testing you, to know whether you love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul.

The People’s Faithfulness and Righteousness

1. Joel 2:12

[12] “Yet even now,” declares the LORD,

“return to me with all your heart,

with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning;

[13] and rend your hearts and not your garments.”

Return to the LORD your God,

for he is gracious and merciful,

slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love;

and he relents over disaster.

2. Micah 6:7-8

[7] Will the LORD be pleased with thousands of rams,

with ten thousands of rivers of oil?

Shall I give my firstborn for my transgression,

the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?”

[8] He has told you, O man, what is good;

and what does the LORD require of you

but to do justice, and to love kindness,

and to walk humbly with your God?

The People’s Care for Their Needy Brethren

1. Deut 16:14

[14] You shall rejoice in your feast, you and your son and your daughter, your male servant and your female servant, the Levite, the sojourner, the fatherless, and the widow who are within your towns.

2. Deut 26:13

[13] then you shall say before the LORD your God, ‘I have removed the sacred portion out of my house, and moreover, I have given it to the Levite, the sojourner, the fatherless, and the widow, according to all your commandment that you have commanded me. I have not transgressed any of your commandments, nor have I forgotten them.

The People to Raise Children to Live These Instructions

1. Deut 6:5-7

[5] You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. [6] And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. [7] You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise.

2. Is 54:13

“All your children shall be taught by the Lord, and great shall be the peace of your children.”

3. Ps 78:6-7

[6] that the next generation might know them,

the children yet unborn,

and arise and tell them to their children,

[7] so that they should set their hope in God

and not forget the works of God,

but keep his commandments;

Please note that we find no mention of sacrifices from any of these prophets.

What God Did Not Desire

Sacrifices (Korbanot)

1. David (Ps 51) prays for forgiveness (v1-2) after the Bathsheba affair. Nothing about him offering a sacrifice to atone.  In fact, a bit farther down he says: Psalms 51:16

[16] For you will not delight in sacrifice, or I would give it;

you will not be pleased with a burnt offering.

[17] The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit;

a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.

So David knew about sacrifices but didn’t think God would “delight” in them.  (But he’s not done.  Read on.)

2. Psalm 40:6 (David)

[6] In sacrifice and offering you have not delighted,

but you have given me an open ear.

Burnt offering and sin offering

you have not required.

3. 1 Samuel 15:22

[22] And Samuel said,

“Has the LORD as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices,

as in obeying the voice of the LORD?

Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice,

and to listen than the fat of rams. (reminiscent of Moses’ “Listen, Learn, Keep, Do”)

4. Solomon doesn’t mention sacrifices as a function of his temple. Rather, he says it is to house the ark and its tablets: 1 Kings 8:20-21, 27

[20] Now the LORD has fulfilled his promise that he made. For I have risen in the place of David my father, and sit on the throne of Israel, as the LORD promised, and I have built the house for the name of the LORD, the God of Israel. [21] And there I have provided a place for the ark, in which is the covenant of the LORD that he made with our fathers, when he brought them out of the land of Egypt.”

Moreover, he’s apparently incredulous that anyone would think God would actually reside there:

[27] “But will God indeed dwell on the earth? Behold, heaven and the highest heaven cannot contain you; how much less this house that I have built!

5. Micah 6:6-7

[6] “With what shall I come before the LORD,

and bow myself before God on high?

Shall I come before him with burnt offerings,

with calves a year old?

[7] Will the LORD be pleased with thousands of rams,

with ten thousands of rivers of oil?

Shall I give my firstborn for my transgression,

the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?”

6. Isaiah 1:11-14

11“What to me is the multitude of your sacrifices?
says the LORD;
I have had enough of burnt offerings of rams
and the fat of well-fed beasts;
I do not delight in the blood of bulls,
or of lambs, or of goats.

12“When you come to appear before me,
who has required of you
this trampling of my courts?  (by animals?)
13Bring no more vain offerings;
incense is an abomination to me.
New moon and Sabbath and the calling of convocations—
I cannot endure iniquity and solemn assembly.
14Your new moons and your appointed feasts
my soul hates;
they have become a burden to me;
I am weary of bearing them.

This passage contains a hint (v13) of God’s displeasure with offerings made insincerely, which some use to explain that God only detested hypocritical offerings and celebrations.  However, reread it.  He is quite unequivocal in criticizing the practices themselves irrespective of the people’s sincerity.

It may help us to understand God’s disdain for sacrifices to realize that Israel was surrounded by pagan, sacrificing peoples; the Canaanites and all of the other “ites”, and later the Assyrians, Babylonians, Persians, Greeks, and Romans.  They all practiced it.  It’s reasonable to assume that God wanted His “holy nation” (Ex 19:6) to be set apart from the pagans, not their imitators.

7. Jer 7:22-23

[22] For in the day that I brought them out of the land of Egypt, I did not speak to your fathers or command them concerning burnt offerings and sacrifices. [23] But this command I gave them: ‘Obey my voice, and I will be your God, and you shall be my people. And walk in all the way that I command you, that it may be well with you.’

8. Earlier in Jeremiah 7 the prophet gives an interesting statement (on God’s behalf) concerning the shedding of innocent blood in the temple: Jer 7:5

[5] “For if you truly amend your ways and your deeds, if you truly execute justice one with another, [6] if you do not oppress the sojourner, the fatherless, or the widow, or shed innocent blood in this place, and if you do not go after other gods to your own harm, [7] then I will let you dwell in this place, in the land that I gave of old to your fathers forever.

What “innocent blood” is Jeremiah referring to, and what place is “this” place?  Jeremiah is given this prophecy and told to proclaim it standing at the gate of the temple (v7:2).  So his location is the temple.  Therefore we should assume the innocent blood is blood that is shed at the temple.

Virtually all commentators assume this blood refers to those judicially executed and/or prophets who have been murdered in the temple precincts (e.g. Zechariah as told in 2 Chron 24:21, by the command of King Joash).  But if he’s talking about murdered prophets, why use a generic phrase like “innocent blood”?  Why not simply say “God’s prophets” (as Jesus does in Luke 13:34)?  And judicial executions were hardly of the innocent.  To its credit, the Pentateuch defines procedures (e.g. “two or three witnesses”, Num 35:30, Dt 17:6) to be followed to assure the guilt of a defendant before his execution.

The priests, on the other hand, in dealing with the sacrificial animals, could easily be characterized as “violent” as they slaughtered (ripped apart with a knife) hundreds of animals each day[iv],[v].

And these are the self-same men Jesus condemns by reference to Jeremiah’s words in Mt 21:13 – “He said to them “It is written, ‘My house shall be called a house of prayer,’ but you make it a den of robbers (3027. λῃστής lēstḗs)”.  Here the Greek term rendered “robbers” has essentially the same meaning as the Hebrew it refers to: ‘the violent’ or ‘violent thieves’.  So, were Jeremiah and Jesus condemning the traders and money changers in the temple, or its sacrificing priests? 

Yes.  The theme Jesus is emphasizing here is that the temple was to be a “house of prayer”, as lamented by Isaiah in 56:7, which it was not as Jesus surveyed it[vi].  And, He’s identifying the men working there as violent.

9. Hosea 6:6

For I desire steadfast love and not sacrifice,

the knowledge of God rather than burnt offerings.

10. Amos 5:25

“Did you bring to me sacrifices and offerings during the forty years in the wilderness, O house of Israel?

A Temple

The rationale for the Tabernacle (and later the temple) according to the Pentateuch was to provide a place for God’s manifestation among the people of Israel – to live with them “in their camp”, as it were, providing for their needs (manna, water, etc.) and protecting them from enemies. (Exodus 25:8  “And let them make me a sanctuary, that I may dwell in their midst.”)  It records God demanding the tabernacle be built (Ex 36-39).  But the prophets seem to know a different story:

1. 2 Sam 7:5-7 [5] “Go and tell my servant David, ‘Thus says the LORD: Would you build me a house to dwell in? [6] I have not lived in a house since the day I brought up the people of Israel from Egypt to this day, but I have been moving about in a tent for my dwelling. [7] In all places where I have moved with all the people of Israel, did I speak a word with any of the judges of Israel, whom I commanded to shepherd my people Israel, saying, “Why have you not built me a house of cedar?”’
2. 1 Kings 8:21 And there I have provided a place for the ark, in which is the covenant of the LORD that he made with our fathers, when he brought them out of the land of Egypt.”
3. Jer 7:3-7

[3] Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: Amend your ways and your deeds, and I will let you dwell in this place. [4] Do not trust in these deceptive words: ‘This is the temple of the LORD, the temple of the LORD, the temple of the LORD.’

[5] “For if you truly amend your ways and your deeds, if you truly execute justice one with another, [6] if you do not oppress the sojourner, the fatherless, or the widow, or shed innocent blood in this place, and if you do not go after other gods to your own harm, [7] then I will let you dwell in this place, in the land that I gave of old to your fathers forever.

Commenting on v3’s emphatic triple repetition of “the temple of the LORD”, Keil and Delitzsch say:

“The meaning of this emphatic way of mentioning the temple of the Lord is, in this connection, the following: Jerusalem cannot be destroyed by enemies, because the Lord has consecrated for the abode of His name that temple which is in Jerusalem; for the Lord will not give His sanctuary, the seat of His throne, to be a prey to the heathen, but will defend it, and under its protection we too may dwell safely. In the temple of the Lord we have a sure pledge for unbroken possession of the land and the maintenance of the kingdom. Cf. the like discourse in Mi 3:11, “Jahveh is in our midst, upon us none evil can come.”

In other words, not only was God incredulous about the existence of the temple, He was very opposed to the false hope that the people placed in it while living lives counter to His instructions.

A Monarchy

This is only an incidental issue in this piece – the uncommanded establishment of an Israelite King.  But it is, nevertheless, a corruption supported by the Levitical Torah (e.g. see Dt 17:14-20):

1. 1 Sam 8:5

[5] and said to him, “Behold, you are old and your sons do not walk in your ways. Now appoint for us a king to judge us like all the nations.” [6] But the thing displeased Samuel when they said, “Give us a king to judge us.” And Samuel prayed to the LORD. [7] And the LORD said to Samuel, “Obey the voice of the people in all that they say to you, for they have not rejected you, but they have rejected me from being king over them.

Ostentatious Worship

1. Amos 5:21-24

21“I hate, I despise your feasts,

and I take no delight in your solemn assemblies.

22Even though you offer me your burnt offerings and grain offerings,

I will not accept them;

and the peace offerings of your fattened animals,

I will not look upon them.

23Take away from me the noise of your songs;

to the melody of your harps I will not listen.

24But let justice roll down like waters,

and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream.

People Worshipping Idols/False gods

1. The Hebrew Bible is full of the prophets’ condemnations of the worship of idols and “foreign” gods, so we won’t bog ourselves down here in repeating them. Just read the prophets.

Evidence of Revision

My thesis here is that the Levitical authors of the Pentateuch and some of the other books of the Hebrew Bible altered texts they had not originally authored to support their temple cult.  Of course, this is a reasonable proposal from a purely human perspective, as they had everything to gain for themselves by doing so, and literally nothing to lose.  Obviously, if you claim YHWH or Moses as your enabling authority, who’s going to challenge you or your system? 

It’s quite possible that Jeremiah saw the same thing, as he says in Jer 8:8:

[8] “How can you say, ‘We are wise,

and the law of the LORD is with us’?

But behold, the lying pen of the scribes

has made it into a lie.

This appears to be more than a hint that what passed for the people’s understanding of “the law of the LORD” was corrupt.  And it was corrupt because the scribes had misrepresented it in their scrolls.

What is my evidence for this proposition?  Let’s look at a few highly suspicious examples.

1. First, we should deal with Genesis. Here we have some fairly obvious occurrences of patently late edits of the base stories.  In order, we have:
   • The first occurrence of an anachronistic reference is in the story of Cain and Able (Gen 4:3-5). Here we find a premium implied on Able’s offering of a “firstborn of his flock”.  God does not express any premium He places on “firstfruits” or “firstborn” offerings until Sinai (Ex 23:19), perhaps a thousand years later.  (It’s interesting to me that this “firstborn” verse is not attributed to the Priestly authors but to the Yahwist authors.)
   • The next Genesis occurrence is in relating the story of Noah and the Flood. Somehow Noah knew which animals were “clean” so that he could carry out the instruction to load 7 pairs of each of them onboard (Gen 7:2), and after the waters receded, he was capable of selecting “clean” animals for sacrifice to the LORD (Gen 8:20).  Again, the concept of “clean” and “unclean” wouldn’t be introduced until Sinai, some thousand years later. (These verses are ascribed to the Priestly authors.)
2. Earlier we looked at David’s Psalm 51 claiming that God didn’t want sacrifices. But see how the Psalm has been “adapted” at its conclusion by, presumably, later Levitical editors, to support their sacrificial system Ps 51:19:

[19] then will you delight in right sacrifices,

in burnt offerings and whole burnt offerings;

then bulls will be offered on your altar.

Given the spirit and message of David to this point in the Psalm, this example of later editing is quite obvious and blatant.

3. Is 56:7 presents a bit more of a subtlety suspicious verse. It reads:

[7]  these (speaking of “foreigners who join themselves to the LORD”) I will bring to my holy mountain,

and make them joyful in my house of prayer;

 their burnt offerings and their sacrifices

will be accepted on my altar;

for my house shall be called a house of prayer

for all peoples.”

Whoever is responsible for this verse in Isaiah apparently didn’t care for God’s call for His “house” – His temple – to be identified/known as a “house of prayer”.  Where’s the sacrifice (primarily owned/consumed by the priests) in a house of prayer?  So, we see v56:7b claiming that when all people stream to the temple to worship from all over the world, they’ll offer burnt offerings there.  Really?  Foreigners (i.e. Gentiles) are going to offer burnt offerings at the temple?

But how would the verse read without this intervening verse?

[7]  these I will bring to my holy mountain,

and make them joyful in my house of prayer;

for my house shall be called a house of prayer

for all peoples.”

Here we get the emphasis of simple Jewish poetic repetition of the key phrase of the verse (house of prayer), and nothing else.  All people (not just Jews) will pray at God’s temple – a house of prayer.  This is the verse, and the intended nature of the temple, Jesus cites in His condemnation in Mt 21:13 – “He said to them “It is written, ‘My house shall be called a house of prayer,’ but you make it a den of robbers”.  It seems Isaiah and Jesus thought the purpose and significance of the temple were to be a place for all people to worship God in prayer.  But the Levitical editor of Isaiah had a different purpose in mind.  After all, it’s hard to make money from just prayers.

4. Following are a few common anachronistic edits (among dozens) that demonstrate the activity of late editing of earlier scrolls:
   1. Gen 12:6 “Abram passed through the land to the place at Shechem, to the oak of Moreh. At that time there were Canaanites in the land.”  The implication is that at the time of writing/editing there weren’t identifiable Canaanites in the land.  The author is clearly writing a historical narrative, not an eyewitness account.
   2. Gen 12:8 “From there he moved to the hill country on the east of Bethel and pitched his tent, with Bethel on the west and Ai on the east. And there he built an altar to the LORD and called upon the name of the LORD.”  There are two problems here.  First, in Abram’s day, Beth-el wasn’t named Beth-el and wouldn’t be until Jacob later named it (Gen 35:15).  It was Luz.  Second, at this point in the Israelite narrative, God’s name YHWH was not known and would not be until He announced it in Ex 3:15 centuries later.
   3. Ex 40:36 “[36] Throughout all their journeys, whenever the cloud was taken up from over the tabernacle, the people of Israel would set out.” The problem here is that this verse occurs in the Exodus narrative while Israel still has not moved from Sinai.  They haven’t taken any journeys with the Tabernacle.
   4. Num 9:16 “[16] So it was always: the cloud covered it by day and the appearance of fire by night. [17] And whenever the cloud lifted from over the tent, after that the people of Israel set out, and in the place where the cloud settled down, there the people of Israel camped.” This is the same problem as the Exodus verse previously. At this point in Israel’s narrative, they’re still at Sinai and have not yet journeyed with the Tabernacle.  Most of Num 9 is anachronistic as Israel doesn’t leave Sinai until the middle of Num 10.
   5. Dt 1:5 “[5] Beyond the Jordan, in the land of Moab, Moses undertook to explain this law, saying, ” This author is obviously not with Moses “Beyond the Jordan”.  He is on the West side of the Jordan, in Israel, recounting the much earlier events of Moses on the East side – in Moab – before Israel had even entered the land.
   6. Dt 34:5-6 “[5] So Moses the servant of the LORD died there in the land of Moab, according to the word of the LORD, [6] and he buried him in the valley in the land of Moab opposite Beth-peor; but no one knows the place of his burial to this day.” Much of Deuteronomy has been the recounting of Moses’ activities in his first-person voice.  Now suddenly the voice switches to inform us that Moses died in Moab.  And, he tips his hand that he is writing these words long after that death as he notes that nobody knows the location of Moses’ grave “to this day”.  A few verses later, Dt 34:10 reemphasizes this future-looking-back anachronism with: “And there has not arisen a prophet since in Israel like Moses, who the LORD knew face to face.”
   7. One more: Ruth 4:17 “[17] And the women of the neighborhood gave him a name, saying, ‘A son has been born to Naomi.’ They named him Obed. He was the father of Jesse, the father of David.”  Here the author identifies himself as not an eyewitness of Ruth’s story, despite its present-tense narration, but rather living in the time of David (if not centuries later.  Most scholars believe Ruth is actually a Persian period scroll).  I think it is very informative that the author is quite transparent about tipping his hand that he is writing long after the events he’s writing about.  He seems quite unbothered to tell us this fact.  Maybe we should read his ease as indicative that writing historical narratives was simply how the scriptures were created, perhaps based on ancient oral history.  Once the oral history was initially committed to a scroll, it may have simply been “enhanced” over time as events and circumstances required (e.g. the end of the united monarchy, the Babylonian exile, etc.).  Scholars agree that later redactors of the texts played a huge role in the final versions of the scrolls before their canonization.

The Levitical God

So far, we haven’t characterized the God portrayed in the Hebrew Bible shaped by the worldview of its Levitical authors/editors.  Doing so isn’t so straightforward.  The truth is that the Levitical authors don’t really focus on portraying their God.  Rather, they focus almost exclusively on documenting their system.  Yes, their God is YHWH, Jehovah, “the LORD”, and often Elohim (“God”).  And their narrative portions convey a fear/awe of Him that is laudable, sometimes citing displays of His power (e.g. the Exodus plagues, the Korah apostasy at Sinai (Num 16), the fall of Jericho, etc..)

Perhaps the best way to understand their viewpoint is to compare some verses (from Exodus) authored by non-Levitical authors with those of Levitical authors (as adjudged by textual scholars).  Perhaps in this way, the nature of the Levitical God can be at least contrasted (if not defined) with the non-Levitical version.

1. Non-Levitical — Ex 19:5-6

[5] Now therefore, if you will indeed obey my voice and keep my covenant, you shall be my treasured possession among all peoples, for all the earth is mine; [6] and you shall be to me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.’ These are the words that you shall speak to the people of Israel.”

2. Levitical — Ex 24:15-17
   1. [15] Then Moses went up on the mountain, and the cloud covered the mountain. [16] The glory of the LORD dwelt on Mount Sinai, and the cloud covered it six days. And on the seventh day he called to Moses out of the midst of the cloud. [17] Now the appearance of the glory of the LORD was like a devouring fire on the top of the mountain in the sight of the people of Israel.
3. Non-Levitical — Ex 20 (The Ten Commandments);

[5] You shall not bow down to them or serve them, for I the LORD your God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and the fourth generation of those who hate me, [6] but showing steadfast love to thousands of those who love me and keep my commandments.

[10] but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God. On it you shall not do any work, you, or your son, or your daughter, your male servant, or your female servant, or your livestock, or the sojourner who is within your gates. [11] For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested on the seventh day. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.

4. Levitical — Ex 25

[25:1] The LORD said to Moses, [2] “Speak to the people of Israel, that they take for me a contribution. From every man whose heart moves him you shall receive the contribution for me. [3] And this is the contribution that you shall receive from them: gold, silver, and bronze, [4] blue and purple and scarlet yarns and fine twined linen, goats’ hair, [5] tanned rams’ skins, goatskins, acacia wood, [6] oil for the lamps, spices for the anointing oil and for the fragrant incense, [7] onyx stones, and stones for setting, for the ephod and for the breastpiece. [8] And let them make me a sanctuary, that I may dwell in their midst.

5. Non-Levitical — Ex 20

[24] An altar of earth you shall make for me and sacrifice on it your burnt offerings and your peace offerings, your sheep and your oxen. In every place where I cause my name to be remembered I will come to you and bless you.

6. Levitical – All of Ex 25-31, 35-40

[26] He put the golden altar in the tent of meeting before the veil, [27] and burned fragrant incense on it, as the LORD had commanded Moses. [28] He put in place the screen for the door of the tabernacle. [29] And he set the altar of burnt offering at the entrance of the tabernacle of the tent of meeting, and offered on it the burnt offering and the grain offering, as the LORD had commanded Moses. [30] He set the basin between the tent of meeting and the altar, and put water in it for washing, [31] with which Moses and Aaron and his sons washed their hands and their feet. [32] When they went into the tent of meeting, and when they approached the altar, they washed, as the LORD commanded Moses. [33] And he erected the court around the tabernacle and the altar, and set up the screen of the gate of the court. So Moses finished the work.

Hopefully, you can see that the differences in the character of the God displayed in the Pentateuch (in fact, just in Exodus) by these two schools of authors is dramatic.  The respective authors see their God in distinctly different terms.  For the Levitical authors, their God has no involvement emotionally with His people, nor does He care about their emotional commitment to Him.  I can’t even find a passage in which the Levitical God directly addresses the people.  (Of course, they asked to not have God speak to them in Ex 20:19.)

To the Levitical authors, He is simply a being to be held in awe and fear who specifies, and then administers through His priests, a sacrificial system designed to maintain the ritual cleanness of His people and Tabernacle so that He can continue to live among them.  To these authors, the people don’t approach or interact with God directly.  They do so only vicariously through the priests.  This is the main point of distinction.

The non-Levitical authors portray a God much more concerned with His people’s well-being in the sense of guiding them in how to live righteously (e.g. honoring father and mother, not wasting their time and resources worshipping non-existent gods, not stealing, lying, or coveting, etc.).  This God calls His people to be faithful to the commands He has given them.  But not be just obedient, but to wholeheartedly pursue God’s ways; Dt 30:9-10:

[9] The LORD your God will make you abundantly prosperous in all the work of your hand, in the fruit of your womb and in the fruit of your cattle and in the fruit of your ground. For the LORD will again take delight in prospering you, as he took delight in your fathers, [10] when you obey the voice of the LORD your God, to keep his commandments and his statutes that are written in this Book of the Law, when you turn to the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul.

Conclusions

People have for centuries noted the dissimilarities between the God portrayed in some parts of the Pentateuch (the Levitical portions of Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus and Numbers) and the One portrayed in its other parts (non-Levitical portions of Genesis and Exodus, and virtually all of Deuteronomy).

Having noted that differences exist in the God portrayed, scholars, theologians, Rabbi’s and rank-and-file Bible readers have proposed different explanations for why these differences exist.  Two types of answer are common:

The first answer says: The two perspectives are simply designed to reveal two co-equal personalities of God; 1) the holy and righteous administrator of rules and rituals to maintain God’s presence with the people, and; 2) the God who loves the people and seeks only their good If they will follow his instructions (Torah).  The two personalities co-exist in harmony.  Or…

The two perspectives represent the work of (at least) two different schools of authors; 1) the Levites/priests, and 2) other non-Levites interested in telling the non-Levitical history of God interacting with His people, and thereby revealing His nature.

Traditionalists adopt the first answer, as they resist any analysis that reveals apparent problems in the Hebrew Bible.  Biblical scholars embrace the idea of multiple authorship of the Pentateuch, and so attempt to understand the cultural and religious views of those authors.  Whatever their origins the question that the two perspectives raise is the extent to which God Himself is the “author” of both, or just one.

If we assume that the prophets were inspired by God to reveal His true desires for the people of Israel, then one can conclude that God didn’t endorse the Levitical texts, at least in the same manner, since they are so diametrically opposed.  This is at least a possibility and is perhaps the commonsense conclusion one might come to when comparing texts that express God’s disgust with sacrifices and texts that embellish the practice in elaborate detail.

The same could be said of the Levitical texts describing the fabrication and outfitting of the Tabernacle in chapter after chapter of Exodus (and later the temple in 1 Kings 5-6), in contrast to God, through His (non-Levitical) prophets, incredulously asking what good such a thing was to Him, whose throne is heaven and whose footstool is the Earth?

But there is a much more straightforward possibility here, and that is that God, for His own reasons, wanted both characterizations of Him and His relationship with the Israelites clearly spelled out.  According to the Prophets (and David and Solomon), God did not endorse the Levitical system, but He nevertheless seems to have wanted it spelled out in all of its intricate detail.  If this Levitical material is in (and not just in, but the majority of) our Pentateuch, then God wanted it there.  How can we know that?  Because it’s there (and not in some extra-biblical writings), and if He didn’t want it there, it wouldn’t be.

So, if He didn’t endorse it, but it’s there, what is it, exactly, that He’s using it to teach us? 

The history of Israel is of a people who despite God’s immanence among them and His providing of detailed instructions to them for how to live and treat each other, and His ongoing pleas to return faithfully to Him, they didn’t.  Their priests constructed a religious system – the temple Cult – to try to manage (if not control) the people’s penchant for ignoring God’s instructions (though they did literally nothing to encourage the people’s love of YHWH).

But it did no good.  While the people may have, at least for a time, followed the sacrificial rules of the priests and their calendar of festivals (often erroneously termed the “Mosaic Law”.  More on this in an upcoming piece.), they apparently at no time (as an entire population) lived as God, through His Prophets, had instructed them to live.  This is the unmistakable takeaway from the Levitical Torah, whoever wrote it — its system’s utter futility.  Its words and system proved worthless in guiding the people into a more reverential, more obedient, personal relationship with God (except for a tiny faithful remnant).

This, in my opinion, is what God wanted us to see, that despite all of the priests’ self-professed holiness, and their purportedly God-decreed religious practices and rituals, the people were essentially unaffected.  They remained, for the most part, separated from God right up until their destruction in 70 AD.

What’s God’s message in all of this?  “Don’t trust in and rely on man’s religion to provide for your relationship and standing with God.  It is futile.”  He provided a way to inherit His favor (as “righteous”) that most rejected.  His Son was given to us to make turning one’s self to the LORD in faith and being, therefore, declared righteous as simple and available as it could possibly be.  Yet, He was still rejected.

This is the lesson taught by the Levitical authors of the Torah, and their later revisions of the prophets and wisdom literature.  The system of their cult was useless in drawing their people to faithfulness to YHWH.  Yet the priests and people somehow imagined they were keeping God pleased with them by following it.

No wonder this profound message was one that God wanted to be preserved in His “Word”.

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[i] Jeon, Jaeyoung THE SOCIAL GROUPS BEHIND THE PENTATEUCH, SBL Press, 2021

[ii] Morales, L. Michael, The Levitical Priesthood, The Southern Baptist Journal of Theology 23.1, 2019

[iii] In this piece I will identify the entirety of the priestly view of God and their system of sacrifice as the “Levitical God” and the description of their system as the “Levitical Torah”.  This is only a matter of convenience.  The issue of the deep and profound distinctions made in the Pentateuch between “priestly Levites”, i.e. sons of Aaron and later, descendants of Zadok, and garden variety Levites is a whole subject unto itself, which I briefly touched on in “Wrestling With the Origins of the Pentateuch”.  You can get a more scholarly analysis of these distinctions in Stackert, Jeffry, The Cultic Status of the Levites in the Temple Scroll: Between History and Hermeneutics, SBL-site.org

[iv] Please note: this is not a PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) argument.  That’s not my argument.  This is simply a plain observation of what the Biblical text says.

[v] A Field Guide to Leviticus and Worship in the Old Testament, 1517.org

[vi] As a complete digression, what do you suppose the money changers paid to the Temple priests in order to have their tables positioned in the Court of the Gentiles?  Same question for the sellers of sacrificial animals (the primary source of sacrifices for those who travelled long distances to the Temple for prescribed Temple festivals.)  The Temple would have been the most profitable enterprise in the entire nation of Israel.  And the number of people in its employ or simply dependent on its continued operation would have been substantial relative to the population of Jerusalem.