"The Lord commands Aaron to regularly tend the lamps on the pure gold lampstand in the Lord's presence. Olive oil is to be used to burn the light. Also, every Sabbath day, Aaron is to bake 12 loaves of bread and arrange them on the pure gold table before the Lord. Aaron and his sons are to eat the bread in a holy place as a perpetual covenant obligation. A fight breaks out in the Israelite camp. One of the men curses the Name of God. Moses has him stoned outside the camp for cursing the Name of God. If anyone curses his God, he will bear the consequences of his sin and be put to death. If a man kills anyone, he must be put to death. God sets up the law that we know today: an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth! This is the justice system of the Mosaic law in action!"
Leviticus 24 Amplified Bible (AMP)
The Lamp and the Bread of the Sanctuary
24 Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 2 “Command the children of Israel to bring to you clear oil from beaten olives for the light [of the golden lampstand], to make a lamp burn continually. 3 Outside the veil of the Testimony [between the Holy Place and the Most Holy Place] in the Tent of Meeting, Aaron shall always keep the lamps [a]burning before the Lord from evening until morning; it shall be a permanent statute throughout your generations. 4 He shall keep the lamps burning on the pure gold lampstand before the Lord continually.The Lamp and the Bread of the Sanctuary
- BURNING CONTINUALLY.🔥✨ The Lord commanded that the golden lampstand be continually burned to light the 'outside the veil of the Testimony [between the Holy Place and the Most Holy Place] in the Tent of Meeting.' This symbolizes the Lord Jesus Christ, who will be the continuous, never ending "Light of the World."
"For at one time you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light." Ephesians 5:8
"As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world.” John 9:5
"The true light, which enlightens everyone, was coming into the world." John 1:9
"I have come into the world as light, so that whoever believes in me may not remain in darkness." John 12:46
"For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ." 2 Corinthians 4:6
"And the city has no need of sun or moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and its lamp is the Lamb." Revelation 21:23
"The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who dwelt in a land of deep darkness, on them has light shined." Isaiah 9:2
"And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil." John 3:19
“You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden." Matthew 5:14
5 “Then you shall take fine flour and bake twelve cakes (bread of the Presence, showbread) with it; two-tenths of an ephah shall be in each cake (loaf). 6 You shall set the bread of the Presence (showbread) in two rows, six in a row, on the pure gold table before the Lord. 7 You shall put pure frankincense [in two censers, one] beside each row, so that it may be with the bread as a memorial portion, an offering by fire to the Lord. 8 Every Sabbath day Aaron shall arrange the showbread before the Lord continually; it is an everlasting covenant for the Israelites. 9 The bread of the Presence shall be for Aaron and his sons, and they shall eat it in a sacred place, for it is for Aaron a most holy portion of the offerings by fire to the Lord, his portion forever.”
10 Now the son of an Israelite woman, whose father was an Egyptian, went out among the Israelites, and he and a man of Israel quarreled and struggled with each other in the camp. 11 The Israelite woman’s son blasphemed the Name [of the Lord] and cursed. So they brought him to Moses. (Now his mother’s name was Shelomith, the daughter of Dibri, of the tribe of Dan.) 12 They put him in custody until the will and command of the Lord might be made clear to them.
- WHAT IS BLASPHEMY? https://www.biblestudytools.com/dictionary/blasphemy/
The Old Testament At least five different Hebrew verbs are translated "blaspheme" in English translations. Translators choose "blaspheme" when, for instance, the verbs "curse" (qalal), "revile" (gadap), or "despise" (herep) are used with God as the object. No special verb is reserved for cursing or insults directed at God.
However, to curse or insult God is an especially grave sin. It can be done by word or by deed. There is little distinction between the sinner who deliberately abuses the name of the Lord ( Le 24:10-16 ), and the one who deliberately flouts his commandments ( Nu 15:30-31 ). For both, the death penalty is prescribed. Similarly, the prayer of the Levites in Nehemiah 9 calls "awful blasphemies" all that Israelites did when they made the golden calf (9:18)."
13 Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 14 “Bring the one who has cursed [the Lord] outside the camp, and let all who heard him lay their hands on his head [as witnesses to his guilt]; then let all the congregation stone him. 15 You shall speak to the Israelites, saying, ‘Whoever curses his God will bear his sin [through his own death]. 16 Further, the one who blasphemes the name of the Lord shall most certainly be put to death; all the congregation shall stone him. The stranger as well as the native-born shall be put to death when he blasphemes the Name [of the Lord].
- DEATH PENALTY. What the Israelite-Egyptian man did in blaspheming and cursing the name of the Lord was very wrong. God has been the One who rescued them out of slavery, provided manna from heaven, provided water (out of a rock, etc), protected them all throughout their journey in the wilderness (by pillar of cloud and fire), and yet he did that. I could only imagine what was going on with his heart ("A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart brings forth evil. For out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks." Luke 6:45) Maybe he is a man who was heavily influenced by the Egyptian culture and religion, and he was one of the people who kept on complaining and longing to be back in Egypt. But I don't know, and I cannot judge him. All I know is I am a sinner too, and I may have blasphemed God so many times with my deeds/actions (although not in words), because of my sinfulness. Everyone falls short of the glory of God, and we need His mercy, grace and unfailing love everyday. We need salvation, and we need the Son of God, Lord Jesus Christ to pay the death penalty of our sins. What a beautiful exchange-- Jesus died and paid for my sins-- and because death could not hold him down, He is resurrected and alive forevermore, seated at the right hand throne of God.
17 ‘If a man takes the life of any human being [unlawfully], he shall most certainly be put to death. 18 The one who kills an animal shall replace it, animal for animal. 19 If a man injures his neighbor (fellow citizen), whatever he has done shall be done to him: 20 fracture for fracture, eye for eye, tooth for tooth; just as he has injured a man, so shall the same be done to him. 21 The one who kills an animal shall replace it; but he who kills a human being [unlawfully] shall be put to death. 22 You shall have one standard of law for the stranger among you as well as for the native, for I am the Lord your God.’” 23 Then Moses spoke to the Israelites, and they brought the one who had cursed [the Lord] outside the camp and stoned him with stones. Thus the Israelites did just as the Lord had commanded Moses.
Footnotes: Leviticus 24:3 Lit it in order.
- WHAT WE DESERVE. In reality, even though this law is not applicable today anymore, this is what we deserve, "fracture for fracture, eye for eye, tooth for tooth." The wages of sin is death and eternal separation from God, and damnation. Not only physical death, but also a spiritual one. But God, in His mercy and great love, has sent His one and only Son Jesus Christ to redeem us from this destiny. Praise and glory to God for what He has done.
After reading, I always check out the Study Guide Commentary from David Guzik (very helpful!):
a. Pure oil of pressed olives for the light, to make the lamps burn continually: The lamps in the tabernacle - standing on the solid gold lampstand - were the only source of light for the tabernacle. They had to be tended to continually, supplied with pure olive oil and trimmed wicks, so they would continually give light.
b. From evening until morning before the LORD continually: Jesus never stopped being the light of the world (John 8:12); He never took a break from it. As well, we are never to take a break from being the light of the world (Matthew 5:14), but we can only do this as we are continually supplied with oil (the Holy Spirit) and have our wicks trimmed (undergo training through trials).
a. You shall take fine flour and bake twelve cakes with it: This bread of the tabernacle speaks of fellowship and communion with God - a symbolic "breaking bread" with God, and speaks of the continual fellowship God wanted with Israel.
i. This bread is called showbread in Exodus 25:30, which literally means "bread of the face" in the sense of it being eaten in the presence or before the face of God.
b. They shall eat it in a holy place: Significantly, God wanted the fellowship fresh. He didn't want a stale communion with His people, but a fresh, new relationship.
b. The Israelite woman's son blasphemed the name of the Lord and cursed: He committed the crime of blasphemy, which is to attack someone - especially God - with your words. It is somewhat like the modern idea of "verbal abuse," but usually directed at God.
ii. It seems that it was common for Egyptians to curse their many gods. The root of this man's sin is he considers the LORD God of Israel on the same level as the petty Egyptian gods.
b. And let all the congregation stone him: God commanded execution by stoning for several reasons. First, stones were and are plentiful in Israel, so it was a ready means of execution. As well, it was so that the community could participate in the execution, for both a deterrent and a means of proclaiming, "This man has not only sinned against God, he has sinned against the community."
c. Whoever blasphemes the name of the LORD shall surely be put to death: To keep themselves from blaspheming the name of the LORD, the Jews, in their traditions, went to extreme lengths to avoid saying or writing the name of God - because, in their thinking, you could not blaspheme God's name if you never said it.
i. So, only the High Priest was allowed to pronounce the holy name of God (Yahweh), and only once a year - on the day of atonement. The proper pronunciation of the name would be passed on from the high priest to his successor, with the former's last breath. This is why where was confusion for many years about the exact pronunciation of the Tetragrammaton (YHWH), some mistakenly pronouncing the name "Jehovah" instead of "Yahweh" or "Yah-veh."
ii. The Jews also did not write the name of God, because if that paper were destroyed, it might be considered blasphemy or taking the name of the LORD in vain. So, they would write Adonai ("Lord") instead of Yahweh, and instead of "God" write "G-d" and refer to God with names like "the Name" instead of saying "God."
a. Whoever kills any man shall surely be put to death: In the context of giving the penalty for the Egyptian blasphemer, God stated a fundamental principle of His justice - crimes must be punished, but in proportion appropriate to the crime.
b. Fracture for fracture, eye for eye, tooth for tooth: Many people have taken eye for eye, tooth for tooth as a command; instead, God intended it as a limit - so no man or judge would be able to make up his own punishment. Human nature wants to hurt our attacker worse than they hurt us; God here puts a limit on the vengeful tendency of man.
i. Jesus rightly condemned the taking of this command regarding law and order in the community and applying it to personal relationships, where love, forgiveness, and going the extra mile - not equal retribution - is to be the rule (Matthew 5:38-42).
Reference and credits to https://www.blueletterbible.org/Comm/guzik_david/StudyGuide2017-Lev/Lev-24.cfm © 2004 David Guzik
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