0 Leviticus Introduction

They shall not make baldness upon their head, neither shall they shave off the corner of their beard, nor make any cuttings in their flesh. 21:5

Trivia: How long is a mother unclean after delivering a baby girl?

Leviticus for Skeptics

I wouldn't read Leviticus if I were you. No one else does.

Instead, I'll summarize it for you: Get an animal, kill it, sprinkle the blood around, cut the dead animal into pieces, and burn it for a "sweet savor unto the Lord."

Here are the gory details:

  • "All the fat is the Lord's." 3:16
  • Moses puts blood on Aaron's right ear, thumb, and big toe. 8:23-24
  • God kills Aaron's sons for offering "strange fire before the Lord." 10:1-2
  • Hares are unclean since they chew the cud. 11:6
  • Bats are just unclean birds. 11:13,19
  • Four-legged birds are an abomination to God. 11:20
  • Insects have four legs. 11:21, 23
  • Baby girls are twice as dirty as baby boys. 12:1-8
  • God's cure for leprosy. 14:2-32
  • What to do if "he that hath the issue spit upon him that is clean." 15:8
  • What to do "if any man's seed of copulation go out from him." 15:16-18
  • Menstruating women are unclean to God. 15:19-30
  • God's law for wet dreams. 15:16-17, 32
  • Don't look at any naked menstruating women. 18:19
  • Homosexuality is an abomination to God. 18:22
  • Don't mix seeds when sowing a field or wear a garment with mixed fibers. 19:19
  • If you have sex with a slave woman, you must then scourge her. 19:20
  • Don't round the corners of your head or mar the corners of your beard. 19:27
  • Children who curse their parents, adulterers, and homosexuals must be killed. 20:9-12
  • Woman with "familiar spirits" must be stoned to death. 20:27
  • The unchaste daughters of priests must be burnt to death. 21:9
  • Handicapped people must not approach the altar. 21:16-23
  • A man curses and blasphemes while disputing with another man. Moses asks God what to do about it. God says that the whole community must stone him to death. "And the children of Israel did as the Lord and Moses commanded." 24:10-23
  • God's instructions for buying slaves. 25:45-46
  • "Ye shall sow your seed in vain, for your enemies shall eat it." 26:16
  • God will "send wild beasts among you, which shall rob your of your children." 26:22
  • "And ye shall eat the flesh of your sons, and the flesh of your daughters shall ye eat." 26:29
  • God places a dollar value on human life; women are worth less (50 - 60%) than men. 27:3-7 webbot bot="Include" i-checksum="56071" endspan -->

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