Listen to reactions from someone reading the Bible for the first time, and you are apt to hear things you passed over before. A close friend has started reading the Bible recently and is halfway through the laws God gave Moses. Some of them sound ridiculous when taken out of context. What do these seemingly irrelevant laws from an ancient culture have to do with Christians today?
1. Old Laws about Sheep and Goats
“If a man steals an ox or a sheep, and kills it or sells it, he shall repay five oxen for an ox, and four sheep for a sheep” (Exodus 22:1). Bible teachers always urge us to read the Old and New Testaments and to not pass over anything because “all Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness” (2 Timothy 3:16).
I’ve never owned oxen or sheep. What would I do with sheep anyway? And then my friend commented, “It seems unlikely that the Lord would lead Moses to the mountaintop to give him laws about livestock.” To my friend, it all seemed like a waste of time for the Creator of the Universe.
2. A Law about Food
When you offer a sacrifice of peace offerings to the Lord, you shall offer it so that you may be accepted. It shall be eaten the same day you offer it or on the day after, and anything left over until the third day shall be burned up with fire (Leviticus 19:5-7).
This is not a law about eating or about food storage — it has to do with how we make our offerings to God. But does he really care whether the food offering one might have placed at the altar is three days old? And who would wish to eat it anyway if it is stale? This seems strangely detailed, not to mention the fact that Christians don’t make offerings at an altar.
3. Seeds and Textiles
“You shall not sow your field with two kinds of seed, nor shall you wear a garment of cloth made of two kinds of material” (Leviticus 19:19). There’s another piece to this verse, which I won’t get into because it requires an entire article all on its own.
For now, I just want to state that your polyester-cotton blend trousers will not separate you from the love of God. Nor will planting a row of carrots next to the onions.
There were reasons these laws were given to Moses, some of them very specific to the time, and it helps us to understand the context in which they were written.
But something about them continues to impact the lives of Christians today. I’m going to skim the surface of Scripture here. For a deeper study, I recommend John Stott’s A Deeper Look at the Sermon on the Mount.
4. Laws and Intercession
Any time we see the Lord telling his people to take a certain action when it comes to animals, spouses, slaves, etc., one purpose of that law is to say, “don’t react. Consider. Take a deep breath and use your head.” We often jump to conclusions, make assumptions, and act out of anger.
But when someone appears to have wronged us, we must ask the Holy Spirit to get involved. We can invite Christ to intercede and ensure that we don’t take revenge on someone, even if they appear guilty.
The obvious New Testament application of this teaching comes from the woman caught in adultery, where Jesus told the sinless man to be the first to start stoning the woman. He challenged the religious leaders, forcing them to stop in their tracks and think about what they were doing (John 7-8).
Considering the laws God left Moses might bewilder us, but we see Jesus between the accused and the accuser, facilitating justice and mercy. One facet of the law is to tangibly reflect this reality, although there is much more to it than that.
5. Third-Day Bread
One writer suggests that Leviticus 19:7 is just another example of God reminding his people about existing laws.
But why is this a law in the first place? Matthew Henry’s Bible Commentary suggests that the third day is a reminder of the manna God provided in the wilderness, where the Israelites were permitted to collect only what they needed each day except for the sixth day, where they could gather enough for the Sabbath.
When it comes to third-day bread, “the sacrifice was offered according to the law, [but] if it was not eaten according to the law, it was not accepted. Though ministers do their part, what the better if people do not theirs? There is work to be done after our spiritual sacrifices, in a due improvement of them; and, if this be neglected, all is in vain.”
The same problems beset both ancient Jews, at the altar, and Christians, even though we don’t make the same kind of sacrifices. We offer tithes; we volunteer our time: are these sacrifices from a heart of love and devotion to God?
Or are they designed to garner positive attention or to cover our guilt without having to repent? When God gave the Israelites manna, he also said, “Rely on me to provide what you need for today; tomorrow do the same thing; and the next day. One day at a time.”
But they didn’t, and we don’t either. Leviticus 19:7 challenges me to ask, “What sacrifices do I think I’m making to the Lord, and what does he want from me?” What does he require of us but to love him above all else and to love our neighbors as ourselves? (Mark 12:30-31).
Love is costly; my sacrifices should cost me something, and yet if I love the Lord, I will rejoice at having given up so little to the glory of God.
6. Mixed Textiles and Co-Planting
Adam Clarke wrote that “it would be improvident to sow oats and wheat together: the latter would be injured, the former ruined. The turnip and carrot would not succeed conjointly, where either of them separately would prosper and yield a good crop.”
Perhaps it depends on the plant, the seed, the conditions, or the purpose? If you’re just throwing seeds in the ground willy-nilly, not taking precautions to consider which plants support one another (as in co-planting, where some plants deter insects and others attract beneficials to promote pollination), then some crops might choke the others.
And textiles? God might have been concerned with the matter of vanity. Certain fabrics were associated with dressing in order to show off. Dr. Constable also indicated that “God probably intended these practices to distinguish the Israelites from the Canaanites too.”
So, anything that pointed to assimilation with pagan values (pride in appearance rather than devotion to God) would have piqued the Lord’s anger and the priests’ concern.
Christians say we are only trying to blend in so we can more easily understand the people with whom we want to share the gospel, but it’s easy to slide so far onto the other side as to forget about Jesus.
Blending textiles and co-planting seeds is, for me as a Christian, a metaphor about not being conformed to the world (Romans 12:2). I should stand out from unbelievers as a light in dark places (Ephesians 5:8).
But this verse also makes me think of 2 Corinthians 6:14, which says, “Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers. For what partnership has righteousness with lawlessness? Or what fellowship has light with darkness?”
A believing spouse or friend might be influenced negatively by an unbeliever to the effect that the believer is less fruitful, and less at peace with Jesus. The fruit becomes choked by the weeds of doubt.
Still Weird Laws
I’m still going to encounter strange laws as my friend reads Scripture, as I hear them as though for the first time. Some of God’s Word will still be weird to my modern, North American ears.
Maybe, once in a while, we can just laugh a little and ponder this thought: no one knows the mind of God. “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord” (Isaiah 55:8).
For further reading:
What Is the Mosaic Covenant? Bible Meaning Explained
Should Christians Follow the Book of the Law Today?
Why Did God Have to Give His People the 10 Commandments?
Photo Credit: ©iStock/Getty Images Plus/Volodymyr Zakharov
