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The BibleTruth.cc Torah Study Series Parashat Shemini "Eighth" Vayiqra [Leviticus] 9:1-11:47 ynIëymiV.h On the eighth day (shemini), Aharon and his sons were initiated into the priesthood. Theme The theme of Parashat Shemini Sedarim The Priesthood of Aharon and His Sons Prophetic Pictures in this Week's Torah Portion Prophetic End Time Shadows in the Torah Parashah The Priesthood of Aharon and His Sons 9:1 On the eighth day Mosheh
summoned Aharon and his sons and the elders of Yisrael.
10:1 Aharon's sons Nadav and Avihu took their censers, put fire in them
and added incense; and they offered unauthorized fire before Yahuwah,
contrary to his command.
Many have speculated about what this unauthorized fire was that Nadav
and Avihu offered.
hr"êz" va The reason the fire was "strange" or "unauthorized" is plainly explained in the phrase that follows. The Hebrew reads, "which he did not command them." Nadav and Avihu offered up incense in their censers which Yahuwah did not command to do. They were adding to the ceremony something of their own devising. So, Yah killed them, because anyone who approaches Yahuwah must do so exactly in the way prescribed in the instructions. Nadav and Avihu deviated from the instructions and added their own little thing of offering incense. This was their grave mistake (pun intended).
6 Then Mosheh said to Aharon and his sons Eleazar and Ithamar, "Do not
let your hair become unkempt, and do not tear your clothes, or you will
die and Yahuwah will be angry with the whole community. But your
relatives, all the house of Yisrael, may mourn for those Yahuwah has
destroyed by fire.
11:1 Yahuwah said to Mosheh and Aharon, Thus, it is quite simple to identify those animals which are fit to eat as food. Those that have a divided hoof and also chew their cud. Unclean animals are those that do not both chew the cud and have a divided hoof. A short list of animals which are not fit for human consumption are listed in Vayiqra (Leviticus) 11:4-8: There are some that only chew the cud or only have a split hoof, but you must not eat them. The camel, though it chews the cud, does not have a split hoof; it is unclean for you. The coney, though it chews the cud, does not have a split hoof; it is unclean for you. The rabbit, though it chews the cud, does not have a split hoof; it is unclean for you. And the pig, though it has a split hoof completely divided, does not chew the cud; it is unclean for you. You must not eat their meat or touch their carcasses; they are unclean for you. The Hebrew word here translated as unclean is amej' (pronounced tămā), and it means unclean, polluted. In Devarim (Deuteronomy) 14:3, the instruction reads, "Do not eat any detestable thing." The Hebrew word translated here as detestable thing is hb'[eAT (pronounced tō-āh-vah), which means abomination, abhorred thing, from the root word which means to abhor, to reject. Thus, these animals which are unclean are to be abhorred and rejected by Yah's people as food. Here are some additional instructions about specific animal which are unclean: Of all the animals that walk on all fours, those that walk on their paws are unclean for you; whoever touches their carcasses will be unclean till evening. (11:27) Of the animals that move about on the ground, these are unclean for you: the weasel, the rat, any kind of great lizard, the gecko, the monitor lizard, the wall lizard, the skink and the chameleon. Of all those that move along the ground, these are unclean for you. Whoever touches them when they are dead will be unclean till evening. (11:29-31) Every creature that moves about on the ground is detestable; it is not to be eaten. You are not to eat any creature that moves about on the ground, whether it moves on its belly or walks on all fours or on many feet; it is detestable. (11:41-42) All of these animals which Elohim declares to be unclean and an abomination to eat are eaten by the world of unbelievers and Christians alike. No wonder Christians have all the same diseases as the rest of the world has! Among the water creatures, the general rule is: Of all the creatures living in the water of
the seas and the streams, you may eat any that have fins and scales.
But all creatures in the seas or streams that do not have fins and
scales-- whether among all the swarming things or among all the other
living creatures in the water-- you are to detest. And since you
are to detest them, you must not eat their meat and you must detest
their carcasses. Anything living in the water that does not have
fins and scales is to be detestable to you. Those water creatures which have fins and scales may be eaten, but those which do not meet these qualifications are not to be eaten. We are instructed to detest them. This is the Hebrew word #q,v, (pronounced shĕkĕts) and this word means ) detest, make abominable. So, the Word teaches us to abhor the unclean animal and to detest the unclean sea creature. Clearly, these Hebrew synonyms convey to us that all unclean creatures are unfit for human consumption and we are to consider them as disgustingly detestable. The law for clean birds is a little harder to distinguish. We are given a list of birds in verses 13-20 that are forbidden because they are unclean. These are the birds you are to detest and not eat because they are detestable: the eagle, the vulture, the black vulture, the red kite, any kind of black kite, any kind of raven, the horned owl, the screech owl, the gull, any kind of hawk, the little owl, the cormorant, the great owl, the white owl, the desert owl, the osprey, the stork, any kind of heron, the hoopoe and the bat. All flying insects that walk on all fours are to be detestable to you. Most birds are unclean and detestable. But we are told that there are some swarming flying things that can be eaten: However, this you may eat from all the winged swarming things that walk on all fours, that have jointed legs to hop with on the land. These you may eat from them: the locust of any kind, the katydid of any kind, the cricket of any kind, the grasshopper of any kind. (Vayiqra 11:21,22) A careful study of the lists of clean and unclean animals in Vayiqra 11 and Devarim 14 reveals an important clue about why some creatures are clean while others are unclean and unfit to be food for us. It seems that, in summary, the clean animals are those that eat only greens, herbs and grains. But creatures which eat other creatures or that eat and roll around in the waste products of other creatures are unclean and inappropriate as food for us. Next, these laws are summarized and the reason for these laws is given: Do not defile yourselves by any of these creatures. Do not make yourselves unclean by means of them or be made unclean by them. I am Yahuwah your Elohim; separate yourselves and be holy, because I am holy. Do not make yourselves unclean by any creature that moves about on the ground. I am Yahuwah who brought you up out of Mitzrayim to be your Elohim; therefore be holy, because I am holy. These are the regulations concerning animals, birds, every living thing that moves in the water and every creature that moves about on the ground. You must distinguish between the unclean and the clean, between living creatures that may be eaten and those that may not be eaten. (Vayiqra 11:43-47) The instruction is to avoid these creatures and be holy, like Elohim is holy. We are to make a distinction between things clean and things unclean. Most Christians do not comprehend the meaning of the English word holy. Because it is an abstract term, most people think that it vaguely means "to be like God", but they don't understand exactly how one can be like the Creator. Actually, the Hebrew word here is vAdq' (pronounced kădōsh). This word means to separate, be set-apart. What it means is that Elohim wants us to separate ourselves from the practice of eating the abominable things. So to be holy as Elohim is holy means to separate ourselves from all things unclean or sinful and to thereby be more like him. We see in these rules and principles Elohim's plan for our health, and a glimpse of his loving care for us. It makes perfectly good sense that our Creator does not want us to be affected and infected with the parasites, germs and diseases which animals that eat dead carcasses or that eat and roll around in fecal matter have in their bodies. Certainly our bodies, fearfully and wonderfully made, are designed to clean themselves of reasonable amounts of unneeded and unwanted substances which find their way into them. But there is a limit to which our bodies can safely handle hazardous materials. If bombarded purposefully and carelessly with dangerous substances such as are found in "unclean" animals, birds and sea creatures, our bodies are unable to safely neutralize and dispose of such harmful substances, and then their ill effect harms our bodies. Elohim made our bodies in the beginning to run efficiently on the foods which he appointed as such. But pigs, rabbits, mice, shrimp, vultures and all the rest of the so-named unclean creatures were not ever created to be food for our consumption. These creatures have their place and purpose. They are appointed as the "clean-up crew" on the earth. And as created, they do a wonderful job of assisting the creation in recycling waste products back into a form which they can be re-used in the ground to fertilize and grow foods appropriate for human consumption. 10:10 You must distinguish between the holy and the common, between the unclean and the clean, 11:47 You must distinguish between the unclean and the clean, between living creatures that may be eaten and those that may not be eaten.'" ld;B' (bıdal) separate selves to, to be separated (Niphal), make a difference, divide, separate, sever (Hiphil; RSV translates "went over" in 1Chr 12:8, "banned" in Ezr 10:8, and "designated" in Ezr 10:16). Hiphil Stem: 1. to separate, to divide from; to make distinction between Yahuwah's people are commanded to make distinctions, which requires some discernment. This discernment comes from a knowledge of the Instructions, especially those of the clean and unclean, and also a knowledge of what is set-apart. Thus, knowing the difference between living creatures which may be eaten and those which may not gives us the ability to make correct choices. In 2 Tim 2:15, Sha'ul (the apostle Paul) alludes to this principle of the Torah to make distinctions based on the revelation of Scripture. The King James Version translates the verse this way: Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. A better rendering may be thus: Do your best to present yourself to Elohim as one approved, a workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth. Where Sha'ul is translated as
"rightly dividing the word of truth", he is encouraging his
Torah-aware readers to make distinctions between the holy and the
profane, and between clean and unclean - all according to the "word of
truth." One who is approved unto Elohim is the one who makes
distinctions according to the Torah instruction.
Prophetic End
Time Shadows in the Torah Parashah
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