I’m back reading through the book of Leviticus in the scriptures again and while this is something I have written about before I feel it is worth another mention.

Let’s be honest – Leviticus can be a tricky read at times. For those of you who haven’t read it, the book includes instructions for the Levites (the Israelite priests) and it is concerned with laws that the people are to uphold. There is debate about exactly how many laws Leviticus contains but it is thought to hold most of the 613 that are in the Jewish law formed from the first 5 books of the Bible. Reading the book in 2025 while I am sitting in a modern, civilised country with a well formed legal and social structure crafted over centuries is a challenge. It’s difficult to understand how reading about how the Levitical priests dealt with a nasty rash or a flakey scalp has an impact on my walk with Jesus today. I’m guessing you have felt the same? Leviticus is the book that has the fewest highlights, underlines and notes in my Bible.

However, God doesn’t make mistakes, and if I believe the Bible is the holy living word that He wanted celebrated throughout out the generations then the book of Leviticus has something to show me.

I think the key to understanding this lies in a reorientation that we need to make when it comes to reading the Bible. Most of us, me included, read the Bible to gain instruction in how we can live our lives in the way God intended. That’s not bad right? I mean it would be a waste if we read the Scriptures and it didn’t bring any change to how we lived. However there is something else going on that is even deeper than that, good as it is. You see the Bible is a book that we read where the goal is not to simply to know the content of the book and live it out, but the real goal is to get to know the author.

That’s God so we are being clear!!!

Knowing what is in the Bible is not enough because as one preacher famously said; “the devil knows the Bible better than you and it hasn’t done him much good!” Even knowing the content of the Bible and living out its truth alone is not enough because deep down that is religion; right living without right relationship. However, when we get to know and fall in love with the author of the Bible, when we set our heart after His, when relationship is the goal we receive all the content, the life, and so much more. So, when we come to the scriptures we need to ask a better question than “what does this mean for me?” I would suggest that better question is “God, what does this reveal about You” and from there we can work out and allow that truth to change us.

So, when I come to Leviticus with that question it changes it (I’m not saying it suddenly becomes a joyous read but the revelation within it changes). When we realise the context of Leviticus we see a people who have had 400 years of slavery and have just recently become free. Before those years they hadn’t really been a people as they came from one family under Jacob, the son of Isaac and grandson of Abraham. They are unlikely to have formed many cultures, laws, or norms of their own even before slavery and once in slavery they simply would have done what they had been told by the Egyptians. That’s hard for me to grasp living in the world that I exist in. But imagine not having any of those norms, laws, cultures and suddenly finding yourself free and having to work out how you would establish and live as a new nation, which could have been as big as 2 or 3 million people.

Let that sink in!!

Imagine how grateful you would be if the God who led you out of your slavery sat you down and said that He was going to go into great detail in setting out the laws, the way that you should live, so that your people would always be living right in His sight. Imagine the relief to know that He would go into the small details so that you didn’t have to work it all out. Leviticus is the record of God doing exactly that for the Israelites.

This truth shows me how incredible the God we serve is. He isn’t just present for the plague sending, sea parting big stuff. He cares about us in the small details as well – He doesn’t neglect the seemingly small parts of our lives such is His love and desire for us. Knowing that truth about Him changes me and my approach to Him. It gives me confidence to bring every single thing before Him; both the big and the small. It reminds me of His love and in my mind I can picture Him as a doting dad that is willing to listen to my random tiny requests and thoughts.

So, thank you for including Leviticus God – thank you for what it reveals about you.

(I’m not gonna lie though – I’m glad i don’t have to live out some of those laws that were instituted back then!)