19 Sep 2017, Lev 24 利24章, In the Presence of the Lord 在耶和华面前

Posted on Sep 11, 2017 in Devotions, Leviticus |

Scripture Reading    : Lev 24

Theme                        : In the Presence of the Lord

 

In this chapter, the Lord gave Moses instructions concerning three holy things: the holy oil for the lampstand (Lev. 24:1–4), the holy bread for the table (vv. 5–9), and the holy name of the Lord, which all the people were to honor (vv. 10–23). Three important responsibilities “before the Lord” (vv. 3, 6, 8) are given in this chapter.

Providing the oil(1–4).

Only God and the priests saw the light, but the lamps had to be kept shining, for there was no other source of light in the Holy of Holies. The purest olive oil had to be used, supplied by the people themselves. Do we today, as God’s people, help the light of the church to keep shining continually (Rev. 1:20)?

Presenting the bread(5–9).

Twelve loaves were put on the table each Sabbath, and then the old loaves were given to the priests to eat. They were a reminder that God fed the twelve tribes both physically and spiritually, and that they in turn were to feed the world the truth about the Lord.

Protecting the name(10–23).

The man could not be blamed for his parentage, but he could be blamed for blaspheming. Would someone with Egyptian ancestry glorify Israel’s God? (See Exod. 5:2.) Like Moses, we should wait on God for direction (James 1:5). It was a capital offense, and the man was stoned to death. God emphasized again the basic principle that He stated in Exodus 21: equal justice and not personal vengeance.[1]


Praying the Scripture

  1. Since there were no windows in the tabernacle, it was necessary to have light in the holy place so the priests could see as they ministered there. Every morning and evening, when the high priest burned incense on the golden altar, he was to care for the lights on the lampstand to make sure they would continue to burn. The commandment in Leviticus 24:1–4 emphasized two essentials: (1) the people of Israel had to provide the olive oil regularly, and (2) it had to be pure beaten olive oil (Ex. 27:20–21). Is your light shining continuously among your family, friends and neighbors?
  2. Not only were the people to bring the pure olive oil for the lamp, but also they were to bring the fine flour out of which twelve loaves of bread were baked each week. These were put on the golden table each Sabbath. What did this symbolize? Only the priests (the tribe of Levi) were allowed in the holy place, but the other tribes were represented there in two ways: by the jewels on the high priest’s garments (Ex. 28:6–21), and by the twelve loaves on the table. The table was called “the table of shewbread” (Num. 4:7), and the loaves were called “shewbread” (Ex. 25:30), which can be translated “bread of presence.” God was present with His people and they were in His presence in the tabernacle.

[1] Warren W. Wiersbe, With the Word Bible Commentary (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1991), Le 24:1.

 
 

经文：利24章

主题：在耶和华面前

 

在本篇章节里，耶和华给予摩西关于三件圣物的指示：点精金灯台的圣油（利24:1-4）、精金桌子的圣饼（5-9节），还有众百姓当尊荣的圣名（10-23节）。这里也讲述“在耶和华面前”须行的三个重要职责（vv.3，6，8）。

奉献圣油(1–4)

只有神和祭司才能看见油灯，但灯仍必须持续点燃，因至圣所里再无其它光源的存在。祭司必须用最纯净的橄榄油点灯，而油必须由百姓奉献。今天，作为神的子民的我们是否在帮助教会的亮光持续照耀呢（启1:20）？ 

献上圣饼(5–9)

祭司每逢安息日都要在精金桌子摆上12个饼，而旧的饼要给祭司们为食。这是要提醒他们神喂养了十二支派的物质和灵性需要，而他们也要依次以主的真相喂养世界。

维护圣名(10–23)
那人不能归咎于自己的身世，但他必须承担亵渎神的后果。拥有埃及先祖的人是否能荣耀以色列的神？ （见出5:2）如摩西一样，我们应该等候神的指示（雅1:5）。亵渎神是犯了死罪，而那人被石头砸死。神再次强调祂在《出埃及记》21章中所立的基本原则：律法面前人人平等，且不为报个人恩怨施行。
 

用经文祷告

  1. 帐幕里没有窗户，所以必须有光，叫祭司事奉时得以看见。每天早晨和傍晚，当大祭司在金坛烧香时，他也要经理灯台，以确保灯常常点燃。《利未记》24:1-4的诫命强调两个要点：（1）以色列人民必须定期献上橄榄油，而（2）橄榄油必须是纯净的（出27:20-21）。你的光是否持续不断地在你的家人、朋友，以及邻舍中照耀着？
  2. 百姓们不仅需要奉献纯橄榄油，他们也需带上细面以制作每个安息日摆列在精金桌子上的12个圣饼。这象征着什么？只有祭司（利未支派）才可进入圣所，但其它支派是以两种方式被代表出现在圣所里：那就是大祭司圣衣上的宝石（出28:6-21），以及桌子上的12个圣饼。这桌子也被称为“陈设饼的桌子”（民4:7），而饼也称“陈设饼”（出25:30），可译为“存在象征的饼”。神与子民同在，而他们在帐幕里是与神同存的。