Leviticus…

So what’s the point?

God’s Old Law Health Code

God’s Health Code

• Not just a symbolic ritual, that purification water was really a recipe for highly effective soap! (Numbers 19:6-7, 9, 17-18)– Ashes of a heifer and cedar Pouring water through such ashes would

produce “lye” – This is how some American pioneers made their soap!

– Hyssop was added This contained “thymol” which is an antiseptic that is used in our mouthwashes.

• The Old Law Health Code: Peculiar, But Not Pointless

“Once used for purifying temples

and cleansing lepers, the leaves contain

an antiseptic, antiviral oil. A mold

that produces penicillin grows on

the leaves. An infusion is taken as a sedative expectorant for flue, bronchitis,

and phlegm”

God’s Health Code

• Not just a symbolic ritual, that purification water was really a recipe for highly effective soap! (Numbers 19:6-7, 9, 17-18)– Ashes of a heifer and cedar Pouring water through such ashes would

produce “lye” – This is how some American pioneers made their soap!

– Hyssop was added This contained “thymol” which is an antiseptic that is used in our mouthwashes.

– Cedar wood Antiseptic, astringent, expectorant, antifungal, sedative, insecticide… Recently been used for influenza type A and eczema!

– Scarlet yarn (wool) Thought to make it an ancient equivalent of lava soap– Also, the Bible prescribed that hands be washed under “running” water… for

a long time doctors used bowls of water & disease spread (Lev. 15:13)

• The Old Law Health Code: Peculiar, But Not Pointless

God’s Health Code

• The 8th day for circumcision wasn’t chosen randomly… We’ve discovered that’s when Prothrombin peaks (Genesis 17:12)– Circumcision alone has proven to be a healthy choice – Helps prevent urinary

tract infections in boys as well as lowering the chance of penile cancer

– Prothrombin, along with vitamin K, causes the blood to coagulate. At birth, the level drops low. By day 8 the level peaks to over 100% of

normal. With a deficiency, hemorrhaging can take place.

• The Old Law Health Code: Peculiar, But Not Pointless

“The percent of available prothrombin in a newborn dips from about 90% of normal on its day of birth to about 35% on its third day of life

outside the womb. After the third day, the available prothrombin begins to climb. By the eighth day of the child’s life, the available

prothrombin level is approximately 110% of normal, about 20% higher than it was on the first day, and about 10% more than it will be during

of the child’s life. Such data prove that the eighth day is the perfect day on which to perform a major surgery such as circumcision”

God’s Health Code

• God’s laws for leprosy and other diseases seem logical today, but really these laws were ahead of their time (Lev. 13:45-46; 14:4-6)– One suspected of leprosy was pronounced unclean and isolated until he

could prove that he was not leprous and contagious to others – If leprous, he was made to dwell outside the camp – Leper colonies formed – One with leprosy encountering others had to cover mouth and mustache

region and proclaim, “UNCLEAN! UNCLEAN!” – This prevented the spray from the nose & mouth from going airborne… Germs is a “modern” disc.

– God gave very specific and detailed information on how to diagnose leprosy, determining contagiousness, and differentiating between problems

• The Old Law Health Code: Peculiar, But Not Pointless

“To show how far Moses was ahead of modern society we need only to

remind ourselves that the word quarantine originated in the

fourteenth century when the Italian ports of Venice and Genoa first

refused admission to immigrants who might be harboring plague and required them to stay on board for

forty days — hence the word quarantine. Even in the seventeenth

and eighteenth centuries leprosy spread over southern Europe until the principles of Moses were re-enacted successfully (Dr. William

Vis, Medical Science And The Bible)

God’s Health Code

• What about those seemingly arbitrary dietary restrictions? These two are very purposeful (Leviticus 11:1ff; Deut. 14:9-10)– Why no pork? Parasites and bacteria can take up residency in the muscle

tissue. Parasites, worms, & bacteria if not completely cooked out.– A 1953 study by David I. Macht showed an incredible difference in toxicity

between the clean and unclean animals in the Bible

• The Old Law Health Code: Peculiar, But Not Pointless

Growth Of Seedlings When Exposed To Muscle Juices From These Animals

• Clean Mammals: Ox – 91%, Sheep 94%, Calf – 82%, Goat – 90%, Deer – 90%

• Unclean animals: Pigs – 54%, Rabbit – 49%, Camel – 41%, Horse – 39%

• Clean birds: Pigeon – 93% & Quail – 89%• Unclean birds: Red Tail Hawk – 36% & Owl –

62% • Fish: Those with scales (Herring, pike, shad) –

100% & those without scales were highly toxic

God’s Health Code

• What about those seemingly arbitrary dietary restrictions? These two are very purposeful (Leviticus 11:1ff; Deut. 14:9-10)– Why no pork? Parasites and bacteria can take up residency in the muscle

tissue. Parasites, worms, & bacteria if not completely cooked out.– A 1953 study by David I. Macht showed an incredible difference in toxicity

between the clean and unclean animals in the Bible– Reptiles were included on the list of unclean animals – We now know these

carry Salmonella… not just from eating them, but from handling them. Even by handling what has been in contact by them (Leviticus 11:32-34)

– Bats were unclean. Surely, they resemble flying rats but they also are carriers of rabies. From 1992-2002 they were responsible for 24 of 26 rabies

related cases of human death. Even contact can be dangerous

• The Old Law Health Code: Peculiar, But Not Pointless

God’s Health Code

• Some more not so random health code laws from God: – Special care for clothes, bandages, and other items that contacted disease.

Garments burned if contaminated. Metal pots were washed. Earthen vessels were destroyed (Lev. 13:47-48; 15:12; 6:27-28)

– If you contacted the dead, things that contacted the dead, and things you touched after contacting the dead were all unclean. Some were

washed, some destroyed. It wasn’t until the 1800’s that doctors really discovered the danger from going from the morgue to the living (Numbers 19:11, 22)

– Israel was to bury their “waste” outside the camp… covering it up. Even today places where this isn’t practiced, issues like Cholera, amebic dysentery, and ecoli prevail (Deut. 23:12-14)

• The Old Law Health Code: Peculiar, But Not Pointless

God’s Health Code

• Some more not so random health code laws from God: – God forbid sex during menstruation. Some say this was simply a “thoughtful”

law. Yet such activity increases the risk of bacteria, diseases, yeast infection, urinary tract infection, & pelvic inflammatory disease (Leviticus 15:19)

– God’s law for the sexual relationship between a husband and a wife within in the bounds of marriage prevented many issues – Sexually

transmitted diseases among other diseases and problems (Lev. 20:10-16; Gen. 1:27)

– Moses recorded that all of mankind descended from one man and one woman. Many mocked this idea, however, scientists have been able

to prove that all the differences can result from the DNA of two (Gen. 1:28)

• The Old Law Health Code: Peculiar, But Not Pointless

If Adam and Eve had been “heterozygous” (AaBb; two dominant, two recessive genes), they would have been middle-brown in color. And, from them—in one generation—racial differences easily could have occurred. To illustrate this, examine the chart at the left (known to geneticists as a Punnett square). From these possibilities, one theoretically could obtain the following:

1 Darkest Negroid⎯1 Lightest ⎯Caucasoid4 Light⎯4 Dark⎯6 Medium skin⎯

God’s Health Code

• The medical accuracy of the Bible stands as a testimony to its reliability and inspiration (2 Peter 1:20-21) – Inspiration means “God-Breathed” – The Bible contains the words of God for

man. It’s not man’s ideas & wisdom, but God’s words… Fully authoritative! – How could Moses have understood these things? Men had not discovered

germs, microorganisms, bacteria, and how diseases spread– Some have tried to explain this away based on Moses’ great training in Egypt.

Yet as advanced as Egypt’s medical doctors were, they were still filled absurd ideas that were clearly wrong. None of these are found in

God’s word… Moses writes with perfection! (Acts 7:22) – Also, a testimony against evolution – Man’s errors vs. God’s perfection! – The Bible demands our respect, attention, & obedience… It is the final word!

• Timeless lessons from these health laws:

God’s Health Code

• The people of God are to be a holy people, because God is holy… our lives are to be a reflection of His character (Lev. 11:44-45)– “It’s hard to see… what does touching an unclean animal have to do with a

person’s holiness. It’s an external thing, externals don’t affect internals?”– Cleanliness is next to godliness is not a scripture… but Leviticus does teach

that cleanliness is next to holiness… Avoiding what God declares is unclean!– Remember, God declared these things unclean for a reason… they had a

negative impact on people’s lives. Ignoring God’s law invited problems.– If for no other reason, they impacted holiness because of what it said about

your and your love for God and desire for His will in your life– Today we are to be holy because God is holy (I Peter 1:16). What is our

attitude toward what God has called unclean for us? A heart for Him?

• Timeless lessons from these health laws:

God’s Health Code

• God’s laws are for our good, even if we don’t fully understand why and how (Proverbs 3:3-10, 16-18)– Moses & the Israelites surely didn’t understand the why and how’s of these

laws… but following God’s laws preserved life and health for them– God’s laws are for our good… ALWAYS! Sometimes we may have other

desires, sometimes we may not understand, and sometimes we may not agree… but that does not matter. We must trust in His wisdom!

– Think about the problems and struggles that enter into our lives when we choose to ignore God’s laws. Think about how much better people’s

lives would be if they would give God’s way a chance!

• Timeless lessons from these health laws: