Leviticus 24

Leviticus 24 appears in the latter part of Leviticus. It is preceded by Leviticus 23, which sets out Israel's feasts, and followed by Leviticus 25, which deals with the sabbatical year and the Jubilee. The chapter first establishes the service carried on in the sanctuary every day and every Sabbath. It then records a case of blasphemy that occurred within the camp and the law given on that occasion.

Outline

• Verses 1–4 The children of Israel bring pure oil from beaten olives. Aaron tends the lamps of the lampstand, which stands outside the veil of the testimony in the tabernacle of the congregation, so that they burn continually from evening to morning.
• Verses 5–9 Twelve cakes are baked from fine flour, two-tenths of an ephah for each cake. They are set in two rows of six on the pure table, with frankincense placed on them. This is the showbread (the bread set out before God). The bread is arranged every Sabbath, and Aaron and his sons eat it in the holy place.
• Verses 10–12 The son of an Israelite woman and an Egyptian man fights with an Israelite man in the camp. In the course of the quarrel he blasphemes the name of the LORD and curses. The people bring him to Moses, put him in custody, and wait for the LORD's command.
• Verses 13–16 The LORD gives His command. Those who heard the blasphemy lay their hands on the man's head, and then the whole congregation stones him outside the camp. The LORD also gives a law that anyone who blasphemes the name of the LORD, whether foreigner or native-born, is to be put to death.
• Verses 17–22 Whoever kills a person is to be put to death, and whoever kills another's animal is to make restitution. Whoever injures a neighbor is to be repaid "eye for eye, tooth for tooth." This law applies equally to the foreigner and the native-born.
• Verse 23 As commanded, the people take the one who cursed outside the camp and stone him.

Key Verses

• Leviticus 24:2 "to cause the lamps to burn continually" — This reflects the daily service of keeping the sanctuary light from going out.
• Leviticus 24:16 "as well the stranger, as he that is born in the land, when he blasphemeth the name of the LORD" — This emphasizes the holiness of God's name and shows that the law was not applied differently according to a person's status.
• Leviticus 24:20 "eye for eye, tooth for tooth" — The central verse of the law of retaliation, which Jesus quotes in the Sermon on the Mount.

People and Places

• Moses: He takes charge of the case and conveys the LORD's command to the people.
• Aaron: The high priest, who tends the lamps and receives the showbread.
• Shelomith: The daughter of Dibri of the tribe of Dan and the mother of the blasphemer. Her son's name is not given.
• Tabernacle of the congregation: Another name for the tabernacle. The lampstand and the table of showbread stood outside the veil before the ark of the testimony (the Ark of the Covenant).
• Outside the camp: The place where the execution was carried out.

Points for Reflection

• The law of retaliation. The same principle appears in Exodus 21 and Deuteronomy 19:18–21. According to a widely held interpretation, this regulation did not permit private revenge but set a limit so that punishment would not exceed the harm inflicted. Later rabbinic tradition is understood to have interpreted it as monetary compensation.
• Jesus' citation. In Matthew 5:38–42, Jesus quotes this saying and teaches His hearers not to resist evil. Some read this as teaching that supersedes the law, while others read it as forbidding retaliation in personal relationships.
• Application today. The Reformed tradition, including Presbyterianism, follows chapter 19 of the Westminster Confession of Faith in regarding such penal provisions as judicial laws given to the ancient nation of Israel. Accordingly, it holds that only their general equity, not their literal form, applies today. This passage is also frequently cited in discussions of capital punishment.
• What the text does not say. The text does not explain the reason for the fight. Explanations supplied by later Jewish tradition should be distinguished from what the text itself says.
• Connections to the New Testament. The showbread appears in 1 Samuel 21, where David eats it, and Jesus refers to this event in Matthew 12:3–4. Blasphemy is the charge brought in the trial of Jesus (Matthew 26:65) and in the martyrdom of Stephen. Some traditions read the lamps and the bread as types of Christ (John 8:12; 6:35), but this is an interpretation and not something the text states directly.

In the Korean Church

The expression "an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth" is also used in Korea as an everyday idiom. In sermons, it is usually presented as a text that contrasts with the teaching of Jesus, particularly when preaching on the Sermon on the Mount.