What role does the priest play in Leviticus 14:20, and why is it significant? Setting the Scene • Leviticus 14 details God’s instructions for restoring a person healed from “tzaraath” (often translated leprosy). • The first half (vv. 1-32) addresses human skin disease; vv. 33-57 cover contamination in houses. • Verse 20 falls at the climax of an eight-day ritual after the once-unclean individual has been sprinkled with blood, washed, and anointed with oil. Leviticus 14:20 “Then the priest is to sacrifice the burnt offering and the grain offering on the altar, and the priest will make atonement for him, and he will be clean.” The Priest’s Actions in Verse 20 1. Sacrifices the burnt offering. 2. Presents the grain offering alongside it. 3. Makes atonement for the formerly diseased person. 4. Officially declares, “he will be clean.” Why Each Action Matters • Burnt Offering – Entirely consumed on the altar (Leviticus 1:9). – Symbolizes total surrender and reconsecration to God. • Grain Offering – Represents thankful acknowledgment of God’s provision (Leviticus 2:1-3). – Paired with the burnt offering to show gratitude alongside commitment. • Atonement – The priest acts as mediator; the blood on the altar covers sin and defilement (Leviticus 17:11; Hebrews 9:22). – “He will be clean” links forgiveness to ritual purity; moral and ceremonial restoration come together (Leviticus 16:30). Significance Within Israel’s Community • Mediator Role – Only the priest may approach God’s sanctuary, emphasizing holiness and order (Exodus 28:1). • Restoration to Worship and Society – Without the priest’s declaration, the healed person could not re-enter communal life or the tabernacle (Numbers 5:1-4). • Assurance of Divine Acceptance – The public ritual assures the individual and the community that God Himself has removed impurity. Foreshadowing in the Greater Biblical Story • A Pattern Pointing to Christ – Jesus, the ultimate High Priest, offers Himself as the perfect sacrifice, achieving once-for-all atonement (Hebrews 9:11-14; 10:10-14). – Like the healed leper, believers hear the authoritative word, “You are clean” (John 15:3). • Access and Cleansing for Believers – Through Christ we “draw near with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience” (Hebrews 10:21-22). – The Old Testament priest’s ministry illustrates the ongoing advocacy of Jesus, who “always lives to intercede” (Hebrews 7:25). Takeaway for Today • God provides a divinely appointed mediator to remove both sin and stigma. • Cleansing is not self-attained; it is declared by God through His priest. • The priest’s role in Leviticus 14:20 anchors our confidence that, in Christ, we stand fully forgiven, accepted, and restored to fellowship—with God and with His people. |
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