A reflection on Leviticus 18:22, Leviticus 20:13, and Galatians 3:23-29.
You shall not lie with a male as with a woman; it is an abomination.
Leviticus 18:22 (NRSVA)
If a man lies with a male as with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination; they shall be put to death; their blood is upon them.
Leviticus 20:13 (NRSVA)
Now before faith came, we were imprisoned and guarded under the law until faith would be revealed. Therefore the law was our disciplinarian until Christ came, so that we might be justified by faith. But now that faith has come, we are no longer subject to a disciplinarian, for in Christ Jesus you are all children of God through faith. As many of you as were baptised into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is no longer Jew or Greek, there is no longer slave or free, there is no longer male and female; for all of you are one in Christ Jesus. And if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s offspring, heirs according to the promise.
Galatians 3:23-29 (NRSVA)
The laws outlined in the book of Leviticus are, perhaps for all cultures, a mix of commands that seem obvious, and others that leave us baffled. A quick read will unearth a lot of instruction about cleaning houses, skin disease, sex, ritual worship, loving and serving neighbours, and child sacrifice.
Perhaps this is because much of Leviticus is a document given in response to the practices of the Canaanites who occupied the land before the Israelites arrived. It shows the newly freed Jews how not to be caught up in the culture of the land they now occupy. In this sense, it is a set of instructions for its time and context.
We may read it today for history and even wisdom, but rarely do we take it consistently at face value.
And rightly so. Moving away from the law was a clear characteristic of the early church. The apostle Paul was known for holding to faith and not law. In fact, in the passage above, Paul describes the experience of being under law as ‘imprisoned’, ‘guarded’, and under a ‘disciplinarian’. Freedom comes with the revelation of Christ and the invitation to faith. Now, ‘…we are no longer subject to a disciplinarian…(but are) Abraham’s offspring, heirs according to the promise.’
Yet, when the law seems to affirm values we already hold, we can be quick to reference it. The two Levitical citations above may seem, to the modern reader, to refer to homosexual relationships. The repeated use of the term ‘abomination’, and the call to execute, may look like a special emphasis on the significance of these instructions compared to other found in the code.
Yet this is not the only possibility. To be clear, there is no term employed here translated ‘homosexual’. Rather, we have a simple description of practice. As we will see when we consider the first chapter of Paul’s letter to the Romans, such sexual practices were often part of the worship of idols and considered to be acts of submission to the divine. Perhaps the use of ‘abomination’ refers to YHWH’s offence at such offerings as appropriate worship. If so, this is in stark opposition to the belief that such sexual sacrifices pleased the gods and nurtured their favour.
Such beliefs about God stand in stark contrast to the invitation of the Gospels. Jesus’ radical claim to be the fulfilment of the law in Matthew 5:17 is emphasised throughout the remainder of the Sermon on the Mount. Jesus repeatedly refers to the law with ‘…you have heard…’ and then ‘…but I say…’. Much of this is in reference to more dignified and life-giving relationships between people culminating in the call to love neighbour and enemy alike. Here worship becomes a ‘secret’ act seen only by the Father – a laying up of treasures in heaven through a faith that quietly, and practically, serves others and trusts in God’s provision.
To entrust ourselves to Jesus and follow in his footsteps, this is the fulfilment of the law. Reverting back to Levitical code, however, is, quite simply, a denial that Jesus is enough.