The Listener’s Bible Commentary

Leviticus 11-15, pt. 2   Leviticus 11-15 gives Israel instructions for ritual purity, so that they can honor God by drawing near to his sacred tent in a ritually pure state. These chapters make clear what causes ritual impurity and what they need to do in order to be clean again. All of this is part of God's covenant with Israel.  This recording focuses on Leviticus 12-14 which deals with ritual p...

Leviticus 11-15, pt. 1   Why does the Bible say not to eat pork? What about all the food laws of the Bible?  Leviticus 11-15 gives Israel instructions for ritual purity, so that they can honor God by drawing near to his sacred tent in a ritually pure state. These chapters make clear what causes ritual impurity and what they need to do in order to be clean again.  This recording focuses on Leviticu...

Leviticus 8-10   Leviticus 8-10 recounts the opening ceremonies for the Tabernacle, and it's important to remember where we’re at in the story of the Pentateuch (Torah).  The Israelites have come out of Egypt and they’re camped at the foot of Mt. Sinai. God has instructed them to build a sacred tent for him, so he can dwell among them. They have now done that. They just got the tabernacle set up!...

Leviticus 4-7    In Leviticus 1-7, God is giving Moses instructions for the 5 main sacrifices for Israel's worship at the Tabernacle. Chapters 1-3 details the first three. Leviticus 4-6 detail the next two, the sin (or better, purification) offering and the guilt or restitution offering.  These two offerings are very similar. It even says in these chapters “the guilt offering is like the sin offer...

Leviticus 1-3   Leviticus opens like this: “Then the Lord called to Moses and spoke to him from the tent of meeting, saying…” This makes it clear that it is continuing the story revealed in Exodus. Exodus ended like this: 40:34 -35 - Then the cloud covered the tent of meeting, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. Moses was not able to enter the tent of meeting because the cloud had set...

Ritual Purity and Atonement in Leviticus  Reading Leviticus can feel very foreign... we might even say it's weird. And a huge part of that is because all the rules about clean and unclean. These rules rules are addressing the state of ritual purity and ritual impurity.  Ritual impurity in the Ancient Near East (ANE) was a status rendering a person temporarily unfit to enter sacred spaces (temples)...

Introduction to Leviticus   For most of us, Leviticus is a challenging read! If Exodus was more challenging than Genesis, Leviticus ramps it up even further. The first seven chapters are procedures for sacrifices. Later,  there’s all sorts of teaching about clean and unclean foods and about behaviors that lead to ritual impurity and what to do about all that. A lot of the material in Leviticus is...

The Majesty of God, Leviticus, and Other News | Spring 2026 Update When spending lots of time in Exodus and Leviticus you can't miss the majesty and holiness of God. But at the same time, there's the mercy and intimacy of God. Let's reflect on that.  Here's a link to the sermon from Acts 5 that I mention in this update: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WK7JrNb9Ays&pp=0gcJCQQLAYcqIYzv   Leviticu...

Special Study: Slavery in the Torah    Laws concerning slavery appear in several places in the Torah (the Pentateuch). This can be troubling, since slavery is a persistent human evil. In this special study of The Listener's Bible Commentary, we give one guiding principle and six considerations that help us hear the slavery laws as the were intended to be heard. Our goal here is to prevent misunder...

Exodus 35-40 In this section of the Bible book of Exodus, the tabernacle is built and the priestly garments are made. Since the covenant has been renewed, it’s time to build the tabernacle, fashion the priestly garments, and get everything ready for God to move in.  God gives his Spirit to two men, Bezalel and Oholiab, so that they can lead the project and the people respond with great generosity...

Exodus 32-34, pt. 2   These chapters recount the famous "golden calf" incident, where Israel convince Aaron to set an idol in the form of gold bull and they worship it as their god who led them out of Egypt. In a real, sense this is the fall of Israel.  What makes it even more tragic and offensive is that they have just entered into their covenant with Yahweh less than 2 months ago and now they ha...

Exodus 32-34, pt. 1   These chapters recount the famous "golden calf" incident, where Israel convince Aaron to set an idol in the form of gold bull and they worship it as their god who led them out of Egypt. In a real, sense this is the fall of Israel.  What makes it even more tragic and offensive is that they have just entered into their covenant with Yahweh less than 2 months ago and now they ha...

Exodus 28-31   In Exodus 28-31 God give Moses the instructions for the priests clothing and for their ordination service. Then he gives the plans for the final few items needed for the tabernacle. The section ends with God handing Moses the two tablets containing the words of the Covenant.   BIBLE READING GUIDE - FREE EBOOK - Get the free eBook, Bible in Life, to help you learn how to read and app...

Exodus 25-27   The main theme of the whole last section of Exodus - chapters 25-40 - is God presence in the midst of the Israelites. And the center of that is a specially designed royal tent where God will come to dwell right in the middle of the camp. We call this tent the Tabernacle.  In chapters 25-27 God begins giving Moses the blueprints for the Tabernacle.    BIBLE READING GUIDE - FREE EBOOK...

Exodus 24   Exodus 24 recounts the covenant ratification ceremony between God and Israel. Moses reads the "Book of the Covenant" and the people agree to obey all that God has said. The Moses, Aaron, and representatives of the people partake of a covenant meal in God's presence, and Moses enters God's presence to receive instructions for the Tabernacle so God can move in among the people.    BIBLE...

Exodus 21-23  This is sometimes referred to as "The Book of the Covenant" because that is what it is called in Exodus 24:7-8, although that probably also includes Exodus 20. We need to remember that these regulations reflect “God’s ways in Israel’s days” (as one author puts it). These instructions are part of God’s covenant with this particular nation, Israel. God is accommodating himself to their...

Special Study: Covenant In Exodus 19-24, God makes a covenant with Israel. The idea of "covenant" is central to not only the book of Exodus but also the entire Bible. So in this special study we explore the concept of covenant in regards to the Sinai covenant and how it relates to the new covenant in Christ.    BIBLE READING GUIDE - FREE EBOOK - Get the free eBook, Bible in Life, to help you learn...

Exodus 19-20   These chapters are pivotal in book of Exodus. Israel arrives at Mount Sinai, where God meets with them and enters into a covenant with them. Because of that, these chapters are also pivotal in the history of Israel and the entire Bible.  God describes their status and vocation in Exodus 19:3-6:  3 And Moses went up to God, and the Lord called to him from the mountain, saying, “This...

Exodus 15:22-18:27   These chapters of Exodus recount Israel's journey from the Red Sea to Mount Sinai. It includes five snapshots from that journey which show Israel's continual unbelief that's acted out in grumbling and complaining and pining to return to Egypt.  The five snapshots are: 1. Near dehydration - 15:22-27 2. Fear of Starvation - 16:1-36 3. No more water - 17:1-7 4. Fighting Amalek -...

Exodus 13:1-15:21   In this section of the book of Exodus, Moses recounts: -the ceremony for offering and redeeming the first born in Israel -the parting of the Red Sea and crossing on dry land  -Moses' and the Israelite's victory song, celebrating God's salvation   BIBLE READING GUIDE - FREE EBOOK - Get the free eBook, Bible in Life, to help you learn how to read and apply the Bible well:  https:...

Exodus 12    Now the Lord said to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt, 2 “This month shall be the beginning of months for you; it is to be the first month of the year for you. 3 Speak to all the congregation of Israel, saying, ‘On the tenth of this month they are, each one, to take a lamb for themselves, according to the fathers’ households, a lamb for each household. 4 Now if the household is to...

Exodus 5-11 In this session of The Listener's Commentary, we look at the famous 10 plagues story. Israel is suffering under the heavy hand of Egyptian oppression. God has heard their cries, remembered his covenant, and called Moses to be the deliverer. And Moses finally agrees to go. He has met his brother Aaron and together they have returned to Egypt to confront Pharaoh… and it’s really a confro...

Exodus 5-11 In this session of The Listener's Commentary, we begin looking at the famous 10 plagues story. Israel is suffering under the heavy hand of Egyptian oppression. God has heard their cries, remembered his covenant, and called Moses to be the deliverer. And Moses finally agrees to go. He has met his brother Aaron and together they have returned to Egypt to confront Pharaoh… and it’s really...

Exodus 1-4 This is part 1 of the book of Exodus, the part we called the birth and early years of Moses in the backstory to Exodus.  -Exodus opens in a way that links it to Genesis … a recap of the sons of Jacob and the death of Joseph.  -Israel has increased and multiplied and filled the land and Pharaoh sees that as a problem. -Moses is born and raised in Pharaoh's household. -Moses flees Egypt,...

Backstory to Exodus In order to help you read Exodus well, this session of The Listener's Commentary explores the backstory and overview of the book of Exodus. When was it written? Why was it written? What is Exodus about?    BIBLE READING GUIDE - FREE EBOOK - Get the free eBook, Bible in Life, to help you learn how to read and apply the Bible well:  https://www.listenerscommentary.com     GIVE -...