Leviticus 26:1-33

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TALKS FOR GROWING CHRISTIANS

The Blessings and Cursings Under the Mosaic Covenant

BACKGROUND NOTES



DOCTRINAL POINT(S)

  1. Under the Law, there were promised blessings to Israel for obedience.

  2. Under the Law, there were threatened punishments to Israel for disobedience.

PRACTICAL APPLICATION

  1. Remember the principle of the Sabbath and the sanctuary!

QUESTIONS

  1. God gave His law to His people in a form they would be familiar with. What was it?

  2. What two categories of blessings did God promise His people if they would remain faithful and obedient?

  3. What is an overarching principle for believers today reading the blessings and cursings in the Old Testament?

  4. Who was the audience of the blessings and curses of the Mosaic Covenant?

  5. List the five waves of punishment if the people did not follow God’s covenant.

ANSWERS

  1. He used a legal form list an Ancient Near East legal treaty. These followed a certain structure which concluded with a section of blessing for those who observed the sanctions of the treaty and a section of cursings on those who rebelled against the sanctions.

  2. Material blessings (verses 1-10) and spiritual blessings (verses 11-13)

  3. Christians can’t claim blessings that were promised to Israel unless they are also given to the Church in the New Testament.

  4. The blessings and curses are not directed at individual Israelites, but at the nation as a whole. God’s response was dependant on whether the nation as a whole was faithful to the Lord and the covenant He was making with them.

  5. 1 terror, disease, small harvests, and defeat in war 2. no rain, and thus barren land 3. further disease and desolation; wild beasts attacking flocks, herds, and even children 4. more war and defeat, more plagues, more famine 5. destruction as a nation

DISCUSS/CONSIDER

  1. Can we as believers today claim the material and spiritual blessings of Leviticus 26 if we faithfully follow and obey the Lord? Discuss why the answer is Yes and No.

  2. Discuss the history of the nation of Israel. When did the five waves of punishment occur?

CHALLENGE

  1. Although there is no command to Christians in the New Testament to keep the Sabbath or have a special building in which to worship the Lord, we see the principle of the Sabbath and the sanctuary in the New Testament. We should set aside time from our daily routine to worship the Lord. Do you?

KEY VERSES

  • “If you walk in My statutes and keep My commandments, and perform them, then I will give you rain in its season…” Leviticus 26:3-4a

  • “I will walk among you and be your God, and you shall be My people.” Leviticus 26:12

  • “And after all this, if you do not obey Me, but walk contrary to Me, then I also will walk contrary to you in fury; and I, even I, will chastise you seven times for your sins.” Leviticus 26:27-28

Talks, Old Testament, LeviticusRon ReidLEVITICUS 26:1-33