Lev 18:4 | KingComments | STEP | In this chapter we read a lot of what we also read in Leviticus 20. The distinction is that in this chapter God as the ”LORD” is in the foreground, while in Leviticus 20 the emphasis is on God’s holiness. There we read about the punishments for the sins that are necessarily given ample attention to here. God puts Himself every time before the attention of the people as the LORD, the God of the covenant with His people. By doing so, He wants them to take on His features and not those of the nations around them. There is a special warning for the influence of Egypt and Canaan. After the laws with a view to their sacrificial service, the so-called ceremonial laws, God now gives some moral laws with a view to their sexual intercourse. Egypt represents the world without God. In Egypt there is a lot of human wisdom ( ). For the Christian, the danger of Egypt is discussed in the letter to the Colossians. It also warns against wisdom that takes people captive ( ). The Colossians are in danger of mixing their faith with the wisdom of the world. Paul reminds them that in Christ “are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge” ( ). Canaan is the land of blessings that God has given His people. The great danger there is not so much wisdom, culture and science, but the great corruption that reigns there. The Christian is put in the heavenly places, of which Canaan is a picture. But that does not mean that there are no dangers. It is precisely in the letter to the Ephesians, where the blessings of the Christian are described, that strong warning is given for any form of corruption ( ). Giving in to this corruption means that we will lose the blessings. The Christian is a new creation, he has been created “in [the likeness of] God” ( ). He received Christ ( ) and learned Christ ( ). The danger is that we adapt to the world around us in its character of Egypt or in its character of Canaan. Then we no longer show the new, but the old man. The great contrast we see here is the contrast between the statutes and judgments of the world in its various forms and the statutes and judgments of God. The following of the former means death, the keeping of the latter means life.

‏ Leviticus 18:4

Introduction

In this chapter we read a lot of what we also read in Leviticus 20. The distinction is that in this chapter God as the ”LORD” is in the foreground, while in Leviticus 20 the emphasis is on God’s holiness. There we read about the punishments for the sins that are necessarily given ample attention to here.

Do Not Do as Egypt or Canaan

God puts Himself every time before the attention of the people as the LORD, the God of the covenant with His people. By doing so, He wants them to take on His features and not those of the nations around them. There is a special warning for the influence of Egypt and Canaan. After the laws with a view to their sacrificial service, the so-called ceremonial laws, God now gives some moral laws with a view to their sexual intercourse.

Egypt represents the world without God. In Egypt there is a lot of human wisdom (Acts 7:22). For the Christian, the danger of Egypt is discussed in the letter to the Colossians. It also warns against wisdom that takes people captive (Col 2:8). The Colossians are in danger of mixing their faith with the wisdom of the world. Paul reminds them that in Christ “are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge” (Col 2:3).

Canaan is the land of blessings that God has given His people. The great danger there is not so much wisdom, culture and science, but the great corruption that reigns there. The Christian is put in the heavenly places, of which Canaan is a picture. But that does not mean that there are no dangers. It is precisely in the letter to the Ephesians, where the blessings of the Christian are described, that strong warning is given for any form of corruption (Eph 4:17-19). Giving in to this corruption means that we will lose the blessings.

The Christian is a new creation, he has been created “in [the likeness of] God” (Eph 4:24). He received Christ (Col 2:6) and learned Christ (Eph 4:20). The danger is that we adapt to the world around us in its character of Egypt or in its character of Canaan. Then we no longer show the new, but the old man.

The great contrast we see here is the contrast between the statutes and judgments of the world in its various forms and the statutes and judgments of God. The following of the former means death, the keeping of the latter means life.