The journey continues with part 14!
241. Rambam has, “Leave gleanings for the poor.”
“And when you reap the harvest of your land, do not completely reap the corners of your field or gather the gleanings of your harvest. And do not glean your vineyard or gather every grape of your vineyard, leave them for the poor and the stranger. I am יהוה your Elohim.” (Leviticus 19:9-10)
Some could claim that this command is the same as number 239, and I see why they might, however ‘or’ is used to link alternatives. So, with that in mind I consider it a command all on its own. This falls under love others, can be fulfilled today, and in my notes, I put “Leave the gleanings of your harvest for the poor.”
242. Rambam has, “Do not gather gleanings of a crop but leave them for the poor.”
“And when you reap the harvest of your land, do not completely reap the corners of your field or gather the gleanings of your harvest. And do not glean your vineyard or gather every grape of your vineyard, leave them for the poor and the stranger. I am יהוה your Elohim.” (Leviticus 19:9-10)
Same as 239.
243. Rambam has, “Leave the gleanings of a vineyard for the poor.”
“And when you reap the harvest of your land, do not completely reap the corners of your field or gather the gleanings of your harvest. And do not glean your vineyard or gather every grape of your vineyard, leave them for the poor and the stranger. I am יהוה your Elohim.” (Leviticus 19:9-10)
Within the same vain as number 239, but since Elohim makes the distinction between fields (crops) and vineyards, then I am going to consider this a separate command and not just number 239 rewritten. And unlike the portions of commands that dealt with harvesting your field, I’m going to combine the glean and gather even though they are separated by ‘or’. I do this because to glean and to gather are almost the same thing, while one is more gradual, they are essentially the same action. This falls under love others, can be fulfilled today, and in my notes, I put “Do not glean your vineyard or gather every grape of your vineyard, leave them for the poor and the stranger.”
244. Rambam has, “Do not gather the gleanings of a vineyard but leave them for the poor.”
“And do not glean your vineyard or gather every grape of your vineyard, leave them for the poor and the stranger. I am יהוה your Elohim.” (Leviticus 19:10)
Same as number 243.
245. Rambam has, “Leave the unformed clusters of grapes for the poor.”
“And do not glean your vineyard or gather every grape of your vineyard, leave them for the poor and the stranger. I am יהוה your Elohim.” (Leviticus 19:10)
Same as number 243.
246. Rambam has, “Do not pick the unformed clusters of grapes but leave them for the poor.”
“And do not glean your vineyard or gather every grape of your vineyard, leave them for the poor and the stranger. I am יהוה your Elohim.” (Leviticus 19:10)
Same as number 243.
247. Rambam has, “Leave the forgotten sheaves in the field for the poor.”
“When you reap your harvest in your field, and have forgotten a sheaf in the field, do not go back to get it. Let it be for the stranger, for the fatherless, and for the widow, so that יהוה your Elohim might bless you in all the work of your hands.” (Deuteronomy 24:19)
This is an interesting one, different from the commands that tell us not to reap the corners, or to gather all the gleanings of the field. This one is specifically for when you forget a bundle out in the field. Notice too, that emphasis these past commands have on taking care of the less fortunate, and how Elohim will bless the work of your hands if you do. I remember once having a conversation with a Christian regarding these commands, he became upset and said these commands are not fair to the farmer. However, the farmer is blessed to have crops, whereas the poor does not. Furthermore, it is written that Yah will bless the person who obeys these commands. This falls under love others, can be fulfilled today, and in my notes I put, “Leave the forgotten sheaves in the field for the poor.”
248. Rambam has, “Do not retrieve sheaves forgotten in the field but leave them for the poor.”
“When you reap your harvest in your field, and have forgotten a sheaf in the field, do not go back to get it. Let it be for the stranger, for the fatherless, and for the widow, so that יהוה your Elohim might bless you in all the work of your hands.” (Deuteronomy 24:19)
Same as number 247.
249. Rambam has, “Separate the tithe for the poor.”
“At the end of every third year you bring out all the tithe of your increase of that year and store it up within your gates. “And the Lĕwite, because he has no portion nor inheritance with you, and the sojourner and the fatherless and the widow who are within your gates, shall come and eat and be satisfied, so that יהוה your Elohim does bless you in all the work of your hand which you do.” (Deuteronomy 14:28-29)
The tithe, as mentioned in the Bible, was always done with food and not money. The purpose of the tithe was to feed the Levitical priest, since the tribe of Levi was not given land as an inheritance, and as in this case for the less fortunate. There is a lot to say on tithing and how it has been misrepresented/ misused by many religious figures, but I will save that for another article. This falls under love others, cannot be fulfilled today (there is no tithe in effect, as there is no Levitical priesthood actively working in the temple), and in my notes I put “At the end of every third year you bring out all the tithe of your increase of that year and store it up within your gates. For the Levite, the sojourner, and the fatherless.”
250. Rambam has, “Give charity to those in need.”
“When there is a poor man with you, one of your brothers, within any of the gates in your land which יהוה your Elohim is giving you, do not harden your heart nor shut your hand from your poor brother, for you shall certainly open your hand to him and certainly lend him enough for his need, whatever he needs.” (Deuteronomy 15:7-8)
Hopefully you’re getting the idea by now. Elohim wants us to take care of those who are in need, He has blessed us with abundance and we should be happy to share our blessings with others. This falls under love others, can be fulfilled today, and in my notes I put, “Help a brother in need.”
251. Rambam has, “Do not withhold charity from the poor.”
“When there is a poor man with you, one of your brothers, within any of the gates in your land which יהוה your Elohim is giving you, do not harden your heart nor shut your hand from your poor brother.” (Deuteronomy 15:7)
Same as 250.
252. Rambam has, “Set aside a gift of food for the priest.”
“The priests, the Lĕwites, all the tribe of Lĕwi, have no part nor inheritance with Yisra’ĕl. They are to eat the offerings of יהוה made by fire, and His inheritance. But among his brothers Lĕwi has no inheritance. יהוה is his inheritance, as He has spoken to him. “And this is the priest’s right from the people, from those who slaughter a slaughtering, whether it is bull or sheep: they shall give to the priest the shoulder, and the two cheeks, and the stomach; the first-fruits of your grain and your new wine and your oil, and the first of the fleece of your sheep, you give to him.” (Deuteronomy 18:1-4)
The literal command is to provide for the Levite since they do not have an inheritance. This falls under love others, cannot be fulfilled today, and in my notes, I put, “Provide for the Levitical Priesthood, for they do not have an inheritance of land.”
253. Rambam has, “The Levite must set aside a tenth of his tithe.”
“Speak to the Lĕwites and say to them, ‘When you take from the children of Yisra’ĕl the tithes which I have given you from them as your inheritance, then you shall present a contribution of it to יהוה, a tenth of the tithe. And your contribution shall be reckoned to you as grain from the threshing-floor and as filling from the winepress. Thus you also present a contribution unto יהוה from all your tithes which you receive from the children of Yisra’ĕl. And you shall give from it the contribution to יהוה to Aharon the priest.” (Numbers 18:26-28)
All priest were Levites but not all Levites were priest. Even the Levites who received their tithes from the other tribes of Israel, had to give a tenth to the priesthood. This falls under lover others, cannot be fulfilled today, and in my notes, I put “The Levite must set aside a tenth of his tithe for the priest.”
254. Rambam has, “Do not preface one tithe to the next, but separate them in their proper order.”
“Do not delay giving your harvest and your vintage. Give Me the first-born of your sons.” (Exodus 22:29)
The literal command here is to not delay in giving your tithe. This falls under lover others, cannot be fulfilled today, and in my notes, I put “Do not delay in giving your tithe.”
255. Rambam has, “A non- priest must not eat food set aside as a gift for the priest.”
“And no stranger eats the set-apart offering. A sojourner with the priest, or a hired servant, does not eat the set-apart offering. ‘And no stranger eats the set-apart offering. A sojourner with the priest, or a hired servant, does not eat the set-apart offering. ‘But when the priest buys a being with his silver, he does eat of it. And one who is born in his house does eat his food. ‘And when a priest’s daughter is married to a stranger, she does not eat of the set-apart offerings. ‘But when a priest’s daughter is a widow or put away, and has no child, and has returned to her father’s house as in her youth, she does eat her father’s food, but no stranger eats of it.” (Leviticus 22:10-13)
Food offered up to the Temple for the priest, is only allowed for the priest and his family to eat, that is how they are fed. Remember, the Levites have no land inheritance, no ability to cultivate land for crops, they relied solely on the tithes and offerings from the other eleven tribes. This falls under love others, cannot be fulfilled today, and in my notes, I put “A non- priest must not eat food set aside for the priest.”
256. Rambam has, “A hired worker or an Israelite bondsman of a priest must not eat food set aside as a gift for the priest.”
“And no stranger eats the set-apart offering. A sojourner with the priest, or a hired servant, does not eat the set-apart offering. ‘And no stranger eats the set-apart offering. A sojourner with the priest, or a hired servant, does not eat the set-apart offering. ‘But when the priest buys a being with his silver, he does eat of it. And one who is born in his house does eat his food. ‘And when a priest’s daughter is married to a stranger, she does not eat of the set-apart offerings. ‘But when a priest’s daughter is a widow or put away, and has no child, and has returned to her father’s house as in her youth, she does eat her father’s food, but no stranger eats of it.” (Leviticus 22:10-13)
This command is wrapped up in the one before it, as anyone not within the priest’s family is allowed to eat the set-apart offering. I see this as being the same as number 255, but you may add it to your list as a sperate command. This falls under love others, and cannot be fulfilled today.
257. Rambam has, “An uncircumcised male must not eat food set aside for a priest.”
“And when a stranger sojourns with you and shall perform the Pĕsaḥ (Passover) to יהוה, let all his males be circumcised, and then let him come near and perform it, and he shall be as a native of the land. But let no uncircumcised eat of it.” (Exodus 12:48)
The literal command is that no one who is uncircumcised, that is to be outside of Israel, is to partake in the Passover. On the surface level this is speaking about physical circumcision, and the deeper level is speaking about being circumcised of the heart as well. Both need to be circumcised.
“And you shall circumcise the foreskin of your heart, and harden your neck no more.” (Deuteronomy 10:16)
“Circumcise yourselves unto יהוה, and take away the foreskins of your hearts, you men of Yehuḏah(Judah) and inhabitants of Yerushalayim(Jerusalem), lest My wrath come forth like fire and burn, with none to quench it, because of the evil of your deeds.” (Jeremiah 4:4)
Another key take away from Exodus 12:48, is that the person who is circumcised of heart and flesh to make covenant with Elohim, is as a native born of the land. Not a stranger, not a gentile. For more information, please see my articles “Judah and Israel” and “Redeeming the Bride”. While the Passover it self cannot be fulfilled as it is described in the scriptures, we can however do a rehearsal if you will. Have lamb, go over the Exodus account, take wine or grape juice that symbolizes the blood of Messiah, and bread that symbolizes the body of Messiah. Even though this is only a rehearsal, I personally would not let any uncovenanted person partake in it. This command is commonly placed in the love others category; however, I see it as more of a love Elohim commandment, cannot be fulfilled today in the way it was instructed in the Torah but we can pay homage to the Passover, and in my notes, I put “Do not let any uncircumcised (uncovenanted) person partake in the Passover.”
That is as far as we will go for this portion, I hope this series is of some benefit to you. Continue to test all things, and may the Ruach Hakodesh lead you into all truth.
P.S.
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