Leviticus 22

Overview.
This chapter focuses on the holiness required in the administration and consumption of holy offerings, particularly by the priests. It underscores the reverence due to God’s sanctified things, outlining who may and may not eat from the holy portions, the consequences of ritual impurity, and the standards for acceptable sacrificial animals. Positioned in the heart of Leviticus, it reinforces the theme of separation unto holiness that permeates the priestly legislation.

Flow.

• The chapter begins with a command to Aaron and his sons to avoid defiling the holy offerings, specifying that any unclean person—whether from disease, contact with unclean things, or bodily discharges—must refrain from eating holy food until cleansed.
• Next, it defines who qualifies to eat from the holy things, restricting access to priestly households and excluding outsiders, hired servants, and the descendants of priests who marry outside the covenant community.
• It establishes restitution for unintentional violations involving holy things and warns priests not to profane what the people dedicate.
• The focus shifts to the quality of sacrificial animals, requiring perfection in those offered for burnt and peace offerings, and prohibiting defective animals both as votive and free-will gifts, culminating in rules about the age of animals fit for sacrifice and the humane treatment of mother and offspring.

Connections.
Following chapter 21, which sets apart the priests with standards of moral and ritual purity, chapter 22 extends those concerns to their ongoing conduct in handling holy offerings, making explicit the consequences of profaning sacred things. It prepares the way for chapter 23, which shifts from priestly duties and sacrifices to the sanctification of time through appointed feasts, where the people will again encounter the necessity of holiness in worship. The continuity lies in maintaining the boundary between the holy and the common, which chapter 23 takes up in the context of sacred festivals.

What it teaches.
This chapter teaches that holiness is not merely positional but must be reflected in conduct and reverence for God’s appointed order. The priests, as mediators, must guard against ritual impurity and ensure the sanctity of offerings, for to profane holy things is to profane God’s name (WCF 19.2). The requirement that sacrifices be without defect reflects the necessity of moral and spiritual perfection in approaching God, prefiguring the ultimate sacrifice of Christ (HC LD 16). The regulations on ritual cleanliness and access to holy food safeguard the distinction between the sacred and the profane, teaching that God is “holy, holy, holy” (Isa. 6:3) and must be approached according to His revealed will (WCF 21.1).

Apply.
Approach God’s gifts with reverence, recognizing that His holiness shapes every aspect of communal and priestly life.