“Keep my commands and follow them

Keep My Commandments

-hebraicstudies.net-

Please do NOT visit this site on שַׁבָּת - Shabbat or on the ‘מוֹעֲדִים - Mo’a’dim - Feasts!

Tanakh versions:

Throughout this site I may use any of the following three versions of the TaNaKh: 1. “Jewish Publication Society” (JPS-1917), 2. Mechon-Mamre.org” (MEC), and 3. “Sefaria.org” (SEF).

Colour coded details of the - TaNaKh:

1. Torah = History & Law, 2. Nevi’im = The Prophets. 3. *Ketuvim = all other Writings.

*The Ketuvim - Includes, Poetical books - Psalms, Proverbs, Job, the Megillot, or Scrolls - Song of Solomon, Ruth, Lamentations of Jeremiah, Ecclesiastes, and Esther, prophecy of Daniel, and history of Ezra, Nehemiah, and Chronicles I & II.

Please Note: Some alterations or (additions) have been made relating to ‘Names’ and ‘Attributes’ having been corrected like it once was, pre the “Masoretic Text”.

YYYYYYY

Remember the following two truth’s from our beloved Scriptures!

“Ye shall NOT ADD TO THE WORD which I command you, neither shall ye diminish from it, that ye may keep the commandments of יְהוָה אֱלֹהֵיכֶם (the LORD your Eloleichem) which I command you”. Davarim - Deuteronomy 4:2. (JPS-1917).

YYYYYYY

“Keep my Commandments”

“Keep my Commandments”..

With Rabbi, Dr. Reuven Ben Avraham-Goossens, PhD.

Introduction:

We will commence and look at a very special verse ... “ye shall keep My commandments, and do them”.

Vayikra - Leviticus 22:31-33. (JPS-1917).

“And ye shall keep My commandments, and do them: I am יְהוָה - the LORD. And ye shall not profane My Holy Name; but I will be hallowed among the children of Israel: I am יְהוָה who hallow you, that brought you out of the land of Egypt, to be your אֱלֹהִים (Elohim - God): I am יְהוָה”.

Introduction:

Vayikra - Leviticus 22 governs who may approach and partake of the sacred offerings and what may be offered. This are two central concerns regarding the holiness of the cultic food and the fitness of sacrificial animals. The chapter insists that priests maintain ritual purity and that only the authorized persons eat the sacred portions, and that offerings be physically unblemished. These rules protect the sanctity of the sanctuary and shape how the community understands access to אֱלֹהִים.

Holiness and Boundary Maintenance:

Vayikra - Leviticus 22 repeatedly frames commands with I am יְהוָה - the LORD, making holiness a Divine imperative rather than a human preference.

The chapter draws clear boundaries between sacred and profane: certain people, conditions, and objects are disqualified from participating in holy service or benefiting from holy food.

The strictness is functional: Preserving separation prevents profanation and protects the divine character of temple worship.

Priestly Purity and Responsibility:

Priests must be ritually clean to eat or work with sacred things; temporary impurity (e.g., touching a corpse) disqualifies until evening purification.

The text treats the priest’s food as dependent on their fitness to serve: if they defile the sacred, they risk being “cut off from My presence,” linking ritual practice to existential consequence.

This places a heavy ethical and professional duty on priests: their conduct affects communal standing and the sanctity of cultic life.

Access, Privilege, and Social Order:

The chapter restricts holy food to priests, their household and legally attached dependents; outsiders, guests, and most laypeople are excluded. Exceptions (a priest’s purchased slave or a daughter who returns to her father’s house) show the rules are integrated with household and social status.

These regulations maintain a social order in which access to divine sustenance is mediated by ritual role, inheritance, and family arrangement.

Integrity of Offerings:

Animals offered must be without defect and at least eight days old; blemished or mutilated animals are unacceptable.

The demand for the best reflects ethical and theological priorities: אֱלֹהִים - Elohim deserves offerings of integrity, not leftovers or second-rate goods.

This requirement discourages hypocrisy, external piety with substandard gifts and binds moral integrity to sacrificial practice.

Theological and Practical Implications:

The chapter links holiness with life and communal health: profaning holy things carries the risk of death or divine judgment, indicating the high stakes of covenantal worship.

Ritual rules also function pedagogically: repeated, concrete commands teach a community to take sacred duties seriously and to internalize reverence.

In post Temple contexts the principles persist as ethical metaphors: purity as moral readiness, offerings as expressions of wholehearted devotion, and boundaries as structures preserving communal identity.

Contemporary Resonances:

Modern readers can hear three enduring messages: take your obligations seriously, offer your best, and recognize that access to the sacred is mediated by responsibility.

For communities that lack a sacrificial system, Leviticus 22 still prompts reflection about who receives spiritual benefits and why, the integrity of religious offerings, and how leaders’ conduct affects communal life.

Reading the chapter historically illuminates ancient cultic life; reading it theologically invites questions about holiness, leadership, and ethical worship today.

“And ye shall not profane My Holy Name; but I will be hallowed among the children of Israel: I am יְהוָה (the LORD) who hallow you”. Vayikra - Leviticus 22:32 (JPS).

“From the rising of the sun unto the going down thereof יְהוָה (the LORD’s) Name is to be praised”. Tehillim - Psalm 113:3. (JPG).

“We will make mention of the Name of יְהוָה אֱלֹהֵינוּ - the LORD our Eloheinu”. Tehillim - Psalm 20:8. (JPS).

YYYYYYY

In Conclusion, a Question to Deepen the Conversation:

Which part of this Tanach study or possibly a particular line or statement within it has touched you the most? And how do you feel about spending more time studying our beloved Tanakh? I pray that you are doing well as a faithful Hebrew, and אֱלֹהִים (Elohim) willing you are upholding as many as possible of our blessed Mitzvoth’s?

Dear reader, please remember this, pray for peace and solitude in your life, and then work on keeping as calm as possible and learn to improve your life, for אֱלֹהִים - בָּרוּךְ אֱלֹהִים (Bless Elohim), He is always there and ready to help and guide you!

This site was originally set up for those who needed to return to our blessed and wonderful faith, thus be wise and work on your faith and pray at least three times a day, and always seek אֱלֹהִים (Elohim’s) guidance!

Remember what אֱלֹהִים (Elohim), blessed be He, said the following via a number of our prophets...

“Return unto Me, and I will return unto you, saith צְבָאוֹת- יְהוָה- the LORD of hosts”. Mal’a’chi - Malachi 3:7. MEC).

And Remember ...

Enjoy your Sabbath Rest, Shabbat Shalom!

אֲנִי יְהוָה אֱלֹהֵיכֶם, בְּחֻקּוֹתַי לֵכוּ; וְאֶת-מִשְׁפָּטַי שִׁמְרוּ, וַעֲשׂוּ אוֹתָם

וְאֶת-שַׁבְּתוֹתַי, קַדֵּשׁוּ; וְהָיוּ לְאוֹת, בֵּינִי וּבֵינֵיכֶם-לָדַעַת, כִּי אֲנִי יְהוָה אֱלֹהֵיכֶם

“I am אֱלֹהֵיכֶם יְהוָה (the LORD your Eloheichem); walk in My statutes, and keep Mine ordinances, and do them; and hallow My Sabbaths, and they shall be a sign between Me and you, that ye may know that I am אֱלֹהֵיכֶם יְהוָה (the LORD – Eloheichem)”. Yechezkel - Ezekiel 20:19-20. (JPS).

YYYYYYY

“Hebraic Studies” motto is as follows;

“The More Torah, the More Life”,

For our Elohim is the One who gave us our ... Life!

May the שָׁלוֹם - Shalom (Peace) of צְבָאוֹת- יְהוָה(the LORD of hosts) be with you, and please always uphold our blessed שַׁבָּת - Shabbat, as well as the ‘מוֹעֲדִים - Mo’a’dim - Feasts, and continue saying your daily תְּפִלָּה - Te’fee’lah’s (Prayers) and regular בְּרָכָה - Be’ra’chah’s (blessings) before food and drinks, etc!

If you need help I can send you special printed items to help you with your Ivrit - Hebrew that you may need, etc! Just email me (using the link further below) and I will send it to you, without any follow up or requests from me.

שָׁלוֹם עֲלֵיכֶם - Shalom Aleichem - Peace be with you!

Rabbi, Dr. Reuven Ben Avraham-Goossens, PhD.

iiEnter the Main Site IndexI

Or ...

http://www.hebraicstudies.net/Site-Index.htm

0Or Return to the FRONT PAGE0

Or ...

https://www.hebraicstudies.net

-hebraicstudies.net-

Email the Rabbi

RBA@hebraicstudies.net

If the email link does not open - You can also copy the link and use it.

Although the author does not believe in having to copyright “Hebraic Studies” which commenced in the mid 1980’,

but there have been occasions where there parts of his studies have been taken and quoted out of context

under his name, and thus he has been misquoted by those who have their own reasons for doing so.

Thus, it is only for this reason these works are covered under strict ...