Leviticus 17 describes more rules for the Israelites to obey regarding sacrifices and offerings made before the "Tent of Meeting". "Any Israelite or any alien living among you who hunts any animal or bird that may be eaten must drain out the blood and cover it with earth, because the life of every creature is its blood. That is why I have said to the Israelites, You must not eat the blood of any creature, because the life of every creature is its blood; anyone who eats it must be cut off."

Leviticus 16
"When Aaron has finished making atonement for the Most Holy Place, the Tent of Meeting and the altar, he shall bring forward the live goat. He is to lay both hands on the head of the live goat and confess over it all the wickedness and rebellion of the Israelites—all their sins—and put them on the goat's head. He shall send the goat away into the desert in the care of a man appointed for the task. The goat will carry on itself all their sins to a solitary place; and the man shall release it in the desert."

Leviticus 11-15 explains details of many guidelines given to the Israelites to live a holy lifestyle in obedience to their Lord, maintaing "cleanness". These included rules about unclean foods, purification after childbirth, regulations about skin infections, mildew contamination, and unclean bodily discharges. The Lord directed, "You must keep the Israelites separate from things that make them unclean, so they will not die in the uncleanness for defiling my dwelling place, which is among them". In these chapters, the word "unclean" occurs more than a hundred times, and each time refers to restrictions in conduct for the Israelites in order to remain acceptable for worshiping their holy God.

In Leviticus 10, we learn about the death of Nadab and Abihu, Aaron's sons who didn't follow the commands of the Lord. They offered unauthorized fire before the Lord, and the fire came out from the presence of the Lord and consumed them. "All the house of Israel may mourn for those the Lord destroyed by fire." The Lord said to Aaron, "You must distinguish between the holy and the common, between the unclean and the clean, and you must teach the Israelites all the decrees the Lord has given them through Moses."

Leviticus 8 & 9 are about the ordination of Aaron and his sons as priests and the beginning of their ministry. The Lord directed Moses to bring Aaron and his sons before the Tabernacle and gather the people, and then the Lord commanded Moses to wash them with water and dress them with the holy garments. Aaron was dressed with a tunic, sash, ephod, breastpiece, Urim and Thummim, turban, diadem, etc. The sons of Aaron were dressed similarly and they all were consecrated with anointing oil. Then they performed the sin offering, the burnt offering, and a ram was slaughtered for the ordination also. Moses said, "What has been done today was commanded by the Lord to make atonement for you... and Aaron and his sons did everything the Lord commanded through Moses". They came with the entire assembly near the Tabernacle and stood before the Lord and Moses said, "This is what the Lord has commanded you to do, so that the glory of the Lord may appear to you." Moses then instructed the priests how to make the offerings as atonement for themselves and the people. "Then Aaron lifted his hands toward the people and blessed them... Moses and Aaron then went into the Tent of Meeting and when they came out, the glory of the Lord appeared to all the people. Fire came out from the presence of the Lord and consumed the offerings and the fat portions on the alter and when all the people saw it, they shouted for joy and fell facedown."

Leviticus 7 concludes the instructions for the offerings, including the guilt offering and peace offerings. "The Lord gave these instructions to Moses on Mount Sinai when he commanded the Israelites to bring their offerings to the Lord in the wilderness of Sinai." The process of the various offerings teaches about the seriousness of sin, the importance of confessing and repenting of our sins, and bringing them to God for forgiveness.

Leviticus 6 "If anyone sins and is unfaithful to the LORD by deceiving his neighbor about something entrusted to him or left in his care or stolen, or if he cheats him, or if he finds lost property and lies about it, or if he swears falsely, or if he commits any such sin that people may do- when he thus sins and becomes guilty, he must return what he has stolen or taken by extortion, or what was entrusted to him, or the lost property he found, or whatever it was he swore falsely about. He must make restitution in full, add a fifth of the value to it and give it all to the owner on the day he presents his guilt offering. And as a penalty he must bring to the priest, that is, to the LORD, his guilt offering, a ram from the flock, one without defect and of the proper value. In this way the priest will make atonement for him before the LORD, and he will be forgiven for any of these things he did that made him guilty."

Leviticus 5 describes more situations when someone would be guilty of sin, requiring a sin offering. Whether or not something sinful was done knowingly, admission of guilt was required once you realized the foolishness of what was done. When a person became aware, he must confess his sin and bring an animal sacrifice as the penalty for such sin, in order to be made right with the Lord and receive forgiveness.

Leviticus 4 gives the details for "sin offerings" that God prescribed to the Israelites for unintentional sin, not that of outright rebellion against God. So there were procedures also in these instances for bringing bulls, goats, or sheep to the Tabernacle to be presented to the Lord as sacrifices and the priest would "make an atonement for them and they would be forgiven".

Leviticus 3:16 (NIV) All the fat is the Lord's.

Leviticus 2 gives details of how the Israelites were to bring grain offerings to the Lord. They were to be made from only "fine flour", with oil poured on it, but without any yeast. They were to be brought to the Lord as an offering of the firstfruits. The priest would burn "a handful of the fine flour and oil" as a memorial portion on the fire, producing an aroma pleasing to the Lord. The rest of the grain offering was given to Aaron and his sons as the "most holy part of the offering made to the Lord by fire".

Leviticus is about holiness. The first part of the book is about worshiping our holy God and the second part is about living a holy life pleasing to Him. Leviticus 1 is about offering burnt offerings of animals sacrificed from the herds and flocks of the Israelites. Many details were given as guidance in how to do this properly and exactly in order for the Lord to accept the sacrifices as their substitute, making atonement for the Israelites. Whether a bull, male sheep, turtledove, or young pigeon, they were to be offered as a "whole burnt offering made by fire, very pleasing to the Lord". The animal sacrifices were offered from their own flocks and herds and only animals with no physical defects were to be chosen. Only the holy priests were to perform the sacrifices, sprinkling the blood, and placing the animal on the fire. The offering process demonstrated God's justice, holiness, and mercy; and it also demonstrated the Israelites' dependence, commitment, and submission to God's laws.

Exodus 35-40 The people brought to the Lord their offerings and materials for the Tabernacle construction and its furnishings and for the holy garments. They brought their offerings "if their hearts were stirred and they desired to do so", "both men and women came, all whose hearts were willing". Two craftsman, Bezalel and Oholiab, were gifted by the Lord with "wisdom, skill, and intelligence to construct an furnish the Tabernacle, just as the Lord has commanded". Gifts and materials were offered each morning and soon the craftsmen told Moses, "We have more than enough on hand now to complete the job", so Moses sent a message throughout the camp, "Bring no more materials!-You have already given more than enough." When the work was completed, Moses inspected everything and blessed the people because the work had been done just as the Lord commanded. "Then a cloud covered the Tabernacle, and the glorious presence of the Lord filled it." "Whenever the cloud lifted from the Tabernacle and moved, the people of Israel set out on their journey, following it." God's presence continued to guide the Israelites in their journeys as He remained faithful to His promises of provision and blessings.

In Exodus 34, Moses brought the two newly chiseled stone tablets up Mount Sinai as the Lord had commanded him. When the Lord came to meet him, He said, "The Lord, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin, yet he does not leave the guilty unpunished." Moses bowed and worshiped the Lord and He said, "I am making a covenant with you , before all your people, ... Obey what I command you today... Do not worship any other god, for the Lord, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God. Celebrate the Feast of Unleavened Bread at the appointed month which you came out of Egypt.. The first offspring of every womb belongs to me... Write down these words, for in accordance with these words I have made a covenant with you and Israel". Aaron and the Israelites were afraid when they saw Moses , since his face was radiant because he had spoken with the Lord, but Moses called them to him and he gave them the commandments of the Lord.

In Exodus 33, the Lord told Moses to lead the people now up to the promised land and His Presence would go with them and give them rest. God said, " I will cause all my goodness to pass in front of you, and I will proclaim my name in your presence. I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion."

In Exodus 32, the people gave up on Moses since he was up on the mountain so long and they turned to making idols as their gods. Even Aaron joined them and lead them to make a golden calf to worship with sacrificial offerings. God told Moses that He was going to destroy these "stiff-necked" people, but Moses asked God for mercy for them and the Lord relented. When Moses came down the mountain, he carried the two tablets engraved with the writings of God. When he saw the people running wild and dancing around their golden calf idol, he threw the tablets down , breaking them to pieces. Moses then said, "Whoever is for the Lord, come to me." All the Levites rallied to him and he told them that the Lord said "Each man strap a sword to his side and go back and forth through the camp from one end to the other, killing his brother, friend, and neighbor". Three thousand people died, but Moses said to them, "You have been set apart to the Lord today, for you were against your own sons and brothers, and He has blessed you this day." Moses told the people that they had committed a great sin against the Lord in worshiping idols, and he went to the Lord to ask for atonement for them. The Lord said he would not blot them out of His book, but "when the time comes for me to punish, I will punish them for their sin" and they were struck with a plague.

Exodus 31 :18 When the LORD finished speaking to Moses on Mount Sinai, he gave him the two tablets of the Testimony, the tablets of stone inscribed by the finger of God

Exodus 30:10 "Once a year Aaron must purify the alter by placing on its horns the blood fro the offering made for atonement of sin. This will be a regular, annual event from generation to generation, for this is the Lord's supremely holy alter". These sacrifices could only cover sins temporarily, until the day when Jesus would serve as the perfect atonement once and for all forever,

Exodus 28-29 give lots of details of the proper attire (priestly garments & accessories) for Aaron and his sons as they serve the Lord as priests for the people. As 28:36 says, they are to be consecrated as "HOLY TO THE LORD" and to be anointed and ordained as ministers of the tabernacle according to all the ordinances given by God. God said, "So I will consecrate the Tent of Meeting and the alter and Aaron and his sons... then I will dwell among the Israelites and be their God... they will know that I am their God, who brought them out of Egypt so that I might dwell among them. I am the Lord their God."

Exodus 27 gives more details of the tabernacle, the alter for burnt offerings, the courtyard, and the lampstand. The alter for burnt offerings was the means for the people to come to God, since they hadn't yet benefited from the ultimate sacrifice of Jesus Christ for their sins. The Lampstand was to be kept burning constantly before the Lord.

In Exodus 25-26, the Lord instructed Moses with details how to have the people build a holy sanctuary where God would be able to live among them. Among the details, they were told to use pure gold for building much of the sanctuary and the furnishings ( table, lampstand, etc). There was much attention to precision and purity and God said "Be sure that you make everything according to the pattern I have shown you". The symbolism of perfection and purity in construction emphasized God's holiness.

In Exodus 24, after meeting with the Lord again, Moses recounted all the Lord's ordinances for the people and they responded "All that the Lord has spoken we will do, and we will be obedient!".

As Exodus 23 begins, God instructs His people in mercy and justice. He warns against favoritism, being a malicious witness, perverting justice by siding with the crowd, or denying justice with false charges. God reminds them that they were once oppressed in Egypt and were blessed by His mercy. God's laws of fairness were to be applied even to enemies. God told them He would send His angel to guide them, protect them, and give them further instruction, and go ahead of them and lead them to the promised land. God told them "if you listen carefully and do all that I say, I will be an enemy to your enemies and will oppose those who oppose you... and if you worship the Lord your God, His blessing will be on your food and water.. I will take away sickness from among you, none will miscarry or be barren in your land, and I will give you a full life span".

In Exodus 22, many examples are given of rules of responsibility , making it easier for the Israelites to discern God's will in different circumstances. God gave them these practical guidelines, " If a man ... , then he must...", because He says "You are to be my holy people" (v.31).

Exodus 21 introduces some laws regarding everyday life for the Israelites, so that they would understand that their actions had consequences. Judges were given the "eye for an eye" guideline so that punishments would fit the crimes.

Exodus 20 is the giving of the ten commandments to Moses. The commandments came from the God "who rescued you from slavery in Egypt" and his first command was to worship only Him. These ten commands were meant to be practical guidelines for His people to live in holiness for others to witness. As they lived this way, others could witness the nature of God.

Exodus 19 takes place at Mount Sinai, where the Israelites were camping after leaving Egypt. God said to Moses, "tell the people of Israel: 'you yourselves have seen what I did to Egypt, and how I carried you on eagles' wings and brought you to myself. Now if you obey me fully and keep my covenant, then out of all nations you will be my treasured possession... you will be for me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.' " The people responded to Moses all together, "We will do everything the Lord has said" ( Yeah right, we've heard that before!). Moses told the Lord what the people had said and He then gave Moses instructions as to how the people should consecrate themselves and keep their distance from the mountain, as God came to meet with them. On the third day, there was thunder and lightning, with a thick cloud over the mountain, and a very loud trumpet blast, causing all the people to tremble. Moses then lead the people to the foot of the mountain to meet with God, as He had instructed Moses. God had met with Moses on the mountain "so that the people will hear Me speaking with you and will always trust in you." I wonder if the Israelites understood that God had chosen them in love and mercy, not because of their obedience, to represent and teach the nations how to live according to His ways and about the hope for salvation by God's grace.