Leviticus 24:17. He that killeth This law is repeated here, to prevent the mischievous effects of men’s striving together, which as here it caused blasphemy, so it might in others lead to murder. read more
Reverence for God (24:1-23)Further instructions are given to remind the Israelites of their daily and weekly responsibilities in relation to the Holy Place. To begin with the people had to supply the oil so that the priests could keep the lamp burning continually (24:1-4). The priests also had to make sure that twelve cakes of ‘presence bread’, renewed weekly, were on the table before the Lord continually. This was possibly to symbolize that the nation Israel, which consisted of twelve tribes,... read more
any man = the soul (Hebrew. nephesh. App-13 ) of a man. Hebrew. 'adam. read more
"LEX TALIONIS""And he that smiteth any man mortally shall surely be put to death. And he that smiteth a beast mortally shall make it good, life for life. And if a man cause a blemish in his neighbor; as he hath done, so shall it be done to him: breach for breach, eye for eye, tooth for tooth; as he hath caused a blemish in a man, so shall it be rendered unto him. And he that killeth a beast shall make it good: and he that killeth a man shall be put to death."The principles enunciated here were... read more
17-22. he that killeth any man shall surely be put to death—These verses contain a repetition of some other laws, relating to offenses of a social nature, the penalties for which were to be inflicted, not by the hand of private parties, but through the medium of the judges before whom the cause was brought. read more
E. The punishment of a blasphemer 24:10-23This is another narrative section of Leviticus (cf. chs. 8-10). Its position in the book must mean that it took place after God had given Moses the instructions about the holy lamps and showbread (Leviticus 24:1-9). This fact underlines that Leviticus is essentially a narrative work. God gave the legal information at specific times and places to meet particular situations in Israel’s life. [Note: Wenham, The Book . . ., pp. 308-9.] This is how case law... read more
Oil for the Lamps. The Shewbread. Laws on Blasphemy1-4. Oil for the Lamps in the Tabernacle.On the construction of the Lampstand see Exodus 25:31-40, and with the present passage cp. Exodus 27:20-21 and notes there.5-9. The Table of Shewbread is described in Exodus 25:23-30 (see notes there). On this table, which stood in the Holy Place, twelve new unleavened loaves were laid each sabbath day, and after lying for seven days were removed and eaten by the priests, fresh loaves being again... read more
(17) And he that killeth a man.—The enactment that in case of blaspheming no difference is to be made between a non-Israelite and Israelite, is now followed by other laws respecting murder and personal injury which have been given before (Exodus 21:12, &c.), but which are here repeated in order to show that, like blasphemy, they apply alike to Gentile and Jew. It may also be that the repetition here of the law of murder is designed to draw a distinction between the judicial sentence of... read more
THE HOLY LIGHT AND THE SHEW BREAD: THE BLASPHEMER’S ENDLeviticus 24:1-23IT is not easy to determine with confidence the association of thought which occasioned the interposition of this chapter, with its somewhat disconnected contents, between chapter 23, on the set times of holy convocation, and chapter 25, on the sabbatic and jubilee years, which latter would seem most naturally to have followed the former immediately, as relating to the same subject of sacred times. Perhaps the best... read more
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The Pulpit Commentary - Leviticus 24:17-22
The holy Law of God. These enactments, occasioned by the sin of the son of Shelomith, contain certain principles on which God founded his Law, and which he would have us introduce into our dealings and regulations now. These are— I. THE SACREDNESS OF HUMAN LIFE . "He that killeth any man shall surely be put to death" ( Leviticus 24:17 ). This is significantly repeated ( Leviticus 24:21 ) We can hardly be said to have learnt this lesson yet, after eighteen centuries of... read more