1. Emor
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2. The 28th Torah Portion Reading 6th reading in the Book of Leviticus
Emor
Emor = “Say!”
The 28th Torah Portion Reading
6th reading in the Book of Leviticus
Leviticus 21:1 - 24:23
Haftarah: Ezekiel 44:15-31
Gospel: Luke 11:1 – 12:59
Leviticus 21:1 (KJV) Lev 1 And the LORD said unto Moses, Speak unto the priests the sons of Aaron, and say unto them, There shall none be defiled for the dead among his people:

3. Leviticus Chapter 21 The priest in mourning The priest in defilement
Priest with blemishes must not minister
Lev. 21:9 And the daughter of any priest, if she profane herself by playing the whore, she profaneth her father: she shall be burnt with fire.
Genesis 38:24 And it came to pass about three months after, that it was told Judah, saying, Tamar thy daughter in law hath played the harlot; and also, behold, she is with child by whoredom. And Judah said, Bring her forth, and let her be burnt.

4. Leviticus Chapter 22
The priests in their uncleanness must abstain from the holy things
Who of the priest’s house may eat of the holy things
The sacrifices must be without blemish
Ceremonial uncleanness prevented a priest from either offering or eating a sacred offering. The punishment for priestly noncompliance was severe—he was to be cut off from God’s presence. Some sources of ceremonial uncleanness that prevented a priest from eating the sacred offerings were an infectious skin disease (cf. chaps ), a bodily discharge (cf. chap. 15), and contact with a corpse (cf. 11:39). The reminder for priestly compliance again stressed the holiness of God and His design to promote holiness in His people (22:9).

5. Leviticus Chapter 23 The Feasts of the Lord The Passover
The Feast of Pentecost
The Feast of Trumpets
The Feast of Tabernacles

6. Leveiticus Chapter 24
The oil for the lamps that they may burn continually
Shelomith’s son blasphemes
The transition from the festival calendar which climaxed in the magnificent Feast of Tabernacles (23:33-43) to the mundane maintenance of the lesser articles of furniture in the Tent of Meeting is difficult to explain but certainly illustrates the New Testament believer priest’s faithfulness to God in the daily routine of life and not just during spiritual mountaintop experiences. Perhaps the purpose of this seeming digression (before matters pertaining to the holy calendar resume in chap. 25) was to dispel the notion that God’s presence might be limited to special occasions of worship, since both articles of furniture were closely related to the continual presence of God in Israel’s midst. Between the great festival occasions, unbroken daily fellowship in the Tent of Meeting was to continue without interruption.
A son of a mixed marriage (an Israelite mother and an Egyptian father) quarreled with an Israelite and blasphemed the name of the Lord with a curse. Apparently his sin was not merely uttering the covenant name of the Lord (Yahweh), but misusing the Lord’s name in a curse (Ex. 20:7). Because of uncertainty regarding either his status under the Law as a resident alien or the exact punishment for his sin, they put him in custody until the will of the Lord should be made clear to them. This is one of four such cases where Moses had to await further divine revelation before a situation could be properly handled (cf. Num. 9:6-14; 15:32-36; 27:1-11). The divine law based on this case is specified to apply equally to an alien or native-born person. Those aliens who lived in Israel and so enjoyed certain covenant blessings were not to repudiate the Author of that covenant.

7. Luke 11:1-2
1 And it came to pass, that, as he was praying in a certain place, when he ceased, one of his disciples said unto him, Lord, teach us to pray, as John also taught his disciples. 2 And he said unto them, When ye pray, say, Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done, as in heaven, so in earth.
This disciple asked the Lord, "Teach us to pray, as John also taught his disciples." This is an unexpected glimpse into the life of John the Baptist.
This disciple was not just asking how to pray. The Lord had given the Sermon on the Mount which outlined how one should pray. This disciple was not asking for a technique, a system, an art form, or a ritual to follow. It was not a matter of how to do it, but he wanted to pray like Christ prayed.

8. Luke 11:3-4
3 Give us day by day our daily bread. 4 And forgive us our sins; for we also forgive every one that is indebted to us. And lead us not into temptation; but deliver us from evil.

9. Luke 11:5-8
5 And he said unto them, Which of you shall have a friend, and shall go unto him at midnight, and say unto him, Friend, lend me three loaves; 6 For a friend of mine in his journey is come to me, and I have nothing to set before him? 7 And he from within shall answer and say, Trouble me not: the door is now shut, and my children are with me in bed; I cannot rise and give thee. 8 I say unto you, Though he will not rise and give him, because he is his friend, yet because of his importunity he will rise and give him as many as he needeth.
God is not asleep? Has gone to bed when you pray, and we may feel we cannot get Him up? Do you believe that He does not want to answer your prayers? God does want to answer your prayers and He will. That is what this parable is saying. Many of the parables we read are parables of comparison, this one however is a parable by contrast and not by comparison.

10. Luke 11:9-10
9 And I say unto you, Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you. 10 For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.

11. Luke 11:11-13
11 If a son shall ask bread of any of you that is a father, will he give him a stone? or if he ask a fish, will he for a fish give him a serpent? 12 Or if he shall ask an egg, will he offer him a scorpion? 13 If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children: how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him?
Before you go to God in prayer, make sure He is really your Father. "But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name" (John 1:12). Believing that the Lord Jesus Christ died for you and rose again for your justification makes you a son of God. When you trust Christ as your Savior, you are baptized by the Spirit of God into the body of Christ, and you are a son who can go to God and say, "Father." At that time He told His disciples to ask for the Holy Spirit. As far as I can tell, they never did ask for the Spirit. Later on Christ said, "...Receive ye the Holy Ghost" (John 20:22). They needed the Holy Spirit during those intervening days before Pentecost. Then on the great Day of Pentecost He came and baptized them into the body of believers, which put them in Christ. They were filled on that day with the Holy Spirit. That filling is something all of us need.

12. Luke 11:14-16
14 And he was casting out a devil, and it was dumb. And it came to pass, when the devil was gone out, the dumb spake; and the people wondered. 15 But some of them said, He casteth out devils through Beelzebub the chief of the devils. 16 And others, tempting him, sought of him a sign from heaven.
The convincing nature of Jesus' miracles forced the Pharisees to offer some explanation for them. They could not deny the existence of miracles when they were happening before their eyes. They resorted to the basest and most blasphemous explanation for the miracles of Jesus. They did not deny that they took place but claimed that they were done by the power of the Devil.

13. Luke 11:17-20
17 But he, knowing their thoughts, said unto them, Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation; and a house divided against a house falleth. 18 If Satan also be divided against himself, how shall his kingdom stand? because ye say that I cast out devils through Beelzebub. 19 And if I by Beelzebub cast out devils, by whom do your sons cast them out? therefore shall they be your judges. 20 But if I with the finger of God cast out devils, no doubt the kingdom of God is come upon you.
This type of healing was believed could only be done by the Messiah.
Christ showed them the utter absurdity of their line of reasoning.
"The kingdom of God is come upon you" means that it was among them in the presence of the person of Jesus who had the credentials of the King.
Shows that Satan is a real person, a real entity. Satan is a real personage with a kingdom that is strong and united. (Cf. Eph 2:1-3; 6:10ff.)

14. Luke 11:21-22
21 When a strong man armed keepeth his palace, his goods are in peace: 22 But when a stronger than he shall come upon him, and overcome him, he taketh from him all his armour wherein he trusted, and divideth his spoils.
The "strong man armed" is Satan. The demon-possessed man was an evidence of his power. But, you see, Jesus is stronger than Satan, which was the reason He could cast out the demon.
Jesus had invaded Satan’s domain, destroyed his armor and weapons, and claimed his spoils (Col 2:15; John 12:31-33; 1 John 3:8).
The point of the parable is that Jesus is the stronger One, and therefore He has the right to divide up the spoils. In this case the spoils include
formerly-demon-possessed people who no longer belonged to Satan.

15. Luke 11:23
23 He that is not with me is against me: and he that gathereth not with me scattereth.
There is no neutral ground. It is impossible to be neutral in this cosmic war (cf. 9:50).

16. Luke 11:24-26
24 When the unclean spirit is gone out of a man, he walketh through dry places, seeking rest; and finding none, he saith, I will return unto my house whence I came out. 25 And when he cometh, he findeth it swept and garnished. 26 Then goeth he, and taketh to him seven other spirits more wicked than himself; and they enter in, and dwell there: and the last state of that man is worse than the first.
It is critical to invite God to dwell within...
He was referring to the man who was formerly demon-possessed and was making him a symbol of everyone who was demon-possessed. It was
vital that this man also accept what Jesus was saying about His being the Messiah, or he would end up in a condition worse than the first.
Matthew recorded that Jesus compared this situation to what would happen to the generation of people who were listening to Him (Matt.
12:45).

17. Luke 11:27-28
27 And it came to pass, as he spake these things, a certain woman of the company lifted up her voice, and said unto him, Blessed is the womb that bare thee, and the paps which thou hast sucked. 28 But he said, Yea rather, blessed are they that hear the word of God, and keep it.
Family relationships are not the most important things in life. A woman noted that it must have been wonderful to have been Jesus’ mother. The
whole nation took pride in the fact that they descended from Abraham (John 8:33-39).
Jesus pointed out that a physical relationship was unimportant compared with hearing and obeying the Word of God.
As Luke continues to emphasize, the Gospel is not limited to Israel but is for all who trust in Christ.

18. Luke 11:29-30
29 And when the people were gathered thick together, he began to say, This is an evil generation: they seek a sign; and there shall no sign be given it, but the sign of Jonas the prophet. 30 For as Jonas was a sign unto the Ninevites, so shall also the Son of man be to this generation.
A sign was a confirming miracle, which showed that the spoken message was true. You would have thought the unique exorcism would have been
more than sufficient! The people of Nineveh believed what Jonah preached, even if they had no physical evidence. “The sign of Jonah” must have been the death, burial, and resurrection.

19. Luke 11:31-32
31 The queen of the south shall rise up in the judgment with the men of this generation, and condemn them: for she came from the utmost parts of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and, behold, a greater than Solomon is here. 32 The men of Nineve shall rise up in the judgment with this generation, and shall condemn it: for they repented at the preaching of Jonas; and, behold, a greater than Jonas is here.
Jesus’ words about the Queen of the South lend strength to this interpretation. The queen traveled a great distance to listen to Solomon’s
wisdom (1 Kings 10). She acted on what she heard, without any external confirmation.
These were both Gentile examples! The point is clear: the generation that was listening to Jesus’ words did not have as much faith as some Gentiles who listened to the words of God in previous eras.

20. Luke 11:33-36
33 No man, when he hath lighted a candle, putteth it in a secret place, neither under a bushel, but on a candlestick, that they which come in may see the light. 34 The light of the body is the eye: therefore when thine eye is single, thy whole body also is full of light; but when thine eye is evil, thy body also is full of darkness. 35 Take heed therefore that the light which is in thee be not darkness. 36 If thy whole body therefore be full of light, having no part dark, the whole shall be full of light, as when the bright shining of a candle doth give thee light.
Three men in the Bible illustrate this truth: they began in the light and ended up in darkness because they were double-minded:
Sampson ended up as a blind slave in a dark dungeon because he yielded to the “lust of the flesh” (Judges 16);
Lot began as a pilgrim with his uncle Abraham, but ended as a drunk in a cave committing incest (Gen 19:30-38);
King Saul began as a humble leader but pride led him into a witch’s cave (1 Sam. 28) and suicide on the field of battle (1 Sam. 31).
[We live in a culture that denies any distinctive between light and dark, right from wrong; “it’s all relative.”]
Jesus often taught His disciples through parables. Because they had been listening to Him they had light shining on them. Thus they should
share that light (33).
When a person’s eyes (like lamps) react properly to light, he can function normally. Being receptive to Jesus’ teachings would show that they
were full of light (34, 36) and were benefiting from His teachings.

21. Luke 11:37-38
37 And as he spake, a certain Pharisee besought him to dine with him: and he went in, and sat down to meat. 38 And when the Pharisee saw it, he marvelled that he had not first washed before dinner.

22. Luke 11:39-41
39 And the Lord said unto him, Now do ye Pharisees make clean the outside of the cup and the platter; but your inward part is full of ravening and wickedness. 40 Ye fools, did not he that made that which is without make that which is within also? 41 But rather give alms of such things as ye have; and, behold, all things are clean unto you.
They had false values. He is not saying that it was wrong to tithe, but their wrong was in what they had left undone.

23. Luke 11:42-44
42 But woe unto you, Pharisees! for ye tithe mint and rue and all manner of herbs, and pass over judgment and the love of God: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone.
43 Woe unto you, Pharisees! for ye love the uppermost seats in the synagogues, and greetings in the markets. 44 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye are as graves which appear not, and the men that walk over them are not aware of them.
Jesus next pronounced three woes (pronouncements of condemnation) on the Pharisees for disregarding justice and the love of God.
They were bound up in the ritual of the Law, tithing even small garden herbs. This made them hypocrites (12:1).
They were filled with pride, loving the most important seats in the synagogues.
And rather than guiding the people aright, they caused people who followed them to be contaminated, just as unmarked graves, which, when
walked on, would defile a Jew without his knowing it (Num. 19:16).
The Pharisees feared contamination from ritual uncleanness, but Jesus pointed out that their greed, pride, and wickedness contaminated the
entire nation.

24. Luke 11:45-46
45 Then answered one of the lawyers, and said unto him, Master, thus saying thou reproachest us also. 46 And he said, Woe unto you also, ye lawyers! for ye lade men with burdens grievous to be borne, and ye yourselves touch not the burdens with one of your fingers.
In other words, they were a bad influence.
They placed burdens on others, which effectively kept them away from the way of knowledge.
The Pharisees were occupied with externalities. The sin of the scribes was insincerity. They were adding to the Law, making it more difficult, yet not attempting to follow it themselves.

25. Luke 11:47-51
47 Woe unto you! for ye build the sepulchres of the prophets, and your fathers killed them. 48 Truly ye bear witness that ye allow the deeds of your fathers: for they indeed killed them, and ye build their sepulchres. 49 Therefore also said the wisdom of God, I will send them prophets and apostles, and some of them they shall slay and persecute: 50 That the blood of all the prophets, which was shed from the foundation of the world, may be required of this generation; 51 From the blood of Abel unto the blood of Zacharias, which perished between the altar and the temple: verily I say unto you, It shall be required of this generation.
And they built tombs for the prophets, thus identifying with their forefathers who killed the prophets. Outwardly they seemed to honor the prophets, but God knew that inwardly they were rejecting the prophets.
Abel was the first innocent victim (Gen. 4:8);
Zechariah the priest (not the writing prophet; cf. Matt. 23:35) was the last martyr in the Old Testament (2 Chron. 24:20-21; remember, Chronicles
was last in the Hebrew Bible).

26. Luke 11:52-54
52 Woe unto you, lawyers! for ye have taken away the key of knowledge: ye entered not in yourselves, and them that were entering in ye hindered. 53 And as he said these things unto them, the scribes and the Pharisees began to urge him vehemently, and to provoke him to speak of many things: 54 Laying wait for him, and seeking to catch something out of his mouth, that they might accuse him.
Jesus’ indictment became even more severe when He noted that not only were they themselves staying away from knowledge (Jesus’ teaching)
but were also taking away the key: i.e. they were keeping the knowledge from others (Luke 13:14).
The Pharisees and lawyers (“Law experts”) began to oppose Jesus fiercely. No surprise. It continues to this day...
They were constantly questioning Him, plotting against Him, and hoping to catch Him saying something wrong.
These religious rulers occupied very much the same position that church leaders occupy today. People looked to them for the interpretation of the truth. They placed the emphasis on material things rather than on the spiritual purpose for which those things were to be used. And they themselves were not living according to the Scriptures.
Unfortunately, the greatest hindrance to the cause of Christ today is the professed believer. We need to examine our own lives in the light of this Scripture!

27. Luke 12:1-3
1 In the mean time, when there were gathered together an innumerable multitude of people, insomuch that they trode one upon another, he began to say unto his disciples first of all, Beware ye of the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy. 2 For there is nothing covered, that shall not be revealed; neither hid, that shall not be known. 3 Therefore whatsoever ye have spoken in darkness shall be heard in the light; and that which ye have spoken in the ear in closets shall be proclaimed upon the housetops.

28. Luke 12:4-5
4 And I say unto you my friends, Be not afraid of them that kill the body, and after that have no more that they can do.
5 But I will forewarn you whom ye shall fear: Fear him, which after he hath killed hath power to cast into hell; yea, I say unto you, Fear him.

29. Luke 12:6-7
6 Are not five sparrows sold for two farthings, and not one of them is forgotten before God? 7 But even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not therefore: ye are of more value than many sparrows.

30. Luke 12:8-12
8 Also I say unto you, Whosoever shall confess me before men, him shall the Son of man also confess before the angels of God: 9 But he that denieth me before men shall be denied before the angels of God. 10 And whosoever shall speak a word against the Son of man, it shall be forgiven him: but unto him that blasphemeth against the Holy Ghost it shall not be forgiven. 11 And when they bring you unto the synagogues, and unto magistrates, and powers, take ye no thought how or what thing ye shall answer, or what ye shall say: 12 For the Holy Ghost shall teach you in the same hour what ye ought to say.
When a man blasphemes with his mouth, that is not the thing that condemns him; it is the attitude of his heart. Blasphemy against the Holy Spirit is to resist His convicting work in the heart and life. This is a permanent condition -- unless he stops resisting.
The point of verses 8-10 is that disciples must make a choice. To acknowledge denotes the fact that the disciples recognized Him as the Messiah and therefore they had access to the way of salvation. Those who did not acknowledge Him were denying themselves the way of salvation. Jesus carried the logic one step further, noting that one who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven. In Matthew 12:32 Jesus linked this activity with the Pharisees who were rejecting the work of Jesus. Apparently the Pharisees were being convicted by the Holy Spirit that Jesus was indeed the Messiah, but were rejecting His witness. They could never be forgiven because they were rejecting God’s only means of salvation. (In contrast to that, a number of Jesus’ own brothers who initially rejected Him [John 7:5] later came to faith [Acts 1:14] and were forgiven even though they had spoken against the Son of Man.)

31. Luke 12:13-15
13 And one of the company said unto him, Master, speak to my brother, that he divide the inheritance with me. 14 And he said unto him, Man, who made me a judge or a divider over you? 15 And he said unto them, Take heed, and beware of covetousness: for a man's life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth.

32. Luke 12:16-21
16 And he spake a parable unto them, saying, The ground of a certain rich man brought forth plentifully: 17 And he thought within himself, saying, What shall I do, because I have no room where to bestow my fruits? 18 And he said, This will I do: I will pull down my barns, and build greater; and there will I bestow all my fruits and my goods. 19 And I will say to my soul, Soul, thou hast much goods laid up for many years; take thine ease, eat, drink, and be merry. 20 But God said unto him, Thou fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee: then whose shall those things be, which thou hast provided? 21 So is he that layeth up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.

33. Luke 12:22-26
22 And he said unto his disciples, Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat; neither for the body, what ye shall put on. 23 The life is more than meat, and the body is more than raiment. 24 Consider the ravens: for they neither sow nor reap; which neither have storehouse nor barn; and God feedeth them: how much more are ye better than the fowls? 25 And which of you with taking thought can add to his stature one cubit? 26 If ye then be not able to do that thing which is least, why take ye thought for the rest?

34. Luke 12:27-28
27 Consider the lilies how they grow: they toil not, they spin not; and yet I say unto you, that Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.
28 If then God so clothe the grass, which is to day in the field, and to morrow is cast into the oven; how much more will he clothe you, O ye of little faith?
This is not to encourage indolence. Birds cannot build barns; flowers cannot spin. But man can. God intends him to use the ability He gave him -- but not to live as if the exercise of these abilities is all there is to life.

35. Luke 12:29-31
29 And seek not ye what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink, neither be ye of doubtful mind. 30 For all these things do the nations of the world seek after: and your Father knoweth that ye have need of these things. 31 But rather seek ye the kingdom of God; and all these things shall be added unto you.

36. Luke 12:32-34
32 Fear not, little flock; for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom. 33 Sell that ye have, and give alms; provide yourselves bags which wax not old, a treasure in the heavens that faileth not, where no thief approacheth, neither moth corrupteth. 34 For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.

37. Luke 12:35-37
35 Let your loins be girded about, and your lights burning; 36 And ye yourselves like unto men that wait for their lord, when he will return from the wedding; that when he cometh and knocketh, they may open unto him immediately. 37 Blessed are those servants, whom the lord when he cometh shall find watching: verily I say unto you, that he shall gird himself, and make them to sit down to meat, and will come forth and serve them.

38. Luke 12:38-40
38 And if he shall come in the second watch, or come in the third watch, and find them so, blessed are those servants. 39 And this know, that if the goodman of the house had known what hour the thief would come, he would have watched, and not have suffered his house to be broken through. 40 Be ye therefore ready also: for the Son of man cometh at an hour when ye think not.

39. Luke 12:41-42
41 Then Peter said unto him, Lord, speakest thou this parable unto us, or even to all? 42 And the Lord said, Who then is that faithful and wise steward, whom his lord shall make ruler over his household, to give them their portion of meat in due season?

40. Luke 12:43-46
43 Blessed is that servant, whom his lord when he cometh shall find so doing. 44 Of a truth I say unto you, that he will make him ruler over all that he hath. 45 But and if that servant say in his heart, My lord delayeth his coming; and shall begin to beat the menservants and maidens, and to eat and drink, and to be drunken; 46 The lord of that servant will come in a day when he looketh not for him, and at an hour when he is not aware, and will cut him in sunder, and will appoint him his portion with the unbelievers.

41. Luke 12:47-49
47 And that servant, which knew his lord's will, and prepared not himself, neither did according to his will, shall be beaten with many stripes. 48 But he that knew not, and did commit things worthy of stripes, shall be beaten with few stripes. For unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required: and to whom men have committed much, of him they will ask the more. 49 I am come to send fire on the earth; and what will I, if it be already kindled?

42. Luke 12:50-53
50 But I have a baptism to be baptized with; and how am I straitened till it be accomplished! 51 Suppose ye that I am come to give peace on earth? I tell you, Nay; but rather division: 52 For from henceforth there shall be five in one house divided, three against two, and two against three. 53 The father shall be divided against the son, and the son against the father; the mother against the daughter, and the daughter against the mother; the mother in law against her daughter in law, and the daughter in law against her mother in law.

43. Luke 12:54-56
54 And he said also to the people, When ye see a cloud rise out of the west, straightway ye say, There cometh a shower; and so it is. 55 And when ye see the south wind blow, ye say, There will be heat; and it cometh to pass. 56 Ye hypocrites, ye can discern the face of the sky and of the earth; but how is it that ye do not discern this time?

44. Luke 12:57-59
57 Yea, and why even of yourselves judge ye not what is right? 58 When thou goest with thine adversary to the magistrate, as thou art in the way, give diligence that thou mayest be delivered from him; lest he hale thee to the judge, and the judge deliver thee to the officer, and the officer cast thee into prison. 59 I tell thee, thou shalt not depart thence, till thou hast paid the very last mite.

45. Emor
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