Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Leviticus 22:11
But if the priest buy [any] soul with his money, he shall eat of it, and he that is born in his house: they shall eat of his meat.
This shows how completely a purchased bondsman was incorporated into the household. See Exo 21:2, note; Exo 21:20-21, note.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Lev 22:11
If the priest buy any soul . . . and he that is born.
Bought, or born
Strangers, sojourners, and servants upon hire were not to eat of holy things. It is so in spiritual matters still. But two classes were free at the sacred table–those who were bought with the priests money, and those who were born into the priests house.
I. Bought. Our great High Priest has bought with a price all those who put their trust in Him. They are His absolute property. Not for what they are in themselves, but for their Owners sake they are admitted into the same privileges which He Himself enjoys, and they shall eat of His meat. He has meat to eat which worldlings know not of. Because ye belong to Christ, therefore shall ye share with your Lord.
II. Born. This is an equally sure way to privilege; if born in the Priests house we take our place with the rest of the family. Regeneration makes us fellow-heirs, and of the same body; and, therefore, the peace, the joy, the glory, which the Father has given to Christ, Christ has given to us. (C. H. Spurgeon.)
Fuente: Biblical Illustrator Edited by Joseph S. Exell
Because they were wholly his, and as such they were circumcised, Ge 17; Exo 12.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
But if the priest buy [any] soul with his money, he shall eat of it,…. Whether any of his own nation, who sometimes, when become poor, were obliged to sell themselves; or a stranger, as the Targum of Jonathan; one of another nation, a Canaanitish servant, as Jarchi. Now these being his own purchase, and always to abide with him, became part of his family, and so might eat of the provisions of it; and it is from hence the Jews gather, as Jarchi and Gersom, that his wife might eat of the holy things, because bought with his money; but there is a better reason to be given for that, for of whatever family she was before, whether of the priests or not, by marriage she became a part, yea, a principal of his family, being one flesh with him, bearing the same name, and entitled to all the privileges of his house. This is extended by some Jewish writers l to cattle, for by any soul they understood also the soul of a beast, which being bought by the priest’s money, might eat of the offerings of the tithes:
and he that is born in his house; they shall eat of his meat; whether male or female, as Aben Ezra; these are children of handmaids, as Jarchi, that were bought with his money; and these children being born of them, became his property, and part of his family, and so had a right to the provisions of his house. All this may teach us, that the holy ordinances of the Gospel are not to be administered to strangers, persons destitute of the grace of God, nor to such as are not of the family or church of God, but to such as are bought and redeemed with the blood of Christ, the high priest, and are born again of his Spirit and grace.
l Misn. Trumot, c. 11. sect. 9. & Maimon. & Bartenora in ib. Hilchot Trumot, c. 6. sect. 1.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
THE RIGHTS OF THE PRIESTS FAMILY TO THE HOLY THINGS 22:1116
TEXT 22:1116
11
But if a priest buy any soul, the purchase of his money, he shall eat of it; and such as are born in his house, they shall eat of his bread.
12
And if a priests daughter be married unto a stranger, she shall not eat of the heave-offering of the holy things.
13
But if a priests daughter be a widow, or divorced, and have no child, and be returned unto her fathers house, as in her youth, she shall eat of her fathers bread: but there shall no stranger eat thereof.
14
And if a man eat of the holy thing unwittingly, then he shall put the fifth part thereof unto it, and shall give unto the priest the holy thing.
15
And they shall not profane the holy things of the children of Israel, which they offer unto Jehovah,
16
and so cause them to bear the iniquity that bringeth guilt, when they eat their holy things: for I am Jehovah who sanctifieth them.
THOUGHT QUESTIONS 22:1116
498.
What difference is there in the slave of Lev. 22:11 and the servant of Lev. 22:10? Why give to one and refuse the other?
499.
Could his wife and children and slaves eat even when the priest couldnt?
500.
The priests daughter could marry out of the Aaronic family, but she lost some rights. What were they?
501.
The daughter could return to the table of her father. How?
502.
Suppose her husband had a brother. Wasnt he obligated to marry the widow: Cf. Lev. 18:16. Discuss.
503.
A kind provision is made for those who act in sincere ignorance. (Cf. Lev. 4:2; Lev. 4:22; Lev. 4:27; Lev. 5:15; Lev. 5:18) What was it?
504.
However, ignorance was not overlooked. What penalty was paid: (Cf. Lev. 5:16)
505.
How is the word profane used here?
506.
The priest has a responsibility in developing the proper attitude among the worshippers. Is this the meaning of Lev. 22:16?
PARAPHRASE 22:1116
However, there is one exceptionif the priest buys a slave with his own money, that slave may eat it, and any slave children born in his household may eat it. If a priests daughter is married outside the tribe, she may not eat the sacred offerings. But if she is a widow or divorced and has no son to support her, and has returned home to her fathers household, she may eat of her fathers food again. But otherwise, no one who is not in the priestly families may eat this food. If someone should eat of the holy sacrifices without realizing it, he shall return to the priest the amount he has used, with twenty per cent added; for the holy sacrifices brought by the people of Israel must not be defiled by being eaten by unauthorized persons, for these sacrifices have been offered to the Lord. Anyone who violates this law is guilty and is in great danger because he has eaten the sacred offerings; for I am Jehovah who sanctifies the offerings.
COMMENT 22:1116
Lev. 22:11 Slaves were treated as part of the family who owned them. They were admitted to the Jewish family by circumcision and were given all the privileges of the Israelites. The children of such slaves were treated in the same manner as the salves (Cf. Gen. 17:12-13). Thus slaves and their children ate the same food as the rest of the family of the preist.
Lev. 22:12-13 We have discussed the daughter of the priest earlier. We now note she can disqualify herself from eating of the holy food by marrying a Hebrew of non-Aaronic descent. She has chosen to eat at the table of her husband. However, if her husband were to die, or she was divorced, and there were no children, she could return and share in the priests home as before her marriage. Traditionally such a woman could not eat of the first class of the offerings, i.e. the wave-breast and heave-shoulder. She could eat the heave-offering.
Lev. 22:14 Supposing someone ate of the holy portion and didnt know it was sanctified? Provision was made for such a mistake. He would not be put to death. Judgment is made by motive as well as action. He is to obtain a similar piece of meat and what amounts to twenty per cent of its total value and return both the principal and interest to the priest.
Lev. 22:15-16 Keil believes these verses form a conclusion to the immediately preceding verses, i.e. 10 through 14. We believe he presents a convincing argument. He says: In the concluding exhortation in Lev. 22:15-16, the subject to profane and bear is indefinite, and the passage to be rendered thus: They are not to profane the sanctified gifts of the children of Israel, what they heave for the Lord. (Namely, by letting laymen eat of them), and are to cause them (the laymen) who do this unawares to bear a trespass sin (by imposing the compensation mentioned in Lev. 22:14), if they eat their (the priests) sanctified gifts. Understood in this way, both verses furnish a fitting conclusion to the section of Lev. 22:10-14. On the other hand, according to traditional interpretation of these verses, the priesthood is regarded as the subject of the first verb, and a negative supplied before the second. Both of these are arbitrary and quite indefensible, because Lev. 22:10-14 do not refer to the priests, but to laymen . . .
FACT QUESTIONS 22:1116
510.
The whole subject of slavery as described in the Bible should be studied by those who are serious about Gods word as related to life. The INTERNATIONAL STANDARD BIBLE ENCYCLOPEDIA, p. 2815 would be a good place to begin.
511.
Provision and protection are made for the daughter whose marriage did not succeed. Discuss.
512.
Someone ate of the holy meat and did not know it. Who is at fault? What is to be done?
513.
Do you agree with Keils use of Lev. 22:15-16?
Fuente: College Press Bible Study Textbook Series
(11) But if the priest buy any soul.The case, however, was different with heathen slaves whom the priest purchased. These were admitted into the Jewish community by the rite of circumcision, they were allowed to partake of the paschal lamb, and of every privilege of the Israelites. Hence they became incorporated in the priestly family, and were allowed to eat of the holy things. During the second Temple this privilege was extended to that kind of domestic whom the priest did not actually acquire by his own purchase-money, but whom the wife brought with her as part of her dowry, as well as to those whom the slaves of the priestly family purchased.
Born in his house.That is, the house-born servant or the child of the slave. (See Gen. 17:12-13.) Even when the priest himself could not eat of the holy things by reason of his having contracted some legal defilement, his wife, children, and slaves were permitted to partake of the sacrificial repast.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
11. If the priest buy any soul That is, person. A mild form of servitude was allowed as a mitigation of the usages of war in those times. Otherwise the Hebrews would have slain all their captives taken in war.
They shall eat of his meat Since these constitute a permanent part of his family, they are permitted to eat the sacred things, but not the most holy. This partially relieves the difficulty of Colenso respecting the capacity of the priests to eat all the sacrifices assigned to them. See chap. vi, concluding notes.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
Lev 22:11. If the priest buy any soul See chap. Lev 25:39; Lev 25:44-45. The word stranger, in the next verse, signifies as in the 10th verse, one who is not of the priest’s family.
Fuente: Commentary on the Holy Bible by Thomas Coke
Is not the purchase here mentioned typical of the purchase of the Gentile church by the blood of CHRIST; 1Pe 1:18-19 ; Eph 2:13-19 .
Fuente: Hawker’s Poor Man’s Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
Lev 22:11 But if the priest buy [any] soul with his money, he shall eat of it, and he that is born in his house: they shall eat of his meat.
Ver. 11. He shall eat. ] As being a menial servant to the priest.
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
soul. Hebrew. nephesh (App-13). Here put by Figure of speech Synecdoche (of Part), for “any person”, i.e. a heathen slave.
he = the slave so bought. Emphatic.
meat = Figure of speech Metonymy (of Species), for any kind of food. App-6.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
his money: Heb. the purchase of his money, Gen 17:13, Num 18:11-13
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Lev 22:11. If the priest buy any soul Either one of the Jewish nation, obliged, through poverty, to sell himself, (Lev 25:39,) or of another nation, (v. 44, 45,) who being proselyted to the Jewish religion, became part of the priests family, and so was permitted to eat of his consecrated meat.