85-26 the consecration of the Levites, and (v.23) their period of service.
99-14 (a law arising out of the incident, 91-8) the supple- mentary or ‘ Little’ Passover (to be observed by those ps pane debarred from keeping the regular Pass- over).
151-16 the meal- and drink-offering to accompany every burnt- and peace-offering.
we cake of the first dough of each year to be offered
1522-31 the sin-offering, to be offered by the community, or an individual, for sins of inadvertence (a parallel to Ly 413-21. 27-31),
adi me law of ‘ tassels’ (expanded from the shorter law of H).
181-7 the duties, and relative position, of the priests and the Levites.
188-19 the revenues of the priests.
1820-82 distribution of the tithe between priests and Levites.
19 the rite of purification, by means of water mingled with the ashes of a red heifer, after defilement with a corpse.
271-11 the law of the inheritance of daughters, in families in which there is no son.
28-29. A priestly calendar, prescribing the public sacri- fices to be offered at each season. Cf. Ly 23.
30 the law of vows.
8121-30 the law of the distribution of spoil taken in war (after purification, to be divided equally between the soldiers engaged and the community,—the priests, however, to have τὸν of the former, and the Levites vy Of the latter).
aie Forty-eight cities appointed for the residence of the
evites.
359-34 Law of murder and manslaughter (cities of refuge with regulations for their use).
86 Heiresses possessing landed property to marry into their own tribe (supplement to 271-11), :
The highly systematized character of the legis- lation of P will be apparent from this outline. It centres in the ‘tabernacle,’ the prototype of the later temple; its aim is to secure the Holiness of Israel, to maintain a community worthy, both collectively and individually, of the consecrating presence of God in its midst (cf. Ex 294-48, Nu 5 35"), The priests, with the Levites as their mini- sters, serve the sanctuary: they maintain there, on behalf of the community, the suitable sacrifices
LAW (IN OLD TESTAMENT)
and rites of atonement and purification ; they are also at hand to present the sacrifices, and perform the purifications, obligatory from time to time upon individuals. The sacrifices are numerous ; and the details are minutely regulated. P exhibits the idea of a holy people dedicated to God, and realizes it on a large scale. The ‘congregation’ (772) is not a nation, but a church. This idea is substantially the same as that which underlies Ezk 40-48; but it is worked out in greater detail. The principles most prominent in the Code are those of atonement (753) and purification (77, xy); the sacrifices most frequently prescribed are the guilt-offering (oy) and, especially, the sin- offering (nx»q), neither of which is mentioned at all in any of the other codes, though both occur in Ezk* (see further SACRIFICE). The great aim of the Code is, in fact, by means of these rites, to remove the sins and defilements which are in- consistent with the presence of J” in His sanctuary in Israel’s midst.
The silence, or the contradiction, of the earlier literature + makes it probable that the Priests’ Code, in the form in which we have it, or, in other words, the completed Priests’ Code, is the work of the age subsequent to Ezk. When, however, this is said, it must not be understood to be implied that all the institutions of P are the creation of that age. On the contrary, there are allusions in the earlier literature to many of them (though sometimes with evident variations of detail) which show that, at least in a more rudimentary form, they were already in force.
Examples: Gn 821 (J) ‘savour of contentment’ (Lv 19, and often in P); Jg 1347 ‘unclean’ food ; Jg 135-7, Am 911 Nazir- ites; 1S 2%8 ‘fire-sacrifices’ (Lv 19, and frequently); 3% the ‘lamp of God’ (Ex 2729) ; 638. a guilt-offering (OY); 215 the shewbread; Am 44-5 tithes, thanksgiving offerings, and free- will offerings ; 85 (so Hos 211, Is 11°) observance of the ‘new moon’ (Nu 2811-15) ; Is 113 a ‘ convocation’ (Ly 282.8 ete.) ; 2K 1615 (but no ple burnt-offering, as in P; cf. Ryle, Canon, p. 84f.). And in Dt, not only the parallels with H,} but also tithes (though with regulations very different from those of P), ‘heave ’-offerings (126 etc.), vows, freewill offerings, ceremonial uncleanness in persons (1215. 22) as well as in things (143%), and produced by particular causes (2139 [Nu 3554) 2310f [Ly 1616] 244 [Νὰ 613) 2614 [Νὰ 1911-14; cf. Hos 94)), the ‘azéreth, or ‘solemn assembly ’ (168; cf. Am 5, Is 118), a t6ra@h for leprosy (248), Ezk also, esp. in chs, 43-45, alludes to a still larger number of usages of the same kind, and, moreover, employs a priestly phraseology which presents many affinities with that of P (cf. LOTS 145 ff.).
A priesthood in itself implies the existence of a ceremonial, more or less developed, as the case may be: the oldest traditions of the Hebrews mention repeatedly an ‘Ark’ and ‘Tent of Meet- ing’ as existing in the Mosaic age; and there are early allusions to Aaron, to ἃ hereditary priesthood descended from him, and to the duties —consisting partly in giving decisions on points of civil aa criminal Jaw, partly in the mainten- ance of ritual observances—discharged by the tribe of Levi (Ex 414 1813, Dt 10° 33; ef. Jg 1718), The simplest and earliest ceremonial reyulations are those contained in Ex 90 5: Ὁ 22*-81 9314-19, and the parallel code of Ex 34!7-**; but these are obviously of a rudimentary character ; and it is only natural to suppose that, as time went on, fresh definitions and Bietinaticne would be introduced, and more precise rules would be prescribed for the method of sacrifice, the ritual to be observed by the priests, the dues which they were authorized to receive