A Journey through the World of Leviticus: Holiness, Sacrifice, and the Rock Badger
Digital Logos Edition
Leviticus is often seen as one of the most uninviting books of the Old Testament. Who wants to read about blood sacrifice, infectious diseases, or ancient dietary restrictions? Yet like visiting any foreign country, to truly appreciate its culture one must become familiar with the language, customs, and ways of the people. This book guides the perplexed reader through the foreign signs, symbols, and beliefs of the ancient Israelites. From blood and atonement to the loveable rock badger, we begin to discover the sacred world of Leviticus and its relationship to a holy God who dwells with his people. The rituals and commands God gave to Israel form the deep roots of the biblical tradition that were not meant to be left in the past. Tapping into these roots helps us understand the life and ministry of Christ and how we might pursue holiness today. Each chapter surveys key aspects of Leviticus and then explores how these relate to the New Testament and the life of faith in the twenty-first century. In this accessible and engaging travel log, Scarlata introduces the depth and beauty of Israelite practices prescribed by God that were further revealed in Christ and continue to speak to the life and faith of Christians today.
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- Helps readers to focus on holiness as the heartbeat of community life, in contemporary society no less than in the world of the Bible
- Unpacks the meaning and significance of Leviticus in its ancient context, in light of the New Testament and Christian faith, and for contemporary realities
- Shows how features of the book that have led it to be neglected by Christians—purity, food laws, sacrifice, and holiness—are central to the religion of ancient Israel
- The Sacred World
- Too Much Blood
- Nuclear Power, Alien Fire, and God’s Home on Earth
- You Are What You Eat
- Living in Holy Time
- Purity, Pandemics, and Purification
- Love Your Neighbor
Scarlata proves himself a gifted and insightful guide as he carefully unpacks the meaning and significance of Leviticus in its ancient context, in light of the New Testament and Christian faith, and for contemporary realities. . . . In the end, Scarlata’s book achieves what the book of Leviticus itself wants to achieve: a re-sacralization of our world, which is indeed ‘crammed with heaven.’ Take and read!
—Brent A. Strawn, Duke University
In this unlikely yet thoroughly engaging book, Scarlata refocuses us on holiness as the heartbeat of community life, in contemporary society no less than in the world of the Bible. Scarlata sees the crucial point that most Christian biblical scholars and readers of the Bible have missed: that the embodied theology of Leviticus is indispensable for making a living connection between the reality of God and our concrete human lives.
—Ellen F. Davis, Duke Divinity School
God in everything.’ Mark Scarlata calls for a re-sacralization of the world in this Christian reading of Leviticus. He shows how features of the book that have led it to be neglected by Christians—purity, food laws, sacrifice, and holiness—are central to the religion of ancient Israel. They can also inform a modern Christian attitude to the created world.
—John Barton, University of Oxford, emeritus
Leviticus attests to an alternative world that has God’s holiness at its center. Scarlata . . . shows us why attentiveness to an alternative world of holiness is urgent among us. . . . It is clear enough now that our present path of technological exploitation, predatory debt, and individualistic consumerism is not sustainable. If you may be wondering about a very different way to live well, free, and responsibly in the world, you may indeed find Scarlata’s wise discussion particularly helpful and illuminating.
—Walter Brueggemann, Columbia Theological Seminary
Scarlata has made Leviticus great again—making it plainly understandable and relevant to everything we care about and do today. With scholarly insight and pastoral wisdom, he unlocks confusing and cliché concepts, and helps the average person to see how rich and necessary Leviticus is for Christian life and theology. I especially appreciated how effortlessly Scarlata shows how the New Testament weaves Jesus’ teaching with Leviticus, then connects both to ordinary life today!
—Dru Johnson, The King’s College
- Title: A Journey through the World of Leviticus: Holiness, Sacrifice, and the Rock Badger
- Author: Mark W. Scarlata
- Publisher: Wipf and Stock
- Print Publication Date: 2021
- Logos Release Date: 2025
- Era: era:contemporary
- Language: English
- Resources: 1
- Format: Digital › Logos Reader Edition
- Subjects: Bible; Leviticus—Introductions; Leviticus—Study; Leviticus—Criticism, interpretation; Holiness—Biblical teaching; Pentateuch—Criticism, interpretation
- Resource ID: LLS:JRNYWRLDRCKBDGR
- Resource Type: Monograph
- Metadata Last Updated: 2025-03-26T20:29:23Z
Reviews
1 rating
Allan Ewart
5/11/2025
Excellent read and accurately depicts what has happened in the church today and where the church at large is at. Knowing that there is still a large remnant God has set apart to be the light and salt of the world today. This book is a worthy read for any Christian longing for more of Christ to be fully formed in their lives.