The LORD said to Moses, “Give the following instructions to the people of Israel. If anyone makes a special vow to dedicate someone to the LORD by paying the value of that person, here is the scale of values to be used. A man between the ages of twenty and sixty is valued at fifty shekels of silver, as measured by the sanctuary shekel. A woman of that age is valued at thirty shekels of silver. A boy between the ages of five and twenty is valued at twenty shekels of silver; a girl of that age is valued at ten shekels of silver. A boy between the ages of one month and five years is valued at five shekels of silver; a girl of that age is valued at three shekels of silver. A man older than sixty is valued at fifteen shekels of silver; a woman of that age is valued at ten shekels of silver. If you desire to make such a vow but cannot afford to pay the required amount, take the person to the priest. He will determine the amount for you to pay based on what you can afford. [Leviticus 27.1-8]
Once again, on this day as yearly Bible readings go, I reviewed my previous articles regarding this particular passage of scripture and I am convinced of one thing: I really don't have a clue what this is all about!
However, in a slight sign of progression, I must say something did stand out to me today: If you are going to dedicate someone to the LORD, it's the least expensive to do it while they are young!
Whether it has any association or not, it gives me pause to consider something about Jesus and children:
One day some parents brought their children to Jesus so he could lay his hands on them and pray for them. But the disciples scolded the parents for bothering him. But Jesus said, “Let the children come to me. Don’t stop them! For the Kingdom of Heaven belongs to those who are like these children.” And he placed his hands on their heads and blessed them before he left. [Matthew 19.13-15]
The fact that Leviticus detailed a "cost" with dedicating a person to God makes me consider another New Testament passage:
A large crowd was following Jesus. He turned around and said to them, “If you want to be my disciple, you must, by comparison, hate everyone else—your father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters—yes, even your own life. Otherwise, you cannot be my disciple. And if you do not carry your own cross and follow me, you cannot be my disciple. “But don’t begin until you count the cost. For who would begin construction of a building without first calculating the cost to see if there is enough money to finish it? Otherwise, you might complete only the foundation before running out of money, and then everyone would laugh at you. They would say, ‘There’s the person who started that building and couldn’t afford to finish it!’ “Or what king would go to war against another king without first sitting down with his counselors to discuss whether his army of 10,000 could defeat the 20,000 soldiers marching against him? And if he can’t, he will send a delegation to discuss terms of peace while the enemy is still far away. So you cannot become my disciple without giving up everything you own. [Luke 14.25-33]
While religion and religious thinking gets us all bogged down in the Equal Rights gender and age issues of Leviticus 27.1-8, Luke 14.25-33 really gets to the heart of the matter. And, in particular, the importance of the age or gender of a person pales in comparison to the importance of Luke 14.33: So you cannot become my disciple without giving up everything you own.
Father, when I survey my own worth as Leviticus 27.1-8 details it, I see in Luke 15.33 that it simply does not matter. May my focus be on Luke 15.33 and not Leviticus 27.1-8! May I be found giving up my own way, taking up my cross, and following Jesus. So be it.
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