Land: Holiness & Covenant

Before we charge on through chapters 25-27, we need to turn our attention to another great symbol system that we encounter in Leviticus.  So far we have explored the Sacrificial system and the Purity system, and we come now to the third and final symbol: the Land as both host and covenant partner with God and Israel.  Throughout Leviticus, we have seen hints that the entire created order is related to YHWH's covenant in one way or another, especially in the distinction between animals acceptable for sacrifice (those entrusted to Israel) and those not (because they already belong to God), and the kinds of animals that are good for eating (those entrusted to Israel) and those that aren't (because they already belong to God).  Stated another way, the central idea informing all three symbol systems is that,

All creaturely life belongs absolutely and totally to God, and Israel in particular is to embody that belonging.  

We need to explore Leviticus' perspective of the land as we prepare to engage chapters 25-27, because these chapters trace Israel's faithfulness or failure through a perspective of the land as covenant partner with God.  So what does that mean?  Following Ellen Davis' lead, I will sketch Leviticus' view of land through Three Temporal Perspectives in Three Aspects.


I.  The View of the Land from Three Temporal Perspectives...
        What do we mean by "temporal perspectives"?  Well, simply this: the consensus of current scholarship is that Leviticus was most likely compiled over a period of several centuries.  During this time, the circumstances of the Israelite community and their physical location in relation to "the land" would have undergone several changes, and these different circumstances influence the perspective of the text.  First, there is the perspective of wilderness; the narrative situates Leviticus near Sinai just after Moses has received the ten commandments and the construction of the tabernacle has been completed.  This entire scene is located "in the wilderness," somewhere between the slavery of Egypt and the promise of the holy land.  It is life at the border, the threshold, the "no longer" but "not yet."
        Second, there is the perspective of exile.  We will find out more specifically what exile means as we take a look at chapters 25-27, but already, even before entering the promised land, comes a warning that settling within it is contingent upon a few important details.
        Finally, the perspective of monarchy.  The land belongs to YHWH, and the Israelites are allowed to inhabit it as tenants.  In fact, the Israelites themselves exist as debt-slaves to God by virtue of their being rescued from slavery in Egypt.  Viewed within this monarchic perspective, the tabernacle is the place where God sets up his throne on earth and governs all creaturely life.  The land is God's kingdom.

II.  ...in Three Aspects
        Remember that the above perspectives have to do with specific temporal periods in Israel's history.  The following three aspects differ in that they express how the land was understood to function during any and all of those particular circumstances of time.  First, the land was a means of subsistence.  Loss of the land or its failure to produce had severe and immediate consequences - directly related is the concept of debt-slavery that we will hear about in chapters 25-27, because the land was central to the economy.  If Leviticus is to address economic practices at all, the systems surrounding land ownership and debt-slavery are central.
        Second, if the land belongs to God and is his domain, it is understood to be an extended Sanctuary and locus for holiness of life.  YHWH is really present with Israel (cf. 26.11-12), so the tabernacle is in a direct line with God's throne in heaven - peace, fruitfulness, and shalom spread out from the tabernacle through the land (26.2-3).  On the other hand, if God is really present with Israel, that presence becomes a curse to those who fail to live in congruence with God's commands - we'll get to that later.
        Third and finally, the land is a partner in covenant relationship.  Stop and think about that for a minute - the land is a partner??  When we get to chapter 26 we'll explore the ways that the land participates either in YHWH's protection and provision when Israel is faithful, or punishment when they are not.  There is almost a kind of mystical sensibility that the land is more an animate creature of God than it is a thing acted upon.

With this framework in place, we're ready for chapters 25-27: the Great Proclamation of Liberty.