Exodus 23:18 – 19 “You must not offer the blood of My sacrifices with anything leavened, nor may the fat of My feast remain until morning. Bring the best of the firstfruits of your soil to the house of the LORD your God. You must not cook a young goat in its mother’s milk.”
Many experienced teachers know that to get through to students, you must tell them the same thing several different times in several different ways. First, you tell the students what you are going to communicate to them. Next, you give the students your message, and finally you summarize what you have already taught. God knows we are all slow learners and so He is repeating information He has already given.
The first commandment here refers to the sacrifices made at Passover. Leaven, or yeast, has come to symbolize sin. Observant Jews will go through their homes before Passover, removing anything that is remotely related to yeast. God wants His people to perform His sacrifices just as He has instructed.
”… nor may the fat of My feast remain until morning.” This instruction sounds a bit weird unless you realize that most of the pagan festivals involved all night orgies. God doesn’t want to give His people any excuses for copying their idolatrous neighbors.
“Bring the best of the firstfruits of your soil to the house of the LORD your God.” God has repeated this command over and over because He knows that given a chance, people will bend and twist His commands into pretzels! In fact, later on, the Jews do exactly that.
Malachi 1:6-8 describes God’s feelings: “A son honors his father, and a servant his master. But if I am a father, where is My honor? And if I am a master, where is your fear of Me?” says the LORD of Hosts to you priests who despise My name. “But you ask, ‘How have we despised Your name?’ By presenting defiled food on My altar. But you ask, ‘How have we defiled You?’ By saying that the table of the LORD is contemptible.” “When you offer blind animals for sacrifice, is it not wrong? And when you present the lame and sick ones, is it not wrong? Why not offer them to your governor! Would he be pleased with you or show you favor?” asks the LORD of Hosts.”
“You must not cook a young goat in its mother’s milk.” At first, this command seems to be really odd. Why would anybody be worried about such a thing?
It is possible that the Canaanites might have prepared such a dish at festival ceremonies celebrating the fertility of the soil. But soil fertility was generally bound up with worship of fertility gods and goddesses, as well as ritual prostitution. Again, God is trying to protect His people from straying into fertility rites by the back door.
There is also a second and very compelling argument against such a practice. Prager tells us, “Clearly, the Torah is sending a message: It is wrong to boil an animal in the substance which which its mother gave it life….The purpose of the prohibition must therefore be to affect us – specifically to refine human character. We are never to forget animals are living creatures, and there is something mocking and even cruel about boiling a kid in the milk of its mother.”
A first – century Hellenistic Jewish philosopher named Philo explained, “It is grossly improper that the substance which fed the living animal should be used to season or flavor it after its death.”
Prager continues, “It is not surprising that the ancient rabbis also did not look upon this law as pertaining only to baby goats. They regarded it as a moral teacher to teach a major distinction, the distinction between life and death. In part because Egypt’s religion was death – oriented….the Torah is replete with laws banning the comingling of life and death.” For anyone familiar with Orthodox Jewish dietary laws, this verse is also the reason observant Jews refuse to consume dairy products and meat at the same meal and even have different sets of cookware.
APPLICATION: While we might not care to observe Jewish dietary laws, we should still strive to understand the important distinction that is being made. God spoke the universe into existence and is the Source of all life. Jesus told us in John 10:10 “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I have come that they may have life, and have it in all its fullness.” God is a God of compassion who even cares about baby goats, as well as all other babies in the world.
Each of us make life choices every day. When we choose to follow God and to observe His Word, we are choosing life. But when we go to the “dark side,” we are choosing death, whether gradual or immediate. God’s will is for us to observe His commandments and for us to be compassionate. What will you choose?
PRAYER: Father God, help us to understand how great is your heart of compassion. Help us to choose life in all our doings, no matter how difficult it might be to push back against the darkness. Thank you for loving us so much that You sent Your Son Jesus to die for our sins so that we might have eternal life. In the mighty Name of King Jesus. Amen.
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