The following is my analysis of the verses in mention.
1. Eat fruit from a tree less than five years old. [Lev. 19:23]
Leviticus 19:23 (New King James Version) reads:
23 ‘When you come into the land, and have planted all kinds of trees for food, then you shall count their fruit as uncircumcised. Three years it shall be as uncircumcised to you. It shall not be eaten.
I will blatantly state that no where does this say that one is going to hell if you eat fruit from a tree that is less then five years old. The verse even indicates that it only refers to trees that are planted in the first three years of when the Israelites go into the Promised Land, no mention of 5 years.
I can only speculate as to what this verse truly means. But it by no means is a reason for going to hell. This simply referred to the time when the Israelites were about to enter the Promised Land.
2. Cross-breed animals. [Lev. 19:19]
Leviticus 19:19 (New King James Version) reads:
19 ‘You shall keep My statutes. You shall not let your livestock breed with another kind. You shall not sow your field with mixed seed. Nor shall a garment of mixed linen and wool come upon you.
I will again blatantly state again that this does not vaguely say “animals” as the author states in his second point. This verse is actually very specific. This verse is talking about livestock. Do you really want to breed a cow and horse? That clearly doesn’t work. What about a sheep and cow? What about a donkey and ox? This is what is called critical thinking; does one breed a cow with a sheep? They are livestock, as this verse is referring to. Notice we can cross breed dogs, cats, etc just not livestock. This again is no reason one is going to hell.
3. Grow two different plants in your garden. [Lev. 19:19]
Leviticus 19:19 (New King James Version) reads:
19 ‘You shall keep My statutes. You shall not let your livestock breed with another kind. You shall not sow your field with mixed seed. Nor shall a garment of mixed linen and wool come upon you.
There is no mention of a garden; rather there is mention of field. Ask any farmer if they have mixed the seed they use to plant in their fields and they would call you crazy. To do so would not produce a good crop. Should wheat and barely be mixed? Should canola seed and green feed be mixed? Again, this is critical thinking for how we are to live and what will work best for us. And again, there is no mention of one going to hell over this.
4. Wear a cotton-polyester blend T-Shirt. [Lev. 19:19]
Leviticus 19:19 (New King James Version) reads:
19 ‘You shall keep My statutes. You shall not let your livestock breed with another kind. You shall not sow your field with mixed seed. Nor shall a garment of mixed linen and wool come upon you”.For one, I am sure they didn’t have cotton and polyester to make a cotton-polyester blend t-shirt. This verse is specific to wool and mixed linen. This again is just critical thinking like I have presented in numbers 2 and 3. Wearing a cotton blend shirt is not going to send you to hell, despite what the author says.
5. Read your horoscope. [Lev. 19:26]
Leviticus 19:26 (New King James Version) reads:
26 ‘You shall not eat anything with the blood, nor shall you practice divination or soothsaying.
Practice in divination and soothsaying is against God. Divination and soothsaying are not of God and thus are bad. Evil spirits, demons, fallen angels (who were once angels of God) or however you want to reference these things is what is behind divination and soothsaying. Dabbling in these things can lead to lots of problems, misguide a person into thinking something that isn’t or is. It seems harmful at first, but once in the door, it becomes harmful and can have a negative affect in your life.
So does simply reading your horoscope send one to hell? Not directly. Indirectly yes as it can lead you to investigate even more of the psychic world and what is not of God.
6. Consult a psychic. [Lev. 19:31]
Leviticus 19:31 (New King James Version) reads:
31 ‘Give no regard to mediums and familiar spirits; do not seek after them, to be defiled by them: I am the LORD your God.
Are psychics real? How many are in it for the money? Most are scams nowadays, do background information to claim they know what is going on. I cannot speak about those that apparently have the ability to show what is true, guided by evil spirits; this is where they get their supposed gift from. It is not of God.
Does consulting a psychic deem one to go straight to hell? Again not directly, but indirectly yes. Think of it as the snowball effect. Some people can become worried when they hear their “future” told to them. They want to change it, avoid it, and/or get it. No one knows the future but God. No human can ever have this ability unless it was given by God (This can be considered like the prophetic dreams in Daniel, the dreams that Joseph saw, they were given visions, dreams, of what was to come).
7. Cut your hair. [Lev. 19:27]
Leviticus 19:27 (New King James Version) reads:
27 You shall not shave around the sides of your head, nor shall you disfigure the edges of your beard.
In order to find out what exactly this verse means, one would have to find out the significance in having the beards during this time in the Bible. I will say that this verse deals with hair on the sides on one’s head and the edge’s of one’s beard. And it has no mention of cutting one’s hair; rather it mentions one not to shave the sides of one’s head and not to disfigure the edges of the beard.
Does cutting your hair grounds to go to hell? No, that is just silly. Most of the laws mentioned in Leviticus and Exodus were common sense laws. But cutting your hair is not a one way ticket to hell. I would consider this one more of a humor/joke then putting belief in it
8. Trim your beard. [Lev. 19:27]
Leviticus 19:27 (New King James Version) reads:
27 You shall not shave around the sides of your head, nor shall you disfigure the edges of your beard.
See above (number 7) for explanation
Again, trimming one’s beard is not a one way ticket to hell. I would again consider this a humor/joke then a belief.
9. Are tattooed. [Lev. 19:28]
Leviticus 19:28 (New King James Version) reads:
28 You shall not make any cuttings in your flesh for the dead, nor tattoo any marks on you: I am the LORD.
Are those people who have tattoos on them today going to hell? I can’t answer that one with a definite yes or no. Again, these laws were given to the Israelites for the Promised Land. What I will say is this. The Bible has stated that the body should be a temple for the Holy Spirit to allow God to dwell in us. This is about taking care of our body, being healthy. Tattooing practices nowadays are safe, although there are cases of infection and reactions to them. Now think about getting a tattoo nearly 4000 years ago, without the aid of what we have today. One could easily get an infection, it can be dirty as things may or may not have been sterile when used to create the tattoo. Getting a tattoo in Israelite's time could have been a death sentence due to infection.
I will say that having a tattoo alone in today’s world does not mean one goes straight to hell.
10. Plant crops for more than seven years. [Lev. 25:4, Ex. 23:10-13]
Leviticus 25:4 (New King James Version) reads:
4 but in the seventh year there shall be a Sabbath of solemn rest for the land, a Sabbath to the LORD. You shall neither sow your field nor prune your vineyard.
Exodus 23:10-13 (New King James Version) reads:
10 “Six years you shall sow your land and gather in its produce, 11 but the seventh year you shall let it rest and lie fallow, that the poor of your people may eat; and what they leave, the beasts of the field may eat. In like manner you shall do with your vineyard and your olive grove. 12 Six days you shall do your work, and on the seventh day you shall rest, that your ox and your donkey may rest, and the son of your female servant and the stranger may be refreshed.
13 “And in all that I have said to you, be circumspect and make no mention of the name of other gods, nor let it be heard from your mouth.
My grandpa farms, he has a lot of land, and thus he plants a lot of crops. He has a system though – crop rotation. Crops are rotated between fields; reason for this is because certain crops only require certain nutrients from the soil. Keeping a crop on the same soil for years does not help the soil at all. That crop takes what it needs and the soil eventually “dies”. Having a different crop every year gives the soil a break as not all crops require the same nutrients from the soil, some need this and some need that. Another thing about crop rotation is that there is always a field that lays bare for a year. My grandpa refers to it as summer fallow.
Planting crops for more then seven years will not send you to hell. The most it will do is degrade the soil value. The soil, the earth, requires rest as well to replenish what was taken from it. In regards to the verse above, the seventh year was to be the summer fallow for the Israelites. Whatever the land produced that seventh year was free to the poor to eat. I would consider this very considerate behavior for humans, thinking about others.
This verse also states that for six days man does his work, tiling the earth, doing work. On the seventh day he is to rest from his labor of the six days. Have you ever worked continuously with no break in your work schedule? The most I did was nearly 20 days in a row. I was exhausted and tired, not to mention weak. Rest is essential not only for the earth, but also for man.
And why Exodus 23:13 is referenced is beyond me as it has nothing to do with planting crops.
11. Bear a grudge. [Lev. 19:17]
Leviticus 19:17 (New King James Version) reads:
17 ‘You shall not hate your brother in your heart. You shall surely rebuke your neighbor, and not bear sin because of him.
There is no mention of bearing a grudge in this verse. Having hate for someone does yourself more harm then the other person. You become hardened and only see hate. Hate is a very powerful thing; it is the absence of love. It becomes unhealthy to have hate in one’s heart, it destroys one’s self.
The next part of the verse again has nothing to do with bearing a grudge. I had to look up the definition of what rebuke means. www.dictionary.com defines rebuke as:
to express sharp, stern disapproval of; reprove; reprimand.In order to understand what this means is that if the neighbor is in sin, one shall surely rebuke him (to disapprove of what is being said, done, etc) lest you fall into that sin as well. Ever heard of the saying “going with the crowd”? I believe this was to show the Israelites that they shouldn’t just go with the crowd. If it was wrong, then it’s wrong and should be dealt with. It doesn’t say that we need to go rebuke our neighbor by yelling at him and throwing it in their face. Rather in a loving way it should be done.
Again, this verse does not state anything about holding a grudge and if it did, there is no mention that one would go to hell because of it.
12. Collect interest on a loan. [Ex. 22:24]
Exodus 22:24 (New King James Version) reads:
24 and My wrath will become hot, and I will kill you with the sword; your wives shall be widows, and your children fatherless.
Now, isn’t that a powerful verse? To understand this verse one is going to have to study the preceding verses as this verse begins with “and”. It would even be best to begin at the beginning of the chapter if you want to know why the above is said and in what context it’s being said in.
Also, where is there mention of collecting interest on a loan?
13. Insult a leader. [Ex. 22:27]
Exodus 22:27 (New King James Version) reads:
27 For that is his only covering, it is his garment for his skin. What will he sleep in? And it will be that when he cries to Me, I will hear, for I am gracious
Again, as stated in the prior number, to understand this verse you are going to have to read the preceding verses for this begins as a reason for something said prior “For that is his only covering”. A read and study of chapter 22 would help.
I do not see any mention in this verse in regards to insulting a leader. Maybe this one and the prior one were referenced wrong by the author.
14. Mistreat a foreigner. [Ex. 22:21, 23:9]
Exodus 22:21 (New King James Version) reads:
21 “You shall neither mistreat a stranger nor oppress him, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt.
Exodus 23:9 (New King James Version) reads:
9 “Also you shall not oppress a stranger, for you know the heart of a stranger, because you were strangers in the land of Egypt.
The Israelites were foreigners in the land of Egypt. It never belonged to them; they ended up being slaves in that land. “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you” is what I see this verse saying. The Israelites are told to not mistreat a stranger or oppress them, as they were once mistreated and oppressed. They knew what it was like to be mistreated and oppressed.
Does mistreating a foreigner send you to hell? It isn’t nice to do, how would you like it is what I would ask. This does not necessarily send you to hell, but it surely does affect your character in a negative way. I say again, Do unto Others as You Would Have Them Do unto You.
15. Spread false rumors. [Ex. 23:1] (Sorry, Pat Robertson!)
Exodus 23:1 (New King James Version) reads:
1 “You shall not circulate a false report. Do not put your hand with the wicked to be an unrighteous witness.
Spreading false rumors is also considered lying. You are lying about something, creating something not true. The verse stated above says that one should not circulate a false report, a false story. It sucks when the truth ends up coming out and the person who gave the false report is found out. In today’s society it is unlawful to file a false police report, one can get fined or even spend time in jail.
Does spreading rumors send you to hell? Again, it will impact your character as a person. People will not believe you, they may not want to hang out with you or be your friend in worry that you may spread something false about them. There is no mention in this verse that a person is going to hell because of spreading rumors, however one of the ten commandments states “Thou shall not bear false witness against thy neighbor”. This verse is a standard of living. Lie, spread false rumors and your standard of living, your character, diminishes.
16. Drive a Mercury. [Ex. 23:13] (Look it up.)
Exodus 23:13 (New King James Version) reads:
13 “And in all that I have said to you, be circumspect and make no mention of the name of other gods, nor let it be heard from your mouth.
First off, and this is quite noticeable, where is there mention in this verse about driving a mercury? (And yes I looked up this verse just like the author said in parentheses to do). This point that the author makes I will definitely say it was more for humor/joke then being a real meaning of this verse. The Israelites had no “Mercury” to drive. Number 16 in this author’s list is rather pointless and should be removed.
A definite NO you are NOT going to hell for driving a Mercury. Now, if you worship the god Mercury, then we are discussing something totally different as this is what the verse talks about.
I want to conclude by stating that lots of the laws given in Exodus and Leviticus were given to the Israelites as a standard to live by. There were no prior laws before this, people lived as they pleased. Some laws just simply do not apply to today’s time and what we have presently versus what the Israelites had in the past.
Will you go to hell for any of the above? Most of the above was an attack on how to live, no where did it mention the Israelites were going to hell for not following. Their lives would simply be miserable if they didn’t follow; perhaps creating a hell in their life if they didn’t follow the laws. There is black and there is white. There should be no gray. One goes to hell when they do not accept Jesus as their savior. In that you can believe, trust, and know that you will go to hell. But then that leads me to ask, is hell really a place? Now that is a subject for another blog!
See friends, this is an example of why you cannot take things at face value, especially the opinions of others. I went right to the Bible, to read the whole context, to read the specific verse in question. Read your Bible, go to your Bible! See for yourself! Many I am sure have taken this article at face value, without ever searching further. Don't be fooled! Read your Bible and not the opinions of others, not even mine. If I quote or state something from the Bible, go to the Bible yourself and see if what I am saying is truth or not.
Peace to you
---------------------------------
Whatcha thinking, doing the things you do
Whose opinion are ya listening to?
Justifying, you turn it all to gray,
Synchronizing to society's ways.
Society has gotten to be all outta whack,
Don't bother with excuses whether white or black.
To blame it on a color won't get a result
Because history reveals to me how ethics were lost.
In reality our decency has taken a plunge,
"In God We Trust" is an American pun,
Funny how it happened so suddenly, yo fellas, kick the melody...
Socially acceptable, it's okay, it's alright
Socially acceptable, it's okay, in whose sight
Socially acceptable
Times are changing, with morals in decay,
Human rights have made the wrongs okay.
Something's missing, and if you're asking me,
I think that something is the G- O- D.
To label wrong or right by the people's sight,
Is like going to a loser to ask advice.
And by basing your plans on another man's way of living life
I is creating a brand of ethics sure to be missing the punch,
No count morals that are out to lunch.
They're sliding away 'cause everything is okay,
It was taboo back then but today we say, "What the hey."
Socially acceptable, it's okay, it's alright
Socially acceptable, it's okay, in whose sight
Socially acceptable
We gotta back to the principles found in the Word,
A little G-O-D could be society's cure
From the state that we're in 'cause again we're slipping,
So pray for America cause time is ticking.
dcTalk -- "Socially Acceptable"
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