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What is the most important lesson in the word of God? In Matt. 22:34-40, Jesus summarizes the whole Bible into two commandments, being 'love for God' and 'love for thy neighbor' (Lev. 19:18). Why did Jesus cite Lev. 19:18 (love) instead of 19:2 (holiness), which is the core of this chapter? This book analyzes how Lev. 19 is unfolded from OT times to the message of the NT. It attempts to prove the importance of Lev. 19 in the canonical tradition of Judaism and Christianity and to identify the clues which can help to explain the reason why Jesus chose Lev. 19:18. Further, the book shows that holiness, one of the main issues in Lev. 19, is replaced by perfection in Matt. 5:48. This connection is shown through examining the Community Rule (1QS) of the Dead Sea Scrolls, which joins the themes of holiness and perfection. This combination serves as the 'missing link' to bridge the gap between Lev. 19 and Matt. 5. The method used to explore these texts is called 'a canonical unfolding.' After a commentary on Lev. 19 the chapter is compared to other connected texts. Finally, the meaning of Lev. 19 is reinterpreted in the whole context of the Canon.
List of contents
Contents: Commentary of Leviticus 19 - Leviticus 19 and its Canonical Unfolding in the Old Testament - Leviticus 19 in Qumran Texts - Leviticus 19 and its Canonical Unfolding in the New Testament - Canonical Unfolding of Lev. 19 in the Bible.
About the author
Jin-Myung Kim studied at the Presbyterian College and Theological Seminary in Korea (Th.D, 2007) and at Ben-Gurion University (Beer-Sheba). In 2009 he was a visiting fellow of The Centre for Advanced Religious and Theological Studies at Cambridge University. He is currently an Old Testament professor at the Seoul Presbyterian Theological Seminary and works as a supporting minister at Shin-Saeng Church, which serves homeless people.
