Leviticus Lesson 21

© 2001 "Yes Lord" Ministries

Leviticus

Lesson 21

Hi Again, and welcome back to this study of the Book of Leviticus.

You will recall that in Lesson 20, among other things, we read some of the consequences for not obeying the commands of the Lord. Specifically, we learned the consequences that the Nation of Israel experienced because they failed to obey God concerning the keeping of the Sabbath Year. And, those consequences were very severe.

In this lesson, we are going to look at those and other consequences for disobedience and also at the rewards for obedience to God's commands. I think you will not only find this very instructive, but, it will also help you understand more about why things happen (or don't happen) to nations and to people when they obey and disobey God.

So, with that said, it is, of course, time for an assignment. And, as before, you may either use your own Bible or the Scriptures which we will include in this lesson. Whichever you decide to use, your assignment now is to read Leviticus Chapter 26, and, as you read this chapter,

1. Put a RED CIRCLE around every occurrence of the word, "IF".

2. Underline or Highlight in BLUE every occurrence of the phrase, "I WILL"

3. Put a PURPLE CIRCLE around every occurrence of the word, "BUT"

.Ok, that is it. It is a short assignment, but one which is very significant. So, let's begin.

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Leviticus 26

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1. "`Do not make idols or set up an image or a sacred stone for yourselves, and do not place a carved stone in your land to bow down before it. I am the LORD your God.

2. "`Observe my Sabbaths and have reverence for my sanctuary. I am the LORD.

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Verses 3-13: ____________________________________

3. "`If you follow my decrees and are careful to obey my commands,

4. I will send you rain in its season, and the ground will yield its crops and the trees of the field their fruit. 5. Your threshing will continue until grape harvest and the grape harvest will continue until planting, and you will eat all the food you want and live in safety in your land. 6. "`I will grant peace in the land, and you will lie down and no one will make you afraid. I will remove savage beasts from the land, and the sword will not pass through your country. 7. You will pursue your enemies, and they will fall by the sword before you. 8. Five of you will chase a hundred, and a hundred of you will chase ten thousand, and your enemies will fall by the sword before you. 9. "`I will look on you with favor and make you fruitful and increase your numbers, and I will keep my covenant with you. 10. You will still be eating last year's harvest when you will have to move it out to make room for the new. 11. I will put my dwelling place among you, and I will not abhor you. 12. I will walk among you and be your God, and you will be my people. 13. I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of Egypt so that you would no longer be slaves to the Egyptians; I broke the bars of your yoke and enabled you to walk with heads held high.

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Verses 14-39: ___________________________________

14. "`But if you will not listen to me and carry out all these commands, 15. and if you reject my decrees and abhor my laws and fail to carry out all my commands and so violate my covenant,

16. then I will do this to you:

I will bring upon you sudden terror, wasting diseases and fever that will destroy your sight and drain away your life. You will plant seed in vain, because your enemies will eat it. 17. I will set my face against you so that you will be defeated by your enemies; those who hate you will rule over you, and you will flee even when no one is pursuing you.

18. "`If after all this you will not listen to me, I will punish you for your sins seven times over. 19. I will break down your stubborn pride and make the sky above you like iron and the ground beneath you like bronze. 20. Your strength will be spent in vain, because your soil will not yield its crops, nor will the trees of the land yield their fruit.

21. "`If you remain hostile toward me and refuse to listen to me, I will multiply your afflictions seven times over, as your sins deserve. 22. I will send wild animals against you, and they will rob you of your children, destroy your cattle and make you so few in number that your roads will be deserted.

23. "`If in spite of these things you do not accept my correction but continue to be hostile toward me, 24. I myself will be hostile toward you and will afflict you for your sins seven times over. 25. And I will bring the sword upon you to avenge the breaking of the covenant. When you withdraw into your cities, I will send a plague among you, and you will be given into enemy hands. 26. When I cut off your supply of bread, ten women will be able to bake your bread in one oven, and they will dole out the bread by weight. You will eat, but you will not be satisfied.

27. "`If in spite of this you still do not listen to me but continue to be hostile toward me, 28. then in my anger I will be hostile toward you, and I myself will punish you for your sins seven times over. 29. You will eat the flesh of your sons and the flesh of your daughters. 30. I will destroy your high places, cut down your incense altars and pile your dead bodies on the lifeless forms of your idols, and I will abhor you. 31. I will turn your cities into ruins and lay waste your sanctuaries, and I will take no delight in the pleasing aroma of your offerings. 32. I will lay waste the land, so that your enemies who live there will be appalled. 33. I will scatter you among the nations and will draw out my sword and pursue you. Your land will be laid waste, and your cities will lie in ruins. 34. Then the land will enjoy its sabbath years all the time that it lies desolate and you are in the country of your enemies; then the land will rest and enjoy its sabbaths. 35. All the time that it lies desolate, the land will have the rest it did not have during the sabbaths you lived in it. 36. "`As for those of you who are left, I will make their hearts so fearful in the lands of their enemies that the sound of a windblown leaf will put them to flight. They will run as though fleeing from the sword, and they will fall, even though no one is pursuing them. 37. They will stumble over one another as though fleeing from the sword, even though no one is pursuing them. So you will not be able to stand before your enemies. 38. You will perish among the nations; the land of your enemies will devour you. 39. Those of you who are left will waste away in the lands of their enemies because of their sins; also because of their fathers' sins they will waste away.

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Verses 40-45: God is Merciful so there is hope and a promise of restoration

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40. "`But if they will confess their sins and the sins of their fathers--their treachery against me and their hostility toward me, 41. which made me hostile toward them so that I sent them into the land of their enemies--then when their uncircumcised hearts are humbled and they pay for their sin,

42. I will remember my covenant with Jacob and my covenant with Isaac and my covenant with Abraham, and I will remember the land. 43. For the land will be deserted by them and will enjoy its sabbaths while it lies desolate without them. They will pay for their sins because they rejected my laws and abhorred my decrees. 44. Yet in spite of this, when they are in the land of their enemies, I will not reject them or abhor them so as to destroy them completely, breaking my covenant with them. I am the LORD their God. 45. But for their sake I will remember the covenant with their ancestors whom I brought out of Egypt in the sight of the nations to be their God. I am the LORD.'"

46. These are the decrees, the laws and the regulations that the LORD established on Mount Sinai between himself and the Israelites through Moses.

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Finished? Great!

And, as you read and marked this Chapter, I am sure you were very much aware that God was clearly and unequivocally telling His people, the Jewish Nation, that there would be very specific rewards and very specific punishments meted out to them, depending upon whether they obeyed or disobeyed Him.

And, you also noticed that this chapter is divided into divisions which told of these rewards and punishments in specific detail. To help you see and remember this, I put a line at the top of each of those divisions in the Scripture passage Your assignment now is to TITLE those divisions with a brief summary statement which tells what each division is about. As you noticed, I have already titled the third division for you as an example. Now, you go back and fill in the first two with your summary statements. And if you want to retitle the 3rd division with your own words, feel free to do so. This was only a suggestion.

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<>< <>< <>< <>< <>< Pause while you title divisions 1 and 2 <>< <>< <>< <>< <><

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Finished again! Wonderful!

And, in case you are wondering, this is how I titled those 3 divisions.

Verses 3- 13: Rewards & Blessings for Obedience

Verses 4- 39: Punishments and Curses for Disobedience

Verses 40-45: God is Merciful so there is hope and a promise of restoration

You probably did not use the exact wording that I did, but if your titles were something similar, then you know that you are right on target in understanding this chapter. Good for you!

And, now, let's continue our study of this Chapter.

? Where were these commands / laws /decrees given to the Jewish nation? And through whom did God transmit this information? (Hint: see verse 46)

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Yes, as verse 46 tells us and as we mentioned in the previous lesson, these laws and instructions were decreed by God in about 1491 BC. They were given on Mount Sinai by God to Moses. Moses, in turn, told the people, the Jewish Nation (the Israelites) what God had told him. This was shortly after their exodus from Egypt and just before they began their 40 years of "wandering in the wilderness."

Interestingly, at the end of those 40 years of "wandering", these laws along with others, were repeated by Moses to the Jewish Nation just before they concluded their wandering and as they were ready to enter into and settle in their "Promised Land". The repetition of these Laws is recorded in Deuteronomy 28. We do not have the time nor the space to include that chapter in this study, but you might want to turn to it in your Bible to see how closely these two chapters dovetail.

The decrees in Leviticus 26 and in Deuteronomy 28 were not, of course, the only laws / commands / commandments / instructions /decrees that God gave to His people through Moses. In fact, I have read in several sources that in total there were 613 laws recorded in the Pentateuch (the first 5 books of the Old Testament). I have not personally counted the 613 laws, but apparently someone has and I will trust their math.

Why so many laws and commands? Well, it is because God was establishing a new nation, the Nation of the Israelites (the Jewish people). These laws, and the others that comprise the 613, are their "Constitution and Bill of Rights" so to speak. Therefore, these were the laws, rules, and guidelines under which their nation was being established and which God intended for them to obey.

So, we now know that there were 613 laws /commands / decrees / ... that these people were to obey as citizens of this new nation which was being established for them by God. And, yes, 613 laws is a LOT of laws. But, they could be and were summarized in the first two verses of this chapter.

Reread those two verses, Leviticus 26:1-2, and as you read them:

1. Underline or highlight in BLACK every occurrence of the phrase, "DO NOT"

2. Put a GREEN OVAL around the words "OBSERVE" and "HAVE REVERENCE"

Now, based on what you read, list what it is that they are to NOT do:

Do NOT

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Why? Because (26:1) _________________________________

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And, based on what you read in Leviticus 26:2, what are they TO do:

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Why? Because (26:2) ___________________________________

So, in your own words, what is God teaching and telling His people with these summary statements and commands?

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Yes, God gave many commands and laws in this chapter and elsewhere in the Book of the Law (the Pentateuch, which consisted of the first 5 books of the Old Testament). But these laws could all be summarized in the thoughts expressed in the first two verses of Leviticus 26.

In those 2 verses, God is reminding His people that He alone is the LORD their God. And, therefore, He can and does require and expect all of His people to be totally committed to Him alone. There are to be no other gods (idols) in their lives. They are to worship Him only. And, He is reminding them that there is a correct (and an incorrect) way to worship Him (as we have already studied in this book). That is why they are to not make any idols or to set up any images or sacred stones or to bow down to any other god. That is also why they are to observe God's sabbaths and laws. And, that is why they are to have reverence for His sanctuary -- because He alone is the LORD God.

Another place where God's laws were summarized was in a statement by Jesus. Let's read it now: And when you find the summary statement(s), underline them in GREEN.

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Matthew 22:35-40

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35. One of them (a Pharisee), an expert in the law, tested Him (Jesus) with this question:

36. "Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?"

37. Jesus replied: "`Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.' 38. This is the first and greatest commandment. 39. And the second is like it: `Love your neighbor as yourself.' 40. All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments."

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Wow! And I am sure you found and underlined the summary statements in verses 37 and 39. Look again at those statements by the Lord God Jesus Christ and compare them with the summary statements in verses 1 and 2 of Leviticus 26. Do you see any correlation? Sure! So, now, in your own words and in the space provided below, explain how these two passages are related -- and what is the principle that is being taught?

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Correct! I am sure that you saw that there is a definite parallel in these two passages. And you understood that both of these passages are teaching that if a person understands that God alone IS the LORD and that He IS the ONLY God, then they will obey Him and will love the Lord their God with all their heart and soul and mind. And, they will not make any idols or worship any other god because they will understand that there is only ONE true God! And worshiping anyone or anything other than the One True God is senseless, useless, and wrong! Furthermore, they will obey this One and Only God by doing what He commands re. the sabbaths, in the way they worship Him (with reverence and obedience), and in EVERY aspect of their lives, lifestyles, actions, deeds, and thoughts.

Indeed, the entire Law can be summed up in the concept that God alone is God and He alone is the One Who is to be worshipped. The 613 specific laws are just details and specifics of "how" to worship Him and of "how" to obey and serve Him.

But, the "keeping" of these laws, though desirable, will NOT earn salvation or righteousness for any person. We have already discussed that and understand that no one is perfect (except Jesus) and, therefore, all are under the condemnation of sin for having disobeyed (broken one or more of) these commandments.

So, why then all these laws? And what IS their purpose if it is not to provide a way to "salvation"? Well, in a nutshell, these laws and the others in the 613 total, serve 2 main purposes.

One purpose of the Law(s) is that they are to serve as a "schoolmaster" and to show everyone that they are in desperate need of a Savior, because breaking (disobeying) one or more of these laws causes an individual to be "lost" (in need of repentance and salvation.). The Apostle Paul explained this in his letter to the Galatians. As you see this concept explained in the scripture below, underline or highlight in YELLOW (or a color of your choice), the purpose of the Law.

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Galatians 3: 21-26 KJV

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21. Is the law then against the promises of God? God forbid: for if there had been a law given which could have given life, verily righteousness should have been by the law. 22. But the scripture hath concluded (that) all (are) under sin, that the promise by faith of Jesus Christ might be given to them that believe. 23. But before faith came, we were kept under the law, shut up unto the faith which should afterwards be revealed. 24. Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith. 25. But after that faith is come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster. 26. For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus.

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Hmmmmmmm. Very Interesting. And, I am sure that you correctly underlined verse 24 in that Galatians 3 passage. And this is a very important concept. Why?

Because many people believe that if they are "good enough" and if they "keep the Law" and if they "try to obey God", and if they "try to live a good life" that they will be accepted into God's heaven based on those Works (of trying to live right and trying to keep the Law.) But, it is obvious that trying to "earn our way to heaven by keeping the law" is a hopeless and impossible task and situation. So, it is instructive and comforting to know that the Law is NOT the "means" of obtaining salvation. Rather, the law was (and is) our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith (in Christ). It is by belief in Jesus Christ and by accepting His gift of salvation, through faith in what HE DID for us (He died in payment for our sins), that we are "saved" from the death penalty of sin and made to be children of God.

The Second Purpose of the Law (the 613 laws given by God to Moses and to the Nation Israel) was, as we mentioned earlier, to serve as the "Constitution" and the "Bill of Rights" and the "Code of Ethics" under which God desired that His Nation live. Why? Because, these laws were not just to be "things that they must do because He (God) said so" but because IF they OBEYED (lived in accordance with) these Laws (commands / decrees / regulations), they would avoid many illnesses, disasters, and diseases and they would also avoid all kinds of snares, difficulties, and problems. This is made very clear in verses 3-13 of Leviticus 26.

But, IF they DISOBEYED God's Laws (commands / decrees / regulations), then God warned them that there would be dire consequences which would result to themselves individually and to their Nation corporately. This was clearly pointed out to them (and to us) in Leviticus verses 14-39.

To look at and to summarize these Rewards for Obedience and the Punishments and Consequences for Disobedience, let's fill in the information concerning each on the charts below.

So, your assignment now is to review what you read in Leviticus 26:3-13 and fill in the chart below with what God is telling His people concerning what will happen IF they obey Him. (I will fill in the first part of this chart for you as an example to show you how to do this.)

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The Rewards and Blessings for Obeying God

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Hmmmmm. Very interesting. So we see that IF God's people obey Him, life individually and as a Nation will be very wonderful, enjoyable, productive, and pleasant. And they will live in peace and happiness.

But! (Isn't there always a but?) But, What if they do NOT obey God? What if they decide to "do things their own way" and to make their own choices and to worship other gods and ...

Well, God warned them what would happen if they disobeyed. So, your assignment now is to review what you read in Leviticus 26:14-39 and to fill in the chart below with what God is telling His people will happen IF they DISOBEY Him and do not keep His Laws. (Again, I will fill in the first part of this chart as an example of how to do this.)

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The Consequences & Punishments for Disobeying God

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Wow! Talk about punishments for disobedience! And you thought your earthly parents had rules and regulations with consequences!

So, you ask, what happened? Did the Israelites, the Jewish Nation, obey God and "live happily ever after"? Or did they disobey God and have some or all of these punishments fall upon them? Well, sadly and tragically, they did not obey. And these punishments and consequences DID come upon them ! Gasp !

Yes, as we mentioned in the previous lesson, they began "well" but after a while they began to disobey. First it was "small things" (or so they thought), but then their disobedience increased and increased and finally reached the point where all of these calamities were heaped upon them.

Isn't this how it is in our lives, too? Sure. We try to obey God, but then "self" gets in the way and wants to do "its own thing" and soon we are disobeying (sinning) in "small" things. But it doesn't stop there. One thing leads to another. And, before you know it, we are in deep disobedience! This happens in our lives today, individually and as a Nation. And, as we discovered in our previous lesson, this also happened to the Nation Israel.

So, what to do? Is there any hope for a person or a nation who has fallen deep into disobedience. Can they turn back to God? Can they repent? Will they repent? And, will God forgive them and restore them if they do?

Well, as you noticed in Leviticus 26:40-45, yes, there is hope and there is an "open door" for them to be restored IF they will confess their sins and IF they will stop their hostility and treachery toward God. Let's look at what God says about this, and as we do that, let's fill in the third part of our chart with what we discover will happen IF....

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God is Merciful so there is hope and a promise of restoration

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Wow! So, yes, there is a hope and a promise of restoration for the Jewish Nation (and for anyone who will turn from their disobedience and sinning).

God is a Holy God and therefore ALL sin must be punished or atoned for.

But, God is also a God of Mercy and He IS willing to forgive IF His Nation or any person will confess their sins and repent and turn from their disobedient, self-serving, willful ways and turn back to GOD.

God has provided a way back to Him for any person or for any Nation who will acknowledge and confess their sins and will accept His offer of forgiveness and restoration.

In the Old Testament times, before Christ came, the "way back" was by a blood sacrifice offered once each year on the Day of Atonement by God's High Priest. But, that blood sacrifice only provided a temporary covering for sin.

But, that sacrifice, and the High Priest who presented it, also pictured, as a shadow / type, the final, perfect, once for all sacrifice of the one and only sinless person who ever lived, the Lord God Jesus Christ.

And, approximately 1491 years after that "picture" was first presented, Jesus came (was born / was incarnated). And then approximately 30 years after that, Jesus offered Himself as the Lamb, the final perfect blood sacrifice, to pay the sin penalty for anyone who would accept by faith His sacrifice as the payment for their sins.

We have discussed all of this before, so will not go into the details again.

The point is that God gave these decrees (Laws) to His People, the Jewish nation, for them to observe and obey while they awaited the coming future sacrifice of Jesus and their final redemption from sin. While they waited, these Laws would provide a way to live that would bring joy, peace, and prosperity IF they obeyed them. But, if they disobeyed, then the consequences of and punishment for their disobedience would come upon them.

So, in Leviticus 26, God told His people what would happen IF they obeyed Him and His Laws.

And God warned them about what would happen if they disobeyed.

It was then up to the people, armed with this knowledge, to choose to obey or to disobey. God does not create robots. He gives everyone a free will and, therefore, the freedom to obey or to disobey Him and to love Him or to hate Him.

But, if they, or we, choose to disobey, then they and we will suffer the consequences.

BUT, should they, or we, realize the error of our ways and desire to turn back to God, Praise the Lord, we can! For, God is merciful and is willing to forgive IF we will acknowledge and confess our sins and IF we will stop our treachery against Him and IF we will stop our hostility toward Him and begin to serve and to love and to obey Him.

The Nation Israel did disobey and reject God many times. And, as a result, they experienced and suffered the many punishments that were described in Leviticus 26 as a consequence of their disobedience.

But, God is NOT finished with the Nation Israel. One day they will realize that these shadows and types, which they have studied in Leviticus, are pointing them to the Lord God Jesus Christ, their Savior and their Messiah. One day, in the future, they will, as a nation, turn back to God and will love, obey, and serve Him as their God forever.

Many Jews recognized Who Jesus was when He came 2000 years ago and many throughout the intervening years from then until now have also understood and recognized that Jesus is the fulfillment of the Law and have made Him their redeemer and savior. Those who recognized Jesus and who believed in Him for their salvation have been forgiven and restored. To those, God has already remembered His covenant with Jacob, Isaac, and Abraham, and has saved them from the death penalty of their sin, because they have acknowledged and appropriated Jesus' atoning blood sacrifice as the substitute sacrifice for their sins.

And all, Jew and Gentile (non Jew), who understand Who Jesus is and what He has done and who, by faith, trust in Jesus for their salvation, will also be forgiven and restored.

Wow!

Ok, with all that said and based on what you have read in Chapter 26, how would you summarize this chapter? If someone were to ask you, "What is being taught in Chapter 28 of Leviticus?"-- what would you tell them? Think about this and then, in the space below, write your answer.

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Great! Good thinking.

So, the bottom line of what God is teaching in Chapter 26 of Leviticus is two fold.

First, obeying the law will not provide "salvation" or entrance into heaven for eternity. But, obeying the Law will enable His Nation and His people to live happy and peaceful and prosperous lives. And, disobeying it will bring judgment and dire consequences. But the dire consequences do not have to be eternal because the second thing that this Chapter is teaching is that there is a way to be restored and to not have to live in the consequences of disobedience forever.

So, this chapter is also teaching that the Law is important, not only because it is intended to serve as a guideline of how to live in a way that is pleasing to God, but also because the Law is a schoolteacher pointing to the final perfect atoning sacrifice for sin in the Person of the Lamb of God, the Lord God Jesus Christ.

Yes, in Jesus, there is forgiveness! In Jesus there is life! Jesus has provided the final and once for all payment for sin. So, there is a way of escape from the consequences of sin! There is a way to be restored to fellowship with God after one has sinned (disobeyed God)! There IS hope!

And that hope is in and through and by the substitute blood sacrifice of the Lord God Jesus Christ.

Thank You, Jesus !

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Scriptures marked NIV are taken from the

NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION. Copyright C 1973,1978,1984 International Bible Society.

Used by permission of Zondervan Publishers.

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as long as NO fee for profit is charged and it is NOT changed in any way.

This is for the Glory of God and NOT for the financial profit of man.

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