Leviticus 27 and Book Conclusion

If you've ever wondered about the monetary value of men, women, and children, then Leviticus 27 has the answer! Here, laid out clearly and succinctly, the author lays out the worth of each member of society in shekels of silver. Here's the list, from most to least valuable:

Male (age 20-59, upper range)--60 shekels
Female (age 20-59)--30 shekels
Male (age 5-20 or 20-59, lower range)--20 shekels
Male (age 60+)--15 shekels
Female (age 5-20 or 60+)--10 shekels
Male (1 month-5 years)--5 shekels
Female (1 month-5 years)--3 shekels

I do understand that people had to do more hard labor back then, so it does make sense that those able to complete arduous tasks would be more valuable to society; males on average tend to have more muscle mass than females. Men aged 20-59 are the only group to have a range--at the highest, they can be worth twice as much as the next highest tier, but at the lowest, they're worth less than women aged 20-59. I guess God knew that men like Homer Simpson wouldn't justify such a high price.

However, I don't get why boys under 5 years old were worth more than girls under 5--young girls and boys have the same capacity for physical labor, which isn't a whole lot. If you're building the pyramids, you don't ask a horde of toddlers to build it, and even if you were screwed up enough to do so, why on Earth would you think that boys would do a better job than girls? I know that's an extreme example, but even if you had your tykes help pick strawberries, boys and girls under 5 would do equally poorly.

Finally, God mentions tithing, specifying, "No one may pick out the good from the bad or make any substitution" (verse 33). I shouldn't just tithe my "leftover" earnings to God, making offerings only when I've secured my own desire. Instead, I should make tithing my priority--after all, I can't take my money or anything it buys with me once I croak, so I should be more sedulous about giving my first fruits to God.

Conclusion

Much of Leviticus features rather abstruse procedures written specifically for the Israelites. Even though Jesus' sacrifice obviates the need for many of these regulations, we must still strive to follow God's directives. In fact, the meticulous nature of all these sacrifices and stipulations only reminds us of how unconditionally holy God is, and thus how powerful Jesus' death on the cross had to have been to overcome the need for all these policies. God also knew that his instructions in Leviticus would help the Israelites devote themselves to Him as His chosen people, but no one is an ancient Israelite anymore. People have changed, society has changed, even our values have changed, for better and for worse. But God has remained constant.