Introduction: The book of Exodus ends with Israel having a place to worship God, the Tabernacle. The book of Leviticus now begins to deal with how the people are to worship this God who saved them from Egypt. We will now look at the literary structure of the book, particularly the structure, and see how it develops the major themes and how they relate to the purpose of the book. In the thematic analysis of the book, we will examine the five main categories of sacrifice mentioned and give a brief rating of each. Finally, we will examine the theological implications of the book, particularly how the role and practice of sacrifice in the book of Leviticus contrasts with that practiced in traditional African religions. 4.1 Literary Structure Leviticus can be divided into four main themes: offerings, priesthood, purity and impurity, and the code of holiness. These four themes develop to reveal to us the main purpose of the book which is righteous worship and righteous living, with becoming holy and remaining holy (Arnold & Beyer 1999:120).4.1.1 The offerings (1:1-7 :38 )For Israel's existence as God's covenant people, sacrifice was necessary because the existence of sin and impurity threatened their relationship with God (Rooker 2000:49). The process and act of sacrifice was ordained by God as a means of purging impurity caused by sin. This would result in forgiveness and restoration of the relationship between God and the sinner (Arnold & Beyer 1999:124). 4.1.2 The Priesthood (8:1-10:20) With the introduction and consecration of the priesthood in Israel, we now see how God requires people to approach Him. This section of the book emphasizes the holiness of God and the need to approach Him in the right way, we are given an example in N...... middle of paper...... you knew that you had sinned, you had to make it a sacrifice and finally it was for sins that were not intentional (Deffinbaugh np).4.2.5 Guilt offering (Leviticus 5:14-6:7) It was about 'an offering devoted to restitution and reparation and, in its structure, appears to have been closely related to the sin offering (Constable nd). This offering covered two areas: for involuntary sins and for deliberate sins (Constable nd). This sacrifice was an offense against anyone, including God, regarding property. When the offering was purchased at the temple, there was also restitution to be paid to the offended party, restoration for what had been done, and a fine usually of about twenty percent (Barnes np). While the first three sacrifices emphasize the results of the sacrifice from God's perspective, the latter two emphasize the result from human perspective (Arnold & Beyer 1999:120-121).