SACRIFICE

SIN 31

AND THE

Paul writing to the Hebrews speaks of Him thus:

`Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, He also Himself likewise took part of the same;

that through death He might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil; and deliver them who

through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage' (Heb. 2:14,15).

The Type: The Passover.- Paul, writing to the Corinthians, said, `Christ our Passover is sacrificed for us' (1 Cor.

5:7). We read in Exodus 1 and 2 that Israel suffered `bitterness', `bondage' and `burdens', fit types indeed of sin

and sinners. At Exodus 12, with the introduction of the Passover, a fresh start is made: `This month shall be UNTO

YOU the beginning of months'. So must it be spiritually. New life, whether it be a new birth or a new creation,

commences at the altar of sacrifice, the once-offered Sacrifice of Calvary. The lamb set apart for sacrifice was kept

from the tenth to the fourteenth day of the month, so that no imperfection should escape notice, for of the sacrificial

animal it was written, `It shall be perfect to be accepted'. So the great Antitype is examined on four different

occasions, as recorded in Luke 23, and the Lamb of God was found to be `without blemish'. In our English mind,

the translation of the Hebrew word pesach by `passover' suggests the thought of `transit', or `passing over', whereas

the translation of the word in 1 Kings 18:21 by `halt' and the illustration used in Isaiah 31:5 gives the thought of

protection or `hovering'. The sense would therefore be better expressed if we modified the word `passover', to

`pause-over'. The essential feature of the Passover was, not the unleavened bread, not even the passover lamb

roasted and eaten according to the commandment, but the `blood' that was the token, for the testimony of Paul, as of

all Scripture, is that `without the shedding of blood there is no remission'.

The Ransom.- The Old Testament word `atonement' is the translation of the Hebrew word kopher, which

primarily means `to cover'. The word does not, however, mean the `covering up' of sin. The Psalmist says,

`Blessed is the man whose sin is covered', and this is endorsed without alteration by the apostle in Romans 4:7.

In arriving at a form of sound words, therefore, we shall not alter the primary meaning of the word, but

endeavour to ascertain precisely in what way the covering was made. Used without reference to sacrifice, kopher is

translated `pitch' in Genesis 6:14, and `village' in 1 Samuel 6:18, but in both cases `mere covering up' is not all that

is implied. The covering is for the purpose of protection. When we come to the usage of the word in connection

with the sacrifices of the law, we find it advances yet another step, and means `To cover by compensation',

consequently we find this same word translated `a sum of money' (Exod. 21:30); `ransom' (Job 33:24) and

`satisfaction' (Num. 35:31,32). The Greek version of the Old Testament (called the Septuagint, and indicated by the

letters LXX), uses the words hilasterion, and hilaskomai to translate the noun and verbal forms of kopher. These are

found in Paul's epistles, as follows:

`A propitiation through faith in His blood' (Rom. 3:25).

`Shadowing the mercyseat' (Heb. 9:5).

`To make reconciliation for the sins' (Heb. 2:17).

In 1 Timothy 2:6 we learn that a very special feature of the testimony entrusted to Paul, as a preacher, apostle

and teacher of the Gentiles, was that Christ `gave Himself a ransom for all (many)'.

The Release.- The effort of this ransom is release. The word aphesis is translated `set at liberty' in Luke 4:18

and `forgiveness' in Ephesians 1:7. Moreover, it is used in the LXX in connection with the Jubile (Lev. 25:10)

where release from bondage and from debt are prominent. Forgiveness as taught by Paul is connected with

justification and acquittal in a court of law. Though the enjoyment of it may be clouded by unwillingness to

confess, it can never be rescinded. In this, forgiveness as taught by Paul differs from that taught in the gospel of the

Kingdom, where, both in the `Lord's prayer' and in the parable of the unforgiving servant, forgiveness is seen to be

conditional in the words, `if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses'

(Matt. 6:15; see also 18:35).

A Distinction.- This seems to be a good place to draw attention to the need, when speaking of the Sacrifice of

Christ for sin, to distinguish between that redemptive aspect that delivers from bondage, and the atoning aspect that

gives access to God. Both are necessary to present a complete picture of the work of Christ. Redemption without

atonement would be as though Moses, at the time of the Exodus, had led the children of Israel out of Egypt and then

abandoned them in the wilderness. On the other hand atonement put before redemption in the preaching of the