And to continue my true purpose here, the topic on BLOOD
SACRIFICE. Was the messiah really required to die? Or more
importantly, did God say require it. read on,
"Then the LORD said, 'I do
forgive, just as you have asked.'"
Numbers 14:20 (NRS)
And so, we are to believe that Jesus dying on the cross
fulfilled the requirements of a blood sacrifice.
There are a number of requirements for a sacrifice to be valid
or it is completely disqualified and will be an abomination to G-d.
These requirements are as follows:
1. The sin offering must be brought forth by the person seeking
atonement, and slaughtered either by the sinner or by the
priest.
2. Death must be caused by a sharp, perfect blade cutting across
the neck, resulting in blood loss and swift death.
3. The offering must be physically unblemished.
4. In the case of mammal offerings (bulls, lambs, etc.) the
offering must be less than one year old.
5. In the case of mammal offerings, the mammal must have cloven
hooves and chew cud.
6. The sacrifice must be brought at the Temple
7. The sacrifice must have its blood taken by a priest and
sprinkled on the altar.
8. The sacrifice must be salted.
Since Jesus did not fulfill even one of the eight precepts
listed above, it's clear that his death could not be the atoning
sacrifice Christians claim it is.
Deuteronomy 4:2 Ye shall not add unto the word which I command you,
neither shall ye diminish [ought] from it, that ye may
keep the commandments of the LORD your G-d which I command you.
(KJV)
Deuteronomy 12:32 What thing soever I command
you, observe to do it: thou shalt
not add thereto, nor diminish from it. (KJV)
Twice we see a prohibition of going against the Torah’s
precepts. This should tell you it’s an important law to follow.
Does G-d desire human sacrifice?
Deuteronomy 12:31 Thou shalt not do so
unto the LORD thy G-d: for every abomination to the LORD, which he
hateth, have they done unto their gods; for even their sons and
their daughters they have burnt in the fire to their gods.
(KJV)
So, we see just how highly the Almighty thinks of human
sacrifice.
The New Testament quoted the following Psalm:
Psalms 40:6 Sacrifice and offering thou
didst not desire; mine ears hast
thou opened: burnt offering and sin offering hast thou
not required. (KJV)
This Psalm carries an important message. Coupled with other
verses from throughout the Bible, we learn that while G-d does
place an importance on blood sacrifice, He puts more importance on
penitence and the resolve to do better. This Psalm presented a
theological problem for the author of the Epistle to the
Hebrews:
Hebrews 10:5 Wherefore when he cometh into
the world, he saith, Sacrifice and offering thou wouldest
not, but a body hast thou prepared
me: [6] In burnt offerings and [sacrifices] for
sin thou hast had no pleasure. (KJV)
How does "mine ears hast thou opened" change to "but a body hast
thou prepared me?" This is not the only time one will come across
this kind of behavior went into the penning of the Epistle to the
Hebrews, and the entire New Testament for that matter. How are we
to trust a document that exhibits this sort of behavior?
Christian apologists will argue that Jesus was unblemished of
sin. To be frank, this dogma genuinely frightens me. This is the
logic that pagan societies used in offering up their children in
human sacrifices -- they reasoned that their children were
sinless.
The Diaspora was prophesied, such as in this passage:
Hosea 3:4 For the children of Israel shall
abide many days without a king, and without a prince, and without a
sacrifice, and without an image, and without an ephod, and
[without] teraphim: [5] Afterward shall
the children of Israel return, and seek the LORD their G-d, and
David their king; and shall fear the LORD and his goodness in the
latter days. (KJV)
Now, when we see this, a Christian will try to fix this into a
problem for the Jews, saying, "but without blood sacrifice, how do
you receive atonement for your sins?" After all, you have this
verse below:
Hebrews 9:22 And almost all things are by
the law purged with blood; and
without shedding of blood is no remission. (KJV)
With this verse, the author successfully placed the new
Christian theology outside of Judaism, because this in no way is a
Jewish concept. Nowhere in the Jewish Scriptures do you find the
message that without blood there is no remission. Time and time
again, the prophets preached repentence and obedience, placing
these things above sacrifice.
1 Samuel 15:22 And Samuel said, Hath the
LORD [as great] delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in
obeying the voice of the LORD? Behold, to obey [is] better than sacrifice, [and] to
hearken than the fat of rams. (KJV)
Given how often this theme is given (such as in the Psalm quoted
above) the Christian position of there being no atonement without
blood becomes a little puzzling. Hosea also gave a startling
message that prayer can take the place of sacrifices:
Hosea 14:1 O Israel, return unto the LORD
thy God; for thou hast fallen by thine
iniquity.[2] Take with you words, and turn to
the LORD: say unto him, Take away all iniquity, and receive [us]
graciously: so will we render the
calves of our lips. (KJV)
Now, given the language that KJV used in its translation, this
is likely rather confusing. For that reason, let us use the
American Standard Version's translation:
Hosea 14:1 O Israel, return unto J---vah
thy G-d; for thou hast fallen by thine
iniquity. [2]Take with you words, and return
unto J---vah: say unto him, Take away all iniquity, and accept that
which is good: so will we render
[as] bullocks [the offering of] our lips. (ASV)
So, the prophet is telling us that prayer can substitute for
sacrifice. Surely, this creates a dilemma for Christian theology,
so let's see how they deal with this:
Hosea 14:1 Return, O Israel, to the Lord
your G-d, For you have stumbled because of your
iniquity. [2] Take words with you and
return to the Lord. Say to Him, "Take away all iniquity And receive
us graciously, That we may present the fruit of our lips. (NAS)
So, we see that Christian Bible translators will resort to word
changing. Are we to trust a translation that exhibits this sort of
behavior?
For those who still believe that without blood, there is no
atonement, think about the Babylonian Exile. The Jews committed
sins that caused the first Temple to be destroyed and the citizenry
to be exiled from the land of Israel. Do you really think that G-d
would punish us for our sins in such a manner as which we would be
unable to atone for them? G-d wouldn't set us up to fall forever
into a pit. The only response I've ever gotten for this problem is
"Jesus was offered to the Babylonian Exiles and that's how they got
their atonement." This has no textual corroboration.
One of Christianity's Compelling Prooftexts
Now we come to what Christians feel is the number one Torah
prooftext that blood is the only means of sin expiation.
Leviticus 17:11 For the life of the flesh
[is] in the blood: and I have given it to you upon the altar to
make an atonement for your souls: for it [is] the blood [that]
maketh an atonement for the soul. (KJV)
Those who find this a compelling proof should examine the verse
more carefully. Like just about every other Christian prooftext,
this one is flawed, and taken completely out of context. While this
verse does illustrate an aspect of importance in blood sacrifice,
nowhere does it say that blood is the only means of expiation.
Also, notice the first word in this verse, "for." In other
translations, you'll also find this translated as "because." Verse
11 is an explanation, not an imperative.
Leviticus 17:10 And whatsoever man [there
be] of the house of Israel, or of the strangers that sojourn among
you, that eateth any manner of blood; I will even set my face
against that soul that eateth blood, and will cut him off from
among his people. [11] For the life of
the flesh [is] in the blood: and I have given it to you upon the
altar to make an atonement for your souls: for it [is] the blood
[that] maketh an atonement for the
soul. [12] Therefore I said unto the
children of Israel, No soul of you shall eat blood,neither shall
any stranger that sojourneth among you eat blood. (KJV)
It's the blood that makes atonement, as opposed to using the
intestines, the kidneys, the brains the muscle tissue. It's the
blood. So don't consume it. That's all there is to it.
Additionally, if Christians are going to be context to take verse
11 out of context the way in which they do, they must take all of
it. Verse 11 specifically says "upon the altar." A sacrifice
without the priest taking the blood and sprinkling it on the altar
is completely pointless. It's like a movie with a beginning,
middle, but no ending.
Do you really need blood sacrifice?
Psalms 51:16 For thou desirest not
sacrifice; else would I give [it]: thou delightest not in burnt
offering. [17] The sacrifices of G-d
[are] a broken spirit: a broken and a contrite heart, O G-d, thou
wilt not despise. (KJV)
Psalms 69:30 I will praise the name of G-d
with a song, and will magnify him with
thanksgiving. [31] [This] also shall
please the LORD better than an ox [or] bullock that hath horns and
hoofs. (KJV)
Proverbs 15:8 The sacrifice of the wicked
[is] an abomination to the LORD: but the prayer of the upright [is]
His delight. [9] The way of the wicked
[is] an abomination unto the LORD: but he loveth him that followeth
after righteousness. (KJV)
Proverbs 16:6 By mercy and truth iniquity is
purged: and by the fear of the LORD men depart from evil.
(KJV)
Isaiah 58:3 Wherefore have we fasted, say
they, and thou seest not? wherefore have we afflicted our soul, and
thou takest no knowledge? Behold, in the day of your fast ye find
pleasure, and exact all your labours. (KJV)
Isaiah 58:5 Is it such a fast that I have
chosen? a day for a man to afflict his soul? is it to bow down his
head as a bulrush, and to spread sackcloth and ashes under him?
wilt thou call this a fast, and an acceptable day to the LORD?
(KJV)
See also Jeremiah 4:1-2, 7:3, 7:22-23, 25:5, 26:3-6, 36:3, 36:7,
and 50:20!
Micah 7:18 Who is a G-d like unto thee,
that pardoneth iniquity, and passeth by the transgression of the
remnant of his heritage? he retaineth not his anger for ever,
because he delighteth in mercy. [19] He will turn again, he will
have compassion upon us; he will subdue our iniquities; and thou
wilt cast all their sins into the depths of the sea. [20] Thou wilt
perform the truth to Jacob, and the mercy to Abraham, which thou
hast sworn unto our fathers from the days of old. (KJV)
Daniel 4:27 Wherefore, O king, let my counsel
be acceptable unto thee, and break off thy sins by righteousness,
and thine iniquities by shewing mercy to the poor; if it may be a
lengthening of thy tranquillity. (KJV)
Exodus 30:16 And thou shalt take
the atonement
money of the children of Israel, and shalt
appoint it for the service of the tabernacle of the congregation;
that it may be a memorial unto the children of Israel before the
LORD, to make an atonement for your souls. (KJV)
Atonement money? Monetary sacrifice serves for
atonement?
Numbers 14:20 And the LORD said, I have
pardoned according to thy word. (KJV)
This verse makes it plainly clear that the Lord accepts
prayer for expiation of sin.
Jonah 3:5 So the people of Nineveh
believed G-d, and proclaimed a fast, and
put on sackcloth, from the greatest of them even to the least of
them. [6] For word came unto the king of
Nineveh, and he arose from his throne, and he laid his robe from
him, and covered him with sackcloth, and sat in
ashes. [7] And he caused it to be
proclaimed and published through Nineveh by the decree of the king
and his nobles, saying, Let neither man nor beast, herd nor flock,
taste any thing: let them not feed, nor drink
water: [8] But let man and beast be
covered with sackcloth, and cry mightily unto G-d: yea, let them
turn every one from his evil way, and from the violence that is in
their hands. [9] Who can tell if G-d
will turn and repent, and turn away from his fierce anger, that we
perish not? [10] And G-d saw their works, that they turned from their
evil way; and G-d repented of the evil, that he had said that he
would do unto them; and he did it not. (KJV)
Nineveh was forgiven of their evil deeds by fasting and
repentance, and without sacrifice.
Jonah 4:10 Then said the LORD, Thou hast
had pity on the gourd, for the which thou hast not laboured,
neither madest it grow; which came up in a night, and perished in a
night: [11]And should not I spare Nineveh,
that great city, wherein are more than sixscore thousand persons
that cannot discern between their right hand and their left hand;
and also much cattle? (KJV)
2 Chronicles 6:24 And if thy people Israel be
put to the worse before the enemy, because they have sinned against
thee; and shall return and confess thy name, and pray and make
supplication before thee in this
house; [25] Then hear thou from the heavens, and forgive the sin
of thy people Israel, and bring them again unto the land which thou
gavest to them and to their
fathers. [26] When the heaven is
shut up, and there is no rain, because they have sinned against
thee; yet if they pray toward this place, and confess thy name, and
turn from their sin, when thou dost afflict
them; [27] Then hear thou from heaven, and forgive the sin of
thy servants, and of thy people Israel, when thou hast
taught them the good way, wherein they should walk; and send rain
upon thy land, which thou hast given unto thy people for an
inheritance. [28] If there be dearth in
the land, if there be pestilence, if there be blasting, or mildew,
locusts, or caterpillers; if their enemies besiege them in the
cities of their land; whatsoever sore or whatsoever sickness there
be: [29] Then what prayer or what
supplication soever shall be made of any man, or of all thy people
Israel, when every one shall know his own sore and his own grief,
and shall spread forth his hands in this
house: [30]Then hear thou from heaven thy
dwelling place, and forgive, and render unto every man according
unto all his ways, whose heart thou knowest; (for thou knowest the
hearts of the children of men) [31] That
they may fear thee, to walk in thy ways, so long as they live in
the land which thou gavest unto our fathers. (KJV)
Since the Bible clearly states that Solomon is the
wisest man to ever live, logic should tell us that he would not be
in error on such a fundamental issue like sin and
atonement.
2 Chronicles 6:36 If they sin against
thee, (for there is no man which sinneth not,) and thou be angry
with them, and deliver them over before their enemies, and they
carry them away captives unto a land far off or
near; [37] Yet if they bethink
themselves in the land whither they are carried captive, and turn
and pray unto thee in the land of their captivity, saying, We have
sinned, we have done amiss, and have dealt
wickedly; [38] If they return to thee
with all their heart and with all their soul in the land of their
captivity, whither they have carried them captives, and pray toward
their land, which thou gavest unto their fathers, and toward the
city which thou hast chosen, and toward the house which I have
built for thy name: [39] Then hear thou
from the heavens, even from thy dwelling place, their prayer and
their supplications, and maintain their cause, and forgive thy
people which have sinned against
thee. [40] Now, my G-d, let, I beseech
thee, thine eyes be open, and let thine ears be attent unto the
prayer that is made in this place. (KJV)
2 Chronicles 7:13 If I shut up heaven that
there be no rain, or if I command the locusts to devour the land,
or if I send pestilence among my
people; [14] If my people, which are called by my name, shall
humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their
wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will
forgive their sin, and will heal their
land. (KJV)
And the Lord agreed.
