21. Why were sacrifices made in biblical times? Why does the Bible describe various sacrifices? In primitive ancient paganism, of course, people thought that it was indecent to approach a deity or spirit as a boss without a gift-bribe. But why did the One God demand sacrifices?

TYPES OF GOLGOTHA IN THE OLD TESTAMENT

Abel's Sacrifice

Life 4, 3 - 5

We have a simple story told in just three verses of the Bible, but this story contains the central truth of all Scripture. What is this central truth of the entire Old and New Testament? It lies in the fact that a person receives salvation and justification from God not through his own works, but through faith in the sacrifice made by Christ on the cross of Calvary. This is truly the central truth of the entire Bible.

Let us now consider this little story with the sacrifice of two siblings - Abel and Cain. What is the difference between the sacrifice made by Abel and the sacrifice made by Cain? And why did God “look upon Abel and his gift,” but did not look upon Cain and his gift? We find a clear answer to this question in Hebrews 11:4: “By faith Abel offered to God a better sacrifice than Cain.” These words indicate that Abel's sacrifice was evidence of his faith, while Cain's sacrifice was evidence of his lack of faith.

What kind of faith did Abel have and how did he acquire it? He bought it in the house of his parents - Adam and Eve. There is no doubt that they often told their children about life in paradise, about the Fall, about the punishment for sin that befell them, and about how God replaced their aprons of fig leaves with garments of leather (Gen. 3:21). And, speaking about these leather clothes, they explained to their sons that the main meaning of these leather clothes was that the lambs were slaughtered and their blood was shed, without which there could be no covering for their sinful nakedness.

Fig leaves and plants were unsuitable for this purpose. An animal sacrifice was needed - a lamb, its death, its blood. And we can have no doubt that Adam and Eve tried to explain to their sons what became clear to them, namely: that it is not the blood of animals that cleanses us from sin, but the Blood of the Son of God - this true “Lamb” who will come to our earth to die and shed His blood for the sins of the whole world.

So in the house of Adam and Eve the “word of the cross” was heard, about which the apostle. Paul says that it is “foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God” (1 Cor. 1:18). For Cain, this word about the cross sounded like “foolishness,” and he did not accept it into his heart by faith. And for Abel, this same word about the cross sounded like the sweetest music, and he believed that only the Blood of the Lamb of God, Who would die for the sins of the world, would save him and justify him before God.

And so they bring their sacrifices to God. We read: “Cain brought a gift to the Lord from the fruits of the ground. And Abel also brought from the firstlings of his flock...” As if everything was fine. Cain looks with contentment at his sacrifice: how beautiful and pleasant it is - on his altar there are beautiful fruits of the earth. He looks at Abel’s altar, and there is the corpse of a lamb, blood... What an unpleasant sacrifice, Cain thinks... no, I will only bring to God the fruits of the earth.

Abel stands at his altar with faith in his heart that the lamb lying on his altar is a type of that true Lamb who will be slain for the sins of the world and whose Blood will cleanse the sins of every repentant sinner. Abel learned in the home of his parents the ancient truth that without the shedding of the blood of Christ on Calvary there is no forgiveness (Heb. 9:22). Cain did not grasp this truth and admired the fruits of the earth, a beautiful sacrifice, but which did not speak of his faith in the sacrifice of Calvary. This is why “the Lord looked upon Abel and his gift, but did not look upon Cain and his gift.”

Peace filled Abel's heart, deep peace, as he looked at the slain lamb lying on the altar. Cain did not feel this blessed peace in his heart, since this heavenly peace is given only to the believer in the Blood of Jesus Christ, shed on Calvary.

Today we stand before the altar erected on Calvary in the form of a cross. And on this altar we see the crucified Christ - the Lamb of God, whose prototype was the lamb sacrificed by Abel. By appearance This is a very ugly sacrifice. The Prophet Isaiah describes it in these words: “How many were amazed, looking at You, so much was His face more disfigured than any man, and His appearance more than the sons of men!” (Isa. 52:14).

Yes, it was not Cain’s bloodless, beautiful-looking victim. No, it was a sacrifice, typified by Abel's sacrifice, his slain lamb. But, looking at the “disfigured face of Christ more than any man,” a face crowned with thorns and covered with drops of blood, we recall the words from the First Epistle of Peter 1, 18 - 19: “Knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things, silver or gold... but with the precious blood of Christ, like a lamb without blemish and without spot.”

How nice it would be if we always added the word “precious” to the words “Blood of Christ” - the precious Blood of Christ. This word is in the Epistle of St. Peter tells us about the preciousness of everything that Christ did on Calvary, about the precious sacrifice of Christ.

But there are people who, like Cain, offer “beautiful” sacrifices to God and think with them to justify themselves before God. They place their beautiful good deeds on the altar and admire them, just as the Pharisee admired them in the temple in Christ’s parable. But by this beautiful sacrifice no sinner will be justified before God, since “by the works of the law no flesh will be justified” (Galatians 2:16). Justification comes only from the shed precious Blood of Christ. Having been justified by the precious sacrifice of Christ, we feel a deep peace in our hearts, the peace that the angels sang about on Christmas night - peace with our Lord.

But does the Lord reject sacrifices like Cain's? No, he doesn’t reject it. Let us read Deuteronomy 26:1 - 4: “When you come to the land which the Lord your God is giving you as an inheritance, and you take possession of it and settle in it, then take the firstfruits of all the fruits of the land that you get from your land, which The Lord your God gives it to you, and put it in the basket, and go to the place that the Lord your God will choose for His name to be there, and come to the priest who will be in those days, and say to him, “Today.” I confess before the Lord your God that I have entered the land which the Lord swore to our fathers to give us." The priest will take the basket from your hand and place it before the altar of the Lord your God."

Here we see a command to the people of Israel to offer the fruits of the land as a sacrifice. Why then was Cain’s sacrifice not acceptable before the Lord? Because he brought a sacrifice for sin that was not the one laid down by God. The sacrifice for sin could only be the blood of a slain lamb, that is, the sacrifice that Abel made. Cain's sacrifice could only be a sacrifice of thanksgiving.

The Lord expects good deeds from us, but good deeds cannot be a sacrifice for sin - he cannot save us and justify us before God; This requires the sacrifice of Golgotha. Our good works can only be a sacrifice of praise and thanksgiving for the gift of salvation we received at Calvary.

The saving blood of Christ

Exodus 12, 13

The Bible says that Jacob and his entire household moved to the land of the pharaohs, where Joseph held a high position. How many souls did this Old Testament church of Israel consist of? The house of Jacob consisted of seventy souls, as it is said in Genesis 46, 27: “All the souls of the house of Jacob that went over to Egypt were seventy.” To them must be added members of Joseph's family in the amount of five souls. Thus we have seventy-five members of the Old Testament church in the land of the Pharaohs, as we read in Acts. Ap. 7:14: “Joseph sent and called his father Jacob and all his kindred, seventy-five souls.” The Old Testament Church of Israel stayed in the land of the Pharaohs for four hundred and thirty years (Ex. 12:40). And during this time she grew from seventy-five souls into a very numerous people of God. And now the time has come for the Old Testament church to leave the land of the pharaohs. Moses and Aaron go to Pharaoh's palace and say to him: “Thus says the Lord God of Israel: Let My people go...” (Ex. 5:1). “But Pharaoh said: Who is the Lord, that I should obey His voice and let Israel go? I do not know the Lord, and I will not let Israel go...” (Ex. 5:2). “And the Lord said to Moses: Now you will see what I will do to Pharaoh; by the work of a mighty hand he will let them go; by the work of a mighty hand he will even drive them out of his land” (Ex. 6:1).

And so the Lord began to show His strong hand to Pharaoh, and He showed it to him ten times. For the tenth time, the strong hand of the Lord was shown to Pharaoh in a particularly convincing form, when the destroying angel, the angel of death, struck down all the firstborn in his land.

But the Lord showed the Old Testament church an amazing way of salvation. Let's read about this path of salvation in the Book of Exodus 12, 3 - 13: “Say to the whole congregation of Israel: on the tenth day of this month, let everyone take for themselves one lamb, according to their families, one lamb per family... You must have a lamb without blemish, male sex, one year old... and let it be kept with you until the 14th day of this month: then let all the congregation of the congregation of Israel slaughter it in the evening, and let them take some of its blood and put it on both the doorposts and on the lintel of the doors of the houses where they eat it. ...eat it this way: let your loins be girded, your sandals on your feet, and your staffs in your hands... this is the Passover of the Lord... And the blood will be a sign for you on the houses where you are, and I will see the blood, and I will pass by you..." This is the way of salvation indicated by God himself: the blood of the lamb.

But we see the blood of the lamb in the Old Testament church of Israel in two forms. The blood is the same, but still it is in two forms: blood collected in a vessel, and the same blood anointed on the door of the house.

Let us now think about the blood of another Lamb - the Lamb of God, Jesus Christ, slain on Calvary. At present, the Blood of the Son of God, shed on Calvary, is in the heavenly sanctuary, as it is said in Hebrews 9, 11 - 12: “Christ, the High Priest of good things to come... with His blood, entered once into the sanctuary...” But this same Blood of Christ should be on the “doors” of our hearts. Only then will it be the blood that saves us.

The blood shed by Christ for our sins on the cross of Calvary anoints the heart of every regenerated person, every child of God. How was the anointing of our hearts accomplished with the Blood of Christ, the Lamb of God? By faith! By believing the words of 1 Cor. 5, 7: “Our Passover, Christ, was sacrificed for us.” Sacrificed not only for all sinners, but also for me personally. Such faith brings down the Blood of Christ into the heart of the believer. And the righteous Judge, the Lord, says: “I will see the Blood of Calvary in your heart and will pass by you with My righteous judgment.”

The feelings of the Israelites who took refuge in the blood of the lamb could be different. Some had complete peace by trusting in the blood of the lamb. Others felt perhaps some fear in their hearts. But the salvation of every Israelite depended not on his feelings, but on whether the blood of the lamb was on his house.

Our hearts may be filled with different feelings today: some of us are filled with great jubilation, that is, wild joy; others simply feel peace and quiet in their hearts; and still others are, perhaps, in doubt and anxiety regarding the salvation of their soul. But if we believe the great truth that the Lamb of God was slain for each of us, then we are all equally safe, for the Lord looks not at the joy or sorrow in our hearts, but at the Blood of Calvary, which has become our refuge.

If we went into the houses of the Israelis on Easter night, we would see that the lamb not only gave his blood to save Israel from death, but also became food for the Old Testament church. “Eat it this way,” the Lord said to the Israelite community. This is a very important lesson for the New Testament church of Christ: the Lamb of God slain on Calvary is not only our refuge from the coming judgment of God, but also our spiritual food, as Christ clearly says in Heb. John 6:55-56: “My flesh is truly food, and My Blood is truly drink; whoever eats My Flesh and drinks My Blood abides in Me, and I in him.”

This “feeding” of ours on the Lamb of God is also accomplished by faith. And not only during our pilgrimage to heavenly Canaan, but we will feed our souls with the Lamb of God also in heavenly Canaan. In the Book of Revelation of John, Christ our Savior is called almost exclusively the Lamb of God. And this is understandable: after all, all the happiness of paradise and all the treasures of heaven will become our property only thanks to the slaughter of the Lamb of God on the cross of Calvary and only thanks to the shedding of His divine blood there.

Altar in the courtyard of the tabernacle

Exodus 27, 1 - 2

One of the most remarkable types of Calvary in the Old Testament is the altar in the courtyard of the tabernacle of meeting. Everything in it speaks of Christ as the Savior of sinners. Let's get acquainted with its structure and location in the tabernacle.

It was made, by the command of God, from shittim wood and copper. Shittim wood and copper are the two natures of our Lord Jesus Christ during His life on earth: human nature and divine nature. In the courtyard of the tabernacle we see copper, in the tabernacle itself we see gold. Copper and gold are similar in appearance, but gold shines better.

The brass in the tabernacle is a type of Christ's earthly glory; the gold in the tabernacle is a prototype of the heavenly glory of Christ. Of course, Christ's earthly glory is not as dazzling as His heavenly glory. But still she was visible through the bodily shell of Christ. Evangelist John writes in his Gospel, in the first chapter, verse 14: “...and we saw His glory, the glory as of the only begotten from the Father.” But the same Evangelist describes the glory of Christ in heaven with the words of Revelation 1:16: “...and His face is like the sun shining in its power.” We know that once on the Mount of Transfiguration Christ shone with His heavenly glory and His face shone like the sun (Ev. Matt. 17:2).

The altar was located at the entrance of the tabernacle of meeting. This is what it says in Leviticus 4:7. This says a lot: when seeking fellowship with God in the tabernacle of meeting, every Israeli first of all saw the altar in front of him; he stood between him and the tabernacle. What does Christ say? Let's read Ev. John 14:6: “No one comes to the Father except through Me.” Let's read the words of St. Paul in 1 Timothy. 2:5: “There is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus.”

So, the only way to God is Jesus Christ. The only way to communicate with God is to communicate with Christ. Christ stands at the entrance to the Kingdom of God, and we must never lose sight of Him. He is first of all, we read about Christ in Colossians 1:17. He is Alpha, as He is Omega (Revelation 1:10); He is the first, just as He is the last.

But what kind of Christ should always stand before our eyes? What altar stood always before the eyes of the Israelites? An altar on which fire burned day and night! As it says in Leviticus 6:13: “Let the fire burn continually on the altar and not be quenched.”

What is this unquenchable fire on the altar in the tabernacle of meeting a type of? He is a type of Calvary, a type of the crucified Christ. Fire. Golgotha ​​is, firstly, the fire of God’s just wrath, which should have been poured out on us for our sins and crimes, but it was poured out on our Savior Jesus Christ. This fire of Calvary, like all fires, left deep wounds on our Savior - wounds that we must never lose sight of.

In Zechariah 13:6 we read: “They will say to Him (Christ), “Why are there scars on your hands?” And He will answer, “Because I was beaten in the house of those who love Me.” We all must understand the meaning of Golgotha, as a place where God’s judgment took place over our sins, but this judgment took place over the innocent Lamb of God. Christ was punished by God - instead of us, sinners, let this fire of God’s judgment on Calvary burn unceasingly before our heartfelt eyes, so that we always remember. at what price are we redeemed by Christ from eternal hell.

The fire of Calvary is, secondly, the fire of Christ’s immeasurable love for us sinners, the love that brought Him to Calvary to atone for our guilt before God. It was not the Roman centurion and his soldiers who led Christ to Golgotha, but the divine love in the heart of Christ for all the sinners of the world drew Him to suffer and die for us.

For two thousand years this fire of divine love has been burning on Calvary, warming countless souls with its gracious warmth and igniting the hearts of the Lord’s children with the fire of first love.

To the question: what kind of Christ should always stand before our eyes? - we answer: Christ with scars from the fire of divine wrath poured out on Him for our sins, Calvary Christ with the fire of divine love for us, sinners, in His heart.

Let our heart’s eyes always see these two kinds of fire on Calvary - the fire of God’s judgment and the fire of God’s love.

"And make horns on the four corners of it, so that the horns come out of it."

The Word of God speaks of the double meaning of the horns on the altar in the courtyard of the tabernacle. Their first meaning: sacrificial animals were tied to us, as it is said in Psalm 117:27: “bind the sacrifice with ropes, lead it to the horns of the altar.” Their second meaning: they were the horns of salvation. In what sense? Every Israelite who committed manslaughter could consider himself safe if he reached the court of the tabernacle and grabbed hold of the horns of the altar.

This is how Joab sought salvation from the punishing hand of Solomon, killing two military leaders - Abner and Amasa. We read in 1 Kings. 2:28: “And Joab fled into the tabernacle of the Lord and caught hold of the horns of the altar.” But he still received retribution, since he killed Abner and Amasa intentionally. And if it had been unintentional, he would have been saved from retribution. This is why Scripture speaks of the “horn of salvation.” Let's read two places: Psalm 17:3 - “The Lord is my rock and my refuge... the horn of my salvation and my refuge”; Ev. Luke 1, 68 - 69 - “Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, that he hath visited his people, and brought deliverance unto them, and raised up a horn of salvation for us...”

Christ on Calvary became the “horn of salvation” for us. We sinners have taken hold of this sure horn of salvation and are in complete safety. We must know that there was blood on the horns of the altar, as it says in Exodus 29:12: “Take the blood of the bull and put it with your finger on the horns of the altar.” The sinner who sought salvation in the tabernacle held on to the blood. And we hold on by faith to the Blood of Jesus Christ, shed on Calvary for our sins.

Copper Serpent

Ev. John 3, 14 - 15

In the conversation of Jesus Christ with the Israeli teacher Nicodemus, Christ’s words about the copper serpent as a prototype of Golgotha ​​are of particular significance. Are we familiar with the story of the brass serpent? It is described in the Book of Numbers 21, 4 - 9: “They set out from Mount Hor by the way of the Red Sea to pass the land of Edom. And the people began to be faint-hearted on the way. And the people spoke against God and against Moses: why did you bring us out of Egypt, so that should we die in the desert? For there is neither bread nor water, and our souls are sick of this worthless food. And the Lord sent poisonous snakes among the people, which bit the people, and a great number of the people of the children of Israel died. And the people came to Moses and said: We have sinned in speaking against the Lord and against you; pray to the Lord to remove the serpents from us. And Moses prayed for the people. And Moses made a copper serpent and put it on a banner, and when the serpent bit the man, he looked at the bronze serpent and lived.

And Christ, reminding Nicodemus of this story with the brass serpent, says: “As Moses lifted up the snake in the desert, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, so that everyone who believes in Him should not perish, but have eternal life.” Let us consider this wonderful type of Golgotha, a type of Christ crucified for the sins of the world.

“And when the serpent bit the man...” What do these words tell us? These words express very clearly and figuratively the doctrine of the Bible about sin, that is, the teaching of the Word of God about sin. The Bible speaks of the devil as an ancient serpent. Let's read Revelation. 12:9: “And the great dragon was cast out, that ancient serpent, called the Devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world, he was cast out to the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.” It was he who approached the first people in Eden with his first temptation and stung them with his deadly sting, which is sin, as stated in 1 Cor. 15, 56: “The sting of death is sin.”

How important it is for all believers to know the Bible's teaching on sin. Sin is the sting of the “ancient serpent,” the devil. Sin is a poison that poisons a person’s soul, just as snake venom poisons a person’s body. Moreover: sin is a poison that leads to death, to spiritual death, that is, to the separation of a person from God. And this “ancient serpent” - the devil - bites all people - old and young, educated and simple. There is no person on earth who has not been bitten by the “ancient serpent”, who has not been poisoned by the poison of sin. The diagnosis of the heavenly Physician reads: “All have sinned” (Rom. 3:23).

What to do if bitten by the ancient serpent, dying from the poison of sin? Thank the Lord, the Bible not only gave us the teaching about sin as the poison of the ancient serpent - the devil; she, this divine Book of Books, also gives us a clear teaching about salvation from this deadly poison of sin, leading to the eternal destruction of our soul. What is salvation from the poison of sin?

In the Bible's account of the brass serpent, we read: "And when the serpent bit the man, he looked at the brass serpent and lived." This is where the cure for the bite of the ancient serpent and the deadly poison of sin is. Here it is - divine homeopathy: “like is cured by like.” A copper serpent hangs on a pole, that is, the personification of deadly poison, the same poison from which the stung Israelis died. After all, a snake is terrible only because of its poison.

And God has outlined the path to salvation from death for everyone who is bitten, the simplest and most accessible for everyone dying from the deadly poison of a snake. “And the Lord said to Moses: Make yourself a serpent and display it on a banner, and the one who is bitten will look at it and live.” “Looking at him, he will live” - how simple, how easy, how accessible to every dying Israeli.

Christ tells Nicodemus that the brass serpent of Moses is a type of Calvary. In what sense does this mean? Christ went to Calvary with the sin of all mankind on his shoulders. And here He is, crucified, hanging on the cross. And in His face the sin of every person is nailed to the cross. And in His face the sin of every person is punished. Punished! We have received retribution - that is our salvation!

In the face of Christ crucified, our sin is punished - here. what is God’s love for us sinners. Christ is punished, and we are freed from punishment; Christ died so that we might live. And the salvation of every sinner bitten by the “ancient serpent” lies in looking with faith at the cross of Calvary, at Jesus Christ being punished there in our place. Christ speaks to Nicodemus about this path of salvation, so simple and easy for all sinners stung and dying from the poison of sin: “And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, so that everyone who believes in Him should not perish, but had eternal life."

We all believe that in Christ crucified on Calvary, our sin was punished and received full retribution from God. And, believing in this great fact, we were all healed from the wounds of sin inflicted on us by the “ancient serpent” - the devil, and received eternal life. And all this was given to us by the suffering and death of Christ on Calvary.

How we now understand the words of the prophet Isaiah: “And by His stripes we were healed” (Is. 53:5). Healed from the deadly poison of sin. Eternal praise to Christ for His suffering and death on the cross of Calvary.

Faith of Rahab

Heb. 11, 31

On the island of Patmos ap. John was asked the question: “Who are these clothed in white robes and where did they come from?” (Rev. 7:13). Looking closely at the great multitude of people in white robes and with palm branches in their hands (Rev. 7:9), we cannot help but pay attention to two of them who are special trophies of the grace of God.

Who are these two people, whose white clothes shine especially brightly against the background of their former sinful life? This is Rahab the harlot and the thief who repented at Calvary. We often hear sermons about the thief, especially in the days before Easter, and many hymns sing of the grace that saved him - the greatest sinner. But how little do we know about the great Old Testament sinner, who, in the name of the Calvary sacrifice of Christ, just like the thief, takes her place among the “great multitude” of people in white robes. We will try to get to know her, especially since her name appears on the pages of the New Testament.

Who is this Rahab? She is a resident of the land of Canaan, which means she is a Canaanite. The Canaanites were pagans: they did not know the living God and worshiped idols. From a very young age, Rahab entered the wide path of vice, and drank sin like water. How did this pagan, idolater and such a great sinner find the faith that even the pages of the Gospel proclaim? “It was by faith that Rahab the harlot,” says the Spirit and Holy One in the Epistle to the Hebrews, “that she perished with the unbelievers.” “By faith”... but where did she get this faith?

The Word of God says that faith comes by hearing (Rom. 10:17). But from whom could this dark pagan and slave of her terrible vice hear the news of the living God? And what she and the other inhabitants of the land of Canaan heard about the living God - Rahab herself told the messengers about this. Joshua, who came to her house. Let's read her words in the Book of Joshua 2, 9 - 10: “I know that the Lord has given this land to you... for we heard how the Lord dried up the water of the Red Sea before you...”

“We heard”... says Rahab, but from what messengers this remains unknown. Plants can be found on iron roofs of houses and on stone cliffs. But who planted them there? Wind or bird? Who are these unknown sowers of life? “We have heard,” says Rahab; she uses the name of the Lord, that is, the living God. But who are these unknown sowers who planted faith in the living God in the hearts of Rahab and the other inhabitants of her land? Let's not guess if. The Word of God does not speak about this. A thunderstorm hung over Jericho, where Rahab lived, and its inhabitants were doomed to death. But two young men - the messengers of Joshua - show the way of salvation. What is this way of salvation? They say: “When we come to this land, you tie a scarlet rope to the window through which you let us down... She said: let it be done according to your words! And she let them go, and they went, and she tied the scarlet rope to the window. rope" (Joshua 2:18 - 21). “Scarlet”... What does this mean? This means: dark red. Dark red is the color of blood.

How could Rahab dye the rope that color? Very simply: she stained it with the blood of a slain lamb. And as a result, a simple rope turned into the most precious treasure. The entire fate of Rahab on the day of the thunderstorm over Jericho depended on her presence in the window. This scarlet rope became the only means to save Rahab from death.

We live in houses equipped with lightning rods, but how many of us notice them? We begin to think about them only when dazzling lightning flashes above our heads. Far away, near Jerusalem, rises a small hill called Golgotha. Here the precious Blood was shed by our Lord Jesus Christ, which is the only means of our eternal salvation. There were days in the lives of each of us when we knew nothing about this blood, and if we knew, we did not understand its significance. When did we appreciate the precious Blood of Christ? Then, when we understood the most serious words of Holy Scripture. Which? “It is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment” (Heb. 9:27). No one disputes the first part of this truly serious passage of Scripture. Everyone knows that people are destined to die once. But not everyone believes that after death there will be judgment - the judgment of God, and each person will be “judged according to his deeds” (Revelation 20:13). The Word of God paints this judgment in very bright colors.

Let's read Revelation. 6, 15 - 16: “And the kings of the earth and the nobles, and the rich, and the captains and the mighty, and every slave and every free man, hid themselves in caves and in the ravines of the mountains, and said to the mountains and stones: Fall on us and hide us from the face of Him who sits on throne and from the wrath of the Lamb."

But mountains and stones will not hide our sins from the all-seeing God. The Word of God indicates another way of salvation - salvation through the Blood of Christ shed on the cross of Calvary. For us, who believe in the words of Scripture that “it is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment,” the Blood of Jesus Christ, shed on Calvary, is the most precious treasure and the only hope for salvation from eternal damnation.

Rahab, who trusted in the scarlet rope in her window, felt deep peace in her heart. The storm was approaching, but it did not frighten her. She knew that the scarlet rope would protect her from the sword of the Israelite soldiers.

We know that every day we get closer to death - whether we like it or not. But this does not frighten us, because we unshakably believe that the Blood of Christ is our protection from just retribution for our sins. Trusting in the Blood of Christ, we feel the deepest peace in our hearts.

Sacrifices in the Tabernacle

Leviticus 1, 1 - 9

After the construction of the tabernacle was completed - this camp temple of the Old Testament church - divine services began in it. The main part of all services in the tabernacle were sacrifices, which consisted of blood and bloodless sacrifices. All the blood sacrifices in the tabernacle were prototypes of Golgotha, they were, as it were, prophetic sermons about the sacrifice of Christ on Golgotha.

There were seven kinds or types of sacrifices offered in the tabernacle. There were five types of blood sacrifices: burnt offering, sin offering, trespass offering, peace offering, and dedication offering. The sacrifice of consecration was offered only at the consecration of high priests and priests. There were two types of bloodless sacrifices: the grain sacrifice and the smoking sacrifice. The incense offering was the only sacrifice that was offered not in the courtyard of the tabernacle on the brass altar, but inside the tabernacle, in the sanctuary, on the golden altar.

Let us emphasize once again: all five blood sacrifices spoke to the Old Testament church about Calvary, about the Blood of the Son of God, Jesus Christ, which would be shed there for the sins of the world.

We must not forget that animals were sacrificed long before the construction of the tabernacle. The law of sacrifice given to the people of Israel through Moses was not unexpected news to them. We see blood sacrifice already in the Garden of Eden. The leather garments of Adam and Eve were made from the first sacrifices made in Eden (Gen. 3:21). Then we see Abel's sacrifice (Gen. 4:4). Next is the sacrifice of Noah (Gen. 8:20); Abraham's sacrifices; sacrifices of Jacob (Gen. 46:1); Job's sacrifices (Job 1:5). Israel also had altars during the days of their stay in Egypt (Exodus 5:3). We also see the altar at the foot of Mount Sinai (Exodus 24:5).

What did all these altars mean before and after the construction of the tabernacle? They all pointed to one altar - the Cross of Calvary, where Christ sacrificed Himself for the sins of the world. All of them were, as it were, “places of reconciliation” of the sinner with God through the blood of sacrificial animals, and they talked about the only place where real reconciliation of sinners with God is possible - about Golgotha.

Sacrificial animals were, as it were, substitutes for sinners and died in their place, speaking and testifying about the true Substitute who died instead of all the sinners of the world on the cross of Calvary - about our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. All the altars and all the sacrifices of the Old Testament were supposed to tell all who sinned that “without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness” (Heb. 9:22). But what kind of blood? Blood of the Lamb of God, Jesus Christ.

What did the law say about blood sacrifice in all its five types? The sacrifice had to be “without blemish”! What a magnificent type of Christ, His purity of holiness. Let's listen to what the Gospel says about the integrity of the “Lamb of God” - Jesus Christ. To do this, let’s read 1 Peter 1:19: “...by the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot”; Let's read 1 Peter 2:22: “He committed no sin”; Let's read 2 Cor. 5:21: “...He made him who knew no sin to be sin for us.”

Further, the law on the sacrifice read: “And the (sinner) shall lay his hand on the head of the victim...” During all sacrifices in the tabernacle, this laying of hands on the head of the victim was obligatory, which meant placing the sin of the sinner on the sacrificial animal, which was then made a “substitute.” "the sinner in death for his sin. What a vivid prototype of Golgotha, of Christ crucified there. After all, Scripture speaks of placing our sins on Christ, the Savior of the world. Let's read Isa. 53:6: “We all like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all.” In Ev. John 1:29 we read about Christ: “Behold the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world.” Every sinner can be sure that all his sins were laid on Christ. Christ, going to Golgotha, fell not only under the weight of his cross, but also under the heavy burden of all the sins of the world.

And further the law about the sacrifice read: “... and he will kill the bull before the Lord.” And here is the prototype of Golgotha: the prototype of the “slaughter” of the Lamb of God for the sins of the world. The New Testament, the Gospel describes in detail this “slaughter of the Lamb of God” on Calvary, and this slaughter is the work of all of us sinners. It was not the soldiers of Rome or the priests of Jerusalem who crucified Christ on Golgotha; It is we, all the sinners of the world, who crucified Him with our sins and iniquities.

What else can we learn from the law of victimhood? “The priests will bring blood...” This means that the blood did not go into the ground, it was collected as the most precious treasure. The physical blood of the Lamb of God, Jesus Christ, went into the earth, but the symbolic Blood of Christ is collected to the last drop and is in the “sanctuary of heaven” as its most precious treasure. I will never forget the painting in which the artist depicted an Angel with a cup in his hand, collecting precious drops of the blood of Christ on Calvary. The symbolic Blood of Christ has not dried up, has not disappeared; it exists and will exist forever and ever.

And finally, the law about the sacrifice said: “...and they will sprinkle the blood on all sides on the altar...” What do these words of the law about the sacrifice say? The fact that shedding the blood of a sacrificial animal was not enough - sprinkling it was also necessary. And this points to Calvary: The Blood of Christ has been shed, but it will not save the sinner unless he accepts it by faith in his heart. The blood of Christ is on Calvary, but it must also be in our hearts.

1 “This is the covenant about what you must do with them, to appoint them to serve Me as priests. Find one bull and two lambs that are free from blemish,

2Then take fine flour and make unleavened bread, take also unleavened bread kneaded with oil, and thin cakes anointed with oil.

3 Put the bread and cakes in the basket, give the basket to Aaron and his sons, and also give them a bull and two lambs.

4 Then bring Aaron and his sons to the entrance of the tent of meeting, wash them with water,

5 Put special clothes on Aaron, putting on him a white woven robe and a blue robe worn with an ephod. Put on him the ephod and the breastplate of judgment, and gird him with a beautiful baldric.

6 Place a turban on his head and attach a special crown to the turban.

7 Take the anointing oil and anoint Aaron’s head, this will be a sign of his election for this work.

8 Then bring Aaron’s sons here and put white woven garments on them,

9 You will gird them with baldrics and give them special head coverings, and from that time on they will become priests. They will be priests according to a law that will never change. So you will make Aaron and his sons priests.

10 And bring the bull to this place before the tent of meeting, and let Aaron and his sons lay their hands on the head of the bull,

11 After this, kill the bullock right at the door of the tent of meeting, and the Lord will see it.

12 Then take some of the bull's blood, go to the altar, apply the blood to the horns of the altar with your finger, and pour all the remaining blood into the bottom of the altar.

13 Then take all the internal fat of the bull, the fatty part of the liver, both kidneys along with the fat that is on them, and burn this fat on the altar.

14 Then take the meat of the bull, its skin and the rest of it, and burn it all outside the camp. This will be an offering to take away sin from the priest.

15 After this they commanded Aaron and his sons to lay their hands on the head of one of the lambs,

16 Kill this lamb, collect its blood, and sprinkle it on the four sides of the altar.

17 Then cut the lamb into several parts, wash all its entrails and legs, put it all together with the head and other parts of the lamb

18 And burn everything on the altar. This is an offering by burning, an offering to the Lord by fire. Its fragrance is pleasing to the Lord.

19 Command Aaron and his sons to lay their hands on the second lamb,

20 Kill a lamb, collect some of its blood, and put it on the lobe of Aaron’s right ear and the right ear of his sons. And also apply the blood to the big toe of their right foot and right hand. Apply the blood to the big toe of their right foot, and then sprinkle the blood on the four sides of the altar.

21 Then take some of the blood from the altar, mix it with oil, and sprinkle it on Aaron and his clothing, and on his sons and their clothing. This will be a sign that Aaron and his sons serve Me in a special service and that their clothes are only for a special occasion.

22 Then take the fat of the lamb, the same one that will be used for the ceremony of consecrating Aaron as high priest; take the fat from the tail and the fat covering the entrails, then take the fat from the liver, both kidneys with the fat that is on them, and the right leg.

23 Take also the basket of bread that has been kneaded without leaven, the same one that you set before the Lord. Take this from the basket: one loaf of bread, one cake with oil and one small thin cake.

24 Give all this to Aaron and his sons, and tell them to hold it in their hands before the Lord. This will be a special offering to the Lord.

25 Then take it all from Aaron and his sons, put it on the altar along with the lamb, and burn it all on it. This is an offering by burning, an offering to the Lord by fire, its aroma is pleasing to the Lord.

26 Then take the breast of the lamb, the same one that will be used for the ceremony of consecrating Aaron as high priest, and offer it to the Lord as a special offering. Then take it and keep it for yourself. This part of him will be yours.

27 Take the breast and leg of the lamb, the same one that was used for the ceremony of consecrating Aaron as high priest, and consecrate them, and then give these consecrated parts to Aaron and his sons.

28 The people of Israel will always give these portions to Aaron and his sons. They will always belong to the priests when the people of Israel bring gifts to the Lord. Giving these parts to the priests is the same as giving them to the Lord.

29 Save the special garments that were made for Aaron; they will belong to his descendants, and they will wear them when appointed and anointed as priests.

30 Aaron's son will become high priest after him, and for seven days he will wear this robe when he enters the tent of meeting to minister in the sanctuary.

31 Prepare the meat of the lamb that was used for the ceremony of consecrating Aaron as high priest; prepare this meat in the holy place,

32 Then Aaron and his sons shall eat the meat before entering the tent of meeting, and they shall also eat the bread that is in the basket.

33 These offerings were to take away their sins when they were ordained priests, and now they must eat these offerings.

34 If part of the lamb's meat or bread remains until the morning, it must be burned; you must not eat this bread or meat, for it must only be eaten in a special way and at a special time.

35 You must do all this for Aaron and his sons, just as I said. The ceremony of consecrating them to the priesthood must last seven days.

36 For seven days you must slaughter one bull every day. This will be an offering for the sins of Aaron and his sons. You will offer these sacrifices to cleanse the altar, and you will pour oil on it to sanctify it.

37 For seven days you shall cleanse and sanctify the altar, and during this time it will become a great shrine, and everything that touches it will also be sanctified.

38 Every day you must make an offering on the altar: you must slay two lambs a year old;

39 You shall offer one lamb in the morning and another in the evening.

40 When you slaughter the first lamb, you also bring eight cups of fine wheat flour; for the offering, mix this flour with four liters of wine.

41 And when you slaughter the second lamb in the evening, offer again the offering of eight cups of flour and four liters of wine, as you did in the morning. This will be an offering of food for the Lord. When you burn this offering, its fragrance will reach the Lord and will please Him.

42 You must burn these offerings to the Lord every day: do this at all times before entering the tent of meeting, before the Lord. With this offering, I, the Lord, will reveal myself to you and speak to you.

43 In this place I will reveal myself to the people of Israel, and this place will be sanctified by My glory.

44 I will consecrate the tent of meeting and the altar. I will sanctify Aaron and his sons so that they can serve Me as priests.

45 I will dwell among the people of Israel and will be their Lord.

46 The people will know that I am the Lord their God. They will know that I am the One who brought them out of Egypt to dwell among them. I am the Lord their God."

1–14. Rites of initiation of high priests and priests and sacrifice for them. 15–18. Burnt offering. 19–37. Initiation sacrifice. 38–44. About daily sacrifices. 45–46. The Lord's promise to dwell among the children of Israel.

Exodus 29:1. This is what you must do to them in order to consecrate them as priests to Me: take one bullock and two rams without blemish,

Exodus 29:2. and unleavened bread, and unleavened bread mixed with oil, and unleavened cakes anointed with oil: make them of wheat flour,

Exodus 29:3. And put them in one basket, and bring them in the basket, and together a bull and two rams.

Preparatory actions for initiation. Bringing sacrificial animals to the tabernacle: a bullock for a sin offering (Ex. 29:14), a ram for a burnt offering (Ex. 29:18), and a second ram for a sacrifice of consecration (Lev. 8.22). Along with bloody sacrifices, bloodless sacrifices in the most important forms must also be offered (Lev. 2.16), according to which the appropriate material is prepared for it.

The first act of initiation is washing with water, vesting and pouring out a libation of oil.

Exodus 29:4. Bring Aaron and his sons to the entrance of the Tent of Meeting, and wash them with water.

Each particular occasion of the service of Aaron and his sons at the tabernacle was preceded by the washing of hands and feet (Ex 30.18-21:40.30-32). And since initiation introduced one into service and was the beginning of it, service in general is preceded by washing not the whole body, which presupposes indecent nudity in the presence of all the people (Lev. 8.3:6), but by analogy with the usual - washing of hands and feet. Being an indication of the need for bodily purity, it also spoke about the spiritual purity that initiates should be distinguished by as servants of God.

Exodus 29:5. And take the [holy] garments, and clothe Aaron with the tunic and the robe, the ephod and the breastplate, and gird him with the ephod;

Exodus 29:6. and place the miter on his head, and fasten the diadem of the holy thing on the miter;

The service at the tabernacle is preceded by washing; it also requires appropriate clothing (Exodus 28.3-4). Therefore, as future ministers of the tabernacle, first Aaron, and then his sons, put on the robes of priesthood and receive the first signs of their rank.

Exodus 29:7. and take the anointing oil and pour it on his head and anoint him.

The purpose of anointing Aaron with specially prepared oil (Exodus 30.22-25), poured abundantly on his head (Psalm 132.2), was to “sanctify” the anointed one (Exodus 30.30, Lev.8.12). Just as the most sanctified ointment stood out from the circle of everyday objects (Exodus 30.32-33), so the things and persons anointed with it were sanctified and designated for sacred purposes. This is the sense in which the term is used in the remark about the high priest: “he has anointing oil on his head, and he is sanctified to put on sacred clothes” (Lev.21:10, cf. Exod.29:12). According to others, the anointing served as a sign of imparting to Aaron the special powers of grace that he needed to complete his ministry. But the Bible gives no basis for such an understanding.

Exodus 29:8. And bring his sons also and clothe them in tunics;

Exodus 29:9. And you will gird them with a belt, Aaron and his sons, and put bandages on them, and the priesthood will belong to them according to the statute forever; and fill the hands of Aaron and his sons.

Whether the vestment of Aaron's sons was accompanied by anointing is not mentioned by anyone. this chapter, nor parallel to it 8 ch. book Leviticus. As for other places covering this issue, there is disagreement between them. While, according to the instructions of some, Lev.6.6:8-9 (Lev.6.13:15 Heb.), Lev.16.32:21.10, 12 speaks of the anointing of the sons of Aaron (Exodus 28.41:30.30, 40.14-15, Lev. .10.6-7, Numbers 3.3). If the first two and last places can raise doubts about the identity of the anointing of the priests with the anointing of the high priest, then the third and fourth leave no room for it. “Anoint them,” says Exodus 40:15, “as... you... anointed their father.” Aaron and his sons, Eleazar and Ithamar, must not indulge in grief over the dead Nadab and Abihu and leave the tabernacle, “because the anointing oil of the Lord is on them” (Lev.10.7).

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Exodus 29:28. and will be This

The second act of consecration—the offering of sacrifices—introduced Aaron and his sons into the office and rights of the priesthood for which they had been separated by previous acts. A similar meaning is connected with it on the basis of the words of Exodus 29:9: “fill the hands of Aaron and his sons.” As can be seen from 1 Chronicles 29.5 and 2 Chronicles 29.31, the expression “to fill one's hands for the Most High” means: “to stock up on what is offered to God.” Aaron and his sons did not themselves stock up on “what is offered to the Lord,” in the present case, sacrifices, but through Moses: he “filled their hands,” that is, through him they acquired sacrifices and received the right to perform them.

Exodus 29:10. And you shall bring the bullock before the tabernacle of the congregation, and Aaron and his sons shall lay their hands on the head of the bullock [before the Lord at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation];

Exodus 29:11. and you shall kill the bullock before the Lord at the entrance of the tabernacle of meeting;

Exodus 29:12. take the blood of the bull and put it with your finger on the horns of the altar, and pour all the [rest] blood at the base of the altar;

Exodus 29:13. Take all the fat that covers the entrails, and the caul from the liver, and both kidneys, and the fat that is on them, and burn them on the altar.

Exodus 29:14. and burn the flesh of the bullock and his skin and his excrement on fire outside the camp: this is victim for sin.

The blood of the sin offering, the bull, was not brought into the sanctuary, as was later required (Lev. 4.5-7), but was only placed on the horns of the altar of burnt offerings. The reason for this was that the dedication of Aaron and his sons was not yet completed. He was not yet a high priest, and his sons were priests. The meat of the sin offering was burned, however, outside the camp, just as when the blood of the sacrifice was brought into the sanctuary (Lev. 4.11-12). The explanation for this feature is as follows. By general rule the meat would have to be eaten by the priest in in this case Moses, but he could not eat the meat of the sin offering because he was not a priest.

Exodus 29:15. And take one ram, and Aaron and his sons will lay their hands on the head of the ram;

Exodus 29:16. and kill the ram, and take his blood, and sprinkle it on all sides of the altar;

Exodus 29:17. cut the ram into pieces, wash his entrails and his legs [in water], and put their on his cut parts and on his head;

Exodus 29:18. and burn the whole ram on the altar. It is a burnt offering to the Lord, a sweet savor, a sacrifice to the Lord.

The burnt offering was performed in compliance with the rites specified by the law (Lev.1.3, etc.).

Exodus 29:19. Take another ram also, and Aaron and his sons will lay their hands on the ram’s head;

Exodus 29:20. And you shall kill the ram, and take its blood, and put it on the edge of Aaron's right ear, and on the edge of the right ear of his sons, and on the thumb of their right hand, and on the big toe of their right foot. and sprinkle the blood on all sides of the altar;

The first feature of the initiation sacrifice was the placing of its blood on the edge of the right ear and on the thumbs of the right hand and right foot of the initiates. The members with which the priests perform their ministry are anointed through the ear, hand and foot. The ear is anointed so that it can better hear the law and testimony of God; hand - so that it accurately fulfills the commandments of God and priestly duties; foot - so that she can walk blamelessly in the sanctuary. “All members will be anointed,” says Cyril of Alexandria. right side and as if in its last part, that is, at the edges: the edge, it is said, of the ear, as well as the legs and arms, because every good deed is noble and right, has nothing as if left or vicious and reaches to the edges, that is, to the end or to the whole, for those consecrated to God must be right in sanctification and to the end in patience, and it is very unreasonable to turn back, as if not daring to complete the good.”

Exodus 29:21. And take the blood that is on the altar, and the anointing oil, and sprinkle it on Aaron and on his clothes, and on his sons, and on the clothes of his sons with him, and they will be sanctified, he and his clothes, and his sons and their clothes. with him.

The second feature of the sacrifice of initiation was the sprinkling of blood mixed with the ointment on the initiates and their clothes. Clothing indicates a well-known position, and a position indicates a person dressed in a certain way. Personality and clothing together thus form the priest. Therefore, the consecration of both had to be accomplished at the same time. When concluding the covenant at Sinai, it was enough to sprinkle the people with one sacrificial blood, without adding oil to it, since the people were not obliged to undergo any special duty; meanwhile, with the ordination of priests, a special ministry was entrusted to them; Therefore, it was necessary to add the sanctifying effect of the world to the cleansing power of blood.

Exodus 29:22. And take from the ram the fat, and the fat tail, and the fat that covers the entrails, and the caul from the liver, and both kidneys, and the fat that is on them, the right shoulder [for this is the ram of the conferring of the priesthood],

Exodus 29:23. and one round loaf, one cake of oil, and one unleavened bread from the basket that was before the Lord,

Exodus 29:24. and put everything in the hands of Aaron and in the hands of his sons, and offer it, shaking it before the Lord;

Exodus 29:25. and take it from their hands, and burn it on the altar with the burnt offering, for a fragrant aroma before the Lord: it is an offering to the Lord.

The laying on the hands of the priests of those parts of the sacrificial animal that must be sacrificed to God, as well as the grain offering in three types (bread, pancake and cake) and the shaking of all this before being burned on the altar, means the presentation of the dedicated sacrifices that they will have to offer to the Most High, or - endowing them with gifts, which they, as priests, will always have to offer to God. This is precisely the meaning that is given to these ritual actions by the expression Ex. 29:22: “[this is the ram of the conferment of the priesthood].”

Exodus 29:26. And take the breast of the ram, which is for Aaron, and offer it, shaking it before the Lord, and this shall be your portion;

Moses, as having performed the entire ritual of sacrifice instead of Aaron and his sons and this time representing the entire priesthood in his person, received that share of the sacrifice that belonged to all the priests, namely the chest of shock (Lev. 8.29, etc.).

Exodus 29:27. and sanctify the breast of the offering, which was shaken, and the shoulder of the offering, which was offered, from the ram of offering, which is for Aaron and for his sons -

Exodus 29:28. and will be This To Aaron and his sons for an everlasting portion from the children of Israel, for this is an offering; The offering shall be from the children of Israel with the peace offerings [of the children of Israel], their offering shall be to the Lord.

By the very act of raising and lifting up, the breast and thigh are sanctified and removed from general use, from use by uninitiated people. They lift themselves up to the Lord: “This is a lift-up.” What is offered to the Lord cannot be returned to the benefit of the laity who brought it; God Himself gives what is offered to Him to His sanctified servants. Therefore, what was now received in favor of Moses, subsequently, for the future, should be given to the high priest - Aaron and his sons - the priests.

Exodus 29:29. And the sacred garments, which are for Aaron, will pass after him to his sons, to anoint them with them and give them to them. priesthood;

Exodus 29:30. seven days shall the [great] priest of his sons who take his place, who shall enter into the tabernacle of meeting to minister in the sanctuary, wear them.

Just as certain portions of the peace offering go to the benefit of not only Aaron and his sons, but also all future high priests and priests, so the vestments are intended not only for Aaron, but also for all his successors. In this ancestral vestment they would be anointed and conferred with the priesthood for seven days.

Exodus 29:31. Take the ram of delivery and cook its meat in the holy place;

Exodus 29:32. and Aaron and his sons shall eat the flesh of this ram from the basket at the door of the tabernacle of meeting,

Exodus 29:33. for through this purification was accomplished for conferring upon them the priesthood and for their consecration; a stranger should not eat this, for it is holy;

Like any peace offering, the sacrifice of consecration ended with a meal (cf. Lev. 7.15, etc.). And if the meal expressed the idea of ​​​​communion, then in the present case it indicated that Aaron and his sons were accepted into a special priestly union with God, in the benefits and blessings of which no one could have a part except purified priests. Therefore, no outsider could taste it.

Exodus 29:34. If there is any left over from the meat of the delivery and from the bread until the morning, then burn the remainder on the fire: you must not eat it, for it is holy.

The commandment to burn the remaining meat and bread had to be carried out by the initiates themselves (Lev.8.32). The reason why it is forbidden to eat the leftover meat from the ram of dedication and from the loaves the next day is indicated in the words: “for this is holy.” The remainder could, by another day, either from an accidental oversight in the matter of saving, or from the action of air, etc., undergo some change, damage, or not entirely reverent storage (Lev. 7.19, etc.). The order to burn the remains protected the shrine from such accidents.

Exodus 29:35. And thou shalt do to Aaron and to his sons in all things as I commanded thee; in seven days fill their hands.

For the sanctification to be complete and perfect, Aaron and his sons had to remain at the tabernacle seven days without leaving (Lev.8.33). All of them were days of dedication, and on each of them the same rites were repeated that took place on the first day (Lev. 8.33-34).

Exodus 29:36. And you shall offer a bullock for sin every day for atonement, and you shall offer a sin offering on the altar for atonement thereof, and anoint it for sanctifying it;

Exodus 29:37. seven days you shall cleanse the altar and sanctify it, and the altar will be greatly holy: everything that touches the altar will be sanctified.

The sacrifice of a calf for the sin of those dedicated (Ex. 29: 1, 14) also had another meaning - it served as a means of cleansing and consecrating the altar. It will be cleansed and sanctified, firstly, by the sacrifice itself, and secondly, by anointing it with oil (Lev. 8.10-11). Anointing with sacred oil set everything apart from the circle of objects and phenomena of everyday life (Exodus 30.29). The consecration and cleansing of the altar must be carried out, like the dedication of Aaron, within seven days.

Exodus 29:38. This is what you will offer on the altar: two lambs a year old [without blemish] every day continually [as an everlasting sacrifice];

Exodus 29:39. one lamb you shall offer in the morning, and another lamb you shall offer in the evening,

The command to consecrate the altar is followed by an indication of what sacrifices should be offered daily on the altar, as soon as it and the sacred persons receive consecration.

For the ever-present daily burnt offering (Ex. 29:42), two one-year-old lambs are appointed (cf. Num. 28.3, etc.); one should be offered in the morning, at the beginning of the day, at seven o'clock, the other in the evening (“between the evenings” (Exodus 12.6). Both the beginning and the end of the day are sanctified by an expression of complete devotion to God.

Ex.29:40. and tenth part of the ephah of wheat flour mixed with a quarter of a hin of beaten oil, and for a drink offering, a quarter of a hin of wine, for one lamb;

Exodus 29:41. offer another lamb in the evening, with a meal offering similar to that of the morning, and with the same drink offering, offer it as a sweet-smelling offering as a sacrifice to the Lord.

According to the general law of Numbers 15, the blood sacrifice is combined with the grain offering, for which 1 10 ephah of wheat flour, 1.4 hin of beaten oil and the same amount of wine. The objects of the bloodless sacrifice were the main means given by the Creator (Ps 103.14:15) for preserving human life and for earthly contentment, and therefore in it the main idea of ​​​​sacrifice - the thought of self-sacrifice - found the full, most visual expression.

Exodus 29:42. This is a continual burnt offering throughout your generations at the door of the tabernacle of meeting before the Lord, where I will make myself known to you to speak with you;

The constant fulfillment of the law of daily burnt offerings is again made an everlasting obligation to the Jewish people, and the reason for this is also indicated. It lies in the fact that in the tabernacle of meeting the Lord will reveal His special presence, will reveal Himself and speak. A reverent attitude towards His presence should be expressed, among other things, by the unforgettable offering of daily sacrifices to Him.

Exodus 29:43. there I will reveal myself to the children of Israel, and it will be sanctified this place by My glory.

Such a reverent attitude is all the more necessary because the tabernacle serves as the place of the revelation of the Lord not only to Moses, but also to the other sons of Israel. The constant appearance of the glory of God will sanctify the tabernacle and make it a holy place.

Exodus 29:44. And I will consecrate the tabernacle of meeting and the altar; I will also sanctify Aaron and his sons, that they may serve as priests to Me;

If God Himself sanctifies the tabernacle with His presence, and sanctifies those who serve Him, then the sons of Israel must unacceptably testify to their reverence for the Divine dwelling in their sanctuary by offering the commanded sacrifices as a gift of love, gratitude and obedience.

This expression has long been common in modern world. Most often it is used with a certain shade of skepticism, ridicule of a person. First of all, this indicates a certain loss of the original meaning of the phrase “lamb of God.” Today only a few native speakers know its true meaning.

Who is the lamb

The very sound and spelling of the word speaks of its antiquity, a certain obsolescence. The very form of this expression evokes associations with the distant past and, of course, sacred texts. So, who is this lamb?

Surprisingly, initially this word did not contain anything supernatural. Lamb is simply an obsolete name for lamb. However, any person more or less familiar with Christian doctrine must ask why the son of God is usually called the lamb.

Appeal to the Old Testament

If you dig a little deeper than the standard interpretation, you will notice that the first mention of the lamb within the biblical worldview is found in and, accordingly, in the Torah. It was the lamb that was offered as a sacred sacrifice to the Lord.

This begs the question: “Why a lamb to the slaughter?” Why not a calf or, for example, a deer? It's all about the nature of this animal. The peculiarity of this herbivore is that the lamb completely voluntarily goes to its own death. Unlike other representatives of the fauna, he does not resist his fate at all. Moreover, he even in a sense facilitates her, stretching his neck, as if for the greater convenience of his killer.

The incredible obedience of this animal, such a strange biological feature, evoked associations with the absolute obedience and sacrifice of the lamb, strengthening it in the memory of mankind.

Lamb of the New Testament

Despite this, it is not the animal that was sacrificed that is most often associated with the lamb. For most, the lamb is the son of God. It will be difficult for a person far from the biblical picture of the world to understand why the object of worship, main figure in religion it is called a lamb.

More sophisticated people will easily draw an analogy between the sacrificial act of Jesus and the Old Testament slaughter. In fact, the story of Christ repeats the original plot almost exactly. Only in this case the sacrifice was much larger-scale, for the significantly greater sins of mankind.

Like a submissive lamb, Jesus completely voluntarily ascended to Calvary, taking upon himself the cross of human imperfections.

The analogy in internal purity is also quite obvious. Like the lamb, the Son of God did not have time to know sin; he was completely clean before execution. It is also death in the name of life.

Even more depth

If we take a closer look at the biblical triad of Father, Son and Holy Spirit, we can pay attention to its internal unity. Despite the different names and hypostases, in essence, all three phenomena are one whole. Thus, in ascending to Calvary, Jesus sacrificed not only himself. At the same time, the other two incarnations of the Lord were sacrificed.

It turns out that a lamb is a much more capacious concept than one might imagine at first glance.

Sacred sacrifice in Jewish culture

Although Christianity has learned a lot from the Torah, there are also significant differences. An example of this phenomenon is the understanding of the lamb. Initially, the meanings completely coincided, but with the development of religions they diverged. Christianity has suffered so much good image to Jesus, and then to God himself. In the second case, the properties were transferred to the entire Jewish people, who were destined to atone for the guilt of past centuries.

Image in different cultures

Due to the fact that the lamb is a mainly Christian symbol, it is quite obvious that certain cultures have adopted it. It should be noted that in various countries this symbol of sacrifice and submission was adapted in its own version.

Italians and Bulgarians, for example, customarily roast a whole lamb on a spit in honor of the holidays. In Russia, there is a different tradition: Orthodox holidays It is customary to prepare pies and gingerbreads in the shape of lambs. The sacrifice in this case is made symbolically, and the slaughter of the animal is not required at all.

Lamb in art

It is quite obvious that such a multifaceted, powerful symbol could not help but be reflected in art. In addition to numerous references in literature, this image is often found in painting. It is noteworthy that in almost every painting depicting the birth of Christ, a lamb is also present.

If we take particular cases, the painting “Adoration of the Lamb”, painted by Jan van Eyck in 1432, is quite famous. The famous Roerich also depicted it. The Prado Museum houses Francisco de Zurbaran's painting "Lamb of God" as an exhibit.

So, we have looked at the state of things today. But we can safely say that in the future the word “lamb” will continue to transform, acquire new meanings, additional shades. At the moment, the lamb is one of the main, fundamental religious symbols.