Sacrificial resurrection

In the aforementioned article in JETS , Blocher notes that the New Testament treats Levitical sacrifices as types of Christ’s redemption, but adds that there is also a discontinuity: The intimate and essential bond between Christ’s death and his resurrection does not receive a clear . . . . Continue Reading »

Scapegoat

Socinius says that the scapegoat doesn’t bear punishment for the sins of the people. Grotius ( Defensio Fidei Catholoicae: De Satisfactione Christi Adversus Faustum Socinum Senensem , 1.28) disagrees: Citing Genesis 9:5; Exodus 21:28; and Leviticus 20:15, he concludes that in Scripture . . . . Continue Reading »

Perpetual ceremonies

The Torah indicates that the ceremonies of the law were to be done perpetually. But this cannot, Edwards says (Misc. 1027 in The Miscellanies, 833-1152 ) be taken in the strictest sense. Among other things, the prophets predict that the entire earth and all nations will worship the true God and . . . . Continue Reading »

Jephthah’s vow

Jephthah did not, Edwards argues, slaughter his daughter on an altar. That would have been unlawful, just as offering an unclean animal on the altar was unlawful. What he did was what he could lawfully do, dedicate her to the Lord - just as an unclean animal could be dedicated to holy service. A . . . . Continue Reading »

Sacrificed servant

Isaiah 53 is not just about the trials and death of the Messiah. It’s also about the exaltation/vindication of the Messiah and the contrite acknowledgment of the Messiah by the people who had rejected Him. It’s not just about the cross but about the resurrection and ascension, and about . . . . Continue Reading »

Marred

The Hebrew word for “marred” occurs in only two places in the Old Testament: It describes the Suffering Servant (Isaiah 52:14) and it is used to refer to disfigurements that disqualify a descendant of Aaron from being priest (Leviticus 22:25). The connection doesn’t seem . . . . Continue Reading »

Violating sancta

Leviticus 5 prescribes a trespass offering for various sins in which a person violates God’s holy things or His holy name. But then there is also a requirement of a trespass offering when someone steals from a fellow Israelite. Many follow Jacob Milgrom in claiming that there is a violation . . . . Continue Reading »