What does Hebrews 9:20 reveal about the significance of blood in the Old Covenant? Text “saying, ‘This is the blood of the covenant that God has commanded you to keep.’” (Hebrews 9:20) Immediate Context in Hebrews 9 Hebrews 9 contrasts the temporary, repetitive sacrifices of the Mosaic era with the once-for-all sacrifice of Christ. Verses 18-22 recall the Sinai event to show that even the first covenant “was not inaugurated without blood” (v. 18). By citing Exodus 24, the writer grounds his argument in Israel’s own history: blood was essential for covenant inauguration, ritual purification, and forgiveness. Old Testament Background: Exodus 24:3-8 At Sinai Moses read “the Book of the Covenant” to the people, they pledged obedience, and he sprinkled half the blood on the altar (signifying Yahweh’s side) and half on the people (signifying Israel’s side). Exodus 24:8 (LXX) supplies the wording Hebrews quotes nearly verbatim. Thus Hebrews 9:20 recalls the precise moment Israel became God’s covenant nation, underscoring blood as the seal of that legal agreement. The Function of Blood in Covenant Ratification 1. Legal Seal. In the Ancient Near East a covenant was “cut” (Heb. kārat berith). Life-blood symbolized the self-maledictory oath: violating the covenant would merit death (cf. Genesis 15:10, 17). 2. Dual Participation. Sprinkling mediated both parties. The altar received blood as God’s representative; the people were literally marked by the same blood, joining them to Yahweh. 3. Divine Command. Hebrews stresses that blood use was “commanded.” It was not human ritual invention but divine prescription, revealing God’s chosen means of establishing relationship. Sacrificial Atonement: Blood as Life-for-Life Leviticus 17:11 explains, “the life of a creature is in the blood, and I have given it to you to make atonement for your souls.” Life poured out answers for life forfeited by sin. The sin and guilt offerings (Leviticus 4; 5) applied this principle daily; the Day of Atonement (Leviticus 16) applied it nationally. Hebrews imports that theology: covenant membership and ongoing forgiveness both require substitutionary life-blood. Cleansing and Purification Blood did more than expiate guilt; it ritually purified persons and objects (Exodus 29:21; Leviticus 8:15; Numbers 19:13). Hebrews 9:19-21 lists scroll, people, tent, and vessels—all sprinkled, signifying that everything touching sinful humanity needed cleansing before a holy God. Archaeological parallels show purification rites across cultures, yet only Israel’s system tied cleansing to divine revelation and redemptive history. Legal Witness and Public Solemnity By sprinkling the assembled nation, Moses transformed private faith into corporate covenantal responsibility. The blood acted as a tangible witness—comparable to signatory seals on clay tablets such as the 13th-century BC Hittite treaties unearthed at Boghazkoy—embedding accountability in communal memory. Typological Fulfillment in Christ 1. New Covenant Echo. Jesus deliberately echoed Exodus 24 during the Last Supper: “This is My blood of the covenant…” (Mark 14:24). The Sinai pattern was a prophetic type, His crucifixion the antitype. 2. Once-for-All Sufficiency. Hebrews 9:25-28 highlights the superior efficacy of Christ’s blood; what animal blood foreshadowed, His fulfilled. 3. Universal Scope. Whereas Mosaic blood was for Israel, Christ’s reaches “every tribe and tongue” (Revelation 5:9), fulfilling the Abrahamic promise (Genesis 12:3). Continuity and Discontinuity between Covenants Continuity: both covenants are blood-based, map sin to death, and require substitution. Discontinuity: animal blood was temporary, repetitive, and external; Christ’s is eternal, singular, and internal (Jeremiah 31:33; Hebrews 10:16). Thus Hebrews 9:20 serves as the hinge showing why the Old must cede to the New. Ethical and Pastoral Implications Believers gain assurance: if God accepted lesser blood temporarily, He surely accepts Christ’s eternally. Worship gains sobriety: sin is lethal, grace costly. Community gains unity: all stand sprinkled—now spiritually—under the same covenant blood. Conclusion Hebrews 9:20 crystallizes the Old Covenant’s theology of blood: it initiates relationship, atones for sin, purifies worship, and solemnizes obligation. Its ultimate purpose is pedagogical—pointing beyond itself to the final, perfect blood of Jesus Christ, by which the believer is eternally forgiven, cleansed, and bound to God. |
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