How does Leviticus 19:22 connect to Christ's atoning sacrifice in the New Testament?

Leviticus 19:22

“The priest is to make atonement for him with the ram of the guilt offering before the LORD for the sin he has committed, and the sin he has committed will be forgiven him.”

Leviticus 19:22 in its original setting

• A specific sin required a specific sacrifice: a ram brought as a “guilt offering.”

• A human priest acted as mediator, slaughtered the animal, and sprinkled its blood.

• Result: atonement—covering of the sin—and the offender walked away forgiven.

Connecting points to Christ’s atoning work

1. The guilt offering foreshadows a greater sacrifice

 • Isaiah 53:10 calls the suffering Servant a “guilt offering.”

 • John 1:29 presents Jesus as “the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.”

2. A better Priest mediates the new covenant

 • Levitical priests stood in daily, repetitive service (Hebrews 10:11).

 • Jesus, “a priest forever” (Hebrews 7:24), offered Himself “once for all” (Hebrews 9:26).

3. Perfect blood secures perfect forgiveness

 • Animal blood covered sin temporarily; Christ’s blood cleanses the conscience (Hebrews 9:14).

 • Romans 3:25—God displayed Jesus “as an atoning sacrifice through faith in His blood.”

 • Hebrews 10:14—“By one offering He has perfected for all time those who are being sanctified.”

4. Complete removal of guilt

 • Under the Law: forgiveness applied case-by-case.

 • At the cross: “There is now no condemnation” (Romans 8:1).

 • 1 John 2:2—Jesus is “the atoning sacrifice…for the sins of the whole world.”

What Leviticus 19:22 helps us see about the cross

• Sin is serious and demands a life-for-life payment.

• God Himself provides the only adequate substitute—His Son.

• The once-for-all sacrifice of Jesus fulfills and ends the animal sacrificial system.

• Believers rest in full, eternal forgiveness already accomplished and applied by the perfect Priest.