How does Luke 22:19 connect with Old Testament sacrificial practices? Setting the Scene Luke places us in the upper room on the night before the cross. Jesus is celebrating Passover with His disciples, but He speaks words no Israelite host had ever spoken at that table. Luke 22:19 “And taking bread, He gave thanks, broke it, and gave it to them, saying, ‘This is My body, which is given for you; do this in remembrance of Me.’” Immediate Sacrificial Language • “Given for you” mirrors the substitutionary language of Levitical sacrifices (Leviticus 1:4; 16:21). • “Remembrance” recalls the “memorial portion” placed on the altar in grain and peace offerings (Leviticus 2:2; 24:7). • Breaking bread anticipates the body of the lamb being eaten by the worshipers at Passover (Exodus 12:8-10). Passover Foundations • Passover lambs were chosen “without blemish” (Exodus 12:5); Jesus is identified as “a lamb without blemish or spot” (1 Peter 1:19). • Blood on doorposts brought deliverance from judgment (Exodus 12:7, 13); Jesus’ blood shields believers from wrath (Romans 5:9). • The meal was to be a perpetual remembrance (Exodus 12:14); Jesus now commands a new remembrance centered on Himself. Covenant Meal Echoes (Exodus 24:3-11) • After Moses sprinkled sacrificial blood on the people, they ate a covenant meal with God. • At the Last Supper, Jesus offers bread and (v. 20) the cup as symbols of the New Covenant ratified in His blood. • The pattern holds: sacrifice → blood applied → covenant meal → fellowship with God. Thanksgiving (Todah) Offering Links • Jesus “gave thanks” (Greek eucharisteō). The OT thank offering (Leviticus 7:11-15) combined sacrificed flesh with unleavened bread eaten the same day. • Rabbinic tradition later called the todah “the one sacrifice that will never cease,” hinting at everlasting gratitude—fulfilled in the Lord’s Table. Isaiah 53 and the Suffering Servant • “He was pierced for our transgressions” (Isaiah 53:5) identifies the Servant as a guilt offering (Isaiah 53:10). • Luke’s phrase “given for you” echoes Isaiah’s “for our transgressions,” uniting Christ’s body with the sin-bearing sacrifices. Once-for-All Fulfillment (Hebrews 10:10-14) • OT sacrifices were continual; Jesus’ self-offering is “once for all.” • The bread symbolizes the completed, unrepeatable sacrifice believers now remember rather than reenact. Practical Takeaways • Communion is rooted in real, historical sacrifices validated by Scripture. • Every breaking of bread proclaims that the Messiah is the true Passover Lamb and the final sin offering. • Remembering is not mere nostalgia; it is covenant renewal—embracing anew the deliverance His sacrifice secured. Thus Luke 22:19 gathers the rich tapestry of Old Testament sacrificial worship—Passover, covenant meals, thank offerings, and sin offerings—and threads them into a single, living picture of Jesus’ body given for us. |
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