How does Numbers 28:22 connect to Christ's ultimate sacrifice for sins? Setting within Numbers 28 • Numbers 28 details the daily, weekly, monthly, and festival offerings that Israel was to present. • Verse 22 lies in the instructions for the Feast of Unleavened Bread: “One male goat is to be offered as a sin offering to make atonement for you.” (Numbers 28:22) • A single, unblemished male goat was slain so that the nation’s sins might be covered and fellowship with God maintained. The Male Goat Sin Offering: What It Signified • Substitution—an innocent creature dies in the place of guilty people. • Atonement—the blood turns away God’s righteous wrath so that judgment does not fall on the worshipers (cf. Leviticus 17:11). • Repetition—this goat had to be offered every year during the feast, underscoring that the problem of sin was ongoing. • Anticipation—the very need for continual sacrifices pointed ahead to a greater, final solution. Echoes of Christ in the Goat • Male, without defect → “He committed no sin, and no deceit was found in His mouth.” (1 Peter 2:22) • Sin offering → “God made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf.” (2 Corinthians 5:21) • Blood for atonement → “Without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness.” (Hebrews 9:22) • Representing the people → “The LORD has laid upon Him the iniquity of us all.” (Isaiah 53:6) Christ’s Sacrifice Surpasses the Goat • Once-for-all, never repeated – “He entered the Most Holy Place once for all by His own blood, having obtained eternal redemption.” (Hebrews 9:12) – “Christ was offered once to bear the sins of many.” (Hebrews 9:28) • Effective, not symbolic – “It is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins.” (Hebrews 10:4) – “We have been sanctified through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.” (Hebrews 10:10) • Perfect mediation – The goat’s blood only covered sin; Christ’s blood removes it, reconciling us to God forever (Romans 5:10). • Universal scope – John proclaimed, “Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!” (John 1:29) Living in the Light of the Fulfillment • Rest in completed atonement—no further sacrifice for sin remains (Hebrews 10:14). • Approach God with confidence—our conscience is cleansed by Christ’s blood (Hebrews 10:19-22). • Celebrate true freedom—just as Israel ate unleavened bread to picture holiness, believers now live out the unleavened life by the Spirit (1 Corinthians 5:7-8). • Proclaim the Savior—every Old Testament sacrifice is a conversation starter pointing to Jesus’ finished work. From Goat to Golgotha: A Brief Recap Numbers 28:22’s solitary male goat foreshadowed the solitary, sufficient sacrifice of Christ. The repetitive sin offering exposed humanity’s continual need, while Calvary’s once-for-all offering met that need forever. In Him, the foreshadow gives way to the full light of redemption. |