What New Testament passages reflect the sacrificial themes found in Leviticus 4:9? Leviticus 4:9 in Focus “[The priest] shall remove the two kidneys with the fat that is on them near the loins, and the lobe of the liver, which he is to remove with the kidneys—” (Leviticus 4:9) Key Sacrificial Ideas to Trace Forward • A sin offering that deals with guilt • The choicest portions (fat, inner organs) surrendered wholly to God • A priest mediating through a blood-based sacrifice New Testament Echoes of These Themes – “But when Christ came as high priest … He entered the greater and more perfect tabernacle … not by the blood of goats and calves but by His own blood… to cleanse our consciences.” – Christ fulfils the priestly role and offers Himself, the true sin offering. – “For the bodies of those animals whose blood is brought into the Holy Place by the high priest for sin are burned outside the camp. And so Jesus also suffered outside the city gate to sanctify the people by His own blood.” – Direct link to the sin-offering pattern: blood presented, body consumed, guilt removed. – “God, sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and as an offering for sin, condemned sin in the flesh.” – Identifies Jesus explicitly as the sin offering foreshadowed in Leviticus 4. – “God made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God.” – Explains the substitution hinted at when the animal bore another’s guilt. – “Christ loved us and gave Himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.” – The “fragrant” aspect parallels the burning of the fat—the richest part reserved for God alone. – “For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God.” – Reaffirms the once-for-all nature of the true sin offering. – “He Himself is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the whole world.” – Names Jesus as the propitiation that the Levitical offerings merely anticipated. Seeing the Threads Come Together • The inner fat set apart for God pictures the total devotion of Christ, whose entire being was yielded up to the Father. • The priest’s careful removal of those choicest parts points to the deliberate, purposeful self-giving of Jesus. • The sin-offering blood that purged Israel’s unintentional sins finds its perfect, eternal counterpart in the blood of the Lamb that “cleanses us from all sin” (1 John 1:7). Through these passages the New Testament not only mirrors Leviticus 4:9; it shows that every slice of that ancient ritual was sketching the once-for-all sacrifice of the Son who removes sin completely. |
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