What New Testament connections can be made to the sin offering in Numbers 28:15? Setting the Scene in Numbers 28:15 • “In addition to the regular burnt offering with its drink offering, you are to present one male goat as a sin offering to the LORD.” (Numbers 28:15) • A single male goat is offered every new-moon day, reminding Israel that even the turning of each month required cleansing. • This sacrifice stands beside the daily continual burnt offering (Numbers 28:3-4), underscoring that sin is persistent and demands atonement. Key Themes Embedded in the Monthly Sin Offering • Substitution – the goat dies in the place of the worshipers. • Blood atonement – sin’s penalty is death (Romans 6:23). • Regularity – God built repetitive reminders into Israel’s calendar so no one could overlook the need for forgiveness. How the NT Unpacks and Fulfills These Themes • Christ as the true sin offering: – “God condemned sin in the flesh by sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful man as an offering for sin.” (Romans 8:3) – “We have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.” (Hebrews 10:10) – “He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God.” (2 Corinthians 5:21) • The once-for-all nature of Christ’s sacrifice answers the monthly, even daily, repetition: – “Unlike the high priests, He does not need to offer sacrifices day after day… He sacrificed for sins once for all when He offered Himself.” (Hebrews 7:27) – “It is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins.” (Hebrews 10:4) Yet the blood of Christ does exactly that (Hebrews 9:12). Echoes of the Goat Imagery in the NT • Day of Atonement goats (Leviticus 16) prefigure Christ’s double work—bearing sin’s penalty and removing guilt. Hebrews 9:11-14 links that ceremony directly to Jesus entering the heavenly sanctuary with His own blood. • The “goat” of Numbers 28:15 points to the never-good-enough nature of animal substitutes; Jesus surpasses them as the spotless Lamb (John 1:29; 1 Peter 1:18-19). Continuous Cleansing vs. Once-for-All Atonement • Israel’s calendar: daily burnt offerings, weekly Sabbaths, monthly new moons, annual festivals—layer upon layer of sacrifices. • Colossians 2:16-17 calls these observances “a shadow of the things to come, but the body is Christ.” • Because Christ’s sacrifice is complete, believers enjoy ongoing cleansing without renewed bloodshed: “The blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin.” (1 John 1:7) Living in the Light of the Fulfilled Sin Offering • Confidence—approach God “with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith” (Hebrews 10:22), no longer fearing unresolved guilt each new month. • Gratitude—worship flows from a heart that knows the debt is settled (Ephesians 1:7). • Holiness—“He Himself bore our sins… so that we might die to sin and live to righteousness.” (1 Peter 2:24) • Ongoing confession—not to secure fresh atonement, but to enjoy unbroken fellowship (1 John 1:9). In every turn of the calendar, the sin offering of Numbers 28:15 whispered of a greater sacrifice to come; the New Testament shouts that the whisper has become reality in Jesus Christ. |
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