What is the meaning of Leviticus 4:4? Bringing the bull to the entrance • The anointed priest brings the bull “to the entrance to the Tent of Meeting before the LORD” (Leviticus 4:4), placing the sacrifice where God has chosen to meet His people. • This visible, public approach underscores that sin is not hidden; atonement must take place in God’s appointed space (Exodus 29:10; Leviticus 1:3). • Coming to the entrance anticipates the later truth that we now “have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus” (Hebrews 10:19-20). Laying his hand on the bull’s head • Touching the sacrifice signals personal identification with it (Leviticus 1:4). • Guilt transfers symbolically: “Aaron shall lay both his hands on the head of the live goat and confess over it all the iniquities of the Israelites” (Leviticus 16:21). • This act conveys substitution—“the LORD has laid on Him the iniquity of us all” (Isaiah 53:6; cf. 2 Corinthians 5:21). • It also affirms that atonement requires confession and repentance (Numbers 8:10-12). Slaughtering it before the LORD • “And slaughter it before the LORD” (Leviticus 4:4) reveals the cost of sin: bloodshed and death (Hebrews 9:22). • The priest kills the bull, not the sinner, highlighting God’s provision of a substitute (Leviticus 17:11; 1 Peter 1:18-19). • Performed “before the LORD,” the act happens under His direct gaze, ensuring the sacrifice is acceptable (Leviticus 9:4; Hebrews 9:12). • This foreshadows Christ, “once for all” offered “to bear the sins of many” (Hebrews 9:26-28; 10:4-10). summary Leviticus 4:4 details a three-step pattern—approach, identification, and substitutionary death—that God established to deal with sin. The priest brings the bull to God’s appointed meeting place, lays his hand on its head to transfer guilt, and slaughters it in God’s presence. Each movement points beyond the ritual to the perfect fulfillment in Jesus Christ, whose once-for-all sacrifice grants believers full access, complete forgiveness, and lasting fellowship with the LORD. |
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