(II) Personification of the Blood
(III) The Jewish Blood Sacrifice
(V) Preperation for Forgiveness
(VII) Blood in the Heavenlies
(VIII) Purpose for the Blood
(IX) Jesus Blood Poured Out
(X) The Fleshly Part of the Sacrifice
(XI) The Rejected Blood Offering
(XII) The Perpetual Blood Memorial
(XIII) The Blood For All
(XIV) Bought by the Blood
(XV) Flesh and Blood
Return to Outline I-VIII
Return to Outline IX-XV
12/2/23
(I) Definition of Blood
“Blood,” as a noun, is used in the English language in various ways.
1. It is spoken of as a child or any family member, as in descent, lineage, progeny, or descendent.
2. If one is from a royal family, they are said to be a prince or princess of royal blood.
3. It is spoken of as a gentleman of blood in an honorable birth.
In Scripture, it is spoken of in the following:
1. As in a slaughter or murder.
A. Hosea 1:4, “I will avenge the blood of Jezreel upon the house of Jehu.”
B. Genesis 4:10, God said to Cain, “The voice of thy brother’s blood cries to me from the ground.”
2. It is spoken of as guilt and punishment. Acts 18:6, “Your blood be upon your own heads.”
3. It is spoken of as the fleshly nature, or the carnal part of man, as opposed to the spiritual nature, or divine life.”
John 1:13, John speaks of how Christians come to be. “Which were born, not of blood, not of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.”
4. It is spoken of as man’s wisdom or reason.
Matthew 16:17, Jesus said, “For flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven.”
5. It speaks of the sacramental symbol of Christ. Jesus said in Matthew 26:28, “For this is my blood of the New Testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.”
6. Blood is spoken of in the death and suffering of Jesus.
Romans 5:9, “and Ephesians 1:7, “Being now justified by His (Jesus’) blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him.”
7. It is spoken of as the juice of anything, especially if it is red. Genesis 49:11, “The blood of grapes.”
8. It speaks of the price of blood or anything obtained by the shedding of blood.
Habukkuk 2:12 and Acts 1:19 say, “Woe to him that builds a town with blood.
(II) Personification of Blood:
Sometimes, the metaphorical term for blood is used in personification. (Personification means giving a non-living thing the attributes of a person).
Genesis 4:10, God said to Cain, “What hast thou done, the voice of thy brother’s blood cries unto me from the ground.”
Hebrews 12:24, “Ye are come to the blood of sprinkling, that speaks better things than that of Abel.”
(III) The Jewish Blood Sacrifice:
Christians must understand the blood sacrifices of the Old Testament and the fulfillment of those sacrifices by our Lord Jesus in the New Testament. How important is this?
“One’s eternity depends upon it.”
The blood of a sacrificed victim is consecrated, or declared sacred, for the service of God. So, the blood is declared sacred and set apart to God.
Leviticus 17:11, “For the life of the flesh is in the blood, and I = (God) have given it to you upon the alter, to make an atonement for your souls; for it is the blood that makes an atonement for the soul.”
The pouring out of blood on the altar was central to the Jewish religious system, it being a temporal but continual sacrifice, and because it was only temporal, it was done yearly.
The ancient Jewish high priests from the tribe of Levi, with the blood of the sacrificed calves and goats, water, scarlet wool, and hyssop in hand, applied this blood first by sprinkling with blood the book of the law and, secondly, sprinkling the people. This act symbolized the future shedding and sprinkling of the blood of Christ. If Christ’s blood is not applied to us, it will not benefit us.
Hebrews 9:20-21 is a quote from Exodus 24: 3-8, “This is the blood of the testament which God hath enjoined unto you. Moreover, he sprinkled with blood both the tabernacle and all the vessels of the ministry.”
IV) Forgiveness by the blood:
The word blood and its’ frequent use in the Jewish and Christian religions renders it very significant in the Scriptures.
Hebrews 9:22, “And almost all things are by the law purged with blood, and without shedding of blood is no remission.”
Exodus 19:10 gives us an example of what is not purged with blood. The Lord God said to Moses, “I come unto thee —that the people may hear when I speak with thee, and believe thee for ever.”
(V) Preparation for Forgiveness:
The Jews were in a worldly condition, sinners separated from God. In their current state of uncleanness, they could not fellowship with God. They were now greatly anticipating this once-a-year, great event, the sacrificial shedding of blood so that they could be right again before God.
At the time of Moses, extraordinary preparations were made before the sacrifices took place. They were to wash their clothes and abstain from sex. They were also to observe the barriers established around the mountain base where God was to meet Moses. Very stern penalties were annexed by God for the breach of any of the conditions that he had set down.
The Jews were to;
1. Be sanctified, leaving their sinful ways:
2. Meditate on God and His word:
3. Pray without ceasing: This is what God required of them then and still requires today, not only of the Jews but of all people.
(VI) Jesus’ Blood Sacrifice:
When Jesus was with His disciples at the last supper, He raised His cup and said, “This cup is the new testament in my blood, which is shed for you.”
Blood in the Scriptures frequently refers to the suffering and death of Christ and is considered the only atonement for the souls of sinners.
Romans 5:9, “Being justified by His (Jesus) blood we (those who receive Jesus Christ) shall be saved from wrath, through Him.” The phrase to be “saved from wrath, through Him” refers to the finished work of Christ Jesus.
This finished work of Jesus is for all those who believe both Jew and Gentile. From the first moment of justification, when the wrath of the Father is turned away from a person cleansed by Jesus’ blood, until the Judge, who sits on the great white throne, shall judgments be sent upon them that “obey not the Gospel.”
His blood continues to cover those who repent of their sins and receive Jesus as Savior. The work of the Lord can be summed up as,
Jude 24, “Now unto Him (Jesus) that is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of His (the Father’s) glory with exceeding joy.”
Despite the thousands of sacrifices and services performed by the Jews, the blood sacrifice of Jesus Christ is the only work that was and is accepted by the Father as the finished work for the salvation of mankind.
(VII) Blood in the heavenlies:
John was given a future glimpse of heaven; he was asked by an elder in heaven, “Who are these that are dressed in white robes?” John answered, “Sir, you know.” The answer is given in Revelation 7:14, “These are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.”
At the Lord’s ascension into heaven, our High Priest, with this precious blood, entered the heavenly and holiest place, the place of his Father’s throne. Hebrews 9:12, by “His own blood” that He shed for us, poured into the cup His Father had given Him, which He then presented to His Father.
Jesus had fulfilled His Priestly duties, the office established in and by the law. Unlike the High Priest of the tribe of Levi, who had to perform this service every year for themselves first and the people after, Jesus became the last High Priest, not in the line of Aaron (Levi) but in the order of Melchizedek, the King of righteousness, King of Salem, which is King of peace.
1. Hebrews 9:7, “But into the second = (this second, is a reference to the second most inner room of the tabernacle), which was called the holy of holies, went the high priest alone once every year, not without blood ( he entered with the blood of the sacrifice), which he offered for himself, and for the sins of the people.”
2. Hebrews 9:12, “Neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by His (Jesus) own blood He entered in once unto the holy place = (His Father’s throne in heaven), having obtained eternal redemption for us. Jesus did not enter into the earthly sanctuary but the heavenly sanctuary of His Father.
3. Hebrews 9:25, “Nor yet that He (Jesus) should offer himself often, as the high priest enters into the holy place every year with blood of others; For then must he (Jesus) often have suffered since the foundation of the world: but now once in the end of the world (ages) hath he appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself.”
4. Revelation 5:6, John wrote, “And I beheld, and lo, in the midst of the throne (the Father’s throne) … stood a Lamb as it had been slain.” From this point on, Satan was defeated.
(VIII) Purpose for The Blood:
The blood of Christ serves two purposes:
1. It procures our justification. Isaiah 1:18, “Come now, and let us reason together, said the Lord: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.”
John 15:3, Jesus said, “Now ye are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you.”
2. It is the only means of our being able to be set apart or sanctified.
A. blood refers to Jesus’ sacrificial atonement on our behalf as offered to the Father.
B. The doctrines of Christ’s suffering and crucifixion, as applied to the sinner’s inner conscience. The sinner stops thinking in the flesh and begins thinking in the Spirit. Christians have been set apart from the world and its worldly ways.
Titus 2:14, “(Jesus) Who gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto Himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works.”
Jesus gave “Himself” the greatest gift ever, a beautiful gift that no person should ever overlook. In and for our behalf, Jesus redeemed us from bondage by paying the price with His precious blood. Titus 2:9-10 states that we are saved “From all iniquity,” or from the transgression of the law, to which all men were in bondage until then.
(IX) Jesus Blood Poured Out:
“The blood of sprinkling.” Jesus’ blood was poured out on the ground in many ways.
1. When he sweat drops of blood.
2. When the crown of thrones pierced His head.
3. When beaten with whips.
4. When the nails pierced through His hands and feet.
5. When a spear pierced his lifeless body.
His precious blood was incorruptible. 1 Peter 1:18-19, “Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers; but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot.”
(X) The Fleshly Part of the Sacrifice:
Hebrews 13:11, “For the bodies of those beasts (sacrificed animals), whose blood is brought into the sanctuary by the high priest for sin, are burned without (outside) the camp.”
According to God’s law given to the Jews, the flesh of the sin-offering was not to be consumed. After the victim’s blood was sprinkled before the Holy Place, for the atonement of sin, the skin, flesh, entrails, etc., were to be carried outside the camp and there entirely consumed by fire, giving precedence to the blood of the sacrifice.
The Jewish people were to look for the coming Messiah. His sacrifice would be the only pardon for sin, which the shedding of His blood could alone give them.
(XI) The Rejected Blood Offering:
In the Father’s eyes, the death of His Son was the final sacrifice needed for man.
God expected the Jews to discontinue these bloody sacrifices, which could only cover sin. Jesus’ blood offering not only covers sin but can forever cleanse sin’s stain from the human soul.
The Jews continued to offer their animal sacrifices, refusing to acknowledge the finished work of their Messiah. Therefore, these 1st-century Jews and all who reject Jesus have no right to any of the blessings procured by him; neither are they to receive any benefit from their animal sacrifices.
Ironically, because the Jewish nation rejected Jesus as their Messiah, God brought judgment on the nation of Israel in 70 A.D. The invading Roman army not only destroyed Jerusalem but the Jewish temple, and with the destruction of the temple went the sacrificial system. The Jews no longer had a place to offer their worthless sacrifices.
And with the sacrificial system gone, the heart and soul of the nation were ripped out, everything lost.
Hebrews 10:29, Paul did not say, “By the (power) of His blood,” but, “By His blood.” For those Jews and all who reject the works of God, it is written,
“Of how much sorer (worse) punishment, suppose ye, shall he (those who reject the sacrifice) be thought worthy, who hath trodden (trampled) underfoot the Son of God, and hath counted the blood of the covenant wherewith He was sanctified, an unholy thing = (unworthy, blasphemous thing), and hath done despite (malice and hatred) unto the Spirit of grace?
Those who reject the only sacrifice tread on the Father Himself, He having glorified His Son as our High Priest. The Jews consider Jesus as being no better than any other man, rejecting Him as God, Lord, and Savior. In their judgment, Jesus committed blasphemy and so deserved to die.
Mark 3:29, Jesus said, “But he that shall blaspheme against the Holy Ghost hath never forgiveness, but is in danger = (subject to) of eternal damnation.” Those who show malice or hatred toward the Holy Spirit insult the Father who had granted this saving grace through the precious blood of Christ.
God came to be with us, but many prefer evil.
It is the curse of evil eternally to propagate evil: so for those who externally profane Jesus, this in action and deed, and those who internally blaspheme Jesus (with both mind and tongue), are planting seeds within themselves that will only reap a harvest of more external and internal evil deeds.
At a certain point in the hardening of one’s heart towards God, you may pass that point of no return. There will be no renewal, change of Spirit, or the will.
Hebrews 6:4-6, “It is impossible for those who were once enlightened,(having known the word of God) and have tasted (experienced) of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Ghost.”
The Jews knew God through His word and had partaken in the services at the temple, and yet willfully rejected their promised Messiah. The book of Hebrews states, “If they (both Jews and Gentiles) shall fall away (this is a complete and willful apostasy), to renew them again unto repentance; seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh (again) and put him to an open shame.”
As verse 4 states, it would be impossible for them to return to God because they have hardened their hearts toward the Holy Spirit, Jesus Christ, and the Father.
B. Hebrews 10:26, “For if we sin willfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth (the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ), there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins.”
There are Jews today who are trying to reestablish the bloody, worthless sacrificial system, thus remaining under the law and rejecting the Messiah.
(XII) The Perpetual Blood Memorial:
Hebrews 13:10, “Now the God of peace, that brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant.”
This is the perpetual ransom price of the eternal covenant. The presenting of the blood itself, therefore, continues still, in heaven, before the Father.
Once and for all time, Jesus sprinkled (cleansed us) with the blood of the everlasting covenant at His ascension into heaven. Hebrews 9:12, “By His (Jesus) own blood He entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us.”
(XIII)The Blood for All:
Hebrews was written by a Jew to the Jews. But we can see in both the Old and New Testament that God did not intend to leave out any nation or people from His wonderful gift of salvation.
Isaiah 52:15, “So shall He (Jesus) sprinkle many nations (all people); the kings shall shut their mouths at Him: for that which had not been told them shall they see; and that which they had not heard shall they consider.”
The sprinkling of Jesus’ blood upon the Christian community resembles the sprinkling of blood by the Jewish high Priest on the mantle of the houses at the original Jewish Passover. As the Jews who obeyed and sprinkled their mantles with lamb’s blood were protected against God’s wrath, so are Christians who have been sprinkled with the blood of Christ and are saved from the wrath to come.
(XIV) Bought by the Blood:
Those who have received and believed, are we slaves to sin? The answer is no.
Hebrews 9:14, “How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without spot (blemish) to God (the Father), purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?”
Hebrews 10:22, “Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water.”
(XV) Flesh and Blood:
The term “flesh and blood” is an expression pointing out the natural state of a man’s condition, unaided by the Holy Spirit. Upon Paul’s conversion, Paul did not consult with men (flesh and blood). Galatians 1:15-16, Paul reveals that it pleased God that He (the Father) should “reveal His Son (Jesus) in me (Paul), that I might preach Him (Jesus) among the heathen (Gentiles). Immediately, I conferred not with flesh and blood (men).”
Matthew 16:17, when Peter declared his belief that his Master was Christ, the Son of the living God, Jesus answered and said unto him, “Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona, for flesh and blood (men) hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven.”
There is one sure Scriptural fact: no one in their natural state, or with their wisdom, can or will enter into the glory and Kingdom of the Lord Jesus and the Father. Eternal life only comes through the shed blood of Christ.
Phillip LaSpino www.seekfirstwisdom.com