Beasts Whose Blood is Brought into the Sanctuary
The book of Hebrews is devoted to showing that the Law Covenant was not everlasting, and had in fact been superseded by the glory of the Gospel ministry. In the closing chapter when we read…
“It is a good thing that the heart be established with grace; not with meats, which have not profited them that have been occupied therein” (Hebrews 13:8,9)
…the writer seems still to have this in mind. He exhorts to being established with grace as opposed to meats. What does he mean? How might one think himself “established … with meats” at all? We think he means that one should not consider himself established by the sacrifices of the Law. He is still dealing with the point that the law and its rites, which never produced life for the Israelites, should not be relied upon for our standing with God.
That the “meats” Paul refers to mean sacrificial meats of the Law might be inferred by the next verse which indirectly alludes to the custom of the priests to eat the meat of most sacrificial animals.
Paul then turns his attention to the benefit we have from the antitypes of the tabernacle offerings. Verse 10 is the heart of the matter. “We have an altar, whereof they have no right to eat which serve the tabernacle.” He explains why the priests have no right to eat of this altar in verse 11. “For the bodies of those beasts, whose blood was brought into the sanctuary by the high priest for sin, are burned without the camp.”
This explanation helps us get Paul’s point clear in two ways. (1) It tells us why the priests of the tabernacle couldn’t eat of those sacrifices, and the reason is that those sacrifices were burned. This is very helpful. It means he is not telling us that we eat from the altar spiritually, but the literal priests of the Old Testament did not because they were only natural men. That was not his point. If that were Paul’s point, then he would have explained “For those who served the tabernacle served only as types” or some such thing. So when he says “we have an altar whereof they have no right to eat who serve the tabernacle” he is not saying that we have an altar to eat from. Therefore he must mean that we have an altar to be sacrificed upon. That is, we have the privilege of joining with our Lord upon the sacrificial altar.
(2) It tells us he is speaking of the sin offering sacrifices, for they are the only offerings from which blood is brought into the sanctuary by the high priest. What kind of sacrifice are we? A sin offering sacrifice, the kind which the tabernacle priests could not eat. The kind “whose blood is brought into the sanctuary by the high priests for sin.” The kind whose bodies are “burned without the camp.”
Therefore this passage is an interpretation by the Apostle that we have a part with our Lord in the sin atonement sacrifices for the world. And it is the most positive direct expression of that point by an apostle that we know of.
But it may be asked, why did Paul use this way of telling us that he was referring to “sin offering” sacrifices? Evidently because he and the Hebrews he wrote to were familiar with the fact that the Law specifically states “no sin offering, [italics ours] whereof any of the blood is brought into the tabernacle of the congregation to reconcile withal in the holy place, shall be eaten: it shall be burnt in the fire.” (Leviticus 6:30)
The following verses, 12-13, are also helpful. Verse 12 tells us of Jesus’ part in the sin offering.
“Wherefore Jesus also, that he might sanctify the people with his own blood, suffered without the gate.”
And verse 13 says we share in that experience.
“Let us go forth therefore unto him without the camp bearing his reproach.” (Hebrews 13:13)
If faithful in this, we will also share the privilege of sanctifying the people of the world with Jesus’ blood in the kingdom. For the very purpose and point of sharing with Jesus in the sacrifice of the sin offering is that we might be developed by suffering to be trusted with the high and honorable station of being members of the great Melchisedec priest in glory who will bless mankind.
Since there were two animals on the Day of Atonement which served as sin offering sacrifices, we perceive that Jesus was represented in the first, the bullock, and the Church in the second, the Lord’s goat. The bullock was burned outside the camp first, and we, the goat class, follow. We “go unto him bearing his reproach.”
Another part of the type which helps to interpret the bullock and the goat is the origin of the animals provided for sacrifice. Of the bullock we read merely,
“Thus shall Aaron [Jesus] come into the holy place: with a young bullock for a sin offering.” (Leviticus 16:3)
But the goat for the sin offering comes from “the children of Israel.” (vs. 5) So the goat class comes out from the world, to follow our Lord in sacrifice.