The Sin Offering

By Victoria Radin

The Law that G-d established for all mankind, He gave to Adam in the Garden of Eden. That Law is: The Man Who Sins Will Die. Death is separation from G-d who is Life. He is called The Eternal in Jewish teaching.

Sin, by definition, is disobedience to G-d. In order to sin, there had to be rules that defined right from wrong. G-d gave Adam only one rule–– "Do not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil." The only way he could sin was to disobey the one rule he was given.

It was Satan’s purpose to separate man from G-d eternally by influencing man to sin. When Adam and Eve broke the rule G-d had given, G-d cast them out of His presence. They were physically separated from G-d as well as being subject to a physical death which would separate them from Him eternally.

G-d immediately established the Sacrificial System to protect Adam and Eve from eternal separation. He allowed the death of two [sinless] animals to substitute for the death that Adam and Eve deserved for their disobedience. Instead of being clothed with the Glory of G-d as they had been in the Garden of Eden, they were clothed with animal skins. When G-d looked at them, He saw the animal skins ‘covering’ them and remembered the death that those animals suffered in exchange for the lives of Adam and Eve.

It was clear that animal sacrifices were only a temporary solution to sin since they only ‘covered’ sin rather than permanently removing it. The Sacrificial System allowed man to maintain fellowship with G-d even though he could no longer be clothed with His Glory or be in His presence. It also gave man the hope of eternal life they would enjoy after G-d would send a Redeemer to die for Adam’s sin. Job expresses this hope in the following passage:

“For I know that my Redeemer lives, and He shall stand at last on the earth; and after my skin is destroyed, this I know, that in my flesh I shall see G-d, Whom I shall see for myself, and my eyes shall behold, and not another. How my heart yearns within me!” (Job 19:25-27)

This Redeemer would remove the sin-nature from mankind permanently since G-d established that it had to be a man’s life for a man and an animal’s life for an animal (Lev. 24:17, 18, 21). Once man’s sin-nature was removed, he could again have fellowship with G-d, be clothed with His Glory and live in His presence in Paradise.

At Mount Sinai, G-d gave Moses a new set of rules to teach the Israelites in the wilderness.  These new rules would instruct them in the ways of G-d and what G-d considered to be sin.  To demonstrate His righteousness, anyone who deliberately disobeyed the rules would be stoned to death.  For those who were committed to obeying Him but sinned in ignorance or unintentionally, G-d taught them the rules of the Sin and Guilt Offerings (Leviticus 4:7, 27; 5:15).

The individual who sinned had to bring the prescribed sacrificial animal, lay his hand on its head while confessing his sin; and then slay the offering at the bronze altar of judgment. The priest would then place some of the blood on the horns of the altar and burn all the fat (the best part) to make atonement for the sinner. Symbolically, when the sinner laid his hand on the head of the animal, his sins were transferred to the ‘sinless’ animal; and the purity of the animal was conveyed to the individual––his sinfulness for the animal’s ‘righteousness’. In typology, the one making the sin offering was putting to death his own sin by killing the animal in proxy. 

G-d cultivated a race of people for 2000 years in preparation for the final once-for-all sacrifice that would release mankind from the grip of eternal death. The Israelites were the only peoples in the world that understood G-d’s Sacrificial System, the system He would use to bring about the spiritual redemption of all mankind. They also knew many details about the Redeemer-Messiah who would come. Eternal life would still be unavailable to mankind if they did not allow Him to be sacrificed. If they recognized Him, however, they would not sacrifice Him:

“But we speak the wisdom of G-d in a mystery, the hidden wisdom which G-d ordained before the ages for our glory, which none of the rulers of this age knew; for had they known, they would not have crucified the L-rd of glory.” (1 Cor. 2:7 8)

To keep the Israelites from recognizing the Messiah, G-d blinded their spiritual leaders:

“For the L-rd has poured out on you the spirit of deep sleep, and has closed your eyes, namely, the prophets; and He has covered your heads, namely, the seers.” (Isaiah 29:10 & Romans 11:8)

G-d Himself orchestrated Jesus’ death through His careful training of the Israelites:

“Yet it pleased the L-rd to bruise Him; He has put Him to grief.  When You make His soul an offering for sin...” (Isaiah 53:10a)

During His ministry on earth, Jesus gave mankind a new set of rules that would define what G-d calls sin. Instead of the 613 rules outlined in the Old Testament, there were almost 2000 rules. These new rules governed not only outward behavior, but thoughts, attitudes, and motives, as well. G-d knew that man, of himself, could not obey even the one rule given to Adam in the Garden of Eden. He knew man would need a Helper. Once eternal death had been removed through Jesus’ sacrifice, G-d could send a Helper, His Holy Spirit:

“....It is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I depart, I will send Him to you.” (John 16:7)

The Law of G-d, The Man Who Sins Will Die, is canceled for those who accept Jesus’ death as their own deserved death. In the salvation experience, each sinner must repent of his sins. Symbolically this means that the sinner is laying his hand on the head of the sacrificial lamb, Jesus, confessing his sins over Him. He then must acknowledge that his sin caused Jesus’ death and that Jesus was slain in proxy for himself. Through this confession, his sinfulness is exchanged for Jesus’ righteousness. His sinful-self is dead and Christ’s righteousness lives in him:

“I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me....”(Galatians 2:20a)

Jesus, our High Priest, then places some of His sacrificial blood on the horns of the heavenly altar of judgment making atonement for that individual. From that day forward, when G-d looks at the repentant individual, He sees him ‘clothed’ with Jesus and remembers the death His Son suffered on behalf of that sinner.

“...put on the L-rd Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to fulfill its lusts.” (Romans 13:14)

The individual is then able to have fellowship with G-d through His Holy Spirit, be clothed with the Glory of G-d who is Jesus Christ, and live in the Father’s presence eternally.

Barukh Ha Shem (Blessed is the Name of the L-rd)