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We have read and hear the passage below and many other similar passages just like it our whole lives growing up in the Christian Church:
“For this is My blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.” (Matthew 26:28)
It seems so plain, so certain. All you have to do is just read it; "Jesus saves!" "Jesus is our Savior!" We read this familiar "saying" nailed to trees as we drive through the country. It is posted on the sides of many trucks I see driving around; "Jesus saves!" In many countries around the world, such messages are displayed on walls of buildings and in other public places. Millions of people who grow up in a Christian dominated society sincerely believe that the "Christian Jesus" is their Savior. If you were to ask them, "How does Jesus save us?" they would probably reply, "Jesus died for us" or, "Jesus died for our sins." Others voice their belief that Jesus' death was an atonement for their sin as prophesied in the Hebrew Scriptures. Some will tell you that Jesus was the "literal" fulfillment of the Jewish Scriptures and the long awaited Jewish Messiah. Many will tell you that this "Christian Jesus" was the long awaited "Savior" of the world and that his coming was prophesied by the Prophets in the Jewish Scriptures. Even the New Testament records for us that Paul believed the same thing:
1 Cor 15:4 4 And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures: (KJV)
Answer for yourself: Have you ever read for yourself when reading the "whole" of the Old Testament, either in the Greek or Hebrew, that the messiah was to come, die, and be raise from the dead the 3rd day as prophesied in the Jewish Scriptures? Have you ever read for yourself when reading the "whole" of the Old Testament, either in the Greek or Hebrew, that Jesus and his death was given by God as an atonement for our sin? Notice that I said the "Greek and Hebrew" Old Testament and not the "English". If you had then you will have a hard time finding the above "theology" in I Cor. 15:4 "anywhere" in the Jewish Scriptures because simply "it is not there at all"! No, we don't find this I Cor. 15:4 statement anywhere in the Hebrew Scriptures simply because there are no Hebrew Scriptures in existence that say such a thing as of 9:15 P.M. today and the "editor" or "editors" of I Corinthians made it up out of thin air! You have to go to the corrupted Isaiah in our Christian Bible which has over 6,000 alterations when compared to the Hebrew Isaiah to begin to find such an idea added to the text but again this "altered" Isaiah is not a "translation" but a re-worked theological document created for the sole purpose to read "Jesus" backwards into the text in "key" places.
I wash shocked when after Seminary trying to run down the reference to which this New Testament passage above "explicitly" referred and never finding one. But this is but one of a multitude of supposed "quotes" or "fulfillments" in the New Testament which have no origin in the Hebrew Scriptures. Sadly we read something in the New Testament and have been conditioned our whole lives to "assume" that since it is written there, in this "holy book" of Christianity, it has to be a Divine Truth. We should have searched out the origin of these supposed quotes in the real Hebrew Scriptures and then we would have known better than to trust "everything" we read in this New Testament. But many will say "But, I don't read Hebrew" and how could I know?" Well, we have great study aids today that will provide for the non-Hebrew speaking Christian the Hebrew-English translations where he can see these "additions, deletions, inventions, and other corruptions" of the Hebrew Scriptures for himself. Now the purpose of this introduction is for me to actually that that of all these New Testament deceptions that we read in our Christian Bibles the greatest of all apply to the doctrine of "atonement". Let me show you.
Few if any Christians have ever studied Judaism thoroughly. Sadly Christians who write books are the chief culprits and mislead untold numbers by filling their heads with "untruths". Fewer still have ever studied thoroughly the subject of "atonement" in-depth enough as taught in the Hebrew Bible to know how the Sacrificial System actually works and consequently never come to the truth as to how one actually received "atonement" let alone if God has anywhere mentioned in the Hebrew Scriptures that mankind sin can be atoned for by one man's death. Few never study enough to know for certain that nowhere in the Hebrew Scriptures can be found the idea that one man's death, or the death of the "righteous-innocent" can pay for the sins of the guilty or the sins of a multitude. It simply is not there. Again, we have to go to the "altered" books in the English translation of our Christian Bibles to get a "hint" of such an idea. And millions of Christians never study the Sacrificial System and learn how it operated and only hear of "blood" over and over their whole lives and erroneously think the Sacrificial System is focused only on "blood" when actually the "blood" had very little to do with it as we shall see.
Answer for yourself: If you were asked, "How can Jesus' death save us?" what would you say? Could you find the basis of this belief that the death of one "righteous" atoned for the sins of the "unrighteous" in the unaltered and unforged Hebrew Scriptures or do you have to go to the corrupted Greek translation of the Hebrew Scriptures that later will become the foundation for all later Christian Bibles to find this idea? Do we have to turn to all the later "doctored" English translations of these Hebrew Books with their purposefully mistranslated, purposefully misquoted, purposefully taken out of context passages, and astoundingly "invented" passages to find such an idea? Or has no one yet told you the truth concerning our Christian Old Testaments and the quotes we find from them as recorded in our New Testaments? Does your pastor know the truth about the Bible from which he preaches? Has he done these studies? If he answers "yes" then you should ask him, after reading these articles, to explain to you why he remains in the pulpit once you see these alterations for yourself.
In the Christian Bible, in the New Testament, we find reiterated often that Jesus died for the remission of our sins. We've all heard that repeatedly in our sermons and Sunday school classes since we were children. Amazing the Jewish Faith, Biblical Judaism, and the Jewish people whom were given the Sacrificial System in the first place by God do not believe in such a doctrine that a "man" or "messiah" can die for the sins of another because the Hebrew Scriptures, from beginning to end, teach not nor require the death of the innocent for the guilty but repentance of the guilty for the "forgiveness" of sins. So we have a two thousand year old theological problem that exists up to our day. We have dealt with Biblical atonement in other articles but there is one point I wish to add in this article and that has to do with idea of "types and shadows" which are often applied to the New Testament Jesus as the "fulfillment" of God's Divine Plan of Salvation for all mankind. Christianity teaches that many events, persons, and objects in the Old Testament and other scriptures were "types", "shadows" or foreshadowings of the coming of Jesus Christ. Prototypes and intimations are constantly used by Christianity as "symbolisms" foreshadowing events in the life of this Jesus as well as the death of Jesus as the "final atonement" for sin.
For example, we are told by Christianity that the scapegoat and purification rites of the Day of Atonement signify Christ's salvation wrought by suffering and death (Heb. 9:7-12). It would behoove us to read this long passage at this time as it is but a picture for all similar passages that assures us that this Jesus' death has achieved for us our atonement and forgiveness for our sin before God:
Heb 9:7-12 7 But into the second went the high priest alone once every year, not without blood, which he offered for himself, and for the errors of the people: 8 The Holy Ghost this signifying, that the way into the holiest of all was not yet made manifest, while as the first tabernacle was yet standing: 9 Which was a figure for the time then present, in which were offered both gifts and sacrifices, that could not make him that did the service perfect, as pertaining to the conscience; 10 Which stood only in meats and drinks, and divers washings, and carnal ordinances, imposed on them until the time of reformation. 11 But Christ being come an high priest of good things to come, by a greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this building; 12 Neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood he entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us. (KJV)
Again, it seems so simple. We read this passage over and over and never stop to look up in our Greek Lexicons and Dictionaries in order to find the "real meaning" of the Greek or Hebrew words we have read in English translation. Failing to do this we are often deceived by the words we read in our English Bibles and never know it. No greater example could be found that in this passage than where we find the word "errors" used in Hebrews 9:7. If we take the time to consult the Christian Lexicons, like Strong's Concordance we find the word "error" is actually:
51 agnoema (ag-no'-ay-mah); from 50; a thing ignored, i.e. shortcoming: KJV-- error.
That does not tell us much. That does not really tell us much and many will not see the purpose of such exhaustive study but now watch what we see when we use a better book; the Thayer's Greek Lexicon:
51 agnoema- " a sin committed through ignorance or thoughtlessness"
Answer for yourself: Did you notice that the idea in the passage is that the High Priest on the Day of Atonement brought blood into the Holy of Holies and applied it to the altar for a particular type of sin which we find in the Greek work are "sins of ignorance"? What is not mentioned in this verse in Hebrew above? Intentional Sins!
Answer for yourself: Is there a difference between "sins of ignorance" and "intentional sins" in regard to the Sacrificial System? Oh, you better believe it night now!
Answer for yourself: Why do we not find that "intentional sins" are mentioned but only "unintentional sins" or the "sins of ignorance" mentioned?
Simply because the Sacrificial System NEVER atoned for sins done on purpose or done deliberately. Willful disobedience of the Laws of God were never atoned for by the Sacrificial System. That means when we "think" about something before we do it and then we go ahead and do it and such a thought or action on our part can be found written in the Hebrew Scriptures as forbidden then such conduct and behavior by us is then "intentional" and no blood sacrifice can be brought to atone for such an action on our part. The same can be said for things "commanded of us by God" which are positive in nature and we fail to do them. Both are violations of God's Laws and are considered "sins" and our failure to do "right" and what God demands is "sin". We are, as the Bible said, cut off from God whether we "feel it" or "know it". But the good news is that there is a remedy, but surprisingly we find if we study our the Sacrificial System and how it actually operated it is not "blood/death" but rather "life" that "atones" as I will explain in a second.
What we find when we study Judaism and get behind the dynamics of Hebrew 9:7-12 is the fact that historically the whole of the Sacrificial System as taught in the Hebrew Scriptures as well as in Judaism is centered around blood sacrifices for "sins of ignorance" ONLY! Ironically in our "doctored" New Testaments with their "fixed" translations we can find this same truth in our Christian Bibles but it lies buried in the Greek and we will not find these truths in the English of our Bibles and most likely you, the reader, does not know Greek and never looked up these English words in Greek Lexicons. Thus you never see the hidden truths that lay beyond our sight. Well I have and I spent years, many years, looking up and studying almost every verb and noun in both the Hebrew and Greek and English Bible. I wanted the truth and in Seminary this fundamental Baptist boy saw clearly that there were way to many contradictions for me to believe that God could not say the same thing correctly twice in both the Jewish and Hebrew Scriptures and the later Greek and later English translations. Evident to me is that there are either really ignorant people writing this Holy Book who cannot follow the Holy Spirit or else theological agendas and antisemitism was at work and that this is the reason for the rejection of the prior Divine Revelation from God which is so clearly set out in these same Hebrew Scriptures. Over the years I proved to myself beyond any doubt that this was the sad truth to which we have all fallen as Christians and followers of "the Christ".
Again, Christianity maintains that by "types" and "shadows" that the New Testament Jesus is the fulfillment of the Old Testament; in particular that he is the "final sacrifice" for sins. They call Jesus the "lamb of God"; again making it plain that this human sacrifice is the ultimate sacrifice for sin. I think we all can agree that if this New Testament Jesus is to be a true "type and shadow" of something Divine or of some Spiritual Truth then it naturally follows that he must meet all the qualifications set out in the "Divine Pattern" in order to be God's true "type and shadow and fulfillment" and not just meet one of many qualifications of something if what is to be "believed" about this Jesus is to be trusted as representative of a Divine Truth.
Well that was the introduction. So let us begin this inquiry into a big, big big, big question as we look at this Jesus being an atonement for our sin as the writer of Hebrews 7:12 maintains since he contradicts himself in this passage and says that the Sacrificial System only covered "unintentional sins and sins of ignorance" but yet goes on to say in these same verses that this Jesus and his death procured for mankind "eternal redemption" for ALL sin (which would include "intentional sins").But yet we have seen that no blood offering of any kind in the Old Testament Sacrificial System could ever be offered for "intentional sins"!
Answer for yourself: Is the writer of Hebrew just not familiar with the Sacrificial System? Could God have used someone so ignorant of what he writes that he gets is wrong for the world? Or does the writer of Hebrews have a "theological agenda" and is intentionally saying a distortion of the truth in order to condition his hearers to believe and accept only what he wants his hearers to understand and believe?
Something is wrong here but hey, the ignorant unschooled Gentiles of the first century who lacked theological degrees and who could not read Hebrew were ignorant basically of Judaism and its religious dogmas unless they had "converted" and the writer or editor of Hebrews knew this. His deception goes undetected by the ignorant masses and so little has changed today for we grow up in Christian environments never knowing the need to look up these words in our Bibles in their original languages, both Greek and Hebrew, let alone compare what we are taught in our Christian Churches and our English translations with what the Jewish faith has taught for thousands of years before the rise of antisemitic Rome who gave us this New Testament in the first place. Failing to do so we never learn that there is only one way to atone for "intentional sin" and it was never through the Sacrificial System but yet we are told that this death of this Jesus paid for "both" somehow. But this is impossible and no amount of "blood" could ever atone for "intentional sin" but we never are told or taught this in our Christian Churches. So much for "types and shadows". The Divine Pattern, if connected to this Jesus, does not have to be "twisted" or "concealed" or " modified" if there is a true fulfillment but don't tell me that it is when it is not and let me grow up believing this error when in fact just the opposite of what I have heard my whole Christian life is true. Ask your Pastor next time you see him how he missed this when he is supposed to be your spiritual guide and preaches such things as normal Christian dogmas from the pulpit which so badly distort the actual Divine Truths behind the Sacrificial System. No wonder the judgment of teachers is to be feared when they err because they mislead multitudes and shape there Eternal judgments; often negatively.
Answer for yourself: Is the blood sacrificial system man’s only conduit to atonement and is there possible the forgiveness of sin without the shedding of blood? Judaism always knew and taught that fictiveness of sin and atonement is not "connected" ultimately with "blood" and yet knows this today and we never hear of it let alone are taught by Jews in our Churches when the same Bible says "salvation is of the Jews". You might need to read "salvation is of the Jews" and reflect that it is not saying Rome or Tulsa or the Crystal Cathedral or TBN.
Answer for yourself: Does the Bible set forth ONLY blood atonement to expiate sin and can Jesus' death, if efficacious at all, be applied to all types of sin, to both "unintentional sin" and "intentional sin"? Can this Jesus and his death be considered efficacious for all types of sin or only "unintentional sin" according to the Hebrew Scriptures? What are we do with our "intentional sins" since it appears that this Jesus and his supposed death has no bearing on our "intentional sins"? If we have found such a big deception here, as connected with atonement and the Christian historical teaching on Jesus and atonement, then is is possible or likely that there are more "theological" deceptions in our Christian Bibles? Does this deception go beyond just the Christian teachings on atonement and the death of this Jesus? You can be sure it does!
Let me set the stage for this further investigation into these two sets of questions. Evangelical Christians assert that for the past nineteen centuries, since the destruction of the second Temple in 70 C.E., the Jews have lacked the essential and indispensable animal Sacrificial System for atonement. Consequently, they maintain and assume, not knowing accurately the Hebrew Scriptures that within them God has provided many "non-blood" atonements, that God must have provided a blood atonement in place of the animal sacrifices of the past and this must be the death of Jesus. This "belief", that the Jews are without an atonement today because they are unable to bring "blood scarifies", had damned all Jews in the eyes of the majority of Christians because they don't believe in the Jesus of Christianity. What we must realize in considering such a Christian position regarding the Jews is that such ideas are based more off of what we have heard preached our whole lives instead of what we have read and studied in the Hebrew Scriptures for ourselves. Being basically unknowledgeable of the Old Testament and how the Sacrificial System before Seminary and during my early years of Jewish study I was like most Christians when it came to considering "blood sacrifice". I was "pulpit taught" and like most Christians assumed what I had heard was true and was led to believe that the death of this Jesus on the cross is somehow the ultimate atonement provided by God for mankind's sin. In support of the claim that atonement can only be achieved through the shedding of blood, Christianity and my Christian pastors cited often Leviticus 17:11, which reads, "For the life of the flesh is in the blood; and I have given it to you upon the altar to make atonement for your souls; for it is the blood that maketh atonement by reason of the life". They conclude from this verse that only by being covered in the blood of the cross can man have any hope of being forgiven by God for his sins. I did not have the answers in Seminary but sure had "questions". But again of troubling concern for me when in Seminary is why the Jews for some 2000 years have rejected this "easy believeism" that we in Christianity have inherited surrounding our Jesus and the New Testament which describes this supposed messiah's death for the world's sin. Surely the Jews can read like us and the New Testament again makes it so plain. But it would not take long for me as my studies advances to see the truth behind the Hebrew Scriptures that goes lacking when reading the English of my Bible; case in point is this issue between "unintentional" and "intentional" sins as they relate to the Sacrificial System.
Answer for yourself: What can we learn from the Hebrew Scriptures and the teaching of Judaism, whom by the way was given this Sacrificial System in the first place and whom is better equipped to explain how it operated, regarding the above crucial verse in Leviticus 17:11?
We will pick up this study in the next article in this series as we come to the truths behind "atonement" and how the Hebrew Scriptures, for thousands of years, taught how it is to be obtained.