Have you ever wondered where the idea of blood sacrifice for atonement came from?

I must admit that was one thing I could never really wrap my mind around, but it did not concern me enough to go looking for an answer. I understood the concept and how the sacrificial system of the old testament was replaced when God made the ultimate sacrifice of Jesus, His Son, to atone for our sin, but none of that explained how the sacrifice of animals was introduced.

A few days ago I had one of those AHA! moments, when something I had read in my bible many times before, took on the status of “golden nugget” as a deeper meaning surfaced. I am always amazed as my study of scripture continues to reveal deeper and deeper layers of understanding. With this new “golden nugget” came a revelation that Jesus was NOT the first blood sacrifice God made on behalf of mankind.

When we discuss the subject of blood sacrifice we tend to focus on the sacrifices the children of Israel made to God. The blood sacrifice of Issac God demanded to test the faith of Abraham, the ram God provided asthe substitution, the paschal lambs whose blood sacrifice protected the Hebrew slaves as the angel of death took the firstborn of Egypt, and the many blood sacrifices made upon the altar of the original Temple of Solomon and the second Temple that was destroyed in 70 AD.

To find the first mention blood sacrifice, we must go all the way back to Genesis. (more…)

In the biblical account of the Exodus, Moses leads a multitude out of Egypt.

This multitude followed Moses for 40 years, wandering in the desert being cleansed and made ready to receive the things that God had promised to Abraham, Issac and Jacob. I touched on something in my last post, What Color or Race Are Gods Chosen People, that was purely speculation on my part. Writing that post was an emotionally draining experience because I was determined to boldly convey what I felt to be true, but I was ever conscious of the sensitivity of the subject and the potential to offend. After the fact, I felt a need to dig deeper into the historical record to better understand who the people were that Moses led out of Egypt, carrying with them the spoils of this once powerful kingdom, and to find within this story the pearls of wisdom we can apply to our lives today.

This is the biblical account from Exodus 12:37-38 KJV

“And the children of Israel journeyed from Rameses to Succoth, about six hundred thousand on foot that were men, beside children. And a mixed multitude went up also with them; and flocks, and herds, even very much cattle.”

Whew! Apparently my speculation was well grounded, and not just something stuck in my brain from the narration of Cecil B. DeMille’s version of The Ten Commandments. I was still curious what the historians had to say on the subject and was able to find some great background material that puts the exodus out of Egypt in a historical perspective.

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