The Scarlet Thread – Blood in the Tabernacle

The Scarlet Thread – Blood in the Tabernacle.

“Glory be to Jesus, Who in bitter pains, poured for me the life-blood, from His sacred veins.

Grace and life eternal, in that blood I find, blest be His compassion, infinitely kind.

Blest through endless ages, be the precious steam, which from endless torments, did the world redeem.

Lift ye then your voices, swell the mighty flood; louder still and louder, praise the precious blood.” (Friedrich Filitz).

Glory Be to Jesus – Christian Song with Lyrics (youtube.com)

The scarlet thread that is sewn into Holy Scripture from beginning to end is unmistakable. There is no doubt whatsoever that the Bible is blood-centric, that there is an overriding theme of blood wherever we look. We don’t need to be super-detectives to discover blood patterns in the Word. The Scripture seems practically preoccupied with blood, and one could be excused for observing that God seems to be out for blood. We find out why this is the case in Leviticus 17:11 and 13… “The life of all flesh is in its blood. The life is in the blood.” The Word of God seems preoccupied with blood only because God is preoccupied with life. God is out for blood only in the sense that He is out for Life. The Bible is blood-centric only because God is life-centric. In fact, the term “scarlet thread” is not strong enough. Instead, the Bible has a powerful crimson tsunami flowing through its pages from Genesis through Revelation, from before creation to the New Creation.

In this Bible study we will take a good look at the blood-stories in Scripture, from the divine sacrifice before the foundation of the world, to the animal sacrifice in the Garden of Eden; from the bloodshed in the first family, to the blood-themed covenant between God and Noah; from the Nile River, to the Passover in Egypt; from the bloody mess in the Tabernacle, to the Scarlet Worm that hinted at Jesus. Yes, there seem to be blood-splatters all over the floors and walls of Scripture. Through it all, the precious blood of Jesus is the centerpiece.

“Under the old system, the blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a heifer could cleanse people’s bodies from ceremonial impurity. Just think how much more the blood of Christ will purify our consciences from sinful deeds so that we can worship the living God. For by the power of the eternal Spirit, Christ offered Himself to God as a perfect sacrifice for our sins.” (Hebrews 9:13-14).

The Blood of the Sacrifice. God designed a blood sacrifice system in the Old Covenant that atoned for, that covered over, the sins of the Chosen People. As a God of justice and righteousness, He demanded a punishment for sin, and the blood of an animal sacrifice was put in place to satisfy that demand. Pure blood from unblemished and utterly innocent animals. Innocent blood was the only answer to the guilt of sin. But this sacrificial system was not meant to be permanently in place. It was ultimately an incomplete system in many ways. It required ongoing sacrifices; it was only a temporary atonement until the person sinned again; it was merely for external purposes, making the person ceremonially clean; it didn’t necessarily change the heart of the person making the offering. So the Mosaic system was adequate and God-ordained for a time. But it was only a shadow, a hint of a better system coming along in God’s perfect timing. It was a necessary beginning to what turned out to be a perfect end. In the Old Covenant, the Mosaic sacrifice was necessary but insufficient. The best was yet to come in the fullness of time.

Lots of Blood. Why so much blood? Aaron must have been covered in blood for most of the day. Blood is sacred, says the Lord. Blood is holy, set apart from other aspects of creation. In the eyes of God, blood represents life. Life itself depends on blood. In fact, “the life of the flesh is in the blood.” (Lev. 17:11). Blood is a life principle flowing into the very structure of created life. So in God’s eyes, blood belonged to Him. Since the Fall in the Garden, the world has had a disastrous problem: sin. The result of sin is death. And the result of blood is life. So it naturally follows that blood is somehow the remedy for sin. Blood has to be involved if forgiveness is to happen, if life proves victorious over death. In God’s plan of redemption, His universal solvent is blood, it dissolves the presence and authority of sin.

Humane Slaughtering. The priests must have been swimming in Tabernacle blood. At a superficial glance, the Tabernacle must have appeared to be a holy slaughterhouse. In fact, it appears the foremost job of the priests in the Tabernacle was that of being the sacred butchers. They were expert handlers with the razor-sharp knife (the “chalaf”) in ritual slaughter all day long, participating in slitting throats, eviscerating the animal’s innards, waving body pieces in the air, flaying the skin, sprinkling and pouring blood on the altars. As some have said, the “yuck factor” in the Tabernacle courtyard was obvious to everyone. The Tabernacle must have been in some ways a nightmare for the sensitive ones, what with all the animal sounds before and during the slaughtering, the smells of the blood and excrement, the sight of bloody entrails and body pieces being carried here and there. But there was never the intention of being inhumane in any way. The actual sacrifice of the animal was painless with the quick deep stroke across the animal’s throat. Unconsciousness occurred within two seconds, and this manner of slaughter prescribed by Yahweh ensured a rapid death and no hint of torture or agony on the part of the animal. The very rapid and complete draining of blood ensured the passing of life in the most humane way possible. Despite appearances, holy sacrifice was not in any way barbaric.

Animals Respected and Honored. The animal’s blood was considered sacred, because it represented the life of the innocent, spotless sacrificial victim. Here is the order of events in the sacrificial process according to rabbinic sources: The priest was first obligated to offer the animal up for God’s blessing, praying for the sanctification of the animal to be sacrificed. Then the priest was to place his hands on the head of the animal, turning it to face the priest’s face so they can see each other eye-to-eye, all done while praising God. The sacrifice was to be done during the day, out in the open, in full public view at all times. The slicing of the animal’s throat is then done and the blood is carefully drained into holy vessels. The blood that was collected in the vessels was then poured onto the altar, intentionally returning the blood to God as His possession.

The Perfect Sacrifice. Jesus was the perfect sacrifice hinted at in the animal sacrifice. He fulfilled all the requirements of the Old Covenant system… an unblemished, pure, innocent victim offering blood for the covering of sins, for atonement. Jesus completed the sacrificial system, so only one sacrifice, His, was needed. His blood brought forgiveness of all sins, by all people, for all time. At a superficial glance, it looks like God is out for blood. But God “doesn’t want blood, He wants life.” Only Jesus Christ, the Son of God, can offer His blood for eternal life, “the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world” (John 1:29).

The Scarlet Worm. Another amazing picture of the blood sacrifice in anticipation of Jesus, is found in, of all things, a worm! In the wilderness Tabernacle, everything had a spiritual meaning and a divine purpose. So it follows that the Lord had His reasons for demanding certain colors in His earthly dwelling place. The brilliant red dye required in the Law is an animal-based dye, and not a plant-based dye. The dyes coming from animals were brighter, more vivid, and were permanent. Dyes based on plants were short-lived and washed out rather quickly. The Lord wanted the colors to remain for all time. And here is the scarlet worm story: There was a small worm, or grub that the Israelites discovered when they were in the Sinai desert. This tiny worm the size of a pea is called the “shani”, which means scarlet red. This color is named after both the worm and the color it produces. As amazing as this story is, the history of the shani is completely true… When the female shani becomes pregnant, it climbs the nearest tree and buries itself into the bark so it is protected. The female will then give birth to its young, and the mother proceeds to die. During the birthing process and death, the female bleeds a bright red scarlet color, making the tree appear as if it’s bleeding. At the death of the mother shani, the newly birthed young feed on the dead mother until they are mature enough to crawl down the tree and live their lives. The dead mother’s body is still able to produce the bright red color later when it is crushed during the dying process. The shani, the scarlet worm, continue to thrive in the Sinai desert to this day. It is astounding that Jesus on the Cross, when reciting Psalm 22, most probably continued to cry out the psalm after the first verse, and Jesus certainly recited verse 6: “I am a shani worm, and not a man!” Jesus knew the story of the shani, and He is declaring that He will offer His life, His blood sacrifice, to give birth to new lives around the world. Jesus Christ is our shani worm. Here we find an astounding picture of our redemption in nature.

“If anyone sins, we have an advocate (“paracletos”), Jesus the Messiah, the Righteous One, who is face-to-face with the Father, pleading our cause. Jesus is the atoning sacrifice for our sins (the “covering,” the “kapporah”), and not only for our sins, but also for the sins of the whole world…. The light of God’s love was manifested toward us when He sent His one and only Son into the world so that we might live through Him. This is love: He loved us long before we loved Him. It was His love, not ours. He proved it by sending His Son to be the pleasing sacrificial offering to take away our sins, the means by which our sins are forgiven. ” (1 John 2:1-2 and 4:9-10).

“There is a fountain filled with blood   Drawn from Immanuel’s veins; And sinners, plunged beneath that flood,   Lose all their guilty stains:   Lose all their guilty stains,   Lose all their guilty stains; And sinners, plunged beneath that flood,   Lose all their guilty stains.

The dying thief rejoiced to see   That fountain in his day; And there may I, though vile as he,   Wash all my sins away:   Wash all my sins away,   Wash all my sins away; And there may I, though vile as he,   Wash all my sins away.

Dear dying Lamb, Thy precious blood   Shall never lose its power, Till all the ransomed ones of God   Be saved, to sin no more:   Be saved, to sin no more,   Be saved, to sin no more; Till all the ransomed ones of God,   Be saved to sin no more.

E’er since by faith I saw the stream   Thy flowing wounds supply, Redeeming love has been my theme,   And shall be till I die:   And shall be till I die,   And shall be till I die; Redeeming love has been my theme,   And shall be till I die.”  (Wm. Cowper)

Shane & Shane: There Is A Fountain (Full of Love) (youtube.com)