Is A Blood Sacrifice

Required For Atonement?

     Quite often, missionaries will cite Hebrews 9:22 (NT) which states: "Without the shedding of blood there is no remission" (forgiveness of sin). But is this true? Is this a Jewish concept? After all the New Testament claims to be the fulfillment of Judaism as found in the Jewish Bible. Let us look at this question to see if the New Testament is telling the truth about this important subject.

The New Testament bases this idea on Leviticus 17:11 which says:

For the life of the flesh is in the blood; and I have given it to you upon the altar to make an atonement for your souls; for it is the blood that makes an atonement for the soul.

From a simple reading of this, it seems that "blood makes atonement for the soul. Without blood atonement does not seem possible. But, is this the whole story?

First of all, we must always ask ourselves, "What is the full context of this verse." An honest reading of Leviticus 17:10-14 shows clearly that the Torah is speaking about a prohibition against eating blood, not about atonement. Blood is considered important because when an animal is offered, the blood is the part that effects the atonement, not the skin or the bones. These passages are also here to tell us that the only permitted use of blood is on the altar, and no other.

But is a blood sacrifice the only means Hashem has given us to atone for our souls?

Absolutely not. Just as a store will allow you to pay by cash, or check, or credit card or food stamps, etc., so too Hashem allows us many way to atone for our souls.

The first step to appreciating this, is to actually look at the quote in the New Testament that missionaries cite to make their case.  We will find that not only do they take Tanach verses out of context, but actually do the same thing to the New Testament as well.  The entire verse reads:

Hebrews 9:22.  And almost all things are by the law purged with blood; and without shedding of blood is no remission.

Almost all things?  I propose that Paul was aware that the atoning effect of blood did not cover everything, and that other means were available for atonement.  Let us now examine the Tanach to see examples of where atonement was achieved in ways other than through a sin offering.

Examples:

This they shall give, every one who passes among those who are counted, half a shekel according to the shekel of the sanctuary...  The rich shall not give more, and the poor shall not give less than half a shekel, when they give an offering to the Lord, to make an atonement for your souls. (NO BLOOD).           

Exodus 30:13-15

What if someone cannot afford an animal to sacrifice, is atonement closed to him?

But if he is not able to bring two turtledoves, or two young pigeons, then he who sinned shall bring for his offering the tenth part of an ephah of fine flour for a sin offering... Then shall he bring it to the priest, and the priest shall take his handful of it, a memorial part of it, and burn it on the altar, according to the offerings made by fire to the Lord; it is a sin offering. And the priest shall make an atonement for him in regard to his sin that he has sinned in one of these, and it shall be forgiven him; and the remnant shall be the priest's, as a meal offering.  (NO BLOOD).

Leviticus 5:11 -13

In most cases in the Bible, stories of the forgiveness of sin involve genuine, heart-wrenching repentance, which is really what Hashem desires most.

Bring no more vain offerings; incense of abomination they are to me.... Wash yourselves, make yourselves clean; put away the evil of your doings from before my eyes; cease to do evil; Learn to do well; seek judgment, relieve the oppressed, judge the orphan, plead for the widow. (NO BLOOD).

Isaiah 1:13-17

The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, 0 God, you will not despise. (NO BLOOD).

Psalm 51:19

Look at the story of David and the matter of Uriah. David is confronted with his sin, repents and is forgiven

And David said to Nathan, I have sinned against the Lord. And Nathan said to David, The Lord also has put away your sin; you shall not die. (NO BLOOD).

11 Samuel 12:13

Furthermore, following the Golden Calf:

And the Lord said to Moses, I have seen this people, and, behold, it is a stiff-necked people; now therefore let me alone, that my anger may burn hot against them, and that I may consume them; and I will make of you a great nation. And Moses pleaded with the Lord his G-d, and said, Lord, why does your anger burn hot against your people, whom you have brought out of the land of Egypt with great power, and with a mighty hand... Remember Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, your servants, to whom you swore by your own self, and said to them, I will multiply your seed as the stars of heaven, and all this land that I have spoken of will I give to your seed, and they shall inherit it forever. And the Lord repented of the evil which he thought to do to his people. (NO BLOOD).

Exodus 32:9-14

Concerning Nineveh, the Gentile city in the Book of Jonah:

Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and cry against it; for their wickedness has come up before me...

And the people of Nineveh believed God, and proclaimed a fast, and put on sackcloth, from the greatest of them to the least of them, And word came to the king of Nineveh, and he arose from his throne, and he took off his robe, and covered himself with sackcloth, and sat in ashes ... And God saw their doings, that they turned from their evil way; and God repented of the evil, which he had said that he would do to them; and he did not do it.  (NO BLOOD)

Jonah 1:2; 3:5-6, 10

Christians may ask, How is it possible to attain atonement without sacrifices? Since no sacrifices have been offered since the Temple was destroyed, Jews offer repentance instead. Christians will then ask, by what authority can we substitute words for sacrifices?

We read in Hosea an admonition from G-d through his prophet for us all.

O Israel, return to the Lord your God; for you have stumbled in your iniquity. Take with you words, and turn to the Lord; say to him: Forgive all iniquity, and receive us graciously; so will we offer the words of our lips instead of calves.

Hosea 14:2-3

Listen to the prayers of the prophet Daniel who lived during the exile in Babylon.  His words of confession:

We have sinned, and have committed iniquity; and have done wickedly and have rebelled, and have departed from your precepts and from your judgments...

Daniel 9:5    

And his plea for forgiveness:

To the Lord our God belong mercy and forgiveness, for we have rebelled against him... 0 Lord, according to all your righteousness, I pray you, let your anger and your fury be turned away from your city Jerusalem, your holy mountain; because for our sins, and for the iniquities of our fathers, Jerusalem and your people have become a- reproach to all those who are around us.

Daniel 9:9;16

Daniel asked God for forgiveness for himself and his people. Would Daniel be praying for something he couldn't have because he couldn't offer blood? Of course not. For Daniel knew of Hosea, and Daniel knew of Nathan the prophet's words about King David.

Lastly, we are told what we must do when we have been put out of our land, dispersed among all the nations and want forgiveness. Though this was spoken by King Solomon, it is applicable to us today, and it has nothing to do with blood, or Jesus.

"They shall pray unto the L-rd toward the city which You have chosen ... and say ... We have sinned ... and so return to You with all their heart ... forgive Your people that have sinned.

I Kings 8:44-50

Yes, we as Jews have sinned, in many ways. All of us, and we must follow the words of our prophets to return to G-d.

Message to Messianic Jews

By the path you have chosen, you may have sinned in a very dangerous way, one that threatens to cut you off from the Jewish people, and threatens the eternity of your neshama (soul).

We are told in Deuteronomy 28:64

"And the Lord shall scatter you among all people from the one end of the earth even unto the other; and there you shall serve other gods, which neither you nor your fathers have known."

It is important to see that the Jewish belief in G-d has standards. When Moses spoke to his generation of gods "that neither you nor your fathers worshipped", he sought to exclude for all time all foreign views of G-d. Moses and his generation did not worship a trinity. They worshipped the one G-d who revealed Himself at Sinai.

Therefore, realize that it is no small thing to believe that Jesus is the Messiah. It is idolatry and for a Jew is punishable by koras, the eternal cutting off of your soul. You can do teshuvah (repentance), and without a sacrifice, as your ancestors did. Return to the true G-d and to his people, who will accept you, as you receive forgiveness of sin.