The Significance of Blood in the Bible
· It is a token of the New Covenant (Matthew 26:27-28; 1 Corinthians 11:25).
· It gives eternal life (John 6:53-54).
· It brings redemption (Ephesians 1:7).
· It makes atonement (Romans 3:25; 1 John 2:2; 4:9-10).
· It justifies before God (Romans 5:9).
· It gives us forgiveness (Ephesians 1:7; 2:13; Colossians 1:14; 1 John 1:9).
· It provides reconciliation (Colossians 1:19-20).
· It provides cleansing (1 John 1:7).
· It makes us overcomers (Revelation 12:11).
The Day of Atonement is the tenth day of Tishrei (Leviticus 23:27). It is significant that repentance (the season of Repentance) must precede redemption (Yom Kippur). God purposed that animal sacrifices were only appropriate when presented with a contrite and repentant heart (Psalm 51:16-19). With this in mind, the Day of Atonement was to be kept as a perpetual statute throughout all generations (Leviticus 23:31).
God divinely placed Yom Kippur before the Feast of Tabernacles (Sukkot), which is called “The Season of Our Joy.” The children of Israel (and all believers in the Messiah Yeshua) could only rejoice after they were redeemed and their sins forgiven.
Prophetic: Jesus’ Second Coming and Yom Kippur
If you examine the Scriptures concerning the second coming of Yeshua back to earth, when He will set His foot upon the Mount of Olives (Zechariah 14:4), you will find that it uses Yom Kippur terminology. Here are a few examples.
Recognizing that Isaiah 52:13-14 is speaking about Yeshua during His first coming to earth, Isaiah 52:15 will speak about His second coming. In Isaiah 52:15 it is written: “So shall He sprinkle many nations; the kings shall shut their mouths at Him: for that which had not been told them shall they see; and that which they had not heard shall they consider.”
The phrase, “So shall He sprinkle many nations” is a reference to the sprinkling of the blood on the mercy seat of God by the high priest during Yom Kippur (Leviticus 16:14). This is also referred to in Leviticus 1:5,11; 3:2,8,13; 4:6,17; 7:2.
The garments of the high priest were covered with blood after he had performed this task (Leviticus 6:27). The garments were replaced with white – God was saying in this that He had forgiven their sins and this forgiveness was shown by the garment (symbolic of man’s life), being sprinkled upon by blood (the blood of Yeshua), Yeshua forgiving man’s sins, and thus his garment turning white. Isaiah the prophet wrote, “Come now, and let us reason together, saith the YHVH: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool” (Isaiah 1:18).
Yeshua’s garment went from being stained from His blood when He died upon the tree to being pure white today. White garments represent righteousness before God (Revelation 3:4-5; 7:9,13-14). Yeshua is described this way in Revelation 1:13-14. Yeshua is our High Priest (Hebrews 2:17; 3:1; 4:14; 9:11). Yeshua sprinkled His blood for us (1 Peter 1:2).
