True Christian Religion # 706
706. The reason why the Lord's blood means His Divine truth and that of the Word is that His flesh means in the spiritual sense the Divine good of love, and these two are made one in the Lord. It is well known that the Lord is the Word; and there are two things to which everything in the Word has reference, Divine good and Divine truth. If therefore the Word is substituted for the Lord, it is plain that it is these two which are meant by His flesh and blood. It is established from many passages that blood means the Divine truth of the Lord or of the Word; for instance, from blood being called the blood of the covenant, since a covenant is a link, and linking is effected by the Lord by means of His Divine truth. Also in Zechariah:
By the blood of your covenant I shall release the captives from the pit, Zechariah 9:11.
And in the works of Moses:
After Moses had read the book of the law for the people to hear 1 , he sprinkled half the blood upon the people, and said, Behold the blood of the covenant, which Jehovah has made with you upon all these words, Exodus 24:3-8.
Also:
Jesus taking the cup gave it to them, saying, This is my blood, the blood of the new covenant, Matthew 26:27-28; Mark 14:24; Luke 22:20.
[2] The blood of the new covenant or testament cannot mean anything but the Word, which is called an old and a new covenant or testament, and so the Divine truth it contains. It is because blood has this meaning that the Lord gave them wine, saying, 'This is my blood'; and wine stands for Divine truth. For this reason it is also called 'the blood of grapes' (Genesis 49:11; Deuteronomy 32:14). This is plainer still from the Lord's words:
Truly, truly, I tell you: if you do not eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you will not have life in you. For my flesh is truly food, and my blood is truly drink. He who eats my flesh and drinks my blood, remains in me and I in him, John 6:50-58.
It is perfectly obvious that blood here means the Divine truth of the Word, because it is said that he who drinks it has life in himself, and remains in the Lord, and the Lord remains in him. It ought to be well known in the church that this is the effect of Divine truth and living in accordance with it, and that the Holy Supper strengthens this effect.
[3] It is because blood stands for the Lord's Divine truth, which is also the Divine truth of the Word, and because this is what the old and new covenants and testaments are, that blood was the holiest representative of the church among the Children of Israel. In that church every detail was a correspondence of something natural with something spiritual. For instance, they were to take some of the blood of the Passover and put it on the door-posts and lintels of their houses, to ensure the plague would not come upon them (Exodus 12:7, 13, 22).
The blood of the burnt offering was to be sprinkled over the altar, right to its foundations, and over Aaron, his sons and their clothes (Exodus 29:12, 16, 20-21; Leviticus 1:5, 11, 15; 3:2, 8, 13; 4:25, 30, 34; 8:15, 24; 17:6; Numbers 18:17 2 ; Deuteronomy 12:27). Also over the veil above the Ark, over the mercy-seat there, and over the horns of the incense altar (Leviticus 4:6-7, 17-18; 16:12-15). The blood of the Lamb stands for something similar in Revelation:
These have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb, Revelation 7:14.
Also in these words from the same book:
War broke out in heaven, Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and they defeated him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their 3 witness, Revelation 12:7, 11.
[4] It is impossible to think that Michael and his angels defeated the dragon by anything but the Lord's Divine truth in the Word. For angels in heaven cannot think about any blood, nor do they think about the Lord's passion; but they think of Divine truth and His resurrection. When therefore a person thinks about the Lord's blood, the angels perceive the Divine truth of His Word. When he thinks about the Lord's passion, they perceive His glorification, and then only His resurrection. I have been allowed to know by long experience that this is so.
[5] It is also plain from this passage in the Psalms of David that blood stands for Divine truth:
God will save the souls of the needy. Their blood will be precious in His eyes, and they will live and He will give them of the gold of Sheba, Psalms 72:13-16.
Blood being precious in God's eyes stands for Divine truth being with them; the gold of Sheba is wisdom coming from this. Also in Ezekiel:
Gather for the great sacrifice upon the mountains of Israel, so that you may eat flesh and drink blood; you will drink the blood of the princes of the earth, and you will drink blood until you are drunk. Thus shall I set my glory among the nations, Ezekiel 39:17-21.
This deals with the church which the Lord is to found among the gentiles. Blood cannot here mean blood, but the truth from the Word they possess; see just above.
Poznámky pod čarou:
1. Literally: in the ears of the people.
2. Corrected from (Lev.) Ezekiel 8:1.
3. The Latin has 'his witness'.
Leviticus 4
1
Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying,
2
"Speak to the children of Israel, saying, 'If anyone sins unintentionally, in any of the things which Yahweh has commanded not to be done, and does any one of them:
3
if the anointed priest sins so as to bring guilt on the people, then let him offer for his sin, which he has sinned, a young bull without blemish to Yahweh for a sin offering.
4
He shall bring the bull to the door of the Tent of Meeting before Yahweh; and he shall lay his hand on the head of the bull, and kill the bull before Yahweh.
5
The anointed priest shall take some of the blood of the bull, and bring it to the Tent of Meeting.
6
The priest shall dip his finger in the blood, and sprinkle some of the blood seven times before Yahweh, before the veil of the sanctuary.
7
The priest shall put some of the blood on the horns of the altar of sweet incense before Yahweh, which is in the Tent of Meeting; and he shall pour out all of rest of the blood of the bull at the base of the altar of burnt offering, which is at the door of the Tent of Meeting.
8
He shall take all the fat of the bull of the sin offering off of it; the fat that covers the innards, and all the fat that is on the innards,
9
and the two kidneys, and the fat that is on them, which is by the loins, and the cover on the liver, with the kidneys, he shall take away,
10
as it is taken off of the bull of the sacrifice of peace offerings. The priest shall burn them on the altar of burnt offering.
11
The bull's skin, all its flesh, with its head, and with its legs, its innards, and its dung,
12
even the whole bull shall he carry forth outside the camp to a clean place, where the ashes are poured out, and burn it on wood with fire. where the ashes are poured out it shall be burned.
13
"'If the whole congregation of Israel sins, and the thing is hidden from the eyes of the assembly, and they have done any of the things which Yahweh has commanded not to be done, and are guilty;
14
when the sin in which they have sinned is known, then the assembly shall offer a young bull for a sin offering, and bring it before the Tent of Meeting.
15
The elders of the congregation shall lay their hands on the head of the bull before Yahweh; and the bull shall be killed before Yahweh.
16
The anointed priest shall bring of the blood of the bull to the Tent of Meeting:
17
and the priest shall dip his finger in the blood, and sprinkle it seven times before Yahweh, before the veil.
18
He shall put some of the blood on the horns of the altar which is before Yahweh, that is in the Tent of Meeting; and the rest of the blood he shall pour out at the base of the altar of burnt offering, which is at the door of the Tent of Meeting.
19
All its fat he shall take from it, and burn it on the altar.
20
Thus shall he do with the bull; as he did with the bull of the sin offering, so shall he do with this; and the priest shall make atonement for them, and they shall be forgiven.
21
He shall carry forth the bull outside the camp, and burn it as he burned the first bull. It is the sin offering for the assembly.
22
"'When a ruler sins, and unwittingly does any one of all the things which Yahweh his God has commanded not to be done, and is guilty;
23
if his sin, in which he has sinned, is made known to him, he shall bring as his offering a goat, a male without blemish.
24
He shall lay his hand on the head of the goat, and kill it in the place where they kill the burnt offering before Yahweh. It is a sin offering.
25
The priest shall take some of the blood of the sin offering with his finger, and put it on the horns of the altar of burnt offering. He shall pour out the rest of its blood at the base of the altar of burnt offering.
26
All its fat he shall burn on the altar, like the fat of the sacrifice of peace offerings; and the priest shall make atonement for him concerning his sin, and he will be forgiven.
27
"'If anyone of the common people sins unwittingly, in doing any of the things which Yahweh has commanded not to be done, and is guilty;
28
if his sin, which he has sinned, is made known to him, then he shall bring for his offering a goat, a female without blemish, for his sin which he has sinned.
29
He shall lay his hand on the head of the sin offering, and kill the sin offering in the place of burnt offering.
30
The priest shall take some of its blood with his finger, and put it on the horns of the altar of burnt offering; and the rest of its blood he shall pour out at the base of the altar.
31
All its fat he shall take away, like the fat is taken away from off of the sacrifice of peace offerings; and the priest shall burn it on the altar for a pleasant aroma to Yahweh; and the priest shall make atonement for him, and he will be forgiven.
32
"'If he brings a lamb as his offering for a sin offering, he shall bring a female without blemish.
33
He shall lay his hand on the head of the sin offering, and kill it for a sin offering in the place where they kill the burnt offering.
34
The priest shall take some of the blood of the sin offering with his finger, and put it on the horns of the altar of burnt offering; and all the rest of its blood he shall pour out at the base of the altar.
35
All its fat he shall take away, like the fat of the lamb is taken away from the sacrifice of peace offerings; and the priest shall burn them on the altar, on the offerings of Yahweh made by fire; and the priest shall make atonement for him concerning his sin that he has sinned, and he will be forgiven.
