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Citation: VanderVeen, Rachel. “The Semantic Range of Blood: With a Focus on 
Blood in Sacrifices.” BA Honours (Biblical Studies and Theology), Tyndale
University College & Seminary, 2019.

***** Begin Content ******

The Semantic Range of Blood
With a Focus on Blood in Sacrifices

Rachel VanderVeen

BSTH: Honours Thesis in Biblical Studies and Theology
Supervisor: Dr. Benjamin Reynolds

April, 2019
Tyndale University College

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Table of Contents

Acknowledgments .... 3

Introduction .... 4

Blood in the Old Testament .... 10

Leviticus 17:11 .... 17

Blood in Second Temple Jewish Texts .... 30

Blood in the New Testament .... 41

Hebrews 9: Jesus' Blood Sacrifice .... 50

Conclusion .... 63

Appendices .... 70

Bibliography .... 79

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Acknowledgments

I would like to give a special thanks to my supervisor, Dr. Benjamin Reynolds, for his guidance
and assistance with this research project. I appreciate his willingness to read through countless
drafts, to help with editing, and to offer advice along the way. Dr. Reynolds has been a constant
source of encouragement and support, and pushed me to be a better thinker and writer. Thank
you to Dr. Natasha Duquette and Dr. Marion Taylor for their work in examining my thesis and
offering feedback and revision advise. Thank you to Dr. John Kessler and Dr. James Robertson
for the numerous conversations that sparked interest and various ideas pertaining to this thesis. A
special thank you also to my family for their constant support as I completed this project. They
have encouraged me and believed in me, even when I have not always believed in myself. I want
to thank them for allowing me to pursue my passion for deeper theological and biblical study.

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Introduction

Blood is referenced in a variety of ways in the Scriptures. In each reference, blood occurs in a
specific context and has a specific purpose and meaning. Blood in the context of sacrifices is no
exception. God commanded His people to offer sacrifices on several occasions, including the
occasion to atone for sins. But why do sacrifices require blood? How does the blood of an animal
atone for sin? Why is Jesus' blood shed in the New Testament for the forgiveness of sins? These
questions prompted my study on the meaning of blood in the Scriptures, particularly in its
relationship to sacrifice.

	I will begin with a study of dam in the Old Testament. I will argue that blood occurs in
different contexts and has a broad semantic range. Blood can carry the meaning of violent death
(1 Kgs. 2:5) or the meaning of life (Ps. 72:14). There are instances in the Old Testament where
blood is found in more than one context, such as Lev. 7:26, which prohibits the consumption of
blood in the context of sacrifice. In Exodus 24, the “blood of the covenant” is an important
phrase that has theological significance throughout the Scriptures. I will look specifically at Lev.
17:11 and the blood sacrifices in the Old Testament. God says, “For the life of the flesh is in the
blood, and I have given it for you on the altar to make atonement for your souls, for it is the
blood that makes atonement by the life” (Lev.17:11). I contend that the Hebrew as well as the

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Greek Septuagint reading of Lev. 17:11 show that the meaning of blood in sacrificial contexts is
connected with life.

	Following my examination of the Hebrew Scriptures, I will address the Greek word haima 
in Second Temple Jewish texts. Examples taken from the Apocrypha, Dead Sea Scrolls, Greek
Pseudepigraphal texts, and the works of Josephus will prove that blood continues to have a broad
semantic range. Within these Second Temple Jewish texts there are also contexts where blood
relates to other contexts and meanings. Blood occurs in many contexts including death; however,
a close connection between blood and life is still maintained. My study of haima will continue into
the New Testament. I will summarize some references to blood and show that blood continues to
have a broad semantic range. The gospels and letters mention the “blood of the covenant” and
refer to family bloodline. The blood of Jesus is referenced several times as well. In these various
references, it seems that blood has a broad semantic range. In the New Testament, as in the Old
Testament, blood means life in some contexts.

	Ultimately, this study on blood will focus on Hebrews 9 and the blood of Jesus' sacrifice.
The author of Hebrews appears to work with the Septuagint, which Lev. 17:11 makes a direct
connection between life and blood in Lev. 17:11. Therefore, I will argue that the author of
Hebrews viewed Jesus' blood in connection to life, not death. I will argue that Jesus' blood,
body, and self are used interchangeably to describe Jesus' sacrifice offered in the heavenly
sanctuary before God the Father. Jesus' blood was not a representation of his death, but a
representation of his life before God.1

	Reading Leon Morris' chapter on blood in his book, The Apostolic Preaching of the
Cross, prompted this study. Leon Morris spends an entire chapter on blood in the Scriptures,
_____________________
1 This claim draws on work by James Thompson and David Moffitt. I will specifically address

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where he argues that the meaning of blood is violent death. Morris classifies every reference to
blood in the Old and New Testaments into five different groups based on meaning. The groups
are: violence of some kind, connecting life with blood, eating meat with blood, sacrificial blood,
and other uses (general group).2 Morris subdivides the five groups further, indicating how many
examples are given in the Scriptures for each. For example, under sacrificial blood, he says blood
is referred to generally 94 times, blood in relation to the Passover 6 times, and blood in non-
Israelite sacrifices 3 times.3 Morris places the Passover references in a sacrificial context, which I
believe could be misleading. Though an animal is given as a substitution for the one making the
offering, there is no mention of atonement, and the Passover is not in the context of the
priesthood or Levitical sacrifices. Furthermore, although Morris states the total number of
references in each group and lists a few examples, he does not list the specific references he has
placed in each group, so the reader must take him at his word what he is doing with the material.4

	Leon Morris comes to the conclusion that blood means violent death because of how
many times blood appears in a violent context. He says there are 362 occurrences of dam in the
Old Testament. I think he is correct; however, I would point out that they are only found in 295
different verses, because some references say dam more than once. For example, “Whoever sheds
the blood of man, by man shall his blood be shed, for God made man in his own image”5
(Shofek dam haadam baadam damo yishapek kiy betselem Elohim asah et-haadam, Gen. 9:6). dam appears twice 
in this sentence, though the author of Genesis could probably have said the same thing with only one
reference to dam. Morris does not acknowledge this so it is unclear how to interpret his claim that
________________________
2 Leon Morris, The Apostolic Preaching of the Cross, Grand Rapids, Michigan: Eerdmans
Publishing, 1965, 112.
3 Morris, The Apostolic Preaching, 113.
4 Morris, The Apostolic Preaching, 112.
5 English Standard Version (All further references will be taken from the ESV).

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blood with regards to a death by some kind of violence occurs twice as often as in the context of
sacrifice.

	Morris states that there are 203 examples of dam in reference to a death by some kind of
violence, which is almost twice as many times as dam used to describe blood in sacrifice (103
examples). Morris further notes that while blood of sacrifice is mentioned half as much, it also
has a more concentrated distribution. The Old Testament only mentions blood in sacrifices 19
times in Exodus and 59 times in Leviticus, with only 25 references elsewhere in the Old
Testament. Whereas blood connected with death by some kind of violence is scattered
throughout the Old Testament Scriptures. Morris' concluding statement is: “As far as it goes, the
statistical evidence indicates that the association most likely to be conjured up when the Hebrews
heard the word ‘blood' was that of violent death.”6 Therefore, he says, the meaning behind dam is
essentially violent death.

	Morris is accurate when he says that blood associated with a violent death is the most
common use in the Old Testament, but that does not imply that meaning has any bearing on what
it will mean in a different context. To understand the meaning of a word, one must look at that
word in its proper context. If I am studying “blood” in the context of sacrifices (blood of bulls
and goats), the blood of menstruation or of grapes does not necessarily have a bearing.
Especially when dealing with the Scriptures, one has to remember various authors over a number
of years contributed to the writing of the Old and New Testaments. Morris does not offer any
theory of his lexical semantics or suggest what each word could mean in its proper context. He
only suggests that since blood occurs most often as a violent death, and in this way most widely
throughout the Old Testament, violent death would be in the minds of the readers.
_________________________
6 Morris, The Apostolic Preaching, 114.

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	Constantine Campbell writes that “context is extremely important for uncovering lexical
meaning.”7 He goes further to quote Moises Silva by saying, “Linguists assign a determinative
function to context; ‘the context does not merely help us understand meaning—it virtually makes
meaning.'”8 Though these comments are made in regards to the Greek language, it is true of any
language. A word can shift in meaning and connotation based on how it is being used in a
sentence, paragraph, or page of a work. To give a blanket statement that a word is functioning in
only one specific way is putting limits on what the author (and in this case multiple authors) are
trying to do with their work.

	In contrast to Morris, I will argue in this thesis that death is only one of many meanings
blood can have. After examining all of the references to blood in the Old and New Testaments, I
found that roughly ten percent of the references to blood appear in more than one context (or
group as Morris classified). For example, Lev. 7:26 reads, “Moreover, you shall eat no blood
whatever, whether of fowl or of animal, in any of your dwelling places.” The verses directly
preceding show that this verse is in the context of peace and food offerings (sacrifices) given to
the Lord. This verse presents a prohibition about eating blood but in the context of the sacrificial
use of blood. Morris' five groups only allow for Lev. 7:26 to be in placed in one group. Since
Morris does not include a list of blood passages and what group he places each reference in,
there is no way to know what group he placed Lev. 7:26 in. This passage appears in a context
that includes blood of sacrifice and consuming meat with blood, so instead of placing Lev. 7:26
in the context of one group only, I consider Lev. 7:26 to overlap into both semantic domains.9
_____________________________
7 Constantine R. Campbell and D. A. Carson, Advances in the Study of Greek: New Insights for
Reading the New Testament, Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan, 2015, 75.
8 Campbell, Advances, 75, citing Silva's Biblical Words.
9 See Appendix.

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	Blood has a broad semantic range, and the meaning of blood is dependent on the context
in which it occurs. In sacrificial contexts, I believe blood is connected to life. Though death
occurs in order to supply blood for a sacrifice, I believe sacrifices in the Scriptures emphasize the
life of the animal and the lives of those on behalf of whom the sacrifice is offered. Therefore, I
will argue in the following chapters that blood in the Old Testament, Second Temple Literature,
the New Testament, and the book of Hebrews functions in multiple contexts. These multiple
contexts imply a broad semantic range and not just violent death. The broad semantic range of
blood is significant for understanding blood in sacrifice and particularly in the sacrifice of Jesus.

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1

Blood in the Old Testament

In this chapter, I will discuss the Hebrew word dam in the Old Testament. I will
comment on some of the different contexts where dam appears in the Old Testament and the
different meanings dam has in those contexts. I will show that blood has a broad range of meaning
and sometimes the context allows for more than one meaning of blood to be expressed.
Ultimately, the context of a word will affect the meaning of the word.10 In this chapter I will
discuss the broad semantic range of blood in the Old Testament. I will discuss references to
blood in the Pentateuch, historical books, prophets, and the writings. I will provide evidence to
argue against Morris' conclusion that blood signifies violent death.11

	At the beginning of this examination of “blood” in the Old Testament, it is worth noting
that there are instances of blood or blood manipulation where the actual Hebrew word dam is not
used. One example includes Rachel sitting with her period and unable to stand up for her father
Laban (Gen. 31:34). Though this is a story dealing with the flow of blood, dam is not specifically
used there. There are also references to sacrifices in which blood would be present but the term
itself is not found. For example, during the Temple dedication (1 Kings 8), we are simply told an
offering is made to the Lord, but there is no mention of the blood that was used in the offerings.
_________________________
10 Campbell, Advances, 75.
11 Morris, The Apostolic Preaching, 114.

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While there are instances in the Old Testament where blood is clearly present, I will focus on
instances of the word dam.

Pentateuch

	The first reference to blood is the blood of Abel. Cain kills his brother Abel, and God
questions him saying, “What have you done? The voice of your brother's blood is crying to me
from the ground” (Vayomer meh asiyta qol demey ahika tsoaqim elai min-haadamah Gen. 4:10). When Cain kills
Abel, “blood” indicates death and violence. This use of blood is in a context of violent death, but
the violent death does not nullify life spilled out. Gordan Wenham says the Jews believed that
life was in the blood (Lev. 17:11) so shedding blood was a criminal offense.12

	The Pentateuch has the most references to blood in the Old Testament, especially due to
the references to sacrifices in Exodus and Leviticus. For example, Ex. 29:16 says: “and you shall
kill the ram and shall take its blood and throw it against the altar” (Vetaraqta al-hamitbeha saviv veshahatta 
et haayil velaqahta et-damo.) Similarly Lev. 1:11 says, “the priests shall throw its [the sheep or goat's]
blood against the sides of the altar” (Vetarqu beney hacohenim et odam el hamitbeha saviv).  Sometimes the 
blood used in a sacrifice or offering cleanses or purifies, such as those who are unclean from
leprosy (Lev. 14:25).13 But sometimes the blood used in a sacrifice is used to atone for sins. In
Leviticus 4, Moses relays instructions for Israel to offer sin offerings to God. Moses says the
priest shall bring the bull before the Lord at the tent of meeting and kill it. Then the anointed
priest shall take some of the blood of the bull and bring it into the tent of meeting, and “the priest
shall put some of the blood on the horns of the altar of fragrant incense before the Lord that is in
the tent of meeting, and all the rest of the blood of the bull he shall pour out at the base of the
_______________________
12 Gordan J. Wenham, Genesis. Vol. 1-15, Word Biblical Commentary, V. 1, Waco, Tex.: Word
Books, 1987, 107.
13 See Appendix for more examples.

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altar of burnt offering that is at the entrance of the tent of meeting” (Lev. 4:7). From these two
verses, it is clear that blood within a sacrificial context can purify or atone. Though an animal is
killed in order to supply the blood, the manipulation of the blood after the death is the climax of
the sacrifice. To simply state violent death is the meaning of blood in this context minimizes the
atoning work of the blood.

	The Pentateuch also makes reference to an important phrase in both the Old and New
Testaments: the “blood of the covenant” (dam-habrit ). In Exodus, God explained the guidelines for
proper worship in terms of sacrifices, and Exodus 24 records the covenant making ceremony.
Moses wrote down the words of the Law and read them to the assembly of Israel. Moses then
took the blood of the peace offering (blood of oxen) and put half the blood in basins and threw
the other half of the blood against the altar. After Moses read the book of the covenant to Israel,
he threw the blood on them saying, “Behold the blood of the covenant that the Lord has made
with you in accordance with all these words” (Hine dam-habrit asher carat Yahweh imakem al kol-hadvarim haeleh), 
Ex. 24:8).

	The book of Numbers contains an interesting reference to blood in a law requiring a red
heifer for the purification of sins (Num. 19:1-10). The law says, “Then Eleazar the priest is to
take some of its [red heifer] blood on his finger and sprinkle it seven times toward the front of
the tent of meeting. While he watches, the heifer is to be burned—its hide, flesh, blood and
intestines” (Num. 19:4-5). After the heifer is burned, the ashes of the heifer had to be gathered
and placed outside of the camp. Interestingly, the blood of the heifer is used here in two different
ways. Eleazar sprinkles the blood towards the tent of meeting; however, the blood presumably
left with the body of the heifer is to be burned.

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	In Numbers and Deuteronomy, there are some references to blood in relation to violent
death. God commanded Moses to tell the people to create cities of refuge for the people in the
land of Canaan. These cities would be places that the people could take refuge in if they had shed
blood in any way (Numbers 35; Deuteronomy 19). In Deut. 15:23, “blood” is mentioned in the
context of sacrifice. God commands that all the firstborn males that are born in a flock are to be
dedicated to Him. But God specifies that a firstborn with any sort of blemish shall not be offered.
Instead, God permits the animal to be eaten, except for the blood: “only you shall not eat its
blood; you shall pour it out on the ground like water ”Hine dam-habrit asher carat Yahweh imakem al 
kol-hadvarim haeleh  Deut. 15:23). Though God does not qualify the prohibition to eat blood with its 
association to life, as He does elsewhere (Lev. 17:11), He does maintain that blood should not be consumed.
Again, it is clear to see blood occurs in more than one context (sacrificial blood and consuming
blood) and the meaning concerning blood must be decided in light of both contexts.

Historical books

	The historical books emphasize blood in warfare, detailing the violent death of
individuals and entire nations. 1 Kings talks about “blood that had been shed in war, and putting
the blood of war on the belt around... waist and.. .feet” (1 Kgs. 2:5). This text clearly refers to
blood in a violent context. However, there is an instance in 1 Kings 18 where blood does not
signify a violent death, but is associated with mourning. 1 Kgs. 18:28 says, “And they [Baal's
prophets] cried aloud and cut themselves after their custom with swords and lances, until the
blood gushed out upon them.” Mordechai Cogan notes, “shedding of blood is associated in
biblical sources with rites of mourning, probably an expression of extreme grief, and was

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outlawed for Israelites.”14 An example of this law is found in Deut. 14:1, though blood is not
specifically referenced. The “prophets in a moment of great distress resorted to a bloody rite in
the hope that it would move Baal to action.”15 Though this is a violent action, these prophets did
not lose blood to the point of a violent death, and the meaning of blood in this context should not
simply be violent death.

	1 Samuel 14 has a reference to Saul's men consuming their spoil with the blood (1 Sam.
14:32). The focus is on the phrase “and the people ate them with the blood”  (Vayokal haam al-hadam).  
Most translations say ‘ate with the blood'; however, it is also possible to read it ‘the people ate
them over the blood'. One interpretation sees this “with the instruction in Lev. 19:26--“you shall
not eat upon the blood. You shall not practice augury or divination”—and understands that
eating over the blood, especially at night, represents a form of communication with the forces of
the underworld.”16 Either way this is understood, “the people [were] sinning against the Lord by
eating with the blood” (1 Sam. 14:33). In the context of violence (spoil), there is the
consumption of blood as well.

Prophets

	The prophets, Ezekiel especially, have many references to blood in the context of
murder,17 but I am interested in the context and meaning of blood outside of violent death. Joel
2:31 gives a description of the moon to blood. James Crenshaw suggests, “an atmospheric
abnormality resulting from raging fires probably provides the imagery for the moon's strange
appearance. Zephaniah refers to blood being poured out like dust on that day (1:17), an image
________________________
14 Mordechai Cogan, 1 Kings: A New Translation with Introduction and Commentary, 1st ed.
The Anchor Bible, V. 10, New York: Doubleday, 2001, 441.
15 Cogan, 1 Kings, 441.
16 A. Graeme Auld, I & II Samuel: A Commentary, First ed. Old Testament Library, Louisville,
Kentucky: Westminster John Knox Press, 2011, 158.
17 See Appendix.

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that may explain Joel's allusion to a blood-red moon if one imagines dust rising to the sky.”18
Crenshaw also adds that sandstorms could have caused the moon to have a reddish appearance.19

	Zechariah returns to the concept of the blood of the covenant, which first appeared in
Exodus 24. God promises to redeem and restore Israel because of His covenant faithfulness to
them. God declared to Israel through His prophet Zechariah, “As for you also, because of the
blood of my covenant with you, I will set your prisoners free from the waterless pit”
(Bedam- beritek shilahtiy emirayik gam-at), Zech. 9:11). The pronominal suffix on the end of covenant
(Beritek) is second feminine singular, referring to Israel.20 The blood of the covenant set the nation
of Israel apart from other nations because it showed Israel in covenant relationship with God.
The covenant was inaugurated and referred to with blood, and it serves an example of how blood
can appear in more than one context. The covenant is inaugurated through sacrifice, although not
a sacrifice for the atonement for sins, and the covenant clearly involves the violent deaths of
animals. However, I do not think God speaks to Zechariah about the blood of the covenant so
that he will think of a violent death. Israel's unfaithfulness to the covenant should have resulted
in death, but God's faithfulness to the covenant is what God is referring to. The meaning of
violent death does not seem to be the focus in Zech. 9:11.

Writings

	In the psalms, there is a reference to blood in connection with life. Ps. 72:14 says: “From
oppression and violence he redeems their life, and precious is their blood in his sight”
________________________
18 James L. Crenshaw, Joel, 1st ed. The Anchor Bible, 24c, New York: Doubleday, 1995, 168.
19 Crenshaw, Joel, 168.
20 Mark J. Boda, 2016, The Book of Zechariah, The New International Commentary on the Old
Testament, Grand Rapids, Michigan: Eerdmans,
https://ezproxy.mytyndale.ca:2443/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true
&db=nlebk&AN=1194570&site=ehost-live&scope=site, no pages.

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(Umehamas yigal naphsham veyeyqar damam beeynaiv matok). The psalmist seems to understand a connection 
between life and blood, because the king (Ps. 72:1) would not have seen their violent death as precious. 
The king is to do everything he can to rescue the needy ones' life from oppression and violence because he
views the poor as members of his own family. The king is also to be “the rescuer of the life of
the poor because their blood (i.e., their life) is precious and lovable to him.”21 There is an
interesting reference to blood in Proverbs about blood from the nose. Prov. 30:33 says, “For
pressing milk produces curds, pressing the nose produces blood, and pressing anger produces
strife.” This translation makes a play on the word pressure, and Roland Murphy notes, “in the
second instance it [pressure] indicates a blow that produces nosebleed.”22 Blood in this context
does not mean violent death, but simply blood that flows out of the nose when hit.

	So far we have seen that blood appears throughout the Old Testament in a number of
different ways. I have argued that the context of each occurrence gives the specific meaning to
blood and that giving blood a general meaning of violent death in not helpful or accurate. Blood,
for obvious reasons, is found in contexts of violent death; however, blood is also found in
contexts of sacrifice, equations with life, and prohibitions to consume blood. Sometimes the
contexts allow for more than one of these (blood of the covenant), which suggests that the
semantic range of blood is more than violent death. In the next chapter, I will discuss the
meaning of blood in a sacrificial context and focus on Lev. 17:11. I will highlight the fact that
God has given a specific meaning to blood in sacrifices: life.
________________________
21 Erich Zenger, Frank-Lothar Hossfeld, Linda M Maloney, and Klaus Baltzer. Psalms 2: A
Commentary on Psalms 51-100, Hermeneia-A Critical and Historical Commentary on the Bible,
Minneapolis, MN: Fortress Press, 2005, 216.
22 Roland E. Murphy, Proverbs, Word Biblical Commentary, V. 22. Nashville: T. Nelson, 1998,
237.

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2

Leviticus 17:11

In this chapter, I will discuss Lev. 17:11 in the context of Leviticus as a whole and then within
chapter 17 specifically. I will comment on the Hebrew text and on how the Greek Septuagint
reading differs. I will interact with several scholars and commentaries in order to show that blood
in sacrifices is specifically linked to life. Furthermore, the blood that is placed on the altar for
atonement emphasizes life. This is in contrast to Leon Morris, who discusses Lev. 17:11 and the
Hebrew understanding of life in relation to blood, but nevertheless argues that blood is
associated mostly with death.

	Leviticus stands at the heart of the Torah23 and relies on the book of Exodus and the
existence of the Tabernacle. It deals extensively with rituals and sacrifices. Alexander Desmond
notes that in order “to enable the people to live in close proximity to the Holy One of Israel, God
through Moses institutes a sacrificial system by which the people can atone for their sins.”24 God
commanded that Aaron and his sons (the priests) should kill the bulls and goats and place their
blood onto the altar (Lev. 1:5). This is what atones for the sins of the people and allows them to
_____________________________
23 Richard Briggs and Joel N. Lohr, eds, A Theological Introduction to the Pentateuch:
Interpreting the Torah as Christian Scripture, Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2012,
85.
24 Desmond T. Alexander, From Paradise to the Promised Land: An Introduction to the
Pentateuch, Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2015, 249.

17




approach God. Therefore, there are strict laws laid out in regards to blood, including the
prohibition to eat blood (Lev. 7:26; 17:11).

	The book of Leviticus deals with holiness and the proper worship of Yahweh. Leviticus
1-7 lists different offerings and sacrifices that Yahweh commanded Moses and all the people of
Israel to do (chapters 6-7 give instructions for priests specifically). Chapters 8-10 describe the
consecration of the priests who were in charge of offering the sacrifices on behalf of the people.
Chapters 11-16 deal with unclean and impure people (and things) and what sacrifices must be
offered in order for them to be made clean again.25 The climax of this section (Chapter 16)
records instructions for the Day of Atonement, when the High Priest entered once a year into the
Holy of Holies in the Tabernacle.26 He sprinkled blood on the mercy seat, effecting atonement
for the whole nation of Israel. Directly following details about the Day of Atonement is Leviticus
17, which focuses on the place of sacrifice in the Tabernacle.

	Leviticus 17 comes at the beginning of what scholars call the “Holiness Code.”27 It is
called this because of a phrase that gets repeated throughout: “You shall be holy, for I the Lord
your God am holy” (Lev. 11:14; 11:45; 19:2b; 20:7; 20:26; 21:8). Lev. 17:1-9 gives instructions
as to the place of sacrifice as a means of worship to Yahweh. Yahweh commands Israel through
Moses: “If any one of the house of Israel kills an ox or a lamb or a goat in the camp, or kills it
outside the camp, and does not bring it to the entrance of the tent of meeting to offer it as a gift to
the Lord in front of the tabernacle of the Lord, bloodguilt shall be imputed to that man” (Lev.
_____________________
25 Jacob Milgrom, Leviticus 17-22: A New Translation With Introduction and Commentary, The
Anchor Bible, New York: Doubleday, 2000, 1267.

26 Gordon J. Wenham, 1979. The Book of Leviticus, The New International Commentary on the
Old Testament, Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans,
https://ezproxy.mytyndale.ca:2443/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true
&db=nlebk&AN=1058537&site=ehost-live&scope=site, no page numbers.
27 Milgrom, Leviticus 17-22, 1447.

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17:4). In “the ancient world the place of worship was bound to the identity of the deity who was
believed to live in the sacred shrine.”28 The Israelites now had to bring their sacrifices to the Tent
of Meeting so that the priest could properly manipulate the blood on the altar. In Exodus,
Yahweh told the Israelites that the proper place of worship and sacrifice was inside the Tent of
Meeting (Exodus 40). The people of Israel were also told not to consume any of the blood of the
sacrifice, which is a command given to the alien in Israel as well (Lev. 17:10). Though an alien
was excluded from the worship of Yahweh, God commanded “Moses to prohibit the ingestion of
blood during the consumption of meat to Israelite and alien alike.”29

	Jay Sklar comments that Leviticus 17 does not explain why meat would have been eaten
with the blood still in it, but suggests it was possibly practiced among pagan worshippers. Sklar
also notes that Lev. 17:11 is not the first time that the prohibition to eat blood is seen in the book
of Leviticus (see Lev. 3:17; 7:26).30 However, as John Hartley explains, Lev. 17:11 is the only
text in the Old Testament that prohibits the consumption of blood and then bases it on the reason
that blood effects atonement. Hartley says that God has bestowed power on blood. The “blood in
itself does not effect expiation, only blood from an animal sacrificed before Yahweh according
to certain prescribed rituals.”31 This verse does not say there are no other ways for this expiation
to take place, since Scripture tells us there are other ways including vegetable offerings (Lev.
5:11-12) and oil rites (Lev. 14:15-18). Hartley adds, “Nevertheless, the handling of blood from a
ritually sacrificed animal is the primary means of expiation given by God to His
___________________
28 Kenneth A. Mathews, Leviticus: Holy God, Holy People, Edited by R. Kent. Hughes.
Preaching the Word. Wheaton, Illinois: Crossway Books, 2009, 144.
29 Jacob Milgrom, Leviticus, A Continental Commentary, Minneapolis, MN: Fortress Press,
2004, 185.
30 Jay Sklar, Leviticus: An Introduction and Commentary, Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press,
2014, Accessed November 22, 2018. ProQuest Ebook Central, 220.
31 John E. Hartley, Leviticus, Edited by David A. Hubbard, Glenn W. Barker, and John D. W.
Watts, World Biblical Commentary, Waco: Word Books, 1986, 273.

19




people...Yahweh has graciously given his people a visible way to find forgiveness of their
sins.”32

	In Morris' chapter on blood, he includes a discussion regarding blood in connection with
life. He cites Lev. 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 atonement for your souls: for it is the blood that makes atonement
by reason of the life.” In the context of consuming blood, Gen. 9:4 and Deut. 12:23 are two other
examples of passages that equate blood with life. Therefore, Morris argues, it follows naturally
to assume that “among the Hebrews a close connection between life and blood was
recognized.”33 At this point I am not sure I follow Morris' reasoning that blood only refers to a
violent death, when he also says a Hebrew would have understood a close connection between
life and blood. He does acknowledge there are biblical scholars such as W. Milligan and Vincent
Taylor who argue that dam in the Scriptures (specifically in terms of sacrifice) indicates life and
not death. They would argue that the. .essential thing in sacrifice is the offering up of life.”34
Vincent Taylor believes that when blood is referenced pertaining to Christ's sacrifice, the
“emphasis is upon the idea of life freely surrendered, applied, and dedicated to the recovery of
men.”35

	In support of the understanding that there is a connection between life and blood, S.
David Sperling says that in Hebrew, Ugaritic, and Akkadian poetry, blood and life are lexical
pairs. For example, in Gen. 37:21, Reuben begs his brothers not to shed Joseph's innocent blood
_______________________
32 Hartley, Leviticus, 274.
33 Morris, The Apostolic Preaching, 114.
34 Morris, The Apostolic Preaching, 112.
35 Vincent Taylor, The Atonement in New Testament Teaching, 2d ed., Fernley-Hartley Lecture,
1940, London: Epworth Press (Edgar C. Barton), 1945, 123.

20




(take his life). He uses blood and life interchangeably throughout the narrative.36 An example
from Akkadian poetry is found in the myth Enuma Elis. This is a myth about the creation of the
world by rivalling gods. Enuma Elis makes reference to blood in connection to life. In Tablet VI
the god Marduk addresses Ea saying, “I will bring together blood and form bone.”37 A little
further on in the narrative it says, “From his blood he (Ea) created mankind.”38 These references
are in relation to the life giving force of blood. This myth clearly indicates blood is necessary in
order to create life.

	The connection between life and blood lead Morris to a discussion on whether atonement
is primarily linked with life or death. Although Lev.17:11 speaks to this, he says the passage
leaves it ambiguous, signifying the presentation of life or the infliction of death. He says there is
ambiguity present in almost all other passages that speak of blood in connection with atonement
as well.39 He concludes his section on the Old Testament saying, “we conclude.. .by the evidence
afforded by the use of the term dam in the Old Testament.. .that it signifies life violently taken
rather than the continued presence of life available for some new function, in short, death rather
than life, and this is supported by the references to atonement.”40

	There are stipulations when it comes to blood because of the role that blood plays in the
sacrifice. I believe Lev. 17:11 gives the reason for these stipulations. It is here that we come to
our primary point of interest in this passage: the prohibition against consuming blood. Lev.
17:10-16 as a whole focuses on the proper disposal of animal blood so that the blood does not
______________________
36 S. David Sperling, The Anchor Bible Dictionary, New York: Doubleday, 1992, 761.
37 W. G. Lambert, 2013, Babylonian Creation Myths, Mesopotamian Civilizations, Winona Lake,
Indiana: Eisenbrauns, 111.
38 Lambert, Babylonian, 113.
39 Morris, The Apostolic Preaching, 119.
40 Morris, The Apostolic Preaching, 121.

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become defiled.41 Verse 11 is the clearest indication of why you should not consume blood. In
the ESV it reads: “For the life of the flesh is in the blood, and I have given it for you on the altar
to make atonement for your souls, for it is the blood that makes atonement by the life” (Lev.
17:11). Erhard Gerstenberger argues:

	The assertion “the life of the body is in the blood” (v. 11) or “the life of every body is its
	blood” (twice in v. 14) would not have been emphasized three times for no reason at all.
	And it is not without reason that in v. 11, after the brief definition, there follows also a
	circumstantial, solemn declaration concerning the origin and purpose of the blood
	offering at the altar... 42

So then, at this point it is beneficial to examine the Hebrew text of Lev. 17:11, in order to
understand why such special attention is given to blood and the command not to consume it.

	Lev. 17:11 in the Hebrew text reads as follows:
Kiy nephesh habasar badam hi vaeniy netatiy lakem al- hamitbeha lecaper al-haphshoteycem kiy-hadam hu banephesh yecaper
The question that is most pertinent to our discussion of blood is to understand what the meaning
of blood is in this sacrificial context. With the preposition beth (bet) in front of dam, there is
ambiguity as to how the phrase should be translated. Ronald Williams lists fifteen major
categories in which beth can function.43 For our purposes in Lev. 17:11, there are several
______________________
41 W. H. Bellinger, Leviticus, Numbers, New International Biblical Commentary Peabody, MA:
Hendrickson Publishers, 2001, 108.
42 Erhard S. Gerstenberger, Leviticus: A Commentary, The Old Testament Library, Louisville,
KY: Westminster John Knox Press, 1996, 240.
43 Ronald J. Williams, Williams' Hebrew Syntax, Edited by John C. Beckman, Third ed.,
Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 2007, 96-101.

22



occurrences that can quickly be ruled out based on context.44 Most scholars agree that in Lev.
17:11, beth functions in one of four ways: instrumental, accompaniment, locative, or identity.

	Beth instrumental is translated in English as ‘by' and is “the means, instrument or
mechanism by which something happens.”45 Timothy Willis suggests this reading that the blood
makes atonement by the means of the life. He says, “it seems then that there is a general principle
against consuming the blood in the flesh, and this principle derives from the sacrificial function
of blood. The Lord has assigned to blood the sole function of atonement in sacrificial offerings;
therefore, it cannot be consumed (and give “life”) in any other way.”46 Wenham suggests that
‘make atonement' literally means to pay a ransom and argues that Lev. 17:11c could be
paraphrased, “the blood ransoms at the price of life.”47 So then, it is not money that is the ransom
for someone's life, but the life of an animal and its blood splashed over the altar that atones for
human sin. Wenham concludes that for these reasons “[blood] is sacred and ought not to be
consumed.”48 Lev. 17:11c says, “for (it is) the blood that makes atonement by the life”
(Kiy-hadam hu banephesh ycaper). This last part of the verse gives even more clarity about the role of blood
in sacrifices. The blood makes atonement on the altar because it is identified with life. This word
nephesh can be translated in a number of ways: soul, self, life, or living being. God has declared that
atonement is achieved by the means of life, that is blood, placed on the altar. For this reason,
blood is to be dealt with honourably.
__________________________
44 Beth of transivity, beth temporal, beth adversative, beth distributive, beth of cause, beth of
specification, beth terminative, beth partitive, beth of state or condition, beth of price or
exchange, beth of agent.
45 Williams, Hebrew Syntax, 98.
46 Timothy M. Willis, 2009, Leviticus, Abingdon Old Testament Commentaries, Nashville:
Abingdon Press., no page numbers.
47 Willis, Leviticus, no page numbers.
48 Wenham, The Book of Leviticus, no page numbers.

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	Beth of accompaniment (‘with') indicates something that goes along with something else.
An example Williams gives is Gen. 9:4, which says, “You will not eat flesh with its life, that is,
its blood” (Ak-basar benaphsho damo lo tocelu). Though this is a similar context with flesh and blood, the 
beth is in front of life not blood. In Lev. 17:11 it is not flesh and blood that are given on the altar,
but only the blood. For this reason, we can rule beth accompaniment out.

	Another reading for the beth in Lev. 17:11 is beth locative (‘in', ‘on', ‘through'). This
implies that the life of the flesh is located within the blood, but still separate from it. Baruch
Schwartz says that the beth in badam means ‘in', or literally ‘contained'. To say “...that ‘the life-
force of all living things is contained in the blood' is a graphic way of expressing the dependence
of life upon blood. The point is not that blood is life, or that there is life-force, as a force distinct
from the body itself, in blood per se. The point is simply that when blood is gone, there is no
life.”49 While Schwartz sees a connection between life and blood, he does not take it as far as the
next possible reading and equate the two.

	The final reading for the beth in Lev. 17:11 is beth of identity (‘is' or ‘as'). This is the
reading I am most convinced by. In our passage this would read: “for the life of the flesh is the
blood.. ,”50 This reading equates life and blood in general. Williams feels this reading is unlikely
because of blood's contaminating effect in some contexts. On the contrary, Wenham says
Leviticus 17:11 basically identifies life with blood, for “at a basic level this is obvious: when an
animal loses its blood, it dies. Its blood, therefore, gives it life.”51 He goes on to add that not
eating blood honours the life of the animal or person from which the blood came. Wenham
______________________
49 Baruch J. Schwartz, Priesthood and Cult in Ancient Israel. Journal for the Study of the Old
Testament. Edited by Olyan, Saul M., and Gary A. Anderson. Supplement Series. Sheffield,
England: Sheffield Academic Press, 1991, 49.
50 Williams, Hebrew Syntax, 96-101.
51 Wenham, The Book of Leviticus, no page numbers.

24




references Gen. 9:4 and following which says, “But you shall not eat flesh with its life, that is, its
blood.” In Gen. 9:4 and Lev. 17:11, he sees the sanctity of life (whether human or animal)
associated with not eating blood. Therefore the first prohibition not to consume blood honours
and respects life.52

	Michael Swartz is another scholar who holds a beth identity reading. He says, “Blood is
ostensibly an inanimate substance. But in ancient Mediterranean cultures, the nature of blood and
its fate had ritual, legal, and cosmic consequences.”53 The violent shedding of blood created
disharmony that resulted in the need for a sacrifice. The shedding of blood also had severe
consequences in ancient Judaism.54 Swartz says, “in Jewish understanding, blood is identified
with life itself.”55 Lev. 17:11 and the law forbidding the consumption of blood is given, he adds,
for this very reason. Christian Eberhart supports this Jewish understanding of blood and life
saying that ancient physical anthropology understood Lev. 17:11 to state that blood was the
medium of life. In terms of sacrifices, he believes “atonement through blood application is, in the
end, achieved through life.”56 There are also “other ancient near eastern cultures [that] similarly
recognize blood as a principal life-force because of various common phenomena: its injury-
related loss is fatal, it is shed at childbirth, and menstruation further suggests an obvious link to
___________________
52 Wenham, The Book of Leviticus, no page numbers.
53 Michael D. Swartz, The Signifying Creator: Non-Textual Sources of Meaning in Ancient
Judaism, New York: New York University Press, 2012, Accessed October 26, 2018, ProQuest
Ebook Central, 77.
54 Swartz, The Signifying, 77.
55 Swartz, The Signifying, 77.
56 Christian Eberhart and Henrietta L. Wiley, HL 2017, Sacrifice, Cult, and Atonement in Early
Judaism and Christianity: Constituents and Critique, Resources for Biblical Study, SBL Press,
Atlanta, viewed 23 October 2018,
https://ezproxy.mytyndale.ca:2443/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true
&db=nlebk&AN=1592054&site=ehost-live&scope=site, 204.

25




fertility and reproduction.”57 Furthermore Eberhart writes, “blood is seen in analogy to body
fluids such as sperm or mother's milk that appear to contain secret life power. This
understanding of blood is evident in various ancient near east creation myths.”58 This indicates
that in the ancient world blood was in close connection to the understanding of life.

	Roy Gane also connects blood with life in Lev. 17:11 and says kipper (atone) paired with
nephesh (life) has this idea of ransoming life for life. It would not make sense for kipper to have this
ransom idea with an inanimate object. He suggests “in [Lev. 17:11] the Lord explains that he has
given to sacrificial blood, which represents sacral life and is especially consecrated by contact
with the altar, the function of ransoming human life.”59 David Baker takes this further and says
biologically speaking, blood keeps you alive by providing oxygen and nutrients. The loss of
blood leads to death. Theologically speaking, “blood shed in sacrifice purified the altar from
contamination, which could lead to separation and death; it brought the person back to God, the
source of all life. It served as a person's ransom, taking the place of the offerer's own life.”60

	Jacob Milgrom specifies that it is not merely blood that expiates. It is not the altar itself
that expiates either. It is blood, which is placed on the altar that atones for sins. Milgrom says,
“Blood is life. Hence it is powerful, but only God can activate it. This happens when the blood is
sanctified; that is, when it is in contact with the altar and other sancta.”61 Therefore, blood needs
to be disposed of in the proper manner and then placed onto the altar, as Yahweh prescribed, in
order for this atonement to take place, and the life be ransomed.
__________________
57 Eberhart, Sacrifice, 205.
58 Eberhart, The Sacrifice, 205.
59 Roy Gane, The NIV Application Commentary-Leviticus, Numbers, Grand Rapids, MI:
Zondervan Publishing House, 2004, 302.
60 David W. Baker, Dale A. Brueggemann, and Eugene H. Merrill, Leviticus, Numbers,
Deuteronomy, Edited by Philip Wesley, Comfort, Cornerstone Biblical Commentary, Carol
Stream, IL: Tyndale House Publishers, 2008, 126.
61 Milgrom, Leviticus 17-22, 1479.

26




	In his article dam, Kedar-Kopfstein addresses the close connection that blood has to
both life and death. He says that in many texts the meaning to be associated with blood can be
hard to decide. For “on the one hand experience teaches that when [blood] flows out of a living
creature, life comes to an end; on the other hand the blood of menstruation, like the blood shed at
birth, points to sexual intercourse, reproduction, and fertility.”62 And when it comes to Lev.
17:11 there is some ambiguity as to why blood is used in the sacrifice. He says it is clear that the
one sacrificing gives back to God a life, which is contained in the blood. But whether the blood
emphasizes this life (or death) is not clear, only that the sacrifice happens in place of another.63
He also brings up Ezek. 37:1-14 and the valley of dry bones and points out that Ezekiel names
the components of the body: bones, sinew, flesh and skin and then only after that is ‘life' given
to the body. Blood is not part of the framework of the body, but he argues it is the bearer of
“personally differentiated life, the vital element in the individual.. .thus the word is semantically
close to nephesh to the extent that this can denote life as such.”64

	In Lev. 17:14, there is a reiteration of the blood and life connection. Though not directly
linked to sacrifice, this prohibition is against consuming the blood of an animal that has been
hunted. It reads: “For the life of every creature is its blood: its blood is its life” 
(Kiy-nephesh col-basar damo benaphsho).  In this verse, the preposition beth is not attached to the word for blood, 
but for life. However, the same argument is being made. There is such a close connection with
the life of the animal and its blood that the Israelites are not to consume it, but dispose of the
____________________________
62 Benjamin Kedar-Kopfstein, dam, Theological Dictionary of the Old Testament, Edited by
Johnannes G. Botterweck and Helmer Ringgren, Translated by John T. Willis, Geoffrey W.
Bromiley, and David E. Green, Vol. III. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1977, 237.
63 Kedar-Kopfstein, Theological Dictionary, 248.
64 Kedar-Kopfstein, Theological Dictionary, 240.

27




blood in the proper manner. In the case of a hunted animal, God requires the blood to be poured
out on the earth, not on the altar.

	There are not many Second Temple Jewish texts that refer to Leviticus, especially to Lev.
17:11 specifically. However there is some that talk about the sacrificial system and the role of
priests in general. Lester Grabbe writes about the temple saying, “the main activity in the temple
was blood sacrifice. There were required sacrifices on a daily, weekly, and monthly basis and
also at the major religious festivals.”65 It was the priests who were in charge of the cult and the
book of Leviticus outlined their responsibilities as far as carrying out the sacrifices of the
sacrificial system. The priests did this until the temple was destroyed in 70 CE.66 So then, we
know that people living in the first-century would have been familiar with the sacrificial system
and blood being placed on the altar.

	The Greek Septuagint reading of Lev. 17:11 is a turning point in our discussion of blood
and life in the sacrificial context. The Septuagint favours the beth identity reading. It reads: Hey gar 
psyche pases sarkos haima autu estin sai ego dedoka auto epi tou thusiastoeriou exlaskesthai peri town psuchown 
to far haima autou anti tes psuches exilasetai  (“for the life of all flesh is its blood,
and I have given it to you on the altar to make atonement concerning your souls for its blood
makes atonement for the sake of your souls”). As mentioned, the beth in the Hebrew text lends
several options of interpretation, which I narrowed down to four: instrumental, accompaniment,
locative, and identity. Comparing the Hebrew Old Testament and the Greek Septuagint, it is
clear that the Septuagint equates blood and life. The Greek does not have a preposition in front of
the word blood (aiia). Instead, the verb “to be” (estin) is supplied. This directly correlates to the
________________________
65 Lester L. Grabbe, An Introduction to Second Temple Judaism: History and Religion of the
Jews in the Time of Nehemiah, the Maccabees, Hillel, and Jesus, London: T&T Clark, 2010, 40.
66 Grabbe, Introduction to Second Temple, 43.

28




preposition beth of identity. In English, this first clause of the Greek text translates: “For the life
of all flesh is its blood...(Lev. 17:11a). Although the Hebrew text can be more ambiguous, the
Greek Septuagint makes a clear connection between blood and life supplying the verb estin.

	In this chapter we have seen that within a sacrificial context, blood represents and
emphasizes the life of the animal. Though a death takes place, scholars and textual evidence
show that life is what Yahweh requires for sin, and the life given is the blood, not flesh.
Observing Lev. 17:11, we have seen that the Hebrew text can be translated and understood in
several different ways. In contrast, the Greek translation narrows down the possibilities to one
definitive reading: blood is life. Although Morris agrees that Lev. 17:11 makes a connection
between life and death, he believes the text is ambiguous and still concludes blood means a
violent death.

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3

Blood in Second Temple Jewish Texts

In my first chapter, I summarized various contexts in the Old Testament where blood appears
and instances of blood where the meaning is not a violent death. My argument is that there is a
broader semantic range for blood depending on the context, and one meaning should be imputed
on every reference. Therefore, I spent chapter two looking at Lev. 17:11 and the connection
between blood and life in a sacrificial context. Though the death of an animal occurs in order to
supply the blood, it is the blood, the life of the animal that is offered on the altar to atone for sins.
In this chapter, I will follow the timeline into Second Temple Jewish thought and the
understanding of blood. I will look at evidence of blood in Second Temple Jewish texts
beginning with a summary of blood in the Apocrypha and Dead Sea Scrolls. I will also look at
some Greek Pseudepigraphal texts and comment on blood in the works of Josephus. I will
highlight and summarize some of the meanings blood has and emphasize that in some contexts
there still exists a connection between blood and life.

Apocrypha

	There is one reference to blood in the Wisdom 14:25: “And all is confusion—blood and
murder, theft and guile, corruption, faithlessness, turmoil, perjury.” This is a clear example of
blood being used alongside murder in the context of death and chaos. In Sirach, there are also
five references to blood in a murder context (Sir. 8:16; 11:32; 28:11; 34:22; 40:9). While blood

30




in a violent context occurs the most in Wisdom and Sirach, there are other instances in which the
meaning is not death. There is one reference to flesh and blood (Sir. 17:31) and another to the
blood of the grape (Sir. 39:26). The book of Judith has only one reference to blood. This
reference is in the context of murder as Judith prays to God, “you handed over their rulers to
slaughter; and you handed over to bloodshed the bed in which they lay deceived” (Jth 9:3). 1 and
2 Maccabees also talk about blood in a murder context (1 Macc. 1:37; 7:17 and 2 Maccabees
1:8). Similar to Sir. 39:26, 1 Macc. 6:34 also talks about the blood of grapes and mulberries.

	The book of 4 Maccabees makes eight references to blood. 4 Macc. 8:1-14:10 contains a
story about the martyrdom of seven brothers. Gruesome and gory details are recorded as
Antiochus tortured each of the seven brothers one at a time.67 But in the midst of this violent
story, blood is spoken of in terms of the brothers' family bloodline. 4 Macc. 13:20 says, “There
each of the brothers dwelt the same length of time and was shaped during the same period of
time; and growing from the same blood and through the same life.” In 4 Maccabees, there seems
to be an understanding that blood brings life and that family members share in the same blood.
Blood is clearly being associated with life, so even though this reference is in the context of
violent death, blood in terms of familial bloodline and life is evident.

	4 Maccabees evidences a reference to blood can have more than one context (or group for
Morris). A reference to blood is found in the contexts of a sacrifice and violent death. 4 Macc.
6:29 says, “Make my blood their purification, and take my life in exchange for theirs.” Similarly,
4 Macc. 17:22 says, “And through the blood of those devout ones and their death as an expiation,
divine Providence preserved Israel that previously had been afflicted.” These references show
that blood was shed on behalf of someone else, but the way they are talked about is different.
_________________________
67 Gale A. Yee, Hugh R. Page and Matthew J. M. Coomber, eds. Fortress Commentary on the
Bible: The Old Testament and Apocrypha, Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2014, 1114.

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The former emphasizes the life of the blood, while the latter speaks of death, with no mention of
life. Therefore, the meaning of blood is dependent upon the context in which it appears.

	4 Macc. 3:15 describes how David viewed drinking something ‘equivalent to blood' as a
danger. It reads, “But David, though he was burning with thirst, he considered it a danger to his
soul to drink what was considered equivalent to blood.” This statement describes David's
soldiers risking their lives to get David something to drink from behind their enemies' line (2
Sam. 23:16-17; 1 Chr. 11:19). David refuses the drink, and though we do not know the contents,
the drink is equated to the blood of the men who risked their lives to fetch it. This drink is then
poured out as a sacrifice to God in the following verse (4 Macc. 3:16). Hans-Josef Klauck
suggests, “Lev. 17:11-14, with its prohibition of consuming blood, lies behind David's refusal to
drink this water, since it was provided at the very real risk of human blood being spilled.”68
However, there is “no mention of the drink being poured out as an atoning sacrifice (the only
proper use of blood mentioned in Lev. 17:11-14), but rather as a “drink offering” to God.”69 The
blood of men who risked their lives also insinuates they could have been violently killed. David
equates the drink to blood and the life of his men (4 Macc. 3:15), and then drink is spoken of
with the sacrificial language of pouring out (4 Macc. 3:16). Therefore, the semantic range of
blood continues to include both life and death, even in an overarching sacrificial context.

	Multiple blood contexts are also seen in the Psalms of Solomon, which make reference to
menstrual blood in the context of sacrifice. This is not necessarily saying they used the menstrual
blood for the sacrifices, but that those who offered them entered the place of sacrifice in an
unclean state of being. Ps. of Sol. 8:12 says, “they trampled on the place of sacrifice of the Lord,
_________________________
68 David Arthur DeSilva, 2006, 4 Maccabees: Introduction and Commentary on the Greek Text
in Codex Sinaiticus, Septuagint Commentary Series, Leiden: Brill , 108.
69 DeSilva, 4 Maccabees, 108.

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[coming] from all kinds of uncleanness and with menstrual blood. They defiled the sacrifices as
if [they were] vulgar meat.” The only other reference to blood in Psalms of Solomon comes
shortly after this passage, explaining what God did in response to this defilement. He made war
on Jerusalem and “poured out the blood of the inhabitants of Jerusalem like dirty water” (Ps. of
Sol. 8:20). This is a reference to violent death, but it cannot be separated from the context of
sacrifice stated earlier. The defilement of sacrifices with menstrual blood is what caused God to
bring death. Again, there are two different meanings of blood mentioned in this one chapter, in a
matter of eight verses.

	The final book we will consider in the Apocrypha is the Book of Susanna's reference to
blood. This book is an addition to Daniel and is set during the Babylonian exile in the sixth
century.70 In Susanna, there is a story of two elders who approach Susanna and attempt to coerce
her to have sex with them. However, in the end, Susanna is accused of adultery and condemned
to death. Daniel, moved by the Spirit, examines the charges against Susanna and interrogates the
two elders. The result of this interrogation comes towards the end of the book. Sus. 1:62 says
they rose up against the two elders “because Daniel had shown from their own words that they
were false witnesses. They treated them in the same way that they had plotted to treat their
neighbour. By following the Law from Moses, they killed them. Innocent blood was saved that
day.” Following the Law of Moses (Deut. 19:16-19), there is a reference to the death of the
elders.71 However, in terms of the blood that was saved that day, the innocent blood refers to
Susanna and her life that was spared. So while this reference is clearly in a violent context, the
meaning of blood is in terms of life, not death.

Dead Sea Scrolls
________________________
70 Yee, The Old Testament, 1047.
71 Yee, The Old Testament, 1049.

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	Similar to the Apocrypha, blood in the Dead Sea Scrolls has a broad semantic range. In
4Q379, the Joshua Apocryphon, there is reference to “a great blasphemy and sh[ed] blood like
wa[ters on the ramparts of the daughter] of Zion..,”72 The Commentary on Habakkuk warns the
one who builds a city with blood and says the remnant will plunder “because of the blood of men
and the violence done in the land” (1QpHab VIII).73 These are clear references to bloodshed and
violence. The War Scroll also contains several vicious depictions of blood. It mentions bloody
spikes bringing down the slain, spilling the blood of the wicked, and the unclean blood of the
slain (1Q33; 4Q491-7; 4Q471).74 1QM says, “and [they] shall cleanse themselves of the bodies
of the ungodly.” There are texts that refer to the disqualification of priests and becoming guilty
of blood (4Q266 fragment 5 ii), and 4Q266 fragment 6 and 7 both make mention to menstrual
blood75 (examples of women's ability to bring life into the world).

	Within the Temple Scroll there are sixteen references to blood of a slaughtered bull
placed on the altar.76 There are two references to innocent blood and a connection to blood and
life (echoing Lev. 17:11). LIII says, “For the blood is the life and you shall not eat the life with
the flesh so that it may be well with you and with your sons after you for ever.”77 4Q274
fragment 1 mentions menstruation three times and 4Q276 and 4Q277 are fragments that mention
blood in relation to the “biblical law of the red heifer.”78 The law of the red heifer is recorded in
Num. 19:1-10, which I commented on in chapter one. 4Q512 fragments 29-32 also reference
blood in the context of purification ritual and the blood of the burnt offerings to become made
____________________
72 Geza Vermes, The Complete Dead
1997, 549.
73 Vermes, Complete Dead Sea, 483.
74 Vermes, Complete Dead Sea, 161.
75 Vermes, Complete Dead Sea, 148.
76 See Appendix
77 Vermes, Complete Dead Sea, 210.
78 Vermes, Complete Dead Sea, 232.

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clean.79 The Targum of Leviticus (4Q156 fragment 1) mentions two times the blood a priest
sprinkles on the mercy seat.80 The priest sprinkling blood recounts the Day of Atonement
(Leviticus 16:14), a sacrificial context that effects atonement.

	The Dead Sea Scrolls also contain Thanksgiving Hymns (1QH, 1Q36, 4Q427-32). Hymn
8 thanks the Lord because He “redeemed the soul of the poor one whom they planned to destroy
by spilling his blood because he served Thee.”81 There is a reference to drinking blood (Hymn
13), ears being closed to the crying of blood (Hymn 14), and violence and innocent blood (Hymn
8 and Hymn for Sabbath Day).82 The Paraphrase of Genesis and Exodus give reference to the
waters being changed to blood.83 The Genesis Apocryphon prohibits the eating of blood two
times and talks about blood that giants had spilled (1 QapGen).84 The Genesis Apocryphon also
references blood being applied to the base and sprinkled on the altar, clearly in a sacrificial
context.85 4Q214 fragment 2, and 4Q214b fragment 2-6 mention washing hands and feet of
blood and 4Q214b references blood of a sacrificed bull specifically. 4Q372 fragment 3 is about
seeking blood from [their] hands.86 4Q169 is a Commentary on Nahum and fragments 1-2 warn:
“Woe to the city of blood; it is full of lies and rapine.”87 These texts are in the context of
washing, sacrifice, and violence.

	The Dead Sea scrolls, though fragmentary, show that there are a variety of contexts blood
appears in and different meanings blood can have. There are references to blood in contexts of
___________________
79 Vermes, Complete Dead Sea, 382.
80 Vermes, Complete Dead Sea, 439.
81 Vermes, Complete Dead Sea, 259.
82 Vermes, Complete Dead Sea, 274.
83 Vermes, Complete Dead Sea, 447.
84 Vermes, Complete Dead Sea, 450.
85 Vermes, Complete Dead Sea, 451.
86 Vermes, Complete Dead Sea, 531.
87 Vermes, Complete Dead Sea, 475.

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violent death (1Q33) but there are also instances where blood is connected to menstrual blood
(4Q276). There are also instances where blood of animals was used in a sacrificial context
(4Q156 fragment 1) and where blood is being consumed (Hymn 13). Several of these contexts
and meanings appeared in the Old Testament Hebrew Scriptures as well.

Pseudepigraphal Texts

	Similar to the Apocrypha and Dead Sea Scrolls, blood has several different contexts and
meanings in the Pseudepigraphal texts.88 There are four references to blood in the Book of the
Watchers. These references include drinking the flesh (1 En. 7:5) and bloodshed filling the earth
with iniquity (1 En. 9:1; 9:9). There is one reference to the Watchers lusting after the blood of
men and engaging in an “unnatural mixture of heavenly and earthly, spirit and flesh.”89 The
watchers are said to have “defiled [themselves] with the blood of women, and have begotten
(children) with the blood of flesh, and, as the children of men, have lusted after flesh and blood
as those [also] do who die and perish” (1 En. 15:4). The distinction between the blood of women
(flesh) and the angels makes the point that the angels did not consist of flesh and blood. They
were spiritual and heavenly creatures. This reference to blood is not in a violent context, but it
has a meaning of blood as a component of the physical human body. The three remaining
references to blood in Enoch reference slaughter and streams flowing with blood (1 En. 98:11;
100:1; 100:3).

	In 3 Baruch, Baruch sees a dragon figure that eats the bodies of the wicked in Hades.
Baruch questions an angel's description of the dragon and his gluttonous attitude, resulting in “a
_____________________
88 I have focused on four Greek Pseudepigrapha texts that use haima. These texts include 1 Enoch,
3 Baruch, Testament of Abraham, and Book of Jubilees.
89 George W. E. Nickelsburg, Jewish Literature Between the Bible and the Mishnah: A
Historical and Literary Introduction, Philadelphia, PA: Fortress Press, 1981, 53.

36




lengthy discussion about the vine, which was the tree that caused Adam to sin.”90 3 Bar. 4:15
says, “And that which is begotten from it [the vine] shall become the blood of God; and as the
human race obtained condemnation through it, so again through Jesus Christ the Emmanuel
[and] in him is the receipt of the future in vocation, and the entry into Paradise.” 3 Bar. 4:15
“describes how the cursed vine will be turned to a blessing, when its fruit becomes “the blood of
God,” that is, of “Jesus Christ, Emmanuel.”91 Some interpreters suspect this is a Christian
interpolation, since it is after the time of Christ and the language, “blood of God” echoes Acts
20:28. But whether this is an interpolation or original to 3 Baruch, it is clear that the reference to
blood shows descent through bloodline. That which is begotten from the shoot of the vine is
from the blood of God.92 93

	The Testament of Abraham “imaginatively recounts the dramatic and humorous
circumstances of Abraham's death.”93 A reference to blood is found in the chapter in which the
Lord sends Death to Abraham. Abraham says to Death, “Withdraw from me, for ever since I saw
you sitting near me, my soul has been troubled within me. I am altogether unworthy of you. For
you are an exalted spirit. I am but flesh and blood.” (Test. of Abr. 13:7). The response from
Abraham shows the distinction between a figure not from this world and a man composed of
flesh and blood. Flesh and blood also appeared in 1 En. 15:4, showing blood is a component of
the human body.
______________________
90 Nickelsburg, Jewish Literature 300.
91 Nickelsburg, Jewish Literature, 300.
92 Alexander Kulik, 2010, 3 Baruch: Greek-Slavonic Apocalypse of Baruch, Commentaries on
Early Jewish Literature. Berlin: De Gruyter.
https://ezproxy.mytyndale.ca:2443/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true
&db=nlebk&AN=320320&site=ehost-live&scope=site, 188.
93 Dale C. Allison, 2003, Testament of Abraham, Commentaries on Early Jewish Literature.
Berlin: De Gruyter,
https://ezproxy.mytyndale.ca:2443/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true
&db=nlebk&AN=674267&site=ehost-live&scope=site, 3.

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	Another reference to blood is found in the book of Jubilees. Jubilees recounts Moses
receiving the Law and the history of Israel. Jub. 48:5 mentions blood in the context of the
plagues of Egypt (the Nile turned to blood). This is in the context of God's vengeance and
smiting the people under Pharaoh (Exodus 7). Looking at these few Pseudepigraphal texts, there
are clear references to blood in several different contexts: violent death, menstruation, bloodline
(life) and plagues.

Josephus

	We now come to the works of Josephus in our study of blood. Josephus has many
writings that we do not have time to cover, so I will focus on the Antiquities of the Jews and
Jewish War. In Antiquities, there are twenty-four references to murder where the word blood is
used.94 There are five instances where the consumption of blood is mentioned, including dogs
licking the blood of Naboth and Achab (Antiquities 8:361). There are five places where blood is
physically described as red and the blood is spilled on something or someone.95 There is one
reference to blood in connection with life (Antiquities 1:102) and twelve references to blood in
the context of a sacrifice.96 There are six references to blood in regards to a family bloodline,
including the priesthood coming from the bloodline of Aaron (Antiquities 20:226). Josephus also
explains the Passover and purifying the houses through blood manipulation (Antiquities 3:312).

	The majority of blood references in Jewish War are in the context of murder (violent
death). For example, in the battle between the Syrians and Jews, Josephus writes, “So the
daytime was spent in shedding of blood, and the night in fear” (War 2:463). Later on he
_________________________
94 See Appendix.
95 See Appendix.
96 Antiquities of the Jews 1:185; 3:205; 3:206; 3:226; 3:228; 3:231; 3:242; 4:79; 6:121; 8:101;
19:87; 20:226

38




describes, “the whole space of ground whereon they fought ran with blood, and the wall might
have been ascended over by the bodies of the dead carcasses” (War 3.249). Blood in reference to
murder is used twenty-two times in War, and there are two instances that fall just short of a
murder, but refer to a violent action resulting in a wound. This is seen in the example, “For when
those who stood near him saw his blood, they were disturbed at it, and a report went abroad,
through the whole army, that the general was wounded” (War 3:237; also 4:201).

	There are three instances of blood talked about as the red liquid, for example when
someone is so grief stricken they throw up blood (War 1:81). There are two references to
menstrual blood and two references to family bloodlines. Jewish War mentions the consumption
of blood three times, and twice talks about life-blood. There is only one reference to sacrifices,
where human blood is mixed in them (War 5:18). There are also two places where blood is
connected to a price or money is obtained through blood (War 1:514; 1:524). Jewish War
contains many references to blood in a violent way but Josephus also makes reference to blood in
other contexts, including blood of sacrifice and family bloodline.97

	In this chapter, I have looked at various uses of blood found in the Apocrypha and the
Dead Sea Scrolls. I also looked at some Pseudepigraphal texts and commented on blood within
two works of Josephus. Blood in the context of murder was the most common use; however,
blood in terms of family bloodline (life) started to appear more than it did in the Old Testament
Scriptures (4 Macc. 13:20; Antiquities 20:226). Sus. 1:62 provides an example of innocent blood
referring to life, not death, and the phrase flesh and blood appears (1 En. 15:4; Test. Of Abr.
13:7). There were references to blood in the context of sacrifice and menstrual blood (Ps. of Sol.
8:12) The prohibition to consume blood also continues to be seen (LIII). It is important to
_________________
97 See Appendix.

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remember that blood appears in many contexts and the meaning of blood can vary depending on
the context. This must be kept in mind as this study of blood moves into the New Testament.

40




4

Blood in the New Testament

So far I have looked at the Old Testament Scriptures and the uses of blood found in them. I have
argued that blood does not only mean violent death but that blood has a broader semantic range.
Though blood is often spoken of in a violent context, this should not take away from the meaning
of blood in other contexts, such as when it is equated to life. As evidence of this, in chapter two I
looked at blood in relation to life in the sacrificial context of Lev. 17:11. In the previous chapter,
I looked at Second Temple Jewish texts and showed blood continuing to have a broad range of
meaning. Blood occurred in violent contexts as well as sacrificial ones, and there was a
heightened number of references to family bloodline and life.

	In this chapter, I will discuss the Greek word aiua (blood) in the New Testament, but
Hebrews and the climax of the discussion of blood in sacrifices will come in the following
chapter. Similar to chapter one with the Old Testament, I will discuss some of the contexts that
blood appears and the broad semantic range blood has in the New Testament.98 I do not have
space to address every reference to blood, but I will comment on some different contexts and
_________________________
98	See Appendix

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meanings in the Gospels, the book of Acts, the letters, and Revelation. I will discuss again the
“blood of the covenant,” which has both Old and New Testament significance.

Gospels

	A reference to blood is found in Jesus' interaction with the Pharisees. He warns them
when they say, “If we had lived in the days of our fathers, we would not have taken part with
them in shedding the blood of the prophets” (Matt. 23:30). Shedding the blood of the prophets is
a gruesome way to speak about the rejection and murder of God's servants in Israel. A few
verses later, the blood of Abel is referenced alongside the blood of Zechariah (Matt. 23:35; Gen.
4:10-11). Luke's gospel also references these murders (Lk. 11:50-51). This reference to blood is
clearly in the context of a violent death, however, another reference in Matthew is in regards to
life.

	The Gospel of Matthew references blood when Judas betrayed Jesus. Judas agreed to help
the chief priests and elders of the people seize Jesus for the price of thirty pieces of silver (Matt.
26:47-56). Filled with regret, Judas changed his mind, and speaking to the chief priests and
elders he said, “I have sinned by betraying innocent blood” (" Hemartov paradous haima athowon,
Matt. 27:4). Though it was too late to change the situation, it is clear that Judas associated
innocent blood with Jesus' life. Judas had not betrayed a violent death, but he had betrayed
Jesus' innocent life. Therefore, in the context of Jesus' imminent death, blood is spoken of in
relation to life. Morris notes that two gospels record the story of a woman hemorrhaging (Mk.
5:25; 5:29; Lk. 8:43; 8:44). This is obviously not referring to a violent death, but again, a
physical condition that allows a woman to produce life. Johannes Behm highlights that haima

42




denotes family or descent and has the connotation of life because blood is a physical element (in
a woman) that brings life into the world.99

	The Gospel of Luke describes Jesus praying in the Garden of Gethsemane. As the events
of his crucifixion came near, Jesus, “being in agony prayed more earnestly; and his sweat
became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground” (Kai genoupenos ayownia ektenesteron proseucheto. Kai 
egeneto ho hidros autou howsei thromboi haimatos katabainontes epi ten gen, Lk. 22:44). 
The reference to Jesus sweating blood shows that he was under immense
stress. Though this foreshadows a violent death, Jesus sweating blood is not equivalent to death.
It shows the humanity and life of Jesus, that he was in fact flesh and blood, and that his situation
makes blood flow out of him.

	There are five references to ‘flesh and blood' in the New Testament, indicating the parts
that constitute a human. One of these references appears in Matthew when Peter proclaims Jesus
is “the Christ, the Son of the living God” (Matt. 16:16b). Jesus responds saying, “Blessed are
you.. .for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven” (Matt.
16:17b). Jesus' response emphasizes no human brilliance or understanding revealed this to Peter.
Peter's confession is “not merely the result of human effort and reasoning.”100 Hagner adds that
the phrase flesh and blood is a Semitic expression for human agency. Though human agency is
clearly at work in the process of revelation to Peter, revelation from God is the distinction being
______________________
99 Johannes Behm, Theological Dictionary of the New Testament. Gerhard, Kittel, ed. Translated
by Geoffrey W. Bromiley, Geoffrey William, Ed. and Tr and D. Litt. haima. Grand Rapids, MI:
Eerdmans, 2006, 173.
100 Donald Alfred Hagner, Matthew. Vol. 14-28, Word Biblical Commentary, V. 33b, Dallas,
Tex.: Word Books, 1995, 469.

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made.101 Hagner also draws attention to the phrase flesh and blood in Galatians, which I will
come to shortly.

	There is an instance in John where it says, “born not of blood or flesh but of God” (Jn.
1:13). J. Michaels comments on this in his work on the Gospel of John saying the gospel writer is
not “denying that believers are born physically, but he is saying that this is not what makes them
“children of God.” Believers are born like anyone else into the world, but their physical birth is
merely a metaphor for the birth referred to here. Birth “from God can be understood only as new
birth, or rebirth.”102 What is noteworthy is that in the Greek phrase, blood is plural. In describing
Jesus, John says: or Hoi ouk es haimatown…egenethesan (“who not of blood|s|.. .were born”).  
Michaels argues that this passage could point “to the participation of two parents in the act of
procreation, not to the physiological details of either conception or birth.”103 The “plural haimata 
|bloods| alludes to the blood of the parents who beget and give birth.”104 So then, a distinction is
made between the physical birth of a child to parents, and the spiritual birth of children to God
through faith. Clearly the meaning of blood in this context is life, not death. Jn. 1:13 provides
more evidence that blood has a broad semantic range and the meaning of blood should be found
in the context.

The Book of Acts

	Morris counts haima (blood) ninety-eight times in the New Testament and says twenty-five
of these occurrences have to do with violent death. The stoning of Stephen is an example he
gives which reads as follows: “And when the blood of Stephen your witness was being shed, I
____________________________
101 Hagner, Matthew, 469.
102 J. Ramsey Michaels, The Gospel of John, The New International Commentary on the New
Testament, Grand Rapids, Mich.: William B. Eerdmans Pub., 2010, 71-72.
103 Michaels, The Gospel of John, 72.
104 George Raymond Beasley-Murray, John, 2nd ed. Word Biblical Commentary, V. 36.
Nashville, Tenn.: Thomas Nelson, 1999, 13.

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myself was standing by and approving and watching over the garments of those who killed him”
(Acts 22:20). Morris claims, “As that death was by stoning there is no emphasis on the literal
outpouring of blood. The expression stands simply for violent death.”105 I agree with Morris here
that Acts 22:20 refers to a violent death.

	In Acts there are also three texts directing Jewish Christians to abstain from blood. The
Jerusalem Council (Acts 15) convened to discuss the requirements placed on the Gentile
Christians. The leaders of the church decided that converts should not have to be circumcised or
follow the Law of Moses in order to be saved. However, Acts 15:19-20 says, “Therefore my
judgment is that we should not trouble those of the Gentiles who turn to God, but should write to
them to abstain from the things polluted by idols, and from sexual immorality, and from what has
been strangled, and from blood” (Dio ego krinow may parenochlein tois town ethnown epistpephousin epi ton theon,
 alla episteilai autois tou apechesthai town alisgematown town eidowlouwn kai tes porneias kai tou 
pniktou kai tou haimatos). Along with other laws, which I do
not have time to address here, is the command to abstain from blood. Darrell Bock says Acts
15:20 appears to refer to the law in Lev. 17:10-14 and the prohibition to eat blood. The key, he
says, “is the association of life and blood.”106 He goes on to affirm there was a Jewish
understanding that blood contained life.107

	Although Morris does not show which group he placed Acts 15:20 in, my estimation is it
would be placed in the eating meat with blood group. However, Acts 15:20 presents another
instance where blood occurs in a few different contexts. Lev. 17:10-14, as noted in chapter 2, is
clearly in a sacrificial context, and as Darrell Bock noted, probably serves as the basis for this
_________________________
105 Morris, The Apostolic Preaching, 122.
106 Darrell L. Bock, Acts, Baker Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament, Grand Rapids,
Mich.: Baker Academic, 2007, 506.
107 Bock, Acts, 506.

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law. Furthermore, Lev. 17:10-14 connected life with blood in the context of sacrifices, so it is
possible the meaning of blood in connection to life was in the mind of the hearer (and reader) of
Acts as well.

Letters

	There is an emphasis on the blood of Jesus throughout the New Testament108 and the
Apostle Paul mentions the blood of Jesus Christ in many of his letters. Paul does not speak about
the physical account of Christ's death, but about the effects Jesus' blood has on the Christian
faith. Paul says, “in him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our
trespasses” (Eph. 1:7). Andrew Lincoln discusses Jesus' blood in terms of this redemption
language saying, “there is a dispute among scholars.. .whether it also has the more specific
connotation of the payment of a ransom. In regard to Eph. 1:7 some insist this connotation is
present.”109 Lincoln cites Leon Morris as one of the scholars who sees the ransom payment as
present in this text.110 This leaves the question which group Leon Morris would place this blood
reference in: violent death or a sacrificial context? For Morris, these contexts are separate. This
is another example of why I do not find groups helpful, and sometimes more than one context is
present in a single reference.

	I now return to the phrase flesh and blood found in Galatians. This verse is similar to
Matt. 16:17 where a distinction between human reasoning and revelation from God was made.
Paul claims that when God revealed His Son to him, he “did not immediately consult with
anyone” (Eutheows ou prosanethemen sarki kai haimati, Gal. 1:16b). The Greek text clearly reads
flesh and blood, however most English translations supply ‘anyone'. God's “revelation to Paul
__________________________
108 See Appendix.
109 Andrew T. Lincoln, Ephesians, Word Biblical Commentary, V. 42. Dallas, Tex.: Word
Books, 1990, 27.
110 Morris, Apostolic Preaching, 42.




precludes the possibility of his supplementing that event by seeking advice or instruction from
other human beings.”111

	1 Jn. 5:6 says, “This is he who came by water and blood—Jesus Christ; not by the water
only but by the water and the blood.” Scholars are divided as to what the water and blood are
referring to. Raymond Brown puts forward four common interpretations of what the water and
blood signify: the sacraments of baptism and the eucharist, the incarnation, the baptism and death
of Jesus, and the death of Jesus.112 Those who hold to the view that this phrase refers to the
incarnation believe “the physiology in John's time thought the menstrual blood and male seed
composed the human embryo, therefore, the author's insistence on ‘water and blood' was a
statement about the reality of the body.”113 John Painter holds the view that Jesus' coming by
water and blood refers to the incarnation. Although modern exegesis has followed a sacramental
interpretation, the similarity of 1 Jn. 5:6 to 1 Jn. 4:2 (“Jesus Christ has come in the flesh”)
suggests that both texts refer to the incarnation.114 Although some interpretations focus on the
death of Jesus in relation to blood in 1 Jn. 5:6, some interpretations focus on the life of Jesus,
specifically his incarnation (birth). Therefore, 1 Jn. 5:6 is another instance where the meaning of
blood is not necessarily a violent death.

Revelation

	The book of Revelation contains a reference to blood that flows from a winepress (Rev.
14:20). Robert Mounce comments, “as a winepress yields the red juice of the grape, so the
______________________
111 J. Louis Martyn, Galatians: A New Translation with Introduction and Commentary, 1st ed,
The Anchor Bible, V. 33a, New York: Doubleday, 1997, 159.
112 Raymond E. Brown, The Epistles of John: Translated, with Introduction, Notes, and
Commentary, 1st ed. The Anchor Bible, V. 30, Garden City, N.Y.: Doubleday, 1982, 575-576.
113 Brown, The Epistles of John, 576.
114 John Painter and Daniel J. Harrington, 1, 2, and 3 John, Sacra Pagina Series, V. 18,
Collegeville, Minn.: Liturgical Press, 2002, 303-304.

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judgment of God issues in a blood bath that flows.”115 This image of a winepress used to bring
about the wrath of God is clearly in a violent context; however, there are other instances in
Revelation where blood is not in a violent context. Revelation has imagery where the moon or
water turns to blood.116 After the first angel blew his trumpet, there was “hail and fire, mixed
with blood.. .thrown up on the earth” (Rev. 8:7). Wenham comments that the imagery comes
from the Egyptian plague (Ex. 9:13-35) and could also reference Joel 2:31 (which I commented
on in chapter one) and his prophecy of the last days.117

Blood of the Covenant

	One of the uses of blood I want to specifically comment on is the “blood of the
covenant”. This phrase draws upon Exodus 24 (cf. Zech. 9:11) when Moses threw blood on the
altar and the people in the covenant making ceremony. Jesus uses this “blood of the covenant”
language in the Upper Room with his disciples. Jesus took bread, broke it, and said it was his
body broken for them. In the same way he took a cup and said, “Drink of it, all of you, for this is
my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins” (Touto gar 
estin to haima mou tes diathekesto peripollown exchunnomenon, Matt.
26:27b-28; cf. Mk. 14:24; Lk. 22:20). Though Matthew does not record this in a sacrificial
context, the author of Hebrews inserts this “blood of the covenant” language into the middle of
the argument in Hebrews 9, which I will discuss in the next chapter.

	In all three of the gospel accounts that record Jesus' last supper with his disciples, the
Greek word used to describe Jesus' blood poured out is ekchunnomenon (being poured out). This is
related to the verb ekcheo, which means to pour out, shed, or bestow. It is interesting to note that
________________________
115 Robert H. Mounce, The Book of Revelation, Rev. ed. The New International Commentary on
the New Testament, Grand Rapids, Mich.: W.B. Eerdmans, 1997, 281.
116 Rev. 6:12; 8:7; 8:8; 11:6; 16:3; 16:4.
117 Mounce, Book of Revelation, 178.

48


the Septuagint reading of Lev. 7:4 also uses the future indicative form of Ekchewo: pan to hiama tou 
maschou excheei para ten basin tou thusiasteriou town olokautowmatown  (“and all [the rest] of the
blood of the bull he shall pour out at the base of the altar of burnt offering”). The Septuagint uses
the same verb, ekchewo, to express the idea of pouring out (shedding) blood on the altar for a
sacrifice.

	Throughout the New Testament we have seen that blood continues to have a broad
semantic range. In some contexts blood means violent death (Matt. 23:30) and in others blood
means innocent life (Matt. 27:4). The phrase flesh and blood means human agency and reason
(Matt. 16:17; Gal. 1:16). Physical birth is referred to in connection with blood (Jn. 1:13) and life
in connection with sacrifice can be seen in the command to abstain from blood in Acts 15:20.
There is also, of course, an emphasis on the blood of Jesus, which I believe based on the way
New Testament authors speak about it, can overlap into the sacrifice category (Eph. 1:7). In the
next chapter, I will discuss the references to blood in the book of Hebrews. I will focus on
Hebrews 9 and compare the blood of Jesus to the blood of bulls and goats in sacrifices.

49




5

Hebrews 9: Jesus' Blood Sacrifice

In the previous chapter I surveyed the use of haima in the New Testament and argued that blood
continued to have a broad semantic range. However, in regard to the New Testament, I left the
discussion of Hebrews' use of blood to be addressed separately. In this chapter, I will focus on
the book of Hebrews, specifically chapter 9. I will argue that blood is synonymous with life in
the eyes of the author of Hebrews. I will also argue that Hebrews sees Jesus' blood as greater
than the blood of animals because it can cleanse the conscience from sin. I will also show that
Jesus' blood effects atonement once for all because it is offered in the heavenly tabernacle, in the
very presence of God.

	Before I start, I will give a brief overview of the book of Hebrews. The author of
Hebrews is unidentified, and there is no way, with confidence, to say who wrote the letter. But
what is clear is that the author is writing to encourage the readers to stand strong, persevere, and
deepen their faith (Hebrews 12). They have undergone persecution and even imprisonment, and
this is likely not the end of their turmoil.118 The author of Hebrews persuades the readers that the
death of Jesus has replaced the Jewish rituals of animal sacrifice. Whether written before or after
the destruction of the temple in 70 C.E., the book of Hebrews shows how the physical temple
___________________
118 Donald Senior, 2014, Why the Cross? Reframing New Testament Theology, Nashville, TN:
Abingdon Press,
https://ezproxy.mytyndale.ca:2443/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true
&db=nlebk&AN=861814&site=ehost-live&scope=site, no pages.

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and its sacrifices are no longer needed because Jesus offered the ultimate sacrifice once and for
all.

	Hebrews begins with the supremacy of God's Son, Jesus Christ. He is greater than the
angels (Hebrews 1) and greater than the Covenant mediator Moses (Hebrews 3). He is the greater
high priest who is not from the line of Aaron (Heb. 4:14-5:10) but from the eternal, priestly order
of Melchizedek (Heb. 7:11-28). Hebrews focuses on Jesus as the priest in chapters 5-8, and then
in chapter 9 focuses on Jesus as the sacrifice as well. The final chapters of Hebrews talk about
the blessing Jesus' sacrifice brings to his followers: the assurance of faith to stand in the presence
of God forevermore, unshaken in the belief that Jesus has secured salvation (Heb. 10:19).

	Whenever the book of Hebrews alludes to and quotes the Old Testament, it appears to use
the Septuagint, not the Hebrew text, and the author of Hebrews shows great understanding of the
Levitical priesthood and sacrifices (as described in the Septuagint).119 Based on its historical-
cultural situation, Luke Timothy Johnson notes that, “the symbolic world of Hebrews is
profoundly shaped by Greco-Roman culture, above all in its language, rhetoric, and
philosophical perspective, but is equally formed by the world of Judaism, especially through the
LXX version of Scripture and the sacrificial cult.”120 The point here is that the author of Hebrews
appears to have worked primarily with the Septuagint and seems to assume the readers would
have been familiar with it as well as the priestly and sacrificial systems. Though the author
alludes to and echoes ideas obviously found in the Hebrew text, the quotations are almost all
verbatim with the Septuagint. An example of this is found in Heb. 2:6:  Diemapturato de pou tis 
legown, ti estin anthrowpos hoti mimneskey autou, hey huios anthrowpou hoti episkeptey autov
_________________________
119 Benjamin J. Ribbens, Levitical Sacrifice and Heavenly Cult in Hebrews, Berlin/Boston: De
Gruyter, Inc., 2016, Accessed December 14, 2018, ProQuest Ebook Central, 4.
120 Luke Timothy Johnson, Hebrews, Louisville: Presbyterian Publishing Corporation, 2006,
Accessed December 17, 2018, ProQuest Ebook Central, 30.

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(“However someone has testified somewhere saying, who is man that you are mindful of him, or
the son of man that you care for him?”) This is a direct quotation from Ps. 8:5 LXX and is just
one of many quotations from the Septuagint in Hebrews. Recognizing that the book of Hebrews
makes use of the Septuagint is important to note because I argued in chapter two that the
Septuagint reading of Lev. 17:11 is less ambiguous than the Hebrew.

	In the Hebrew Bible, the first part of Lev. 17:11 reads, "Kiy nephsh habasar badam . The ESV
translates this: “for the life of flesh is in the blood.” I noted that scholars are divided as to how
the preposition bet (beth) functions: beth instrumental (by), accompaniment (with), locative (in), or
identity (is). However, the Septuagint takes the beth identity reading as it says: Hey gar psuchey pases 
sarkos haima autou estin (“for the life of all flesh is its blood”). There is no prepositional word
such as sv to suggest that life is located within the blood, rather, the life is (estin) the blood. I
believe someone reading the Septuagint would have seen blood identified with life in a sacrificial
context. In the case of Hebrews, the author seems to quote and allude to the Greek text, and
though Lev. 17:11 is not directly quoted in Hebrews 9; the author of Hebrews is clearly familiar
with the Old Testament laws (which Lev. 17:11 is a part of). Therefore, it is possible that the
author of Hebrews would have seen a connection between life and blood in the context of
sacrifice.

	Understanding a little of the context of blood in Hebrews, we turn to the discussion of
blood in the book. Of the ninety-eight occurrences of haima in the New Testament,121 twenty-one
of these are in Hebrews and fourteen of these are found within Hebrews 9-10. These chapters are
the core of the theological argument of the book. There is only one reference to blood in regards
____________________________
121	See Chapter One Appendix

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to a violent death in Hebrews and that is found in Heb. 12:4 (the only one that seems to be
outside of a sacrificial context).122

	Blood in the context of sacrifices, specifically Jesus', appears the most throughout the
book of Hebrews. Morris notes Hebrews contains twelve references to blood in terms of animal
sacrifices, but only one reference gives information about the way the sacrifice was regarded.123
The author of Hebrews writes, “For if the blood of goats and bulls, and the sprinkling of defiled
persons with the ashes of a heifer, sanctify for the purification of the flesh, how much more
will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without blemish to
God, purify our conscience from dead works to serve the living God” (Heb. 9:13-14). Here you
have the animal sacrifices outlined in the book of Leviticus linked to Jesus' human sacrifice in an
argumentum a fortiori. Meaning, the author is emphasizing Jesus' blood sacrifice as better and
greater because it could bring purification to the conscience of a person, where as the blood of
goats and bulls could not.

	Another reference to blood is found in Heb. 12:4 which says, “In your struggle against
sin you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood.” The author of Hebrews is
encouraging the readers not to grow weary, but to stand strong in the midst of hostility. This is a
clear reference to possible death. There is another reference to the blood of Abel in Hebrews, this
time in the context of the new covenant Jesus mediates. The author of Hebrews says Jesus' blood
speaks a better word than Abel (Heb. 12:24). Matt. 26:27b-28 does not record the blood of the
covenant in a sacrificial context; however the author of Hebrews inserts blood of the covenant
language into the middle of the argument in Hebrews 9.
________________________
122 Paul Ellingworth, The Epistle to the Hebrews: A Commentary on the Greek Text, The New
International Greek Testament Commentary, Grand Rapids, Mich.: W.B. Eerdmans, 1993, 436.
123 Morris, The Apostolic Preaching, 122.

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	Although there are various uses of “blood” in Hebrews, Hebrews 9 offers a good example
of why the semantic range of blood is broader than death. Multiple themes and ideas, such as the
Levitical Priesthood, sacrifices, and the old covenant are woven together in chapter 9.124 These
ideas overlap so tightly we should not separate them because that takes away from the context
and complete message the author is trying to convey. Bearing these things in mind we will turn
to a discussion of Hebrews 9 and pay close attention to the instances of haima.

	Chapter 9 comes in the middle of a larger section about Jesus the high priest's all
sufficient sacrifice. The themes of sanctuary and covenant had already been mentioned in chapter
8. The author goes into a discussion about the earthly sanctuary and gifts that “serve a copy and
shadow of the heavenly things” (Heb. 8:5a). The following verse expands from the sanctuary and
gifts to the covenant of which they are a part: “But as it is, Christ has obtained a ministry that is
as much more excellent than the old as the covenant he mediates is better, since it is enacted on
better promises” (Heb. 8:6).

	In chapter 9, the sanctuary is no longer in the spotlight, but the sacrifice of Jesus is. The
old sanctuary and old covenant are no longer sufficient, and they are placed in contrast to
Christ's sacrifice. The author of Hebrews “focuses on the inadequacy of the old sanctuary and
Covenant in order to highlight the all-sufficient quality of Christ's sacrifice.”125 The book of
Hebrews is distinct in that it chooses to describe the redemptive work of Christ through
metaphors comparing it to the Jerusalem temple and the Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur)
______________________________
124 Kuma, Centrality of Aiua, 253.
125 Gareth Lee Cockerill, 2012, The Epistle to the Hebrews, The New International Commentary
on the New Testament, Grand Rapids, Michigan: Eerdmans,
https://ezproxy.mytyndale.ca:2443/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true
&db=nlebk&AN=1058544&site=ehost-live&scope=site, no pages.

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ritual.126 On the Day of Atonement, Aaron would go into the Holy Place and offer the blood
manipulations to make atonement for himself and the people (Lev. 16:3-19). In the same way,
the author of Hebrews says Jesus “entered once for all into the holy places, not by means of the
blood of goats and calves but by means of his own blood” (Heb. 9:12).127

	Hebrews describes the tabernacle as the place for the daily sacrifice and the place for the
annual sacrifice on the Day of Atonement. These sacrifices and the place of them have to do with
the inaccessibility of the Most Holy Place for the people.128 The tabernacle is used, instead of the
Temple, which makes the most sense considering the way the author of Hebrews has set up the
argument. The tabernacle of Exodus corresponds to the first covenant through Moses at Sinai.129
Heb. 9:1-5 gives a detailed description of the earthly sanctuary and its furniture. There is no
mention of blood in these first verses.

	This description of the tabernacle in Hebrews is consistent with the Old Testament in the
placing of the Ark of the Covenant, Ten commandments, and the cherubim of glory
overshadowing the mercy seat (Heb. 9:4). The mercy seat was the most important object in the
Most Holy Place in the tabernacle and temple. It was the gold plate on top of the Ark of the
Covenant, and was the place where atonement was made for the sins of the people. But Hebrews
also adds information, for although “the Israelites preserved both the manna and Aaron's rod for
generations (Ex. 16:33; Num. 17:2-9), only Hebrews locates it in the Ark of the Covenant.”130
___________________
126 Senior, Why the Cross?, no pages.
127 See also Hebrews 9:11-14
128 James Thompson, 2008, Hebrews, Paideia: Commentaries on the New Testament. Grand
Rapids, Mich: Baker Academic,
https://ezproxy.mytyndale.ca:2443/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=
&db=nlebk&AN=477237&site=ehost-live&scope=site, 180.
129 William L. Lane, Hebrews, Vol. 9-13 /. Word Biblical Commentary, V. 47b. Dallas, Tex.:
Word Books, 1991, 218.
130 Thompson, Hebrews, 178.

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The location of the altar of incense is not entirely clear in the Old Testament; it appears to belong
to the Holy Place in front of the curtain (Ex. 30:1-16). Philo and Josephus place it in the Most
Holy Place.131 In Antiquities of the Jews Josephus describes the tabernacle Moses built in the
wilderness and its furnishings. He locates the Ark of the Covenant, candlesticks and bread of the
Presence in the Holy Place, and then he writes: “Now between this candlestick and the table
inside, as I said before, was the altar of incense, made of the same wood of which the foregoing
vessels were made” (Antiquities 3.6.8). Heb. 9:3-4 also places the altar of incense in the Most
Holy Place.

	The word “blood” is introduced in Heb. 9:7 and functions as an important term in the
cultic context for the rest of the chapter. Blood was necessary to cleanse the sanctuary and all the
furnishings within it. The author is expressing that “blood is the medium of approach to God, and
this fact underscores the importance of the reference to Christ's blood in the ensuing
argument.”132 As long as animal blood was needed to atone for the sins of the people, the way
into the Holy Place was not yet open for the people. Furthermore, this cleansing was external and
could only atone for sins and cleanse the people for a time. Sacrifices were to be continually
offered because the blood of bulls and goats was only a temporary fix.

	Heb. 9:11 begins Christos de (“but Christ”), which means there is a contrast with the first
half of the chapter. We have moved away from the earthly tabernacle and sanctuary to “the
greater and more perfect tent (not made with hands)” (Heb. 9:11b). We have also moved to the
sacrifice of Jesus. This sacrifice is more than purification of the flesh, which was offered in the
sacrificial system. Jesus' sacrifice was eternal, and the ransom was paid in full. Christian
Eberhart expands on Jesus' sacrifice saying, “the motif of sacrifice itself is fused with, and
__________________
131 Thompson, Hebrews, 178.
132 Lane, Hebrews, 223.

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influenced by, that of blood; nowhere else in the New Testament are both of these terms used as
abundantly with reference to Jesus as in Hebrews.”133 He sees a focus on Jesus' death as the
means of this sacrifice. The death was not the sacrifice itself, but a pre-condition to accessing
heaven, where the sacrifice of Jesus' resurrected life before the Father was offered. I agree with
this in the sense that Jesus needed to die in order to be resurrected, and it is only through his
death that Jesus' blood (life) could be offered to the Father. The events that take place after the
death, the resurrection, ascension, and presentation of Jesus' resurrected body to the Father, I
believe, are the climax and emphasis of his sacrifice as explained in Hebrews 9.

	It is interesting to note the significance of the blood that Jesus shed in his sacrifice,
considering the death that he died. Jesus was not slaughtered, as the Levitical sacrifices were, but
he was crucified. During the first phrase of Roman crucifixion, a whip was used to strike the
victim. It would tear away muscle lying under the tissue and cause great pain and blood loss.134
The condition of the victim after this treatment would vary depending on the person. For Jesus
we are told that he was not even able to carry his own cross, which implies he was in a very
weakened state. Jesus was then nailed to the cross by his wrists and feet. There would have been
a lot of blood loss at the cross due to the whipping, nails, and crown of thorns. However, this was
not necessarily the cause of Jesus' death. It is hard to know if Jesus suffered cardiac rupture or
had lost more blood than usual. What scholars agree upon, however, is that the major effect of
crucifixion on the general victim is the interference with normal respiration. The “passive
exhalation, which we all do thousands of times a day without thinking about it, becomes
impossible for a person hanging on a cross. The weight of a body hanging by its wrists would
__________________
133 Eberhart, The Sacrifice of Jesus, 112.
134 Fleming Rutledge, The Crucifixion: Understanding the Death of Jesus Christ, Grand Rapids:
William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2015, Accessed January 25, 2019, ProQuest Ebook
Central, 94.

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depress the muscles required for breathing out.”135 The victim's diaphragm would suffocate
them. Based on the way Christ died, there seems to be an emphasis on the blood (life) offered to
God after he was crucified, in the same way the blood of the bulls and goats was applied to the
altar after the slaughtering. Evidence of this is seen in Heb. 9:13-14 (which we will be coming to
shortly).

	The author of Hebrews has already established a connection to the Levitical priesthood
and sacrificial system.136 And as I have already noted, the Day of Atonement was not without the
shedding of blood. We return to this discussion because, in the same way, Jesus' sacrifice did not
take place without the shedding of his own blood. Whereas Hebrews 8 gives a description of the
priest offering in the old covenant, Hebrews 9 narrows in on Jesus' sacrifice in light of the new
covenant. It was the blood of Jesus that gave him access into the heavenly Holy of Holies. Here
the author of Hebrews has “built a correspondence between the earthly Day of Atonement and
Christ's heavenly sacrifice, and the earthly high priest entered the earthly sanctuary not without
blood (9:7) and with blood (9:24).”137 The author of Hebrews is saying one thing in two different
ways. Stating one negatively (not without blood) and one positively (with blood), the author is
emphasizing that Jesus brought blood into the heavenly sanctuary.

	Jesus entered through the greater and more perfect tent “by the means of his own blood,
thus securing eternal redemption” (Dia de tou idiou haimatos eiselthen ephapas eis ta hagia 
aiownian lutpowsin euramenos, Heb. 9:12b). But some scholars argue that Jesus did not physically
bring his blood into heaven. Scholars will argue that dia (“through”) has the instrumental
function as in Jesus entered by the means of his blood and not with his blood (accompaniment
________________________
135 Rutledge, The Crucifixion, 94.
136 Hebrews 8.
137 Ribbens, Levitical Sacrifice, 118.

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function). Thompson argues, “the suggestion of the offering of blood in the heavenly sanctuary
stretches the imagery to the limit, for Jesus actually shed his blood at the cross. The author has,
however, collapsed the death and exaltation into one event.”138 Thompson says Jesus does not
bring his blood into the sanctuary, but the blood serves as a metaphor for Jesus' sacrifice of
himself. Jesus offered himself, his soul, his own life, and this is all summarized in the idea that
Jesus offered his own blood.139

	David Moffitt agrees with this, and takes it even further to say it was not the slaughtering
of the animal in the Levitical sacrifice that is given emphasis, but the application of blood to the
altar following the sacrifice. This blood was not a representation of that death, but the life of the
animal. A priest would not offer blood to God as an act of offering death or bringing death into
His presence. Moffitt states that in keeping with the “Levitical understanding of blood sacrifice,
the writer of Hebrews.. .thinks in terms of Jesus' presenting his blood—his life—before God in
heaven. Jesus' immortal, resurrection life is the sacrifice.. .that he offered to effect
atonement.”140 I agree with both Thompson and Moffitt that Jesus' blood is synonymous with his
soul and life. Jesus presented himself in his resurrected state before God as the very climax of his
sacrifice, and that is what effected atonement. Jesus' blood as synonymous with life is supported
by Lev. 17:11 LXX, which equates blood and life in a sacrificial context.

	Heb. 9:13-14 says, “For if the blood of goats and bulls, and the sprinkling of defiled
persons with the ashes of a heifer, sanctify for the purification of the flesh, how much more will
the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without blemish to God,
____________________
138 Thompson, Hebrews, 186.
139 Thompson, Hebrews, 186.
140 David M. Moffitt, 2011, Atonement and the Logic of Resurrection in the Epistle to the
Hebrews, Supplements to Novum Testamentum, Leiden: Brill,
https://ezproxy.mytyndale.ca:2443/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true
&db=nlebk&AN=377279&site=ehost-live&scope=site, 219.

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purify our conscience from dead works to serve the living God.” The high priest had to enter
year after year to apply the blood of animals onto the altar in the Holy of Holies. But as the
heavenly high priest, Jesus, entered the heavenly Holy of Holies to offer himself (his blood) once
and for all. In Hebrews 9, the author of Hebrews talks about Jesus as the mediator of the new
covenant. Heb. 9:15-22 gives special attention to Exodus 24 (cf. Zech. 9:11) and the Covenant
made at Sinai between God and the nation of Israel, with Moses as the mediator. The book of
Hebrews speaks very plainly about where Jesus presented his blood: “Christ has entered, not into
holy places made with hands, which are copies of the true things, but into heaven itself, now to
appear in the presence of God on our behalf” (Heb. 9:24). Moffitt says, “When he [the writer of
Hebrews] specifies where Jesus offered his sacrifice, he always locates that offering in
heaven.”141

	Heb. 10:12 tells us that Jesus made his offering and then sat down at the right hand of
God. Jesus entered once for all with his blood, not every year like the priests with blood not their
own (Heb. 9:25). The author also talks about Jesus' offering using three different terms: body
(10:10), blood (9:12), and (him) self (9:14). He uses these terms interchangeably not to
spiritualize Jesus death, but because Jesus' bodily resurrection and ascension are the means by
which Jesus can present himself alive before God. Jesus ascended into heaven, and presented
himself in God's presence, in front of God's throne in the heavenly Holy of Holies.142 Jesus'
body, blood, and life are used interchangeably, and the sacrifice climaxing in the throne room of
God is essential for understanding the atonement. Jesus did not offer his physical blood but he
offered his life, the essence of who He is, his resurrected life to the Father in heaven. This is in
contrast to the blood, the life of the animals that was shed on the earthly altar. It is heaven, the
_________________
141 Moffitt, Atonement, 218.
142 Moffitt, Atonement, 227.

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true and most perfect dwelling place of God, where Jesus went to offer his sacrifice. Moffitt says
that similarly to Leviticus and the offering of blood as life to God, ".. .the unifying point behind
each of these terms is the indestructible life Jesus came to possess after the crucifixion. Jesus'
indestructible, human life is what he brings into God's presence and offers as his sacrifice.”143

	On the Day of Atonement, the people would wait anxiously until the high priest came out
of the sanctuary, having offered a sacrifice for the people. In a similar way, the author describes
how the people of God wait eagerly for Christ who will appear again.144 From Hebrews 9 it is
clear to see that the blood of goats and bulls had atoning effect when applied to the altar before
God. But it is also clear that Jesus' sacrifice is placed in a greater-than argument to show his
blood, his life, his very self, is the only thing that could be offered to clear the conscience and
remove sin. To use the theology of typology, the sacrifices of bulls and goats and the offerings of
their blood were a type of Christ's sacrifice. They “correspond to the offering of Christ's blood
as a sin offering on the heavenly Day of Atonement.”145 Jesus' blood was shed and his very life
presented to the Father in Heaven, once for all.

	In this chapter I have discussed the references to blood in the book of Hebrews. In
Hebrews 9, I have argued that the author of Hebrews presents the blood of animals and of Jesus
as synonymous with life. Jesus' blood is seen as greater than the animals because it was only
necessary to offer it one time. Jesus' blood was also able to cleanse the conscience of believers.
In fulfillment of Old Testament Levitical sacrifices, it was necessary for Jesus to die. However,
the death of Jesus should not be emphasized because his sacrifice did not end there. Jesus' blood
effects atonement once and for all because his sacrifice was offered in the heavenly tabernacle, in
_______________________
143 Moffitt, Atonement, 218.
144 Lane, Hebrews, 250.
145 Ribbens, Levitical Sacrifice, 13.

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the very presence of God. Jesus' blood, synonymous with his life, was presented to God after his
violent death. In the heavenly throne room Jesus offered his resurrected body before God and sat
down at His right-hand.

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Conclusion

Leon Morris classifies the references to blood found in the Old and New Testaments into
different groups based on the context blood is used in. His major groups include: death with
violence of some kind, connecting life with blood, eating meat with blood, sacrificial blood, and
other uses (general). Morris provides a total number of references for each group and lists a
couple of references as examples. He sees blood in a violent context more frequently and more
dispersed in the Scriptures, therefore, summarizes his chapter on blood as follows: “It seems
tolerably certain that in both the Old and New Testaments the blood signifies essentially the
death.”146 Although I agree with Morris that blood appears often in the Old and New Testaments
in contexts of violence and death, violent death is not the meaning of blood in every context. I
believe blood has a greater semantic range, and ultimately the meaning of blood is found within
the context of a passage.

	I began with a study of dam in the Old Testament to show that the meaning of blood is not
always a violent death.147 I argued that the meaning of blood has a far greater semantic range.
For example, Ps. 72:14 says, “From oppression and violence he redeems their life, and precious
is their blood in his sight.” The psalmist says the Lord will rescue the people from violence,
_____________________
146 Morris, The Apostolic Preaching, 126.
147 See Appendix.

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because their blood is precious in His sight. This blood does not denote their violent death, but
their precious life.

	There are some instances in the Old Testament where a reference to blood is mentioned
in a place where one or more contexts (or Morris' groups) should be considered. For example, in
Lev. 7:26 we read, “Moreover, you shall eat no blood whatever, whether of fowl or of animal, in
any of your dwelling places.” This is a command not to consume blood; however, the preceding
verses show this command comes in a sacrificial context. Whereas sacrifice and the prohibition
to consume blood are two separate groups for Morris, it is clear to see that their contexts cannot
always be so separated. As Morris contends, there are instances where blood indicates a violent
death (1 Kgs. 2:5), but there are instances, as mentioned, where it refers to life (Ps. 72:14).

	Another important Old Testament use for dam is in the phrase ‘blood of the covenant'. In
Exodus 24 a ceremony between God and the Israelites takes place through the covenant mediator
Moses. Animals were slaughtered and the blood was placed on the altar as well as the people.
Moses said to the people, “Behold the blood of the covenant that the Lord has made with you in
accordance with all these words” (Ex. 24:8b). Sacrificial blood inaugurates the covenant and
indicates multiple contexts and meaning. Although blood appears in the Old Testament in violent
contexts, it also appears in other contexts where violence (especially death) is not in view.

	As I surveyed the use of dam in the Old Testament, I felt it was necessary to look
specifically at Lev. 17:11 and the role of blood in a sacrificial context. Lev. 17:11 strongly
evidences my argument that blood is linked to and equated with life. In Hebrew, Lev. 17:11
reads: Kiy nephesh habasar badam he vaeni netativ lacem al-hamitbeha lecaper al-naphshoteicem 
kiy-hadam hu banephesh yecaper.  There are four possibilities of translation most scholars agree upon: 
beth instrumental (by), accompaniment (with) locative (in), and identity (is). 
Though grammatically any of these options are possible,

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the best interpretation of beth in badam in my view is beth of identity: blood is life. This conclusion
is supported by the Greek Septuagint, which also translates badam as a beth of identity: Hey gar psuchey 
pases sarkos haima autou estin kai ego dedowka auto humin tou thusiastepiou echlaskesthai peri town psuchown 
to gar haima autou anti tes psyches echilasetai (Lev. 17:11 LXX). The translators have
supplied the verb estin (is), directly connecting life and blood. It is important to note that
whether someone translates this as a beth locative, instrumental, or identity, a very close
connection between life and blood still exists. Therefore, I believe blood in Lev. 17:11 is
functioning in a way that emphasizes life, not violent death or any other meaning.

	Furthermore, I argued that the prohibition against humans consuming blood is based on
blood's connection with life. Blood's connection with life is also the reason that blood effects
atonement for sins on the altar. God specifically states in Lev. 17:11 that sacrificial blood is to be
placed on the altar and atone for sins. God links this atoning function of blood to life.

	I also examined Second Temple Jewish texts that use the Greek word haima (blood).
Though Morris only deals with the Old and New Testaments, I discovered that blood also has a
broad range of meaning in Second Temple Jewish texts. I did not have the time or space to look
at every text available from this time, but I did a survey of a few different works from the
Apocrypha, Dead Sea Scrolls, Pseudepigrapha and two works of Josephus.148 I showed that
blood appears in a variety of contexts including murder (violent death), life, menstrual blood,
consuming blood, and others.149

	The Apocrypha includes an example of blood in relation to life. 4 Macc. 3:15 recounts a
story where David equates his drink to the blood and lives of the soldiers who got it for him.150
____________________________
148 See Appendix.
149 See Appendix.
150 2 Samuel 23:16-17 and 1 Chronicles 11:19.

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Because of the drink's equation to life, David refuses to consume the drink and offers it to the
Lord instead. Though the blood of David's servants could have been shed in their expedition to
get the drink, I do not think violent death is being emphasized here. David sees their blood as life
and honours it, so he does not drink what is provided for him. Later in 4 Maccabees there is also
a reference to blood in relation to life and that family members share in the same blood. 4 Macc.
13:20 speaks of “growing from the same blood and through the same life.” This statement is
clearly not a reference to violent death, but emphasizes life through blood.

	Blood is still, however, seen in relation to violent death in a many of these texts.
Josephus' Jewish War and Antiquities of the Jews are flooded with references to violence and
death. Jewish War contains many references to blood in a violent way (War 2:463) but Josephus
also makes reference to blood in other contexts, including blood of sacrifice and family
bloodline.151 Second Temple Jewish texts indicate that there is still a connection between blood
and life and in some contexts the meaning of blood is life.

	In the New Testament blood is not referenced near as many times as it is in the Old
Testament; however, blood is still used in a variety of ways. There are instances of blood in the
context of murder, sacrifice, flesh and blood, and life. In Acts 15:20 there is a warning to abstain
from consuming blood and Lk. 22:44 records Jesus' sweat like drops of blood. The New
Testament references the blood of the covenant in several places,152 pointing back to the
discussion of Exodus 24 and Zech. 9:11 in the Old Testament. In Matthew, Jesus uses the phrase
blood of the covenant to speak of his approaching death. Jesus says, “this is my blood of the
covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins” (Matt. 26:28). Against the
backdrop of Exodus 24, Jesus identifies himself with the animals that were slain in order to
_____________________________
151 See Appendix.
152 See Appendix.

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provide blood for the covenant and for forgiveness. The Synoptic Gospels record Jesus
instituting a new covenant through his blood, which makes the old covenant obsolete.

	The New Testament also uses blood in terms of innocent blood. When Judas is convicted
with guilt for betraying Jesus, he returns to the chief priests and elders saying, “I have sinned by
betraying innocent blood” (Matt. 27:4). Jesus is about to be crucified, so clearly this is a context
of death to some degree. However, it appears Judas is also emphasizing Jesus' blood as his life.
The New Testament talks about the blood of Jesus several times, highlighting the implications
that his death brings through his blood.153 Specifically for our purposes, the blood of Jesus is able
to cleanse the conscience of people (Heb. 9:13-14), which is something the blood of bulls and
goats could not do. The cleansing nature of Jesus' blood is something the author of Hebrews
highlights.

	In the book of Hebrews, Haima is used twenty times. Haima is used five times to talk about
the “blood of the covenant” and ten times in a sacrificial context (set over and against the blood
of bulls and goats). There are only five other references to haima in Hebrews outside of these
references.154 The author of Hebrews shows concern with how blood relates to the new covenant
in Jesus' blood through his sacrifice. I argued that the author of Hebrews appears to use the
Septuagint text while alluding to and quoting the Old Testament. A reader of the Septuagint
would have seen blood identified with life in a sacrificial context. The Septuagint's identification
of blood with life in Lev. 17:11 is the foundation of the book of Hebrews' presentation of Jesus'
blood sacrifice. Therefore I argued that the author of Hebrews sees blood in connection to life. In
Hebrews 9, Jesus' blood is described as greater than the blood of animals, because it can cleanse
the conscience from sin. I also highlighted that the author of Hebrews talks about Jesus' body
______________________
153 See Appendix.
154 Passover, blood of Jesus, shedding blood, flesh and blood, and the blood of Abel

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(10:10), blood (9:12), and self (9:14) interchangeably. Jesus entered the heavenly tabernacle to
present his body, blood, and his resurrected life before God the Father.

	Jesus did not offer his physical blood to the Father, because the heavenly sanctuary does
not require earthly or material things. I agree with David Moffitt who says Jesus presented his
blood (life) before God in heaven.155 The Old Testament sacrifices consisted of animal blood
poured out on the altar, a symbol of the life of the animal in exchange for the continued life of
the one making the sacrifice. It is heaven, the true and most perfect dwelling place of God, where
Jesus went to offer his sacrifice. Jesus entered once for all with his blood, not every year like the
priests with blood not their own (Heb. 9:25). The author also talks about Jesus' offering using
three different terms: body (10:10), blood (9:12), and (him) self (9:14). Jesus offered his life, the
essence of who He is, his resurrected life to the Father, in heaven. I believe the blood of Jesus'
sacrifice emphasizes his life given for the forgiveness of sins.

	Hebrews shows that Jesus' blood effects atonement once for all because it is offered in
the heavenly tabernacle, in the very presence of God. Jesus' entrance into the presence of God
with his resurrected life is therefore the climax of his sacrifice. In the Old Testament sacrifices,
animals were slaughtered in order for their blood to be used. It was only when their blood was
applied to the altar that atonement was made. In the same way, the author of Hebrews shows that
Jesus was crucified and his blood was shed, but atonement was made when his blood was
presented in the heavenly sanctuary before the Father. Put another way, Jesus' sacrifice
culminated in the presentation of his resurrected life in heaven.

	I believe there is clear evidence that blood occurs in different contexts, and the context of
a reference should affect the meaning of “blood.” This study has shown blood in contexts
__________________
155 Moffitt, Atonement, 219.

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including murder, bloodline, blood of the covenant, and sacrifice, among others. Though blood is
found in many contexts of violent deaths, I have argued that the meaning of blood in sacrificial
contexts is life. Lev. 17:11 clearly states: “the life of the flesh is the blood: and I have given it to
you upon the altar to make atonement for your souls: for it is the blood that makes atonement by
reason of the life (Lev. 17:11). The author of Hebrews discusses Jesus' blood in sacrificial terms,
emphasizing Jesus' life that was presented to God in the heavenly sanctuary to atone for sins
once and for all.

	This understanding of blood in relation to life is in direct contrast to Morris'
understanding. Though he does address Lev. 17:11 in his study, he concludes that the Hebrew is
ambiguous and “the reference to blood could be understood as signifying the presentation of life,
or equally, as indicating the infliction of death.”156 However, based on the exegesis I have
provided on dam and haima, I am not persuaded by his conclusion. Blood is not simply a reference
to a violent death, but has a broad range of semantic meaning, including life. Based on the broad
semantic range blood has, the meaning of blood must come from the context blood is in.
Therefore, based on my argument of the proper understanding of Lev. 17:11, I believe the
meaning of blood in sacrifices is life.
___________________________
156 Morris, The Apostolic Preaching, 118.

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Appendix A

Dam in the Old Testament

Murder
Genesis 4:10; 4:11; 9:5; 9:6; 37:22; 37:26; 37:31; 42:22
Exodus 22:1; 22:2
Leviticus 19:16; 20:9; 20:11; 20:12; 20:13; 20:16; 20:27
Numbers 35:19; 35:21; 35:24; 35:25; 35:27
Deuteronomy 17:8; 19:6; 19:10; 19:12; 19:13; 21:7; 21:9; 22:8; 27:25; 32:42; 32:43
Joshua 2:19; 20:3; 20:5; 20:9
1 Samuel 19:5; 25:26; 25:31; 25:33; 26:20
2 Samuel 1:16; 1:22; 3:27; 3:28; 4:11; 14:11; 16:7; 16:8; 20:12; 21:1
1 Kings 2:5; 2:9; 2:31; 2:32; 2:33; 2:37; 22:35
2 Kings 3:22; 3:23; 9:7; 9:26; 9:33; 21:16; 24:4
1 Chronicles 22:8; 28:3
2 Chronicles 19:10; 24:25
Psalm 5:6; 9:12; 26:9; 30:9; 51:14; 55:23; 59:2; 79:3; 79:10; 94:21; 106:38; 139:19
Proverbs 1:11; 1:16; 1:18; 6:17; 12:6; 28:17; 29:10
Isaiah 1:15: 4:4; 9:5; 26:21; 35:15; 59:3; 59:7
Jeremiah 2:34; 7:6; 19:4; 22:3; 22:17; 26:15; 48:10; 51:35
Lamentations 4:13; 4:14
Ezekiel 3:18; 3:20; 5:17; 7:23; 9:9; 18:10; 18:13; 21:32; 22:2; 22:3; 22:4; 22:6; 22:9; 22:12;
22:13; 22:27; 23:37; 23:45; 24:6; 24:7; 24:8; 24:9; 28:23; 32:6; 33:4 33:5; 33:6; 33:8; 35:6;
36:18; 38:22; 39:18; 39:19
Hosea 1:4; 4:2; 6:8; 12:14
Joel 3:19; 3:21
Jonah 1:14
Micah 3:10; 7:2
Habakkuk 2:8; 2:12; 2:17
Zephaniah 1:17

Murder/Prohibition to eat/drink blood
1 Samuel 14:32; 14:33; 14:34
2 Samuel 23:17
1 Kings 21:19; 22:38

Prohibition to eat/drink blood
Genesis 9:4
Leviticus 17:10; 17:12; 19:26
Deuteronomy 12:16; 12:23
1 Chronicles 11:19
Psalm 50:13
Isaiah 49:26

Consuming blood


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Ezekiel 33:25

Cleansing/Washing vesture
Genesis 49:11

Nile to blood
Exodus 4:9; 7:17; 7:19; 7:20; 7:21

Moses circumcising sons
Exodus 4:25; 4:26

Passover
Exodus 12:7; 12:13; 12:22; 12:23
2 Chronicles 30:16

Sacrifice
Exodus 23:18; 29:12; 29:16; 29:20; 29:21; 30:10; 34:25
Leviticus 1:5; 1:11; 1:15: 3:2; 3:8; 3:13; 3:17; 4:5; 4:6; 4:7; 4:16; 4:17; 4:18; 4:25; 4:30; 4:34;
5:9; 6:27; 6:30; 7:2 7:14; 7:26; 7:27; 7:33; 8:15; 8:19; 8:23; 8:24; 8:30; 9:9; 9:12; 9:18; 10:18;
14:14; 14:17; 14:25; 14:28; 16:14; 16:15; 16:18; 16:19; 16:27; 17:4; 17:6; 17:11; 17:13; 17:14
Numbers 18:17; 19:4; 19:5; 35:33
Deuteronomy 12:27
2 Kings 16:13; 16:15
2 Chronicles 29:22; 29:24
Psalm 16:4
Isaiah 1:11; 34:6; 66:3
Jeremiah 46:10
Ezekiel 39:17; 43:18; 43:20; 44:7; 44:15; 45:19

Sacrifice/Connection to life/Prohibition to eat (drink) blood
Leviticus 17:11; 17:14

Sacrifice and Prohibition to eat/drink blood
Leviticus 7:26; 7:27
Deuteronomy 15:23

Sacrifice/Consuming blood
Ezekiel 39:17

Sacrifice and Purification/Cleaning
Leviticus 14:14; 14:17; 14:25; 14:28; 16:19

Sacrifice/Blood Polluting Land
Numbers 35:33

Sacrifice/Murder

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Deuteronomy 21:8
Psalm 106:38

Murder/Sacrifice/Consuming blood
Ezekiel 39:18; 39:19

Purification/Cleansing
Leviticus 12:4; 12:5; 12:7; 14:6; 14:51; 14:52; 15:19; 15:25; 20:18

Balaam's Oracle (lion drinking blood)
Numbers 23:24

Wine

euteronomy 32:14

Prophets of Baal cut themselves
1 Kings 18:28

Earth not covering blood
Job 16:18

Hawk sucking up blood
Job 39:30

Wicked people
Psalm 58:10; 68:23

Water to blood
Psalm 78:44; 105:29

Connection to life
Psalm 72:14

Pressing nose produces blood
Proverbs 30:33

Land/water drenched in blood
Isaiah 15:9; 34:3; 34:7

Faithless Israel
Ezekiel 16:6; 16:9; 16:22; 16:36; 16:38

Vine in vineyard (some mans. say “in your blood”)
Ezekiel 19:10

Pour wrath with blood

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Ezekiel 14:19

Blood with fire
Joel 2:30

Moon to blood
Joel 2:31

Bloody city
Nahum 3:1

God's judgment
Zechariah 9:7

Blood of Covenant/Covenant making ceremony
Exodus 24:6; 24:8
Zechariah 9:11

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Appendix B

Blood in Second Temple Jewish Texts

Apocrypha

Murder: Judith 9:3; 1 Maccabees 1:37; 7:17; 2 Maccabees 1:8; 4 Maccabees 6:6; 7:8; 9:20;
10:8; Wisdom 14:25; Sirach 8:16; 11:32; 28:11; 34:22; 40:9; Psalms of Solomon 8:20
Murder/Sacrifice: 4 Maccabees 6:29; 17:22
Grapes/Mulberries: 1 Maccabees 6:34; Sirach 39:26
Drink Equal to Blood of men/Connection to Life/Sacrifice: 4 Maccabees 3:15
Family Bloodline (life): 4 Maccabees 13:20
Flesh and Blood: Sirach 17:31
Menstrual Blood: Psalms of Solomon 8:12
Innocent Blood: Susanna 1:62

Dead Sea Scrolls

Murder: 4Q379; 1QpHab VIII; IQM; 1Q33; 4Q491-7; 4Q471; Hymn 8; Hymn for Sabbath
Day; 4Q372 fragment 3
Disqualification of Priest/Guilty of blood: 4Q266 fr. 5 ii; 4Q267, fr. 5 ii; 273, frs. 2 & 4
Skin Disease: 4Q266, fr. 6 i and 4Q272 1 273 ii, 269 7
Menstrual Blood: 4Q266 fragment 6 and 7; 4Q274;
Sacrifice: 11QT=11Q19-21, 4Q365a, 4Q524; 4Q276; 4Q277; 4Q512 fr. 29-32; 4Q156 fr.1;
4Q220 fragment 1; 4Q214b
Biblical law of red heifer: 4Q276; 4Q277
Consuming Blood: Hymn 13
Crying of Blood: Hymn 14
Water to Blood: 4Q422
Consuming Blood/Sacrifice/Murder: IQapGen, IQ20
Sacrifice/Washing Blood: 4Q214 fragment 2; 4Q214b fragment 2-6
City of Blood: 4Q169

Pseudepigraphal Texts

Murder: 1 Enoch 98:11; 100:1; 100:3
Consuming Blood: 1 Enoch 7:5
Murder/Iniquity: 1 Enoch 9:1; 9:9
Lusting in Blood/Blood of Men: 1 Enoch 15:4
Family Bloodline: 3 Baruch 4:15
Flesh and Blood: Testament of Abraham 13:7
Blood Plague: Book of Jubilees 48:5

Works of Josephus

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Murder/Life-blood connection: Antiquities of the Jews 1:102; Wars of the Jews 2:85
Murder/Life/Consuming Blood: Wars of the Jews 5:344
Murder: Antiquities of the Jews 1:233; 6:82; 6:120; 6:303; 6:363; 7:309; 7:314; 7:337; 9:39;
9:108; 9:123; 10:38; 19:42; 19:94; Wars of the Jews 1:84; 1:628; 2:463; 2:497; 3:63; 3:75;
3:249; 3:529; 4:72; 4:313; 4:647; 5:419; 5:440; 6:259; 6:275;	6:406
Sacrifice: Antiquities of the Jews 1:185; 3:205; 3:206; 3:226; 3:228; 3:231; 3:242; 4:79; 8:101;
20:226
Murder/Consuming blood: Antiquities of the Jews 8:361; 8:407; 8:417; Wars of the Jews
4:561; 6:372
Sacrifice/Consuming blood: Antiquities of the Jews 6:121
Murder/Sacrifice: Antiquities of the Jews 19:87; Wars of the Jews 5:18
Red liquid: Antiquities of the Jews 2:35; 3:183; 15:359; 18:175; Wars of the Jews 1:81; 4:480;
7:181
Murder/Red liquid: Antiquities of the Jews 13:314; 13:315; 13:318; 19:123; 19:195; Wars of
the Jews 1:82
Bloody river: Antiquities of the Jews 3:17
Family Bloodline: Antiquities of the Jews 2:102; 4:310; 6:59; 7:260; 11:277; Wars of the Jews
1:359; 6:126
Consuming blood: Antiquities of the Jews 3:260
Passover: Antiquities of the Jews 2:312
Money/Blood: Wars of the Jews 1:514; 1:524
Violent Action (Not murder): Wars of the Jews 3:237; 4:201

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Appendix C

haima in the New Testament

Murder
Matthew 23:30; 27:6; 27:8; 27:24; 27:25
Acts 1:19; 5:28; 18:6; 22:20
Romans 3:15
Revelation 6:10; 16:6; 17:6; 18:24; 19:2

Blood of Abel/Zechariah
Matthew 23:35
Luke 11:50; 11:51

Blood of Abel/Covenant
Hebrews 12:24

Abstain from blood (Prohibition to eat/drink blood)
Acts 15:20; 15:29; 21:25

Flesh and Blood
Matthew 16:17
1 Corinthians 15:50
Galatians 1:16
Ephesians 6:12
Hebrews 2:14

Blood of Covenant
Matthew 26:28
Mark 14:24
Luke 22:20
1 Corinthians 11:25; 11:27
Hebrews 9:18; 9:19; 9:20; 10:29; 13:20

Passover
Hebrews 11:28

Innocent Blood
Matthew 27:4

Menstruation
Mark 5:25; 5:29
Luke 8:43; 8:44

Sacrifice

76



Luke 13:1
Hebrews 9:7; 9:12; 9:13; 9:14; 9:21; 9:22; 9:25; 10:4; 13:11; 13:12
1 Peter 1:2

Jesus sweating drops like that of blood
Luke 22:44

Born not of blood, but of God
John 1:13

Drinking blood of Jesus
John 6:53; 6:54; 6:55; 6:56

Blood from Jesus' Side
John 19:34

Robe Dipped in Blood
Revelation 19:13

Water or Moon to blood
Acts 2:19; 2:20
Revelation 6:12; 8:7; 8:8; 11:6; 16:3; 16:4

Blood of Jesus (Christ)
Acts 20:28
Romans 3:25; 5:9
1 Corinthians 10:16
Ephesians 1:7; 2:13
Colossians 1:20
Hebrews 10:19
1 Peter 1:19
Revelation 1:5

Innocent of Blood
Acts 20:26

Resisting to the point of shedding blood
Hebrews 12:4

Purifying
1 John 1:7

Jesus came by water/blood
1 John 5:6

Spirit/water/blood testify

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1 John 5:8

Blood from winepress
Revelation 14:20

Blood of the Lamb
Revelation 5:9; 7:14; 12:11

78




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	Testament. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans.
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Willis, Timothy M. 2009. Abingdon Old Testament Commentaries: Leviticus. Abingdon Old
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Yee, Gale A, Hugh R Page, and Matthew J. M Coomber, eds. Fortress Commentary on the
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