“He is to take some of the bull’s blood and with his finger sprinkle it on the front of the atonement cover.” (Lev. 16:14)
Expanded Passage: Leviticus 16:11-17
The engine’s odd cranking sound confirmed the diagnosis: “It needs oil.” Oil is the car's lifeblood, and all of it was scattered around town in various parking lots. The dark spot in the driveway should have alerted me that something was wrong, but I missed it. I should have asked, “What is that doing there?!”
The Tabernacle was set up in the desert. This imagery is meant to evoke an awareness of the symbolic contrast between these two settings. The hearer should associate the desert with death, chaos, and sin. The Tabernacle is a place teeming with the life-giving presence of God. This beacon of life is stationed in the darkest place. “What is that doing there?!”
Blood in the wrong place can raise questions. The bull's blood being sprinkled around the Tabernacle was meant to rid it of the death and chaos that lingered from the fall. While the sacrifice ritual seems odd to modern hearers, the cultural context makes perfect sense. Ancient Israel believed that blood was the essence of life. The priest used his finger to spread it, which would have him covered in that same life being flung around. This life coated the place and the exterior of the priest.
The blood of this sacrifice was a temporary fix and reminder that in a world full of death, our God has provided atonement for us.
Atonement requires sacrifice; contemplate the sacrifice required for you to become righteous.
Caleb Strickland is the lead pastor of Christ Wesleyan Church (CWC) in Winston Salem, NC.
© 2025 Wesleyan Publishing House. Reprinted from Light from the Word. Used by permission. Scriptures taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®.
