Tuesday 24 October 2023

Psalm 149:1-5

Background

Once again the writer is contrasting old and new, the former well-established ritual and beliefs with the new life as seen in Jesus Christ. We are reminded of the way the first covenant, given to Moses by God for the people fleeing from Egypt, was to be kept within a beautifully ornate ark of the covenant, which in turn was to be placed within a desert tent, or tabernacle (Exodus 25-31). This was no simple camping tent. It was elaborately constructed and equipped with a great number of wonderful and very specific objects, including a specially created golden lampstand, the table for the bread of the  Presence, made of wood and covered in gold, and the altar of burnt offerings, again of wood and gold. At its heart, and hidden behind a curtain, was the Holy of Holies. This is where the ark of the covenant would be placed and could only be approached by the High Priest once a year. 

There could be no more special place for the Jewish people, whether it was the original tabernacle in the wilderness or the Temple representation of this in Jerusalem. And yet the author of Hebrews makes the case that this wonderful and holy place has been surpassed, with a new high priest, and a “greater and perfect tent” (v. 11) replacing the old. Christ, in the image of the High Priest, enters the heavenly Holy of Holies and by doing so brings salvation to all people. The need for the priest to use animal blood to sanctify and purify the people has been replaced by the self-sacrifice of Christ, who through the eternal Holy Spirit has changed all things, for ever.

The use of the “blood of goats and bulls” (v. 13) refers to the two major sacrifices on the Jewish Day of Atonement, the bull that was sacrificed for the sins of the high priest and the so called 'scapegoat' that was sent into the wilderness bearing the sins of the people (Leviticus 16). The sacrifice of the red heifer (Numbers 19) was a ritual to cleanse those who had touched a dead body, the ashes of the sacrifice sprinkled outside the camp “so that their flesh is purified” from sin (v. 13). But now, the voluntary self-giving of Christ, offered on the moral and not the ritual plane, will far surpass anything that went before and takes us into the very real presence of the living God.

To Ponder:

• Where are your holy places? Spend a few moments imagining you were there and give thanks for that time.
• We now find the practice of animal sacrifice abhorrent, particularly when it's part of religious practice, and yet imagery of the blood of Christ remains prevalent within Christian theology, liturgy and hymnody. Consider your own thoughts on this. Is this imagery a help or hindrance?

Prayer

God of each moment, whatever I am doing, whether alone or with others, thank you for your presence with me each and every day. Amen.