Human Sacrifice in The Torah

So the New2Torah (Zachary Bauer) YouTube channel did a video about Human Sacrifice in The Torah in the context of The Messiah being an Atonement Sacrifice.

Then another video was made in response to it.  That second video I'm not able to embed directly it seems, so here is a Link.  Human Sacrifice and Messiah Answering New2Torah.

Bauer was definitely stupid to bring up the conspiracy theory that Isaiah 53 is removed from Jewish Bibles.  The latter video is also wrong however, no you can't get around that the Suffering Servant is an individual suffering for the sins of the people.  The Melchizedek Scroll of the Dead Sea Scrolls Interpreted it that way before the time of Christ.  The Talmud cites it as Messianic at least once in Sanhedrin 98b, the Leper Scholar.  The idea of it referring to the Nation doesn't show up till after 1000 AD.

Other criticisms the second video makes of the first are also valid, but not all.

For outside The Torah Zach should have referred to when David had seven sons of Saul hung on trees to appease the Gibeonites.  That is clear Hebrew Bible precedent for people being executed not for their own Sins but for the Sins of a blood Kinsman.  And five of them were maternal grandchildren interestingly.

The people in the latter video love to emphasize Repentance.  The Problem is I don't believe Yahuah is going to Save only those who Repent.  They love to point to Ezekiel 18, I point to Ezekiel 16 where even Sodom is promised to be restored.

The common claim that the Passover sacrifice isn't an Atonement Sacrifice I find to be rather semantic. The Passover is unique and doesn't fit into the other five general Sacrifice categories easily at all.  But it sure as heck resembles Atonement more then it does offering something to Yahuah just out of devotion.  God is carrying out a Judgment on Egypt for not letting Israel go, and putting The Blood on the Doorpost protects your Household from that Judgment.  The Levitical Atonement Sacrifices also involved Covering things with The Blood.  The Passover Lamb covers a Household not an individual, Jesus was offered for the Household of Adam.

The people in the second video say that Atonement Sacrifices have to be female, I don't know where they got that.  The Yom Kippur Sacrifice is a male Goat in Leviticus 16.  Leviticus 4:3 requires a male Bullock to Atone for the Sin of a Priest, and Leviticus 4:14 and Numbers 15:24 require it to be a male Bullock and/or male kid of the Goats if it's offered on behalf of the Community.  And Leviticus 4:22-23 says if a Nasi sins the Atonement offering has to be a male of the Goats.  And of course The Passover had to be a male.

The Trespass offering in Leviticus 5 is what requires a Female.  However Jesus defined the Sins of Humanity as unknowing sins on The Cross.  But at any rate, I believe Jesus was ultimately both male and female.  Jesus also fulfilled the Red Heifer offering by being killed on the Mount of Olives, "without the Camp".

The second Video also got persnickety about saying you don't Anoint a Sacrificial Offering.  You know Torah Only people love to say the only person who's Anointed in the Torah is the Priest, there is no Anointing of Kings.  Jesus is both the Offering and the one Making the Offering.  The Torah does say to anoint the Wafers of Unleavened Bread.  Now they made it sound like your forbidden to Anoint the animal, but the Torah doesn't say that either.

Both Isaac and Joseph play the role of a sacrificial offering in narratives even though they weren't literally.

Now here is a subject many are uncomfortable with.  Technically Yahuah demands Human Sacrifice in The Torah of all maternal firstborns.

Exodus 22:29-30.

"Thou shalt not delay to offer the first of thy ripe fruits, and of thy liquors: the firstborn of thy sons shalt thou give unto me.  Likewise shalt thou do with thine oxen, and with thy sheep: seven days it shall be with his dam; on the eighth day thou shalt give it me."

However this situation is clarified in Numbers 18:15-17.

"Every thing that openeth the matrix in all flesh, which they bring unto Yahuah, whether it be of men or beasts, shall be thine: nevertheless the firstborn of man shalt thou surely redeem, and the firstling of unclean beasts shalt thou redeem.  And those that are to be redeemed from a month old shalt thou redeem, according to thine estimation, for the money of five shekels, after the shekel of the sanctuary, which is twenty gerahs.  But the firstling of a bullock, or the firstling of a sheep, or the firstling of a goat, thou shalt not redeem; they are holy: thou shalt sprinkle their blood upon the altar, and shalt burn their fat for an offering made by fire, for a sweet savour unto Yahuah."

This is not about the Firstborns losing their Priestly status to the Levites, Numbers 3:12 dealt with that.  This is specifically about a demand for every First Born to be Sacrificed to Yahuah.

It's interesting that Humans are distinguished from unclean animals, even though when viewed as animals we lack both requirements for being Levitically clean.  Humans aren't animals however.  With animals these physical characteristics of cleanness are merely symbolic representations of moral purity.  The only thing keeping most Humans from being an acceptable Sacrifice is being Sinful.  Only someone without Sin can truly Atone for the Sins of another.

Moses' blessing on Joseph is the foundation of the Messiah Ben Joseph doctrine.  Deuteronomy 33:17 says.

"His glory is like the firstling of his bullock, and his horns are like the horns of unicorns: with them he shall push the people together to the ends of the earth: and they are the ten thousands of Ephraim, and they are the thousands of Manasseh."

The Hebrew words for firstling and Bullock here are the same as in Numbers 18:17.  It was firmly established in the minds of all Israelites that every Firstling Bullock was to be Sacrificed, no exceptions.  So this passage has been taken even by non Christians as saying someone of Joseph will be sacrificed and then risen again (the "Unicorn" representing him Resurrected), hence the Messiah Ben Joseph tradition.

The context is about Maternal Firstborns.  Galilee in NT times wasn't just Naphtali anymore. I think Nazareth was possibly actually Jezreel, a site that can potentially be linked to Manasseh.  And when reading about Hezekiah's Passover it becomes clear plenty of Manasseh was still left behind after the Captivity.

Manasseh was the firstborn of Asenath and Joseph was the firstborn of Rachel.  It's interesting that Matthew 1:25 and Luke 2:7 both emphasize that Jesus was the Firstborn of Mary even though the Virgin Birth already made that obvious.

And hey, I made that case without even addressing the awkward issue of Jephthah's Daughter.

What is Repentance

I had an earlier post on Repentance and Salvation.  I stand by my points there, but what's more important is what Repentance means.

The Greek word translated Repent means a change of mind.  A Change how how you think.  Mark 1:15 says "repent ye, and believe the gospel".  It's all about Belief.

The people who overemphasis Repentance, who puts memes on Facebook saying "If your Gospel doesn't include Repentance your teaching a False Gospel", think Repent means to Turn from Sin.  It doesn't mean that.  Judas Repented of what he had done, and then went and immediately committed Suicide.

One more thing.  John's Baptism is defined as the Baptism of Repentance.  Matthew 3:11, Mark 1:4, Luke 3:3, Acts 13:24 and19:4.  Some view that as part of argument Johns' Baptism was a different Baptism then what the Apostles Baptized.  I don't have an opinion on that yet, but either way the point here is.  Jesus was Baptized by John?  Why?  He was Without Sin?

The reason is Jesus did everything necessary for Salvation for us.  Including Repentance.

You do not need to Repent to be Saved

There are a number of verses you can cite out of context to make it sound like you need to Repent to be Saved, but it's the same with Baptism, in fact their in the same passages often. But no serious Christian today thinks Baptism is necessary for Salvation, after all Paul makes a point out of how he's only ever Baptized two people in 1 Corinthians. But many Evangelicals won't apply the same logic to the references to Repentance that they do to Baptism, which is arguably referenced more often then Repentance is.

How often Salvation is discussed without mentioning it is a more powerful argument. It doesn't occur in Romans 10 when Paul declares "All who call upon the name of The Lord shall be Saved", and plenty of similar places. (Same verses that refute the idea of Baptism being required)

The Gospel of John does not use the word Repent, or Repentance or any other form of the word even once.  Some argue that everything we need to know to be saved in the Gospel according to John, based on how it ends. To me for any of the four to lack reference to Repentance would be odd if it was necessary for Salvation.

It never occurs in James epistle, or Jude's and only once in Peter's two epistles. And it is a rare occurrence in Paul's Epistles. Only showing up Twice in Romans, a few times in 2nd Corinthians and Hebrews. When something doesn't show up until a 2nd epistle to the same recipient, that usually means it was a lower priority.

Romans is called the definitive statement on Christian doctrine. The first 8 Chapters nail down the fact that Salvation if by faith alone. And the word "Repent" appears only once in Chapter 2, where we haven't gotten to Salvation yet, Paul is still laying out how Sinful the state of mankind is. It never appears in Galatians, the other key Gospel on Faith vs Works.

That's the thing, people claim they believe salvation is by faith alone not works, but still Preach that you need to Repent to be saved. Repentance is a work, most of God's commands are commands not to Sin, even not Sinning is a work.

Other verses
"And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house." - Acts 16:31
"But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness." - Romans 4:5
"Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith without the deeds of the law." - Romans 3:28
"For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast." - Ephesians 2:8,9

It's also never brought up in the account of how the Ethiopian Eunuch is saved in Acts 8.

Repentance is something we should be doing, after we're saved, as part of our walk with Christ. But it's not necessary for salvation, and we won't lose Salvation by failing to do it, but we still ought to do it.