Rethinking Sacrifice and Atonement: Introduction
The claim that in his sufferings and death Jesus made atonement for the sins of others is based on the notion that in ancient Jewish thought the offering of sacrifice and the suffering and death of righteous persons could atone for sins. In reality, however, such an idea runs contrary to what we find in the Hebrew Scriptures and Second Temple Jewish thought, where it is maintained that the only thing that can atone for sins is a recommitment to living in accordance with God’s will.
Chapter 7 Excerpts: Giving Life by Taking It
Rather than seeking to satisfy some need or desire rooted in his own nature, by means of the sacrificial worship he prescribed in the Torah the God of Israel sought to strengthen and reinforce among his people the type of dedication to him and his will that would enable them to enjoy the wholeness and well-being he sought for all. The rich symbolisms involved in that worship reminded the people of certain fundamental truths, while the symbolic rites and gestures they performed provided them with a means by which they might manifest in a visible and palpable manner their love and commitment to living in the way he had commanded for their own good. By receiving from his people’s hand the gifts and offerings that transformed their hearts and lives, God gave them life.
Chapter 8 Excerpts: Purging a Paganized God from the Sins of His Interpreters
Among biblical scholars, the sacrificial offerings and rites for sin or purification prescribed in the Torah or law have generally been understood to have the purpose of making it possible for a holy, just, and righteous God to tolerate and overlook the sins of his people so that he may bless and forgive them. Those offerings and rites are said to accomplish this objective either by allowing for the punishments to which sinners are liable to be inflicted on an animal victim as their substitute or by cleansing the sanctuary from the pollution generated by the sins of God’s people so that he may continue to dwell in their midst. In reality, however, both of these interpretations of the purpose of those offerings and rites must be rejected as having no basis in the biblical texts.
Chapter 9 Excerpts: Consecrating a People Set Apart for Solidarity
Rather than serving as a means by which a perfectly holy and righteous God was enabled to tolerate and overlook the sins of his people, in biblical thought the sacrificial offerings and rites for sin and purification prescribed in the Torah or law had the purpose of bringing the people to put away the kind of sinful and destructive behavior that did them harm and renew their commitment to living in the way God had commanded for their own good. A careful examination of the sacrificial language and imagery that appears elsewhere in the biblical texts and the biblical prescriptions regarding purity and holiness reveals that these things responded to the same logic as well.
Sacrifice and Atonement in Second Temple Jewish Thought
form of prayer and worship that expressed and embodied in visible, tangible ways their deepest sentiments and their ongoing commitment to living in accordance with God’s will.
Salvation and Sacrifice in the Torah
In Second Temple Jewish thought, the Mosaic law or Torah was viewed as a gracious gift given by Israel’s God to his people in order to promote their well-being and happiness by leading them to practice justice and righteousness for the good of all. Many of the commandments of the Torah, such as those prescribing sacrifice, were thought to have been given in order that they might contribute indirectly to the same objective.
“Wounded for Our Transgressions”: Rethinking Isaiah 53
No Old Testament passage has influenced Christian interpretations of Jesus’ death more than Isaiah 53, which speaks of God’s servant bearing sin, suffering, and death on behalf of others in order to heal them and make them whole. Traditional interpretations of Isaiah 53, however, tend to read back into the passage ideas regarding sacrifice and atonement that are not actually found in the passage itself or in ancient Hebrew and Jewish thought in general.
Sacrifice, Death, and Atonement in Second Temple Judaism
A careful examination of Second Temple Jewish beliefs regarding sacrifice and vicarious suffering and death makes it clear that what was thought to atone for sins was not suffering or death but a renewed commitment to living in accordance with God’s loving will. Both the offering of sacrifice and the willingness to suffer or even die were atoning only when they were the expression or consequence of that renewed commitment.
Vicarious Death and Atonement in the Second Temple Period
Numerous passages from Jewish and Greco-Roman writings of antiquity speak of certain persons dying for others or attaining some benefit for them by means of their suffering and death. While it has been common to argue that many of these passages reflect the idea that the suffering or death of a righteous person could atone for the sins of others, in reality such an idea would have found no place among Jews in the Second Temple period.
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