11.8 Empty Sacrifices not Desired
by Hubert F. Sturges, www.everlastingcovenant.com, September 19, 2010
Topics:
The Sacrifice of Righteousness
Sacrifices an illustration
References:
Sacrifices without a change in the life, are not pleasing to God.
"And Samuel said, Hath the Lord as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams" (1 Samuel 15:22).
"For thou desirest not sacrifice; else would I give it: thou delightest not in burnt offering.
"The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: a broken and a contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise"(Psalm 51:16-17).
"To what purpose is the multitude of your sacrifices unto me? saith the Lord: I am full of the burnt offerings of rams, and the fat of fed beasts; and I delight not in the blood of bullocks, or of lambs, or of he goats.
"Wash you, make you clean; put away the evil of your doings from before mine eyes; cease to do evil" (Isaiah 1:11,16);
"Wherefore when he cometh into the world, he saith, Sacrifice and offering thou wouldest not, but a body hast thou prepared me:
"In burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin thou hast had no pleasure" (Hebrews 10:5-6).
After Saul had been king of Israel for about sixteen years, he was commissioned to totally exterminate the Amalekites, including women, children and all their animals. Saul was victorious but saved the king alive and the best of the sheep and cattle "to sacrifice unto the Lord thy God." Saul showed here a legalistic attitude that God would be pleased simply by the sacrifice of animals. Saul even went so far as to say to Samuel, "I have performed the commandment of the Lord" (1 Samuel 15:13).
Samuel met Saul on his return from battle. "And Samuel said, ‘Hath the Lord as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams" (1 Samuel 15:22).
More Annotated References:
1 Samuel 15:22 Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams.
2 Chronicles 7:5 And king Solomon offered a sacrifice of twenty and two thousand oxen, and an hundred and twenty thousand sheep: so the king and all the people dedicated the house of God.
Psalms 40:6 Sacrifice and offering thou didst not desire;
Psalms 50:13-14 Will I eat the flesh of bulls,.. Offer unto God thanksgiving; and pay thy vows
Isaiah 1:11-16 To what purpose is the multitude of your sacrifices unto me? .. who hath required this at your hand, to tread my courts? .. Wash you, make you clean; put away the evil of your doings from before mine eyes;
Jeremiah 7:22-23 I spake not unto your fathers,.. concerning burnt offerings or sacrifices: this I thing commanded .. Obey my voice, and I will be your God, and ye shall be my people:
Hosea 6:6 I desired mercy, and not sacrifice; and the knowledge of God more than burnt offerings.
Amos 5:21-22 I despise your feast days, .. Though ye offer me burnt offerings and your meat offerings, I will not accept them:
Hebrews 10:5-6 Sacrifice and offering thou wouldest not, .. in burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin thou hast had no pleasure.
See also Psalm 50:8; 69:13; Proverbs 21:3; Ecclesiastes 5:1; Jeremiah 6:20; Matthew 9:13; 12:7; Mark 12:33; Hebrews 9:9; 10:5,8,11.
These verses show that God is not pleased with sacrifices, except as they are a symbol of the changed life. At the dedication of the temple, Solomon’s sacrifice of thousands and thousands of animals (2 Chronicles 7:5) showed a serious misunderstanding of the purposes of sacrifice. God is not a God who must be appeased; rather He is a God who desires people to have faith in Him.
The Sacrifice of Righteousness
Deuteronomy 33:19 there they shall offer sacrifices of righteousness:
Psalms 4:5 Offer the sacrifices of righteousness, and put your trust in the LORD.
Psalms 50:5 Gather my saints together unto me; those that have made a covenant with me by sacrifice.
Psalms 51:6 Behold, thou desirest truth in the inward parts:
Psalms 51:16-19 For thou desirest not sacrifice; else would I give it: thou delightest not in burnt offering ... the sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: ... then shalt thou be pleased with the sacrifices of righteousness,
Psalms 107:22 let them sacrifice the sacrifices of thanksgiving,
Hebrews 13:15 therefore let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually,
Hebrews 13:16 to do good and to communicate forget not: for with such sacrifices God is well pleased.
The sacrifices of animals are of no avail unless it is a symbol of righteousness in the life of the individual. This is discussed at length in Psalm 50. In verses five and twenty three, God shows His love for those who have covenanted with Him for His righteousness, and confirmed this with a sacrifice – the kind of sacrifice that is meaningful to Him.
Sacrifices an illustration, not a part of the covenant
The sacrifices, ceremonies and feasts were definitely given to Israel by God. But were they a part of the old covenant? No! To hold this belief reinforces "Adventist Dispensationalism." The sacrifices and ceremonies were definitely fulfilled at Calvary, and had no more significance. To look on them as illustrations of the covenant is useful, and I believe, Biblical. (See article #18.3, Oblation to Cease; and section Covenant Critique: Article 8.0, Adventist Dispensationalism.)
"My covenant" the everlasting or "new" covenant presented by God in Exodus 19:4-6 had a preamble of grace in verse four. There was a very similar preamble of grace for the ten commandment law in Exodus 20:2 (2). The ten commandment law, the tables of stone were called "the covenant" (1) and kept inside the ark of the covenant (3). By contrast the book of the law, civil and ceremonial, was kept in the side of the ark (4).
The sacrifices and ceremonies were given to be an illustration of how the Plan of Salvation worked. As such they were accessory to the Covenant, but never a part of it. The only place where it seemed that a ceremony was part of the covenant is in Genesis 17:10-13. Careful reading of this passage shows that circumcision was a token of the covenant, but NOT the covenant.
(See Article #7.0, Circumcision: A Token.)
Of further note is that God has never spoken of sacrifices and ceremonies as a covenant of any kind. As an illustration of the covenant and a worship form they were given by God, and were prominent throughout Old Testament times. However as an illustration, there was no power to change the life, except through faith in the promised Messiah.
There are a number of passages that indicate that God is weary of sacrifices and ceremonies, unless they represent a changed life. See the lists above for annotated references.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------References:
1. The ten commandment law, the tables of stone called "the covenant." Exodus 34:28; Deuteronomy 4:13, 23; 9:9, 11, 15
2. The preamble of grace for the covenant and for the law: Exodus 19:4; 20:2.
3. Tables of stone kept inside the ark of the covenant: Exodus 25:21; Deut. 10:2, 5; 1 Kings 8:9; 2 Chronicles 5:10; 6:11
4. The book of the law (civil and ceremonial) kept in the side of the ark: Deuteronomy 31:26
5. The ark of the covenant: Numbers 10:33, 44; Deuteronomy 10:8; 31:9, 25, 26; Joshua 3:3,6,8,11.
