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2 Corinthians 5:21 For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. While reading much differently from its English processed translations, the Hebrew text of the second verse of the first chapter of the Book of Leviticus presents interesting messianic insights. I do not believe that this is due to some voluntary malefic action, but rather to a reading of the Hebrew with an already established theology. Our usual translations of the verse read something to the effect of: “When any one of you brings an offering to the LORD … (Leviticus 1:2), but a more literal translation of the text would read, (my translation) “When a man from among you (you: 2nd person plural) desires to come near Me with an offering …” The word for ‘man’ is ‘adam’, the same as the name of the first man ‘Adam’. This did not pass the attention of Chassidic teacher Rabbi Schneur Zalman who in 1812 suggested a deeper meaning in the verse coming to the messianic conclusion of the existence of a ‘supernatural/spiritual’ ‘Adam’ who approaches God on the behalf of Israel. Based on the vision of Ezekiel in which he saw ‘a figure with the appearance of a ‘man’ or ‘Adam’ Jewish teachings sometime offer the idea of a heavenly Adam;. It is to this spiritual ‘Adam’ the Rabbi refers to. This may sound far-fetched, but only until we read Paul teaching along the same lines in, The first man was from the earth, a man of dust; the second man is from heaven (1 Corinthians 15:47). Understanding that everything on earth was created after an heavenly pattern, we understand that Paul’s accounting of first and second refers only to the chronology of this ‘Adam’s’ earthly manifestations. The Rabbi was right. Israel does have an ‘Adam’, who approaches God on our behalf, and who lives to make intercession for them (Hebrews 7:25 referring to Isaiah 53:12). He is our Burnt Offering in Hebrew called ‘olah’ or ‘ascension’, an image of a total submission and consumption in God and ascending to Him (Leviticus 1:3; Matthew 26:39; John 3:13-15). He is our Grain Offering (Leviticus 2:2; Matthew 26:26), our Peace Offering which is an image of communion and fellowship with God (Leviticus 3:1; John 14:27; Revelations 19:9). He also is our Sin Offering for involuntary sins (Leviticus 4:2; 2 Corinthians 5:21 (the word for sin in Hebrew or Greek also means: sin offering); Hebrews 9:28); and our Guilt Offering ((Leviticus 5:19; Isaiah 53: 10-11). In studying the eternal offering ordinances in the Book of Leviticus, we learn about Yeshua’s eternal intercessory role in our lives. It is one and the same thing, and since He completes them (Matthew 5:17), if the offerings become obsolete as some teach, Yeshua also becomes obsolete, God forbid! May we always be granted to confidently approach God through Him who is our Eternal Intercessory Offering in a spirit of submission and humility, in full knowledge of our sin and personal unworthiness.
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