1. Altar of Sacrifice
Key Verses: John 1:19-34, Exodus 27:1-7, 38:1-7
The Altar of Sacrifice is the first thing that you would see when entered into the Tabernacle. This is the place where the Israelites would offer their animal sacrifices to God. This raises an important question. Why would God require animal sacrifice? The idea that is behind this question usually has something to do with God being angry and needing some type of target to pour his wrath onto. But this isn’t what is happening.
Sin is a failure to see the holiness of something. It corrupts the community as a whole and causes a disruption in relationships, the land, (and as the Bible says) leads to death. The Tabernacle is the dwelling place of God among the Israelites living in the desert. Though God is everywhere, God wanted to draw near to his people in a way they could understand as they transitioned through the wilderness. This certainly wouldn’t be possible in a setting that was corrupted and full of eyes that failed to see holiness.
Animal Sacrifice was a way of teaching the people that their sin had real immediate consequences. Your sin WILL ONLY lead to death, hurt, and pain. Later, this would be illuminated ultimately in Christ’s death on the cross.
John the Baptist is described in other books as a dynamic figure, dressed in camel’s hair and eating locust and honey. But here in this Gospel, John is only mentioned because of his testimony of who Jesus is. The Levites and priests come to the Baptist asking if he is the Messiah. In the Tabernacle, the Levites would have had to identify and inspect the sacrifices before they were offered. John “fails not to confess” that he is not the Messiah. He later identifies Jesus as “the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the World”.
Before animals were offered on the Altar of Sacrifice, the Israelite would place their hands on the animal, transferring their sin. I think this connected them in some way to the life they were about to end because of their selfishness. When John sees Jesus and announces him as the Lamb of God, maybe this is what he was doing for the people. Maybe he was making them aware that all the good Jesus was about to perform was leading to a sacrifice. So they should lean in while they have a chance.
Horns on the Altar When the Altar of Sacrifice was constructed, it had 4 horns on the corners. The Hebrew word for horn is “Qeren”. It can refer to animal horns (which represent strength) or rays of light. When Moses returned from Mt. Sinai with the tablets, the Bible describes his face this way meaning it was shining.
The Horns on the Altar were used as points to tie down the sacrificial animal. The offerer would place their hands on the animal's head, symbolizing a transfer of sin onto the offering. Horns, also, symbolized a crown of majesty. Think of the strong crown of antlers a deer has. We see in the Altar a foreshadowing of Jesus. John calls him the “true Light coming into the world”. He was bound to a cross. Our sinful nature failed to recognize him as a crown of thorns was pressed into his head.
Yet, those horns we gave him revealed in the greatest of ways the glory of God. The juxtaposition of something sharp and violent communicating love and mercy is displayed in the horns of the altar; a simple foreshadow of the lamb of God to come.
