Why didn’t they skin the burnt offering and burn it
and give it to the priest?
(Lev. 1:6, 7:8)
Maybe the reasons are because …
- There is symbolic meaning of judging a sinner.
- When Israel/Judah was invaded by foreign enemy soldiers (another meaning of the word “skin”) they stripped the Israelites of their clothes (Ezek.16:39, 23:26; Micah 2:8)
- Joseph’s older brothers stripped Joseph of his tunic (Gen. 37:23)
- They stripped Aaron of his garments before he died (due to Israel’s past sins)
(Num. 20:26, 28).
(1) Jesus, who is true Aaron and the righteous high priest, was punished by God for all our sins?
- There is symbolic meaning of victory in fighting against sin.
- When the war was won, the dead or those killed were stripped (1 Sam. 31:8; 1 Chron. 10:8)
(1) Jesus, who is the high priest, was offered on the cross as the sin offering and won the battle against sins?
- There is symbolic meaning of loving a sinner.
- Jonathan took off his outer garment to David, whom he loved more than his life (1 Sam. 18:4).
(1) Jesus, the righteous high priest, loved such sinners like us more than His own life.
- Interesting observations:
- Before Jesus was crucified, they stripped Him and put a scarlet robe on Him (Mt. 27:28).
And after they had mocked Him, they took the scarlet robe off Him and put His own garments back on Him (v. 31).
(1) When they had crucified Him, they divided up His garments among themselves by casting lots (v. 35).