Why was Blood Forbidden to Eat? Or The Noahic Covenant, Part Three
A Devotional Series from Genesis
Online Bible Audio/Readings Links (ESV)
7/10 Reading Portions: Joshua 12-13; Psalm 145; Jeremiah 6; Matthew 20
Genesis 9:4
“But you shall not eat flesh with its life, that is, its blood.”
PRECIOUS
Yesterday, we considered God’s allowance for humanity to now eat animals because it pointed to our nourishment in Christ Jesus. This one restriction is added to the eating of flesh (Gen 9:3), that the blood cannot be eaten with it. Why is the blood in the flesh forbidden to eat? Because it, too, points to the truth of the gospel. Just as every sacrifice was a type and picture of the ultimate, once-and-for-all Sacrifice of Christ (Heb 10:4, 10), eating the flesh without blood was a type and picture of our nourishment from the crucified and risen Savior. In other words, Christ’s shed blood when His side was pierced at Calvary, was sprinkled spiritually so to speak, in heaven the holiest of places, once and for all (Isa 52:15; Heb 9:19-28).
Our spiritual nourishment in partaking of the body of Christ, His flesh, is symbolic of the true and eternal nourishment we receive in partaking of the truth of a Savior who has shed His own blood as the eternal Sacrifice, and then as the Great High Priest, sprinkled His own blood in the holiest of heavenly places to cleanse it from the stain of Satan’s sinful presence (Job 1:6; 2:1; 1 Jn 2:2; Rev 12:10).
The faith of our souls is not nourished or strengthened by a Savior who descended from heaven simply to say, “I forgive you. Go and sin no more.” He took on human flesh, laid down His life, and shed His blood for our forgiveness. We are nourished by the truth that God pulled out all the stops to send us the very Best (Rom 8:32), His one and only Son, Jesus Messiah, who lived, suffered God’s infinite wrath for our sakes, died as a Man, and shed His blood for our forgiveness. To eat flesh with the blood before Christ came, was tantamount to saying, “Jesus’ blood is not precious.” Christ’s blood is infinitely precious, as it is written,
knowing that you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your forefathers, not with perishable things such as silver or gold, but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without blemish or spot. 1 Peter 1:18-19
Hallelujah! What a Savior!