(d) Sacrifice. — The Jewish ordinances of sacrifice formed part of the ' Law,' and were also in intimate connexion with the covenant idea ; this section, therefore, must to some extent overlap the two preceding. Our Lord accorded to sacrifices the same recognition that He accorded to the Law as a whole ; He accepted them as of Divine authority, and binding upon the Jews. He told the recovered leper to offer the prescribed gift (MtS*); He assumed that His hearers offered them as an ordinary practice (5=^'-). But the latter passage also shows that He relegated them to a subordinate place as compared with the higher moral duties. He twice quoted the saying of Hosea that God desires ' mercy and not sacrifice ' (Mt 9'^ 12'). And by the inaugu- ration of the New Covenant in His own blood, the whole Jewish system was liy implication abrogated by being transcended. The thought of sacrifice seems also to underlie the words in Mt 20=' || Mk lO*'. Christ gave His life as a ' ransom ' {Xirpov) — a means of redemption or release. The word is used in the LXX as a rendering of isb a ' covering ' or 'atonement.' But such a passage as Nu 35^' shows that it does not necessarily imply the death of an animal ; and it is precarious to press our Lord's words to sujiport any theory of the Atone- ment, as has been done with disastrous results by widely differing schools of thought. Further, Jn 19^'* refers to the Passover lamb ; and possibly also JnP'-"*, but it is .safer to regard the Baptist's words as an allusion to Is 53'*- ', where the suffer- ings and death of the Servant of Jahweh are described as being in some sense vicarious, and availing to ' take away the sin of the world ' ; this truth was depicted symbolically by the ' scape- goat ' on the Day of Atonement. The words of our Lord at the institution of the Eucharist were, as has been said above, the starting-point for the fuller teaching of the Apostolic writers. Of the debts which Christianity owes to Israel, none is more fundamental than the conception of sacrifice. The references to the subject in St. Paul's writings, though not numerous, are quite enough to show that he had a deep and firm belief in the sacri- ficial and propitiatory character of Christ's death (Sanday-Headlam, Romans, pp. 91 f.). See also 1 P 1" (an allusion to the covenant sacrifice at
Horeb), 1'" (the Passover lamb), 2'-* (a general description of an atoning sacrifice). And it is the paramount thought in Hebrews, which shows how Christ's sacrifice and priesthood were analogous to, but infinitely surpassed, the Jewish sacrifices and the Levitical priesthood (see art. DAY OF Atone- ment).
(c) Messianic expectations. — (i.) The universal expectation in Israel in our Lord's time that One was to come who should be a national deliverer, had its roots as far back as the Divine promises to Abraham ; but the focussing of all hopes on a King was due to the promise made to David that his line should have perpetual possession of the throne. The hopes of national peace and glory under a king reach a climax in Isaiah and Micah. But they received a terrible reverse at the Captivity, and in subsequent OT writings the idea largely disappeared. It was revived, however, to a certain extent in airocryphal and especially in apocalyptic literature. In two of the earlier portions of the Sibylline Oracles, in parts of the Ethiopic Enoch ancf in the Psalms of Solomon, there are indica-
Messiah (though the truth was guessed by the first disciples, Jn !■"• ^^) was due to His own claims, which were not, however, put forward even to the Twelve till near the close of His ministry. He Ijronounced Simon Peter blessed because the truth had been Divinely revealed to him (Mt 16""-) ; and He acknowledged to Pilate that He was a king (Mt 27" II Mk 15=, Lk 23^ Jn If"'-). But while He declared the fact, He raised it into a new sphere of thought — ' My kingdom is not of this world ; if my kingdom were of this world, then would my servants fight . . . but now is my kingdom not from hence.' And in conversing with the Twelve He linked with it the clear announcement of His approaching sufferings (Mk 8='"^' and parallels ; cf.
(ii.) The kingship of the Messiah was the only conception which had been entertained by the Jews themselves. But ' in the minds of the first members of the Christian Church the experiences of the Cross, the Resurrection and Pentecost, together with the impression which the character and work, the life and teaching of Jesus had made upon them, led to a rapid transformation, pregnant with important consequences, of the idea of the Messiah which they held as Jews ' ( Hastings' DB iii. 356"). As they studied the OT Scriptures in the light of these experiences, ' they found scattered there the elements of a relatively complete ideal, which had been perfectly fulfilled in Jesus' (ib. SSe""). The very mode of life and teaching which He had adopted drew their attention to the promise of a ' true prophet' (Dt 18'^ Ac 3-'- 7^'). And in the miracles which He performed He appeared to be a counterpart of OT prophets. This working of miracles formed part of the current Messianic conception, as is implied by John the Baptist (Mt ll^'-), and in the questionings of the Jews (Jn 7^'). Another trait in the prophetic office of the Messiah — that of the revealer of unknown truths — is implied by the Samaritan woman (Jn 4"). This had formed no definite part of the earlier INIessianic expectations, though the nation had looked forward to a true prophet (I Mac 14*'). In our Lortl's tiiiio men hoped for the return of one of the old prophets (Mk 6'^* S"'-), or the coming of one who was called 'the i)rophet' (Jn 1='-=^ 6'*); but there is no indication that ' the prophet ' was identified with the Messiah.