And now, before entering upon an examination of the Bible text, in
the light of these disclosures of primitive and universal customs, it
may be well for me to say, that I purpose no attempt to include or to
explain all the philosophy of sacrifice, and of the involved atonement.
All my thought is, to ascertain what new meaning, if any, is found in
the Bible teachings concerning the uses and the symbolism of blood,
through our better understanding of the prevailing idea, among the
peoples of the ancient world, that blood represents life; that the
giving of blood represents the giving of life; that the receiving of
blood represents the receiving of life; that the inter-commingling
of blood represents the inter-commingling of natures; and that a
divine-human inter-union through blood is the basis of a divine-human
inter-communion, in the sharing of the flesh of the sacrificial
offering as sacred food. Whatever other Bible teachings there are,
beyond these, as to the meanings of sacrifice, or as to the nature of
the atonement, it is not my purpose, in this investigation, to consider.
In the days of Moses, when the Pentateuch is supposed to have been
prepared, there were--as we have already found--certain well-defined
views, the world over, concerning the sacredness of blood, and
concerning the methods, the involvings, and the symbolisms, of the
covenant of blood. This being so, we are not to look to the Bible
record, as it stands, for the original institution of every rite
and ceremony connected with blood-shedding, blood-guarding, and
blood-using; but we may fairly look at every Bible reference to blood,
in the light of the primitive customs known to have prevailed in the
days of the Bible writing.