spodo;" damavlew"
] In this case the blood of the sacrifice was also burnt: Num. 19:5.
rJantivzousa tou;" kekoin. aJg.
...]
sprinkling them that have been defiled
,
who by a definite act have contracted some stain,
sanctifieth unto the cleanness of the flesh
... Vulg.
adspersus
(O.L.
sparsus
)
inquinatos sanctificat ad emundationem carnis
(O.L.
ad emundandam carnem
). For the use of the word
kekoinwmevnou"
, which is not found in the LXX. see Matt. 15:11 ff.; Acts 21:28. The accus. depends on
rJantivzousa
: Ps. 50:9 (51:9)
rJantiei'" me uJsswvpw/
. The verb
rJantivzein
occurs in the N.T. only in this Epistle: Heb. 9:19, 21; 10:22 note. In the LXX. the form
rJaivnein
is more common. The water of separation (impurity) is called in the LXX.
u{dwr rJantismou'
, Num. 19:9, 13, 20
f.
Theophylact calls attention to the distinction between
aJgiavzei
, sanctifieth, halloweth, in regard to destination, and
kaqarivzei
(Heb. 9:14
kaqariei'
), cleanseth in regard to character:
o{ra de; suvnesin, oujk ei\pen o{ti ejkaqavrise to; ai|ma tw'n travgwn, ajllj hJgivazen
...
ejkei' me;n ei\pe to;
aJgiavzei
...
ejntau'qa de; kaqariei' eijpw;n e[deixen eujqu;" th;n uJperochvn
.
The idea is that of the ceremonial purity which enabled the Jew to enjoy the full privileges of his covenant worship and fellowship with the external Church of God. The force of the words kaqarov", a{gio" moral, external: ideal, personalis determined by the context.
Heb. 9:14. povsw/ ma'llon ] The superior efficacy of Christ's Blood is based generally on the considerations that His Sacrifice was
1. Voluntary, not by constraint as in the case of the animal sacrifices of the Law.
2. Rational, and not animal.
3. Spontaneous, not in obedience to a direct commandment.
4. Moral, an offering of Himself by the action of the highest power in Himself, whereby He stood in connexion with God, and not a mere mechanical performance of a prescribed rite.
Comp. John 10:17 f. to; ai|ma tou' cristou' ] The blood of Christ stands parallel both to the blood of goats and bulls and to the ashes of the heifer, as the means (1) of atonement for sins, and (2) of purification from contact with death: of access to God and of life in His Church.
It will be observed that it is not the death of the victim as suffering, but the use of the Blood (that is, the Life) which is presented here as the source of purification.
The efficacy of Bloodthe life, Lev. 17:11-is regarded in different aspects in this passage. Now one aspect predominates and now another. It is a means of atonement, and it is a means of purification: it has a power retrospectively and prospectively. Death again, which makes the blood available, is the seal of the validity of a covenant. But no one view exhausts the meaning of that which is the fulness of a life made available for others. Compare Additional Note on 1 John 1:7.
o}"...eJaut. pro". a[mwmon t. q.
]
who through
His
eternal spirit offered Himself without blemish to God
, Vulg.
qui per spiritum sanctum semetipsum obtulit immaculatum Deo.
The sacrifice upon the altar of the Cross preceded the presentation of the blood. The phrase
eJauto;n proshvnegken
clearly fixes