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• LESSON 8 (February 22) • The Sacrifices of the Tabernacle The tabernacle, priesthood, and sacrificial system were built on a precious promise of the God who had delivered the descendants of Abraham from their bondage in Egypt.“There I will meet with the people of Israel, and [the tabernacle] shall be sanctified by my glory. I will consecrate the tent of meeting and the altar. Aaron also and his sons I will consecrate to serve me as priests. I will dwell among the people of Israel and will be their God. And they shall know that I am the LORD their God, who brought them out of the land of Egypt that I might dwell among them. I am the LORD their God.” (Exo 29:43-46)The people came to see just how literally the LORD intended to dwell among them in Numbers 2-3. “The people of Israel shall camp each by his own standard, with the banners of their fathers’ houses. They shall camp facing the tent of meeting on every side” (Num 2:2).The tabernacle was the centerpiece of life with the LORD. What enabled an unholy people to dwell in such close proximity to a perfectly holy God? Sacrifices. Open a Bible and carefully read the LORD’s instructions in Leviticus 17:1-14. Why do you think the LORD was so explicit in commanding that sacrifices be brought to the priest at the entrance of the tent of meeting, and not be offered “in the open field”? What should we make of Leviticus 17:7? “For the life of the flesh is in the blood, and I have given it for you on the altar to make atonement for your souls, for it is the blood that makes atonement by the life” (Lev 17:11). What does this tell us about the nature, significance, and necessity of Old Testament sacrifices? Why would the author of Hebrews 9:22 go so far as to say “without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins”? In Leviticus 1-7, the LORD outlines five sacrificial “offerings” (literally, something that is brought near) that could be presented on his altar for various reasons from among the people. Burnt offerings (Lev 1) – either a bull, small livestock (a sheep or a goat), or a bird; a very costly offering since it would be completely burned up with nothing left. Burnt offerings were made throughout the Old Testament on occasions of thanksgiving, praise, petition, the making of vows, and self-dedication.o Why do you think the LORD repeatedly emphasized that the animals offered were to be “without blemish”?o Why would the LORD want the offerer to “lay his hand on the head of the burnt offering” and be the one to kill it?o After creating such a beautiful, materially-valuable sanctuary, why would the LORD ever want the priests to “throw the blood against the sides of the altar”?