Hebrews 9:13

For if the blood of goats and bulls, and the ashes of a heifer sprinkling them that have been defiled, sanctify unto the cleanness of the flesh: how much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without blemish unto God, cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?

The use of blood of bulls and goats on the Day of Atonement has already been discussed; and for the ritual with the ashes of a red heifer, see Numbers 19. These were used for ceremonial cleansing from such defilements as were incurred by touching a dead body. The heifer on which no yoke had come was required to be without blemish, and after the ceremonies was burned without the camp.

The argument here is that Christ's offering is superior to that of the old covenant by the same measure which values the blood of a man more than that of an animal; yes, even more, in that Christ was not merely a MAN, but the holy and perfect God-man himself. There are other points of superiority. Whereas animals were sacrificed without their consent, Christ consented to be the victim for man's sins. Animals were offered by others; Christ offered himself. Moreover, the wonderful offering of Christ was by the purpose and consent of the eternal Spirit, not the Holy Spirit as usually understood, but the pre-existent, eternally divine Spirit of Christ himself which he had before the world was, and which during his earthly ministry was conjoined with his human nature. This distinction between the flesh of Christ and his Spirit appears in three other New Testament references, Romans 1:3,4; 1 Timothy 3:16; and 1 Peter 3:18. Barmby's note on this reads:

In all these passages, THE SPIRIT is that divine element of the life of Christ, distinct from the human nature which he assumed of the seed of David, in virtue of which he rose from the dead.[12]

Thus the blood of animals was chosen and offered upon the volition and choice of men, whereas the offering of Christ was by the fiat of the eternal Spirit that was in Christ.

Now it is admitted by the author of Hebrews that those animal sacrifices did perform their intended function by sanctifying unto the cleansing of the flesh; and if that was true, so he reasons, how much more shall the blood of Christ avail to the achievement of a clean conscience toward God. Regarding the expressions "dead works" and "the living God," see notes under Hebrews 6:1 and Hebrews 3:12. Particular attention is now directed to the conscience and how it may be cleansed.

CONCERNING THE CONSCIENCE

The value of the human conscience is similar to that of a watch, its utility being determined absolutely by its synchronization with the correct time, not determined by the watch, but by the moment of the sun's passing over a certain meridian; and like the watch, a man's conscience can have many things wrong with it. It can be evil (Hebrews 10:22), seared (1 Timothy 4:2), defiled (Titus 1:15), ignorant (1 Timothy 1:13), and choked with dead works (Hebrews 9:14). In spite of the things that may go wrong with it, there is a vast weight of moral authority in the conscience. "If our heart condemn us, God is greater than our hearts and knoweth all things" (1 John 3:20). It is the glorious superiority of the new covenant that God has provided a way by which man's conscience can be truly cleansed, and the basis of that cleansing is shown in this verse. It is by means of the blood of Christ.

But how does the spirit of man come in contact with the blood of Christ? Surely not literally. Therefore, there must be some accommodation in doctrine or ordinance of God that enables that sinful soul to know that he has in fact touched the blood of Christ. If the thesis developed in these lines appears superficial or forced in any degree, let it be remembered that the sole means of obtaining a clean conscience is found in the blood of Christ and that there can be no cleansing apart from that blood. The metaphorical nature of the spiritual truth in this premise would lead us to expect some metaphorical explanation of it, and in this we are not disappointed. Note the following:

(1) Take the view that Christ's blood is in his body. To find contact with the blood, one would therefore have to enter the body of Christ; and how can this be done? Three times the sacred scriptures declare that people are baptized into Christ, that is, into his body (Romans 6:3; 1 Corinthians 12:13; Galatians 3:27).

(2) Or take the view that Christ's blood was in his death, that being the occasion of its being shed. How does one enter the death of Christ? The scriptural answer is, "All we who were baptized into Christ were baptized into his death" (Romans 6:3). In view of these things, who can doubt that Christian baptism is in some wondrous way related to the believer's contact with the blood of Christ with its consequent cleansing of the conscience? If such is not the case, how could the apostle Peter have related baptism to the cleansing of the conscience in the manner of these words, "Which also after a true likeness doth now save you, even baptism, not the putting away of the filth of the flesh, but the interrogation of a good conscience toward God, through the resurrection of Christ" (1 Peter 3:21)?

The connection between baptism and a good conscience is so important that we shall give this verse from 1 Peter 3:21 in the various versions and translations in order for the reader to ascertain for himself what is the most likely meaning of it. The English Revised Version rendition given above is definitely not one of the better ones, as there would seem actually to be an effort to avoid the true meaning by breaking up the clause "baptism now saves you" by placement of the verb first, and by imposition of a five-syllable word "interrogation"!

KJV: "The like figure whereunto even baptism doth also now save us (not the putting away of the filth of the flesh, but the answer of a good conscience toward God), by the resurrection of Christ."

RSV: "Baptism, which corresponds to this, now saves you, not as a removal of dirt from the body, but as an appeal to God for a clear conscience, through the resurrection of Christ."

Emphatic Diaglott: "And immersion, a representation of this, now saves us (not a putting away of the filth of the flesh, but the seeking of a good conscience towards God), through the resurrection of Jesus Christ."

J. B. Phillips: "What a perfect illustration this is of the way you have been admitted to the safety of the Christian `ark' by baptism, which means, of course, far more than the washing of a dirty body: it means the ability to face God with a clear conscience. For there is in every true baptism the virtue of Christ's rising from the dead."

E. J. Goodspeed: "Baptism which corresponds to it, now saves you also, (not as the mere removing of physical stain, but as the craving for a conscience right with God) - through the resurrection of Jesus Christ."

R. F. Weymouth: "And corresponding to that figure, baptism now saves you - not washing off of material defilement, but the craving of a good conscience after God - through the resurrection of Jesus Christ."

John Wesley: "The antitype whereof ... baptism now saveth us, (not the putting away ... the filth of the flesh, but the answer of a good conscience toward God), by the resurrection of Jesus Christ."

In all of these and many others, the unmistakable relationship between the ordinance of baptism and the possession of a good conscience is emphatically plain.

Thus, the manner of people's consciences being cleansed from dead works, although not within the perimeter of the author's vision in these verses, is a matter of the greatest concern to all people. A good conscience becomes reality upon one's obeying the gospel of Christ through faith, repentance and baptism, and rising to walk in newness of life. Without doubt, this fact underlies the reason that baptism, the great initiatory rite into the Christian religion, should have been so solemnly enjoined by the Saviour upon the occasions of his giving the great commission as related by Mark and Matthew. It may be added here as a deduction of our own, that wherever there is knowledge of the Lord's commandment that all people, of all times, of all nations, should be baptized, there never lived a man, and there never will live a man, who can go before God with a good conscience until he has been baptized.