Leviticus 17:10

"And whatsoever man there be of the house of Israel, or of the strangers that sojourn among them, that eateth any manner of blood, I will set my face against that soul that eateth blood, and will cut him off from among his people. For the life of the flesh is in the blood; and I have given it to you upon the altar to make atonement for your souls: for it is the blood that maketh atonement by reason of the life. Therefore I said unto the children of Israel, No soul of you shall eat blood, neither shall any stranger that sojourneth among you eat blood. And whatsoever man there be of the children of Israel, or of the strangers that sojourn among them, who taketh in hunting any beast or bird that may be eaten; he shall pour out the blood thereof, and cover it with dust."

"The reason for Israel's avoidance of eating blood is set out here more fully than anywhere else in the O.T."[8] It is clearly the religious significance of blood as being the device by which God procured atonement for sinners, not only under the O.T., but under the N.T. as well, that lay back of the prohibition. It should be remembered that this prohibition PRECEDED the Law of Moses (Genesis 9:4-6), and also that it was not relaxed even under the liberty and freedom of the New Covenant (Acts 15:20). The fact that a great many Christian people are not aware of this, coupled with the light esteem that some have for Divine regulations, makes it appropriate to explore the reasons back of this remarkable commandment a little more fully.

ON EATING BLOOD

Right here in this short paragraph lies the basis for the Jews' insistence upon eating only that which is "kosher," even to this day. The reasons for God's requirement in this particular are easy to see.

(1) It created and cultivated in the people of Israel a reverence and respect for their sacrifices, many of which required the shedding of blood.

(2) It was a perpetual reminder to them of the means of forgiveness and salvation. Even under the law, "Without the shedding of blood, there was no remission of sins" (Hebrews 9:22).

(3) It was designed to direct their attention to the Holy One, even Christ, who in the fullness of time would make an atonement for the sins of all people by the shedding of his blood.

(4) It was to provide a wall of separation between the Israel of God and the pagan world of unbelievers whose sacrifices included the eating, even the drinking, of blood.

(5) Also, "By refraining from eating flesh with blood in it, a man is honoring life."[9]

Invariably, the loss of the blood is loss of the life, and it appears here that by the prohibition of eating blood God inculcated a respect for all life. Life is indeed a unique gift from God, and the sacredness of life is recognized and honored by this Divine regulation.

In the light of this, God intended that every man, upon seeing the blood of an animal, even slain for his food, should behold a reminder of the cost at which he himself had been cleansed. It was not a light thing in those ages for a man to "despise the blood." Therefore, mankind was instructed to honor it, even the blood of an animal, because that animal's blood was typical of the blood of Christ himself, the only means of human redemption.

Note, in the verses above, that all blood was considered sacred. Even the blood of a creature unfit for sacrifice was to be covered with dust, as a symbol of the inherent respect due to all blood. Even under the current dispensation of the grace of God, the ultimate sin is that of despising the blood of Christ:

"A man that set at naught Moses' law died without compassion on the word of two or three witnesses: of how much sorer punishment, think ye, shall he be judged worthy, who hath trodden under foot the Son of God, and hath counted the blood of the covenant wherewith he was sanctified an unholy thing, and hath done despite unto the Spirit of grace (Hebrews 10:28-29).