Scripture Study for
The Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ
Exodus 24:3–8 / Psalm 116:13 / Hebrews 9:11–15 / Mark 14:12–16, 22–26
<< Back to LECTIONARY RESOURCES
Understanding the Word
By Br. John R. Barker, OFM
As Israel enters into a covenant relationship with the God who has delivered them from bondage in Egypt, Moses calls upon the people to affirm that they will be faithful to their God, which means— among other things—to be loyal and obedient, observing all of the covenant expectations (especially the Ten Commandments). In the ancient Near East, and so also in ancient Israel, solemn covenants were sealed by sacrifice and blood from the sacrificed animal was sprinkled on both parties. Here, the people are sprinkled with blood along with the altar itself, which represents God. This blood, which binds the two parties into a relationship of mutual loyalty, is thus the “blood of the covenant.”
The central theme of the Letter to the Hebrews is the priesthood of Christ. Formerly, the high priest, as representative of the people, would enter the tabernacle to offer sacrifice to God. This earthly tabernacle was considered an analog to the divine, heavenly dwelling. Some of the sacrifices were instituted to cleanse Israel of the effects of sin through the sprinkling of the blood of the sacrificed animals, an act that had to be repeated regularly. Christ, the eternal High Priest, has rendered all of this obsolete by entering into the actual heavenly sanctuary, offering himself in sacrifice, and cleansing away sin with his own blood. Because he is the Son of God, this action surpasses all others in quality and effect.
In Mark, the Last Supper is held on the evening ushering in the feast of Passover, when the lambs were slaughtered. The blood of the Passover lamb in Exodus protected the Israelites from death, and the lamb itself was eaten. Here, Jesus offers his own body to be shared by the disciples and his own blood as “my blood of the covenant,” a reference to the blood of the sacrificial animal of the covenant at Sinai. Thus he draws on two traditions of sacrifice, both closely related to the Exodus, to articulate the meaning of his own imminent death, which both saves from death and seals a new covenant between God and humanity.