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Blood and Land

Adam was named after the “ground” (adama) from whence he was taken. The Apostle Paul defines Adam as “earthy” (i.e., “of the ground”) in 1 Corinthians 15:47,

⁴⁷ The first man is of the earth, earthy; the second man is the Lord from heaven.

More literally, Adam means ruddy, even as Edom means red. Both names are derived from the Hebrew word dam or damah, “blood.” Dirt and rock may come in many different colors, but the Hebrew word adama suggests that the ground is red or reddish. This, in turn, points to the connection between the ground and blood, as if to say that the redness in the earth is evidence that the ground is connected to blood.

We know also—by reading Leviticus 17:11 literally—that “the soul [nephesh] of the flesh is in the blood.” This can also be read, “the fleshly soul is in the blood.” So when Adam was formed of the (red) dust of the ground, he “became a living soul” (Genesis 2:7). It is as if his soul was created or formed from the blood of the red earth.

Hence, the soul is intimately connected to the flesh, not to the spirit. When the flesh dies, the soul dies as well (Ezekiel 18:4 KJV). The soul is the seat of consciousness for our natural body, which Paul calls “the old man” (KJV) or “the old self” (NASB). Yet we who have been begotten by God have transferred our identity from the old soulish man to the new spiritual man—the “new creature” (2 Corinthians 5:17).

In other words, we are no longer the “self” that our earthly parents brought forth into the earth. We are sons of God, our Father, and “Sarah” (the New Covenant), who is our mother (Galatians 4:28). In my view, this spiritual man (which we are) is immortal and does not die when the soul and body die. Instead, it returns to God who gave it (Ecclesiastes 12:7).

This is all background material, which I have often taught in the past. Today we will take these things to another level, showing the importance of blood in the earth and for its redemption.

Sacrifice

All of the Old Covenant animal sacrifices were based on the principle of blood atonement. Because these were only types and shadows, they were imperfect and had to be repeated daily. They pointed to a later time when God would send His Son, Jesus Christ, to be the better Sacrifice “once for all” (Hebrews 10:10).

The blood of a lamb was poured out upon the ground and covered with dust. Its purpose is seen in Leviticus 17:11,

¹¹ For the life [nephesh, “soul”] of the flesh is in the blood; and I have given it to you upon the altar to make an atonement for YOUR souls [nephesh]; for it is the blood that maketh an atonement for the soul [nephesh].

In other words, the blood of the lamb contained its soul, and so it was poured out in death as a substitute for our soul on account of its sin. So we read in Hebrews 9:22,

²² ... And almost all things are by the law purged with blood; and without shedding of blood is no remission.

This is why blood was not to be consumed. Blood was soulish and contains the sins of men, and to consume it signifies absorbing sin into one’s life. Those who are spiritual ought not to do this (Leviticus 17:12; Acts 15:20, 29; 21:25).

Jesus is called “the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world” (John 1:29). His death was prophesied in Isaiah 53:7, saying, “He is brought as a lamb to the slaughter.” Again, Isaiah 53:10 says, “thou shalt make His soul an offering for sin.” His blood was the offering, because it was the carrier of His soul. When His soul died, it died as a substitute for our souls, so that we may live.

Again, we read in Isaiah 53:12, “He hath poured out His soul unto death.” Here His soul is pictured as blood that is poured out at the base of the altar of sacrifice. The result is that “He bare the sin of many and made intercession for the transgressors.” Being put on a cross between heaven and earth, He was portrayed as an intercessor between God and men. So Hebrews 7:25 says,

²⁵ Wherefore, He is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by Him, seeing He ever liveth to make intercession for them.

The blood of animals served as a temporary pattern through the Old Covenant to atone for (kaphar, “cover”) our souls. Atonement merely covers sin; but Christ’s better sacrifice removes sin. Hebrews 10:4 says,

⁴ For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and of goats should take away sins.

Again, Hebrews 10:11-14 says,

¹¹ And every priest standeth daily ministering and offering oftentimes the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins; ¹² but this Man [Christ], after He had offered one sacrifice for sins for ever, sat down on the right hand of God… ¹⁴ For by one offering He hath perfected for ever those that are sanctified.

We see, then, that Christ’s soul had to die in order to remove sin. It was not merely His body that died. Only His spirit returned to God (Luke 23:46).

Christ’s death not only saved mankind but also the whole earth, which, as we have shown, also has a soul via the red earth (adama).

The Earth’s Role as a Redeemer

When Adam sinned, he was sentenced to death. But he did not die immediately, even though God had warned them, saying, “in the day that thou eatest thereof, thou shalt surely die” (Genesis 2:17). He became mortal, which, when we think about it, commuted his sentence. Another way of looking at it is that God redefined this “day,” extending it to “a thousand years” (Psalm 90:4; 2 Peter 3:8). So Adam lived to the age of 930 (Genesis 5:5).

To do this, however, God put the curse of the law upon the ground itself. Genesis 3:17, “cursed is the ground for thy sake.” In other words, the ground itself was to bear a portion of Adam’s sin, as if the ground were held liable. Whenever one pays the penalty for the sin of another, or who pays the debt that someone else has incurred, that person is a redeemer. Hence, the earth became a partial redeemer, allowing Adam to live more than a day. The problem is that the earth, even with all of its resources, had insufficient funds to meet its liability.

For this reason, it became necessary to redeem the earth along with Adam. So when the priests poured out the blood of sacrifice upon the ground, they were testifying (however ignorantly) that the blood of the lamb also applied to the soul of the red earth (adama). Of course, the blood of animals had to be poured out repeatedly, because such blood could only cover sin. The earth would need a greater Lamb with a perfect soul to remove from the earth all liability for sin.

Polluting the Land

In Numbers 35:30-34 the law speaks of those guilty of premeditated murder.

³⁰ Whoso killeth any person, the murderer shall be put to death by the mouth of witnesses… ³³ So ye shall not pollute the land wherein ye are; for blood it defileth the land; and the land cannot be cleansed of the blood that is shed therein, but by the blood of him that shed it. ³⁴ Defile not therefore the land which ye shall inhabit, wherein I dwell…

As with men, the land itself can be polluted and defiled. The sins of men—murder in this case—defiles the land if left unresolved. It is the duty of biblical judges to determine guilt or innocence and then, if guilty, to execute the murderer. However, we must also keep in mind that all victims of injustice (or their guardians) have the right to forgive.

This is the law of victims rights, a law which Jesus Himself invoked on the cross when He prayed, “Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do” (Luke 23:34). Jesus, being the Victim, had every right to forgive. Only the judges lacked this power, for they were duty-bound to enforce the law and uphold the rights of the victims to receive justice.

Later, Stephen, the first martyr for Christ, forgave those who were murdering him as well. Acts 7:59, 60 says,

⁵⁹ And they stoned Stephen, calling upon God, and saying, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” ⁶⁰ And he knelt down and cried with a loud voice, “Lord, lay not this sin to their charge.” And when he had said this, he fell asleep.

Getting back to the topic of polluting the earth through sin, we see that the ground itself is affected by the sins of the people—as if it were a living soul.

Cleansing the Land

There are times when a murder remains unsolved. In such cases the land becomes polluted by the blood of the victim. What, then, is the solution? In Deuteronomy 21:1-9, the Old Covenant solution is set forth as a pattern for those of us today who view the law through New Covenant eyes. In the days of Moses, the elders of the city nearest to the scene of the crime were to behead a heifer (Deuteronomy 21:6).

This obviously resulted in blood being poured out upon the ground. Then the elders were to “wash their hands over the heifer that is beheaded” and pray, as we read in Deuteronomy 21:7, 8,

⁷ And they shall answer and say, “Our hands have not shed this blood, neither have our eyes seen it [not witnessed the murder]. ⁸ Be merciful, O Lord, unto Thy people Israel, whom Thou hast redeemed, and lay not innocent blood unto Thy people of Israel’s charge.” And the blood [bloodshed] shall be forgiven them.

Pontius Pilate was aware of this law when the people and priests demanded Jesus’ crucifixion. He exonerated Jesus in John 19:4 saying, “I find no fault in Him.” Yet they insisted that He be put to death and even threatened to give an evil report to Caesar. Matthew 27:24 says,

²⁴ When Pilate saw that he could prevail nothing, but that rather a tumult was made, he took water and washed his hands before the multitude, saying, “I am innocent of the blood of this just Person; see ye to it.”

In essence, Pilate followed the procedure in the law by which the elders were exonerated of the murder that had taken place in their vicinity. Countless sermons have been preached condemning Pilate, when in fact he knew the law better than those who condemn him. By washing his hands, he proclaimed Jesus’ innocence as well as his own.

When he said, “see ye to it,” he was telling them to do their evil deed without any assistance from himself or, by extension, from Rome. So we read in John 19:16,

¹⁶ Then delivered he Him therefore unto them to be crucified.

In other words, Pilate delivered Jesus to the chief priests to be crucified. They took Him to Golgotha, as John 19:18 says, “where they [the priests] crucified Him.” This was, of course, to fulfill the law, which specified that the priests were the ones called to make the sacrifices. Recall that when King Saul took it upon himself to make the sacrifice (1 Samuel 13:9-13), thereby receiving condemnation from Samuel.

In other words, if (as many claim) the Romans had crucified Jesus, it would have called into question the legitimacy of His great Sacrifice for the sin of the world. Fortunately, Scripture makes it clear that Pilate left it to the chief priests to make this Sacrifice, for he wanted nothing to do with putting to death an innocent Man.

Under the New Covenant, we understand the heifer in Deuteronomy 21 to be a prophetic type of Jesus Christ, who died to cleanse the land of its pollution of blood. For this reason, we have been known to include the land when we partake of communion, which is the body and blood of Christ. Not only do we partake of those elements in a common union, but we also put a measure of bread upon the ground along with some wine, praying that God will cleanse and heal our land.