Leviticus 17

v1-9: The people of Israel were forbidden from making sacrifices to God “anywhere except at God’s altar.” The purpose of this law was prevent idolatry and false religion, as sacrifices offered in this way meant that they were “always offered by the hands of the priests, who were the servants at God’s house, and under the eyes of the high priest, who was the ruler of the house and took care to see that everything was done according to God’s laws.” It also preserved the unity of the Israelites, as they all offered sacrifices to God in the same way and at the same place. For us, “Christ is our altar… and it is in him that our sacrifices [not of atonement but acknowledgement] are acceptable to God,” and He “is the centre of unity,” because there is no other place where this acceptance with God can be found.

v10-16: The law against eating blood is repeated and confirmed. The reason for this law was because it was the blood of the animals sprinkled or poured on the altar, that represented a life “given to God instead of the sinner’s life.” The blood of every animal sacrifice pointed forward to the blood of Christ and a perfect life which would be given to make complete atonement for them. By abstaining from eating blood, the people were encouraged to keep looking to Christ’s. Now that “the blood of Christ” which makes atonement for our sins “has come, and we are to look for no other,” there is “no reason to abstain from blood as there was then.”