| The blood shed, and the blood sprinkled.
In the Old Testament, blood that was 'shed' refers to the spilling of the blood of an innocent person, such as Jesus refers to at Matthew 23:35.
Blood plays an important part in Christians belief. Christians believe that blessings come through the shedding of the blood of the Sinless One, which believed to be the fulfilment of the sacrifrice of animals in Israelite temples, foreshadowing the ultimate atonement. The symbolism is ancient.
To Abraham, for instance, the Lord said: "My people have gone astray from my precepts, and have not kept mine ordinances, which I gave unto their fathers; And they have not observed mine anointing, and the burial, or baptism wherewith I commanded them; But have turned from the commandment, and taken unto themselves the washing of children, and the blood of sprinkling; And have said that the blood of the righteous Abel was shed for sins; and have not known wherein they are accountable before me." (Gen. 17:4-7.)
That these words spoken by God to his friend Abraham and were known to Paul is apparent from the ancient apostle's statement about the saints coming "to Jesus the mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling, that speaketh better things than that of Abel." (Heb. 12:24.)
It was the approved practice for the Levitical priests in Israel to sprinkle blood from their sacrifices in prescribed ways (Heb. 9:19-21), but as used in Hebrews, "the blood of sprinkling" has clear reference to the blood of Jesus, which is symbolically sprinkled upon all the faithful who are symbolically washed and cleansed by it through immersion baptism.
The Savior voluntarily laid down his life and took it up again to satisfy the demands of justice, which required this infinite atonement. His Father accepted this offering in the stead of the blood of all those who were under the curse, and consequently helpless.
The Savior said, "I lay down my life for the sheep…. Therefore doth my Father love me, because I lay down my life, that I might take it up again. No man taketh it from me, but I lay it down of myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This commandment have I received of my Father."
From this we see that he had life in himself, which he received from the Father, being his Only Begotten Son in the flesh. And it was this principle that gave him power to atone for the sins of the world, both for Adam's transgression and for our individual sins, from which we could not of ourselves get free.
Therefore, Jesus Christ died in our place, because to punish us would not relieve the situation, for we would still be subject to the curse, even if our blood had been shed, and through his death we receive life and "have it more abundantly."
Jesus' blood was shed. He was innocent: a Firstborn Lamb without blemish. The innocent suffering for the guilty. The shed blood of Jesus is the propitiation for our sins, but not if we stand idly by and do nothing about it,
The blood of animals slaughtered in the temple was sprinkled on the base of the altar. A rite that returned it to God, for the blood was the life and was returned as a sacrifice to God.
The Israelites were told to sprinkle blood on their door posts and lintels so that the destroying angel would not visit there but would pass ovber their homes.
Those who embrace Jesus Christ as their Savior are symbolically 'sprinkled' with his saving blood, and the angel of death will pass over them, and they shall be saved in the kingdom of heaven.
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