Something came to mind while rereading the Miqra' chapters (a couple somethings, actually, but they're related). Yada repeatedly talks about the purposes of each of the Miqra'ey and their fulfillments. He states that Passover removes the consequence of sin, Unleavened Bread the penalty of sin, etc. I'm trying to figure out the difference between a consequence and a penalty. Seems to me that separation and death are both natural consequences of sinning.
While I was thinking about that, something else popped into my head. A few years ago, I was actively posting on Beliefnet (for those that aren't familiar, it's a site and forum for all sorts of different faiths). I was introduced to the "Christus Victor" view of atonement (it was basically how I had viewed atonement, but they put a fancy name on it and put it in clearer terms). Simply put, the logic goes that Yahshua's (though obviously they call Him Jesus there) death wasn't to pay a penalty as much as it was a ransom to Satan. He ransomed himself to free us from the grave. He couldn't (and by couldn't I mean chose not to since it would have involved going to the place of separation, thereby contradicting Himself) do it without becoming a human being first, dying, and, for lack of a better analogy, staging a jailbreak.
It's as if we, His children, have run away from home, get ourselves into trouble, and Yahweh, like any loving parent, does everything in His power to bring us back home. Some of us, unfortunately, like things better either in captivity, or naively denying our captivity in the first place. In either of those situations, He respects our choice and doesn't bring us home.
I get the feeling while reading that Yada is more of the "He paid the penalty so we wouldn't have to" viewpoint. My problem with that is that it seems to put Yahweh's Law and requirement for justice at a higher level than Yahweh Himself. It seems too legalistic and limited for it to be His ultimate plan.
Here's a good essay that puts it into words much better than I can. He's got the names wrong, but I like his reasoning.
http://therebelgod.com/cross_intro.shtmlThis brings me back to my first point. If Unleavened bread isn't about getting rid of the penalty for sin, what is it about? My best guess is that it is about removing sin. It is the process Yahweh has gone through to remove our sin so we are blameless in His eyes. So what were Psalms 22 and 88 about? Well, he has to pay the ransom and this could be part of it, or it simply could be what He had to endure to get to a point where He could free us for First Fruits.
Thoughts?
