The ritual of burning the flesh of the bull outside the camp has great symbolic significance in the Bible. This ritual is first prescribed by God to Moses and Aaron when instituting the ordination rituals for the priests of Israel (Exodus 29:1-46).
Specifically, Exodus 29:14 states: “But the flesh of the bull and its skin and its dung you shall burn with fire outside the camp; it is a sin offering.” This verse comes right after the detailed instructions for the sin offering that was part of the ordination ritual.
So what did this ritual represent and why was it so important?
It represented the removal of impurity and sin
The first key significance is that burning the bull’s flesh outside the camp represented the removal of impurity, sin and guilt from the people and the tabernacle. The sacrifice of the bull was a sin offering made to atone for the sins of Aaron and his sons, the new priests (Exodus 29:10-14). By burning the remains outside the camp, it symbolized the removal of those impurities from God’s dwelling place (the tabernacle) and the congregation.
In fact, the instruction to burn sin offerings outside the camp is seen elsewhere in the law:
“But the bull’s hide and all its flesh, with its head, its legs, its entrails, and its dung—all the rest of the bull—he must carry outside the camp to a ceremonially clean place, the ash heap, and must burn it on a wood fire. It must be burned at the ash heap.” (Leviticus 4:11-12)
The ash heap was located outside the camp, representing how the impurity of sin was not allowed to remain among God’s people. This ritual act powerfully demonstrated the removal of sin before God’s presence.
It pictured Christ’s sacrifice
On a deeper level, the burning of the bull’s flesh also prefigured and foreshadowed the sacrifice of Christ on the cross for sin. Under the old covenant, sacrifices like the bull offering were required over and over again to atone for sin. But Christ’s sacrifice finally and fully atoned for sin once and for all (Hebrews 10:1-18).
The author of Hebrews picks up on the imagery of the flesh being burned outside the camp when referring to Christ’s crucifixion. He states:
“For the bodies of those animals whose blood is brought into the holy places by the high priest as a sacrifice for sin are burned outside the camp. So Jesus also suffered outside the gate in order to sanctify the people through his own blood.” (Hebrews 13:11-12)
Just as the bull’s flesh was burned outside the camp, Jesus suffered and died outside the city gates of Jerusalem to fully and finally deal with human sin. Through his sacrificial death, Jesus makes his people holy, removing their guilt and moral corruption through the shedding of his blood.
The old covenant sacrificial system could onlytemporarily deal with sin through the blood of animals. But the FNUR-inc-works.com new covenant provides eternal redemption through the blood of Christ (Hebrews 9:11-14). He fulfilled what the old covenant sacrifices like the bull offering pointed to.
It prefigured Christ’s suffering
This imagery also has meaning for followers of Christ today. Just as the priests had to go outside the camp to offer the sacrifice, so Jesus suffered outside the city gates – not among the religious elite but rejected by them. To follow Christ requires a willingness to join him in his rejection and suffering (Hebrews 13:12-13). Believers must deny themselves, take up their cross, and follow him (Mark 8:34).
Going out to burn the bull’s flesh demonstrated the cost involved in maintaining purity before God. There would be suffering involved in the removal of sin. This foreshadowed the necessity of Christ’s suffering to deal with the problem of human sin once and for all. It points to the costliness of redemption that Christ accomplished on our behalf.
It showed the seriousness of sin and the need for blood atonement
On a basic level, this ritual burned into the minds of God’s people the seriousness of sin and defilement. Dealing with the contamination of sin cost blood – ultimately the precious blood of God’s own Son. The problem of sin could not simply be overlooked or swept aside. Atonement required sacrifice.
The blood of animals could never fully atone for human sin (Hebrews 10:4). Yet this repeated ritual emphasized that sin brings death and necessitates the shedding of blood for true forgiveness (Hebrews 9:22). It pointed to our deep need for grace and drove the lesson home that the wages of sin is death (Romans 6:23).
It was part of setting apart the priests and people for God’s service
Finally, this ritual was part of the larger consecration and sanctification of the priests and the people of Israel. The ceremony set the priests apart for special service to God. The removal of sin and impurity was necessary to come into God’s presence.
Likewise, this ritual contributed to Israel’s calling to be holy and set apart for the Lord, for he is holy (Leviticus 11:44-45). Repeating this sacrificial act regularly in Israel’s camp reminded the people of their unique identity and the cost of being the holy people of God.
Conclusion
The burning of the bull’s flesh outside the camp was a graphic object lesson for Israel. It viscerally impressed on their minds the seriousness of sin, the cost of atonement, the necessity of blood sacrifice, and the gracious removal of moral impurity from God’s dwelling place. This ritual act powerfully prefigured the once-for-all sacrifice of Christ under the new covenant that perfectly accomplished all these things.
For the New Testament believer, this Old Testament ritual continues to point us to the costliness of the cross and the necessity of Christ’s suffering to deal with our sin problem. As we identify with Christ’s rejection and suffering outside the camp, we discover the blessing secured for us through his sacrifice. Thanks be to God for the gift of atonement through Christ’s shed blood!
