THE MEANING OF THE CROWN OF THORNS

I was reading in Exodus 28 this morning and connected some dots that added meaning to my appreciation for all that Jesus has done for me!

Here’s the passage about Aaron and his sons being consecrated as priests over Israel:  [All quotes from The Message Bible unless otherwise noted]

^36-38 “Make a plate of pure gold. Engrave on it as on a seal: ‘Holy to God.’ Tie it with a blue cord to the front of the turban. It is to rest there on Aaron’s forehead. He’ll take on any guilt involved in the sacred offerings that the Israelites dedicate, no matter what they bring. It will always be on Aaron’s forehead so that the offerings will be acceptable before God.

Walk with me as I unpack this a bit.  [If I’m misguided in any of this, I have some scholarly friends who will gently correct me on Facebook. 😌]

If Aaron takes on the sin of the people, what happens to it?

Well, in the next chapter, we read:

^29:15-18 “Then take one of the rams. Have Aaron and his sons place their hands on the head of the ram. Slaughter the ram and take its blood and throw it against the Altar, all around. Cut the ram into pieces; wash its innards and legs, then gather the pieces and its head and burn the whole ram on the Altar. It is a Whole-Burnt-Offering to God, a pleasant fragrance, an offering by fire to God.

For at least a period of time, Aaron was the sin-bearer for all the people of Israel. Through this ordination process being described in chapter 29, Aaron and his sons were consecrated as mediators between the people and God!  The process is clarified as the chapter ends:

³⁸ “This is what you are to offer on the Altar: two year-old lambs each and every day, one lamb in the morning and the second lamb at evening. ..

^42-46 “This is to be your regular, daily Whole-Burnt-Offering before God, generation after generation, sacrificed at the entrance of the Tent of Meeting. That’s where I’ll meet you; that’s where I’ll speak with you; that’s where I’ll meet the Israelites, at the place made holy by my Glory. I’ll make the Tent of Meeting and the Altar holy. I’ll make Aaron and his sons holy in order to serve me as priests. I’ll move in and live with the Israelites. I’ll be their God. They’ll realize that I am their God who brought them out of the land of Egypt so that I could live with them. I am God, your God.”

Are you still with me?  There’s good stuff ahead! 😉

Let’s review:

God had established a chosen people who would be His representatives to the whole world!  We’re now reading how God set things up to keep them holy – as He is HOLY!  This process was a daily process of being cleansed and forgiven of sin through the sacrificial system!

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LEAP AHEAD WITH ME!

·         ^{Matthew 27:27-29} The soldiers assigned to the governor took Jesus into the governor’s palace and got the entire brigade together for some fun. They stripped him and dressed him in a red robe. They plaited a crown from branches of a thornbush and set it on his head.

·         ^{Mark 15:17}  The soldiers took Jesus into the palace (called Praetorium) and called together the entire brigade. They dressed him up in purple and put a crown plaited from a thornbush on his head. 

·         ^{John 19:2}  The soldiers, having braided a crown from thorns, set it on his head,

This is not new to us!  We read it repeatedly every Lenten and Easter season!

But consider the link back to Aaron and his consecration as a priest.

“Make a plate of pure gold. Engrave on it as on a seal: ‘Holy to God.’ Tie it with a blue cord to the front of the turban. It is to rest there [like a crown] on Aaron’s forehead. He’ll take on any guilt involved in the sacred offerings that the Israelites dedicate, no matter what they bring. It will always be on Aaron’s forehead so that the offerings will be acceptable before God. 

Aaron took on any guilt of the Israelites so that they could be acceptable to GOD!

1,400 years later, the sacrificial Lamb – so designated by GOD – would HIMSELF become the One to wear the CROWN OF THORNS; thereby taking on the guilt and sin of all humanity throughout all time

so that we can be acceptable to GOD!

 

Hallelujah!

Thank You, Jesus!