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88 The Messiah’s Crucifixion Tree

The Ultimate Sacrifice for Sin

Man’s sin separates him from a spiritual relationship with his Creator, YEHOVAH God.
YEHOVAH made it possible to establish a spiritual relationship through blood sacrifice because
the penalty for sin is death (Romans 6:23) and life is in the blood (Leviticus 17:11). However, ani-
mal sacrifice could only provide a temporary solution for atonement of sin.

YEHOVAH God made the first animal sacrifice as atonement for Adam and Eve’s sin of
disobedience in the Garden of Eden. Understanding how precisely YEHOVAH works, it is more
than likely that the place of the first sin sacrifice by YEHOVAH was the same place where Adam
was directed to build the first sacrificial altar. Genesis 22:9 indicates that this very altar was repeat-
edly rebuilt and reused through the years by Abel, Noah and Abraham. The Mount of Olives was
the site of this altar -- see our article, The Mount of Olives in YEHOVAH God’s Plan. Further-
more, the most holy sin sacrifice -- the Red Heifer -- is known to have been offered on the summit of
the Mount of Olives, “where God was worshiped.”

With this understanding, the call of Abraham to sacrifice his only son Isaac takes on even
greater significance. The Torah Anthology makes it clear that Isaac was not a child at this point in
time, but a young man quite capable of overcoming his father. This same pattern was repeated in
YEHOVAH God’s sacrifice of His only son, YESHUA the Messiah -- who also willingly followed
the will of his Father in the very same place. The Bible shows us that YEHOVAH God provided a
substitute sacrifice in Isaac’s place: A ram, whose head was caught in a thorn bush (Genesis 22:13).
Two thousand years later, Yeshua, his head surrounded by the same kind of thorns (John 19:2), was
provided as the ultimate substitute sacrifice for all humankind’s sins.

As the Messiah’s blood was shed on the crucifixion tree, a symbolic parallel is evident in the
Yom Kippur sacrifice (Leviticus 16:14). Notice –

Moreover, he [the High Priest] shall take some of the
blood of the bull and sprinkle it with his finger on the
mercy seat on the east side; also in front of the mercy seat
he shall sprinkle some of the blood with his finger seven
times.

The Pattern of the Menorah

The crucifixion of the Messiah reveals certain sym-
bolic meanings and patterns when viewed from the He-
braic perspective. One such pattern is that of the menorah.
The menorah -- the golden seven-branched candelabrum
kept in the Holy Place of the Temple -- represented the
Tree of Life. And a miraculous budding branch of this
tree, known as Aaron’s rod, was planted on the Mount of
Olives by David and grew into the crucifixion tree.

The Menorah

The Berean Voice March-April 2003