Lesson 5 | Bracketing a Passage
Context is King, Herald, Cup Bearer, and Knight
Context cannot be expressed in percentages.
Not Just Context, But Structural Context
Consider the following verse.
At first glance, this verse appears to teach that blood sacrifices are the means by which God grants atonement for our sins. However, someone might appeal to the context of the proceeding and following verses to argue otherwise—namely that atonement for sins is not in view here, but rather a dietary law regarding the eating of blood.
In fact, rabbinical Judaism often argues this very thing (that these verses only deal with a dietary law). See, rabbinical Judaism teaches that prayers in the synagogue have replaced sacrifices for the atonement of sins. But this would be a problem if indeed God required blood to make atonement. So does he?
Honestly, it would be hard to disagree with Judaism's conclusion, if the context was merely topical, since clearly verses 10 and 12 are issuing a food law forbidding the eating of blood. But that is not how context works! Note the “for” at the beginning of verse 11 and “therefore” at the beginning of verse 12. These are not throwaway words. They indicate to us that verse 11 is intentionally inserted in order to be the basis for why the food law is given. It is because of the supreme importance of blood sacrifices in atonement (as described at length in the previous 43 verses in Leviticus!) that God is issuing this law. But we must note the structure of the context to know this with certainty.