(The view expressed in this blog are my own and should not be taken as inspired in any way.)
Numbers 19:1–10, “And the LORD spake unto Moses and unto Aaron, saying, This is the ordinance of the law which the LORD hath commanded, saying, Speak unto the children of Israel, that they bring thee a red heifer without spot, wherein is no blemish, and upon which never came yoke: And ye shall give her unto Eleazar the priest, that he may bring her forth without the camp, and one shall slay her before his face: And Eleazar the priest shall take of her blood with his finger, and sprinkle of her blood directly before the tabernacle of the congregation seven times: And one shall burn the heifer in his sight; her skin, and her flesh, and her blood, with her dung, shall he burn: And the priest shall take cedar wood, and hyssop, and scarlet, and cast it into the midst of the burning of the heifer. Then the priest shall wash his clothes, and he shall bathe his flesh in water, and afterward he shall come into the camp, and the priest shall be unclean until the even. And he that burneth her shall wash his clothes in water, and bathe his flesh in water, and shall be unclean until the even. And a man that is clean shall gather up the ashes of the heifer, and lay them up without the camp in a clean place, and it shall be kept for the congregation of the children of Israel for a water of separation: it is a purification for sin. And he that gathereth the ashes of the heifer shall wash his clothes, and be unclean until the even: and it shall be unto the children of Israel, and unto the stranger that sojourneth among them, for a statute for ever.”
This sacrifice was even more significant than any of the other sacrifices. Not only did the sacrifice have to be a heifer withouts spot or blemish, it had to be red as well. There is special symbolism in this fact because red is also the colour of blood. The blood of this special sacrifice was sprinkled on the altar for the forgiveness of sin. The heifer was then burnt and then cedar wood, hyssop and scarlet was added to the fire. The cedar tree is the symbol of Lebanon, even today. This wood was known for its long lasting properties and was resistant to insects and decay. It was one of the most valuable kinds of wood available in the region at that time. Hyssop was a smaller plant with flowers that grew in bunches at the end of its stems. The Israelis used bunches of hyssop to paint the blood onto their doorposts and lintels during the first Passover (Exodus 12:22, “And ye shall take a bunch of hyssop, and dip it in the blood that is in the bason, and strike the lintel and the two side posts with the blood that is in the bason; and none of you shall go out at the door of his house until the morning.”) so hyssop was associated with blood and life in that culture (Genesis 9:4 , “But flesh with the life thereof, which is the blood thereof, shall ye not eat.”) A scarlet thread was used when twins were born to show which of the twins was the firstborn (compare Genesis 38:28–30, “And it came to pass, when she travailed, that the one put out his hand: and the midwife took and bound upon his hand a scarlet thread, saying, This came out first. And it came to pass, as he drew back his hand, that, behold, his brother came out: and she said, How hast thou broken forth? this breach be upon thee: therefore his name was called Pharez. And afterward came out his brother, that had the scarlet thread upon his hand: and his name was called Zarah.”) All these add up to show that this sacrifice was even more special and had more dignity than the other sacrifices. The ashes were later placed in water that was used for purification for sin. Sin could not be dealt with unless blood was shed, the blood had to come at great cost from a rare and precious place and be part of a sacrificial offering. This showed the high price that was placed on the sacrifice for sin.
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