Letter Answering Department Survey: The Red Heifer ...what does this have to do with prophecy?

SUBJECT: Red Heifer

QUESTION: What information do we have on the Red Heifer? What does this have to do with the prophesied third Temple?

ANSWER:

Red Heifer: The Bible

The red heifer provided a means for the congregation of Israel to purify themselves for presentation to God. It is this strong connection which drives the Ultra Orthodox Jews of today to prepare and purify themselves for the coming priesthood and temple services.

The red heifer must meet certain physical criteria and must be sacrificed in a certain way. Once sacrificed, the ashes are to be mixed with "clean" water and it is this mixture which is sprinkled over the "unclean".

Numbers 19 is the basis for understanding and the direction from God for the physical purification. The following bible reference is taken from the King James Version.

Numbers 19

1 And the LORD spake unto Moses and unto Aaron, saying,

2 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:

3 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:

4 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:

5 And one shall burn the heifer in his sight; her skin, and her flesh, and her blood, with her dung, shall he burn:

6 And the priest shall take cedar wood, and hyssop, and scarlet, and cast it into the midst of the burning of the heifer.

7 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.

8 And he that burneth her shall wash his clothes in water, and bathe his flesh in water, and shall be unclean until the even.

9 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.

10 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.

11 He that toucheth the dead body of any man shall be unclean seven days.

12 He shall purify himself with it on the third day, and on the seventh day he shall be clean: but if he purify not himself the third day, then the seventh day he shall not be clean.

13 Whosoever toucheth the dead body of any man that is dead, and purifieth not himself, defileth the tabernacle of the LORD; and that soul shall be cut off from Israel: because the water of separation was not sprinkled upon him, he shall be unclean; his uncleanness is yet upon him.

14 This is the law, when a man dieth in a tent: all that come into the tent, and all that is in the tent, shall be unclean seven days.

15 And every open vessel, which hath no covering bound upon it, is unclean.

16 And whosoever toucheth one that is slain with a sword in the open fields, or a dead body, or a bone of a man, or a grave, shall be unclean seven days.

17 And for an unclean person they shall take of the ashes of the burnt heifer of purification for sin, and running water shall be put thereto in a vessel:

18 And a clean person shall take hyssop, and dip it in the water, and sprinkle it upon the tent, and upon all the vessels, and upon the persons that were there, and upon him that touched a bone, or one slain, or one dead, or a grave:

19 And the clean person shall sprinkle upon the unclean on the third day, and on the seventh day: and on the seventh day he shall purify himself, and wash his clothes, and bathe himself in water, and shall be clean at even.

20 But the man that shall be unclean, and shall not purify himself, that soul shall be cut off from among the congregation, because he hath defiled the sanctuary of the LORD: the water of separation hath not been sprinkled upon him; he is unclean.

21 And it shall be a perpetual statute unto them, that he that sprinkleth the water of separation shall wash his clothes; and he that toucheth the water of separation shall be unclean until even.

22 And whatsoever the unclean person toucheth shall be unclean; and the soul that toucheth it shall be unclean until even.

Christians should understand the above scriptures represented a "type" of Christ. For the sacrifice of the "red heifer" was the forerunner to the ultimate sacrifice of Christ which could do so much more than "purify the flesh". Remember that the red heifer was to be "without spot" (Num 19:2). Compare this with the following passage written by Paul in the book of Hebrews; he explains it well:

Hebrews 9

13 For if the blood of bulls and of goats, and the ashes of an heifer sprinkling the unclean, sanctifieth to the purifying of the flesh:

14 How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?

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Red Heifer: The Details

According to the Bible:

A. The red heifer (Num 19:2):

Must be without blemish

Must be without defect

Must never have worn a yoke

B. The sacrifice (Num 19:3-7):

Must be performed outside the camp

The blood must be sprinkled seven times in front of the tabernacle

The ENTIRE heifer must be burned before the priest

Cedar wood, hyssop and scarlet are added to the fire

The priest washes his clothes and bathes

C. The Water of Purification (Num 19:9):

Prepared by a man who is clean

He gathers the ashes

(Implied) He adds water to the ashes (19:17)

He stores it outside the camp in a clean place

The water is for the congregation of Israel

He washes his clothes and bathes

It is this water, The Water of Purification, which is required by the Israelites today. It is needed to "purify" today's Levitical priesthood and to "purify" the temple mount in preparation for the Third Temple.

What are the Internet sources for finding news or information regarding the red heifer

Here are some sources. Note that they are subject to change. Also note that neither Garner Ted Armstrong nor the Intercontinental Church of God necessarily agree with information found at these sites. Let us know if any of these sources do not work.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_Heifer in Wikipedia

http://www.lawrencewright.com/art-jerusalem.html Article speaking to the concept of the Red Heifer

http://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/1504/jewish/Ashes-and-Water.htm Article on the concept of the Red Heifer

http://www.templeinstitute.org/red_heifer/red_heifer_contents.htm A Temple Institute paper on the subject.

http://www.templeinstitute.org/archive/red_heifer_born.htm Red Heifer Born in Israel – article

http://vanshardware.com/2010/03/the-temple-institute-the-red-heifer-is-ready-for-the-third-temple/ Ready for third Temple. Video regarding the birth of the red heifer.

http://www.lttn.org/redheiferpage.html Source for the book, “Mystery of the Red Heifer”

http://www.bible-prophecy.com/redheifer.htm Prophecy Central Web Site—Subject: Red Heifer

http://www.haydid.org/redcow.htm The Red Heifer Sacrifice

http://cuttingedge.org/n1067.html The Red Heifer—a Great Sign

http://www.datelinenewspage.com/red_heifer_born_in_israel_may_ca.htm The Red Heifer May Cause World War III

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