The Mystery of the Scarlet Cord
Jesus unexpected - Part 1

(This article originally appeared on the Crossrhythms website)

The temple in Jerusalem, at the time of Jesus. Now that was some sight. Built by a thousand artisan priests, with gold-plated gates and adorned with golden vines as large as a man. It was said that the four great lamp-stands in the outer court lit up homes throughout the whole of Jerusalem during the festivals.

Yet, just before his death, Jesus pointed at this magnificent structure and proclaimed its utter destruction. A generation later his prophecy was fulfilled by the Romans, and is immortalised by the Arch of Titus in Rome, where you can see a depiction of the temple treasures being carried away by the victorious army.

This event took place in 70 AD, a dark day in Jewish history, remembered yearly by a day of mourning, Tisha b'Av. It was an extremely significant event, it meant that the annual sacrifices, offerings to God to cover the sins of the people, had to cease. These sacrifices had taken place every year on Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement and were performed by the High Priest at the temple, in a ritual full of drama and wonder. He first atoned for himself, then for his family and then for the whole nation. The climax of the ceremony involved two goats. They were brought to the High Priest and lots were cast. The unlucky goat was subsequently sacrificed and the lucky one, the scapegoat, let loose into the desert, carrying the sins of the people (and giving rise to the popular term). This goat would have a scarlet cord attached to its horns and every year it was said that this cord would miraculously turn white, as an indication of God accepting the sacrifice. Imagine the collective relief when this happened!

So this ritual took place every year, as long as the temple was there and there was a High Priest to carry out the ceremony. Up until 70AD that is, when the Romans came, saw and conquered. From that time onwards the sins of the people weren't dealt with by blood sacrifice, other ways had to be devised to deal with the situation. But, if the truth be told, the real problem had started many years earlier and is told to us in the pages of the Talmud, the authoritative collection of Jewish writings and teachings, compiled from the 2nd century onwards.

According to the Talmud, something strange happened one Yom Kippur.

"Our Rabbis taught: During the last forty years before the destruction of the Temple the lot did not come up in the right hand; nor did the crimson-coloured strap become white". (1)

The temple, as we know, was destroyed in 70 AD. Forty years before this would be 30 AD. So, from 30 AD, God showed his displeasure by not accepting the annual temple sacrifice for the forgiveness of the sins of the Jewish people. So what could have happened around 30 AD to incur divine annoyance? What single event did away with the need for further sacrifices, so much so, that any attempt at doing so would be rejected?

Only one event fits the bill, the crucifixion of Jesus, the sacrifice of the Messiah.

"Day after day every priest stands and performs his religious duties; again and again he offers the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins. But when this priest [Jesus] had offered for all time one sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God." (Hebrews 10:11-12)

So, around 30AD Jesus is crucified and, as the Gospels tell us, the curtain in the temple tears from top to bottom (Matthew 27:51). Then, later that year at Yom Kippur, for the first time in their history, the scarlet cord failed to bleach. Imagine the collective bewilderment when this happened! How many of them would have put two and two together? We have the benefit of hindsight and two millennia of Christian theology, but all they had were a leadership intent in maintaining the status quo. No doubt it was swept under the carpet and continued to do so for a further forty years while the carpet was still there. Then, in 70AD, the fulfilment of Jesus's earlier prophecy kicked in and God showed his displeasure at the annual sacrifice by the biggest sign of all, the destruction of the temple.

So the temple was no more, but there was an added significance to this fact. All the temple genealogical records were destroyed by the Romans and so a key qualification for Messiahship, the proof of descendancy from King David, was rendered unproveable from that time on. Consequently, any future contender for the role of "Messiah" or "Christ" could never legally prove his genealogical credentials. So, unless the rules had somehow changed, the Messiah was either never going to make an appearance … or had already come!

Isn't it remarkable that this situation should be described in the Talmud, the most authoritative of Jewish writings, though no reason is given. The mystery of the scarlet cord is just told, not commented on. Yet the significance is awesome. Your annual sacrifices are not acceptable to Me, the Lord was saying. The ultimate High Priest, Jesus himself had offered for all time one sacrifice for sins.

So here history proclaimed Jesus. Not through the pages of the Bible, or through the witness of Christian commentators, but through a passage in the writings of a people who had every reason to despise Jesus, in the light of the evil deeds that had been done to the Jews in the name of Christ, through such sorry episodes as the Crusades and The Inquisition. God has given us a marvelous witness to His masterplan. We should not dismiss it out of hand.

NOTES

1. Talmud (Yoma 39b)

(This article is based on material from "Jesus, The Man of Many Names" published by Authentic)