L4-7: How the Purification Offering tells us the CORRECT location of Yeshua’s crucifixion

“The high priest carries the blood of animals into the Most Holy Place as a purification offering (HATTA-AT), but the bodies are burned outside the camp.  And so Yeshua also suffered outside the city gate to make the people holy through his own blood.  Let us, then, go to him outside the camp, bearing the disgrace he bore.”-Hebrews 13:11-13

Following on the heels of my last post, I have just finished explaining that when the High Priest performed the Purification Offering, the remains of the animal sacrifice were taken to a location designated as OUTSIDE THE CAMP and burned up (SARAPH in Hebrew).

I then connected this piece of information to the fact that Yeshua was also crucified OUTSIDE THE CAMP.

This connection establishes that Yeshua’s sacrifice was as a Purification Offering (or HATTA-AT in Hebrew) for us.

Now this information also gives us a strong clue as to specifically where Yeshua was crucified.

Let’s take a look at Hebrews 13:12.

“And so Yeshua also suffered outside the city gate to make the people holy through his own blood.  Let us, then, go to him outside the camp, bearing the disgrace he bore.”

I want to take a close look at the phrase “outside the city gate”.

It is my contention that the gate being referred to is the Eastern Gate.

Here’s why.

In Yeshua’s time, just outside the the Eastern Gate spanning the valley below there was a double-decker bridge that connected the Temple Mount to the Mount of Olives.

Now when the remains of the Bull for the High Priest’s Purification Offering were transported to outside the camp, it was this bridge that was used!

Also, it was this same bridge that was used when the Red Heifer and the Scapegoat were transported for their respective sacrificial purposes.

Here’s another interesting point.

So far we have studied about two types of altars that were used in the Levitical sacrificial system: 

The Golden Incense Altar located inside the Holy Place

and

The Brazen Altar located just outside the door into the Temple

Well, there was actually a THIRD altar located near the summit of the Mount of Olives that was just OUTSIDE the boundary of the camp of Israel!

This THIRD altar was called the MIPHKAD Altar.

It was here that the Bull remains were turned to ashes!

It was also here where the Red Heifer was burned up!

And I contend that it is probably very near this third MIPHKAD Altar where Yeshua was crucified!!!

One doesn’t need to be a rocket scientist to logically come to this conclusion.

So Hebrews 13:13 says that Yeshua died outside the camp, right?

Now recall that the radius of the area surrounding camp was about a 3000 foot circle with the Holy of Holies being smack dab in the center.

Now understand that if Hebrews 13:13 is correct, Yeshua could NOT have died anywhere INSIDE the camp.

And here’s the thing, the traditional site of Yeshua’s crucifixion is INSIDE THE CAMP!

So what’s the conclusion of the matter?

I say Yeshua was probably crucified on the Mount of Olives.

And why?

The answer is simple.

The boundaries of the Camp of Israel ended midway up the slope of the Mount of Olives and thus was OUTSIDE THE CAMP.

Here’s another persuasive piece of evidence.

In the gospels, we’re given the information that those who witnessed Yeshua’s crucifixion, during the time there was an earthquake that occurred at the moment Yeshua breathed his last breath, the people turned and saw the Temple veil in the Temple torn from top to bottom.

The outer temple veil faces eastward TOWARDS the Mount of Olives.

So the only way the people could have seen the temple veil is if they were on the Mount of Olives.

I mean literally if the people would have been anywhere else, the temple veil would have been out of their range of vision.

CONNECTING THIS TEACHING TO THE NEW TESTAMENT

“As they were going out,
they met a man from Cyrene, named Simon,
and they forced him to carry the cross. 
They came to a place called Golgotha
(which means “the place of the skull”). 
There they offered Yeshua wine to drink,
mixed with gall;
but after tasting it,
he refused to drink it. 
When they had crucified him,
they divided up his clothes by casting lots. 
And sitting down,
they kept watchover him there. 
Above his head they placed the written charge against him: 
this is Yeshua, the king of the jews.”
-Matthew 27:33-37

“When Yeshua had cried out again in a loud voice,
he gave up his spirit.
At that moment the curtain of the temple 
was torn in two from top to bottom.
The earth shook, the rocks split 
and the tombs broke open.
The bodies of many holy people
who had died were raised to life. 
They came out of the tombs after Yeshua’s resurrection
and went into the holy city and appeared to many people.
When the centurion and those with him
who were guarding Yeshua saw the earthquake
and all that had happened,
they were terrified, and exclaimed,
“Surely he was the Son of God!”
Matthew 27:50-54