The Husband of Blood

The debate rages on in the church about the proper mode of baptism. Infant baptists who want to be faithful to the historical interpretation and who trust in Sola Scriptura, desire sincerly, to come under the Biblical view. However, sin often blinds us to understanding the truth. They believe that one enters the covenant at baptism. They use Ex. 4 as a proof text to show that to receive God's blessing one must be obedient to all of God's commands. Therefore, they equate a covenant that was for the "nation" of Israel only to be replaced by a baptism of sprinkling water upon a newborn. There are many problems with this understanding. One is that the males were the only ones to be circumcised. Does that mean the females will not inherit the blessing?

To equate this to the baptism of John, which was a baptism of repentance, is a failure to exegete the text and exalt tradition higher than Scripture Alone. When we read in Ex. 4 where Moses had left the LORD in the burning bush being sent to Pharaoah to be commanded to let Israel go; the Lord stops Moses on the way to kill Moses' son because his son was not yet circumcised. Why was this so crucial to be done before entering Pharaoh's court? Righteousness. Israel had to uphold their part of the agreement with God if God was going to uphold His.

Ex 3:4-23 4 So when the Lord saw that he turned aside to look, God called to him from the midst of the bush and said, "Moses, Moses!" And he said, "Here I am." 5 Then He said, "Do not draw near this place. Take your sandals off your feet, for the place where you stand is holy ground." 6 Moreover He said,"I am the God of your father — the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob." And Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look upon God. 7 And the Lord said:"I have surely seen the oppression of My people who are in Egypt, and have heard their cry because of their taskmasters, for I know their sorrows.

Ex 3:10-11 10 Come now, therefore, and I will send you to Pharaoh that you may bring My people, the children of Israel, out of Egypt." 11 But Moses said to God,"Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh, and that I should bring the children of Israel out of Egypt?" 14 And God said to Moses, "I AM WHO I AM." And He said, "Thus you shall say to the children of Israel,'I AM has sent me to you.'" 22 Then you shall say to Pharaoh, 'Thus says the Lord:"Israel is My son, My firstborn. 23 So I say to you, let My son go that he may serve Me. But if you refuse to let him go, indeed I will kill your son, your firstborn."'" NKJV

To answer the question of why would God kill Moses' firstborn, it is important to understand to whom this covenant was given. It began with Abraham. Gen 17:9-11 9 And God said to Abraham: "As for you, you shall keep My covenant, you and your descendants after you throughout their generations. 10 This is My covenant which you shall keep, between Me and you and your descendants after you: Every male child among you shall be circumcised; 11 and you shall be circumcised in the flesh of your foreskins, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between Me and you. NKJV

There we see in verse 22 of Ex. 4 that this sign of the covenant was a national covenant with Israel who God considers His first born Son, because she carries the seed of the Messiah. The Lord told Moses that he was going to have some spiritual battles, and he needed all his children circumcised according to the covenant that he had made with God or he might loose the victory. As we read in (verse 9) of Genesis the sign of this covenant was only between Abraham and his decendents who later become the nation of Israel. Therefore, this only applies to them. There is no hint of a prophetic change that this sign of the covenant will be replaced with the practice of water sprinkling for infant baptism. Therefore, this is a 'national' covenant between God and Israel (Ex. 31:17; Lev. 12:3). Moses obeyed by faith and Pharaoh lost his firstborn due to his hard hearted disobedience.

Now my question is where does the church have the right to use this text to prove infant baptism? There are no such texts in the Bible that would indicate that water baptism replaces circumcision. Also, notice what Zipporah commented about this covenantal sign of circumcision(v.26), "You are a husband of blood." By this we see that is why the old covenant was not able to wash away sin. That form of the Old Covenant was to bring in Jesus Christ to shed His blood for His people and establish a New Covenant that will wash away sins. The old form was a covenant of death, but the new is a covenant of life.

Moses and the Patriarchs keep this outward tradition by faith until the Lord came and put an end to all the "handwriting of requirements that was against us, which was contrary to us. And He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross." We see here that Christ is the true Israel and the fulfillment of the covenant putting an end to it's requirements to justify us before God. Jesus is who replaces this covenant because He has fulfilled all righeousness and because He has fulfilled them, He has the right to establish a new one. This new outward sign is not like the old because it is not bloody. It represents the washing away of the filth of Christ's blood that was shed for sin; and therefore, by faith we immerse ourselves in the water to remove the filth and stain of sin. And this always represents life as opposed to death. I pray for those who want to baptize their children under the old order because they maybe baptizing them into a double condemnation of death (Jer.19:4-7;2 Cor.3:7), but those who wait on the Lord are baptizing their children into life (2Cor.3:8-12;Rom.6:3-6 )

Col 2:11-15 11 In Him you were also circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, by putting off the body of the sins of the flesh, by the circumcision of Christ, 12 buried with Him in baptism, in which you also were raised with Him through faith in the working of God, who raised Him from the dead. 13 And you, being dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He has made alive together with Him, having forgiven you all trespasses, 14 having wiped out the handwriting of requirements that was against us, which was contrary to us. And He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross. 15 Having disarmed principalities and powers, He made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them in it. NKJV

Now, the context of Col. 2:11-15 is not teaching that baptism is replacing circumcision. It is simply indidicating that both circumcision and baptism are in Christ; In Him you were also circumcised, buried with Him in baptism, raised with Him through faith in the working of God. In other words the "outward sign" is not what enters us into the covenant, but the working of the Holy Spirit to transform the unseen heart in the inner being of who we are, is how we enter.

Entering in this New Covenant by faith brings all the heavenly blessings a new believer needs in Jesus Christ. But it is important to note that not all Israel was Israel, even though they were circumcised the eigth day according to tradition. Therefore, we are not saved by the outward sign, but through faith working in the heart.

1 Cor 7:19-20 Circumcision is nothing and uncircumcision is nothing, but keeping the commandments of God is what matters. NKJV

The new commandment is to "Repent and be baptized for the forgiveness of sins". Your child doesn't need a water baptism, what your child needs is to hear the Word of God faithfully read and taught each day, and to be raised in the fear and care of God in grace and truth. This New Convenant in Christ's blood is not a "National Covenant", it is a covenant established for individuals in all nations to reap the salvation of Jesus Christ. It is not for a king to rise up and claim himself to the Lord's throne over the kings of the earth. When we are baptized both inwardly and outwardly we are taken out of the kingdom of this world and made a representive of another kingdom, a kingdom that is not of this world. This new covenant is in Christ's blood, having fulfilled the old form of worship, as Zipporah has said, "Jesus is the husband of blood." His blood was the transaction to remove us from the guilt and burden of the covenant of death and transfer us into sonship in a Kingdom that is not of this world.

This kingdom cannot come through circumcision or sprinkling water on newborn babies, but it comes in power when the Holy Spirit moves in someone to faith and obedience to the Gospel call.

2 Cor 11:1-4 11 Oh, that you would bear with me in a little folly — and indeed you do bear with me. 2 For I am jealous for you with godly jealousy. For I have betrothed you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ. 3 But I fear, lest somehow, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, so your minds may be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ. 4 For if he who comes preaches another Jesus whom we have not preached, or if you receive a different spirit which you have not received, or a different gospel which you have not accepted — you may well put up with it! NKJV