"Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree"

 

"Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree"

 

Galatians 3:10-13 "For all who rely on the works of the law are under a curse, as it is written: 'Cursed is everyone who does not keep all the things written in the book of the law.' For it is clear that no one is justified before God by the law, for it is written: 'The righteous shall live by faith.' For the law is not from faith, but the one who practices the law shall live by it. Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us, as it is written: 'Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree."

Deuteronomy 21:22-23: “If a man commits a sin punishable by death and you hang him on a tree, you shall not leave his body on the tree overnight, but bury him on that very day, so that you do not defile the land that the LORD your God is giving you as an inheritance, for anyone who hangs on a tree is cursed by God.”

Deuteronomy 21 sets forth regulations concerning corpses. Whether the body was murdered or hanged on a tree as a result of sin, the Israelites considered the shedding of blood to be a defilement of the land. Furthermore, the community was to bear responsibility for that blood. They believed that only by doing so could piety and holiness be maintained within Israel. The village closest to the location of the body carries out the regulations for atonement regarding that death. The heifer chosen for the atonement ritual—one that has not yet been used or yoked—holds symbolic significance as a covering of death. The death of the heifer serves to ensure that there is no sin of bloodshed within the Israelite community, while also serving as a foreshadowing of the sacrifice of Jesus Christ.

The entire village performed a grand ritual, and in the prayers offered together while burying the dead, the members of the village community shared a faithfulness in seeking God's grace, along with a pledge to live a holy life on this land, which is like a battlefield. A true community was one of people who could pray together so that sin would not dwell in this life God has granted, on this land, or in their hearts. Because a faith community is always in danger of extinction and disintegration due to external influences, Deuteronomy strongly emphasizes absolute purity and obedience, urging the community to tolerate no compromise.

In the regulations concerning corpses hanging from trees, this punishment was intended to awaken a sense of vigilance throughout the entire village. However, the reason the corpse must not be left overnight is that the blood defiles the ground. It signifies that a curse must not remain on the land—a gift from God where blessings ought to dwell—and on the blessed foundation of life where the faith community is to reside.

From God's perspective, Jesus' death on the cross is a death against sin and a death against the world. God caused His Son Jesus to die a cursed death, just as if judging a sinful world. God poured out His wrath upon His own Son hanging on the cross. The blood Jesus shed became a curse upon a world steeped in sin.

From the perspective of the Jews, Jesus Christ became one under a curse according to the law, and he died on the cross under that curse. Although Jesus was not under the law, he came to be placed under a curse. The Pharisees, priests, and scribes judged and condemned sin based on the legalism they held. They violated human rights regardless of whether the other person was under the law or not. Jesus was neither under the law nor sinned, yet the Jews framed him with a crime based on the law and executed him.

Just as the Jews believed, God also placed His Son under the law and had Him die on the cross. They had Jesus die on the cross for the same purpose, but God had His Son take His place to judge the world, whereas the Jews opposed God through the death of Jesus. God bestows grace by judging the sinless Son, but the Jews opposed God out of greed to become like Him. Although God remains angry with humanity, He shows love to those who repent and return.

Jesus was the Son of God. God and the Holy Spirit testify to this. In Matthew 3:16-17, it says, "When Jesus was baptized, he immediately came up out of the water, and behold, the heavens were opened, and the Spirit of God descended like a dove upon him. And a voice from heaven said, 'This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.'" God declared Jesus to be His Son, yet the Jews, who claimed to believe in God, executed Jesus for blasphemy.

However, the Book of Hebrews clarifies that Jesus died under the law in this way to atone for the sins of mankind. Hebrews 9:28 states, "So Christ also was offered once for all to bear the sins of many, and He will appear a second time, not to deal with sin but to bring salvation to those who eagerly await Him."

Those under the law are those under sin, and the Pharisees and priests of that time committed blasphemy against God by killing the Son of God; God intended to forgive their sins through a sacrificial offering—namely, the death of Jesus Christ—when they realized that what they did was wrong. This carries the meaning of atonement. However, they neither realized nor repented. The atoning death is not limited solely to the Jews of that time, but applies to all people.

However, all people in the world still oppose God. They oppose God because they want to become like Him; even believers in Jesus cause the blood of a curse to be shed upon Jesus Christ and use that blood daily as an instrument of their own atonement. Only a select few who have realized the truth understand God's will and accept the meaning of the death on the cross as their own death.

Since Jesus came under a curse according to the law, how does it have the meaning of atonement (redemption)? It is the transfer of the sins of those under the law to the Son of God. Therefore, because the Son of God becomes a sinner, God hides the sins of those who repent through the dead Son.

This begins with the predestination of Christ before the creation of the world. Although God confined the angels who sinned in the world, He established the grace to bring them back. Jesus Christ took on the role of dying in their place of their sins, and this is a fact prophesied through the mouths of the prophets starting from Genesis 3:15.

Hebrews 9:22-25: “For according to the law, almost everything is purified with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness. Therefore, the copies of the heavenly things needed to be purified with these things, but the heavenly things themselves needed to be purified with a better sacrifice than these. For Christ did not enter into the sanctuary made with hands, which is a copy of the true sanctuary, but into heaven itself, to appear now on our behalf before God. And He will not offer Himself often, as the high priest enters the sanctuary year after year with the blood of other things.”

The Greek word translated as "redemption" is *exegorasen* (ἐξηγόρασεν). It is the concept of buying with a blood price. God buys the slaves of sin by paying a price (from Satan). Thus, He grants freedom. Jesus Christ dies on the cross as atonement according to the law. Originally, the sinner should have died, but the Redeemer dies instead. Therefore, the sinner and the Redeemer are united, becoming those who have died together. God unites with the resurrected Christ to return them to the Kingdom of God. That is what is happening right now.