The Gospel in Words: 'Oblation'

"But remember that on this, the Lord's day, thou shalt offer thine oblations and thy sacraments unto the Most High." (Doctrine and Covenants 59:12)The word "oblation" appears only once in modern scripture and not at all in the New Testament, but it occurs in a distinctly Old Testament context. Its use in the Doctrine and Covenants exemplifies the connection and symbolism of the sacrifices described in the Old Testament and how they point to our latter-day sacrificial requirement. In the Old Testament, oblation means something brought near the altar; a sacrificial present.The Hebrew word for oblation "is commonly translated either sacrifice or offering, but the truth is that the English language does not possess a word that accurately expresses the concept contained in the word. The word offering is closer to the mark (than sacrifice) but it too fails to convey the true meaning of an (oblation). What then is the purpose of offerings? The Hebrew word itself provides the answer. The root of (oblation) is to come near. The person bringing an offering does so in order to come closer to God." The Hebrew word for oblation also reminds us of "the sacrificial service of the temple. Adam's mission was to make himself an offering by his lifetime, by dedicating himself unreservedly to God" ("Leviticus — A New Translation with Commentary"; Rabbis Nosson Scherman & Hersh Goldwurm).Indeed, in his translation of the first five Books of Moses, Everett Fox translates the Hebrew word for oblation as "near-offering." For example, "a person — when he brings — near a near-offering of a grain gift for (God), of (proper) flour shall his near-offering be." (Leviticus 2:1)In modern times, oblation has been defined, among other things, as "the action of offering or presenting the elements of bread and wine to God in the Eucharist" (Oxford English Dictionary).When the Savior appeared to the Nephites, he told them, "And ye shall offer up unto me no more the shedding of blood; yea, your sacrifices and your burnt offerings shall be done away, for I will accept none of your sacrifices and your burnt offerings. And ye shall offer for a sacrifice unto me a broken heart and a contrite spirit" (3 Nephi 9:19, 20).In Section 59 of the Doctrine and Covenants, we see a beautiful fusing of Old Testament teaching and New Testament teaching culminating in a description of why and how to keep the Sabbath day holy. By the use of the word oblation, our minds are called to the offerings of the house of Israel in the temple designed to bring them near the altar and point their minds forward to the ultimate sacrifice of the Savior. It is in sacrament meeting as we contemplate the sacramental altar that our offering of a broken heart and a contrite spirit brings us nearer to the altar of sacrifice and reminds us of our complete dependence upon the atonement of the Savior.