DCLM Daily Manna 29 October 2026 — A Vicarious Death

Glynn Simmons was wrongly convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to death in 1975. He was spared the electric chair two years later after the US Supreme Court temporarily halted executions. His sentence was changed from death to life imprisonment. Mr. Simmons was released from prison in July 2023 after he was declared innocent in the 1974 murder of Carolyn Sue Rogers. His is the longest known wrongful conviction in America. By this time, he had served a nearly 50-year vicarious sentence for the murder he didn’t commit. His sentence was vacated, after a court found that prosecutors had not turned over all evidence to defence lawyers, including that of a witness who had identified other suspects.

During the Levitical era, an animal had to be sacrificed in place of a sinning Israelite. There were different kinds of offerings, but the aspect covered in today’s text dwells on the burnt offering, where a bullock, a sheep, a goat or a fowl is vicariously killed. The blood is sprinkled around the altar and the remains are burnt as a burnt offering. The offering is described as “an offering made by fire, of a sweet savour unto the LORD” (Leviticus 1:17). This highlights the acceptance of the sacrifice, in place of the person being cleansed from sin and guilt.

Also Read: DCLM Daily Manna 28 October 2026 — When in Doubt, Don’t 

We need to bear in mind that this provision was not perfect; otherwise it would not have been changed thereafter under the New Testament. The vicious cycle of sin and offerings continued till Christ died on the cross to “purge our conscience from dead works to serve the living God.” The temporary arrangement of offering animals for sin in the Old Testament, typifies and foretells the eventual death of Jesus Christ, described in Scriptures as the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world (Revelation 13:8). As we read through the subject of the Levitical sacrifices, some might find the incidents of animals being slaughtered on daily basis a little graphic. This should instead, make us see and feel the gravity of our sins. Sin is so odious in the sight of God that it requires the shedding of blood, before an atonement can be made and accepted. It is therefore incumbent on all those desirous of God’s pardon from sin and its consequences to take solace in the spotless blood of the Lamb of God.