Is there a greater meaning to the footwashing ritual of Jesus at the Last supper ? (Leviticus)?

Question

He came to Simon Peter; and Peter said to him, "Lord, do you wash my feet?" Jesus answered him, "What I am doing you do not know now, but afterward you will understand."

Also of interest is the Levitical instruction concerning the Day of Atonement sacrifice (which the epistle to the Hebrews takes for granted as the kind of sacrifice which Jesus offered on the Cross). In Leviticus 16, we read:

Then Aaron shall come into the tent of meeting, and shall put off the linen garments which he put on when he went into the holy place, and shall leave them there; and he shall bathe his body in water in a holy place, and put on his garments, and come forth, and offer his burnt offering and the burnt offering of the people, and make atonement for himself and for the people. (Lev. 16:23-24)

The High Priest was constrained by the Law to wash himself in water before making the atoning sacrifice, and it is interesting to note the order: he takes off his garments, performs the washing ritual, puts the garments back on again, then makes the sacrifice. In St. John's narrative, Our Lord follows this exact order: He takes off His garments (vs. 4), performs the washing ritual (vv. 5-11), puts the garments back on (v. 12), and then goes on to endure His Passion. It is odd that St. John would have included the details of Jesus taking off His garments and putting them back on again, if he did not have Leviticus 16 in the back of his mind.

There are only two differences between the Levitical ritual and the ritual performed in the Upper Room: in Levitical Law, the High Priest washed not only his feet, but his entire body, whereas in the Upper Room Jesus makes a point of only washing the disciples' feet; and in Levitical Law it was the High Priest who washed himself, whereas in the Upper Room Jesus does not wash Himself, but His disciples.

The first point of difference can be explained by an appeal to the elaboration of the laws in the Talmud, particularly in Tract Yomah, which is concerned precisely with the Day of Atonement rituals. There, the rabbis argued, as Jesus does in the Upper Room, that once the priest has taken his full bath, he need only be concerned with the cleanliness of his hands and feet.

The second point of difference comes closer to explaining the significance of the footwashing in John 13. It was the High Priest who was to wash Himself before the sacrifice; the fact that it is not Jesus who is washed, but rather His disciples, strongly encourages the interpretation that it is by having their feet washed that they come to share in the priesthood of Christ.

Finally, we may look again at Christ's words to St. Peter: "If I do not wash you, you have no part [meros] in me."

I think it was more than just humility. It was a direct reference to Leviticus because Jesus also says: "Unless I wash thee, thou canst have no part with me."

Answer 1

Considering John's emphasis on Jesus' divine character, it is not an unreasonable connection to make. Just as Jesus transformed the matzoh of the Pesach into the bread of his own sacrifice, he transforms the High Priest's mikvah into a shared ritual cleansing of his successors. I think it can have more than one meaning. The idea of humble service is important. But it could also have spoken to Jewish Christians of the time about Christ's priestly nature.

Answer 2

Well, it's an interesting parallel, but you would also have to account for the displacement of the ritual from the Day of Atonement to a pre-Passover event.

It could almost be suggested that you are implying that all the various Holy Day rituals had to be fulfilled by Christ for this one Passover. Even though most, if not all the various Holy Day sacrifices pointed to the Passover Sacrifice of Jesus, I don't believe all of the rituals pertain to Christ's Passover Sacrifice.

Personally, I, like you, have believed that the foot washing had more meaning than just the lesson of humility that Jesus was trying to teach. However, I don't think you've got the answer yet. And I'm sorry, I don't have the answer either.

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Edit/Addenda:
I've been meditating on this and reading other's answers. Many of the things that God does are filled with symbolic value; this supports your idea that there is more to this ritual than the lesson of humility.

When Jesus (God in the flesh) said that not all are clean, referring to Judas, he was making the symbolic link to sin and the need to wash it away.

Since we all, even after conversion, continue to sin (1 John 1:8), Jesus' reference to Judas shows that it was a matter of conversion. It seems that all the rest of the Apostles were CONVERTED, that is, they were washed (spiritually) at baptism (they were now striving to overcome sin and do God's will to the best they could themselves); but Judas was not converted, not washed, not willing to let go of his sins.

And Jesus was showing that while we walk in this world, we continue to get our feet dirty (spiritually, we continue to fall prey to sins though we strive to avoid them, try to remain clean). It is Christ's job to finish the cleansing.

Answer 3

Yes it was a parable...remember that Peter wanted Christ to wash also...
Joh 13:9 Simon Peter saith unto him, Lord, not my feet only, but also my hands and my head.
Joh 13:10 Jesus saith to him, He that is washed needeth not save to wash his feet, but is clean every whit: and ye are clean, but not all.

It wasn't the flesh Christ was referring to; but the washing away of sins, that made Peter clean everywhere.

The "but not all" was referring to Judas Iscariot

There are many more parables in the New Testament than most people realize...in fact everthing Jesus said was a parable or fulfillment of scripture.

Answer 4

Very interesting! I never heard this teaching before, but I enjoy the revelations from God's Word. I have put you on my contact list. I AM looking forward to more teachings, keep it up.

Sincerely Yours, Jeff Ludin, An Apostle Of Yahshua

Answer 5

Well I really don't know about all of that. I thought that the whole foot washing thing was an act of humility. The greatest among you is the servant of all, type of thing.

Answer 6

Humility.

Answer 7

Humility. The act is the message.

Answer 8

Someone who washes your feet is your servant.
I Cr 13;8a

Answer 9

I don't feel that you're asking a question here... I think you just are blogging on Yahoo! Answers... yeah?

Answer 10

People with that much horse hockey thrown at them had to develop some ripe feet.