The Atonement of Jesus Christ was typified by sacrifice from the very beginning. Adam and Eve were commanded to “offer the firstlings of their flocks, for an offering unto the Lord” (Moses 5:5). Later an angel appeared to Adam and explained: “This thing is a similitude of the sacrifice of the Only Begotten of the Father, which is full of grace and truth” (v. 7). Joseph Smith explained, “Whenever the Lord revealed himself to men in ancient days, and commanded them to offer sacrifice to him . . . it was done that they might look forward in faith to the time of his coming, and rely upon the power of that atonement for a remission of their sins.”271
The sacrifices under the law of Moses—burnt, grain, peace, sin, and trespass offerings—were ordered as symbols of Jesus Christ’s atoning sacrifice (see Moses 5:4–8, 2 Ne. 11:4). The sacrifices focused on animals—sheep, goats, birds, bulls—and the shedding of their blood. Or, if the offerer’s economic status did not permit the sacrifice of an animal, then flour or grain served as acceptable substitutes. Some offerings were voluntary and others were mandatory; some dealt with the unintentional transgressions of the children of Israel and others atoned for their willful or deliberate sins.