Ὁλοκαύτωμα denotes a sacrifice entirely consumed by fire on the altar. Nothing was retained for priest or worshipper; the whole offering ascended in smoke, symbolizing total devotion to God.

Burnt Offerings in Israel’s Covenant Worship

• Daily rhythm: A lamb every morning and evening (Exodus 29:38–42).
• Festal emphasis: Extra burnt offerings on Sabbaths, new moons, and pilgrim feasts (Numbers 28–29).
• Personal consecration: Voluntary offerings expressing gratitude, atonement, and surrender (Leviticus 1).

Because the victim was wholly given to God, the burnt offering stood at the heart of Israel’s worship, visually preaching that the LORD deserves the worshipper’s undivided life.

Holokautōma in the Septuagint

The translators of the Old Testament into Greek consistently chose ὁλοκαύτωμα for Hebrew ‘olah, preserving the idea of a “whole” (holos) offering “burned” (kaiō). This vocabulary prepared Greek-speaking Jews and, later, Christians to grasp the theological freight carried by the burnt offering motif.

Occurrences in the New Testament

Mark 12:33—A well-taught scribe concludes that loving God “with all your heart and with all your understanding and with all your strength, and to love your neighbor as yourself, is more important than all burnt offerings and sacrifices”. Right relationship outranks ritual, yet the backdrop of ritual underscores how comprehensive such love must be.

Hebrews 10:6; 10:8—Citing Psalm 40, the writer contrasts repetitive “burnt offerings” with the single, sufficient self-offering of the incarnate Son. God “took no delight” in the former once the definitive sacrifice had come.

Theological Thread: From Shadow to Substance

1. Shadow: Continuous holokautōmata declared humanity’s need for atonement and consecration.
2. Substance: Jesus Christ fulfills the type by offering Himself “once for all” (Hebrews 10:10). The total consumption of the ancient victim foreshadowed the total self-giving of the Son, who held nothing back—even to death on a cross.
3. Result: The earthly altar yields to the heavenly sanctuary where Christ’s blood secures eternal redemption (Hebrews 9:12).

Practical Implications for Believers

• Consecration: Because the Messiah’s sacrifice is complete, believers are urged to “present your bodies as a living sacrifice” (Romans 12:1), a daily, holistic response echoing the old burnt offering yet transformed by grace.
• Worship priorities: Love and obedience take precedence over ritualism, but authentic worship will still be expressed corporately and sacrificially (Hebrews 13:15–16).
• Ministry model: As Christ “loved us and gave Himself up for us as a fragrant offering” (Ephesians 5:2), so ministry that costs and consumes the self is pleasing to God.

Historical and Linguistic Note

From ὁλοκαύτωμα comes the later English term “holocaust,” originally used for any wholly burned sacrifice. While modern history has given the word a somber specificity, its biblical root reminds readers of Scripture’s emphasis on total surrender—either of the animal on the altar, or, in its climactic fulfillment, of the Savior on the cross.