Why is it no surprise that the bowls contain the wrath of God?

The bowls used in the Old Testament served to carry whatever remained of a sin offering to a clean place outside the camp (Leviticus 4:12), where it was to be incinerated on a fire of wood—gone (Hebrews 13:11). In the present case, the bowls contain not the residue of the sacrifices but the wrath of God. That is no surprise. Whoever would escape the righteous wrath of God toward sin must present a sacrifice to replace himself. The fire on the altar does to the sacrifice what the wrath of God would otherwise do to the sinner, namely, consume it. Ashes, leftover meat, and perhaps even fat drippings are the replacement leftovers of sin, and so invariably still attract the wrath of God. Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God, was scourged and beaten in Pilate’s palace, then his broken body brought outside the camp (Hebrews 13:13) to undergo on the cross of Calvary the final, ultimate load of the wrath of God in order to sanctify the people through his own blood (Hebrews 13:12). To say it differently, outside the camp Jesus was incinerated on account of our sins—and yet survived God’s burning wrath, so that we might never taste eternal weeping and gnashing of teeth in the flames of hell. Those, however, who are not in Christ receive no benefit from Christ’s sacrifice and so must still encounter the wrath of God.