Leviticus 16
The Day of Atonement
16:1 The Lord spoke to Moses after the death of Aaron’s two sons when they approached the presence of the Lord and died, 16:2 and the Lord said to Moses: “Tell Aaron your brother that he must not enter at any time into the holy place inside the veil-canopy in front of the atonement plate that is on the ark so that he may not die, for I will appear in the cloud over the atonement plate.
God is holy. The sons of Aaron committed the sin unto death. They did not lose their eternal life, but they did lose their physical life. The sin unto death is also a New Testament principle mentioned by Paul. An example of this application is Ananias and Sapphira. They lied to the Holy Spirit, who is God, and they suffered the sin unto death. They lost their physical life, but not their eternal life.
Day of Atonement Offerings
16:3 “In this way Aaron is to enter into the sanctuary—with a young bull for a sin offering and a ram for a burnt offering.
The High Priest was to enter the Holy of Holies once a year to offer a sin offering for the nation.
16:4 He must put on a holy linen tunic, linen leggings are to cover his body, and he is to wrap himself with a linen sash and wrap his head with a linen turban. They are holy garments, so he must bathe his body in water and put them on.
Aaron was to cleanse himself before he approached a Holy God. He was not to wear his colorful ephod, which demonstrated the beauty of God before the people. Instead, he was to wear only the white linen cloth, which represented the sinful people before a holy, perfect, and sinless God.
16:5 He must also take two male goats from the congregation of the Israelites for a sin offering and one ram for a burnt offering.
The goats were to be offered for the sin of the nation.
16:6 Then Aaron is to present the sin offering bull which is for himself and is to make atonement on behalf of himself and his household.
Aaron was also a sinner, so he must make a sin offering to cover his sins.
16:7 He must then take the two goats and stand them before the Lord at the entrance of the Meeting Tent,
Aaron was to stand in the outside courtyard at the tabernacle entrance with two goats.
16:8 and Aaron is to cast lots over the two goats, one lot for the Lord and one lot for Azazel.
Lots were cast for the two goats. One goat would be dedicated to Jehovah. The other goat would be dedicated to Azazel. The Hebrew word for “Azalel” is לַעֲזָאזֵֽל (lo-azazel), meaning the goat of departure.
16:9 Aaron must then present the goat which has been designated by lot for the Lord, and he is to make it a sin offering,
The goat chosen by lot would be slaughtered and offered as a sin offering for the people.
16:10 but the goat which has been designated by lot for Azazel is to be stood alive before the Lord to make atonement on it by sending it away to Azazel into the wilderness.
The sins of the people would be symbolically transferred to the goat of Azazel. Then, the goat would be led to wander away outside of the camp and into the wilderness. This symbolically meant that the sins of Israel had been removed outside of the camp.
The Sin Offering Sacrificial Procedures
16:11 “Aaron is to present the sin offering bull which is for himself, and he is to make atonement on behalf of himself and his household. He is to slaughter the sin offering bull which is for himself, 16:12 and take a censer full of coals of fire from the altar before the Lord and a full double handful of finely ground fragrant incense, and bring them inside the veil-canopy. 16:13 He must then put the incense on the fire before the Lord, and the cloud of incense will cover the atonement plate which is above the ark of the testimony, so that he will not die. 16:14 Then he is to take some of the blood of the bull and sprinkle it with his finger on the eastern face of the atonement plate, and in front of the atonement plate he is to sprinkle some of the blood seven times with his finger.
Aaron and his family were not above sin. Therefore, an offering was to be made for the sin of Aaron and his family as well.
16:15 “He must then slaughter the sin offering goat which is for the people. He is to bring its blood inside the veil-canopy, and he is to do with its blood just as he did to the blood of the bull: He is to sprinkle it on the atonement plate and in front of the atonement plate. 16:16 So he is to make atonement for the holy place from the impurities of the Israelites and from their transgressions with regard to all their sins, and thus he is to do for the Meeting Tent which resides with them in the midst of their impurities.
This sin offering was for the nation of Israel.
16:17 Nobody is to be in the Meeting Tent when he enters to make atonement in the holy place until he goes out, and he has made atonement on his behalf, on behalf of his household, and on behalf of the whole assembly of Israel.
On the Day of Atonement, only the High Priest was allowed inside the Meeting Tent.
16:18 “Then he is to go out to the altar which is before the Lord and make atonement for it. He is to take some of the blood of the bull and some of the blood of the goat, and put it all around on the horns of the altar. 16:19 Then he is to sprinkle on it some of the blood with his finger seven times, and cleanse and consecrate it from the impurities of the Israelites.
This sin offering would cover the sins of the Israelites for one year. The offering would have to be repeated annually. Therefore, the blood of bull and goats could not remove sin. It could only cover sin for the temporary period of one year. The blood of Christ is a better sacrifice, because it removes sin forever.
The Live Goat Ritual Procedures
16:20 “When he has finished purifying the holy place, the Meeting Tent, and the altar, he is to present the live goat.
After the Tabernacle was purified, Aaron was to present the live goat.
16:21 Aaron is to lay his two hands on the head of the live goat and confess over it all the iniquities of the Israelites and all their transgressions in regard to all their sins, and thus he is to put them on the head of the goat and send it away into the wilderness by the hand of a man standing ready.
Aaron laid his hands on the head of the Azazel goat. He confessed the sins of Israel. The sins of Israel were symbolically transferred to the Azazel goat. The goat was sent into the wilderness by the hand of another man who was waiting nearby.
16:22 The goat is to bear on itself all their iniquities into an inaccessible land, so he is to send the goat away in the wilderness.
All of the sins of the nation of Israel were placed upon the Azazel goat in a symbolic manner. This ritual was used to teach Israel about the coming atonement of the Lord Jesus Christ.
The Concluding Rituals
16:23 “Aaron must then enter the Meeting Tent and take off the linen garments which he had put on when he entered the sanctuary, and leave them there. 16:24 Then he must bathe his body in water in a holy place, put on his clothes, and go out and make his burnt offering and the people’s burnt offering. So he is to make atonement on behalf of himself and the people.
After the Azazel goat was sent into the wilderness, then Aaron was to remove his priestly clothes, cleanse himself with water, put on his own clothes, and then offer the burnt offering for himself and the people.
16:25 “Then he is to offer up the fat of the sin offering in smoke on the altar,
Next, Aaron offered the sin offering for the nation of Israel.
16:26 and the one who sent the goat away to Azazel must wash his clothes, bathe his body in water, and afterward he may reenter the camp.
The one who sent the Azazel goat away was also to wash his clothes and body before entering the camp.
16:27 The bull of the sin offering and the goat of the sin offering, whose blood was brought to make atonement in the holy place, must be brought outside the camp and their hide, their flesh, and their dung must be burned up,
The remains of the sin offering were to be burnt outside the camp.
16:28 and the one who burns them must wash his clothes and bathe his body in water, and afterward he may reenter the camp.
The one who burnt the offering outside the camp must also cleanse himself before entering the camp.
Review of the Day of Atonement
16:29 “This is to be a perpetual statute for you. In the seventh month, on the tenth day of the month, you must humble yourselves and do no work of any kind, both the native citizen and the foreigner who resides in your midst,
The temporary Day of Atonement was to be practiced until the Messiah arrived and ended the Mosaic Law with His permanent atonement.
16:30 for on this day atonement is to be made for you to cleanse you from all your sins; you must be clean before the Lord.
This Day of Atonement would temporarily cleanse Israel of their sin for one year.
16:31 It is to be a Sabbath of complete rest for you, and you must humble yourselves. It is a perpetual statute.
The Day of Atonement was considered a Sabbath Day. There was to be no work on this day. The people were to approach the day with humility. It was to become a permanent ritual until the Messiah arrived.
16:32 “The priest who is anointed and ordained to act as high priest in place of his father is to make atonement. He is to put on the linen garments, the holy garments, 16:33 and he is to purify the Most Holy Place, he is to purify the Meeting Tent and the altar, and he is to make atonement for the priests and for all the people of the assembly. 16:34 This is to be a perpetual statute for you to make atonement for the Israelites for all their sins once a year.” So he did just as the Lord had commanded Moses.
The sons of Aaron would become the next high priests. Their sons would follow in this position. All of the future high priests were to follow these procedures.