16 Leviticus - Day of Atonement

16 Leviticus – Azazel (Aza/zel or uh ZAY zel) – 34 verses / Day of Atonement – YOM KIPPUR – falls 163 days after the First day the Passover Feast The sacrifice for the forgiveness of sin for the nation of Israel. One man (the High Priest) bearing the sins of a nation. Leviticus 16, the Scapegoat: We will see Jesus as that Scapegoat, John 19:16 “Then delivered he him therefore unto them to be crucified…” Spurgeon, April 3. What learn we here as we see our blessed Lord led forth? Do we not perceive that truth which was set forth in shadow by the scapegoat? Did not the high-priest bring the scapegoat, and put both his hands upon its head, confessing the sins of the people, that thus those sins might be laid upon the goat, and cease from the people? Then the goat was led away by a fit man into the wilderness, and it carried away the sins of the people, so that if they were sought for they could not be found. Now we see Jesus brought before the priests and rulers, who pronounce him guilty; God himself imputes our sins to him, “the Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all;” “He was made sin for us;” and, as the substitute for our guilt, bearing our sin upon his shoulders, represented by the cross; we see the great Scapegoat led away by the appointed officers of justice. (Spurgeon, C. H. (1896). Morning and evening: Daily readings.) Hebrew word for Scapegoat is Azazel. Azazel: (a) A rocky cliff from which a goat was pushed to its death on Yom Kippur (Leviticus, ch. 16; Yoma 63a). (b) The goat that was cast to its death. [This became necessary because the scapegoat would follow the man back to town.] Azazel (Heb., עֲזָאזֵל). The mysterious figure, dwelling in the desert, to whom the ‘scapegoat’ of the sin-offering was dispatched as part of the ritual of the Day of *Atonement. (Oxford dictionary of the Christian Church.) Book of Enoch 8:1 And Azâzêl taught men to make swords, and knives, and shields, and breastplates, and made known to them the metals 〈of the earth〉 and the art of working them, and bracelets, and ornaments, and the use of antimony, and the beautifying of the eyelids, and all kinds of costly stones, and all colouring tinctures. 2 And there arose much godlessness, and they committed fornication, and they were led astray, and became corrupt in all their ways. 3 Semjâzâ taught enchantments, and root-cuttings, ’Armârôs the resolving of enchantments, Barâqîjâl (taught) astrology, Kôkabêl the constellations, Êzêqêêl the knowledge of the clouds, 〈Araqiêl the signs of the earth, Shamsiêl the signs of the sun〉, and Sariêl the course of the moon. 4 And as men perished, they cried, and their cry went up to heaven … (Book of Enoch) leading to the flood. Atonement – an act or action of payment to satisfy an offense. An act or action that cause two parties to be “at-one” with each other. In this case, a blood sacrifice that causes us to be reconciled unto GOD. The wages of sin is death, the sacrificing of an animal on the Day of Atonement satisfies that debt for one year. Read chapter 16:1-10, we see: Sacrifices start in V.11 The Bullock – A SIN Offering for the High Priest, V.6/11 Aaron first needed forgiveness. The Ram – is for the BURNT Offering – V.3/5. For the congregation seeking acceptance of GOD The Goats – two goats for SIN Offering – V.5/15 Aaron needed to seek forgiveness for the people. · One as a Sin offering unto the LORD – the blood of one covers the sin – out of sight o Remember, the blood of bulls and goats cannot take away sin – Hebrews 10:4 · One as a Scapegoat to carry the sins away into the wilderness – carries the sins away · Jesus fulfilled both roles o Jesus was washed in the water then taken to the wilderness to give Satan notice, among other things; A New High Priest has arrived. Wilderness is mentioned in V.10, 21, 22. Washing is mentioned 4x = purification – V.4, 24, 26, 28. Atonement is uses 15x in Leviticus 16. V.29/31 – what must it mean to “afflict your souls”? Reminds me of Judges 2:1-4. KEY Verse = V.30 For on that day shall the priest make an atonement for you, to cleanse you, that ye may be clean from all your sins before the LORD. Leviticus 16:30. The Day of Atonement was a yearly sacrifice that only the High Priest could perform. In the work of the High Priest, we see a picture of Jesus Christ who by Himself purged the sin of the worlds . For Christ is not entered into the holy places made with hands, which are the figures of the true; but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us: 25 Nor yet that he should offer himself often, as the high priest entereth into the holy place every year with blood of others; 26 For then must he often have suffered since the foundation of the world: but now once in the end of the world hath he appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself. Hebrews 9:24-26 Bottom line is – it is the blood that maketh an atonement for the soul. Leviticus 17:11c The High Priest … 1) Put on Linen Garments. Jesus Christ “took on” the form of man. 2) Presented the blood inside the Holy of Holies. Jesus Christ entered into the Holy Places not made by hands. [Heaven] 3) Placed the sins of Israel on the head of the scapegoat. Jesus Christ took upon Himself the sins of the world. 4) Prepared for this sacrifice on a yearly basis. Jesus Christ offered Himself once and for always. Have you received HIS sacrifice – are you washed in the blood of the Lamb?

NOTES:

Some notes from Lunsford, J. (2006). Leviticus 101 (p. 145). Reformation Publishers.

https://passionfortruth.com/teaching-articles/the-azazel-goat-and-the-leader-of-the-demons/

Best explanation https://www.chabad.org/parshah/article_cdo/aid/1846869/jewish/The-Scapegoat-Atonement-and-Purification.htm

Christian - https://www.forgivingforward.com/blog/rosh-hashanah?gclid=Cj0KCQjwgMqSBhDCARIsAIIVN1X1M0xoCQVciEkB1QWrNzwa31Tzqzit-hzABdAfKe9X4zODtvlhqdwaAuKgEALw_wcB