The Atonement and the Scapegoat: Leviticus 16 by Dr. Kenneth Mathews

Dr. Kenneth Mathews of Beeson Divinity School looks at the atonement through the lens of Leviticus 16.

The ritual "Day of Atonement" (Hebrew Yom Kippur), described in Leviticus 16, was the most holy day of worship in the Hebrew calendar. It was also the most complicated in terms of ritual performance. A ceremonial ritual conveys a powerful image in which there is a correspondence between a symbol (i.e., ritual) and the thing symbolized (i.e., message). On the Day of Atonement, there was a correspondence between the parts of the ritual and the spiritual meaning they represented. A wedding ceremony today with its ritual features has the same effect on the participants and congregation.

There were two features that distinguished this day of worship. First, it was the one day of the year that the high priest, and only the high priest, entered the Most Holy Place (Holy of Holies) of the Tent of Meeting (tabernacle) where he presented sacrificial blood as atoning sacrifice for the sins of Israel and the purification of the Tent of Meeting.

Inside the Most Holy Place was the Ark of the Covenant (a rectangular box) that represented the resident presence of God. The high priest sprinkled blood on the lid ("mercy seat") of the Ark of the Covenant, achieving the forgiveness of sin for the priest and the congregation.

Next, the high priest sprinkled blood in the outer room of the Tent of Meeting. The blood "decontaminated" the ceremonial impurities accumulated by the sins and the ceremonial uncleanness committed for the year. The purification of the Tent of Meeting was national in scope, giving a comprehensive purging of sins and impurities. Keep reading