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YOM KIPPUR!
I don't know how it happens, but it happens in
every home. Sure, I understand how it happens in a home that is being used
as a meth lab or as a hideout for illegal aliens. I even understand how
it happens in homes with kids. But I don't understand how it happens in
your kid-free home and my home.
Nevertheless, as I've been in some of
your homes I've noticed dirt. For example, last week I was in Ivan & LaVere's
home. As I entered it appeared to be spotless. The tile was clean,
the carpet had been vacuumed, the coffee table was dusted, the bathroom mirrors
were squeaky clean, and the top of the refrigerator had been wiped off by someone
taller than myself. Then, as an added touch to the kitchen, someone had
taken the next paper towels and created a decorative display which hung from
the roll of paper towels. At first glance, her home was Martha Stewart
perfect.
But when I laid down on the carpet and took out
my magnifying glass it didn't take but a moment to realize that the carpet wasn't
as clean as it first appeared. I then stood on the kitchen counter, just
to the left of the stove, and examined the top of the cabinets. What
I found wasn't pretty, a layer of grime that hadn't seen Mr. Clean for years. As
I continued my investigation I found a room that was closed to the public . Out
of respect for my host I didn't even take a peak, but an inside source told me
that the clutter behind the closed door was beyond my wildest imagination. Then
as I was leaving the party I noticed, to my own dismay, that the guest left behind
a mess - some of which was of my own making!
The above three paragraphs, of course, are simply
a product of my imagination. They do serve as a reminder, however, that
despite our best day-in and day-out efforts to keep our homes clean there
comes a time when we need to thoroughly clean them from top to bottom. It's
called spring-cleaning.
What is true of our homes today, was true of God's
home in the midst of the Israelites. During the course of the year the
tabernacle was polluted by sin. Yes, sin was atoned for day-in and day-out
by the various sacrifices. But within the heart of every man, woman, and
child in camp there was sin that had yet to be acknowledged as sin and there
was sin so deeply embedded in the heart that it could easily go unnoticed for
years. The non-confessed and unseen sin within the Israelites not
only soiled their souls, it polluted the house of God.
Then too, it is easy to imagine some Israelites
going to the tabernacle suspecting they were unclean, perhaps due to some skin
disease, and yet hesitate to reveal the problem to the priest. They participated
in one or two sacrifices but walked away without dealing with the one issue that
was nagging them. Their unwillingness to face all the issues polluted the
tabernacle while it tortured their souls.
Like it or not, weekly worship failed to cleanse
the soul completely. The problem, of course, wasn't with the system as
much as it was with the worshiper who either wasn't aware of sin within his own
life or chose to ignore it even though it didn't ignore him. Either way,
the worshiper polluted the tabernacle. If ignored, the pollution
within the heart of man and within God's house would sever the dialogue between
man and God.
So God in his grace provided his people with a
great Day of Atonement. Once a year, in late September or early October,
a day was set aside for "spring-cleaning." On this day all the
dirt within the heart of man and within the tabernacle was taken care of so that
everyone could get off to a fresh start.
This Day of Atonement, coming as it does at the
end of a long section on purification is the climax and the crown of God's program
for sanctification. It was, and still is, the holiest day of the year in
Israel. I have glibly referred to it as spring-cleaning, Israel calls it
Yom Kippur - the day of atonements. The details of this day
are spelled out for us in Leviticus 16. We read:
The LORD spoke to Moses after the death of Aaron's
two sons, who died when they burned a different kind of fire than the LORD had
commanded. 2 The LORD said to Moses, "Warn your brother Aaron not
to enter the Most Holy Place behind the inner curtain whenever he chooses; the
penalty for intrusion is death. For the Ark's cover-the place of atonement-is
there, and I myself am present in the cloud over the atonement cover.
In the context of all seriousness, Moses was instructed
to tell Aaron that he couldn't enter the holy of holies whenever he felt like
it. Because within the holy of holies God sat enthroned above the
ark of the covenant. Entering his presence was not to be taken lightly!1
"When Aaron enters the sanctuary area, he
must follow these instructions fully. He must first bring a young bull for a
sin offering and a ram for a whole burnt offering. 4 Then he must wash
his entire body and put on his linen tunic and the undergarments worn next to
his body. He must tie the linen sash around his waist and put the linen turban
on his head. These are his sacred garments. 5 The people of Israel must
then bring him two male goats for a sin offering and a ram for a whole burnt
offering.
Prior to entering Aaron needed to bring a young
bull for a sin (purification) offering and a ram for a burnt offering. Additionally,
he had in tow two goats and a ram given to him by the congregation. One
of the goats would be sacrificed for a sin (purification) offering and the ram
for a burnt offering on behalf of the nation. He was also required to remove
his priestly attire, bathe himself thoroughly, and put on simple linen garments. In
short, he was to enter in all humility.
"Aaron will present the bull as a sin offering,
to make atonement for himself and his family. 7 Then he must bring the
two male goats and present them to the LORD at the entrance of the Tabernacle. 8
He is to cast sacred lots to determine which goat will be sacrificed to the LORD
and which one will be the scapegoat. 9 The goat chosen to be sacrificed
to the LORD will be presented by Aaron as a sin offering. 10 The goat chosen
to be the scapegoat will be presented to the LORD alive. When it is sent away
into the wilderness, it will make atonement for the people.
As preparations were made for the day, things
got interesting for the kids while the adults a were undoubtedly moved as they
anticipated what would happen later in the day. A scapegoat was chosen
and set aside for everyone to contemplate its significance. For the kids
this scapegoat was a great object lesson; a walking visual aid. For the
adults the goat held promise of a clean slate; a fresh start with a gracious
God. In the meantime, Aaron presented the purification offerings on behalf
of himself and his family and on behalf of the congregation. We read:
"Then Aaron will present the young bull as
a sin offering for himself and his family. After he has slaughtered this bull
for the sin offering, 12 he will fill an incense burner with burning coals
from the altar that stands before the LORD. Then, after filling both his hands
with fragrant incense, he will carry the burner and incense behind the inner
curtain. 13 There in the LORD's presence, he will put the incense on the
burning coals so that a cloud of incense will rise over the Ark's cover-the place
of atonement-that rests on the Ark of the Covenant. If he follows these instructions,
he will not die. 14 Then he must dip his finger into the blood of the
bull and sprinkle it on the front of the atonement cover and then seven times
against the front of the Ark.
"Then Aaron must slaughter the goat as a
sin offering for the people and bring its blood behind the inner curtain. There
he will sprinkle the blood on the atonement cover and against the front of the
Ark, just as he did with the bull's blood. 16 In this way, he will make
atonement for the Most Holy Place, and he will do the same for the entire Tabernacle,
because of the defiling sin and rebellion of the Israelites. 17 No one
else is allowed inside the Tabernacle while Aaron goes in to make atonement for
the Most Holy Place. No one may enter until he comes out again after making atonement
for himself, his family, and all the Israelites.
"Then Aaron will go out to make atonement
for the altar that stands before the LORD by smearing some of the blood from
the bull and the goat on each of the altar's horns. 19 Then he must dip
his finger into the blood and sprinkle it seven times over the altar. In this
way, he will cleanse it from Israel's defilement and return it to its former
holiness.
In particular note the reasoning for the sprinkling
of blood to purify the tabernacle. It's spelled out for us in v. 16. This
is spring-cleaning at its best for it is here in vv. 11 - 17 where God made the
impossible possible. For this "spring cleaning," this cleansing
of the tabernacle, allowed God to continue dwelling among people who had a disposition
to be unholy. After this the living goat was brought forward so that,
in some sense, the worshipers would be clean enough to enter the tabernacle.
"When Aaron has finished making atonement
for the Most Holy Place, the Tabernacle, and the altar, he must bring the living
goat forward. 21 He is to lay both of his hands on the goat's head and
confess over it all the sins and rebellion of the Israelites. In this way, he
will lay the people's sins on the head of the goat; then he will send it out
into the wilderness, led by a man chosen for this task. 22 After the man
sets it free in the wilderness, the goat will carry all the people's sins upon
itself into a desolate land.
Aaron, for himself and for the congregation, laid
both hands on the goat's head to ensure the transference of sin to the goat. He
then said something like this, "O Lord, your people, the house of Israel,
has committed every sort of sin imaginable. For the sake of your holy name
I ask that our transgressions, our iniquities, our foolishness be atoned for
on this great day. Purify us from all our sins, known and unknown, so that
we may stand in your presence and enjoy your fellowship."
"As Aaron enters the Tabernacle, he must
take off the linen garments he wore when he entered the Most Holy Place, and
he must leave the garments there. 24 Then he must bathe his entire body
with water in a sacred place, put on his garments, and go out to sacrifice his
own whole burnt offering and the whole burnt offering for the people. In this
way, he will make atonement for himself and for the people. 25 He must
also burn all the fat of the sin offering on the altar.
"The man chosen to send the goat out into
the wilderness as a scapegoat must wash his clothes and bathe in water. Then
he may return to the camp.2
"The bull
and goat given as sin offerings, whose blood Aaron brought into the Most Holy
Place to make atonement for Israel, will be carried outside the camp to be burned.
This includes the animals' hides, the internal organs, and the dung. 28
The man who does the burning must wash his clothes and bathe himself in water
before returning to the camp.
Up to this point it sounds as if the congregation
was simply an on-the-edge-of-your-seat observer of the day's events. They
were certainly an interested observer for they had a stake in the outcome of
everything. But they were more than an observer for they had a role to
play as is spelled our for us in vv. 29 - 31. We read:
"On the appointed day in early autumn, you
must spend the day fasting and not do any work. This is a permanent law for you,
and it applies to those who are Israelites by birth, as well as to the foreigners
living among you. 30 On this day, atonement will be made for you, and you
will be cleansed from all your sins in the LORD's presence. 31 It will
be a Sabbath day of total rest, and you will spend the day in fasting. This is
a permanent law for you. 32 In future generations, the atonement ceremony
will be performed by the anointed high priest who serves in place of his ancestor
Aaron. He will put on the holy linen garments 33 and make atonement for the Most
Holy Place, the Tabernacle, the altar, the priests, and the entire community. 34
This is a permanent law for you, to make atonement for the Israelites once each
year." Moses followed all these instructions that the LORD had given to
him.
However impressive the ceremonies enacted by the
high priest were on this day, they were insufficient in and of themselves. The
law insisted that the whole nation, Israelites and foreigners alike, must come
before God is a true spirit of humility.
To prepare for this time the people "denied
themselves" and did not do any work for this was a day in which something
was done for them. This day was a day for personal reflection, repentance,
and prayer. To this end they fasted and denied themselves the luxuries
and pleasure of life. If they did, if their hearts were right, then according
to v. 30 they were clean before the Lord and could enjoy his presence.3
1 The covering of the ark was commonly known either as
God's footstool(I Chronicles 28:2, Psalm 137:7) or as the mercy seat. It
was a solid gold slab measuring 44" by 26".
2 In v. 8b (also vv. 10 & 26) it is said that the second
goat was for Azazel. This word occurs only here in the Old Testament
so its meaning is uncertain. The most popular explanation is that
Azazel is the name of a demon that lived in the wilderness. Some believe
that it is a rare Hebrew word meaning "complete destruction." Others
are convinced it is referring to a "rocky precipice." Whatever
the case it is clear that the sin of Israel was carried away from the camp. So
it seems that translating it as "scapegoat" makes sense for it really
does take on the blame others deserve!
3 The nearest we get to this is the season of Lent just
prior to Easter.
LEVITICUS - GOD'S GUIDEBOOK TO WORSHIP 4/30/06 1
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