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Leviticus 16

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And the Lord spake unto Moses after the death of the two sons of Aaron, when they offered before the Lord, and died;

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And the Lord said unto Moses, Speak unto Aaron thy brother, that he come not at all times into the holy place within the vail before the mercy seat, which is upon the ark; that he die not: for I will appear in the cloud upon the mercy seat.

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Thus shall Aaron come into the holy place: with a young bullock for a sin offering, and a ram for a burnt offering.

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He shall put on the holy linen coat, and he shall have the linen breeches upon his flesh, and shall be girded with a linen girdle, and with the linen mitre shall he be attired: these are holy garments; therefore shall he wash his flesh in water, and so put them on.

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And he shall take of the congregation of the children of Israel two kids of the goats for a sin offering, and one ram for a burnt offering.

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And Aaron shall offer his bullock of the sin offering, which is for himself, and make an atonement for himself, and for his house.

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And he shall take the two goats, and present them before the Lord at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation.

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And Aaron shall cast lots upon the two goats; one lot for the Lord, and the other lot for the scapegoat.

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And Aaron shall bring the goat upon which the Lord’s lot fell, and offer him for a sin offering.

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But the goat, on which the lot fell to be the scapegoat, shall be presented alive before the Lord, to make an atonement with him, and to let him go for a scapegoat into the wilderness.

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And Aaron shall bring the bullock of the sin offering, which is for himself, and shall make an atonement for himself, and for his house, and shall kill the bullock of the sin offering which is for himself:

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And he shall take a censer full of burning coals of fire from off the altar before the Lord, and his hands full of sweet incense beaten small, and bring it within the vail:

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And he shall put the incense upon the fire before the Lord, that the cloud of the incense may cover the mercy seat that is upon the testimony, that he die not:

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And he shall take of the blood of the bullock, and sprinkle it with his finger upon the mercy seat eastward; and before the mercy seat shall he sprinkle of the blood with his finger seven times.

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Then shall he kill the goat of the sin offering, that is for the people, and bring his blood within the vail, and do with that blood as he did with the blood of the bullock, and sprinkle it upon the mercy seat, and before the mercy seat:

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And he shall make an atonement for the holy place, because of the uncleanness of the children of Israel, and because of their transgressions in all their sins: and so shall he do for the tabernacle of the congregation, that remaineth among them in the midst of their uncleanness.

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And there shall be no man in the tabernacle of the congregation when he goeth in to make an atonement in the holy place, until he come out, and have made an atonement for himself, and for his household, and for all the congregation of Israel.

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And he shall go out unto the altar that is before the Lord, and make an atonement for it; and shall take of the blood of the bullock, and of the blood of the goat, and put it upon the horns of the altar round about.

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And he shall sprinkle of the blood upon it with his finger seven times, and cleanse it, and hallow it from the uncleanness of the children of Israel.

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And when he hath made an end of reconciling the holy place, and the tabernacle of the congregation, and the altar, he shall bring the live goat:

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And Aaron shall lay both his hands upon the head of the live goat, and confess over him all the iniquities of the children of Israel, and all their transgressions in all their sins, putting them upon the head of the goat, and shall send him away by the hand of a fit man into the wilderness:

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And the goat shall bear upon him all their iniquities unto a land not inhabited: and he shall let go the goat in the wilderness.

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And Aaron shall come into the tabernacle of the congregation, and shall put off the linen garments, which he put on when he went into the holy place, and shall leave them there:

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And he shall wash his flesh with water in the holy place, and put on his garments, and come forth, and offer his burnt offering, and the burnt offering of the people, and make an atonement for himself, and for the people.

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And the fat of the sin offering shall he burn upon the altar.

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And he that let go the goat for the scapegoat shall wash his clothes, and bathe his flesh in water, and afterward come into the camp.

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And the bullock for the sin offering, and the goat for the sin offering, whose blood was brought in to make atonement in the holy place, shall one carry forth without the camp; and they shall burn in the fire their skins, and their flesh, and their dung.

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And he that burneth them shall wash his clothes, and bathe his flesh in water, and afterward he shall come into the camp.

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And this shall be a statute for ever unto you: that in the seventh month, on the tenth day of the month, ye shall afflict your souls, and do no work at all, whether it be one of your own country, or a stranger that sojourneth among you:

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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.

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It shall be a sabbath of rest unto you, and ye shall afflict your souls, by a statute for ever.

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And the priest, whom he shall anoint, and whom he shall consecrate to minister in the priest’s office in his father’s stead, shall make the atonement, and shall put on the linen clothes, even the holy garments:

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And he shall make an atonement for the holy sanctuary, and he shall make an atonement for the tabernacle of the congregation, and for the altar, and he shall make an atonement for the priests, and for all the people of the congregation.

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And this shall be an everlasting statute unto you, to make an atonement for the children of Israel for all their sins once a year. And he did as the Lord commanded Moses.

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Leviticus 16

The Day of Atonement regulations are introduced in the shadow of Nadab and Abihu's deaths: the high priest may enter the Most Holy Place only once a year, on the tenth of the seventh month, and only with the prescribed ceremony. Aaron enters wearing simple white linen (not the elaborate high priestly vestments), takes a bull for his personal sin offering and a ram for his burnt offering, and burns incense in the Most Holy Place to create a protective smoke-cloud before the mercy seat. He then applies the bull's blood and the Lord's-lot goat's blood to the mercy seat with sevenfold sprinkling, cleansing the Most Holy Place, the Holy Place, and the burnt offering altar from the accumulated year's contamination. He lays both hands on the live Azazel goat, confesses all Israel's sins over its head, and sends it into the wilderness — carrying the community's sin burden away permanently. The day requires the community's self-denial and complete work cessation, and is declared a lasting ordinance: atonement once a year for all the sins of the Israelites. Hebrews 9–10 identifies this chapter as the fullest Old Testament type of Christ's priestly work.

Leviticus 16:1

The Lord spoke to Moses after the death of the two sons of Aaron who died when they approached the Lord. The Day of Atonement regulations are introduced in the shadow of the deaths of Nadab and Abihu in Leviticus 10. The connection between the sons' deaths and the Yom Kippur regulations is the connection between unauthorized approach and authorized approach: the deaths of those who approached the divine presence improperly create the context for the regulations governing the one authorized annual approach to the Most Holy Place. The connection is not punitive but pedagogical: the tragedy teaches the necessity of the prescribed approach.

Leviticus 16:2

The Lord said to Moses: tell your brother Aaron that he is not to come whenever he chooses into the Most Holy Place behind the curtain in front of the atonement cover on the ark, or else he will die. For I will appear in the cloud over the atonement cover. The fundamental prohibition that the Day of Atonement regulations address: the high priest cannot enter the Most Holy Place at will — not whenever he chooses. The consequence is death; the reason is the divine presence in the cloud over the mercy seat. The God who appears in the cloud at the mercy seat is the God whose presence is both the goal of approach and the danger of unauthorized approach. Hebrews 9:7 says only the high priest entered the inner room, and only once a year — the once-a-year limitation of Leviticus 16:2 is the temporal expression of the authorized approach's restriction.

Leviticus 16:3

This is how Aaron is to enter the Most Holy Place: he must first bring a young bull for a sin offering and a ram for a burnt offering. The authorized entry into the Most Holy Place begins with the high priest's personal offerings: a young bull for his sin offering and a ram for his burnt offering. Before Aaron can enter the Most Holy Place, he must be atoned for. Before the mediator of Israel's atonement can approach the divine presence, he must himself be covered. The bull and the ram are the same animals that inaugurated the priestly ministry in Leviticus 9:2. The high priest's personal offerings are the foundation of the entire Day of Atonement ceremony.

Leviticus 16:4

He is to put on the sacred linen tunic, with linen undergarments next to his body; he is to tie the linen sash around him and put on the linen turban. These are sacred garments; so he must bathe himself with water before he put them on. On the Day of Atonement, the high priest does not wear his regular high priestly garments — the elaborate gold-and-color vestments of Leviticus 8. Instead he wears simple white linen: tunic, undergarments, sash, and turban. The plain white linen communicates the humility and purity required for the Most Holy Place entry. The gold and color of the ordinary high priestly vestments would be inappropriate for the most sacred moment of the year. The high priest enters the divine presence not in his glory but in the simplicity of white linen.

Leviticus 16:5

From the Israelite community he is to take two male goats for a sin offering and a ram for a burnt offering. In addition to the high priest's personal bull and ram, two male goats and a ram are taken from the Israelite community for the community's sin offering and burnt offering. The Day of Atonement ceremony addresses both the high priest's personal sin (the bull) and the community's sin (the two goats). The two goats that will be used for the community's sin offering are the central feature of the Day of Atonement ceremony — one will be sacrificed and one will be sent away.

Leviticus 16:6

Aaron is to offer the bull for his own sin offering to make atonement for himself and his household. The personal sin offering for Aaron and his household — the priestly family — precedes the community's offerings. The high priest who will make atonement for all Israel must first be atoned for himself and his household. The personal atonement that precedes the communal atonement is the foundational principle of the Day of Atonement: the mediator must be clean before he can clean others. Hebrews 7:26–27 contrasts the Aaronic high priest who must first offer for his own sins with Jesus who is holy, blameless, and pure and does not need to offer for himself.

Leviticus 16:7

Then he is to take the two goats and present them before the Lord at the entrance to the tent of meeting. The two goats for the community's sin offering are presented before the Lord at the tent of meeting's entrance — the same location as every other major offering presentation. The two goats that look identical at this point will be assigned different roles through the lot-casting that follows. The presentation before the Lord communicates that both goats are equally under divine authority before the lot determines their different fates.

Leviticus 16:8

He is to cast lots for the two goats — one lot for the Lord and one for the scapegoat. The lot-casting that determines the fate of the two goats: one lot for the Lord (the goat that will be sacrificed) and one lot for Azazel — the scapegoat. The Hebrew Azazel is variously interpreted as a place name (the desolate wilderness), a description (the goat that goes away), or possibly a supernatural entity to whom the sins are sent. Whatever the precise meaning, the lot-casting communicates the divine determination of which goat goes to which purpose. The human cannot choose which goat goes to God and which goes away; the lot communicates the divine selection.

Leviticus 16:9

Aaron shall bring the goat whose lot falls to the Lord and sacrifice it as a sin offering. The Lord's lot goat is sacrificed as the sin offering — the blood that will be taken into the Most Holy Place. The sacrifice of the Lord's lot goat provides the blood that Aaron will take behind the veil as the most sacred act of the entire year. The blood of this goat, combined with the blood of Aaron's own bull, is the blood of the Day of Atonement's innermost sanctuary application.

Leviticus 16:10

But the goat chosen by lot as the scapegoat shall be presented alive before the Lord to be used for making atonement by sending it into the wilderness as a scapegoat. The Azazel goat is presented alive before the Lord — its life is preserved while its partner is sacrificed. The live presentation before the Lord communicates that the Azazel goat is also entirely under divine authority, even as its purpose differs from the sacrifice. The live goat that will carry the community's sins into the wilderness is as much an act of divine provision as the sacrificed goat whose blood covers them.

Leviticus 16:11

Aaron shall bring the bull for his own sin offering to make atonement for himself and his household, and he is to slaughter the bull for his own sin offering. Aaron returns to his personal sin offering bull — the first animal to be slaughtered on the Day of Atonement. The atonement for the high priest himself begins the ceremony. The high priest who will enter the Most Holy Place must be personally atoned for before the blood that covers the community is prepared and presented. The sequence is fixed: personal atonement before communal atonement.

Leviticus 16:12

He is to take a censer full of burning coals from the altar before the Lord and two handfuls of finely ground fragrant incense and take them behind the curtain. The incense censer is the first object Aaron takes behind the veil: coals from the altar and two handfuls of ground incense. The incense that Aaron will burn inside the Most Holy Place will create a cloud of smoke that covers the mercy seat. The smoke-cloud that covers the mercy seat provides a measure of protection for Aaron as he enters the most sacred space — the cloud that fills the Most Holy Place with the incense's fragrance both represents and conceals the divine presence.

Leviticus 16:13

He is to put the incense on the fire before the Lord, and the smoke of the incense will conceal the atonement cover above the tablets of the covenant law, so that he will not die. The purpose of the incense: to conceal the atonement cover with smoke so that Aaron will not die. The incense smoke that fills the Most Holy Place is the protection that allows the high priest to survive in the presence of the God who appears in the cloud over the mercy seat. The incense — the fragrant prayer of the covenant community — is simultaneously the offering of prayer and the means of the high priest's survival in the divine presence. What is offered to God also protects the one who offers.

Leviticus 16:14

He is to take some of the bull's blood and with his finger sprinkle it on the front of the atonement cover; then he shall sprinkle some of it with his finger seven times before the atonement cover. The blood of Aaron's personal sin offering bull is sprinkled on the front of the mercy seat and seven times before it — the most intensive blood application in the entire Levitical system. The blood that covers the mercy seat is the blood that atones for Aaron's personal sin and the sins of his household. The sevenfold sprinkling before the mercy seat communicates the complete, thorough character of the atonement applied at the very center of the divine presence.

Leviticus 16:15

He shall then slaughter the goat for the sin offering for the people and take its blood behind the curtain and do with it as he did with the bull's blood: he shall sprinkle it on the atonement cover and in front of it. After the personal atonement, Aaron leaves the Most Holy Place, slaughters the Lord's lot goat for the community, and returns behind the veil with the goat's blood. The goat's blood is applied identically to the bull's blood: on the front of the mercy seat and sevenfold before it. The community's atonement through the goat's blood is as intensive as the priest's personal atonement through the bull's blood. Both the priest and the community receive the most intensive blood application available in the covenant's worship system.

Leviticus 16:16

In this way he will make atonement for the Most Holy Place because of the uncleanness and rebellion of the Israelites, whatever their sins have been. He is to do the same for the tent of meeting, which is among them in the midst of their uncleanness. The atonement for the Most Holy Place itself — not only for the people but for the sanctuary. The sanctuary that has been contaminated throughout the year by the inadvertent sins and impurities of the community and the priests is itself purified on the Day of Atonement through the blood application. The Most Holy Place, the Holy Place, and all the sanctuary furniture receive the Day of Atonement's purification. The sanctuary is cleansed as well as the people.

Leviticus 16:17

No one is to be in the tent of meeting from the time Aaron goes in to make atonement in the Most Holy Place until he comes out, having made atonement for himself, his household and the whole community of Israel. The sanctuary is completely cleared of all other persons during Aaron's most holy entry. No priest, no Levite, no worshipper can be in the tent of meeting while Aaron is in the Most Holy Place. The exclusive solitude of the high priest in the Most Holy Place communicates the unique, unrepeatable character of the Day of Atonement's innermost sanctuary moment. Hebrews 9:7 says only the high priest entered the inner room — the exclusivity of Leviticus 16:17 is the factual basis for Hebrews' theological argument.

Leviticus 16:18

Then he shall come out to the altar that is before the Lord and make atonement for it. He shall take some of the bull's blood and some of the goat's blood and put it on all the horns of the altar. After the Most Holy Place and the Holy Place, Aaron moves to the burnt offering altar in the courtyard: the altar of public worship receives the atonement blood from both the bull and the goat. The mixed blood of the two sin offerings — bull (personal) and goat (communal) — is applied to all four horns of the burnt offering altar. The altar that receives the community's daily offerings throughout the year is purified on the Day of Atonement from the accumulation of inadvertent contaminations.

Leviticus 16:19

He shall sprinkle some of the blood on it with his finger seven times to cleanse it and to consecrate it from the uncleanness of the Israelites. The sevenfold blood-sprinkling on the burnt offering altar — the same thoroughness as the mercy seat application — consecrates the altar from the year's accumulated uncleanness. The cleansing and consecration of the altar communicates the Day of Atonement's comprehensive scope: from the innermost sanctuary (the mercy seat) to the outer altar (the burnt offering altar), every level of the sacred space is addressed.

Leviticus 16:20

When Aaron has finished making atonement for the Most Holy Place, the tent of meeting and the altar, he shall bring forward the live goat. The comprehensive atonement of the sanctuary complete — the Most Holy Place, the tent of meeting, and the altar — Aaron brings forward the live Azazel goat. The live goat has been waiting throughout the entire sanctuary-atonement process. Now it receives the accumulated sins of Israel that the blood applications have covered, to carry them away into the wilderness.

Leviticus 16:21

He is to lay both hands on the head of the live goat and confess over it all the wickedness and rebellion of the Israelites — all their sins — and put them on the goat's head. He shall send the goat away into the wilderness in the care of someone appointed for the task. The hand-laying on the Azazel goat is a double hand-laying — both hands — the most intensive form of the identification-and-transfer act. The verbal confession of all the wickedness, rebellion, and sins of Israel over the goat's head is the priestly act of naming and transferring the community's total sin burden to the living animal. The double hand-laying and the verbal confession together accomplish the most complete transfer of sin in the Levitical system.

Leviticus 16:22

The goat will carry on itself all their sins to a remote place; and the man shall release it in the wilderness. The Azazel goat carrying all of Israel's sins to the remote wilderness is the most dramatic single act in the entire Levitical system. The living animal that bore the sin-laden confession disappears into the wilderness — the sins it carries go with it into a place from which they do not return. Psalm 103:12 says as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us — the Azazel goat's journey into the remote wilderness is the spatial enactment of the theological reality that Psalm 103 celebrates. Isaiah 53:6 says the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all — the scapegoat is the type of the one who bears the community's total sin burden away.

Leviticus 16:23

Then Aaron is to go into the tent of meeting and take off the linen garments he put on before he entered the Most Holy Place, and he is to leave them there. Aaron returns to the tent of meeting and removes the linen garments worn for the Most Holy Place entry. The linen vestments that were appropriate for the Most Holy Place are removed and left in the sanctuary — they do not leave the sacred space. The linen garments associated with the most sacred moment of the year are kept in the place of their sacred use. The transition from the white linen of the Most Holy Place entry back to the regular high priestly vestments marks the transition from the inner sanctuary ministry back to the ordinary high priestly service.

Leviticus 16:24

He shall bathe himself with water in the sanctuary area and put on his regular garments. Then he shall come out and sacrifice the burnt offering for himself and the burnt offering for the people, to make atonement for himself and for the people. After removing the linen vestments and bathing in the sanctuary area, Aaron puts on his regular high priestly garments and offers the burnt offerings for himself and for the people. The burnt offerings after the sin offerings of the Day of Atonement follow the same sequence as the ordination ceremony and the eighth-day ministry: sin offering (atonement) followed by burnt offering (total consecration). The Day of Atonement concludes with the same offering sequence that inaugurated the priestly ministry.

Leviticus 16:25

He shall also burn the fat of the sin offering on the altar. The fat portions of the sin offering bull and goat are burned on the altar — the same fat-to-God principle as every other major offering. Even on the Day of Atonement, the fat that belongs to God is burned on the altar. The consistency of the fat-burning across the most ordinary and the most sacred offerings communicates the consistent principle: God's claim on the richest portions applies equally to every sacrifice, regardless of the occasion.

Leviticus 16:26

The man who releases the goat as a scapegoat must wash his clothes and bathe himself with water; afterward he may come into the camp. The man who led the Azazel goat into the wilderness — who touched the sin-laden animal and accompanied it to the remote place — must wash his clothes and bathe before re-entering the camp. The impurity acquired from the contact with the sin-bearing goat requires the standard purification procedure. The contact-impurity of the scapegoat handler is the final impurity-creating act of the Day of Atonement ceremony, and it is addressed through the same standard purification as every other contact-impurity in the Levitical system.

Leviticus 16:27

The bull and the goat for the sin offerings, whose blood was brought into the Most Holy Place to make atonement, must be taken outside the camp; their hides, flesh and intestines are to be burned up. The sin offerings whose blood entered the Most Holy Place — the bull and the Lord's lot goat — are burned outside the camp. The outside-the-camp burning that was prescribed for the high priest's sin offering in Leviticus 4:11–12 and fulfilled in the ordination ceremony (Leviticus 8:17) is the same disposal required for the Day of Atonement sin offerings. Hebrews 13:11–12 cites this verse as the type fulfilled by Jesus' crucifixion outside the city gate.

Leviticus 16:28

The man who burns them must wash his clothes and bathe himself with water; afterward he may come into the camp. The man who burns the sin offerings outside the camp acquires the same contact-impurity as the man who led the scapegoat. Both the sin offering burner and the scapegoat handler must wash and bathe before returning to the camp. The parallel purification requirements for the two men who handle the most impurity-laden aspects of the Day of Atonement ceremony communicates the comprehensive management of the Day of Atonement's contact-impurity.

Leviticus 16:29

This is to be a lasting ordinance for you: on the tenth day of the seventh month you must deny yourselves and not do any work — whether native-born or foreigner residing among you. The Day of Atonement as a lasting ordinance: the tenth of the seventh month, a day of self-denial and complete rest from work. The self-denial — fasting and physical restriction — communicates the solemnity of the day: the Day of Atonement is not a celebration but a day of humble acknowledgment of sin and dependence on the divine provision for atonement. The inclusion of foreigners residing among Israel communicates the communal scope: the Day of Atonement addresses the entire community living within the covenant space.

Leviticus 16:30

Because on this day atonement will be made for you, to cleanse you. Then, before the Lord, you will be clean from all your sins. The theological purpose of the Day of Atonement stated in the clearest possible terms: atonement will be made, you will be cleansed, you will be clean from all your sins before the Lord. The comprehensive cleansing — all your sins — communicates the completeness of the Day of Atonement's provision. The community that enters the Day of Atonement burdened by the year's accumulated sins exits it declared clean. The annual cycle of accumulation and cleansing that the Day of Atonement creates is the institutional expression of God's ongoing commitment to maintaining the covenant relationship despite the community's inevitable failures.

Leviticus 16:31

It is a day of sabbath rest for you, and you must deny yourselves; it is a lasting ordinance. The Day of Atonement as a Sabbath-rest — the most complete day of cessation from ordinary activity in the covenant calendar. The combination of the Sabbath rest and the self-denial communicates the Day of Atonement's unique character: unlike the regular Sabbath that is a day of joy and rest, the Day of Atonement combines the Sabbath's cessation from work with the addition of fasting and mourning. The lasting ordinance designation places Yom Kippur among the permanent covenant institutions.

Leviticus 16:32

The priest who is anointed and ordained to succeed his father as high priest is to make atonement. He is to put on the sacred linen garments. The Day of Atonement's regulations apply not only to Aaron but to every subsequent high priest: the anointed and ordained successor is to perform the same ceremony in the same linen garments. The priestly succession and the Day of Atonement ceremony are connected: each new high priest takes on the responsibility of the annual atonement ceremony as part of the office they inherit. The ceremony outlasts any individual high priest; it is the office's most important annual obligation.

Leviticus 16:33

And make atonement for the Most Holy Place, for the tent of meeting and the altar, and for the priests and all the members of the community. The comprehensive coverage of the Day of Atonement is stated in its final summary: the Most Holy Place, the tent of meeting, the altar, the priests, and all the members of the community. Every person and every sacred space is included in the Day of Atonement's scope. No part of the covenant community's life and worship is left outside the annual comprehensive atonement. The sweep of the coverage communicates the comprehensiveness of the sin problem and the comprehensiveness of God's provision for addressing it.

Leviticus 16:34

This is to be a lasting ordinance for you: atonement is to be made once a year for all the sins of the Israelites. And it was done, as the Lord commanded Moses. The final verse of the Day of Atonement regulations states the lasting ordinance one final time and closes with the compliance formula: it was done, as the Lord commanded Moses. The once-a-year atonement for all the sins of the Israelites is the annual reset of the covenant relationship — the comprehensive forgiveness that makes the next year of covenant life possible. Hebrews 10:1–3 says the animal sacrifices offered annually could not make the worshippers perfect or take away sins, and were a reminder of sins year after year. The once-for-all sacrifice of Christ fulfills and replaces what the annual Day of Atonement could only foreshadow.