A very important Biblical event begins tonight at sundown. Does anybody know what it is?
Yom Kippur (Yom=Day, Kippur=Atonement). Yom Kippur begins TONIGHT as soon as the sun goes down. It is the most solemn 24 hours on the Jewish calendar. No work is to be done; no food is to be eaten. It is a day of fasting and prayer and confession… a time when the sins of the people are laid out before God.
Our topic today: What does atonement mean? Strangely enough, the first time we see this word in the Bible it is associated with… boat-building:
Genesis 6:14
Then God said to Noah… “Make for yourself an ark of gopher wood; you shall make the ark with rooms, and you shall cover it [w-kaphar’ta] inside and out with pitch.”
Cover it… to cover is to atone. It’s like going to a restaurant with friends and when the bill comes they say, “I got you covered”. They’re paying, so you don’t have to. That’s atonement. Covering the ark, inside and out, with pitch was an action that would save the people. No pitch and the boat would take on water and sink. Atonement worked in the same way. Without atonement, we would sink and die. We need coverage.
Coverage means that we’re taken care of. We’re forgiven; we’re atoned. Now individual forgiveness between people is supposed to happen all the time, but YHWH called for there to be one day in the year, a holy convocation, where the High Priest would enter the inner sanctuary of the Temple and make an atonement offering to cover all of the people. This Day of Atonement event comes directly from Leviticus 23:
Leviticus 23:26-28, 31-32a
YHWH spoke to Moses, saying, “On exactly the tenth day of this seventh month is the day of [the] atonement [yom ha-kippurim]; it shall be a holy convocation for you, and you shall humble your souls and present an offering by fire to YHWH. You shall not do any work on this same day, for it is a day of atonement [yom kippurim], to make atonement [l’kapper] on your behalf before YHWH your God… You shall do no work at all. It is to be a perpetual statute throughout your generations in all your dwelling places. It is to be a sabbath of complete rest to you, and you shall humble your souls…”
This was a serious call for all people to stop, rest, pray, fast, seek forgiveness, and reboot.
According to tradition, the Book of Life opens on Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year. The Book remains open for 10 days and on the 10th day, Yom Kippur, the Book closes. This is a 10 day window of time to right your wrongs, wiping the slate clean to begin a new year afresh. It is 10 days to lay out your confession and clear your name so it can remain in the Book of Life. If you do not do this, your name is in jeopardy.
Yom Kippur is the day the Book closes, so it is a day of prayer, fasting, penitence, and confession. It is a day to come clean and begin anew.
Now, I want to be clear. This concept of opening and closing the Book of Life isn’t completely Biblical. It comes out of a long history of Jewish tradition. But in the Biblical narrative there is one example where atonement is connected to the Book of Life. It’s part of Moses’ story.
After spending time with YHWH on Mount Sinai, Moses (if you recall) came down from the mountaintop to discover that, while he was away, the Hebrew people built a golden idol and began worshiping it. Moses was devastated but he continued to stand as an advocate for his people. He wanted to save them:
Exodus 32:30-34
On the next day Moses said to the people, “You yourselves have committed a great sin; and now I am going up to YHWH, perhaps I can make atonement [a’kap’rah] for your sin.” Then Moses returned to YHWH, and said, “Alas, this people has committed a great sin, and they have made a god of gold for themselves. But now, if You will, forgive their sin—and if not, please blot me out from Your book which You have written!” YHWH said to Moses, “Whoever has sinned against Me, I will blot him out of My book. But go now, lead the people where I told you. Behold, My angel shall go before you; nevertheless in the day when I punish, I will punish them for their sin.”
Basically, Moses asked how he could save the people, and God replied, “You can’t”. Moses was willing to throw his own name under the bus, to save the people, but God wouldn’t accept the offer.
Moses could not atone for the people. They would have to pay for their own sins. There would be only one person who could cover the sins of the people… and Moses wasn’t him.
Atonement is very much connected with life and death. Seeking atonement is asking to live! It is asking God to cover the sins, to pay the ransom (because payment must be made) so that death can’t tighten the shackles. Sin and disobedience strengthen the grasp that chaos has on a person; it chains them to death. Atonement is asking for freedom, because when you are atoned, you are at one with God. Do you see it? Atonement means forgiven, but the result of atonement is At-One-ment. Being forgiven, ransomed, redeemed makes you at one with God. It puts you back on the track towards being truly human, as God meant humans to be… looking and living like Jesus… bearing God’s image to the world.
But we’ve been distracted from our calling. We humans have this insatiable desire to control death, to find our own way to immortality. As much as we try to push the boundaries, we cannot succeed; our bodies will perish like all other beasts on this planet.
These ridiculous strivings to evade death (or remain young) are in vain. It’s vanity driven… and it’s fear driven. Our bodies were not designed to live forever, but eternal life for the soul was always part of YHWH’s plan… and the work has already been done. The prophet Isaiah shared YHWH’s message to us:
Isaiah 28:14-18
Therefore, hear the word of YHWH, O scoffers, who rule this people who are in Jerusalem, because you have said, “We have made a covenant with death, and with Sheol we have made a pact. The overwhelming scourge will not reach us when it passes by, for we have made falsehood our refuge and we have concealed ourselves with deception.” Therefore thus says the Lord YHWH, “Behold, I am laying in Zion a stone, a tested stone, a costly cornerstone for the foundation, firmly placed. He who believes in it will not be disturbed. I will make justice the measuring line and righteousness the level; then hail will sweep away the refuge of lies and the waters will overflow the secret place. Your covenant with death will be canceled [w-kuppar covered/atoned], and your pact with Sheol will not stand.”
You can’t make a deal with death. You can’t cheat it. Sheol/the Grave won’t cut you a break. Only God can remove the finality of death. It’s our disobedience that chains us to the grave. Remember: the Adversary is the promoter of death and chaos; God is the champion of order and life. Only through Him can the chains be broken. God would send a “Cornerstone”… One who would hold us steady in the foundation of God’s plan, because only through God are we free to truly live, and live eternally.
As for the official Day of Atonement, Leviticus 23 outlined the dates and its importance, but Leviticus 16 gave the details of what the priest was to do on that day. This was to be the one day of the year when the High Priest would enter the most sacred space in the Temple (the Holy of Holies). In this instance, the High Priest was Aaron, Moses’ & Miriam’s brother. According to Leviticus 16, the High Priest was to take two goats and present them before YHWH at the doorway of the tent of meeting. Aaron would then cast lots to decide which goat would be “for YHWH” and which goat would be “for Azazel”… known widely as “the scapegoat”
Leviticus 16:9-10. 15-16a
“Then Aaron shall offer the goat on which the lot for YHWH fell, and make it a sin offering. But the goat on which the lot for the scapegoat fell shall be presented alive before YHWH, to make atonement [l-kapper] upon it, to send it into the wilderness as the Azazel (scapegoat)…”
…“Then he shall slaughter the goat of the sin offering which is for the people, and bring its blood inside the veil… and sprinkle it on the mercy seat [ha-kapporet] and in front of the mercy seat [ha-kapporet]. He shall make atonement [w-kipper] for the holy place, because of the impurities of the sons of Israel and because of their transgressions in regard to all their sins…”
The blood of the first goat was to cover the sins of the people. It was killed and its blood was sprinkled on the Mercy seat of the Ark of the Covenant. Literally the Mercy Seat is the seat of the atonement [ha-kapporet]). It is the place where humans and God could be in the same place, at one with each other.
Leviticus 16:20-26
When he finishes atoning [mi-kapper] for the holy place and the tent of meeting and the altar, he shall offer the live goat. Then Aaron shall lay both of his hands on the head of the live goat, and confess over it all the iniquities of the sons of Israel and all their transgressions in regard to all their sins; and he shall lay them on the head of the goat and send it away into the wilderness by the hand of a man who stands in readiness. The goat shall bear on itself all their iniquities to a solitary land; and he shall release the goat in the wilderness.
After this event, the High Priest and “the man who stands in readiness” are instructed to wash themselves clean and go back into the camp. Then we read:
Leviticus 16:29-31
This shall be a permanent statute for you: in the seventh month, on the tenth day of the month, you shall humble your souls and not do any work, whether the native, or the alien who sojourns among you; for it is on this day that atonement [y-kapper] shall be made for you to cleanse you; you will be clean from all your sins before YHWH. It is to be a sabbath of solemn rest for you, that you may humble your souls; it is a permanent statute.”
This whole passage is ripe for interpretation… and many have tried, which means we have many possible interpretations. The big question… what’s up with the scapegoat? The word scapegoat is a mash of two Hebrew words ayz (goat) and azal (to go) or the “the goat-to-go”/“gone-goat”/”sent-away-goat”. Some scholars have considered this word as a name: “Azazel”. In later texts (rabbinic literature, apocryphal books, extra-canonical books, (such as the Book of Enoch), Azazel is the name of a demon. This shakes up the interpretation of the text significantly.
The “Goat-to-Go” was sent away carrying the sins of the people. It was sent to the wilderness and banished from the sacred space of the Temple. Many see this goat as the Messiah, who was sent out of the Temple, by the people who controlled it, to carry the sins of everyone on His back, to face the wilderness alone on the cross. He goes back to the beginning of creation when it was formless and void/wilderness and wasteland and He carries the entire weight of the history of humanity’s horrible choices on His back… to die, utterly alone with God’s face turned away from Him.
Others see this goat as the Adversary (in the form of Azazel) taking the sins to the wilderness… banished by God from His presence. The Messiah, rather, is represented by the goat that was chosen, by lot, to be sacrificed on the altar for the sins of all people.
However, Lev 16:10 says that this goat-to-go was “presented alive before YHWH, to make atonement [l-kapper] upon it” before it was sent out to the wilderness… So another interpretation is, perhaps, we are the “goats-to-go”, the sent ones, the ones atoned by the sacrifice of Jesus, and sent out into the wilderness as the people at one with God. We are still very much at risk in the wilderness, but we’re out there, freed by the blessing of Jesus’ sacrifice, doing our best to represent (or bear the Image of) Jesus to the world.
This is a deep well… and we don’t have time this morning to debate it, but I think it’s good to acknowledge that not everything in the Bible black and white and easily understandable. There are still many mysteries to study. Personally, it’s what keeps me coming back for more! That’s why I love taking a slow read through the Bible, to stop and critically think about what we’re reading. We don’t need all the answers, we just need to keep seekign! It’s a wonderful way to learn and grow in our faith.
Regardless of your thoughts on the two goats of Leviticus 16, the story of Jesus’s trial offers some interesting parallels to the Yom Kippur story.
Pilate sat on the judgement seat, similar to the “atonement seat” on the Ark of the Covenant, and he sat as high commissioner of his calling, much like the High Priest had to perform his duties on the Day of Atonement. Pilate had two men before him that needed judging: Jesus Barabbas (Bar-abbas means son (bar) of the father (abbas)) and Jesus, the Messiah, son of God. One was to be killed, the other released (back into the wild). Although Pilate saw Barabbas as the guilty one, the choice was ultimately given to the general population:
Matthew 27:15-26
Now it was the governor’s custom at the festival to release a prisoner chosen by the crowd. At that time they had a well-known prisoner whose name was Jesus Barabbas. So when the crowd had gathered, Pilate asked them, “Which one do you want me to release to you: Jesus Barabbas, or Jesus who is called the Messiah?” For he knew it was out of self-interest that they had handed Jesus over to him.
Now while he [Pilate] was sitting on the judgment seat, his wife sent him a message, saying, “Have nothing to do with that righteous Man; for last night I suffered greatly in a dream because of Him.”
But the chief priests and the elders persuaded the crowds to ask for Barabbas and to put Jesus to death. But the governor said to them, “Which of the two do you want me to release for you?”
And they said, “Barabbas.”
Pilate said to them, “Then what shall I do with Jesus who is called Messiah?”
They all said, “Crucify Him!”
And he said, “Why, what evil has He done?”
But they kept shouting all the more, saying, “Crucify Him!”
When Pilate saw that he was accomplishing nothing, but rather that a riot was starting, he took water and washed his hands in front of the crowd, saying, “I am innocent of this Man’s blood; see to that yourselves.”
And all the people said, “His blood shall be on us and on our children!”
Then he released Barabbas for them; but after having Jesus scourged, he handed Him over to be crucified.
Notice that Pilate washed his hands to demonstrate his innocence in the whole matter… just as the High Priest and the man who stood in readiness to take away the “goat-to-go” were to wash themselves of the deed they performed in Leviticus 16.
When Jesus died, as the sacrificial animal, the symbolism of the Day of Atonement was meant to come flooding back. Normally only the High Priest was to go behind the great curtain, or veil, into the inner sanctuary where God’s presence was tangible on earth. But the moment Jesus died that great, thick, curtain split in two:
Matthew 27:50-52
And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice, and yielded up His spirit. And behold, the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom; and the earth shook and the rocks were split. The tombs were opened, and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised
Jesus’ death broke the barrier that stood between humans and God. Now everyone could come face to face with God because Jesus paid the costly ransom to free people from the chains of death. Matthew highlighted the price Jesus paid to conquer death by pointing out that many tombs opened and the dead were raised. Jesus’ death immediately freed those under the bondage of the Adversary and ushered in the beginnings of the New Creation. The Apostle John said this:
1 John 2:1-2
My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. And if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus the Messiah the righteous; and He Himself is the atonement for our sins; and not for ours only, but also for those of the whole world.
Ultimately this sacrifice was the embodiment of the guilt offering and the sin offering, but really it was a love offering! A love offering for the whole world.
Of course Jesus didn’t die just to cover sins… he came to usher in the New Kingdom. His atonement for the sins of the people was not His only role. His death and resurrection was just the beginning.
The New Heaven and the New Earth was the fulfillment of the Covenant God made with His people. Jesus didn’t just atone for our sins (making us at one with Him), He put an end to the spiritual exile that made us unable to see YHWH face to face. But now, since the veil has been torn in two, YHWH is ours to see.
Atonement clears our name and sets us free to be At One with God. Jesus paid our entrance fee back into Eden. We can walk in God’s Garden, alongside His Presence, free to be the humans we were born to be… without guilt, without that crushing feeling of not being good enough. You are now innocent of all charges; you are worthy to walk in God’s Presence.
We’re not Jewish, we’re Presbyterian. We, generally, do not observe Yom Kippur, but I encourage you, tonight at sundown and throughout the day tomorrow, to remember the sacrifice Jesus made for each of us. Use it as a time of confession and prayer. For Jews it is the most solemn day of the year… when they fervently pray to have their names cleared in the Book of Life. For us, it is a day to celebrate the fact that our names have already been cleared by the blood of Jesus. We have been exonerated of all charges!
Our names are written in the Book of Life, and we can claim freedom from bondage to death and destruction, because we are FREE! Jesus has us covered! We are free, today, to live At-One with YHWH! Amen? Amen!
