Day 049 (Leviticus 16-18) - Year 7
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Hey, Bible readers, I'm Tara Lee Cobble, and I'm your host for The Bible Recap. Today we hit a big day in our reading, the instructions for the Day of Atonement, the day of covering for sins and purging impurity from their midst. This annual event happens in the fall, about halfway through the Jewish year. In our current reading, we're just at the start of the Jewish year, so the Day of Atonement is still a few months off for the Israelites. Here, God's telling them how it's all going to happen when the time comes.

The Jewish name for this day is Yom Kippur, and it's the only day of the year when the high priest can enter into the Holy of Holies. As a refresher, the Holy of Holies is the section at the far back of the tabernacle, separated from the holy place by a curtain, and it's where the Ark of the Covenant sits with the mercy seat on top of it, serving as God's throne on earth. No one gets to enter, ever, except the high priest on this one day.

God gives instructions for how Aaron is supposed to enter, and his instructions present us with a new theory on what happened to his two oldest sons who were struck dead recently. Some commentators believe they possibly tried to enter the Holy of Holies, which was strictly forbidden for them. God has done so much to draw his people near, but there's still a set-apartness to him, a holiness that must be revered. Why does Aaron get to go in on this particular day? He's presenting the annual sacrifices that cover the sins of the priests and the sins of the people—

And because even the tabernacle itself was impacted by their sins, these sacrifices had to take place at the very heart of the tabernacle. But remember, God's presence and glory are there at the highest levels of intensity. So Aaron has to create smoke with the incense to cloud his eyes from seeing God's glory or he'll die. Wow. He even had special ceremonial garments that he only wore on this day.

In this ceremony, the sins of the priest are atoned for first. Then there's this really beautiful image set up for us in the way he atones for the sins of the people. For the people, there are two goats. One goat is appointed for the Lord, and one goat is appointed for Azazel. Azazel could mean one of two things. It could mean the goat that goes away, or it could be a proper noun referring to a goat demon who is associated with the angels that fell in Genesis 6. We will continue to see the connections between fallen angels and demonic spirits.

By designating this goat for Azazel, they're symbolically sending the sins out of Israel's camp and into pagan territory. So the people confess their sins aloud, and their sins are symbolically transferred to the Azazel goat, and it escapes into the wilderness. At the risk of telling you something you already know, this is the scapegoat. And yes, that's where we got the term. This is a picture of Christ, who bore all our sins. He was our scapegoat.

While all this is happening, the people are instructed to fast and to rest. A few of their high holy days are considered as bonus special Sabbaths. So no matter what day the holiday falls on, they honor it by keeping the same Sabbath rules on this special Sabbath. There's a one in seven chance that it happens on the actual Sabbath, which is sundown on Friday to sundown on Saturday. But on most years, when it doesn't overlap with the actual Sabbath, they'll have two Sabbaths in that particular week.

Hold on to this information in your brain. It'll be a while, but we're coming back around to this in the months ahead. In chapter 17, God issues a command about sacrifices, specifically because the people were sacrificing to other gods. And did you catch what Yahweh called those other gods? Demons. That's noteworthy.

There's an ongoing idolatry among the people, despite the fact that the one true God lives in their midst. God has graciously provided a means to atone for their sins, but they're not just ignoring it, they're despising it by relying on other gods. God also lays out what's so important about blood in 1711. "...for the life of the flesh is in the blood, and I have given it for you on the altar to make atonement for your souls, for it is the blood that makes atonement by the life."

There was a pagan belief that consuming blood made you stronger because you were absorbing the life force. But God makes it clear that the blood of animals has one function for them, to make atonement for their sins before him. We finished today's reading with a lot of laws on sexual purity. God emphasizes cleanliness and purity here, but it's not just about hygiene. It's about morals as well.

God takes this so seriously that he devotes a whole chapter to it in this one section alone. Per usual, he starts out with relationship, reminding them who he is to them, then lets them know how to be pure when it comes to sex. He says if they abide by these rules, that's how to truly live and find freedom and flourishing.

God doesn't necessarily describe ideal scenarios here, by the way. He just lays out the bare minimum for living ethically in society together. The first thing he does is put a restriction on incest. Finally, we've been waiting for this, right?

Well, we've got three million people at this point, so there are plenty options to choose for a spouse that aren't your aunt. He lets them know that now is the time to think outside the tent. He also prohibits offering your children to Molech, a god the Canaanites sacrificed their children to. And he prohibits adultery, homosexuality, bestiality, and hints at bigamy as well. These actions ignore the order God established in his creation, so they're an affront to him as creator.

God says all the nations around them are doing these kinds of things, and that's why He's driving them out of the land and giving it to the Israelites. They're His people, and they are to be set apart like He is. They're supposed to be marked by this kind of holiness and order in the midst of perversion. And just as He opened, He closes with relationship as a reminder of who He is to them. I am the Lord your God. What was your God shot today?

As we were reading about Aaron entering the Holy of Holies on the Day of Atonement every year, I couldn't help but think forward to Christ's death. I want to read Hebrews 9, 11-14 to you. I'm sure you'll see how it ties in.

When Christ appeared as a high priest of the good things that have come, then through the greater and more perfect tent, not made with hands, that is, not of this creation, He entered once for all into the holy places, not by means of the blood of goats and calves, but by means of His own blood, thus securing an eternal redemption.

He paid the price to cover our sins, not just for a year, but forever. And He's where the joy is.

Okay, Bible readers, it's time for our weekly check-in. How's it going? No matter when you're listening to this, even if you're quote-unquote behind in the plan, you are right on time. And no matter where you are in the plan, even here in the Old Testament, I want to remind you of something super important. Always be looking for Jesus. In John 5, Jesus says the Old Testament is all about Him. For instance, today we read about the Day of Atonement and what that means for the Jewish people.

But now we have the advantage of knowing the full story. We see how this points to Jesus Christ who came to pay the sin debt once and for all. Today's reading was a picture of Jesus.

He doesn't just show up in a manger in Matthew. He's been here all along, even since Genesis 1. So keep looking for him, for prophecies of him, for pictures of him, and even for some surprise visits he makes to earth prior to his birth. So keep your eyes peeled when we jump back in tomorrow and every day after that.