Commentary - Leviticus 16:1-10

Bird's-eye view

Leviticus is the book of holiness. The central message is straightforward: God is holy, and He has condescended to dwell in the midst of His people. Therefore, His people must be holy. This is not a suggestion; it is a non-negotiable reality that flows from the very character of God. This chapter, Leviticus 16, is the liturgical heart of the entire book, detailing the procedures for the Day of Atonement, or Yom Kippur. This was the one day of the year when the high priest could enter the Holy of Holies, the inner sanctum where God's presence was manifest. The entire ceremony is a massive, acted-out parable of the gospel. It is a shadow, and a potent one, of the substance that we have in Jesus Christ. Every detail, from the linen garments to the two goats, points forward to the final and perfect atonement that would be accomplished by our Great High Priest.

The chapter opens with a grim reminder of what happens when men approach God on their own terms. Nadab and Abihu, Aaron's sons, had offered "strange fire" and were consumed. This sets the stage. Access to God is not a casual thing. It is a terrifying prospect for sinful men, and it can only happen on God's precise terms. The Day of Atonement is God's provision for His people to have their sins dealt with collectively, allowing Him to continue dwelling among them without consuming them in His righteous judgment. It is a day of national cleansing, a reset button for the covenant relationship, made possible through substitutionary sacrifice.

Outline

Commentary

1 Now Yahweh spoke to Moses after the death of the two sons of Aaron, when they came near the presence of Yahweh and died.

The Lord does not let us forget. This high and holy chapter begins with a stark reminder of recent history. Nadab and Abihu are dead. Why? Because they came near the presence of Yahweh in a way He had not commanded. They innovated in worship, they brought "strange fire," and the holy fire of God consumed them. This is the necessary backdrop for everything that follows. The worship of God is not a field for human creativity or self-expression. It is a matter of life and death. God is holy, which means He is separate, other, and utterly pure. To approach Him is to approach a consuming fire, and if you do not come under the prescribed covering, you will be burned up. This event underscores the absolute necessity of a mediator and the absolute necessity of approaching God on His terms, and His terms alone.

2 And Yahweh said to Moses: “Tell your brother Aaron that he shall not enter at any time into the holy place inside the veil, before the mercy seat which is on the ark, so that he will not die; for I will appear in the cloud over the mercy seat.”

The warning is now made explicit and personal. "Tell your brother Aaron." Even the high priest, the man set apart for this very service, does not have an open-access pass to the presence of God. He is forbidden from entering "at any time." The default status is exclusion. Why? "So that he will not die." The danger is real. The mercy seat, the very place where atonement is made, is also the place of God's manifest presence, and therefore a place of immense danger for a sinful man. God says, "I will appear in the cloud over the mercy seat." This cloud, the Shekinah glory, is a manifestation of His unapproachable holiness. The veil is there for a reason. It is a barrier, a quarantine protecting the unclean from the clean, the sinful from the holy. This verse establishes the fundamental problem that the rest of the chapter is designed to solve: How can a sinful people live with a holy God in their midst?

3 Aaron shall enter the holy place with this: with a bull from the herd for a sin offering and a ram for a burnt offering.

Access is not impossible, but it is conditional. It is costly. Aaron cannot come empty-handed. He must come "with this." And "this" is blood. He must bring a young bull for a sin offering and a ram for a burnt offering. The bull is for purification, to deal with the stain of sin. The ram is for consecration, a whole burnt offering where the entire animal ascends to God in smoke, signifying total dedication. Notice the order. Sin must be dealt with before dedication can be offered. You cannot consecrate yourself to God while you are still filthy. Atonement must precede worship. This is the logic of the gospel. Christ's blood cleanses us first, and only then can we offer ourselves as living sacrifices.

4 He shall put on the holy linen tunic, and the linen undergarments shall be next to his body, and he shall be girded with the linen sash and attired with the linen turban (these are holy garments). Then he shall bathe his body in water and put them on.

The priest's approach requires not only a sacrifice but also a change of clothes. On this one day, Aaron sets aside his glorious high priestly garments, the ones with the ephod, the breastplate of precious stones, the bells, and pomegranates. Instead, he wears the simple, white linen garments of a common priest. This is an act of humility. He is stripping himself of his glory and status as he comes before the ultimate glory of God. These are "holy garments," set apart for this purpose. But before he can even put on these holy clothes, he must "bathe his body in water." This is a full-body washing, symbolizing a complete cleansing. He must be clean on the outside to represent the inner purity required to stand before God. This points to the righteousness of Christ, which clothes us. We are washed in the water of the Word and clothed in His perfect righteousness. Aaron's actions are a living portrait of our salvation.

5 And he shall take from the congregation of the sons of Israel two male goats for a sin offering and one ram for a burnt offering.

Now the provision for the people is introduced. The congregation provides the animals for their own atonement. This is important; the people are participants in their own salvation, not passive spectators. They bring two male goats and one ram. The ram, like Aaron's, is for a burnt offering, a corporate act of consecration. But the two goats are the centerpiece of the sin offering for the nation. Why two? Because sin has two fundamental aspects that must be dealt with, and one animal cannot adequately picture the solution to both.

6 Then Aaron shall bring near the bull for the sin offering which is for himself, that he may make atonement for himself and for his household.

Before Aaron can act as a mediator for the people, he must first be right with God himself. The Levitical priest is a sinner, and he cannot represent others until his own sin is covered. He offers the bull "for himself and for his household." This highlights the imperfection of the Old Covenant priesthood. The priests were men with weaknesses, who had to offer sacrifices for their own sins just like the people. The author of Hebrews makes much of this point to show the superiority of Christ, our Great High Priest, who was without sin and had no need to offer a sacrifice for Himself before He offered Himself for us (Heb. 7:27).

7 And he shall take the two goats and present them before Yahweh at the doorway of the tent of meeting.

The two goats are brought together and stood "before Yahweh." This is a formal presentation. They are being set apart for a divine purpose. Everything is happening at the doorway of the tent of meeting, the place where God meets with man. This is public, official, covenantal business. The fate of the entire nation for the next year hangs on what happens to these two goats.

8 And Aaron shall cast lots for the two goats, one lot for Yahweh and the other lot for the scapegoat.

Here we have a divine decision. The two goats are outwardly identical, but their fates will be radically different. Aaron does not choose which goat gets which role; he casts lots. This is a way of acknowledging that the decision rests with God. One lot is "for Yahweh," and the other is "for the scapegoat," or more literally, "for Azazel." The goat for Yahweh is designated for sacrifice. Its blood will be shed. The goat for Azazel will be the carrier, the one who removes the sin. The casting of lots removes any human sentiment or arbitrary choice from the process. God is sovereignly appointing the means of His people's atonement.

9 Then Aaron shall bring near the goat on which the lot for Yahweh fell, and he shall offer it as a sin offering.

The first goat's destiny is sealed. It is the Lord's goat. Its purpose is to die. It will be a sin offering, its blood shed to satisfy the righteous demands of God's justice. This represents the propitiatory aspect of atonement. A penalty must be paid for sin, and that penalty is death. The blood of this goat, sprinkled on the mercy seat, covers the sin of the people, turning away the wrath of God. This is a clear type of Christ's death on the cross. He was the offering "for Yahweh," slain to satisfy divine justice.

10 But the goat on which the lot for the scapegoat fell shall be presented alive before Yahweh, to make atonement upon it, to send it out into the wilderness as the scapegoat.

The second goat's destiny is also sealed, but it is very different. It is presented "alive before Yahweh." This goat represents the other side of atonement: expiation, the removal of sin. While the first goat deals with the legal guilt of sin before God, this second goat deals with the defilement and memory of sin. The sins of the people will be ceremonially placed upon its head, and it will be driven away into the wilderness, a desolate place, carrying those sins away with it. Together, the two goats paint a complete picture of what Christ accomplishes. He not only pays the penalty for our sin (the goat for Yahweh), but He also removes our transgressions from us, as far as the east is from the west (the scapegoat). Our sin is both paid for and banished.