Feasts of the Lord – Yom Kippur
“The tenth day of this seventh month is the Day of Atonement. You are to hold a sacred assembly and practice self-denial; you are to present a fire offering to the Lord. On this particular day you are not to do any work, for it is a Day of Atonement to make atonement for yourselves before the Lord your God. If any person does not practice self-denial on this particular day, he must be cut off from his people. I will destroy among his people anyone who does any work on this same day. You are not to do any work. This is a permanent statute throughout your generations wherever you live. It will be a Sabbath of complete rest for you, and you must practice self-denial. You are to observe your Sabbath from the evening of the ninth day of the month until the following evening.” Leviticus 23:27-32
At the end of the Days of Awe we come to the highest of all holy days – Yom Kippur. Yom Kippur literally means Day of Atonement. It is the day the high priest went into the Holy of Holies and came before the mercy seat of God on behalf of the people. It is considered a Sabbath day – a day of complete rest. Since Yom Kippur falls on the 10th day of the 7th month, it can fluctuate between days of the week, yet it is still considered a Sabbath day because of it’s importance. Not only is it a day of complete rest, it is also a day of complete fasting – no food or water. I can tell you from experience that 24 hours without food or water can be tough. It is the culmination of all you have reflected on during the previous ten days and now, you come before God and God alone to deal with your sins.
Yom Kippur has some very specific practices that had to be followed and they are described in detail in Leviticus 16. In this study, we will see how each of these specific practices has been fulfilled in Christ. Since this is the only day the high priest went into the Holy of Holies, we will also see how Christ has fulfilled each element of the tabernacle. And finally, since this is a fall festival. we will see how Christ will fulfill Yom Kippur in His second coming.
The Holy of Holies
The Lord said to Moses: “Tell your brother Aaron that he may not come whenever he wants into the holy place behind the veil in front of the mercy seat on the ark or else he will die, because I appear in the cloud above the mercy seat. “Aaron is to enter the most holy place in this way: with a young bull for a sin offering and a ram for a burnt offering. He is to wear a holy linen tunic, and linen undergarments are to be on his body. He must tie a linen sash around him and wrap his head with a linen turban. These are holy garments; he must bathe his body with water before he wears them” Leviticus 16:3-4. The high priest could only come into the Holy of Holies on Yom Kippur. When he did go in, he had to be dressed right with the right sacrifice. No cutting corners or doing things halfway. This may sound like overkill to most of us, but God is giving us a picture of what absolute holiness looks like. Perfection is, well, perfect. No blemishes, no spots, no white lies, no smudges… Remember, the gift of the law was not there to save us, but to point out our sinfulness and point us toward salvation. It was there to help us see what holiness looks like and Yom Kippur shines a glaring light on our imperfect and unholy state. We are undeniably unable to come up to God’s standard. At the same time the ONLY way to come before God, is as holy people. It’s a catch 22. How can we do it? God, in His great mercy, has created a way for us to reconcile with Him. This is why it is called the mercy seat and not the condemnation seat. We remember Christ’s words in John 3:17, “For God did not send His Son into the world that He might condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through Him.” So the priest had to present himself in specific clothes, in a specific way because he was coming before a holy God. And Jesus has fulfilled this. He is the spotless, perfect, Lamb of God. He alone walks perfectly before God. He alone is able to come before God as the perfect sacrifice. The book of Hebrews has outlined for us this great truth. “Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens—Jesus the Son of God—let us hold fast to the confession. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but One who has been tested in every way as we are, yet without sin. Hebrews 4:14-15
The High Priest
The high priest had to come from not only the tribe of Levi, but from a descendant of Aaron. This was not decided by Moses and Aaron but by God. We read in Numbers 16 and 17 about a rebellion of Korah, a Levite, and his followers against Moses and Aaron. Korah felt like Moses and Aaron were exalting themselves by proclaiming Aaron as the high priest. It caused a chain of rebellions against Moses and Aaron – and against God, for God had chosen Aaron. In Numbes 17 we find God settles the argument once and for all. Twelve staffs were brought before God but only Aaron’s staff sprouts and produces almonds. This staff was put into the ark of the covenant and the mercy seat is set on top of it. So it was established that the high priest would come from the house of Aaron. So how can Jesus be our high priest since He is from the tribe of Judah? Aaron’s priesthood had one big problem. It was unholy and imperfect, therefore it could not save us. Aaron was a man who had to make offerings for himself before he could even approach the mercy seat of God. We needed a perfect high priest who was able to save. Enter Jesus: “During His earthly life, He offered prayers and appeals with loud cries and tears to the One who was able to save Him from death, and He was heard because of His reverence. Though He was God’s Son, He learned obedience through what He suffered. After He was perfected, He became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey Him, and He was declared by God a high priest in the order of Melchizedek” Hebrews 5:7-10. A new priesthood was called for and Jesus fulfilled it. Not only that, Jesus was able to come before the very throne of God. Aaron came before God in a man made tabernacle and before a man made mercy seat. These were only a shadow of the real thing. God had told Moses to “be careful to make everything according to the pattern shown on the mountain” – Exodus 25:40. Why? Because the tabernacle isn’t just a temporal place on earth, it was the very picture of the throne of God. The priests offered sacrifices in a shadow tabernacle. (Hebrews 8:5) Jesus offered his sacrifice in the real tabernacle. God gave specific instructions as to how sacrifices were to be made and what the high priest were suppose to do. This was so we can have a picture of what Jesus does as our high priest. He didn’t go into an earthly Holy of Holies before a man made mercy seat, He “sat down at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens, a minister of the sanctuary and the true tabernacle that was set up by the Lord and not man” Hebrews 8:1-2. So Christ has fulfilled the priesthood and serves as our mediator before God Himself.
Burnt Offering and Two Goats
He is to take from the Israelite community two male goats for a sin offering and one ram for a burnt offering. “Aaron will present the bull for his sin offering and make atonement for himself and his household. Next he will take the two goats and place them before the Lord at the entrance to the tent of meeting. After Aaron casts lots for the two goats, one lot for the Lord and the other for azazel, he is to present the goat chosen by lot for the Lord and sacrifice it as a sin offering. But the goat chosen by lot for azazel is to be presented alive before the Lord to make purification with it by sending it into the wilderness for azazel” Leviticus 16:6-10. So, Aaron had to make a sin offering for himself and His household before he could even approach the Holy of Holies, and then there are the goats. Aaron brings two goats before the Lord at the entrance of the tent of meeting. He then casts lots for the goats, one lot is for the Lord and one lot is for azazel. The lot cast for God is the sin offering and it’s blood, along with the blood of the burnt offering, was sprinkled on the mercy seat. The lot cast for azazel had all the sins of the people confessed on it and then it was sent out to the desert and forsaken. Before we see the fulfillment, I want to address the word azazel. The meaning of this word is unclear and there is a whole lot of debate about it. After a lot of reading and research, I believe the word may mean forsaken by God. The word forsaken is azab, and we know the word el means God. The goat has had all the sins of the people laid upon it and then is taken to the desert and forsaken. As we look at Christ’s fulfillment we will see a correlation. We see Christ’s fulfillment in the burnt offering and the sin offering through His death on the cross and the redemption from our sins. By His wounds we are healed. We also see Christ’s fulfillment of the second goat when he cries out on the cross, “Elí, Elí, lemá sabachtháni?” that is, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?” Matthew 27:46. All the sins of the world were laid upon Christ. A darkness has come over the whole land and Jesus becomes the azazel, forsaken by God. He was cast down to death and became THE atonement for us – once for all. “He entered the most holy place once for all, not by the blood of goats and calves, but by His own blood, having obtained eternal redemption. For if the blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a young cow, sprinkling those who are defiled, sanctify for the purification of the flesh, how much more will the blood of the Messiah, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without blemish to God, cleanse our consciences from dead works to serve the living God? Hebrews 9:12-14
The Tabernacle
Since the Tabernacle figures so predominately in this festival, we will look at how Christ is the fulfillment of it as well. Each item in the tabernacle was specifically designed by God as a shadow representation of the real thing. The elements in the tabernacle are symbols of God’s throne. The lampstand is the symbol of the glorious light that emanates from the throne. It’s seven branches symbolize God as creator, six lights for work and the seventh for the day He rested. Seven is also the number representing God’s perfect and compete work. John 1:1-5 describes Christ’s fulfillment: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. All things were created through Him, and apart from Him not one thing was created that has been created. Life was in Him, and that life was the light of men. That light shines in the darkness, yet the darkness did not overcome it.” Christ is the perfect Lamb of God who is the light of the world. The the table of presentation loaves is a reminder that God is Adonai Jireh – God the Provider. The loaves were the bread for the priests – a provision of food for them. Jesus said, “I am the bread of life. No one who comes to Me will ever be hungry, and no one who believes in Me will ever be thirsty again. John 6:35. Jesus is the bread of life and provider of eternal life for us. The altar of incense is the representation of all the prayers of the people in faith that God is the One who would answer their prayers. Jesus hears our prayers and intercedes for us. “Now many have become Levitical priests, since they are prevented by death from remaining in office. But because He remains forever, He holds His priesthood permanently. Therefore, He is always able to save those who come to God through Him, since He always lives to intercede for them” Hebrews 7:23-25. The holy of holies housed the ark of the covenant. Inside the ark was a jar of manna, the budded staff of Aaron, and the tablets. The mercy seat covered the ark. Jesus is the manna, the provision for the people. He is the budding staff as He was chosen to be the high priest according to the order of Melchezedek. The tablets are the law which Christ has fulfilled, “the Word of God who dwelt among us.” And finally, Jesus can approach the mercy seat of God as the perfect sacrifice. He extends forgiveness and mercy to all who seek Him.
The Veil Was Ripped in Two
The Holy of Holies was an inner sanctuary separated from the table with the show bread, the altar of incense and the lampstand by a veil. The veil itself is described in Exodus 26 and I Kings 6:20 give us a description of how big it was. “The interior of the sanctuary was 30 feet long, 30 feet wide, and 30 feet high; he overlaid it with pure gold. He also overlaid the cedar altar.” So, since it had to cover the entire Holy of Holies, the veil would have had to be at least 30 feet high, and 30 feet wide. It was a HUGE curtain. I do want to point out that although much has been made of the thickness of the veil, there is nothing in the bible that describes it’s thickness. I believe this elaboration was to make the miracle of the ripping the veil in two more dramatic. In my humble opinion, I do not believe God needs our help to make this event more dramatic. The fact that a 30 foot high veil was ripped in two from the top to the bottom is dramatic enough. The veil was a representation of our separation from God because of our sin. The relationship was broken and it could not be fixed by us or the law. God had to fix it Himself. And He did. He sent His Son Jesus Christ as our Yom Kippur – day of atonement. The veil that once divided us from approaching the throne of God has been ripped open. “Therefore, brothers, since we have boldness to enter the sanctuary through the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way He has opened for us through the curtain (that is, His flesh), and since we have a great high priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed in pure water. Let us hold on to the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful” Hebrews 10:19-23.
As this is a fall festival, it has only been partially fulfilled. Jesus will come again and fulfill this festival once and for all, for Yom Kippur is the culmination of all the work God has done. It is on that day that real atonement will finally take place and those who are His, will come into eternity. Christ said: It is finished. He is the eternal one and only sacrifice for all. If we continue in the faith and hold on to the true high priest, we will experience life everlasting with the Holy and Righteous King of all kings. “Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea no longer existed. I also saw the Holy City, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared like a bride adorned for her husband. Then I heard a loud voice from the throne: Look! God’s dwelling is with humanity, and He will live with them. They will be His people, and God Himself will be with them and be their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes. Death will no longer exist; grief, crying, and pain will exist no longer, because the previous things have passed away. Then the One seated on the throne said, “Look! I am making everything new.” He also said, “Write, because these words are faithful and true.” And He said to me, “It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. I will give water as a gift to the thirsty from the spring of life. The victor will inherit these things, and I will be his God, and he will be My son. Revelation 21:1-7
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