An overview for Sunday School teachers and Bible study leaders, of Lifeway’s “Explore the Bible” lesson of Leviticus 16, for Sunday, February 16, 2025, with the title, “Atonement.” A video version of this overview is available on YouTube at:

INTRODUCTION:

??? Ask your group:  ??? What is the “biggest/most important day of the year to you???

(Some might say Christmas, or Easter, or their birthday — or Super Bowl Sunday!)

You can all share your responses, then you can say something like: today we are going to look at THE single most important day of the Jewish calendar, “Yom Kippur,” The Day of Atonement, and how it points to an even greater day, when Jesus made atonement for us, once for all, on the cross!

(For an alternate introduction to the lesson, you could use one of the illustrations of the “scapegoat” from Point II in our lesson)

CONTEXT: 

This is the second in our 3-lesson study of the Book of Leviticus.

We saw last week how Leviticus, although many consider it to be a “boring” book of obscure laws, is actually the physical and spiritual center of the Mosaic Law, and points in a powerful way to the Atonement that Jesus made for us. 

We saw in last week’s lesson in Leviticus 9 how God commanded Israel to make a number of sacrifices, and how they were necessary for entering the presence of the Lord, which is Mankind’s ultimate goal.

In today’s lesson we come to Leviticus 16, in which the commands for the Day of Atonement are given.

Remember this is THE central lesson of the Law, the “mountaintop,” in a sense. Everything in Genesis and Exodus and the first part of Leviticus leads up to it, and everything in the rest of Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy flows away from it. 

“The Day of Atonement” is the center, the key passage in the Law. And of course it prefigures the Ultimate Day of Atonement that Jesus accomplished for us on the cross.

OUTLINE:

I. The Need for the Sacrifice (:1-2)

II. The Provision of the Sacrifice (:3-10)

III. The Results of the Sacrifice (:29-30)

TEXT:

I. The Need For A Sacrifice (:1-2)

“Now the LORD spoke to Moses after the death of the two sons of Aaron, when they had approached the presence of the LORD and died. 2 The LORD 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, or he will die; for I will appear in the cloud over the mercy seat.’”

So right off in this passage, God told Moses to tell Aaron that he did NOT have “unlimited access” to Him, even as His priest. He could NOT “enter at any time” — that doesn’t mean he could NEVER come, just that he could not come any time he chose. He only had access when God commanded: which was this one time a year, into the Holy of Holies. If he came any other time, he would die! For God Himself would appear over the mercy seat (the “mercy seat” was the lid of the Ark of the Covenant which was in the Holy of Holies, upon which Aaron would pour the blood of the sacrifice on the Day of Atonement. Be sure to see my note on the “mercy seat” in Point III!)

But this restriction about seeing God was not just for Aaron, either. God told Moses the same thing in Exodus 33:20, when Moses asked to see God’s glory: “But He said, ‘You cannot see My face, for no man can see Me and live!’”

This is the problem not just for Moses and Aaron, but it’s the basic problem of all mankind, right here: God made us to know Him and be satisfied and fulfilled by the presence of His glory — but in our sinful state, we cannot see Him; we would perish in a moment, consumed by His holiness like a piece of paper would be burned up in a moment on the surface of the sun! 

Our sins separate us from God. It is just as Romans 3:23 says: “For all have sinned, and fall short of the glory of God.” 

THIS is why Aaron “shall not enter at any time into the holy place.” He was a sinner. He needed an atoning sacrifice before he could come in.

And this is the problem all of us face as sinful beings. We are ALL the same — and we are kidding ourselves if we think we aren’t.

Philip Yancy interviewed a pastor who had fought in World War II and had been at Dachau when it was liberated. The pastor tells of the horrors of what they saw: “human corpses, stacked in neat rows, like firewood” in a boxcar. Then they asked for a volunteer to take a group of Nazi guards to a nearby interrogation center. A soldier from a suburb of Chicago shot his hand up. He grabbed a submachine gun and prodded the soldiers along. A few minutes later, they heard the sound of the machine gun. “They all tried to run away,” he said. Then the pastor said: 

“‘It was on that day that I felt called by God to become a pastor. First, there was the horror of the corpses in the boxcar. … Then came the Chuck incident. I had nauseating fear that the captain might call on me to escort the next group of SS guards, and even more, dreadful fear that if he did, I might do the same as Chuck. The beast that was within those guards was also with me.’”

(Richard E. Simmons III, Reflections on the Existence of God, pp. 33-35)

“The beast” — the sinful nature — is in all of us. And it separates us from the glory of God. 

It is put well by the verse of the classic hymn:

“Holy, holy, holy, though the darkness hide Thee. Though the eye of sinful man Thy glory may not see.” 

Because of our sin, we cannot experience the glory of God He made us for. We need a sacrifice, to cover our sins, that we may draw close to Him, and know Him the way we were created to.

Hebrews 7:26-27 in the New Testament, referring to these things, says: “For it was fitting for us to have such a high priest, holy, innocent, undefiled, separated from sinners and exalted above the heavens; 27 who does not need daily, like those high priests, to offer up sacrifices, first for His own sins and then for the sins of the people, because this He did once for all when He offered up Himself.”

Even the “most holy” of men, Aaron, the high priest, needed a sacrifice to come before the Lord. So how much more ALL men?! We cannot come before God without a sacrifice, without atonement. As we have mentioned repeatedly, we MUST come to God through the blood of Jesus, as we will see.

II. The Provision of a Sacrifice (:3-10)

In this passage we see some different sacrifices that were made:

— A. there was the bull for the sin offering, and the ram for the burnt offering, in :3-6.  

“:3 Aaron shall enter the holy place with this: with a bull for a sin offering and a ram for a burnt offering. 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. 5 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. 6 Then Aaron shall offer the bull for the sin offering which is for himself, that he may make atonement for himself and for his household.”

Verse 6 says this offering of the bull was “for HIMSELF”! So Aaron had to atone for his OWN sins, before he could do anything about the sins of the people. This points to his inherent imperfections as a man. Any human high priest is the same.

That Hebrews 7 passage we referenced says this shows how Jesus is by far the greater high priest. He “does not need daily, like those high priests, to offer up sacrifices, first for His own sins and then for the sins of the people.” 

— B. Then there was the sacrifice of the “scapegoat.” 

:7 He shall take the two goats and present them before the LORD at the doorway of the tent of meeting. 8 Aaron shall cast lots for the two goats, one lot for the Lord and the other lot for the scapegoat. 9 Then Aaron shall offer the goat on which the lot for the Lord fell, and make it a sin offering. 10 But the goat on which the lot for the scapegoat fell shall be presented alive before the LORD, to make atonement upon it, to send it into the wilderness as the scapegoat.”

This sacrifice is a very unique one. There are TWO goats involved: Aaron will cast lots (basically a holy rolling of dice to choose). One will offered as a sacrifice; the other will be sent off to the wilderness, symbolically bearing away the sins of the people.

Verses 21-22 tell us more about that:

“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. 22 The goat shall bear on itself all their iniquities to a solitary land; and he shall release the goat in the wilderness.”

So Aaron was to confess all the sins of Israel, laying his hand on the “scapegoat,” which would then be sent away into the wilderness, symbolically bearing those sins away. 

This word “scapegoat” is the Hebrew “Azazel,” “ez,” meaning “goat,” and “azal,” meaning “go away,” or “disappear.” So it’s literally something like: “the goat who goes away.” That goat took the sins of the people on him as he left, giving rise to the term often used today, of a “scapegoat.” A “scapegoat” is someone who is blamed for the wrongdoing of others. 

Some famous “scapegoats” from history include:

ALFRED DREYFUS

“Alfred Dreyfus, a captain in the French army, was the perfect scapegoat for those who hated Jews in the late 19th century. In 1894, the French discovered that a secret military document had found its way into the hands of Germany’s military attaché in Paris. Although the evidence showed that French Maj. Ferdinand Walsin-Esterhazy had purloined the secret document and given it to the Germans, the leaders of the French army instead charged Dreyfus with treason.

At the time, France was a bastion of anti-Semitism. A secret court-martial found Dreyfus guilty, even though the evidence against him was scant. The government exiled Dreyfus to Devil’s Island. However, bad publicity forced the army to grant Dreyfus a second trial, in which he was once again found guilty of treason. Dreyfus was sentenced to 10 years but was eventually pardoned.[source: Jewish Agency for Israel].”

MRS. O’LEARY’S COW

“In 1871, a great fire engulfed Chicago killing nearly 300 people and destroying 17,450 buildings. For more than a century, Catherine O’Leary’s cow has gotten the blame for the Great Chicago Fire. At the time, Mrs. O’Leary was a small dairy farmer who provided milk to her working-class neighborhood. According to legend, Mrs. O’Leary was late milking the cows that day. One of the cows responded by kicking over a lighted lantern. The fire quickly spread from building to building.

A reporter who was first on the scene reported the supposedly true tale of Mrs. O’Leary’s cow, and a scapegoat (scapecow?) was born. Mrs. O’Leary went to her grave in 1895 bitter that most people believed that she had something to do with the conflagration. Apparently, her bitterness was grounded in reality. In 1997, a Chicago insurance investigator exonerated Mrs. O’Leary cow. While the fire did start in Mrs. O’Leary’s DeKoven Street barn, the bovine wasn’t the culprit. It was a careless pipe smoker — a neighbor of Mrs. O’Leary’s — who discarded a match in the barn and set the city ablaze [source: McNamee].”

So a “scapegoat” is someone/something that takes the blame, undeservedly, for someone else’s failures. This is what the scapegoat in Israel did on the Day of Atonement. The sins of the people were symbolically laid upon that “scapegoat,” which was sent away, bearing their sin.

Of course the real purpose behind this rite of the scapegoat was to get mankind to think of this concept of one who would bear the sins of others — preparing us for the True Scapegoat Who was to come: Jesus Christ. All the Old Testament sacrifices, and the scapegoat, are pictures, looking forward to the Ultimate Sacrifice that Jesus made for us on the cross. HE is “the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.” HE is the “scapegoat” upon whom all our sins were placed. 

+x I Peter 2:24 says “He Himself bore our sins in His body on the cross.” 

This is the doctrine that theologians call the “Substitutionary Atonement” of Jesus: that He became the Substitute, who took our place, and made the payment for our sins on the cross. This is one of the THE single most important doctrines in our faith. To be saved, we must learn to place our faith NOT in ourselves, or anything we have done or can do, but in what JESUS did as our Substitute, making atonement for us on the cross. This is why God gave Israel these sacrifices, to prepare us for the theological concept of the Substitutionary Atonement of Jesus. Jesus taking our sins — like the scapegoat — is the cornerstone of our faith.

Make sure your group members understand that we are saved by what JESUS did for us — not any good works that we do for Him.

??? For a DISCUSSION QUESTION you might ask your group members to share:

??? What are some favorite hymn/song lyrics that talk about how Jesus bore our sins???

(Some might include:

— “He took my sins and my sorrows, He made them His very own. He bore my burden to Calvary, and suffered and died alone.”

— “Thank You for the cross, Lord. Thank You for the nail pierced hands. Bearing all my sin and shame, in love You came, and gave amazing grace.”

These are two that came to my mind one morning this week as I meditated on the sacrifice of Christ. You/your group can think of many more.)

All of these Old Testament sacrifices point to the ultimate Sacrifice that Jesus made for us on the cross. Our faith must be in what HE did, not any works we have done, in order for us to be saved.

III. The Results of the Sacrifice (:29-30)

“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; 30 for it is on this day that atonement shall be made for you to cleanse you; you will be clean from all your sins before the LORD.”

Several points from this last passage:

— “this shall be a permanent statute for you” — this wasn’t a one time thing for them; these sacrifices were to continue on and on.

+x Hebrews 10:1-4, “For since the law has but a shadow of the good things to come instead of the true form of these realities, it can never, by the same sacrifices that are continually offered every year, make perfect those who draw near. 2 Otherwise, would they not have ceased to be offered, since the worshipers, having once been cleansed, would no longer have any consciousness of sins? 3 But in these sacrifices there is a reminder of sins every year. 4 For it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins.”

The results of these sacrifices in Leviticus 16 — and all of the Old Testament sacrifices — were fleeting, and could not truly take away sin. They were pictures God gave us, that helped us to learn the concept of what He would do for us in Jesus at the cross.

:30 explains the importance of this day even more, saying “it is on this day that ATONEMENT shall be made for you.” Thus this day was called “The Day of Atonement” Many of us are familiar with the Jewish holiday, “Yom Kippur.” Yom Kippur is THE high holy day in Israel.  “Yom” is Hebrew word for “day;” “kaphar” comes from a word that means “to cover,” and means “cover, atone, make reconciliation, purge.” So it is “Yom Kippur,” the “Day of Covering,” the Day of Atonement, when all the sins of the people are covered and sent away.

+x Psalm 32:1-2a, “How blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, Whose sin is covered!2 How blessed is the man to whom the Lord does not impute iniquity.”

But Christians have an even better covering, through what Jesus accomplished for us:

— Colossians 3:3 says: “For you have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God.” Our sins are “covered, hidden” in Christ. When God looks at us, our sins are “covered,” and He sees only the righteousness of Christ. 

So as great as Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement was, there is a greater day: THE Day of Atonement, when Jesus atoned for all our sins on the cross. 

(NOTE THIS: I had never noticed this until studying this passage this week: the word the NASB, KJV and others translates “mercy seat” is actually the Hebrew word “capporeth,” which derives from the same Hebrew word, “kippur,” from which the phrase “Yom Kippur,” (“Day of Atonement”) comes!)

— Then :30 gives us another “result” of the sacrifice: “you will be CLEAN from all your sins before the LORD.”

This was a blessing for the people of Israel then, that they could know that they were clean from their sins before the LORD.

If you think about it, “clean” is even better than “covered,” right?

??? You might share a time — or ask your class if they can share a time — when they tried to “cover” something — in their house, or on their clothes.

(For example, one time when we were kids, my three younger sisters thought it would be a fun idea to roast marshmallows INSIDE, in the living room while they watched tv. So they made a little fire in a pan on the carpet in front of the tv and roasted them. But when they pulled the pan up, there was a big black burnt spot on the carpet. Mom & Dad were gone, so they moved the coffee table over that burnt spot to try to “cover” it. But of course the first thing Mom & Dad did when they got home was ask “Why is that table in the middle of the room?”, and the girls were found out. They couldn’t really “cover” their sin. (Reminiscent of Adam & Eve in the Garden, trying to “cover” their sin!)

But in God’s forgiveness, our sins aren’t “just” “covered,” but “cleansed” — totally wiped out. Like a stain that dissolves from a fabric, so our sins are totally washed away. And this is especially true of the one who has put their faith in the Ultimate Sacrifice of God, Jesus Christ. I John 1:9  says He will “cleanse us from ALL unrighteousness.” ALL our sins are not “merely” covered, but cleansed! Wiped away!

As :30 here says: “you will be clean from all your sins before the LORD.” 

NOTICE all the specific elements of this. You might want to print/post these phrases for your class and discuss each one:

— “You will be clean” — totally washed and cleansed.

— From what? “ALL your sins”! Not “some,” ALL!

— “Before the LORD” — not just in your own mind; not just in the eyes of men (sometimes men may regard us as innocent but God knows better!); but “before the LORD.” Before God who searches hearts and mind, you will clean from ALL your sins — not because of the blood of some animal sacrifice, but because of the precious blood of the Ultimate Sacrifice, Jesus Christ, on the cross!

This will preach, right? 3 great points: YOU will be clean, from ALL your sins, before the LORD! So “preach” this to your group Sunday, and encourage them to make sure that this is true for themselves personally. Because of Jesus’ Ultimate Day of Atonement on the cross for us, “you will be clean from all your sins before the LORD”!

But remind your members, that to experience the blessed results of the Atonement, :29 says we must personally RESPOND to God’s sacrifice:

— “you shall humble your souls” — humility is a key in approaching God. Psalm 138:6 says “Although YHWH is exalted, yet He regards the lowly. But the haughty He knows from afar.” God draws near to those who humble themselves. This is a key element in repentance: humbly admitting our sins.

+x We see that in the Publican in Luke 18. Verse 13 says that he “was even unwilling to lift up his eyes to heaven, but was beating his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me, the sinner!” Jesus said THAT was the man who went back home justified, right before God. The one who humbly confessed his sins.

Pride may well be the root of all sins, and it is the sin which can most easily keep us from salvation: if we are unwilling to humble ourselves and ask for God’s mercy in Christ. Adjure your group members: do not let your pride keep you from confessing your sin, and your need of the ultimate sacrifice Jesus at the cross to save you, and “cleanse” you from all your sins!

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