Lev 16:1-19 | TNotes | STEP | Summary for Lev 16:1-34: 16:1-34 The Day of Atonement, the tenth day of the seventh month (see 16:29 ; 23:27 ; Num 29:7 ), was the most solemn day of the year for Israelites. It was the only required fast, and it was a Sabbath of rest for all the people (Lev 23:32 ). Introduced by the Festival of Trumpets (Num 29:1 , 7-11 ), it was the day when the corporate sins of the community were atoned for. Only the high priest (Aaron) could officiate, because only he could represent all the people, including other priests (Aaron’s sons). The Day of Atonement is celebrated today as Yom Kippur.

Summary for Lev 16:1-34: 16:1-34 ^a The Day of Atonement, the tenth day of the seventh month (see 16:29 ^b; 23:27 ^c; Num 29:7 ^d), was the most solemn day of the year for Israelites. It was the only required fast, and it was a Sabbath of rest for all the people (Lev 23:32 ^e). Introduced by the Festival of Trumpets (Num 29:1 ^f, 7-11 ^g), it was the day when the corporate sins of the community were atoned for. Only the high priest (Aaron) could officiate, because only he could represent all the people, including other priests (Aaron’s sons). The Day of Atonement is celebrated today as Yom Kippur.
16:2 ^h An inner curtain separated the Holy Place from the Most Holy Place. Conceptually, the sanctuary was God’s palace, the Most Holy Place was his throne room, and the Ark was his throne (see 1:1 ⁱ). In the ancient Near East, entering the presence of a king without invitation meant risking death (Esth 4:11 ^j). The Most Holy Place, therefore, was not a place that Aaron could enter casually. It was off-limits even to the high priest, except when his presence was required by God as part of the ritual of the Day of Atonement.
16:4 ^k For most of the ritual of the Day of Atonement, the high priest wore plain linen clothing rather than his normal robes. This seems to symbolize the humility that should characterize all the people on this solemn occasion. When the high priest stood before God on behalf of his people, he had nothing to commend himself or the people. But when he stood before the people on God’s behalf, his official robes reflected the glory and splendor of God (16:23 ^l).
16:6 ^m The writer of the Epistle to the Hebrews makes a clear analogy between Aaron’s work for Israel and Christ’s work for the believer. Both brought atonement to their people. Before Aaron could offer a sin offering for the people, he had to offer a sacrifice for himself to make certain his own sins were forgiven (Heb 5:1-3 ⁿ). However, although Christ was tempted, he did not sin (Heb 4:15 ^o). Therefore, in his role as high priest for all Christians, he had no need to make a similar sacrifice (Heb 7:26-28 ^p).
16:8 ^q The Hebrew term ‘aza’zel (Azazel) is found only in 16:8 ^r, 10 ^s, 26 ^t. This word has generally been interpreted in four different ways: (1) as a word meaning “the goat of going away”; (2) as a demon that lived in the wilderness; (3) as a strengthened form of the Hebrew word for “go, leave,” meaning “utter loss”; and (4) as a rocky cliff over which the goat was pushed. Since this goat represented the removal of the sins of Israel from the camp (16:22 ^u), the first interpretation is probably the simplest solution.
16:16 ^v The high priest needed to purify the Most Holy Place and the rest of the Tabernacle because, over the course of the year, the sins the Israelites had committed had brought uncleanness on the whole sanctuary. If the Tabernacle was to remain the place for meeting God in the coming year, it had to be purified. The same applied to the altar (16:18 ^w).