Leviticus

Feast of Atonement

The Lord spoke to Moses after the death of Aaron’s two sons, who died when they approached the presence of the Lord.

The Lord said to Moses:

“Tell your brother, Aaron, not to enter the Most Holy Place inside the veil, before the Mercy Seat, which is on the Ark, at any time he pleases, lest he die, for I appear in the cloud over the Mercy Seat.

This is how Aaron will enter the Holy Place with a bull for a sin offering and a ram for a burnt offering.

He is to wear the sacred linen tunic and linen undergarments next to his body, have the linen sash around him, and put on the linen turban. These are sacred garments, so he must bathe in water before donning them.

The assembly of the Israelites must provide him with two male goats for a sin offering and one ram for a burnt offering.

Then Aaron shall offer the bull for sin, making atonement for himself and his household.

He shall take the two male goats and present them to the Lord at the entrance to the tent of meeting.

He is to cast lots for the two goats, one lot for the Lord and one lot for Azazel.

Aaron shall offer the goat on which the lot fell for the Lord as a sin offering.

However, the goat on which the lot fell for Azazel will be placed alive before the Lord to make atonement by being sent into the wilderness as a scapegoat.

Aaron will then bring the bullock as a sin offering for himself to atone for himself and his household, and he shall slaughter the bullock for the sin offering for himself.

Then he shall take a censer full of coals from the fire on the altar before the Lord and two handfuls of powdered, fragrant incense and take them inside the veil.

He shall place the incense on the fire before the Lord. The cloud of incense will cover the Mercy Seat on the Ark of the Covenant so that he will not die.

He will take the bullock’s blood and sprinkle it with his finger on the Mercy Seat to the east, and in front of the Mercy Seat, he shall sprinkle blood seven times.

Then he shall slay the goat for the sin offering of the people and take its blood inside the veil, doing with its blood what he did with the blood of the bullock. He shall sprinkle it on the Mercy Seat and in front of it.

In this way, he shall make atonement for the Holy Place because of the uncleanness of the Israelites and all their sins.

He shall do the same for the Tent of Meeting, which stands among them in all their uncleanness.

No one shall be in the Tent of Meeting from the time Aaron goes to make atonement until he comes out. After he has made atonement for himself, his household, and the entire assembly of Israel,

he shall go out to the altar before the Lord and make atonement for it. Then he shall take some of the bullock’s and goat’s blood and place it on the altar’s horns on all sides.

He shall sprinkle it with blood seven times, cleanse it, and consecrate it from the uncleanness of the Israelites.

When he has finished making atonement for the Holy Place, the Tent of Meeting, and the altar, he shall bring the live goat forward.

He shall lay his hands on the head of the goat and confess over it all the wickedness of the sons of Israel and all the sins they have committed against me. He will then charge them to the head of the goat and send it away to the wilderness by the hand of an assistant.

Thus, the goat will carry away all their wickedness to a desolate land when the man releases it in the wilderness.

Then Aaron is to enter the tent of meeting and remove the linen garments he had put on before entering the sacred place. He shall leave them there,

bathe himself with water in a sacred place, and put on his clothes. After that, he will come out and sacrifice the burnt offering for himself and the burnt offering for the people to make atonement for himself and the people.

The fat of the sin offering he shall burn on the altar.

The man who releases the scapegoat to Azazel shall wash his clothes and bathe himself with water; after that, he may re-enter the camp.

The bullock of the sin offering and the goat of the sin offering, whose blood was brought in to make atonement in the Holy Place, shall be taken outside the camp, where their hides, flesh, and dung shall be burned in the fire.

The one who burns them shall wash his clothes and bathe himself in water; after that, he may re-enter the camp.

This shall be a lasting ordinance for you: on the tenth day of the seventh month, you must deny yourselves and do no work—neither the native nor the stranger living among you—

for on this day, atonement will be made for you to cleanse you. You shall be cleansed of your sins before the Lord.

It is a Sabbath of solemn rest when you must deny yourselves. It is a lasting ordinance.

The priest, anointed and ordained to succeed his father, will make atonement. He shall put on the linen garments, the holy garments,

and will make atonement for the Holy Place, the Tent of Meeting, and the altar. He shall also make atonement for the priests and all the people of the assembly.

This shall be for you a lasting ordinance to make atonement for the people of Israel once a year because of all their sins.”

And Moses did as the Lord commanded him.