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16
1 The Lord spoke to Moses after the death of two of Aaron's sons when they went into the Lord's presence. 2 The Lord told Moses: “Warn your brother Aaron not to come into the Most Holy Place whenever he wants, otherwise he'll die. For that's where I appear in the cloud above the atonement cover of the Ark, behind the veil.
3 These are the instructions as to how Aaron is to enter the sanctuary. He is to come with a young bull for a sin offering and a ram for a burnt offering. 4 He is to be wearing the holy linen tunic, with linen underwear. He has to tie a linen sash around him and put on the linen turban. These are holy clothes. He must wash himself with water before he puts them on. 5 From the people of Israel he is to bring two male goats for a sin offering, and a ram for a burnt offering. 6 Aaron will present the bull as his own sin offering to make himself and his household right. 7 Then he will bring the two goats and present them before the Lord at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting. 8 Aaron will cast lots to choose between the goats, one for the Lord and the other for the scapegoat. 9 He will present the goat that was chosen by lot for the Lord and sacrifice it as a sin offering. 10 The goat chosen by lot as the scapegoat is to be presented alive before the Lord to make things right by sending it away into the wilderness as the scapegoat.
11 Aaron is to present the bull for his sin offering to make things right for himself and his household by killing the bull as his own sin offering. 12 Then he will fill up an incense burner with burning coals from the altar that is before the Lord, and with his hands full of finely ground sweet-smelling incense, take them behind the veil. 13 In the presence of the Lord he will put the incense on the burning coals, and the smoke from the incense will cover the atonement cover above the Testimony,*The “Testimony” refers to the two tablets of the Ten Commandments within the Ark. so that he will not die. 14 He will take some of the bull's blood and with his finger sprinkle it on the east side of the atonement cover. He shall also sprinkle some of it with his finger seven times in front of the atonement cover.
15 Then Aaron will slaughter the goat for the sin offering for the people and bring its blood behind the veil, and with its blood he must do as he did with the bull's blood. He is to sprinkle it against the atonement cover and in front of it. 16 This is how he will set right the Most Holy Place and purify it from the uncleanness of the Israelites, their acts of rebellion, and all their sins. He will do the same for the Tent of Meeting which is in the middle of their camp, surrounded by their unclean lives. 17 No one can be in the Tent of Meeting from the time Aaron enters to purify the Most Holy Place until he leaves, after he has made things right for himself, his household, and all the Israelites.
18 Then he shall go to the altar that is before the Lord and purify it. He is to take some of the blood from the bull and the goat and put it on all the horns of the altar. 19 He is to sprinkle some of the blood on it with his finger seven times to dedicate it and purify it from the uncleanness of the Israelites. 20 Once Aaron has finished purifying the Most Holy Place, the Tent of Meeting, and the altar, he is to present the live goat. 21 Then he will put both hands on the head of the live goat and confess over it all the wrongs of the Israelites, all their acts of rebellion, and all their sins. He is to put them on the goat's head and send it away into the desert, taken there by a man chosen to do it. 22 The goat will take upon itself all their sins and go into a distant place, and the man will send it away into the desert.
23 Aaron is to return to the Tent of Meeting, take off the linen clothes he put on before he went into the Most Holy Place, and leave them there. 24 He is to wash himself with water in the sanctuary and put on his own clothes. Then he will go out and sacrifice his burnt offering and the people's burnt offering that makes him and the people right. 25 He also must burn the fat of the sin offering on the altar.
26 The man who went and sent away the scapegoat must wash his clothes and wash himself with water; then he may come back into the camp.
27 The remains of the bull used for the sin offering and the goat for the sin offering, whose blood was brought into the Most Holy Place to purify it, must be taken outside the camp. Their skin, meat, and waste must be burned. 28 The person who burns them must wash his clothes and wash himself with water; then he may come back into the camp.
29 This regulation applies to you for all time. The tenth day of the seventh month is a day of self-denial for you. You are not to do any work. This applies to all who are native-born and also any foreigner who living among you, 30 for on this day the process of making you right will be done, to make you clean from all your sins, clean before the Lord. 31 It is a Sabbath of Sabbaths, a day of rest and self-denial. This regulation applies for all time. 32 The priest who is anointed and dedicated to succeed his father as high priest shall carry out the ceremony of making things right, and put on the holy linen clothes. 33 He will carry out the purification of the Most Holy Place, the Tent of Meeting, and the altar, also making right the priests and all the people. 34 This regulation applies to you for all time: once a year the Israelites have all their sins made right.” Moses did everything as the Lord had ordered.

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*16:13 The “Testimony” refers to the two tablets of the Ten Commandments within the Ark.

© 2018 Dr. Jonathan Gallagher