Lev 16: Scapegoat vs Sin Offering

1 John 2:2 Christ is the "Atoning sacrifice for OUR sins and not for OUR sins only but for the sins of the whole world" NIV

1 John 4:14 God gave "His Son to be the Savior of the World."

As the Lamb of God "SLAIN from the foundations of the world" - Christ came to provide the substitutionary atoning sacrifice - sin offering - that every sinner needs, and without it we would be lost.

A sin offering -- "an offering for sin" Isaiah 53:10

In Leviticus we find that all sin offerings have to be slain .. in fact they are also burnt offerings.

But in Lev 16 we see contrast between "THE sin offering" and "THE scapegoat".

8 Then Aaron shall cast lots for the two goats: one lot for the Lord and the other lot for the scapegoat. 9 And Aaron shall bring the goat on which the Lord’s lot fell, and offer it as a sin offering. 10 But the goat on which the lot fell to be the scapegoat shall be presented alive before the Lord, to make atonement upon it, and to let it go as the scapegoat into the wilderness.

15 “Then he shall slaughter the goat of the sin offering which is for the people, and bring its blood inside the veil and do with its blood as he did with the blood of the bull, and sprinkle it on the mercy seat and in front of the mercy seat. 16 He shall make atonement for the holy place, because of the impurities of the sons of Israel and because of their transgressions in regard to all their sins; and thus he shall do for the tent of meeting which abides with them in the midst of their impurities....

20 “When he finishes atoning for the holy place and the tent of meeting and the altar, he shall offer the live goat. 21 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.


25 The fat of the sin offering he shall burn on the altar. 26 And he who released the goat as the scapegoat shall wash his clothes and bathe his body in water, and afterward he may come into the camp.


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Lev 16 shows that the scapegoat does have a part in the Day of Atonement but it is not "the sin offering" - so it does not represent a subtitutionary atoning death.

IT is only "the sin offering" that does that and it is always a burnt offering.

The scapegoat is not slain - it is not a sin offering.

So when Lev 16 refers to "the goat of the sin offering" it is only the "Lord's goat" (Messiah) never the scapegoat.

The scapegoat does not die according to Lev 16 -- it is simply "led away" out of the camp.

.. rather it is "led away".

It is illustrating the point that in the Gospel - not all are saved, not all are forgiven and the atoning sacrifice is not applied to their sins -- their sins go some place else (I.E upon themselves).

Leviticus 16:20 “When he has finished atoning for the Holy Place, the Tent of Meeting, and the altar, he shall present the live goat. 21 Aaron shall lay both his hands on the head of the live goat, and confess over him all the iniquities of the children of Israel, and all their transgressions, even all their sins; and he shall put them on the head of the goat, and shall send him away into the wilderness by the hand of a man who is ready. 22 The goat shall carry all their iniquities on himself to a solitary land, and he shall release the goat in the wilderness.

The Gospel solution for sin is not only forgiveness and new birth... it is also "making an end of sin" causing sin and sinners to cease for all time - as part of the solution.

That appears to be the role of the scapegoat - to symbolize how it is that sin that does not get covered by the sin offering is resolved - through making an end of the sinner where they pay their own debt of sin but it is not "substitutionary" at all. It is not an "offering for sin" -- It is the wicked suffering their own debt of sin - the full payment that we see mentioned at the end of Matthew 18

bling said:

You really might want to begin with Lev. 5.

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Lev 16 is an end-of-year service. It pertains to all of the sins for the entire year.

BobRyan said: ↑
Lev 16 is an end-of-year service. It pertains to all of the sins for the entire year.

Click to expand...

bling said:

No it does not.

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Yes it does. All of the sins of the daily service are taken into the sanctuary in one form or another - those sins are all dealt with at the end of the year in the Day of Atonement.

Forgiveness is obtained during the daily service but at the end of the year "there remains" as Hebrews 10 says 3 But in those sacrifices there is a reminder of sins year by year.

The old separating curtain where the blood was sprinkled all during the year for all the sins dealt with in the daily service - is replaced at the end of that Lev 16 Day of Atonement service ... and they start off with a clean slate for the new year.

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Lev 16
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. 31 It is to be a sabbath of solemn rest for you, that you may humble your souls; it is a permanent statute. 32 So the priest who is anointed and ordained to serve as priest in his father’s place shall make atonement: he shall thus put on the linen garments, the holy garments, 33 and make atonement for the holy sanctuary, and he shall make atonement for the tent of meeting and for the altar. He shall also make atonement for the priests and for all the people of the assembly. 34 Now you shall have this as a permanent statute, to make atonement for the sons of Israel for all their sins once every year.”

It does not say "just cleansed from all the sins committed that day of Atonement"

It does not say "from all the sins not already confessed during the daily service"