Yom Kippur 2022
Day of Atonement

Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur)
This is a day in which “you must humble yourselves before Yahweh” (Leviticus 23:27, 32). It was a day when all the Hebrews took a long look at their lives over the past year. They were to humble themselves before Yahweh in repentance, and bring two goats: one to transfer their sins onto, and one to sacrifice to Yahweh to atone for their sins.

This day represents the main day of sin offerings, and because it was also perfected by Yeshua at His first coming on Pesach (Passover) with His peace offering, we celebrate His giving us Redemption this day also.

God came to the Earth Himself in the body of a human baby, just as all humans are born. He came as a vulnerable human so His body could be killed. Remember, God is Spirit, so He wasn’t actually killed as a mortal man is killed. But His Blood was spilt, as it needed to be so He could take it to the altar in the Heavens to offer (to Himself) for all mankind’s sins.

It had to be God’s Blood, the Blood of the Covenant, that would atone for all mankind’s sins––all mankind has God’s Blood within them, which ties them to the Earth as well as God Himself.

In Yoma 39b of the Talmud it states that the priests determined that God no longer accepted the sin offerings on Yom Kippur for the forty years following Yeshua’s death (although they do not use His death as a point of reference). They claim that several peculiar things happened to cause them to believe this during the forty years before the Temple was destroyed.

Although we know because of the gospels, and Hebrews 9:26 and 10:18, that Yeshua did in fact perfect the sin offerings as the Last Sacrificial Lamb of peace, offered for sin, this little paragraph in the Talmud is proof positive that the sin offerings were no longer accepted by God, nor needed.

Yoma 39b does NOT however, tell us that all sacrifices were atoned for. Yom Kippur represents the sin sacrifices, and the book of Hebrews tells only that Yeshua atoned for sin sacrifices, not all sacrifices.

Past Yom Kippur Offerings
Before the Tabernacle existed, atonement was done in the Israelite’s own doorways (gates) (Deuteronomy 12:13-15, 12:21 & 16:5)––which doubled as their altar to God.

This was an especially significant (and busy) day for Israel’s High Priest. On this day only, the High Priest entered the Most Holy Place and was the only one who stood in the presence of God’s glory. Many animal sacrifices were offered on this day––all done by the High Priest––in addition to the daily burnt offering with the required grain and drink offerings, additional offerings were made, including a bull, a ram and seven lambs for the people, and a ram for the priesthood as well (Numbers 29:7-11).

When the High Priest went into the Holy of Holies he wore a white outfit made of pure linen (Leviticus 16:4). He did not wear the garment with the bells and pomegranates on it, and the common story about a rope being tied around his ankle so one can hear if he dies, is only a myth. If the High Priest has done everything God has written in the Torah, and worn the correct clothing according to the Torah, he will not die.

But what most don’t realize, or know, is that the blood of the main sin offerings was not only sprinkled upon and around the cover of the Ark, it was also put on the horns of the Altar of Incense (Exodus 30:10 & Leviticus 16:13, 18).

That means the High Priest had to move the Altar of Incense into the Holy of Holies on this day only––through the veil which had no opening. Remember, the Altar of Incense represented the prayers of the people, so this has much significance (yet to be determined).

The Two Goats for Atonement

There were two goats offered for the sin offering on this day. There are actually two different stories for these goats in the Talmud (since there are actually two Talmuds): one is that the High Priest tied a piece of scarlet string or cloth to the horn of one of the goats (Barabas), and another around the throat of the goat for God (Yeshua/Jesus).

According to one of the Talmuds, the scarlet string or cloth tied to the horn of this sacrificial goat would turn white. In the other Talmud, this scarlet string or cloth was tied to the door of the Temple. It makes more sense to me that the scarlet string was tied to the goat. Either way, the Talmud suggests that if the sacrifice was accepted by God, the scarlet string would turn white. After Yeshua died, this cloth never turned white again (no matter where or if it was really placed).
This scarlet string is never mentioned in Scripture––this practice is completely based on Jewish Talmudic traditions, which for the most part have nothing to do with Scripture––or God. If this was true, God would have written it into the Torah. If the offering was accepted by God, the people knew because it was wholly consumed by Yahweh’s glory.

The goat for God, whose blood is shed, symbolized the substitutionary death of the Messiah to come (Leviticus 16:15, John 1:4, Romans 3:25, Hebrews 2:17-18, 1John 2:2 & 1John 4:10). The goat for God was to be sacrificed, and had to be spotless. The goat symbolized the finished work of the future Messiah (Yeshua) in taking away mankind’s sin––sins never to be remembered again.

Just as the High Priest took the blood of the unblemished young goat for God into the Most Holy Place to make atonement for the people each year (Leviticus 16:15-16), Yeshua entered the heavenly Most Holy Place with His own Blood as the last Sacrificial Lamb of peace––the once and final payment for all mankind’s sin (Hebrews 9:28 & 1Peter 3:18). Then the High Priest would come out of the Holy of Holies, remove the linen clothes, immerse himself, and put the garments of the High Priest back on.

Next the High Priest would go out to offer the burnt offerings on the Bronze Altar out in the court of the Tabernacle. He also burned the fat of the sin offering on the altar.

After atonement had been made (Leviticus 16:20), the High Priest would then symbolically transfer the sins of the congregation and all their transgressions onto the second goat to wander forever (Leviticus 16:22), eventually to die in the desert as a representation of hell. Interestingly, this second goat was called Azazel, which in the literal sense means a male goat, but it is also supposedly the name for an evil angel (see the book of Enoch1).

The Symbolism complete: the unblemished goat was sacrificed, as was Yeshua. The other, blemished goat was released, as was Barabas.

There are some that question the number of the sacrifices showing in the Bible, not only for this day but for other times as well, such as when Solomon dedicated the Temple. We have to remember Who is involved in these sacrifices––if God can cause the High Priest to go through the veil into the Holy of Holies with no apparent entry in the curtain, then He can certainly cause all the sacrifices to be done in one day––or perhaps He stopped the clock?

God Understands Your Pain   
If you ever think that God does not understand your pain, think about this: Yeshua’s flesh is God’s flesh––God had His veil torn (His actual flesh dying) in order to make an entrance into His Holy Place for all mankind. This tearing of His veil (His flesh dying, pouring out of His Blood) represented mankind’s reconnection back to Himself.

Upon repentance and humility, mankind can now go into the presence of God in His Holy Place because of the very fact of what God did in order to reconnect mankind back to Himself.

Although God (Yahweh Yeshua) came and died, was buried and then rose from the dead, on the Appointed Seasons of God called Pesach, Matsot and Yom Bikkurim respectively, as mentioned above, He also perfected (made whole or fulfilled) Yom Kippur.

All of the Appointed Seasons of God point to Yeshua, but this day especially is what it all meant. Yeshua gave His Own Blood as the final offering on the altar in the Heavens, to atone for all mankind’s sin.

Celebrating Yom Kippur
• This Feast is to be observed from the morning of the Tenth of Etanim, until midnight on the Tenth of Etanim (Tishrei).

• On this tenth day only, we are to observe a Sabbath day, it is a Holy Convocation, a miqra, meaning a rehearsal to meet with God. It is a day off from work.

• This day is a day of rest and we are to humble ourselves in repentance before Yahweh Yeshua.

• We are also to give offerings out of fire to Yahweh (Leviticus 23:27). The Hebrew word eshah means an offering out of the fire.
     Some of us have always been taught is that when one comes out of the fire, you come out refined like silver as refined in fire––a pure and humble offering of ourselves to God. In other words, Yeshua shapes and molds you into the person of God He wants you to be––usually based on Zechariah 13:8-9.
      Today to give an offering out of the fire still means an offering. Whenever we read about the offerings to God, the notion of animal offerings seems bizarre and primitive. But imagine yourself in history, back almost six thousand years ago to when Adam and Eve first sinned. God gave them the Way to live (and instructions on how to atone for their sin of bringing death and corruption into the Earth and humanity’s lives).
     They had actually experienced walking in the garden with Yeshua, so they knew what they had lost. The devastation of the realization of what they had done, was probably almost more than they could bear. So God showed them that the blood of an unblemished lamb (or kid) must be brought to Him in order to atone for their sins and reconnect them to Him (Genesis 3:21––we are not given any details here, but God would never have killed an animal for no reason, as He is very specific about innocent blood being spilled, according to Genesis 4:11 & Leviticus 17:3-5, because their very lives were in that blood. Adam and Eve, of all people, understood that blood is tied to creation, thus Life.

•  Today, while the Jews still mourn their disconnection from God and fast on this day hoping for an answer from Him, those who know Him as Yeshua, God’s Messiah, can rejoice on this day. Although this day is not really a fasting day, perhaps we can still fast in answer for prayer for the Jews to know their Messiah Yeshua. This would be a way of offering ourselves to God.

• Rejoice in this day! The offerings for sin were no longer accepted by God on this day for the forty years after Yeshua’s death and resurrection (and the Temple was destroyed right after those forty years), because He had just offered His Own Blood on the altar in the Heavens––atoning for all mankind’s sin forever!
    The Temple sin sacrifices are no longer needed! Yahweh Yeshua has redeemed believers––forever!

• Psalm 111 is a good Psalm of redemption to read.

• This would also be an excellent day to tell the Jews of the Good News of Yeshua––He is their Messiah! The One Who atoned for their sin forever––God Himself! The One Who came to redeem His people forever!

Considering God’s Own altar in the Heavens: I believe that some think this is not something real, as in the actual altar and Temple that once stood on Earth. However, we cannot forget Who God is, and where He lives––He lives outside of all dimensions known and unknown to mankind. Therefore, all He really had to do was step across that dimensional line and offer His Blood on the altar of the real Temple in the Heavens (there is a spiritual dimension that we cannot see, that surrounds the Earth and all that is on it). Just because we cannot see something does not make it unreal.