Leviticus 16:20-22. 20“When Aaron has finished purifying the Most Holy Place and the Tabernacle and the altar, he must present the live goat. 21He will lay both of his hands on the goat’s head and confess over it all the wickedness, rebellion, and sins of the people of Israel. In this way, he will transfer the people’s sins to the head of the goat. Then a man specially chosen for the task will drive the goat into the wilderness. 22As the goat goes into the wilderness, it will carry all the people’s sins upon itself into a desolate land.
These verses describe one of the rituals that Israel would go through every year. It started in the wilderness (or desert) when they were travelling from Egypt to the Promised Land. It was called the Day of Atonement – the most important day on the Israelite’s calendar.
Atonement means covering. The Day of Atonement was the day that all the sins of the people were covered up. Covered by what? The blood of a goat. But actually, on the Day of Atonement they used two goats. One goat would be sacrificed to God as an offering for sin. The other goat was kept alive. Aaron, the High Priest, would put his hands on the head of this goat. What does the scripture say this represented? In this way, he will transfer the people’s sins to the head of the goat.
Then what happened? Then a man specially chosen for the task will drive the goat into the wilderness. And what did this represent? As the goat goes into the wilderness, it will carry all the people’s sins upon itself into a desolate land.
So one goat died for the sins of the people to cover up their guiltiness. And another goat was sent off into the desert to carry the sin of the people far, far, away.
Both of these goats are a picture of Jesus. Can you tell how?
Like the sacrificed goat, Jesus was sacrificed for our sins to pay the debt we owe to God for disobeying him and destroying his stuff for our whole lives. A goat could never really take your place; it could only cover up your sins. But Jesus doesn’t just cover up our sins, he cancels them forever!
Like the living goat that went into the desert, Jesus doesn’t only forgive our sins, he takes away sin from us forever. He carries sin to a place where it will never return. God doesn’t just forgive our sin, he forgets it. When you choose to trust in Jesus, God will never, ever, bring up your sin again.
Jesus came at Christmastime so that one day he could be our sacrifice, our atonement. He was born among goats so that he could be our goat. But he is not a dead goat, he is the live goat constantly carrying away our sin from us until, one day, sin will be conquered forever.
Questions: Why do you think the Day of Atonement was such an important holiday for the Israelites (Jewish people still celebrate it today – Yom Kippur)? What is the most important day of the year to you? Why?
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