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Leviticus 16:8-10
Excerpted from: Azazel: EndingsVerse 8 contains what is probably the most commonly misunderstood part of the chapter:
This is where the train most frequently goes off the tracks, especially where Jewish mythology and carnal traditions have clouded the mental environment. You might recall the principle I mentioned last time from John's Do You See God? sermon. He said, We see what we want to see. We see what we expect to see. We see what we are educated to see. If we have been educated that Azazel is a name for Satan or another demon, our mind may automatically fill in that the two goats represent opposing personalities, and this scene of lots being cast is then interpreted with that in mind. However, just as with the birds for leprosy, there is nothing that indicates the two roles must to be fulfilled by two different personalities.
The casting of lots here is unique in a couple of ways. First, it is the first place lots are used in Scripture. Second, it is the only place lots are used in the sacrificial system. This means we can't compare it to other rituals. The next usage is for the assigning of tribal lands, which doesn't help us here. It isn't until we get to the time of King David that we find something more helpful, and that is where lots were cast to assign duties, responsibilities, or roles, which is what we see here.
As it says, one lot is designated as for the LORD. This phrase is commonly taken to mean that the goat chosen by that lot is a representation of the LORD. Now, because of this assumption, it is common to conclude that the second goat, then, must be a representation of Satan. However, the phrase, for the LORD, has nothing to do with representation!
Please make note of this: God was not telling the Israelites, nor us today, how to interpret the ritual. These are instructions for how the ritual was to be performed, not for identifying later fulfillments. Certainly, we know now that the first goat was fulfilled by Jesus Christ. Indeed, He was the goal, the object, of the whole law. But that isn't what these particular instructions are about. They are about how to perform the ritual, not interpret it.
God designates the holy incense as for the LORD because it was for His satisfaction, not because the incense was a representation of Him. The NET Bible says, belonging to the LORD, which accurately describes what for the LORD indicates.
There is no thought of representation, but instead that this action was on account of the LORD, or for the sake of the LORD, or with respect to the LORD. Later in the chapter (Numbers 31:28, 50), the Israelites were to levy a tribute, which became an offering, for the LORD. Again, there is no symbolism implied in this phrase. One more:
As these examples show, the phrase, for the LORD means, in reference to, on account of, or for the sake of the LORD. It is never used to mean, representing the LORD. Rather, it was for the LORD's service, satisfaction, or appeasement. In other words, through the use of lots, God would designate which goat He wanted to supply the blood that would make atonement for His throne, for His Holy Place, for the altar closest to His holy presence.
So, this first goat that was for the LORD was also for the people. As with the phrase, for the LORD, the phrase, for the people means on account of the people, and specifically, on account of the people's uncleanness. We can see this in verse 16: So he shall make atonement for the Holy Place, because of the uncleanness of the children of Israel, and because of their transgressions, for all their sins; and so he shall do for the tabernacle of meeting which remains among them in the midst of their uncleanness.
To summarize, then, the priest cast lots so God would choose which animal He wanted for each function. God chose one goat for Himself, meaning for His satisfaction through purging on account of the people's uncleanness. God chose the second goat for the azazel, that is, … . . .
Leviticus 16:3-10
Excerpted from: Jesus in the Feasts (Part Four): AtonementLike I said, I want to point out a few particular things here. One of the things I especially want to emphasize is that in verse 5, God calls the two goats together a singular sin offering. They both deal with atoning for, in this case, all of Israel's sins, and in the spiritual sense or its spiritual application, all of spiritual Israel's sins.
The blood of the first goat symbolizes the shedding of blood to pay for sins. That is the redemption price that has to be paid. But think about it. Just because there is a payment for sin does not mean that the sins suddenly disappear. The sins are there, they have just been paid for. They have been redeemed, the price for the penalty has been shunted aside because the right price has been paid.
But there is still the sins, they need to be removed. They need to be gotten out of the way. They need to be taken away, and this is where the second goat comes in. The second goat symbolizes those sins being borne away, gotten rid of, removed as far as east is from the west as Psalm 103:12 says.
Both parts, both goats, if you will, are necessary parts of the sacrifice. And because both parts are necessary to the sacrifice, it had to be shown in two goats. One goat could not do it because the one goat is slain. How could that slain goat carry the sins into the wilderness? It is impossible, so it had to be another goat just like it. So like it that lots had to be thrown, if you will, to tell which goat would do which part. It did not matter. That is the reason why they they cast lots. It was just to differentiate which goat would die and which goat would be led away into the wilderness.
So, we have these two goats and they make a complete singular sacrifice for sin. That is what it says in verse 5. "He shall take from the congregation of the children of Israel two kids of the goats as a sin offering." It is just a sin offering in two parts.
Leviticus 16:3-10
Excerpted from: The Doctrine of Israel (Part Fourteen): Israel RedeemedLike I said without getting into all the nitty gritty details, what happens is that the high priest offers the bull as a sin offering to cover his sins and the sins of his priestly house. That has to be done because he has to go in and do the work in the Tabernacle, and to do this kind of work, he needs to be clear of sin, he needs to be clean, he needs to be pure, so he does that. So he offers the slain bull which represents Christ and it is that blood that cleanses him from sin.
Then the two goats are presented before God, lots are cast to determine which is for the Lord and which is for Azazel, as I mentioned, the goat of departure, a goat of complete removal. Like the bull, the goat for the Lord is slain as a sin offering, its blood is shed. But it says specifically here that its sacrifice pictures the cleansing of the people of Israel. So you had the bull that was for the priest's sins and then you have the first goat that is supposed to represent cleansing of the people of Israel.
This is the bulk of what happened there on the Day of Atonement. So all the children of Israel's sins are confessed and placed on this live goat, this goat of complete removal, and it is led into the wilderness by a suitable man, it says, a person who has been chosen for this task, and released. This goat is also part of the sin offering. If you go back to verse 5, it says very clearly "he shall take from the congregation of the children of Israel two kids of the goats as a sin offering." They are two goats, one offering—one offering for sin. Each, though, shows a different aspect of the one offering. It is one offering in two parts, the covering of or atoning for sin by a blood sacrifice is the first goat and the second goat represents the bearing or carrying away, the removal, that is why it is called the goat of complete removal of sin into forgetfulness.
Leviticus 16:9-10
Excerpted from: Seeking God's Will (Part Four): SacrificeSo, he is like throwing dice, or calling heads or tails in a coin toss. And, the scapegoat should be properly rendered Azazel goat.
The first goat, which is the Lord’s goat—it represents Christ—is killed as a sin offering. And, its blood, representing the blood of Christ, covers man’s sins. It says in different ways that it cleanses, and it sanctifies those who come under it.
The second goat, the Azazel goat bears Israel's and ultimately mankind’s sins upon its head, showing that the sins of mankind are not just covered by Christ's blood—that is, paid for—but they are also borne away, removed, erased, forgotten. Isaiah 53:4-12 tells us in several places that the Suffering Servant, almost universally understood to be a type of Christ, bears our iniquities, for which God exalts Him. Psalm 103:12 informs us that He bears them "as far as the east is from the west," an illustration that means they are completely removed—no taint of guilt remains once God forgives a person on the basis of the shed blood of Jesus Christ.
What we find here, then, is that this second part continues the act of atonement as well. You may have never thought of it this way. That human sins are placed upon Christ to carry them away, more than just His blood in the sin offering making atonement, is also an atonement. It is a further covering over because the sins of those who accept Christ's sacrifice disappear. They are no longer a factor. They are not coming back. God won't reach back in His memory and bring them up some time in the future as His ace in the hole, as it were.
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