Leviticus 14:4-7
Though commonly overlooked, the two goats in Leviticus 16 follow the same pattern as the ritual for cleansing from leprosy. This ritual uses two animals, except two birds instead of two goats.
God commanded this ritual to cleanse leprosy. Other sacrifices went along with this ritual, but the key point is the use of two animals with differing roles, used together for the sake of cleansing and removal. One animal was killed so its blood could be used to cleanse. The second animal was left alive and set free to symbolize the removal of the leprosy.
The two birds represent two needed and related functions, yet nothing suggests that they typify two opposing beings, that the second bird was a type of Satan, or that the second bird was somehow the leprosy's source. Instead, both were sacrificial animals, each used for a different role within the overall ritual. The blood of the first bird was shed to provide cleansing. The second bird was released for the leprosy's complete removal. Its death is not shown because that was not its role. We might want to lump together the cleansing and removal as the same thing, but it is important to notice that God makes those elements distinct in the pattern He establishes.
Mark 1:40-42 shows how these symbols were shadows of the Messianic reality:
Now a leper came to Him, imploring Him, kneeling down to Him and saying to Him, “If You are willing, You can make me clean.” Then Jesus, moved with compassion, stretched out His hand and touched him, and said to him, “I am willing; be cleansed.” As soon as He had spoken, immediately the leprosy left him, and he was cleansed.
Notice that Jesus fulfilled the roles of both birds simultaneously. He cleansed the leper and caused the leprosy to be removed. He fulfilled the roles of both birds at the same time, then sent the man to the priest for the other required offerings. The two goats of Leviticus 16 follow this pattern of dual roles used together to symbolically provide cleansing and removal, not of leprosy, but of the sins of the nation.
David C. Grabbe
Azazel: Endings
