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The Day of Atonement, or Work in the Second Apartment

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Review and Herald Publishing Association · Takoma Park Station, Washington, D. C. · Oct 10, 1912

FromReview and Herald, Vol. 89, No. 41.

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The Day of Atonement, or Work in the Second Apartment

By Stephen N. Haskell

S. N. HASKELL
The tenth day of the seventh month was the day of atonement. Lev. 23:27. It was regarded more sacredly than any other day in the yearly round of service, and was a ceremonial sabbath and a fast-day. Lev. 23:30. The Israelite that did not afflict his soul upon that day, was cut off from among the people. Lev. 23:28-30. So sacredly is the day regarded even now, although the Jews have rejected Christ and but few have any regard for the Sabbath, that no matter how wicked a Jew may be, he does no business or work upon the tenth day of the seventh month.
There were several sacrifices offered upon the day of atonement. The high priest offered a bullock for himself and his house before he entered upon the regular services of the day. Two goats were brought to the door of the sanctuary, and lots were cast upon them,—one for the Lord, the other for the scapegoat, or Azazel. Lev. 16:8, margin. The high priest killed the Lord’s goat, and then, clad in the gorgeous robes of the priesthood, with the breastplate of judgment bearing the names of the twelve tribes of Israel over his heart, and the sacred onyx stones with the names of the tribes of Israel on his shoulders, he passed with the blood of the goat within the second veil. He carried the golden censer filled with coals of fire from the altar before the Lord, placing a handful of incense upon the censer just as he entered within the second veil. The cloud of fragrant incense covered him as he passed in before the visible presence of God manifested between the cherubim above the mercy-seat. With his fingers he sprinkled the blood upon the mercy-seat above the broken law of God.
He then went out into the first apartment, and touched the horns of the golden altar with the blood. When he had “made an end of reconciling the holy place, and the tabernacle of the congregation, and the altar,” he went out into the court. In type the high priest bore in his person all the confessed sins of the children of Israel, which had been transferred to the sanctuary. He then laid his hands upon the head of the scapegoat, and confessed “over him all the iniquities of the children of Israel, and all their transgressions in all their sins, putting them upon the head of the goat,” after which the goat was sent away by the hand of a fit man into the wilderness. This goat bore upon him all the iniquities unto a land of separation. Lev. 16:20-22, margin.
Going into the tabernacle of the congregation, the high priest exchanged his gorgeous priestly robes for other garments, after which he went out into the court, and the court was cleansed. The bodies of the animals whose blood had been taken within the sanctuary were carried out of the camp and burned. When the sun set on the day of atonement, the sins were all gone into the land of separation, and nothing but ashes remained as a reminder of sin.
This was a type of a heavenly work that decides the eternal destiny of every soul that has ever lived upon the earth. In type and shadow the confessed sins of Israel had been transferred to the sanctuary during the year, and the cleansing of the sanctuary consisted in removing those sins. “It was therefore necessary that the patterns of things in the heavens should be purified with these [the blood of animals]; but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these.” Heb. 9:23.
Every sin is marked before the Lord in heaven. Jer. 2:22. When sins are confessed and forgiven, they are covered. Ps. 32:1. This was typified by their being transferred to the sanctuary, where no human eyes except the priests’ ever beheld the stains of the blood of the sin-offering upon the horns of the golden altar. We can not conceive of such a thing as the books of heaven always holding the record of sins, nor of Christ always bearing the sins of the world. As the typical work was performed at the close of the year, so the cleansing of the heavenly sanctuary will take place near the end of Christ’s priestly work. The cleansing of the heavenly sanctuary necessitates an examination of the records, an investigative judgment.
The earthly sanctuary was cleansed on the tenth day of the seventh month each year. The heavenly sanctuary will be cleansed once for all. This work of cleansing the heavenly began at the end of the prophetic period of two thousand three hundred days, in 1844. Dan. 8:14. In the typical service the Lord was in the holy of holies on the day of atonement, for he promised that his presence would be there. Lev. 16:2. The high priest made special preparation to enter upon the service of the day of atonement. Lev. 16:4-6.
The prophet Daniel was given a view of the antitypical work in the heavenly sanctuary. He describes it thus:— “I beheld till the thrones were cast down, and the Ancient of days did sit, whose garment was white as snow, and the hair of his head like the pure wool: his throne was like the fiery flame, and his wheels as burning fire. A fiery stream issued and came forth from before him: thousand thousands ministered unto him, and ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him: the judgment was set, and the books were opened.” Dan. 7:9, 10.
The Bible was written in an Oriental country, and the Oriental custom is to “cast down” seats for guests. The Revised Version of the Bible renders it: “I beheld till thrones were placed.” The position of the Father’s throne was changed. Daniel beheld the thrones cast down, or placed,—their position changed,—and then the Ancient of days, the Father, took his seat upon the throne. In other words, Daniel beheld the Father’s throne changed from the first apartment of the heavenly sanctuary to the second. His attention was attracted by the great wheels which looked like burning fire as they moved beneath the glorious throne of the infinite God. Ezekiel 10. Myriads of the heavenly host were gathered to witness the grand scene. Thousand thousands ministered unto Jehovah as he took his seat upon the throne to judge the world.
No mirror ever portrayed the features of the face as accurately as the books of heaven have portrayed the life record of each individual. All are judged “out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works.” Rev. 20:12. Angels have been “ministering spirits” to those whose cases are to come in review before God, and they are interested in the scene. The Father is seated on the throne of judgment, the angels stand ready to obey commands, the books are open, but there is One absent. Daniel’s attention is again called to heaven, and he beholds the “clouds of heaven”—myriads of angels—bearing the Saviour in before the Father in great triumph, where, as the books reveal one life record after another, Christ confesses the names of every overcomer before the Father and before the angels. Rev. 3:5.
The earthly high priest bore the names of Israel on his person as he entered the most holy place; but lest some fainting soul might fear he would be forgotten, our High Priest sends down the words, “Can a woman forget her sucking child, that she should not have compassion on the son of her womb? yea, they may forget, yet will I not forget thee;” and then, as if to assure them, he lifts his hands, bearing the print of the cruel nails, and says, “Behold [look], I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands; thy walls are continually before me.” Isa. 49:15, 16.
The earthly high priest presented blood to atone for the sins of the people. Our High Priest pleads: “My blood, Father, my blood, my blood, my blood.”—“Early Writings.” The earthly high priest carried the censer with the fragrantincense, a type of the righteousness of our High Priest, which, when the names come up in review before the great Judge, he imputes to every one whose sins are all confessed and covered with his blood.
In the earthly sanctuary the high priest paused in the first apartment and touched the horns of the golden altar to cleanse it from all sins that had been transferred there; for while the services of the day of atonement were going forward, any one having unconfessed sins could bring his sin-offering and be forgiven. Num. 29:7-11. So while our High Priest officiates before the Father in the investigative judgment, those who realize they are sinners can come confessing their sins, and be forgiven through the merits of Christ, the great Sin-bearer. Our High Priest, when he finishes his work in the inner apartment of the heavenly sanctuary, will tarry a moment in the outer apartment, and the sins which have been confessed while he was in the most holy place will be taken, together with the sins of the righteous of all ages, and carried forth without the sanctuary. While Jesus pleads as our High Priest, there is hope for every repentant sinner; but when he comes forth from the sanctuary, mercy’s door will be forever closed. There will be no intercessor. Isa. 59:16. In the type, when the high priest came out of the sanctuary, he had “made an end of reconciling.” When our High Priest comes forth from the sanctuary, he proclaims: “He that is unjust, let him be unjust still: and he which is filthy, let him be filthy still: and he that is righteous, let him be righteous still: and he that is holy, let him be holy still.” Every case is decided for eternity. Probation is forever closed. All who wait until that time, hoping to be saved, will find no one to plead their cases before the Father; they will be forever lost.
In the type, after the high priest had finished the work within the sanctuary on the day of atonement, he came forth bearing the sins of all Israel, and placed them upon the head of the scapegoat. The scapegoat had no part in reconciling the people to God. The work of reconciling was all ended (Lev. 16:20) when the scapegoat was brought forward to act his part in the work. The term scapegoat has become a synonym of an evil one. Azazel, the Hebrew rendering of scapegoat, is a proper name, and is understood to represent the devil. When our High Priest has finished his work in the heavenly sanctuary, he will place all the sins of the righteous, which he has borne, upon the head of Satan (Ps. 7:16), the instigator of sin, and he will be left for one thousand years upon the desolate earth (Jer. 4:23-27; Zeph. 1:2, 3), a land not inhabited, and then be burned to ashes in the fires of the last day. Mal. 4:1-3; Rev. 20:9, 10; Eze. 28:18, 19.
In the type, after the high priest had placed the sins of Israel upon the head of the scapegoat, he laid aside the robes worn while officiating as high priest in the sanctuary, and putting on other garments, began a work in the court. He had the bodies of the animals whose blood had been carried into the sanctuary taken without the camp and burned. At the close of the day, ashes were the only thing to be seen of the sin-offerings. Our High Priest lays aside his priestly garments, and clad as King of kings, he rides forth a mighty conqueror to “gather out of his kingdom all things that offend, and them which do iniquity; and shall cast them into a furnace of fire.” Matt. 13:41, 42. Christ comes to set in order the antitypical court,—this earth,—and when the great antitypical day of atonement ends, nothing will remain that in any way will be a reminder of sin except the ashes under the feet of the righteous. Mal. 4:3.
The word atonement means at-onement; and when Christ pronounces the decree that determines the eternal destiny of every soul, he and the subjects of his kingdom are at one. Sin will never again separate between Christ and his people; but the territory of his kingdom is still cursed by sin, and the at-onement of Christ and his kingdom will be complete in every sense of the term when from the fires of the last day there comes forth a new earth with every mark of the curse removed. Then not only the subjects of Christ’s kingdom, but the entire earth will be at one with Christ and the Father. Isa. 62:4. Sin will never again arise to mar the earth, which will be the home of the redeemed forever.
Type Antitype
Lev. 16:29, 30. On the tenth day of the seventh month the sanctuary was cleansed. Dan. 8:14. Unto two thousand and three hundred days then shall the sanctuary be cleansed.
Lev. 16:15-19. The sanctuary was cleansed, the sins being removed by the blood of the Lord’s goat, at the end of the year’s service. Acts 3:19, 20. Sins will be blotted from the heavenly records near the end of Christ’s work as high priest.
Lev. 16:2. God’s presence was in the most holy place on the day of atonement. Dan. 7:9, 10. The Father enters the most holy place of the heavenly sanctuary before the opening of the judgment.
Lev. 16:4-6. The high priest made special preparation to enter into the most holy apartment. Dan. 7:13, 14. Christ is borne into the most holy apartment by the angels of heaven.
Ex. 8:9-21, 29. The high priest bore the names of Israel over his heart and on his shoulders when he entered the most holy place. Rev. 3:5. Christ knows each name, and confesses the names of the overcomers before the Father and the angels.
Lev. 16:20. When the high priest came out of the sanctuary, he had “made an end of reconciling.” Rev. 22:11, 12. When Christ comes out from the heavenly sanctuary, he announces the eternal destiny of every soul.
Lev. 16:21. The sins were all laid upon the scapegoat. Ps. 7:16. Sin will return upon the head of the originator of sin.
Lev. 16:22. The goat shall bear the sins into a land not inhabited, a land of separation. Rev. 20:1-3. Satan will be left on the desolate earth for one thousand years.
Lev. 16:23. The high priest left the robe he wore while officiating in the most holy place in the sanctuary, and put on other garments. Rev. 19:11-19. Christ lays aside his priestly robes, and comes to the earth as King of kings and Lord of lords.
Lev. 16:27. The bodies of the sacrifices were taken without the camp and burned, nothing but ashes remaining as a reminder of sin. Matt. 13:41-43; Mal. 4:1-3. Christ will gather out of his kingdom all things that offend, and them which do iniquity, and they will be burned in the fires of the last day. Ashes only remain.
South Lancaster, Mass.