Leviticus 16:15
Then shall he kill the goat of the sin offering, that is for the people, and bring his blood within the vail, and do with that blood as he did with the blood of the bullock, and sprinkle it upon the mercy seat, and before the mercy seat:
On the yearly day for cleansing the earthly sanctuary, on the tenth day of the seventh month, the high priest alone entered the most holy place with the blood of the slain goat chosen for the Lord and sprinkled it upon and before the cover of the ark over the law for the people. The rite completed the yearly round of service and taught Israel God's holiness and abhorrence of sin and that contact with sin brings pollution, while the people waited without in solemn prayer. It foreshadows Christ as both sacrifice and high priest, the Sin-bearer and Substitute whose offering at the cross reconciles sinners to God and whose blood He continues to plead with enduring efficacy. At the close of the 2300 days, on the antitypical tenth day of the seventh month in 1844, He entered the most holy place of the heavenly sanctuary within the second veil to present His blood before the Father beside the ark of the ten precepts to blot out the sins of His faithful ones until probation closes. The blood sprinkled over the law satisfied its claims by a substitute without yet canceling sin, providing for its transfer to the sanctuary and finally to the scapegoat to be forever separated from the people, and now calls every person to afflict the soul in repentance, confession, and faith while cases stand before the judgment.
Earthly Day of Atonement
Leviticus 16:15 belongs to the cleansing of the sanctuary described in Leviticus 16. That sanctuary is the earthly sanctuary made in the desert of Sinai and afterward housed in Solomon's temple, with its holy and most holy place as God's dwelling-place of glory upon the earth, not the earth itself nor the land of Canaan nor the church. The work was done on the tenth day of the seventh month, when only the high priest, after careful and solemn preparation, could enter the most holy place once a year. There before the mercy seat God met him in the cloud of glory.
On that day the goat on which the lot fell for the Lord was slain as a sin offering for the people. Its blood was brought within the veil and sprinkled upon the mercy seat and before the mercy seat. That sprinkling was directly over the law, for the mercy seat is the cover of the ark containing God's law. The blood was also sprinkled upon the altar of incense before the veil. The rite formed part of the annual cleansing of the sanctuary that completed the yearly round of ministration.
While the high priest ministered before God at the mercy seat, the people waited in silence and prayer for God's blessing. They feared when he remained longer than usual that delay meant he had been struck down because of their sins or his own. The sound of his bells reassured them that he was alive, and he came out to bless them. The whole ceremony was designed to impress Israel with the holiness of God and His abhorrence of sin and to show that contact with sin brings pollution.
Heavenly Ministry of Christ
The slaying of the goat for the people and the carrying of its blood within the veil foreshadows the slain Lamb, to whom all types point. Christ is both High Priest and sacrifice, the Sin-bearer and Substitute for the offender. His merits are accepted by God as a purifier from sin, and the virtue of His offering shed at the cross reconciles people to God. He continues to plead His blood in behalf of sinners, and that atoning sacrifice remains effective through all time and events.
The carrying of blood within the veil to sprinkle upon and before the mercy seat shows the present attire and work of Christ as great High Priest, dressed as the Jewish high priest was on the Day of Atonement. That priestly dress lasts only until the atonement is finished, when it is laid off for many crowns in one crown as King of kings. At the close of the 2300 days, on the tenth day of the seventh month in 1844, He closed one ministration and opened another in the most holy place of the heavenly sanctuary within the second veil. There He began the closing antitypical atonement, coming before the ark of God containing the ten precepts and the mercy seat to present and plead His blood before the Father in behalf of sinners.
That entering is to blot out the sins of all His faithful ones from Abel to the present time by virtue of His own blood. The sanctuary to be cleansed at the end of the prophetic days is in heaven, not the earth. He did not then come to this earth to punish the wicked and purify the world by fire, but in mercy began this heavenly cleansing work and gave further time to repent of sins and prepare for His coming. The door of mercy was then opened in the fullest sense as the open door which no man can shut until the work there is fully done, and the merciful High Priest is now beheld beside the ark and the mercy seat inviting sinners to come until probation is closed and the ministry of the gospel is ended.
The sprinkling of the congregation's sin-offering blood upon the mercy seat directly over the law made satisfaction for the law's claims. A substitute is accepted in the sinner's stead, but the victim's blood did not cancel sin; it provided the means for sin to be transferred to the sanctuary. By the offering of blood the sinner acknowledges the authority of the law, confesses guilt in transgression, and expresses desire for pardon through faith in a Redeemer to come, yet is not yet released from condemnation. Then the high priest as mediator takes the sins upon himself and bears them from the sanctuary, and by placing his hands on the scapegoat and confessing all the sins over him in figure transfers them to the goat, which bears them away so they are regarded as forever separated from the people.
That entrance into the most holy place represents the place where Christ as High Priest is now pleading. While the priest was interceding with God no propitiatory sacrifices were offered without, and every heart was to be bowed in contrition pleading for pardon of transgression. So now no sacrifices are to be offered without, because the great High Priest is performing His work in the most holy place. His people stand in the outer court waiting and looking for the glorious appearing of Jesus Christ, offering prayer and confession only to Him who entered once for all into the most holy place.
The carrying of the people's sin offering beyond the veil points to Christ carrying the blood of atonement into heaven's holiest place, applying it there and blessing the people, with His blood applied even to His own garments. At that time Satan pointed to the defilement of God's people, accused them as sinners, and triumphed in their discomfiture, as he does now. Unlike sinful man, the sinless Christ takes away the sin of the repentant believing transgressor and cannot be accused as a transgressor.
The sprinkling of the warm blood upon the mercy seat means pleading the efficacy of Christ's atoning blood while confessing sin. The fragrant cloud of incense ascending before God at the same time means the prayers of the confessing sinner ascend to heaven made fragrant with the merits of Christ's character. Notwithstanding unworthiness, there is One who can take away sin and save the sinner, and every sin acknowledged before God with a contrite heart He will remove. This faith laying hold on the merits of the atoning blood is the life of the church.
Judgment Call to Repentance
The rite belongs to the great day of atonement, whose solemn work is connected with the sanctuary above and the judgment. It is the great antitypical day of atonement, when sins confessed are taken away and go beforehand to judgment. Each person's case stands before the judgment in the final day before the books are opened and every person is judged by the record of deeds. This work concerns every person and must be kept in mind rather than treated lightly.
While this atonement went forward every man was required to afflict his soul and humble himself before God. All business was laid aside as the whole congregation spent the day in solemn humiliation before God. That humiliation was with prayer, fasting, and deep searching of heart.
The pattern calls now for humble preparation, putting away sin and trusting Christ to cleanse and obtain pardon. Cleansing from defilement comes through the blood of Jesus.
The present time meeting its antitype is the antitypical day of atonement, a solemn hour fraught with eternal results. It requires churches claiming to believe the truth and advocating the law of God to keep that law and depart from all iniquity, with individual members resisting temptation to practice evils and indulge sin. It calls the church to commence purification before God by repentance, humiliation and deep heartsearching, to receive truth as it is in Jesus under its subduing, sanctifying, refining influence. Those receiving it become clean vessels leavened with Bible religion, pure, steadfast, unmovable, always abounding in the love of Jesus as a light to the world. Watchmen and shepherds are to proclaim the solemn warning truth to all people, nations and tongues as living representatives honoring God's law by strict and holy compliance, walking before the Lord in purity and holiness, with power attending the proclamation to reflect light everywhere.