The last blog showed that the high priest was the human representation of Yeshua, the express image of God. Those who believe Yeshua to be the “anointed human One who was to come” and follow Him by engaging with the holy living God become complete (tamim, blameless, sum 490) living images. Israel’s national vocation was the priesthood, to bring the light of life (fruitfulness, Eden) into a compromised barren world, tending and keeping it from the boundaries of the darkness of death (devoid of fruit). Atonement (occurring 49 times in Leviticus, the key to “walk before Me and be you tamim,” 7² × 10) is the doorway and path to increasing intimate life with God, opening the boundary crossing into holiness. Holiness is life. Life without death is holiness. Holiness is God. To discern the borders of life and death is wisdom. As God’s images, we are designed to make Him present, living holy lives oriented around the tabernacle, taking root in His waters of life and bearing fruit upward. In this way, we will never be without root (barren) but full of Eden. This blog answers, “What was the congregation of Israel’s role in the Day of Atonement?”

Israel did two things to observe the Day of Atonements, providing the two-goat sin and the ram ascension offerings (Lev. 16:5) and afflicting their souls, ceasing from all work (Lev. 16:29, 31). The work of atonement, cleansing Israel from their sins, belonged solely to the priest (Lev. 16:30). “To afflict” comes from the Hebrew עָנָה (ʿānâh), meaning “to afflict, to bow down, humble, meek” (H6031).`Anah was generally understood to submit oneself to a lowly position, repentant and humble. Simply, it means willingly placing oneself under YHWH’s authority, making the self low and submitting to His instructions in total dependence upon Him. It is what Adam and Eve did not do. `Anah is used to describe unleavened bread, “seven days you shall eat unleavened bread, that is, the bread of affliction [H6040; root H6031 `anah] (for you came out of the land of Egypt in haste), that you may remember the day in which you came out of the land of Egypt all the days of your life” (Deu. 16:3). Without pride, an unleavened state is `anah. Psalm 119:71, 75 gives the idea, “It is good for me that I was afflicted (`anah), that I might learn your statutes; I know, O YHWH, that Your laws are righteous, and that in faithfulness you have afflicted (`anah) me.” YHWH humbled (`anah) and proved Israel in the wilderness through hardship, “allowed them to hunger and fed them with manna…that He might make them know that man does not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of their God” (Deu. 8:3, 16). YHWH tested His people to “be not wise in their own eyes” so they could walk in His ways of holiness. Trusting God in totality to lead and guide in His wisdom requires a spirit of `anah and rest in God to let Him do what we cannot do.

We cannot purify ourselves or the tabernacle dwelling place of God by our means, and we cannot ransom ourselves from death. `Anah is allowing God’s refining fire to burn away the ways of death, to winnow us, to remove that which is useless and unwanted, of no value. We can draw near in worship only when transformed into a tamim whole burnt/ascension offering. And always before the burnt offering, a sin/purification offering must be made, covering our ways of death with life. To stay alive forever, we must discern the boundaries between light and dark, day and night, life and death. Occurring at the borders of day and night, He provided the daily morning and evening ascension sacrifices to renew us day and night as we connect with His realm. John wrote:

This is the message which we have heard from Him and declare to you, that God is light and in Him is no darkness at all. 6 If we say that we have fellowship with Him, and walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. 7 But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin. 8 If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. 9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 1 John 1:5-9 NKJV

Keeping the Day of Atonements holy finds its foundation in the spirit of `anah, in preparative searching through one’s mind in dependence upon a merciful God enlightening our eyes to see what is contrary to His nature, and then, in grateful, reverent surrendering to the only Source of help, offering one’s spirit up in nearness to God, knowing that by means of His loyal covenant love, He has satisfied the wrath of Almighty God against us by His blood and carried away our iniquities to the grave (Psa. 103:12). Just as His blood purged the tabernacle and the people from sin so a holy God could dwell in Israel, His atonements purifies creation also, making holy a new dwelling place, a new heaven and earth. So perfect was YHWH’s high priest work of atonements that those within His covenant relationship enter His solemn rest to celebrate His joyful oneness and holiness in sober humility. In Him is the blessing of the Sabbath of Sabbaths, a rest from our wrestling.

Yeshua willingly sacrificed His life to purify us and take away our sins. Paul called the Day of Atonements “the Fast” (Act. 27:9). David afflicted his soul with fasting, bowing down heavily (Psa. 35:13). As something that promoted one to see and change another’s circumstances, Isaiah 58:5-14 described the fast in the same manner Yeshua did on the day of the Sabbaths (Greek, Sabbaton, plural, Luk. 4:16), signaling to the seventh Sabbath of the Feast of Weeks, the same Sabbath YHWH thundered His commands from Sinai. At Mount Sinai, YHWH spoke His “Ten Words,” and the Leviticus code in thirty-seven divine speeches on how to approach and live in His holy Presence; Leviticus 16’s Atonements is the center.

Takeaway:
Seeing their brokenness and desperate need for purity and holiness for YHWH to dwell among them, Israel brought the required sacrificial animals to the tabernacle on the Day of Atonements. With only the high priest performing the atonements ritual, Israel did no work and rested. Israel’s atonement meant the purification and atonement extended outward to all creation, reversing Adam’s bringing sin and death into the world. Yeshua’s atoning sacrifice keeps us at-one with Him day by day. Each day, we learn from Him to discern behaviors that bring life from behaviors that bring death. Atonement shows a movement that removes our uncleanness and defiling of Eden to the restored purity and the rest of the cosmos. Israel’s role on the Day of Atonements was to believe in the work of Yeshua (Jhn. 6:29).

Fun Factors:
Num. 29:7-11 has 254 letters (2 × 127, 127 = Sarah’s age, 120 years + 7 years, the 31st prime) in 61 words (6-1, the time mark of creation week; 18th prime, 8th Pythagorean prime, 52 + 62), totaling 19447, the 2205th prime (2205 = 15 × 147, the numeric voice of creation restored through Israel, see Blog 17 and Blog 20). The sum, 19447, factors to 137 × 141 + 130. Figure 137 is the value of “Day of Atonements,” Yom haKippurim (Lev. 23:28); 141 is the sum of ‘amats meaning “strong, mighty” (H553) and mitzvah (H4687), meaning the “commandment God has given” in the wilderness (Deu. 8:1-3); and 130 is the total of Sinai (H5514). What this is telling us specifically will be covered in more detail in an upcoming blog post.