Christ is the final “scapegoat” bearing and removing our sins on our behalf.
Leviticus 16:1–22 (ESV): The Day of Atonement
16 The Lord spoke to Moses after the death of the two sons of Aaron, when they drew near before the Lord and died, 2 and the Lord said to Moses, “Tell Aaron your brother not to come at any time into the Holy Place inside the veil, before the mercy seat that is on the ark, so that he may not die. For I will appear in the cloud over the mercy seat. 3 But in this way Aaron shall come into the Holy Place: with a bull from the herd for a sin offering and a ram for a burnt offering. 4 He shall put on the holy linen coat and shall have the linen undergarment on his body, and he shall tie the linen sash around his waist, and wear the linen turban; these are the holy garments. He shall bathe his body in water and then put them on. 5 And he shall take from the congregation of the people of Israel two male goats for a sin offering, and one ram for a burnt offering.
6 “Aaron shall offer the bull as a sin offering for himself and shall make atonement for himself and for his house. 7 Then he shall take the two goats and set them before the Lord at the entrance of the tent of meeting. 8 And Aaron shall cast lots over the two goats, one lot for the Lord and the other lot for Azazel. 9 And Aaron shall present the goat on which the lot fell for the Lord and use it as a sin offering, 10 but the goat on which the lot fell for Azazel shall be presented alive before the Lord to make atonement over it, that it may be sent away into the wilderness to Azazel.
11 “Aaron shall present the bull as a sin offering for himself, and shall make atonement for himself and for his house. He shall kill the bull as a sin offering for himself. 12 And he shall take a censer full of coals of fire from the altar before the Lord, and two handfuls of sweet incense beaten small, and he shall bring it inside the veil 13 and put the incense on the fire before the Lord, that the cloud of the incense may cover the mercy seat that is over the testimony, so that he does not die. 14 And he shall take some of the blood of the bull and sprinkle it with his finger on the front of the mercy seat on the east side, and in front of the mercy seat he shall sprinkle some of the blood with his finger seven times.
15 “Then he shall kill the goat of the sin offering that is for the people and bring its blood inside the veil and do with its blood as he did with the blood of the bull, sprinkling it over the mercy seat and in front of the mercy seat. 16 Thus he shall make atonement for the Holy Place, because of the uncleannesses of the people of Israel and because of their transgressions, all their sins. And so he shall do for the tent of meeting, which dwells with them in the midst of their uncleannesses. 17 No one may be in the tent of meeting from the time he enters to make atonement in the Holy Place until he comes out and has made atonement for himself and for his house and for all the assembly of Israel. 18 Then he shall go out to the altar that is before the Lord and make atonement for it, and shall take some of the blood of the bull and some of the blood of the goat, and put it on the horns of the altar all around. 19 And he shall sprinkle some of the blood on it with his finger seven times, and cleanse it and consecrate it from the uncleannesses of the people of Israel.
20 “And when he has made an end of atoning for the Holy Place and the tent of meeting and the altar, he shall present the live goat. 21 And Aaron shall lay both his hands on the head of the live goat, and confess over it all the iniquities of the people of Israel, and all their transgressions, all their sins. And he shall put them on the head of the goat and send it away into the wilderness by the hand of a man who is in readiness. 22 The goat shall bear all their iniquities on itself to a remote area, and he shall let the goat go free in the wilderness.
My Comments/Notes
The first goat pictures the means of atonement, the shedding of blood in the sacrificial (substitutional) death.
The second goat (the scapegoat) pictures the effect of atonement, the removal of guilt, never to return.
See also Psalm 103:12 – As far as the east is from the west….
Isaiah 53:4–6 (ESV): 4 Surely he has borne our griefs
and carried our sorrows;
yet we esteemed him stricken,
smitten by God, and afflicted.
5 But he was pierced for our transgressions;
he was crushed for our iniquities;
upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace,
and with his wounds we are healed.
6 All we like sheep have gone astray;
we have turned—every one—to his own way;
and the Lord has laid on him
the iniquity of us all.
My Meditation
My arms trembled. Their trembling a violent rumble as it coursed through the rest of my body. My legs felt weak, on the verge of collapse. My stomach twisted in knots. My head felt light and I sensed a tingling begin to form before my eyes. At any moment, I expected blackness. Loss of consciousness or even death. The weakness, trepidation, and angst so deeply saturating me that I could no longer distinguish anything else. It had become my sense of being.
This was wrong. These hands of mine, here, on his head. This was so, so wrong. Terribly wrong. What was I doing? Why was I doing this? The trembling strengthened. I did not think this even possible, but strengthen it did. I felt as if my body might explode from the force of it. It felt as if every molecule of my being was being violently ripped asunder. And who would find fault if they were? The grievousness of my actions demanded such a fate, or worse.
The soft hair of his head beneath my fingers felt more like flesh eating parasites. It may have only been my mind, but the touch of his hair under my fingers burned and stung like a thousand hot needles piercing my skin and penetrating the bones encased there. And yet, despite the pain, my fingers and hands resisted any urge to separate. They did not want to separate. They seemed bonded there, grafted in as if they were some extension of his hair and head itself.
This is wrong. This is the most wrong thing I have ever done. It topped all the wrongness of my life combined. This would surely condemn me once and for all.
And yet….
I did not want to let go. I wanted to see this through. I wanted this to happen.
This is so wrong!
What am I doing? Why am I doing this?
Even while asking the question, I knew the answer.
Someone had to pay. Something had to pay. It was beyond me. He was my only hope. He must pay the price so that I did not have to.
My fingers curled in my angst, gripping his hair. I could feel the strands of his hair tugging on the roots as my fingers tightened their grip even while my insides churned. I both desired to let go, yet clung to his hair as the only lifeline and hope I possessed.
Why must it be this way? Why was my only hope found in death? Why must it be HIS death?
Why did one as worthy and right as He have to bear such filth and for the likes of me?
Would I really feel better about this if he were a convicted criminal?
Would this even work then? Would it be the same?
No, I decided. No, I would not feel better. No, it would not work. No, this is the only way. This is what must be.
And yet, the wrongness of it continued to putrefy in me, rotting my insides.
All around, others pressed in. Their bodies pressed hard against mine. Their arms extended. Their hands taking up place upon his head as well. Their presence was both comforting and stifling. I was not alone. It was not just me. And yet, this made it worse. So many. So much weight. So much guilt. So much shame and filth.
Despite the mass of hands grasping, pressing, and weighing upon his head, he managed to tip his head back, eyes aloft to the sky. Uttering words I did not understand, but knew to be a prayer, he poured out his passion and pain, his grief and sorrow, his joy and hope. Each word, as it was breathed and prayed, piercing my heart with both dread and joy.
Falling silent now, his eyes shift. Despite the mass of hands, of bodies, of people, I suddenly felt as if I were alone with him. His eyes rested upon me. Such gentleness, such compassion, such grace! All my terror, guilt, shame, and fear melted under this gaze. Not a word passed from his lips. They did not need to. His gaze said it all.
I am here.
Of my own free will.
I do this for you. To make you my own. To redeem you. To reconcile you.
Give me your shame and guilt. Give me your sin and offense.
I give you my righteousness; my life.
I willingly trade with you, so that I can be one with you.
Tears burned my cheeks then as they flowed like a flooded river, raging in waves. The emotions flooding out of me with tears which were almost too much to bear. Grief at the cost of my sin, the weight of it. Joy and thankfulness for his substitution; for his standing in my place. Never, has any loved me to deeply, so completely.
It still felt wrong. It still was wrong.
But his gaze piercing me left no room for doubt or objection. He was ok with this. This was His choice. He would be my scapegoat, bearing the sin I committed, and carrying it far from me in death, so that I might find life through His righteousness.
An unjust trade. An unfair exchange. But one made in complete willingness and love, so that through mercy and grace, we might once more know the joy of intimate union.
This one; this man; accepted and embraced my sin and all it’s just consequence to spare me.
Indeed. No greater love have I ever known than this.
A Singular Passion 