This chapter treats of the day of atonement, and of the rites, sacrifices, and services of it, directs when Aaron should come into the holy of holies, Lev. 16:1, Lev. 16:2; and in what habit he should then appear, and with what offerings both for himself, and for the people, Lev.

And the Lord spake unto Moses, after the death of the two sons of Aaron That is, either immediately after their death, and so this chapter would have stood in its natural order next to the tenth; or else after the above laws concerning uncleanness on various accounts were delivered out, designed to…

And the Lord said unto Moses, speak unto Aaron thy brother, &c.] Who was the high priest; and what is here said to him was binding on all high priests in succession from him: that he come not at all times into the holy place; or “holiness” [[14]], which was holiness itself, or the most holy place,…

Thus shall Aaron come into the holy place The most holy place; and this was after he had offered the daily sacrifice of the morning, and had performed the rest of the service then done, as Gersom observes; such as burning the incense and trimming the lamps, for no offering preceded the daily…

He shall put on the holy linen coat Which he wore in common with other priests: and he shall have the linen breeches upon his flesh; upon those parts of his body which are more secret, and less honourable flesh, meaning the same, as in : and shall be girded with a linen girdle and with the linen…

And he shall take of the congregation of the children of Israel With whom only the high priest had to do on the day of atonement; as Christ our high priest has only with the Israel of God, the elect, given him by the Father, for whom he offered up himself, and for whose sins he made reconciliation:…

And Aaron shall offer his bullock of the sin offering, which is for himself That is, bring it into the court, and present it before the Lord in order to its being slain and sacrificed; for as yet it was not killed, and so could not be offered on the altar, see ; the place where the bullock was set…

And he shall take the two goats The sin offering for the people, a proper emblem of Christ, this creature being clean and fit for food, denoting the purity of Christ, and his being suitable and wholesome food, as his flesh is to the faith of his people; and because comely in its going, as Christ…

And Aaron shall cast lots upon the two goats Which should be slain, and which should be kept alive, and let go: the manner of casting lots, according to the Misnah [[0]], was this; the high priest went to the east of the court, to the north of the altar, the Sagan (or deputy priest) at his right…

And Aaron shall bring the goat on which the Lord’s lot fell, &c.] Alluding to the manner of taking out the lot by the high priest, who, when he took it out, lifted it up with his hand, and then let it down, and put it on the head of the goat; after which he brought it to the altar to be sacrificed:…

But the goat on which the lot fell to be the scapegoat Or for Azazel, of which more hereafter in the latter part of the verse: shall be presented alive before the Lord; this seems to be a second presentation; both the goats were presented before the Lord before the lots were cast, ; but this was…

And Aaron shall bring the bullock of the sin offering which is for himself In the same manner, and is to be understood in the same sense as in ; and shall make atonement for himself and for his house: by a confession of words, as the Targum of Jonathan adds, and which Jarchi calls the second…

And he shall take a censer A fire pan, a sort of chafing dish or perfuming pot; this was a golden one, as appears from ; hence Christ, the Angel of God’s presence, our interceding High Priest, is said to have such an one, ; and so Josephus says [[6]], it was a golden one the high priest used on the…

And he shall put the incense upon the fire before the Lord, &c.] Both the incense and burning coals of fire being carried within the vail, the incense was put upon the coals, and so it burned before the Lord, whose seat was between the cherubim; and from whence it appears, that this was done, not…

And he shall take of the blood of the bullock When the high priest slew the bullock, the blood was received in a basin, and given to another priest, that he might keep stirring it on a foursquare bench in the temple, that so it might not thicken and congeal [[12]], but by a continual motion might…

Then shall he kill the goat of the sin offering that is for the people That upon which the lot came for the Lord, ; the high priest having sprinkled the blood of the bullock, came out of the most holy place, and went into the court of the tabernacle to the altar of burnt offering, and on the north…

And he shall make an atonement for the holy place Even the holy of holies, as Aben Ezra interprets it, into which the high priest entered with blood for that purpose; the Targum of Jonathan adds, by a verbal confession, that is, of sin; but atonement was not made in that way, but by the blood of…

And there shall be no man in the tabernacle of the congregation Not any of the priests, as Aben Ezra, no, not in the holy place where they ministered, nor in the court of the tabernacle, nor in any of the courts, nor indeed any of the people: all places were cleared when he, the high priest, goeth…

And he shall go out unto the altar that is before the Lord The golden altar, the altar of incense, which stood in the holy place without the vail, over against the most holy place, where Jehovah dwelt, and so is said to be before him; of this altar the Misnah [[16]] understands it, and so do Jarchi…

And he shall sprinkle of the blood upon it with his finger seven times This was done with his right finger, or forefinger, as the Targum of Jonathan, and seven times, to denote the perfect cleansing of the altar with it.

And when he hath made an end of reconciling the holy place That is, the holy of holies, by carrying in the blood of the bullock, and of the goat there, and sprinkling them as before observed: and the tabernacle of the congregation; the great court where the people met, and where the altar of burnt…

And Aaron shall lay both his hands on the head of the live goat In this order as the Targum of Jonathan says, his right hand upon his left hand on the head of the live goat; this was done in the name of the people, hereby transferring their sins, and the punishment of them, to it: and confess him…

And the goat shall bear upon him all their iniquities unto a land not inhabited Where it would never be seen, and from whence it would never return more; and so was a proper type of Christ, who has borne all the sins of all his people in his own body on the cross, and all the punishment due unto…

And Aaron shall come into the tabernacle of the congregation, &c.] Having been into the most holy place a fourth time, as the Jews say, to fetch out the censer and the incense cup; wherefore the Jewish writers observe, that this verse is not in its proper place; so Jarchi from the Rabbins says, the…

And he shall wash his flesh with water in the holy place In the court of the tabernacle of the congregation, where, as Aben Ezra says, they spread fine linen for him; Jarchi says, it was a place on the roof of the house of Parvah, where all the dippings and washings were made, except the first;…

And the fat of the sin offering shall he burn upon the altar. ] The brazen altar of burnt offering, and so says Jarchi, on the outward altar; for of the inward (i.e.

And he that let go the goat for the scapegoat Or unto Azazel; who or what Azazel is, (See Gill on Lev. 16:10) and (See Gill on Lev. 16:21); for the goat and Azazel are different, not the same, nor to be confounded as they are in our version: shall wash his clothes, and bathe himself in water; in…

And the bullock for the sin offering, and the goat for the sin offering The one for Aaron and his family, the other for the people of Israel, of which see (Lev. 16:5, Lev. 16:6, Lev. 16:9, Lev. 16:11, Lev.

And he that burneth them shall wash his clothes, and bathe his flesh in water In forty seahs of water, as the Targum of Jonathan; that is, everyone of those that burnt them, as Aben Ezra observes; for these being sin offerings, and had a connection with the sins of men, for whom they were offered,…

And this shall be a statute for ever unto you As long as the Aaronic priesthood was in being, and the Levitical dispensation lasted, until: the true Messiah came and put an end to all these rites and ceremonies; until that time this service was to be performed by the high priest in succession every…

For on that day shall the priest make an atonement for you to cleanse you By offering the sin offering for them; typical of the sacrifice of Christ, whose soul was made an offering for sin whereby atonement is made for it, and whose blood cleanses from all sin.

It shall be a sabbath of rest unto you From all servile work, as before observed; typical of a cessation from the performance of sinful works, at least from a sinful course of life, and from a dependence on works of righteousness, when a man is brought to believe in Christ, and in the atonement…

And the priest whom he shall anoint Whom God shall anoint, or shall be anointed, that shall succeed in the high priesthood, as Aaron’s sons did, the eldest of them, and none but such were anointed: and whom he shall consecrate; or fill his hands, by putting the sacrifices into them; (See Gill on…

And he shall make an atonement for the holy sanctuary The holy of holies, just in the same manner as Aaron had done, (Lev. 16:16, Lev. 16:20) ; and he shall make an atonement for the tabernacle of the congregation; the court of the tabernacle, and the holy place, and all in them, as Aaron did, in…

And this shall be an everlasting statute unto you Which is the third time of its being observed, see (Lev. 16:29, Lev. 16:31) , to show that this was a law of considerable moment, and to be taken notice of, and strictly and closely kept by the priests, to whom these words are directed, and on whom…