1The Lord spoke to Moses after the death of the two sons of Aaron who died when they approached the Lord.2The Lord said to Moses: ‘Tell your brother Aaron that he is not to come whenever he chooses into the Most Holy Place behind the curtain in front of the atonement cover on the ark, or else he will die. For I will appear in the cloud over the atonement cover.3‘This is how Aaron is to enter the Most Holy Place: he must first bring a young bull for a sin offering[1] and a ram for a burnt offering.4He is to put on the sacred linen tunic, with linen undergarments next to his body; he is to tie the linen sash round him and put on the linen turban. These are sacred garments; so he must bathe himself with water before he puts them on.5From the Israelite community he is to take two male goats for a sin offering and a ram for a burnt offering.6‘Aaron is to offer the bull for his own sin offering to make atonement for himself and his household.7Then he is to take the two goats and present them before the Lord at the entrance to the tent of meeting.8He is to cast lots for the two goats – one lot for the Lord and the other for the scapegoat.[2]9Aaron shall bring the goat whose lot falls to the Lord and sacrifice it for a sin offering.10But the goat chosen by lot as the scapegoat shall be presented alive before the Lord to be used for making atonement by sending it into the wilderness as a scapegoat.11‘Aaron shall bring the bull for his own sin offering to make atonement for himself and his household, and he is to slaughter the bull for his own sin offering.12He is to take a censer full of burning coals from the altar before the Lord and two handfuls of finely ground fragrant incense and take them behind the curtain.13He is to put the incense on the fire before the Lord, and the smoke of the incense will conceal the atonement cover above the tablets of the covenant law, so that he will not die.14He is to take some of the bull’s blood and with his finger sprinkle it on the front of the atonement cover; then he shall sprinkle some of it with his finger seven times before the atonement cover.15‘He shall then slaughter the goat for the sin offering for the people and take its blood behind the curtain and do with it as he did with the bull’s blood: he shall sprinkle it on the atonement cover and in front of it.16In this way he will make atonement for the Most Holy Place because of the uncleanness and rebellion of the Israelites, whatever their sins have been. He is to do the same for the tent of meeting, which is among them in the midst of their uncleanness.17No-one is to be in the tent of meeting from the time Aaron goes in to make atonement in the Most Holy Place until he comes out, having made atonement for himself, his household and the whole community of Israel.18‘Then he shall come out to the altar that is before the Lord and make atonement for it. He shall take some of the bull’s blood and some of the goat’s blood and put it on all the horns of the altar.19He shall sprinkle some of the blood on it with his finger seven times to cleanse it and consecrate it from the uncleanness of the Israelites.20‘When Aaron has finished making atonement for the Most Holy Place, the tent of meeting and the altar, he shall bring forward the live goat.21He is to lay both hands on the head of the live goat and confess over it all the wickedness and rebellion of the Israelites – all their sins – and put them on the goat’s head. He shall send the goat away into the wilderness in the care of someone appointed for the task.22The goat will carry on itself all their sins to a remote place; and the man shall release it in the wilderness.23‘Then Aaron is to go into the tent of meeting and take off the linen garments he put on before he entered the Most Holy Place, and he is to leave them there.24He shall bathe himself with water in the sanctuary area and put on his ordinary garments. Then he shall come out and sacrifice the burnt offering for himself and the burnt offering for the people, to make atonement for himself and for the people.25He shall also burn the fat of the sin offering on the altar.26‘The man who releases the goat as a scapegoat must wash his clothes and bathe himself with water; afterwards he may come into the camp.27The bull and the goat for the sin offerings, whose blood was brought into the Most Holy Place to make atonement, must be taken outside the camp; their hides, flesh and intestines are to be burned.28The man who burns them must wash his clothes and bathe himself with water; afterwards he may come into the camp.29‘This is to be a lasting ordinance for you: on the tenth day of the seventh month you must deny yourselves[3] and not do any work – whether native-born or a foreigner residing among you –30because on this day atonement will be made for you, to cleanse you. Then, before the Lord, you will be clean from all your sins.31It is a day of sabbath rest, and you must deny yourselves; it is a lasting ordinance.32The priest who is anointed and ordained to succeed his father as high priest is to make atonement. He is to put on the sacred linen garments33and make atonement for the Most Holy Place, for the tent of meeting and the altar, and for the priests and all the members of the community.34‘This is to be a lasting ordinance for you: atonement is to be made once a year for all the sins of the Israelites.’ And it was done, as the Lord commanded Moses.
Leviticus 16
English Standard Version
The Day of Atonement
1The Lord spoke to Moses after the death of the two sons of Aaron, when they drew near before the Lord and died, (Le 10:1)2and 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. (Ex 25:22; Ex 30:10; Ex 40:34; 1Ki 8:10; Heb 9:7; Heb 9:12; Heb 9:24; Heb 10:19)3But 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. (Le 1:10; Le 4:3; Le 8:18)4He 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. (Ex 28:39; Ex 30:20; Le 6:10; Le 8:6; Le 8:7; Eze 44:17)5And 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. (Le 4:14; Nu 29:11; 2Ch 29:21; Ezr 6:17)6“Aaron shall offer the bull as a sin offering for himself and shall make atonement for himself and for his house. (Le 9:7; Le 16:17; Le 16:24; Eze 45:22; Heb 7:27; Heb 9:7)7Then he shall take the two goats and set them before the Lord at the entrance of the tent of meeting.8And Aaron shall cast lots over the two goats, one lot for the Lord and the other lot for Azazel.[1] (Le 16:26)9And Aaron shall present the goat on which the lot fell for the Lord and use it as a sin offering,10but 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. (Le 16:8)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. (Le 16:6)12And 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 (Le 10:1; Nu 16:46; Re 8:3)13and 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. (Ex 25:21; Ex 30:1; Ex 30:7)14And 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. (Le 4:5; Heb 9:13; Heb 9:25; Heb 10:4)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. (Le 16:2; Heb 2:17; Heb 5:1; Heb 6:19; Heb 9:3; Heb 9:7)16Thus 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. (Ex 29:36; Le 16:18; Eze 45:18; Heb 9:22)17No 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. (Lu 1:10; Lu 1:21)18Then 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. (Ex 30:6; Ex 30:10; Le 1:5; Le 4:7; Le 4:18; Le 4:24; Le 16:16)19And 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. (Le 16:16; Le 16:18; Eze 43:20; Eze 45:20)21And 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. (Isa 53:6; 2Co 5:21)22The goat shall bear all their iniquities on itself to a remote area, and he shall let the goat go free in the wilderness. (Le 14:7; Isa 53:11; Joh 1:29; Heb 9:28; 1Pe 2:24)23“Then Aaron shall come into the tent of meeting and shall take off the linen garments that he put on when he went into the Holy Place and shall leave them there. (Le 6:11)24And he shall bathe his body in water in a holy place and put on his garments and come out and offer his burnt offering and the burnt offering of the people and make atonement for himself and for the people. (Le 16:3; Le 16:5)25And the fat of the sin offering he shall burn on the altar. (Ex 29:13; Le 4:8)26And he who lets the goat go to Azazel shall wash his clothes and bathe his body in water, and afterward he may come into the camp. (Le 15:5; Le 16:8; Le 16:10; Le 17:15)27And the bull for the sin offering and the goat for the sin offering, whose blood was brought in to make atonement in the Holy Place, shall be carried outside the camp. Their skin and their flesh and their dung shall be burned up with fire. (Le 4:11; Le 4:21; Le 6:30; Heb 13:11)28And he who burns them shall wash his clothes and bathe his body in water, and afterward he may come into the camp.29“And it shall be a statute to you forever that in the seventh month, on the tenth day of the month, you shall afflict yourselves[2] and shall do no work, either the native or the stranger who sojourns among you. (Ex 12:49; Le 17:15; Le 18:26; Le 19:34; Le 23:27; Le 23:32; Nu 29:7; Ps 35:13; Isa 58:3; Isa 58:5; Da 10:12)30For on this day shall atonement be made for you to cleanse you. You shall be clean before the Lord from all your sins. (Ps 51:2; Jer 33:8; Heb 10:1; 1Jo 1:7; 1Jo 1:9)31It is a Sabbath of solemn rest to you, and you shall afflict yourselves; it is a statute forever. (Le 16:29; Le 23:32)32And the priest who is anointed and consecrated as priest in his father’s place shall make atonement, wearing the holy linen garments. (Ex 29:29; Le 16:4; Le 21:10; Nu 20:28)33He shall make atonement for the holy sanctuary, and he shall make atonement for the tent of meeting and for the altar, and he shall make atonement for the priests and for all the people of the assembly. (Le 16:6; Le 16:16; Le 16:18; Le 16:24)34And this shall be a statute forever for you, that atonement may be made for the people of Israel once in the year because of all their sins.” And Aaron[3] did as the Lord commanded Moses. (Ex 30:10; Heb 9:7; Heb 9:25)