The Day of Atonement
And the LORD spoke to Moses after the death of the two sons of Aaron, when they came near before the LORD and died.
And the LORD said to Moses: “Speak to Aaron your brother, that he not come at just any time into the holy place inside the veil, in front of the atonement cover that is on the ark, so that he does not die — for in the cloud I appear over the atonement cover.
With this Aaron shall come into the holy place: with a young bull for a sin offering and a ram for a burnt offering.
He shall put on a holy linen tunic, and linen undergarments shall be on his flesh, and he shall gird himself with a linen sash, and wrap himself in a linen turban. They are holy garments; and he shall bathe his flesh in water and put them on.
And from the congregation of the sons of Israel he shall take two male goats for a sin offering, and one ram for a burnt offering.
And Aaron shall bring near the bull of the sin offering that is for himself, and make atonement for himself and for his house.
And he shall take the two goats and set them before the LORD at the door of the Tent of Meeting.
And Aaron shall put lots on the two goats — one lot for the LORD, and one lot for Azazel.
And Aaron shall bring near the goat on which the lot for the LORD came up, and offer it as a sin offering.
But the goat on which the lot for Azazel came up shall be stood alive before the LORD, to make atonement over it — to send it away to Azazel, into the wilderness.
And Aaron shall bring near the bull of the sin offering that is for himself, and make atonement for himself and for his house; and he shall slaughter the bull of the sin offering that is for himself.
And he shall take a firepan full of coals of fire from on the altar before the LORD, and his hands full of finely ground fragrant incense, and bring it inside the veil.
And he shall put the incense on the fire before the LORD, so that the cloud of the incense covers the atonement cover that is over the testimony — so that he does not die.
And he shall take some of the blood of the bull and sprinkle it with his finger on the front of the atonement cover, eastward; and in front of the atonement cover he shall sprinkle some of the blood with his finger seven times.
And he shall slaughter 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: he shall sprinkle it on the atonement cover and in front of the atonement cover.
And he shall make atonement for the holy place, because of the uncleannesses of the sons of Israel and because of their rebellions, for all their sins; and so he shall do for the Tent of Meeting, which dwells with them in the midst of their uncleannesses.
And no man shall be in the Tent of Meeting when he goes in to make atonement in the holy place, until he comes out — and he shall make atonement for himself, and for his house, and for all the assembly of Israel.
And he shall go out to the altar that is before the LORD and make atonement for it; and he 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.
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 sons of Israel.
And when he has finished making atonement for the holy place, and the Tent of Meeting, and the altar, he shall bring near the living goat.
And Aaron shall lay his two hands on the head of the living goat, and confess over it all the iniquities of the sons of Israel, and all their rebellions, for all their sins; and he shall put them on the head of the goat, and send it away, by the hand of a man appointed for the task, into the wilderness.
And the goat shall carry on itself all their iniquities to a cut-off land; and he shall send the goat away into the wilderness.
And Aaron shall come into the Tent of Meeting and take off the linen garments he put on when he went into the holy place, and he shall leave them there.
And he shall bathe his flesh in water in a holy place and put on his own garments; and he shall come out and offer his burnt offering and the burnt offering of the people, and make atonement for himself and for the people.
And the fat of the sin offering he shall turn into smoke on the altar.
And the one who sends the goat away to Azazel shall wash his garments and bathe his flesh in water; and after that he may come into the camp.
And the bull of the sin offering and the goat of the sin offering, whose blood was brought in to make atonement in the holy place, shall be carried outside the camp; and they shall burn their skins and their flesh and their dung with fire.
And the one who burns them shall wash his garments and bathe his flesh in water; and after that he may come into the camp.
And it shall be a statute forever for you: in the seventh month, on the tenth of the month, you shall afflict your souls, and you shall do no work — the native and the sojourner who sojourns in your midst.
For on this day atonement shall be made for you, to cleanse you; from all your sins, before the LORD, you shall be clean.
It is a sabbath of complete rest for you, and you shall afflict your souls — a statute forever.
And the priest who is anointed and whose hand is filled to serve as priest in his father’s place shall make the atonement; and he shall put on the linen garments, the holy garments.
And he shall make atonement for the holy sanctuary, and he shall make atonement for the Tent of Meeting and for the altar; and for the priests and for all the people of the assembly he shall make atonement.
And this shall be a statute forever for you: to make atonement for the sons of Israel, for all their sins, once a year.” And he did as the LORD had commanded Moses.