The Day of Atonement

The LORD appointed an annual holy day when the contamination caused by the sins of the people would be cleansed from the tabernacle and the sins of God's people would be removed from them.

Ahira Ben-Enan eagerly walked the lamb from the pen to his family’s tent. Today was the day his family’s sins would be expiated—they would be taken out of the way. He threw open the tent door.

“Come on out! I have the lamb. Let’s get over to the tabernacle.”

His dear wife, flashing him a big smile, came out holding their newborn baby girl. Then his firstborn, Enan, emerged yawning and stretching his arms, and finally, little Naphtali. Even though “Tali” was the last one out, he had the brightest eyes and seemed the most excited about the sacrifice. As they walked, Tali was full of questions.

“Abba, why does the lamb have to die?”

“Well, Tali, God is holy, and . . .”

“What’s holy?”

“Holy means that God is totally good, without sin. He doesn’t do wrong things like we do, and our sins separate us from Him. Our sins have a penalty . . .”

“What’s penalty?”

“Penalty means our sins have to be paid for.”

“How much do sins cost?”

“Well, the payment for sin is death. That means we would have to die to pay for our sins. But God loves us so much that He allowed us to offer a substitute to die in our place.”

“S-s-susistute? Is that the lamb?”

“That’s right. I chose this lamb for our substitute because God said the lamb had to be a male without defect—the best we have.”

Others were also walking toward the Tabernacle. Some carried pigeons; one father led a fine-looking young bull. Tali tugged on his father’s robe, whispering. “Tell them it’s ’posed to be a lamb, Abba.”

“Actually, Tali, God wants everyone to come—rich or poor. People can bring an animal from their herd or flock, but if they don’t have the means, they can bring a dove or a pigeon.”

They arrived at the tabernacle, and Aaron motioned for Ahira to come through the entrance. His family stood just outside and watched quietly through the open curtain as Ahira knelt down and placed his hand on the head of the lamb. Then he took his knife and quickly slit the throat of the substitute. One of Aaron’s sons caught the blood in a bowl and then sprinkled it on the altar. They watched as the head of their home skinned the lamb and cut it into pieces. Then, the priests arranged the pieces on the burning fire of the altar while Father washed the inner parts and the legs. Finally, those were burned, too. As Father turned and walked back to his family, they saw blood on his robe. They understood the seriousness of the sin problem as they observed this messy, violent death. The walk home was solemn as they thought about the sacrifice. Tali had only one question.

“Why did you put your hand on the lamb’s head, Abba?”

“By putting my hand on the head of the lamb, I was identifying our family with the lamb. God then accepted the lamb on our behalf so that when it died, it died as a substitute for us, making us right with God.”

“I’m glad God made a way for us to be forgiven. And I’m glad you obeyed Him, Abba.”