The Day of Atonement – Leviticus 23:26-32
26 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: 27 “Also the tenth day of this seventh month shall be the Day of Atonement. It shall be a holy convocation for you; you shall afflict your souls, and offer an offering made by fire to the Lord. 28 And you shall do no work on that same day, for it is the Day of Atonement, to make atonement for you before the Lord your God. 29 For any person who is not afflicted in soul on that same day shall be cut off from his people. 30 And any person who does any work on that same day, that person I will destroy from among his people. 31 You shall do no manner of work; it shall be a statute forever throughout your generations in all your dwellings. 32 It shall be to you a sabbath of solemn rest, and you shall afflict your souls; on the ninth day of the month at evening, from evening to evening, you shall celebrate your sabbath.”
Yom Kippur, which is also known as The Day Of Atonement, and is the highest of the Jewish holy days will begin this coming Friday at sunset, and last until Saturday at sunset. Because this High Holy Day falls during a Sabbath day, the Sabbath is a High Sabbath. Ever since the beginning of Rosh Hashanah (which occurred from last Wednesday at sunset, until last Friday at sunset), Jews around the world have been preparing themselves for Yom Kippur. During this ten-day period of time, Jews have been involved in a practice that is known as Teshuvah, which involves repentance. Such repentance involves personal relationships, and relationships with God. Tashlich is also a matter of practice, which relates to the teaching of Micah 7:19, “He will again have compassion on us, and will subdue our iniquities. You will cast all our sins into the depths of the sea.” Jews will say prayers and cast bread, or other items of food, upon a body of water. I think that all of us have heard of the saying, “cast you bread upon the waters.” During these “Ten Days Of Awe,” also known as “Ten Days Of Repentance,” Jews are trusting that they will be found worthy of having their names written in a “heavenly book of life,” whereby they will have one more year of life. A cordial greeting that Jews have for other Jews is, Leshanah tovah tikateiv veteichateim: (lit: “may you be inscribed and sealed for a good year”); this is a traditional greeting on the Jewish New Year (Rosh Hashanah).
The following article that discusses the Jewish Feast of Yom Kippur, is provided by ReformJudaism.org. This ministry is a Jewish ministry, as opposed to being a Messianic Jewish ministry.
Yom Kippur means “Day of Atonement” and refers to the annual Jewish observance of fasting, prayer and repentance. Part of the High Holidays, which also includes Rosh HaShanah, Yom Kippur is considered the holiest day on the Jewish calendar. In three separate passages in the Torah, the Jewish people are told, “the tenth day of the seventh month is the Day of Atonement. It shall be a sacred occasion for you: You shall practice self-denial.”(Leviticus 23:27). Fasting is seen as fulfilling this biblical commandment. The Yom Kippur fast also enables us to put aside our physical desires to concentrate on our spiritual needs through prayer, repentance and self-improvement.
Yom Kippur is the moment in Jewish time when we dedicate our mind, body, and soul to reconciliation with God, our fellow human beings, and ourselves. We are commanded to turn to those whom we have wronged first, acknowledging our sins and the pain we might have caused. At the same time, we must be willing to forgive and to let go of certain offenses and the feelings of resentment they provoked in us. On this journey we are both seekers and givers of pardon. Only then can we turn to God and ask for forgiveness: “And for all these, God of forgiveness, forgive us, pardon us, and grant us atonement.”
Comments by this writer:
The Day Of Atonement was fulfilled in Jesus, through His substitutionary death, per 2 Corinthians 5:21, as follows:
“He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.
From The Reformation Study Bible, Edited by Dr. R.C. Sproul, ”
5:21 An important summary of the gospel message. The verse explains how God imputed our sin to Christ. God as judge assigned the responsibility of our sin to Christ, making it possible for Him to be punished justly for that sin (Is. 53:6; 1 Pet. 2:24). The verse shows that Christ was our substitute, accepting the penalty of sin in our place. See “The Sinlessness of Jesus” at Heb. 4:15.
5:21 We might become the righteousness of God. Not only did God impute our sin to Christ, He also imputed Christ’s perfect righteousness to us (that is, He counted it as belonging to us). This imputation is the basis for the progressive realization of God’s righteousness in our moral character. Our thoughts and deeds are sanctified in increasing measure until we receive perfect righteousness in heaven.
Let us consider the name of God, Adonai, which is pronounced “a-doh-NIGH.” The meaning of Adonai is “I AM.” Scriptures that relate to Adonai are Exodus 3:14 and John 8:58. (This information on Adonai was obtained from “Hebrew Names For God.”)
The name of God, Adonai, means Lord and Master. If God is Adonai to you, He is the one to whom you submit or bow down; He is the Boss of your life. Adonai is the ultimate authority figure in your life and the One to whom you owe your complete allegiance. (Obtained from CBN article, written by Leah Adams)
Exodus 3:14, “And God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM.” And He said, “Thus you shall say to the children of Israel, ‘I AM has sent me to you.’”
3:14 From The Reformation Study Bible, Edited by Dr. R. C. Sproul, “I am who I am. The Lord is not defined or determined by any other than Himself. As the self-existent One, His promise is sure; He will reveal Himself in His saving deeds.
John 8:58, “Jesus said to them, “Most assuredly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I AM.”
8:58 From The Reformation Study Bible, Edited by Dr. R.C. Sproul, “before Abraham was, I am. This is a clear reference to Jesus’ eternal preexistence. Since this is an attribute of God alone, this text is a forceful statement of Jesus’ deity. The present tense of the verb suggests the eternal present of God’s eternity. “I am” is also reminiscent of God’s name in Ex. 3:14 (vv. 24, 28 note). See “Jesus Christ, God and Man” at John 1:14.
Now, let us go into worship and praise, as we are led by Paul Wilbur, in the song, “Adonai.”
Adonai
Eternity 