Beginning

The Day of Cleansing

16 Now two of Aaron’s sons had died while offering incense to the Lord. At that time the Lord spoke to Moses. ² He said, “Talk to your brother Aaron. Tell him there are times when he cannot go behind the curtain into the Most Holy Place where the Ark of the Covenant is. If he goes in when I appear in a cloud over the lid on the Ark of the Covenant, he will die.

³ “Aaron may enter the Most Holy Place only on the Day of Cleansing. Before he enters, he must offer a bull for a sin offering. And he must offer a male sheep for a whole burnt offering. ⁴ He must put on these clothes. He will put on the holy linen inner robe. The linen underclothes will be next to his body. His belt will be the cloth belt. And he will wear the linen turban. These are holy clothes. So he must wash his whole body with water before he puts them on.

⁵ “Aaron must take from the people of Israel two male goats for a sin offering. And he must take one male sheep for a burnt offering. ⁶ Then he will offer the bull for the sin offering. This sin offering is for himself. Then he will perform the acts to remove sins from him and his family so they will belong to the Lord.

⁷ “Next Aaron will take the two goats. He will bring them before the Lord at the entrance to the Meeting Tent. ⁸ Aaron will throw lots for the two goats. One lot will be for the Lord. The other lot will be for the goat that removes sin. ⁹ Then Aaron will take the goat that was chosen for the Lord by throwing the lot. He must offer this goat as a sin offering. ¹⁰ The other goat was chosen by lot to remove the sin. It must be brought alive before the Lord. The priest will use it to perform the acts to remove Israel’s sin so they will belong to the Lord. Then this goat will be sent out into the desert.

¹¹ “Then Aaron will offer the bull as a sin offering for himself. This will remove the sins of him and his family so they will belong to the Lord. He will kill the bull for the sin offering for himself. ¹² Then he must take a pan full of burning coals from the altar before the Lord. Aaron must take two handfuls of sweet incense that has been ground into powder. He must bring it into the room behind the curtain. ¹³ He must put the incense on the fire before the Lord. Then the cloud of incense will cover the lid on the Ark of the Covenant. Then when Aaron comes in, he will not die. ¹⁴ Also, Aaron must take some of the blood from the bull. He must sprinkle it with his finger on the front of the lid. Then, with his finger he will sprinkle the blood seven times in front of the lid.

¹⁵ “Then Aaron must kill the goat of the sin offering for the people. He must bring this goat’s blood into the room behind the curtain. He must do with the goat’s blood as he did with the bull’s blood. He must sprinkle the goat’s blood on the lid and in front of it. ¹⁶ The people in Israel have been unclean. So Aaron will perform the acts to make the Most Holy Place ready for service to the Lord. Then it will be clean from the sins and crimes of the people of Israel. He must do this because the Meeting Tent stays in the middle of unclean people. ¹⁷ When Aaron makes the Most Holy Place ready for service to the Lord, no one is allowed in the Meeting Tent. No one must go in until Aaron comes out. So Aaron will perform the acts to remove sins from himself and his family so they will belong to the Lord. Then he will remove the sins of all the people of Israel so they will belong to the Lord. ¹⁸ Afterward he will go out to the altar that is before the Lord. And he will make the altar ready for service to the Lord. Aaron will take some of the bull’s blood and some of the goat’s blood. He will put it on the corners of the altar on all sides. ¹⁹ Then he will sprinkle some of the blood with his finger. He will sprinkle it on the altar seven times. In this way Aaron will make the altar holy for the Lord. And it will be clean from all the sins of the people of Israel.

²⁰ “Aaron will make the Most Holy Place, the Meeting Tent and the altar clean. Then he will bring the goat alive to the Lord. ²¹ He will put both his hands on the head of the living goat. Then he will confess all the sins and crimes of Israel over the goat. In this way Aaron will put the people’s sins on the goat’s head. Then he will send the goat away into the desert. A man who has been appointed will lead the goat away. ²² So the goat will carry all the people’s sins on itself. It will go to a lonely place in the desert. The man who leads the goat will let it loose there.

²³ “Then Aaron will enter the Meeting Tent. He will take off the linen clothes. (He had put them on before he went into the Most Holy Place.) He must leave these clothes there. ²⁴ He will wash his whole body with water in a holy place. Then he will put on his regular clothes. He will come out and offer the whole burnt offering for himself. And he will offer the whole burnt offering for the people. He will remove sins from himself and the people so they will belong to the Lord. ²⁵ Then he will burn the fat of the sin offering on the altar.

²⁶ “The person who led the goat into the desert must wash his clothes. Then he must wash his whole body with water. After that, he may come back into the camp.

²⁷ “The bull and goat for the sin offerings must be taken outside the camp. The blood from these animals was brought into the Most Holy Place. It was to make the Holy Place ready for service to the Lord. The priests will burn the animals’ skins, bodies and intestines in the fire. ²⁸ Then the one who burns them must wash his clothes. And he must wash his whole body with water. After that, he may come back into the camp.

²⁹ “This law will always continue for you: On the tenth day of the seventh month, you must not eat. You must not do any work. The travelers or foreigners living with you must not work either. ³⁰ On this day the priests make you clean so you will belong to the Lord again. All your sins will be removed. ³¹ This is a very important day of rest for you. And you must not eat. This law will continue forever.

³² “So the appointed priest will perform the acts for making things ready for service to the Lord. He is the priest on whom oil was poured. He is appointed to take his father’s place. That priest must put on the holy linen clothes. ³³ He must make the Most Holy Place ready for service to the Lord. He must make the Meeting Tent and the altar ready for service to the Lord. He must remove the sins of himself and all the people of Israel so they will belong to the Lord. ³⁴ That law for removing the sins of the Israelites so they will belong to the Lord will continue forever. You will do these things once a year.”

So they did the things the Lord had commanded Moses.

Offering Sacrifices

17 The Lord said to Moses, ² “Speak to Aaron, his sons and all the people of Israel. Tell them: ‘This is what the Lord has commanded: ³ An Israelite might sacrifice an ox, a lamb or a goat. He might kill it inside the camp or outside it. ⁴ But he should have brought the animal to the entrance to the Meeting Tent. He should have given the animal as a gift to the Lord. If he didn’t, he is guilty of killing. He must be separated from his people. ⁵ This rule is so people will bring their sacrifices to the Lord. They have been sacrificing in the open fields. But they must bring those animals to the Lord at the entrance of the Meeting Tent. They must bring them to the priest and offer them as fellowship offerings. ⁶ Then the priest will sprinkle the blood from those animals on the Lord’s altar. It is near the entrance to the Meeting Tent. And the priest will burn the fat from those animals on the altar. This smell will be pleasing to the Lord. ⁷ They must not offer any more sacrifices to their goat idols. They have chased after those other gods. In that way they have acted like prostitutes. These rules will continue for people from now on.’

⁸ “Tell the people this: ‘Someone might offer a burnt offering or sacrifice. He might be a citizen of Israel. Or he might be a traveler or foreigner living with you. ⁹ That person must take his sacrifice to the entrance to the Meeting Tent. There he may offer it to the Lord. If he does not do this, he must be separated from his people.

¹⁰ “‘I will be against anyone who eats blood. It does not matter if it is a citizen of Israel or a foreigner living with you. I will separate that person from his people. ¹¹ This is because the life of the body is in the blood. And I have given you rules for pouring that blood on the altar. You must do this to remove your sins so you will belong to the Lord. It is the blood that removes the sins from your life so you will belong to the Lord. ¹² So I tell the people of Israel this: “None of you may eat blood. And no foreigner living among you may eat blood.”

¹³ “‘Someone may catch a wild animal or bird that can be eaten. The person may be a citizen of Israel or a foreigner living among you. He must pour the blood on the ground and cover it with dirt. ¹⁴ This is because if blood is still in the meat, the animal’s life is still in it. So I give this command to the people of Israel: “Don’t eat meat that still has blood in it. Anyone who eats blood must be separated from his people.”

¹⁵ “‘Someone may eat an animal that died by itself. Or he may eat an animal that was killed by another animal. The person may be a citizen of Israel or a foreigner living among you. If he eats the animal, he will be unclean until evening. He must wash his clothes and whole body with water. ¹⁶ If he does not wash his clothes and bathe his body, he will be guilty of sin.’”

Rules About Physical Relations

18 The Lord said to Moses, ² “Tell the people of Israel: ‘I am the Lord your God. ³ In the past you lived in Egypt. You must not do what was done in that country. And you must not do as they do in the land of Canaan where I am bringing you. Do not follow their customs. ⁴ You must obey my rules and follow them. I am the Lord your God. ⁵ Obey my laws and rules. A person who obeys my laws and rules will live because of them. I am the Lord.

⁶ “‘You must never have physical relations with your close relatives. I am the Lord.

⁷ “‘You must not shame your father by having physical relations with your mother. She is your mother. Do not have physical relations with her. ⁸ You must not have physical relations with your father’s wife. That would shame your father.

⁹ “‘You must not have physical relations with your sister. She may be the daughter of your father or your mother. It doesn’t matter if she was born in your house or somewhere else.

¹⁰ “‘You must not have physical relations with your granddaughter. She may be your son’s daughter or your daughter’s daughter. That would bring shame on you.

¹¹ “‘If your father and his wife have a daughter, she is your sister. You must not have physical relations with her.

¹² “‘You must not have physical relations with your father’s sister. She is your father’s close relative. ¹³ You must not have physical relations with your mother’s sister. She is your mother’s close relative. ¹⁴ You must not have physical relations with the wife of your father’s brother. This would shame him. His wife is your aunt.

¹⁵ “‘You must not have physical relations with your daughter-in-law. She is your son’s wife. Do not have physical relations with her.

¹⁶ “‘You must not have physical relations with your brother’s wife. That would shame your brother.

¹⁷ “‘You must not have physical relations with both a woman and her daughter. And do not have physical relations with this woman’s granddaughter. It may be the daughter of her son or her daughter. They are her close relatives. It is evil to do this.

¹⁸ “‘While your wife is still living, you must not take her sister as another wife. Do not have physical relations with her.

¹⁹ “‘You must not go near a woman to have physical relations with her during her monthly period. She is unclean during this time.

²⁰ “‘You must not commit adultery with your neighbor’s wife and make yourself unclean with her.

²¹ “‘You must not give any of your children to be sacrificed to Molech. This will show that you do not respect your God. I am the Lord.

²² “‘You must not have physical relations with a man as you would a woman. That is a hated sin.

²³ “‘You must not have unnatural physical relations with an animal and make yourself unclean with it. Also a woman must not have unnatural physical relations with an animal. It is not natural.

²⁴ “‘Don’t make yourself unclean by any of these wrong things. I am forcing nations out of their countries because they did these sins. And I am giving their land to you. ²⁵ The land has become unclean. So I punished it for its sins. And the land is throwing out those people who live there.

²⁶ “‘You must obey my laws and rules. You must not do any of these hated sins. These rules are for the citizens of Israel. They are also for the people who live with you. ²⁷ The people who lived in the land before you did all these hated things. So the land became unclean. ²⁸ If you do these things, you will also make the land unclean. And it will throw you out as it threw out the nations before you. ²⁹ Anyone who does these hated sins must be separated from his people. ³⁰ The people who lived in the land before you have done these hated sins. But you must not do them. You must obey my laws. Don’t make yourself unclean by these hated sins. I am the Lord your God.’”