Home » Table of Contents » Discussion

Yom Kippur, the Holiest Jewish Day of Atonement

Revelation sets many of its visions in the Temple amid its sacred objects and celebrating its daily tamid services and observing its Yom Kippur Day of Atonement as the holiest day of the Jewish year. Yom Kippur is a Sabbath of Sabbaths and a day of cessation and at-one-ment. On it Jews fast, rest, and atone for sin. Fully observing Yom Kippur fully calls for the Temple and its sacred objects. The three Yom Kippur Temple services are its daily tamid dusk service, its daily tamid dawn service, and its main special mosaf service lasting the rest of the day.1] 

The twice-daily tamid services throughout the year see keves-lambs sacrificed and burning on the Sacrificial-Altar continually (tamid literally means always). 2] But the two Yom Kippur tamid services differ from those on the other 364 days. The Yom Kippur tamid services are conducted by the High-Priest, not a regular Cohen. He uses only gold, not silver, vessels. And he sacrifices ayil-rams, not keves-lambs.[3]  Revelation having its arnion-ram, rather than the amnos-lamb that skips everywhere else in the New Testament, rams the point home.4]

Events from Yom Kippur Fill Revelation:
YOM KIPPUR
DUSK & DAWN TAMIDSERVICES
MATCHING
REVELATION VERSES
The High-Priest dons the white plain-linen garments of a regular Cohen (not his usual golden garments), and conducts the full dusk tamid service
1.13, 14.14–15: Son of Man adorned in a long robe
3.5, 18&4.4: White clothing
7.14: They have washed their robes and have bleached them
He stays awake all night until
7.15, etc: Many mentions of day and night
The planet Venus is sighted, Morning Star (Barkai!) is shouted, and the Temple-Door is opened loudly so that it is heard even in Jericho
2.28 & 22.17: Dawn-Star
1.10&4.1: Loud voice like a trumpet
4.1: Door opened up
7.2 &16.12: Rising-place of the sun
The High-Priest conducts the dawn tamid service
1.13, 14.14–15: Son of Man adorned in a long robe
He trims, refuels, and rekindles the Menorah
1.12: Seven gold Menorah-Lamps
He sacrifices an ayil-ram
5.6: Young Ram standing as if slain
He collects its blood in a pitcher and dashes it on the Sacrificial-Altar
5.9, 7.14 & 12.11: Blood of the Ram
He takes incense and live embers from the Sacrificial-Altar, burns the incense on the Incense-Altar, and lets its fragrant smoke fill the Holy (the dusk tamid service lets this part precede the ram-sacrifice)
5.8: Gold chalices full of incenses
9.13: Gold Incense-Altar facing God
15.8: The Temple was filled with smoke from the Glory of God
He splits the ram’s corpse and burns its parts on the Sacrificial-Altar
6.9–11: Beneath the Sacrificial-Altar the souls of those slain
He recites the Ten Commandments (Deut. 5.6–22), Hear O Israel (Deut. 6.4–9), Deut. 11.13–21, and Num. 15.37–41
1.3: The person reading out
5.7–8: Short scroll on the right hand of the Enthroned-One
10.1–2: Mighty Angel…holding a tiny open scroll
He prays: May the Lord bless you and keep you (Num. 6.22–26)
1.3, 14.13, 16.15, 19.9, 20.6, 22.7, 9 &14: Fortunate are those who. . . .
He closes with: Put My name on the people of Israel and I will bless them (Num. 6.27)
7.1–8: We have stamped the seal on the servants of this God of ours on their foreheads
14.1: His name and the name of his Father written on their foreheads
22.4: His name on their foreheads
He and his fellow Cohens prostrate themselves, and the Levites sound trumpets, play harps, and sing Psalms: Ps. 24 on Sunday, Ps. 48 on Monday, Ps. 82 on Tuesday, Ps. 94 on Wednesday, Ps. 81 on Thursday, Ps. 93 on Friday, and Ps. 92 on the Sabbath
7.11 & 11.16: They fell face-down
1.10, 4.1, etc: Trumpets
5.8, 14.2, 15.2: Harps
5.9, 14.3, 15.3: New song
7.12: Praise
8.13, etc: Trump-Ta-Ras
19.1, 3–4, 8: Hallelujahs
He pours wine away at the base of the Sacrificial-Altar
 
16.1, etc: Pour these seven pitchers
BREAK BETWEEN THE DAWN TAMID SERVICE & MAIN MOSAF SERVICE
MATCHING
REVELATIONVERSES
echoes Yom Kippur as a day of cessation, just as the ten prior repentance days of awe did
4.8, 6.11, 14.11 & 13: Rest
8.1: Silence settled in the sky for about half-an-hour
YOM KIPPUR’S
SPECIAL MOSAF
ATONEMENT SERVICE
MATCHING
REVELATIONVERSES
The High-Priest washes
1.5: He who…washed us
He confesses over his own sacrificial bullock for himself and his family
4.7: The second Living-Being like a bullock
He utters YHWH seven timesGod’s otherwise unutterable name
11.4, 1.8, 4.8: THE-IS, THE-WAS, now THE-IS-COMING
11.17 & 16.5: THE-IS and THE-WAS
He draws lots over two sin offering goats, one for the fire and the other (the scapegoat) for the fall, and tags the scapegoat with a skein of scarlet wool tied to its horns
1.1–22.21: Revelation’s many word-plays and double-meanings
12.3, 13.11, 17.3: Dragon…serpent…‌beast…second beast…scarlet beast
He confesses for the sins of Israel over each goat
1.5: Set us free…from our sins
He sacrifices the bullock, collects its blood in a pitcher, and a Cohen swirls it in a bowl to stop it clotting
4.7: Second Living-Being like a Bullock
He takes a double handful of incense in a chalice and live Sacrificial-Altar embers on a pan
8.3: To him were handed many incenses
8.5: The Angel has taken up the chalice, filled it from the fire of the Sacrificial-Altar
He walks the incense and embers through the paroket curtain-veil into the Holy of Holies
1.1: An unveiling
11.19 & 15.5: Temple of God…opened up
He lights the incense on the floor before the Ark, and lets its fragrant smoke fill the Holy of Holies
8.3–5: Many incenses…to offer…at the gold Incense-Altar before the Throne
15.8: The Temple was filled with smoke from the Glory of God
11.19: Within His Temple appeared its Ark of His Covenant
He returns for the bullock-blood, takes it into the Holy of Holies, and sprinkles it on the Ark-Lid (once up and seven times down)
1.5, etc:Many mentions of blood
He sacrifices the first goat on the Sacrificial-Altar, takes its blood in a pitcher back into the Holy of Holies and sprinkles it on the Ark-Lid in the same way
1.5, etc.: Many mentions of blood
He walks back into the Holy, sprinkles the bull and goat bloods on the outer curtain-veil as above, then mixes them, and sprinkles the mix on the horns and platform of the Incense-Altar similarly
1.5, etc.:Many mentions of blood
9.13: Four horns of the gold Incense-Altar facing God
16.1, etc: Pour these seven pitchers
He pours out the rest of the blood at the base of the Sacrificial-Altar
1.5, etc.:Many mentions of blood
16.1, etc: Pour these seven pitchers
He sends the scapegoat twelve miles east to Mt. Tsok, to be dispatched backwards alive into the Dudael gorge, to return the sins of Israel to the fallen chief rebel angel Azazel
9.2, 11, 11.7, 17.8, 20.1: Bottomless pit
12.7–11: This huge dragon…was cast down
19.20: These two were tossed into the pool of fire
20.1: He seized the dragon…tossed it into the bottomless pit
He burns some parts of the bullock and the first goat on the Sacrificial-Altar, and sends the other parts for burning outside the city
14.20: Winepress trampled outside the city
He utters prayers and blessings (Lev. 16.1–34, 23.26–32, Num. 29.7–11)
20.12: Some short scrolls were opened.…Another short scroll was opened—the one that is the Book of Life
The sighting of three stars (more likely planets first) ends Yom Kippur
2.28 & 22.17 The Dawn-Star (now Dusk-Star),
Seven other keves-lambs are sacrificed too, timing uncertain5]
1.4–21.9: Many sets of seven
BANQUET
AFTER YOM KIPPUR
MATCHING
REVELATION VERSES
The High-Priest dons his usual golden garments and begemmed breastplate again
21.19–20: Foundations of the city-wall arrayed with all kinds of precious gemstone
He throws a celebratory banquet
19.9: Wedding banquet of the Ram
19.17: God’s great banquet
19.21: All the birds feasted on those remains.


 

1] Levit. 16.1–34; Danby, Mishnah 2.Yoma
[2] Exod. 29.38–42; Num. 28.1–8; Sir. 50.1–21; & Danby Mishnah 5.Tamid
[3] Levit. 16.3–5, Num. 29.2, 8–9; & Num. 28.3–4, Qumran Temple Scroll 25.12–16, also VanderKam, Dead Sea Scrolls TodayA.323.6d
[4] Rev. 5.6, etc., also Aune, Word Biblical Commentary, Revelation, 52
[5] Num. 29.2, 8 & 10