Yom Kippur: Day of Atonement

The LORD said to Moses, “The tenth day of this seventh month is the Day of Atonement.  Hold a sacred assembly and deny yourselves, and present an offering made to the LORD by fire.  Do no work on that day, because it is the Day of Atonement, when atonement is made for you before the LORD your God.  Anyone who does not deny himself on that day must be cut off from his people.  I will destroy from among his people anyone who does any work on that day.  You shall do no work at all.  This is to be a lasting ordinance for the generations to come, wherever you live.  It is a sabbath of rest for you, and you must deny yourselves. From the evening of the  ninth day of the month until the following evening you are to observe your sabbath” (Leviticus 23: 26-32 NIV).  (See Exodus 30: 10 and Numbers 29: 7-11 also.)

Much time had been lost, and sailing had already become dangerous because by now it was after the Fast [Day of Atonement] (Acts 27: 9 NIV).

The Day of Atonement is considered most holy among God’s Appointed Times.  It is a day of fasting, prayer, and assembly.  Some equate the Day of Atonement (also known as the Day of Purging) to the Judgment.

Salvation is through the blood of Jesus Christ (Yeshua the Messiah). our Passover Lamb.  Good works do not produce salvation; rather, salvation produces good works.  During the Fall Feasts, I am acutely aware of how I have “missed the mark” by what I have done or left undone.  For me, the Fall Feasts are a time of reflection, repentance, and spiritual renewal–an opportunity to have a closer relationship with the Lord.

As I study God’s Appointed Times, I am beginning to participate in them. Since His feasts are holy convocations (dress rehearsals), I want to be ready for the events they foreshadow.  Just as the Spring Feasts foreshadowed Christ first advent, the Fall Feasts foreshadow His second coming.  One day ALL nations will celebrate the Feast of Tabernacles (Zechariah 14: 16).

Yom Kippur begins at sundown tonight (9/13/2013).

Do the following verses relate to the Day of Atonement?  I don’t know.  What do you think?“When the Son of Man comes in his glory and all the angels with him, he will sit on his throne in heavenly glory.  All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats.  He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.  Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world” (Matthew 25: 31-3 NIV).  “Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels'” (Matthew 25: 41 NIV).

“But I tell you that all men will have to give account on the day of judgment for every careless word they have spoken.  For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned” (Matthew 12: 36-37).

Related articles

• Security forces on high alert as Israelis mark Yom Kippur (jpost.com)
• Israel prepares for solemn, silent Day of Atonement (timesofisrael.com)
• YOM KIPPUR – Day of Covering or Atonement (yahuahshomemaker.wordpress.com)