Atoning for the Day of Atonement
20 April 2008
Atoning for the Day of Atonement
This post is part of a paper written by a theology student at Southern Adventist University. Understanding the controversial nature of this topic within Adventism and reviewing the actions at Glacier View, I felt it was proper to publish this under my name since I am not seeking denominational employment and feel able to defend this view without the threat of disciplinary action.
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The ceremonial law, found in the Pentateuch, which centers around the sanctuary and its sacrificial services were shadows of the coming Messiah. Even the festivals and Sabbaths pointed forward to the substance which is Christ (Colossians 2:17; Hebrews 10:1; 1 Corinthians 5:7). The annual festivals commanded by God all prefigured some event relating to the Messiah. Also, something worthy of mention is that each of the festivals which have been fulfilled met their fulfillment on the actual day of celebration. That is to say, Christ was sacrificed as our paschal lamb on the day of Passover. Christ presented Himself before the Father on the day of Firstfruits. These parallels hold true to each of the holidays. Type met anti-type on the very same day, and it was all fulfilled in that day.
The Spring Festivals
Passover
Paul is explicit in saying that Christ is our paschal lamb, that is the lamb sacrificed on the day of Passover(1 Corinthians 5:7). When the festival was instituted in Exodus the lamb played a significant role in serving as a covering for the people of God (Exodus 12:13). The blood of the lamb would be present on the doorposts of the home, and that was the sign to the angel of destruction to pass over that home. In the same way, Christ’s blood cleanses us from all sin and reconciles us to God (1 John 1:7; Ephesians 2:13).
Early Firstfruits
In Hebrew the festival is referred to as Sfirat HaOmer. As the command in Leviticus explains, the priest was to present the firstfruits of the harvest before God in the sanctuary. This presentation was to take place on the day after the Sabbath, following the Passover (Leviticus 23:10, 11). The firstfruits were not offered to the Lord in a sacrificial sense but they were merely waved, or presented, to God. The firstfruits were a promise of a greater harvest to come.
Christ was raised on Sfirat HaOmer, the day after the Sabbath following Passover (Matthew 28:1). He made it clear to Mary that He had not yet ascended to, or presented Himself before, the Father. (John 20:17) The implication of John 20:17 being that Jesus would indeed ascend to the Father on that day and present Himself as a firstfruit.
Paul does not miss the analogy. He explains that Christ’s resurrection was indeed a firstfruit of resurrection and is therefore a guarantee of a greater resurrection sometime in the future (1 Corinthians 15:20-23).
Latter Firstfruits
Fifty days after the presenting of the early firstfruits was to be another festival (Leviticus 23:15-21). This holiday is significant for two reasons. On an agricultural level, the presentation of even more of the firstfruits speaks of a growing promise that there will be a great harvest in the fall. The historical aspect is equally intriguing. This day marks the date of the giving of the Law at Mt. Sinai. So with this duality in mind we can expect to find a dual sense of fulfillment.
On the very day of the latter firstfruits, known in Greek as Pentecost, the early Apostles received two things. They first, and most obviously, received the Holy Spirit. The giving of the Spirit has unambiguous connections to the giving of the Law. Paul says quite clearly that, “If you are led by the Spirit you are not under the law”(Galatians 5:18). Spirit and law are often juxtaposed in the New Testament (Galatians 3:2; Romans 7:6, 8:2). Also, with the conversion of 3,000 people in one day there was indeed a promise given from God of a bountiful future harvest (Acts 2:41)!
The Fall Festivals
It is fascinating to notice that the Spring festivals all anticipated a work that would be done during the first coming of the Messiah. Christ by His death, resurrection, ascension, and sending of the Holy Spirit has already fulfilled all of the Spring holidays. The Fall festivals however are yet to be fulfilled. They all foreshadow things which will be done in and around the time of the second advent.
Feast of Trumpets
Known traditionally as Rosh Hashanah, this holiday marks the beginning of the ecclesiastical year, despite the fact that it takes place in seventh month of the civil year. The notable feature of the Feast of Trumpets is the resounding of the shofar, the trumpet-horn.
The blasting of the trumpet, in the Jewish reckoning, connotes various things. According to Saadia Gaon, a Jewish rabbi, philosopher, and exegete of the tenth century, the blasting of the shofar on Rosh Hashanah represented, among other things: acknowledging God as King, remembering the coming day of final judgment, foreshadowing the proclamation of the freedom of God’s people, and a foreshadowing of the inauguration of God’s reign of righteousness throughout the world (Judaism.about.com).
The sounding of the trumpet is a call to God’s people to gather together. Yet, what is fascinating is that traditional Jewish liturgy says that God has “commanded us to hear the sound of the shofar” (Judaism.about.com). Thus, we see an implicit correlation with hearing the shofar and responding to it. Even biblically, the sounding of the trumpet was a call to gather together (Nehemiah 4:20).
The prophetic fulfillment is obvious. The second coming of Jesus is the substance of which the Feast of Trumpets is a shadow. No other event described in the New Testament shows this interrelation between trumpet sounds and gathering. “At that time the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and all the nations of the earth will mourn. They will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky, with power and great glory. And he will send his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of the heavens to the other” (Matthew 24:30, 31).
“Listen, I tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed—in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed” (1 Corinthians 15:51, 52).
“For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever” (1 Thessalonians 4:16, 17).
Philip Sigal, an influential Jewish author, says, “The sounding of the shofar is related to the Messianic theme, and in one tradition, Rosh Hashana is said to be the time of the ultimate redemption…[The prayers] in many ways allude to God's enthronement, for the kingship of Heaven materializes with the advent of Messiah, who presides over the last judgment” (Amfi.org).
Jewish tradition sets aside the entire month preceding Rosh Hashanah as a time of repentance. That month is called Elul, which in Aramaic means “search.” How fitting, since Elul is a 30 day period of searching your heart and repenting. Therefore, eschatologically, we are living in the typical month of Elul, a time when we ought to be preparing our hearts for the sounding of the Lord’s trumpet.
Only those who are repentant will truly hear and respond to the trumpet call of God. This is why the dead in Christ rise at the trump of God, because those who are asleep in Christ who had repentant hearts will be obedient to the call of the shofar and will be gathered together.
A traditional Rosh Hashanah greeting is, “May you be inscribed and sealed for a good year” (Jewfaq.org). The concept being that on the day of Rosh Hashanah God would decide whose names would be written in the book of life. So the Jews greet each other on Rosh Hashanah with the expectant hope that God will put their names in the book of life.
John the Revelator makes a total of seven references to this Book of Life and each time it is clear that entrance into Heaven is contingent upon having your name written in it (Revelation 13:8, 17:8, 20:12, 20:15, 21:27, 22:19). Thus, New Testament prophecy is instep with ancient Jewish tradition which teaches that those who were repentant during Elul, and those who responded to the trumpet call are those written in the Book.
We understand, prophetically, that the second coming of Jesus will be followed by a time where thrones will be set up and judgment decided upon. This time period lasts 1,000 years. Anti-typically, the Feast of Trumpets is followed by a 10 day period in which the Book of Life is reviewed by God to decide who judgment will be enacted upon. Some Jewish traditions hold that during this interim-period those who had not repented before the Feast of Trumpets will have opportunity to be added to the Book of Life. This is not unanimous and is not supported by the biblical description of the millennium. Instead, the millennium is a time of affirmation. It will be affirmed whether or not those who gathered together at the trumpet sound will remain faithful.
The ten days after Rosh Hashanah are known as the Days of Awe. They are not times of celebration; they remain solemn times of judgment because the judgment itself is yet to be executed.
The Day of Atonement
Judgment is executed on the Day of Atonement. God’s judgment decision which was made at Rosh Hashanah will be vindicated at this time. The ceremonies surrounding the Day of Atonement are described in detail in the sixteenth chapter of Leviticus. The first work to be done is the cleansing in the Most Holy Place (Leviticus 16:16). An important distinction must be made at this point. No part of the sanctuary is cleansed during the Day of Atonement. The atonement is not on behalf of the sanctuary, but on behalf of God’s people. The passage reads, “In this way he will make atonement for the Most Holy Place because of the uncleanness and rebellion of the Israelites.” However, in a stricter translation of the original language, the atonement is made upon the Sanctuary. A different preposition is used later in the text when it says, “having made atonement for himself, his household and the whole community of Israel.” Despite the fact that both prepositions are translated as atonement for it is more accurate to translate the first as atonement upon (Hebrew: לע: al) and the second to be rendered atonement on behalf of (Hebrew: דעב: be-ad) As the passage goes back to talking about the atonement of a sanctuary item it again changes prepositions and says upon rather than for or on behalf of (Leviticus 16:18).
Notice also the sequence of events described in Leviticus 16. First atonement is enacted in the Most Holy Place, (literally the Holy Place, but presumably the inner sanctuary is meant because the priest sprinkles blood directly before the Ark of the Covenant) then atonement is enacted upon the Tent of Meeting as a whole, then finally the priest moves to the outer court and atonement is enacted upon the altar (Leviticus 16:20).
Following all of this, the sins of all of the repentant are placed on the head of the scapegoat. It, along with the unrepentant of Israel (Leviticus 23:29, 30) are sent out of the camp, left to die in the wilderness. (Leviticus 16:21, 22) All of this occurs in one literal day.
All of these things are representative of what takes place after the millennium. After anti-typical Days of Awe in which the decision of God is put under scrutiny, judgment actually takes place. First, judgment is pronounced in the Most Holy Place which is the throne room of God Himself. Then the Tent of Meeting, which is heaven itself, (Hebrews 9:24) has the judgment declared to them. Finally, Christ the High Priest goes to the outer court which represents Earth and pronounces judgment there. (The outer court is by necessity the Earth because it is where the sacrifice took place.)
After the resurrection of the wicked the sins of the redeemed will be placed on the head of Satan and he along with all of the unrepentant will be cut off from the camp and left to die (Revelation 20:10). The second death is different than the first death because it is absent from the presence of God. That is why Christ’s death was a sufficient propitiation because He died a second death, one cut off from God. (Matthew 27:46) Likewise, those who perish in the flames outside the city will be destroyed by virtue of the fact that they are cut off from the One who is Life.
Revelation is very clear in explaining that what happens there is the actual Judgment. “Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. Earth and sky fled from his presence, and there was no place for them. And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Another book was opened, which is the book of life. The dead were judged according to what they had done as recorded in the books. The sea gave up the dead that were in it, and death and Hades gave up the dead that were in them, and each person was judged according to what he had done. Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. The lake of fire is the second death. If anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire” (Revelation 20:11-15). This passage in Revelation 20, which deals with post-millennial judgment, could not be more steeped in Day of Atonement language.
The Feast of Tabernacles
Five days after the Day of Atonement Israel was commanded to dwell in booths (Leviticus 23:34). This was to commemorate the time in which Israel dwelt in booths in their journey towards Canaan (Leviticus 23:43). This is not to be a time of mourning or fasting, but one of the most festive celebrations. This is a significant point that should not be missed. The wanderings in the desert were not festive times, so why is the Feast of Tabernacles known as “the time of our gladness?” (Jewfaq.org) Because the Feast of Tabernacles, or Sukkot, did not only point back towards the journey from Egypt to Canaan. The Jews recognized that the holiday was also meant to point forward to a time where we live in the Messianic kingdom. Note the significance of the final prayer of Sukkot: “May it be Your will, Lord, our God and God of our ancestors, that just as I have stood up and dwelled in this sukkah (booth) so may I merit next year to dwell in the sukkah of the hide of the Leviathan. Next year in Jerusalem!” The Talmud teaches that when the messiah comes, the righteous will come to Jerusalem and the Leviathan (a giant sea creature created on the fifth day) will be slain. Its skin will be used to make the walls of a giant sukkah, and the righteous will dine on the flesh of the Leviathan in that sukkah (Jewfaq.org).
The destruction of the Leviathan has incredible connotations. Comparing Isaiah 27:1 and Revelation 12 we realize immediately that Leviathan is an ancient Hebrew concept of Satan. It is not to suggest that we interpret this Jewish prayer literally, but rather we accept the significance of the fact that the Jews recognized that the destruction of Satan would immediately precede the fulfillment of Sukkot. Just as Revelation 21 explains that after Satan is destroyed then it can finally be said, “Behold! The tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they will be His people!” (Revelation 21:3)
Why October 22, 1844 did not fulfill the Day of Atonement
1.) October 22 was not the literal Day of Atonement in 1844.
2.) Every other festival was fulfilled in a single day. Since the Day of Atonement will not be fully completed until Satan, the scapegoat, is sent out from the camp, that means the Day of Atonement will last over 1100 years!
3.) Daniel 8:14 is not dealing with the Day of Atonement for a couple of reasons. Primarily, because the Day of Atonement is not about cleansing the sanctuary.
4.) Secondly, because the “making righteous” of the sanctuary spoken of in Daniel 8:14 is not a ceremonial impurity but a restoration after the desecration caused by the little horn.
5.) If Christ is currently ministering in the Most Holy Place and declaring judgment then probation has already closed. The work done throughout the Day of Atonement is not a probationary one.
6.) The sequence of festivals is put out of order. The Feast of Trumpets, which clearly represents the second advent, cannot come after the Day of Atonement is finished.
7.) The cleansing of the sanctuary in Daniel 8 is often paralleled with the judgment scene in Daniel 7. However, Revelation 20 is nearly quoting directly from Daniel 7, and Revelation 20 is dealing with the post-millennial judgment.
8.) Ellen White, herself, in Patriarchs and Prophets p358 says, “Thus in the ministration of the tabernacle, and of the temple that afterward took its place, the people were taught each day the great truths relative to Christ's death and ministration, and once each year their minds were carried forward to the closing events of the great controversy between Christ and Satan, the final purification of the universe from sin and sinners.
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- Eric Scott on The Struggling Masses: World Hunger and what I Should Do About It.
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- Elaine Nelson on Video | Adventists Talk About Why They Oppose Prop. 8
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Comments
Raymond,
Your friend has done a good job of putting the Day of Atonement in its right setting. It's sad to see that he can't risk publishing his findings under his own name and get the credit he deserves. Southern obviously has a ways to go to live up to its status as university.
I don't think much has changed with respect to the dogma of 1844 since Robert Brinsmead issued this challenge in 1980:
"The fact is that total confusion reigns among the scholars, and they are embarassed to say anything about 1844 before those outside Adventist circles. If they have confidence in it, why do not the editiors of the Ministry publish the traditional Adventist theology of 1844 in those special issues which are sent to the Protestant clergy? Why are there two versions of Adventist theology--one for "insiders" and another for "outsiders."
Good article. May it stir a healthy debate (not one skewed by doctrinal vendettas).
The author states:
"No part of the sanctuary is cleansed during the Day of Atonement. The atonement is not on behalf of the sanctuary, but on behalf of God’s people."
However, in Lev 16:19, the priests "cleanses" the altar. And in v.20, "he finishes atoning for [the sanctuary]"
There clearly is a cleansing of the sanctuary on the day of Atonement.
I am intrigued by the timeframe of the Day of Atonement. There's an intersting argument here concerning 1844. I look forward to reading (intelligent) replies.
No doctrine ever began with better intentions: The Return of Jesus, its timing and then its prerequisites. Emerging was a movement of great fervor, piety, hope and good works. But now well into the second century of that movement, the sixth and seventh generations are compelled to reexamine the Scriptural premises upon which that movement was and remains based.
We first need to orient ourselves:
1. In Peter’s second letter he warns his readers that no prophecy of the scriptures is of any private interpretation. 2 Peter 1: 20.
2. Jesus scolded the scribes and Pharisees that they search the scriptures while ignoring Him to which all the scriptures testify. Recall that the first angel of Revelation 14 carries the Everlasting Gospel—nothing less than the Covenant of Redemption—known to Adam and Eve, Abraham, Moses, David, Isaiah, Daniel, Malachi, and John the Baptist.
3. Thus both Old and New Testaments must be interpreted in the light of the Christ event. Christ is the Alpha and Omega of our salvation. Calvary represents the inaugural Eschaton (It is finished) and the Parusia the consummate Eschaton. (Behold I come quickly)
We live in the Assurance of His acceptance and of His appearing.
4. The Movement that emerged and persisted out of the Great Disappointment of 1844 holds dear three Biblical passages: Daniel 8:14; Hebrews 10; and Revelation 14: 6-10. The first led them into the Great Disappointment and the second and third are attempts to find their way out.
4. Daniel 8:14 has been adequately addressed as being met in the Greek era.
5. Hebrews 10 is a resounding affirmation that we have an Advocate with the Father. An Advocate with a curriculum vitae unmatched in the universe. One whose entry into the Holy of Holies is announced in Psalms 24! The Writer to the Hebrews places Christ as our High Priest in the Holy of Holies in the first century A.D.
6. The third Scripture has been appropriated as unique to those who emerged out of the Great Disappointment—even in the face of Peter’s admonition against private interpretations.
7. Thus, we would be well advised to parse those few lines of Scripture to learn their universal application.
Revisiting The Three Angels Messages
Revelation 14: 6-10
Rev. 14: 6And I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people, 7 Saying with a loud voice, Fear God, and give glory to him; for the hour of his judgment is come: and worship him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters. 8 And there followed another angel, saying, Babylon is fallen, is fallen, that great city, because she made all nations drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication. 9 And the third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, If any man worship the beast and his image, and receive his mark in his forehead, or in his hand, 10 The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb: 11 And the smoke of their torment ascendeth up for ever and ever: and they have no rest day nor night, who worship the beast and his image, and whosoever receiveth the mark of his name. 12 Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus. KJV
1. Verse 6 tells us that the Everlasting Gospel exists. It existed before time “The Lamb slain from the foundation of the earth.” The Christ Event is now history. It is also presently Good News that salvation is offered to all those who dwell on the earth.
2. Verse 7 tells us that the Good News of Christ's victory over sin and death brings each one to the critical moment of decision or judgment. Is God who is says He is, or is God who the Devil says He is? The critical hour, the moment to decide for the good or evil side is now man's. The rest of the universe has come to consensus that God is Just and the Justifier of those who believe. The judgment addressed in Revelation 14 is the verdict of the outcome of the contest between Christ and Satan (The Great Controversy) was decided at Calvary. Now it is time for every rational creator to decide for or against Jesus Christ as the winner in that contest. The hour of His Judgment is come—now is the moment to decide for the good or evil side!
The point is simply: one cannot hear the Gospel—the full story of the Christ event without having to make a choice, a decision, a judgment. Is the Christ event "true" history? Was that event necessary? Was that event sufficient? That is, was the event sufficient not only to settle the Great Controversy but to settle my personal redemption?
3. Verse 7 goes on to declare that a decision in favor of God compels adoration, love, gratitude, and worship.
4. Verse 8 tells us that when Christ cried out: "It is finished" Babylon fell! The prince of this world had been unmasked and dethroned. His claim to and his hold on the earth has been broken.
5. Verse 9-10 tells us that to give support, honor, obeisance, allegiance, and/or worship to the adversary of Heaven is to share in his fate: be that support physical or intellectual, the fate is the same: symbolized by a “mark” in the forehead or in the hand indicating intellectual consent and/or material aid.
7. Therefore, the message of the Three Angels of Revelation 14 is a validation of the Cross rather than some future date derived from complex numerology of Old Testament Apocalyptic literature.
8. Thus, Revelation 14:6-10 is not a proprietary Scripture, but an open invitation and assurance to any and all who accept Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior.
Thus the Investigative Judgment was built upon enthusiasm without proper exegesis and is sustained by a futuristic eisegesis by a few zealots unwilling to admit an error.
Praise be to God! He has made plain the way. We as His witnesses, man, woman, and child should be proclaiming with the Angels of Revelation 14 the finished work of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Master. When the judgment comes to your name and mine what will we say? What can we say except: “Jesus Christ is Lord, Master, and Savior” “Our hope is built on nothing less the His blood and Righteousness.”
Our task is to bring honor to the Author and Finisher of our faith. We are not to be time keepers we are to be Gospel speakers. Tom
Stefan,
I am the author of the article, as Raymond can verify.
As I pointed out in the article the atonement done for the sanctuary is using a different preposition than when atonement is done for "himself, his household, and Israel." Both clauses are translated "atonement for," but in actuality the phrase in Hebrew means that the atonement is done "upon the Sanctuary," but is done "on behalf of the people." So the people are receiving the benefits of atonement, it simply takes place in the sanctuary and outer court.
Anthony
I accept your arguments in the main. However, it is not necessary nor appropriate to try and make type walk on all fours. For example, the Day of Atonement in the Hebrew economy does not require that the Millerite anti-type to be on the same day. Of course, both he and the little flock were/are wrong regardless of the time frame. Tom
Tom,
By virtue of the fact that I'm saying the Day of Atonement is fulfilled after the millennium is admitting that I have no idea what calendar day it will fall on. I just think it's absurd that one "day" of atonement represents an 1100+ year period. Although it is worthy to note that Passover, Sfirat haOmer, and Pentecost were all fulfilled on their respective days.
Anthony
Interesting. Tom
Anthony,
Thank you for your thoughts. It seems to me, however, that your argument is based primarily on two assumptions:
1.) The Feast of Trumpets necessarily has to be fulfilled at the second coming because the New Testament mentions trumpets in the context of the Second Coming.
This is a bit of an assumption, though. In the Old Testament, the shofar was used to announce all of the holidays, as well as the New Moons and the year of Jubilee (cf. Numbers 10:10; Lev 25:9, etc.). To say that the sounding of the trumpet at the Second Coming has to represent the Feast of Trumpets does not seem to find biblical basis and I would have to see more intertextual and exegetical proof to accept this idea.
Because Jesus is represented as a "Lamb" in the book of Revelation at His Second Coming, are we then to conclude that the Second Coming is the antitypical fulfillment of Passover or any of the other holy days that required a Lamb being slain? Simply because two symbols show up in two different places, doesn't mean that they necessarily have to be linked. This is not to say that they can't be linked, but there needs to be a tighter intertextual linkage than you've provided.
Perhaps you have done a more in-depth intertextual study of the New Testemant passages that mention a trumpet and the LXX version of the Old Testament passages that connect the Greek of those passages. I would be interested in seeing that if you have done so. But taking one word from one passage and necessarily connected that one word to another passage in the Old Testament does not solidify the case. Intertextually, there needs to be a larger connection in the Greek to maintain that a New Testament passage is directly quoting or alluding to something in the Old Testament.
2.) You impose upon biblical typology the idea that each typical holiday can only be fulfilled in one, single day.
What are you basing this idea on? Could we not say, for example, that the antitypical Pentecost experience lasted longer than a day? Certainly the book of Acts seems to indicate that the outpouring of the Holy Spirit on Pentecost went beyond that one day.
Lastly, I had a hard time following your explanation of the prepositional usage of the Hebrew in Leviticus 16 and how this aids your understanding of Yom Kippur being after the Second Coming. Perhaps I'm just not seeing something, but it seems as though there is a jump in logic somewhere along the line. I am not sure how you go from drawing a distinction between the prepositions al and be-ad and concluding that this means the Day of Atonement is post-Second Coming.
Am I missing something? Please help me understand.
Anthony
I shouldn't have left you in mid air with the comment "Interesting". You have done some serious study.
In the main, you conclude that Oct. 22, 1844 isn't what the SDA church assumes it to be. As I submitted earlier, neither is Rev. 14 any confirmation of Oct 22, 1844 according to the EGW assertions. The assumptions into and out of Oct 22, 1844 are not solid exigesis--no Hebrew of Greek Scholar outside of the SDA church sees any merit in either reading. My point "on all fours" was merely to indicate that until the anti-type occurs--it is unwise to make unengotiable statements. I think you confirmed that. Tom
Anthony,
How does the "temporal" concept of "judgment" fit into your understanding? Satan is now condemned/judged.Jn.16:11.How might that "temporal concept" also apply to "Atonement"?
In other words verdict/pronouncement and application/administration of that pronouncement. Also in Jn.3:18 it is stated that those who "believing not" in Christ have been judged/condemned already.
Is it possible that both Atonement and judgment are found in the cross and their "application future" based on man's (generic) response?
regards,
pat
PS. I suggest our SDA error is applying to 1844 that which already had occurred at the cross and His position of judging seated at the right hand of the Father at His ascension.
Shawn,
Regarding the Feast of Trumpets being a typification of the second advent. Of course the shofar is used in various other holidays, but if you read the description given in Leviticus regarding the festival there is simply nothing but trumpets! Hence the name. So we are forced to rely upon extra-biblical traditions to see what the feast of trumpets meant to Israel. What did they see it as? As I pointed out in my article the sounding of the shofar was very distinct in being a signal of gathering. Furthermore much of Jewish tradition acknowledges that the feast of trumpets points forward to the inauguration of the coming Messiah. I have found no evidence for the feast of trumpets being a typification of anything else. The second coming involves a trumpet in several instances as a signal both to gather together and to inaugurate the Messiah prince.
Concerning the day-for-day principle, as I guess I'll coin it. Only the spring festivals have been fulfilled. All three showed clear evidence of being fulfilled on that day in one day. That being the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus. The third, the one you mentioned, Pentecost pointed back towards the giving of the Law and forward towards the giving of the Spirit. So after Pentecost the Spirit continued to manifest itself, just as the Torah continued to teach, but they were both given on one day.
The prepositions are important and I hope this point is not being missed. In Leviticus 16 whenever it says that the priest makes atonement for the sanctuary or any of it's furniture the preposition translated "for" is literally "upon" in Hebrew "al." So the sanctuary and it's furniture are not the receivers or the benefactors of the atonement process as many prophecy seminars would lead you to believe. The sanctuary itself is not being cleansed but the preposition "al" speaks of location rather than being the recipient of the action. Whereas when, in Leviticus 16 it says that atonement is made "for" the family of Israel the preposition indicates that atonement is literally "on their behalf." So during the day of atonement Israel is being cleansed, not the sanctuary. The sanctuary is simply the location from which they are cleansed. The prepositions do not prove anything about the time of the Day of Atonement. They simply prove that the sanctuary itself is not what is being cleansed, therefore a pre-advent judgment as taught by the use of Daniel 8:14 is without basis.
Pat,
You would do well to recognize that judgment decision and judgment action are two very distinct things. The error that I am seeking to correct is that the judgment depicted in the Day of Atonement is not one of decision making, but one of actual punishment and reward. Therefore, it makes no sense to say that we are living in the Day of Atonement because no one is being judged in the sense that no one is receiving their punishment or reward.
Anthony
Hope that helps.
Anthony,
How might the plague/judgments of Rev.16 and the second coming of Christ Rev.19 be related to Atonement supplied by Christ at the cross and those benefiting from it's application to them through faith versus those who are experiencing the "wrath of God?"
Pat
Anthony,
Thank you for your further explanation. You have put a lot of time and thought into this subject and I am grateful for that. I am not sure that I quite see the Feast of Trumpets the way you do, though. I would need more textual/intertextual/exegetical evidence. While the Mishnaic insights are helpful, we must not argue that they are authoritative. Indeed, there is often very little consensus among Rabbinic writing itself on many subjects. I have not searched it on this particular subject, as perhaps you have, but I have found that in the Talmud, etc., there is more dialogue than consensus on many subjects (much like Spectrum!!). As you have stated also, the blowing of the shofar indicated a gathering experience. This is not limited to the Feast of Trumpets, so we need not maintain that the gathering at the Second Coming has to be the Feast of Trumpets.
On another note, what would you argue the use of the preposition "al" signifies in Leviticus 16? Certainly it is not simply a locative preposition. If it were, Moses would have used the preposition "b-" (lit. in, at, by, with), which he has already used in verse 17, indicating where the Atonement is taking place. At the same time, the preposition "al" is used some 17x in this chapter alone, and often connotes the idea of "for" or "on behalf of" (cf. verses 8, 10, 30, 33, 34. Verse 33 is particularly informative).
Your day-for-day principle may have some merit to it, though I am not sure that it is explicitly (or even implicitly) set forth typologically in the Bible. I will have to give that one some more thought, though.
Anthony,
In other words...there would need to be a "pre-advent" judgment "if only in the mind of God" just prior to His coming and judgment plagues in a premill view. Who would be destroyed with the briteness of His coming and who would not by the benefits/covering of Christ's atonement?
This would not be required as such in an Amill or Postmill view where "everything" could occur later...at the end of the Mill.as nuanced by those views.
Types are limited, as the "Levitical daily and annual system of law" also did not include one of Judah as a king/priest after the order of Melchizedek to take their place. Heb.7:11-25; Heb.9:24-28; 10:9-14. There must also be a "change of the law" and understanding of these things.Heb.7:12.
regards,
pat
Perhaps I am writing too late to expect either Shawn or Anthony to notice, but here are a few thoughts for others:
The Passover was fulfilled on one day for a simple reason -- Jesus only died once. But that death, on Passover, was the beginning of a multi-thousand year keeping of the "feast." "Christ our Passover is sacrificed for us, therefore let us keep the feast..." 1Co 5:7-8.
The Pentecost began to be fulfilled on the Day of Pentecost. But a simple reading of the book of Acts and of Ephesians 4 will reveal that what happened there was a beginning, not a beginning and an end.
The Feast of Trumpets prefigured the announcement of the soon coming judgment...as given by Wolfe, Irving, Miller, Gaussen, Lacunza, etc.
And the Day of Atonement... see my short article on "The Judgment" at www.bibledoc.org where I respond to challenges that the IJ is not an easily defensible Biblical doctrine.
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