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Scapegoat

Archimandrite Nikifor’s Biblical Encyclopedia

(Lev 16:8-10) - on the great Day of Atonement two goats were set before the LORD, and lots determined which would be sacrificed and which sent into the wilderness. The first was slain as a sin offering. Upon the head of the second, after leaving the Holy of Holies, the high priest laid his hands and confessed the sins of all the people; the goat was then driven away: 'And the goat shall bear upon him all their iniquities unto a land not inhabited: and he shall let go the goat in the wilderness' (Lev 16:22).

The source interprets this solemn rite as prefiguring the voluntary death of the God-man for the sins of the whole human race and the grace obtained through His sufferings and death for victory over sin and death.

Scripture cited

Leviticus 16:8Leviticus 16:22

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