Cornelius a Lapide
Table of Contents
Synopsis of the Chapter
The rite to be observed on the feast of Kippurim, that is, Expiation, is prescribed. The rite and order of this Expiation (which is quite intricate in this chapter) was as follows: First, on the tenth day of the seventh month, the High Priest came to the sanctuary bringing his own bull for a sin offering, and a ram for a burnt offering. Second, having washed his hands and feet, he put on the vestments of the lesser priests, and presented the bull and the ram to the Lord at the door of the tabernacle. Third, certain elders of the people, in the name of the whole people, offered two goats for a sin offering, and one ram for a burnt offering. Fourth, the High Priest cast lots upon the goats to determine which would be sacrificed and which would be the scapegoat. Fifth, after the lots were cast, the High Priest slaughtered his own bull offered for sin and the goat of the people upon which the lot had fallen, to be the victim for sin. Sixth, he took the mingled blood of this bull and goat, and entering the Holy of Holies while burning incense with a censer, he sprinkled the blood seven times against the mercy seat, and prayed for the sins of both himself and the people; meanwhile the flesh, skins, and dung of both the bull and the goat were carried out of the camp by someone and burned there. Seventh, returning from the Holy of Holies into the Holy Place, he expiated it by touching the horns of the altar of incense with the same blood, and praying for himself and the people. Eighth, returning from the Holy Place to the court, or to the door of the tabernacle, he offered the scapegoat to the Lord, confessing and imprecating all the sins of the Israelites upon the head of the goat; then he sent the goat through an appointed man into the desert. Ninth, he removed the vestments, washed his body, put on the pontifical vestments, and thus sacrificed his own ram and the ram of the people as a burnt offering to the Lord: and so he completed the ceremonies of the feast of Expiation.
Vulgate Text: Leviticus 16:1-34
1. And the Lord spoke to Moses after the death of the two sons of Aaron, when they were killed while offering strange fire; 2. and He commanded him, saying: Speak to your brother Aaron, that he enter not at all times into the Sanctuary, which is within the veil before the mercy seat with which the ark is covered, lest he die (for I will appear in a cloud over the oracle) 3. unless he has first done these things. He shall offer a bull for sin and a ram for a burnt offering. 4. He shall be vested with a linen tunic, he shall cover his nakedness with linen breeches: he shall be girded with a linen girdle, and he shall put a linen mitre upon his head: for these are holy vestments; with all of which, when he has been washed, he shall be vested. 5. And he shall receive from the whole multitude of the children of Israel two goats for sin, and one ram for a burnt offering. 6. And when he has offered the bull, and has prayed for himself and for his house, 7. he shall make the two goats stand before the Lord at the door of the tabernacle of the testimony; 8. and casting lots upon them both, one for the Lord, and the other for the scapegoat, 9. the one whose lot falls for the Lord, he shall offer for sin; 10. but the one whose lot falls as the scapegoat, he shall set alive before the Lord, to pour out prayers over it, and to send it into the wilderness. 11. When these things have been duly performed, he shall offer the bull, and praying for himself and for his house, he shall immolate it; 12. and taking the censer, which he has filled with coals from the altar, and drawing up with his hand the compounded incense for burning, he shall enter within the veil into the Holy Place; 13. that when the spices have been put upon the fire, their cloud and vapor may cover the oracle, which is above the testimony, and he may not die. 14. He shall also take of the blood of the bull, and sprinkle with his finger seven times toward the mercy seat to the east. 15. And when he has slaughtered the goat for the sin of the people, he shall bring its blood within the veil, as was commanded regarding the blood of the bull, that he may sprinkle it over against the oracle, 16. and may expiate the Sanctuary from the uncleanness of the children of Israel, and from their transgressions, and all their sins. According to this rite he shall do to the tabernacle of the testimony, which is fixed among them in the midst of the filth of their habitation. 17. Let no man be in the tabernacle, when the high priest enters the Sanctuary, that he may pray for himself, and for his house, and for the whole assembly of Israel, until he comes out. 18. And when he has come out to the altar which is before the Lord, let him pray for himself, and pouring the blood of the bull and the goat that he has taken, let him pour it upon the horns of the altar round about; 19. and sprinkling with his finger seven times, let him expiate and sanctify it from the uncleanness of the children of Israel. 20. After he has cleansed the Sanctuary, and the tabernacle, and the altar, then let him offer the living goat; 21. and laying both hands upon its head, let him confess all the iniquities of the children of Israel, and all their offenses and sins: which imprecating upon its head, he shall send it away through a man ready at hand, into the desert. 22. And when the goat has carried all their iniquities into a desolate land, and has been let go in the desert, 23. Aaron shall return into the tabernacle of the testimony, and having put off the garments which he wore before when he entered the Sanctuary, and having left them there, 24. he shall wash his flesh in the holy place, and shall put on his own garments. And after he has come out and offered his own burnt offering and that of the people, he shall pray both for himself and for the people; 25. and the fat that is offered for sins he shall burn upon the altar. 26. But he that has let go the scapegoat shall wash his garments and his body with water, and so shall enter into the camp. 27. But the bull and the goat that were immolated for sin, and whose blood was brought into the Sanctuary to complete the expiation, they shall carry forth outside the camp, and shall burn with fire both the skins and the flesh and the dung; 28. and whoever shall have burned them, shall wash his garments and his flesh with water, and so shall enter into the camp. 29. And this shall be to you an everlasting ordinance: In the seventh month, on the tenth day of the month, you shall afflict your souls, and shall do no work, whether it be one of your own country, or a stranger who sojourns among you. 30. On this day shall the expiation be for you, and the cleansing from all your sins: before the Lord you shall be cleansed; 31. for it is a sabbath of rest, and you shall afflict your souls by a perpetual religion. 32. And the priest that is anointed, and whose hands are consecrated to do the office of the priesthood in his father's stead, shall make the atonement: and he shall be vested with the linen robe and the holy vestments, 33. and he shall expiate the Sanctuary, and the tabernacle of the testimony, and the altar, the priests also and all the people. 34. And this shall be to you an everlasting ordinance, that you pray for the children of Israel, and for all their sins once a year. He did therefore as the Lord had commanded Moses.
Verse 1: After the Death of the Two Sons of Aaron
1. THE LORD SPOKE TO MOSES, AFTER THE DEATH OF THE TWO SONS OF AARON — that is to say: Immediately after the death and slaughter of the young priests, God established these regulations regarding the feast of Expiation, so that by this example and punishment He might render the priests more cautious henceforth in carrying out their office and the law which He here establishes.
You will ask, when and why was this feast of Expiation instituted?
The Hebrews, whom Lyranus follows, and St. Thomas, I-II, Question 102, article 4, reply 10, and Ribera, book V On the Temple, chapter 11, think this feast was instituted in memory of the remission of the idolatry by which the Jews had forged the golden calf, Exodus 32:4, and therefore was celebrated on the tenth day of September, because on that day Moses descended from Sinai, carrying the second tables of the law, and announcing to the people the remission of their sin, and that God was now appeased toward them: for they think that Moses was on the mountain three times for 40 days, so that in total he was there with God for 120 days, and remained on the mountain until the tenth day of the seventh month; for Moses ascended the mountain on the seventh day of the third month, as I said on Exodus 24:12, and Exodus 32:19: from there count 120 days, and you will arrive at the tenth day of the seventh month.
But this opinion rests on a false foundation: for first, I showed in Exodus 34:28 that Moses was on the mountain not three times, but only twice for 40 days, namely once before the first tablets, and a second time before the second tablets. The same will be more evident from Deuteronomy 9:25. Second, because long after Moses' descent from the mountain, and after the proclamation of the pardon of sin (which occurred in the first year of the departure from Egypt, on the 28th day of the fifth month, as I showed in Exodus 34:28), the sons of Aaron were killed, namely after the tabernacle had already been constructed, at the beginning of the second year; but the institution of this feast occurred after the killing of these sons, as is stated here.
And so since the tabernacle was erected, and Aaron and his sons were consecrated as priests on the first day of the first month, of the second year of the Hebrews' departure from Egypt, as is evident from Exodus 40:12 and 15, and then on the eighth day the sons of Aaron were killed while offering strange fire, as is evident from Leviticus 10:1, compared with chapter 9, verse 1; and since God instituted this feast immediately after the killing of these sons, as is stated here: it follows that God instituted this feast of Expiation around the ninth day of the first month, and commanded it to be celebrated on the tenth day of the seventh month.
I answer therefore, first: The occasion for instituting this feast was the sin of irreverence committed in the tabernacle by the sons of Aaron who offered strange fire, as is implied here. For to guard against that, and to establish and instill reverence for the tabernacle and sacred things, God here commands that the High Priest enter the Holy of Holies only once a year, for the purpose of expiating the tabernacle, and this only with the greatest reverence and after many preliminary rites and sacrifices.
I answer second: The purpose of the feast was that through it a general expiation might be made for all sins committed throughout the whole year, both by the priests and by the people; just as among Christians at the feast of Easter a common expiation of all is made, through the confession imposed upon all: of which this feast of Expiation was the most manifest symbol and figure, concerning which more at verse 29.
Note: The Jews did not celebrate this feast during the entire 40 years that they wandered in the desert; for after the dedication of the tabernacle, no more sacrifices were offered by them in the desert, yet sacrifices are here commanded to be offered at this feast.
Verse 2: Let Him Not Enter at All Times into the Sanctuary
2. LET HIM NOT ENTER AT ALL TIMES INTO THE SANCTUARY WHICH IS WITHIN THE VEIL — namely into the more sacred part of the tabernacle, which is separated from the interior by a veil, and is called the Holy of Holies. From verses 2, 19, and 33, and more clearly from the Epistle to the Hebrews 9:7, it is gathered that only once a year, namely on the tenth day of the seventh month on the feast of Expiation, was the High Priest permitted to enter the Holy of Holies, and this only with incense and the preceding sacrifices which are prescribed here; so that by this means reverence and awe for the place, and for God dwelling there, might be instilled in both the High Priest and the people.
Some think that what is decreed here, that no one but the High Priest may enter the Holy of Holies, and that only once a year on the feast of Expiation, should be limited to the solemn entrance, when divine worship was to be solemnly performed in the Holy of Holies; for that after that time it was permitted to those distinguished for their holiness to enter the Holy of Holies. For thus Epiphanius, Heresies 78, and Hegesippus, book V, and from him Eusebius, book II of the History, chapter 23, attest that St. James entered it. So our Christophorus a Castro holds in the History of the Mother of God, chapter III, page 123, and adds that the Blessed Virgin, when presented in the temple, dwelt, or at least prayed, in the Holy of Holies. For Evodius, the successor of St. Peter in the see of Antioch, expressly asserts this, according to Nicephorus, book II, chapter 23, and Germanus, Patriarch of Constantinople, in his oration On the Offering of Mary. Andrew of Crete, On the Dormition of the Mother of God, and Gregory, Archbishop of Nicomedia, in his oration On the Offering of Mary, who say that the Blessed Virgin dwelt in the innermost sanctuaries or recesses of the temple, add their testimony. But this limitation seems to be an excessive relaxation of the law; for the law expressly says and decrees that the High Priest (much less any other priest or Jew) may never enter the Holy of Holies, except when he is about to perform the sacred rites therein, for the purpose of expiating it on the day of expiation. Hence Abulensis at this passage expressly teaches that no one at all except the High Priest was permitted to enter the Holy of Holies, except for Moses alone, who was above the High Priest, as the lawgiver and leader of the people. For he, by God's command, entered the Holy of Holies in doubtful matters to consult God's oracle, and there heard God answering him on each point from the mercy seat, as is evident from Numbers 7:79. Second, because the virgins devoted to God, among whom the Blessed Virgin Mother of God dwelt, lived in the court at the entrance of the tabernacle, as is evident from Exodus 38:8, and 1 Samuel 2:22. Who then would say that all of them dwelt or prayed in the Holy of Holies? The same seems to be said of the Blessed Virgin, especially since at that time her holiness and dignity were hidden and unknown, namely that she was to be the mother of God; and she herself, concealing her holiness out of humility, made herself equal to the other virgins, indeed lowered herself beneath them, according to the words: "He has regarded the lowliness of His handmaid." Regarding St. James entering the Holy of Holies, I have said what is to be thought in the preface to his epistle. The Fathers who say the Blessed Virgin dwelt in the inner sanctuaries or in the Holy of Holies, all except one, Germanus, who speaks too clearly of the Holy of Holies taken in the strict sense, seem to understand by "inner sanctuaries" and "Holy of Holies" the sanctuary or temple in general; for this is called the Holy of Holies, that is, in Hebrew idiom, the most holy place, in comparison with profane houses and places. Therefore the Blessed Virgin dwelt in the Holy of Holies, that is, in the temple, which was most holy, namely in the court: for this was the temple of the laity; and in it was the inner chamber, that is, a more private and secluded dwelling, in which virgins devoted to God and the temple lived. Or certainly it is called the Holy of Holies, because it faced or was adjoined to the Holy of Holies on the outside, just as even now dwellings attached to a temple are reckoned under the name of the temple. For those praying in the temple, especially sacred virgins, looked toward God residing in the Holy of Holies.
Allegorically, Christ was signified here as about to enter the Holy of Holies with His own blood, and to open heaven. So the Apostle, Hebrews 9:12. Once in the year Christ entered there; for the year in this legal sacrifice expresses the course and cycle of all times. So Radulphus.
Tropologically, in the person of the High Priest, the whole Church of the elect is signified, together with its head Christ; for we too who live enter the Holy of Holies, namely heaven, not yet in reality, but through hope, merit, desire, and contemplation: the cloud signifies the humanity of Christ, or the depth of the divine vision. So Radulphus.
For I Will Appear in a Cloud Over the Oracle
Over the mercy seat. Note: In the Holy of Holies, both of the tabernacle and of the temple, there was no window, no lamp or light, and this out of reverence for the great mysteries that were in the Holy of Holies, which therefore God did not want anyone, not even the High Priest, to see. Hence, because when the High Priest entered and opened the doors or curtains, some light from the lamps that burned in the Holy Place, or from the sun's rays through these doors, was diffused into the Holy of Holies, for this reason God commanded the High Priest to burn incense to obscure it, and to fill the whole place with a smoky cloud by the fumes, so that he could see nothing, so that the cloud of incense might veil the sight of the Holy Things which the High Priest's entrance had revealed, says Origen; and especially so that the High Priest might not see the body of the angel who spoke with him in God's stead from the mercy seat or oracle. For although it is not certain, yet it is probable enough that the angel who so spoke assumed a human body as well as a voice; and this is proved first, because these words signify this: "I will appear in a cloud over the oracle," that is: From a thick cloud I will form for Myself a body, and I will assume it and place it between the Cherubim above the ark, so that from the mercy seat I may answer and deliver oracles: for this reason in turn I want that body to be covered, as it were, by the smoke of incense, so that through it, as through a veil, I may appear and speak. Second, because it is more natural that a human voice should proceed from a human body rather than from pure air. Third, because Ezekiel, chapter 1, saw God in human form seated upon the chariot of the Cherubim; and something similar, indeed the same, was present in the Cherubim of the Mosaic ark, as I said there. Fourth, because God wanted the High Priest to enter the Holy of Holies with incense for this reason: that the smoke might cover this body of His, lest it be seen by the High Priest; for to conceal the voice of God speaking, smoke was not needed, since a voice is not seen but heard, and God wanted this voice of His to be heard. Fifth, because for this reason it is said in Daniel 3:55 that God sits upon the Cherubim on the mercy seat, and speaks thence (for to speak belongs to the mouth and human body; for no one sitting speaks except a man), Exodus 25:22; Numbers 7:89, because namely this body assumed by God, that is by an angel sustaining the person of God, sat upon the mercy seat, so that the ark was the footstool of His feet, Psalm 98:5. This is the opinion of Abulensis, Question 22 on Exodus, Vilalpando, book IV On the Temple, chapter 34, and others.
Cajetan, however, holds the contrary, namely that God did not here assume a body, but appeared only through a cloud and the smoke of incense: "For God to be seen in a cloud over the mercy seat," he says, "is for Him to be represented in the cloud of incense over the mercy seat."
Verse 3: He Shall Offer a Bull for Sin and a Ram for a Burnt Offering
3. UNLESS HE HAS FIRST DONE THESE THINGS. HE SHALL OFFER A BULL FOR SIN AND A RAM FOR A BURNT OFFERING. — "Before, etc. he shall offer," partly by immolating, as the bull for sin: for its blood he must bring into the Holy of Holies; partly by presenting to God, as the ram: for this ram was immolated as a burnt offering not before, but after the High Priest's entrance into the Holy of Holies, and his exit again.
HE SHALL OFFER A BULL FOR SIN. The High Priest offered this bull for his own sins and those of his family, committed throughout the whole year either knowingly or unknowingly, as is evident from verse 6; for the sins of the people he offered not a bull, but a goat, as is evident from verses 7 and 15.
Allegorically, Christ offered the bull, that is, Himself for His sins, that is, for ours, which He transferred to Himself to be atoned for: He prayed for Himself and His house, that is, for the Apostles and all believers, John 17:9. He also offered the goat, that is, the penance of His people. So Radulphus.
Verse 4: He Shall Be Vested with a Linen Tunic
4. HE SHALL BE VESTED WITH A LINEN TUNIC, WITH LINEN BREECHES, etc. — namely breeches, covering both thighs.
Note: The High Priest on this feast of Expiation did not use the precious vestments proper to himself, the pontifical vestments, such as the tiara, the hyacinthine tunic, the ephod, the breastplate, and the belt; but only the common vestments of the lesser priests: because he was begging pardon for the sins of both himself and the people, and this was a feast not of joy, but of sorrow, penance, and affliction: hence after the expiation was completed, when he was about to offer the burnt offerings, then at last he put on the pontifical vestments. We see something similar now on Good Friday, of which this feast was a type; for the Church is stripped bare; the priest, and indeed even the Bishop, wears only the white vestments of deacons when he performs the office of the Passion: which done, to complete the sacrifice of the Mass, he puts on his own and more precious vestments, namely priestly or pontifical ones.
Verse 5: Two Goats for a Sin Offering
5. AND HE SHALL RECEIVE FROM THE WHOLE MULTITUDE OF THE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL TWO GOATS FOR A SIN OFFERING — this is the victim for the sins of the whole people, committed throughout the whole year either knowingly or unknowingly.
You will object: Hebrews 9:7 says that the High Priest offered these only for his own and the people's ignorance; therefore not for sins committed knowingly.
I answer: "Ignorance" there, as often elsewhere, signifies every sin; for, as the Wise Man says, Proverbs 14:22, and Aristotle, Ethics III: "Every sinner is ignorant, because imprudent."
Verse 6: For His House
6. FOR HIS HOUSE — for the whole family of all the priests and Levites: for these are not included under the name of the people, but belong to the house of the High Priest.
Verses 8-9: Casting Lots upon the Goats
8 and 9. AND CASTING UPON BOTH (upon both goats together) A LOT, ONE FOR THE LORD, AND THE OTHER FOR THE SCAPEGOAT: WHOSE LOT FALLS FOR THE LORD, HE SHALL OFFER FOR SIN. — Upon the goats of the people, such a lot is here commanded to be cast, so that the High Priest takes two, for example, slips of paper, inscribes on one the name of God, on the other the name of the scapegoat, then mixes both, or hides them in an urn or in his bosom, and from there draws out one, and places it on one goat, and the other on the other goat; the one on which the slip of God was placed, let this be immolated to God for the sin of the people; but the other, to which fell the slip of the scapegoat, let it be sent away free.
Hence the Jews fable that God on this day of expiation sits to distribute lots to each person, and to arrange and determine whatever is going to happen to each one throughout the whole year. Whence some of them pour the blood of a bird or beast upon the heads of those they love, to propitiate God for them, namely so that if God on that day judges and decrees that their blood is to be shed, He may accept the blood of this beast in its place. Abulensis reports and refutes this. For it smacks of pagan superstition; for the Gentiles had days that were lawful and unlawful, lucky and unlucky: they avoided the latter and sought the former. Thus Lucullus, about to fight against Tigranes on the day before the nones of October, which was an unlucky day because on that day the Cimbri had destroyed the forces of Caepio, when someone said that the Romans abhorred and dreaded that day, said: "Let us therefore fight bravely today, so that we may render this day too, from unlucky and sad, a lucky and joyful one for the Romans." And so it happened; for with only five Romans lost, he killed more than a hundred thousand of the enemy: Plutarch is the witness in his Life of Lucullus.
Allegorically, the goat for sin signifies Christ suffering and dying on the cross; the scapegoat signifies the divinity of Christ, which could not suffer in the Passion, and remained free: so Theodoret, Hesychius, and Cyril, book IX Against Julian, before the middle; or, as Procopius says, the scapegoat signifies the soul and spirit of Christ, which escaped free from death, and on the third day rose again in a glorious body. Second, the goat for sin signifies Christ immolated; the scapegoat signifies the human race, which through the death of Christ was freed and liberated from death: so Cyril in the same place. Third, more distinctly and more aptly for tropology, Origen and Bede here, and St. Jerome (or whoever the author is: for he seems to have been unskilled in Greek and Hebrew, and consequently not to be Jerome) on Mark chapter 15, by the goat for sin understand Christ condemned to death; by the scapegoat, Barabbas (whence also Rupert takes these two goats as Christ, and Antichrist prefigured through Barabbas), who was set free as if into the wilderness, carrying with him the sins of the people who were crying out and saying: "Crucify, crucify."
Tropologically, the goat for sin represents the elect who are to be saved; the scapegoat represents the reprobate who are to be damned; the lot is divine reprobation and predestination, by which God leads the elect by the most certain paths to eternal life, concerning which it is said in Psalm 30: "In You, O Lord, I have hoped; I have said: You are my God, in Your hands are my lots," that is: To which lot I belong I do not yet know, but I know that it is in Your power that my lot may fall to You, and transfer me to the portion of Your elect. For the goat of God does not remain a goat, but is slain for God; so penitents slay their vices, and transform their life, and indeed all the Saints and elect are mortified the whole day long for God, and even killed, like the Martyrs, so that they may rise pure and glorious: but the other, the scapegoat remains a goat, and as a goat it is sent away into the wilderness, that is, into a dark land where there is no order but the utmost desolation, namely into hell, so that there it may be torn apart by wild beasts, that is, by demons. So say Radulphus and Bede.
The Gentiles therefore wrongly said that this lot was fate, which imposed necessity on all things and actions of men. "Fate," says Chrysippus according to Gellius, book VI, chapter 11, "is a certain eternal and unavoidable sequence of things, and a chain revolving upon itself and entangling itself through the eternal orders of consequence from which it is fitted and linked together." And Seneca in the Oedipus:
We are driven by the fates; yield to the fates.
Anxious cares cannot
Change the threads of established fate;
Whatever we suffer, mortal race,
Whatever we do, comes from on high.
And Solon used to say, "fate brings upon mortals both evils and goods." But Sacred Scripture teaches the contrary, namely that good things indeed arise from the grace of God, but with the cooperation of free will; while evil things, such as sins, hardness of heart, etc., and consequently reprobation and damnation themselves, arise from the evil will of man, which God permits and ordains for just punishment.
Verse 10: The Scapegoat and the Meaning of Azazel
10. BUT THE ONE WHOSE LOT FELL FOR THE SCAPEGOAT, HE SHALL SET IT ALIVE BEFORE THE LORD, THAT HE MAY POUR PRAYERS OVER IT, AND SEND IT INTO THE WILDERNESS. — This is the other goat or he-goat, namely the scapegoat, or the one sent into the wilderness, so that it might, as it were, carry away with it the sins of the people, which the priest had imprecated upon it and, as it were, laid upon its head.
Note: For "scapegoat," the Hebrew is Azazel, which firstly, the more recent Rabbis, and following them Vatablus and Oleaster, think is the name of a mountain to which this goat was led, and from which it was thrown headlong. The Jews add that a red thread or cord tied to the horn of this goat was turned white if God pardoned the sins of the people; but if not, it remained red. Whence the man leading the goat into the wilderness, when he saw this change of color in the thread, immediately blew a horn: from there others stationed in order all the way to Jerusalem likewise sounded the trumpet, so that all the people of the land might know that their sins had been forgiven. Oleaster reports this little tale.
Secondly, Rabbi Abraham thinks Azazel signifies a demon, because he is strong. Whence what we have as "for the scapegoat," in Hebrew is laazazel, which Rabbi Abraham translates as "for the strong one," as if to say: The high priest shall station this second goat and present it to the Lord, so that He Himself may free the people from the strong one, that is, from the devil. So also the Valentinians according to Irenaeus, book I, chapter XII, hold that Azazel is the name of a demon. Julian the Apostate held the same view, whom Cyril refutes in book IX Against the Same. Hence also Cornelius Agrippa, the notable magician, in book II of On Occult Philosophy, asserts that Azazel is the name of one of the demons who preside over the elements and who devote their services to magicians and witches; he also reports — or rather, speaks nonsense — from the Hebrews' Kabbalah that this same demon is the king of the midday, and is called Amaymon. So also Reuchlin, in book III of On the Kabbalistic Art, reports that Azazel rules most widely in the army of Satan.
It is credible that from these fabrications of the Jews and heretics, some demon afterwards assumed this name Azazel, so as to confirm magicians and witches in this error of theirs; whence he appears to them in the form of a goat, and is adored by them in the same form; and it may be that this goat is likewise called Azazel by them. For that from ancient times demons assumed the form of a goat, because this animal is lustful and proud, is clear from the fact that in Scripture they are called seirim, that is, hairy ones and shaggy like a goat, as among others our Delrio noted, in On Magic, book II, Question XXVII, section 3.
So we read in the Lives of the Fathers, book VI, volume II, number 12, that the Emperor Julian the Apostate had a messenger demon of his own, Azazel, or the emissary, whom he sent from Persia into the West, to bring him back some response from there; and when the demon had reached the place where the monk Publius dwelt, it stood there for ten days immobile, because that monk was continuously praying, and thus was impeding its passage. The demon therefore returned, and when asked by Julian, "Why did you delay?" it answered: "The monk Publius impeded my passage, and so I return with the task unfinished." Julian, angered, threatened Publius; but within a few days he was slain by the will of God.
Thirdly, others translate Azazel as "the averter," namely of divine vengeance, that is, the expiatory one; for such was this goat.
But I say that the goat Azazel, in Hebrew, is the same as the goat that departs, or the scapegoat: for so our Translator renders it, and the Septuagint who call it the "sent-away goat." Whence also Symmachus and Aquila translate it as "the goat that is sent away into the wilderness," according to Theodoret. For Azazel is composed of ez, that is "goat," and azal, that is "it departed, it was taken away"; the goat is called ez because it bears a hardened forehead with horns, from the root azaz, that is "it strengthened, it fortified"; furthermore, the lamed is prefixed to Azazel to signify the distinction and boundary of the lot, and it is the same as the preposition "for"; for the lot of one goat was ladonai, that is "for the Lord," namely that it should be sacrificed to Him; while that of the other was laazazel, that is "for the scapegoat," namely that it should be sent away as the expiation of the people into the desert.
Of this goat, then, it is said: "He (the high priest) shall set it before the Lord, that he may pour prayers over it," that is, so that he may confess his sins and those of the people, and ask God to transfer them to the goat. Whence in Hebrew it reads "to make expiation upon it," that is, through it. These things are said by way of prolepsis: for the sending away of this goat took place after the expiation of the Holy of Holies was completed, after the high priest had returned from there, as is clear from verses 22 and 21.
This scapegoat, then, was like an anathema, a catharma, and an expiatory victim of the people, upon which the people through the high priest laid all their sins, so that it, burdened with them, might carry them away with it outside the camp into the desert: just as the Romans and Greeks, during a common plague or pestilence, would select expiatory victims from among men, and by killing them would devote them to the gods to avert the calamity. Such an expiatory victim was Curtius, who threw himself headlong into the chasm of the city. On which matter I have said more in 1 Corinthians IV, 43.
Hence also among the Gentiles there were gods called apopompæi, alexikakoi, apotropaei, lysioi, phyxioi, that is, senders-away, averters of evils, turners-away, releasers, banishers of evils; hence also "depulsory" rites were so called, which were performed for the gods who repelled and averted evils, about which see Giraldus, Syntagma 1.
Verse 11: He Shall Offer the Calf
11. HE SHALL OFFER THE CALF. — This was not the red heifer of which Numbers XIX speaks; for that one was sacrificed outside the camp, for the sin of the people, but this one was sacrificed in the tabernacle, for the sins of the priests.
Verse 12: Taking Up the Censer
12. AND TAKING UP THE CENSER, AND DRAWING WITH HIS HAND THE COMPOUND INCENSE — "compound" from stacte, onyx-shell, galbanum, and frankincense, as was prescribed in Exodus XXX, 34 and 35.
He Shall Enter into the Holy Place
12 and 13. HE SHALL ENTER INTO THE HOLY PLACE (into the Holy of Holies, which is called "the Holy Place" in the plural for emphasis: for it was most holy), THAT HAVING PLACED THE AROMATICS ON THE FIRE, THE CLOUD AND VAPOR OF THEM MAY COVER THE ORACLE, WHICH IS ABOVE THE TESTIMONY (that is, above the ark, in which is the testimony, that is, the law or the tablets of the law, as I said on Exodus XXV, 21), AND HE MAY NOT DIE. — Because if he did not burn incense, whose smoke would cover the oracle or propitiatory, and the body assumed by Me residing therein, he would die for having presumed to look upon it.
The censers are the hearts of Christ and the Saints; the fire is the Holy Spirit; the incense represents the virtues; the fragrant smoke represents the prayers of the Saints, Revelation VIII, 4. That Aaron is therefore commanded to fill the censer with fire from the altar prefigures the power of Christ, who inflamed the human mind which He assumed for us, radiant with the gold of justice, with the torches of spiritual love; in like manner, those who belong to Christ themselves also place fire on their censers and burn incense: because conceiving virtues from divine love, they extend their desires toward the blessedness of the heavenly promises, but still with sorrow and in enigma. Whence it is said that a cloud ascends from these things here, which a flame will one day follow, when they shall see those things face to face: and these find life and escape death, says Radulphus.
Beautifully does St. Ambrose, explaining that verse of Psalm CXVIII, Your word is exceedingly fiery, and your servant has loved it, say: "What fire the Lord scattered in the New Testament, which would inflame the secret affections of minds with the ardor of divine knowledge, which would burn the fragrance of faith and devotion, which would kindle the desire for virtue. Warmed by this fire, Jeremiah says: And there was a blazing fire in my bones. Warmed by this fire of heavenly words, Cleopas and that other one, who together with the Lord had made the journey from Jerusalem to the village, said: Was not our heart burning within us, when He opened the Scriptures to us?"
And again: "Love is strong as death, jealousy is hard as hell. Hard is the zeal which no allurement of this life conquers. Hard as the nether world, through which we die to sin, that we may live to God."
And St. Chrysostom, Homily 52 on the Acts: "He who has been seized by the fire of Christ," he says, "was such as a man would be who dwelt alone upon the earth. So little does he care for glory and ignominy. And he so despises temptations, and scourgings and prisons, as though he suffered in another's body, or as though he possessed an adamantine body. But he laughs at the things that are pleasant in this life, and does not feel them just as we ourselves do not feel dead bodies. And just as flies do not fall into the middle of a flame but flee from it, so also passions dare not approach such men."
Verse 14: He Shall Sprinkle Seven Times Toward the Propitiatory
14. HE SHALL ALSO TAKE OF THE BLOOD OF THE CALF, AND SPRINKLE WITH HIS FINGER SEVEN TIMES TOWARD THE PROPITIATORY — toward the propitiatory (for the blood did not touch or reach the propitiatory itself, as Abulensis rightly notes). The reason was, not that the propitiatory had sinned, but that it appeared, as it were, polluted and contaminated by the sins of the people, in the midst of whom it stood, committed throughout the whole year; therefore, so that this pollution might be removed, the priest and the people who had given cause for the pollution gave the blood of the goat and the calf in place of their own blood, of which, as well as of death, they were guilty. Moreover, this expiation was performed not at the altar of holocausts, because that was sufficiently expiated by the daily sacrifices; but at the altar of incense, and in the Holy of Holies: which two, as the most sacred places, most especially represented God, who had been offended and needed to be appeased.
TOWARD THE EAST — that is, toward the front part of the propitiatory, which first met one entering; for that part with respect to the back was toward the East, just as the Holy of Holies consequently was toward the West. Whence, speaking absolutely, the priest performed the expiation in the position in which the Jews prayed, namely facing West, that is, facing the Holy of Holies, which was to the West; yet here it is said that he made expiation "toward" or rather "facing the East," not of the world, but of the propitiatory, that is, toward or facing the front part of the propitiatory: for this part looked toward the East and was turned toward it. So Cajetan, Abulensis, Vatablus.
Allegorically, this blood is sprinkled seven times toward the propitiatory to signify that through the blood and death of Christ, with divine propitiation interceding, the sevenfold grace of Christ is conferred upon the faithful, by which they enter heaven: thus it is sprinkled toward the East, that is, toward Christ, who bestowed upon us the light of justice, so that now, changed, we may hear that word of the Apostle, Ephesians V: "You were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord." So says Radulphus.
Verse 15: He Shall Bring the Blood of the Goat Within the Veil
15. AND WHEN HE SHALL HAVE SLAIN THE GOAT FOR THE SIN OF THE PEOPLE, HE SHALL BRING ITS BLOOD WITHIN THE VEIL — namely within the Holy of Holies; "he shall bring it," together with the blood of the calf, about which see verses 11 and 14: for otherwise the high priest would have had to enter the Holy of Holies twice on the same day, although he was permitted to do so only once, as is clear from Hebrews IX, 7.
Allegorically, Christ through the blood of the calf, that is, of Himself, and through the blood of the goat, that is, through the mortification and penance of the people, expiates the sanctuary, not as if it were in itself unclean, but to signify that the sanctification of the future life must be acquired through present contrition, says Radulphus.
Verse 17: Let No Man Be in the Tabernacle
17. LET NO MAN BE IN THE TABERNACLE WHEN THE HIGH PRIEST ENTERS THE SANCTUARY. — "In the tabernacle," that is, in the first part of the tabernacle, which is called the Holy Place: for into the Holy of Holies, it was never lawful for anyone except the high priest to enter. It is therefore commanded here that none of the other priests should be in the Holy Place at the time when the high priest enters the Holy of Holies, both out of reverence for the majesty of God, and lest the other priests in the Holy Place should be able to hear God speaking to the high priest from the Holy of Holies.
Allegorically, all the disciples of Christ in His Passion (through which He entered into the Holy of Holies, namely into heaven) withdrew from Him and fled; moreover, scarcely anyone else at that time cared for his own salvation. So say Hesychius and Radulphus.
Note: The tabernacle signifies the whole sanctuary, consisting of the Holy Place and the Holy of Holies; by synecdoche, however, it sometimes signifies one part, sometimes the other; for the individual parts are each in turn called the tabernacle. Hence "tabernacle" is taken in four senses: first, for the court of the tabernacle and the tabernacle itself; second, for the whole tabernacle excluding the court; third, for the Holy Place, as it is taken here; fourth, for the Holy of Holies, as it is taken in the preceding verse 16. So Abulensis.
Verse 18: He Shall Pray at the Altar of Incense
18. And when he has gone out to the altar (of incense) WHICH IS BEFORE THE LORD (the propitiatory, on which the Lord resides), HE SHALL PRAY FOR HIMSELF — and for the whole people, as was stated before: for this was one common expiation for all. So Abulensis.
Verse 20: The Meaning of the Tabernacle
20. After he has cleansed the sanctuary (the Holy of Holies) AND THE TABERNACLE — that is, the Holy Place, which is expiated by the fact that the altar of incense situated in it is expiated, by the rite that has just been prescribed in the preceding verse.
Tropologically, the Holy of Holies signified heaven; the Holy Place signified the perfect men of this life; whence the altar of incense, which was in the Holy Place, signified the Saints devoted to contemplation and heavenly things; the court signified the common life of the laity, as I said on Exodus XXVI, near the beginning. The court, therefore, was expiated daily, because on the altar of holocausts, which was in the court, sacrifice was offered daily; for the imperfect, on account of their frequent falls, need frequent and, as it were, continual penance. The Holy Place, however, was expiated once a year, because perfect men, although they seem to live blamelessly, nevertheless ought not to depart from this life without penance, as St. Augustine taught and showed by his own example, according to Possidius in his Life, and St. Fulgentius, whose words during his illness were: "Lord, give me patience here for now, and afterwards forgiveness." The Holy of Holies, finally, was expiated, because heaven is opened by penance. So in substance says Radulphus.
This is what Abbot Menas said according to John Moschus in the Spiritual Meadow, chapter CLIX: "Every monk ought to do penance, both young and old, that they may deserve to enjoy eternal life with glory and praise: the young indeed, because in the flower of their age, when concupiscence is at its hottest, they placed their necks under the yoke of chastity; the old, because they were able to transfer the habit of evil deeply rooted in them over a long time toward better things."
Verses 20-21: The Confession over the Scapegoat
20 and 21. Then let him bring the living goat, and PLACING BOTH HANDS UPON ITS HEAD, LET HIM CONFESS ALL THE INIQUITIES OF THE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL, AND ALL THEIR OFFENSES AND SINS: AND IMPRECATING THEM UPON ITS HEAD, HE SHALL SEND IT BY A MAN PREPARED, INTO THE WILDERNESS. — This is the scapegoat, upon which the priest imprecated the sins of the people not so that the guilt (for this cannot be done), but so that the punishment might pass from the people onto the goat; the punishment, I say, by which God used to temporally afflict them in common for their sins: for otherwise the full penalties to be paid individually by each sinner, whether here, or in Purgatory, or in hell, remained and stood, and this ceremony took nothing away from them. So Abulensis. The Jews report, or rather fabricate, that the high priest on this day also poured forth other prayers, and asked first, for good and prosperous times; second, that the scepter not be taken from the tribe of Judah; third, that no one in the people should be in want; fourth, that God would not hear the foolish prayers of private individuals which are harmful to the common good, such as those who, setting out on a journey, wish for and pray for fair weather, when perhaps rain would better suit the land and the common good. Oleaster reports these things.
By a Man Prepared
21. BY A MAN PREPARED. — In Hebrew it reads: he shall send it by the hand of a man itti, that is, "of the [appointed] time," namely one prepared for this at this time. So the Septuagint, the Chaldean, and our Translator. Oleaster translates differently: By a man of time, he says, that is, by an old man, or one who has spent much time in the wilderness.
Into the Wilderness
INTO THE WILDERNESS — where this scapegoat might be devoured by wild beasts, and so, as an expiatory victim, might pay the penalties due for the sins of the people and transferred onto it. So also the Gentiles sacrificed a goat to Pan, the god of shepherds who dwell in desert places, which was driven to the cave where Pan himself was thought to lodge, as Lucian teaches.
Tropologically, the priest confesses the sins of the people upon the head of the scapegoat, because the elect ought to confess that they too were by nature children of wrath, and deserving to suffer similar things, had grace not come to their aid: and so let them sing forever of the mercies of the Lord, and say: "It is of the mercies of the Lord that we are not consumed;" and: "Unless the Lord of hosts had left us a seed, we would have been as Sodom."
Again, the high priest imprecated the sins of the people upon the head of the goat, because Christ prays that the wrath of divine indignation, to which even the elect were subject, may — once they have been absolved by grace — be turned back only upon the head of the reprobate, not so that they should bear anything beyond their desert, but so that they alone bear the common guilt. The man leading this goat into the wilderness is likewise Christ, who on the day of judgment will say to the reprobate: "Go, you cursed, into the eternal fire—" So says Radulphus. Wretched and horrifying will be the lot of these; for just as the flesh of all corpses is food for worms, so the life of damned souls will be the food of death, and that forever. Again, just as an ox feeds on grass in the meadows, not by tearing it up from the root where its life resides, but by cropping and cutting it piece by piece: so the soul placed in those infinite punishments, without the consumption of its substance, is torn apart by the bite, as it were, of a perpetual vulture, but is not consumed.
Verses 22-24: Aaron's Return and Vesting
22, 23 and 24. AND WHEN THE GOAT HAS BORNE ALL THEIR INIQUITIES INTO A SOLITARY LAND, AARON SHALL RETURN TO THE TABERNACLE (for while sending away the goat he was outside it, for he was at the door of the tabernacle), and having put off his garments he shall wash his body (the whole body, so that this washing would be a symbol of the cleanliness attained through the expiation already completed) IN A HOLY PLACE (in the court of the tabernacle, namely in the bronze basin near the door of the tabernacle, from which he had to go out from the Holy Place; for in the Holy Place the high priest divested and vested himself on this feast), AND HE SHALL PUT ON HIS OWN GARMENTS — the pontifical ones; for from this point the solemnity was joyful, and with the expiation the signs of mourning had passed. Whence festive holocausts had to be offered, and the high priest had to minister here and sacrifice them; but the high priest could not minister except in his pontifical vestments; therefore he had first to put on the common garments of priests, which he had taken off to wash himself, and in addition to put on over them his own vestments, namely those proper to the high priest.
Tropologically, Christ, after He shall have sent the damned into the eternal wastes of hell, will return to the tabernacle, that is, to heaven; He will lay aside His garments, because He will not appear in the corruption of the flesh, but will wash it, that is, will show it clean from every wound and contagion of the Passion; and He will put on His own garments, that is, He will show Himself to the elect clothed in the robe of immortality due to Him; He will offer the holocaust, that is, He will attribute all the praise and glory of His redemption to God, and will offer all the elect to God, since in heaven nothing mortal will remain in their flesh, nor anything culpable in their spirit, but all will be occupied with divine praises; He will pray for Himself and His own, that is, He will manifest the merit of His prayer and how much it profited either Himself or His friends; He will burn the fat of the victim for sin, because then that voluntary death, in which He laid down His life for His elect friends, will produce for Him who beholds so much fruit, and so great a people, and so great a glory of the elect, an ineffable joy. So says Radulphus.
Verse 26: He Who Released the Scapegoat
26. BUT HE WHO HAS RELEASED (the Plantin Bible erroneously has demiserit ["sent down"]) THE SCAPEGOAT SHALL WASH HIS GARMENTS AND HIS BODY WITH WATER, AND SO SHALL ENTER THE CAMP. — "He shall wash," namely to cleanse the legal impurity which he contracted from contact with the goat laden with so many sins, according to the imprecation of the high priest and the estimation of the people.
Verses 27-28: Burning the Remains Outside the Camp
27 and 28. BUT THE CALF AND THE GOAT THAT HAD BEEN SACRIFICED FOR SIN, AND WHOSE BLOOD WAS BROUGHT INTO THE SANCTUARY, THEY SHALL CARRY FORTH OUTSIDE THE CAMP, AND SHALL BURN WITH FIRE BOTH THEIR SKINS AND THEIR FLESH AND THEIR DUNG (for the reason stated in chapter IV, verse 12); AND WHOEVER SHALL HAVE BURNED THEM SHALL WASH HIS GARMENTS AND HIS BODY WITH WATER — "Whoever," namely from among the people; for it was the priest's office alone to sacrifice the calf and the goat, to pour out and sprinkle the blood: for these were priestly functions; when these were completed, someone from among the people carried the flesh, skin, and dung of the calf and goat outside the camp, and there burned them to ashes.
Allegorically, the dung and skin of the calf represent the ignominy of the Cross of Christ; these are burned outside the camp, because Christ suffered outside the city, and extended the fruit and glory of His Cross beyond Judea to the Gentiles: whence also the goat for sin is burned in the same place, to signify that Christ is glorified outside the Synagogue among the Gentiles, and in the penance and conversion of the Gentiles; whoever therefore shall have burned, that is, whoever shall have believed in Him burned and scorched on the Cross, let him wash himself, that is, let him sanctify himself, so that he may deserve entrance into the heavenly camp, says Radulphus.
Verses 29-30: An Everlasting Ordinance
29. AND THIS SHALL BE TO YOU AN EVERLASTING ORDINANCE — as if to say: This law shall be for you perpetual and always to be observed.
29 and 30. In the seventh month, on the tenth day of the month, YOU SHALL AFFLICT YOUR SOULS. ON THIS DAY SHALL BE YOUR EXPIATION. — Hence, and from verse 32, it is clear that this Feast of Expiation and its ceremonies were performed on the tenth day of the seventh month; when, that is, the Jews having already gathered their crops, had leisure to devote themselves to God, to expiate themselves, and to give thanks to God. Whence almost the whole seventh month was festive and sacred, as is clear from Leviticus XXIII.
Hence allegorically, the seventh month is the time of grace, in which the seven spirits of God have been sent into all the earth, Revelation V; in which Christ entered the eternal sanctuary, drawing all ages after Him, says Radulphus.
Note: The Feast of Expiation began from the evening of the ninth day, and lasted until the evening of the tenth day of the seventh month, as is clear from Leviticus XXIII, 32. For the Jews celebrated their feasts from evening to evening; this expiation, however, was performed by the high priest, who expiated not only the people, but also himself and the other priests, and indeed the temple and even the Holy of Holies, as is clear from verse 33.
You Shall Afflict Your Souls
29. YOU SHALL AFFLICT (the Hebrew teaunu can also be translated "you shall humble") YOUR SOULS — both by fasting and by mortifying the flesh in other ways.
Josephus reports, in book III, chapter X, that on this Day of Expiation the Jews were accustomed to fast until evening. Secondly, Abulensis in Leviticus XXIII, Question XXII, from the fact that it says here, "You shall afflict your souls," concluded that all pleasure was forbidden to the Jews on this day; whence thirdly, the Jews report, and are said to still observe, that on the same day one was to abstain from drink, from wives, from baths, and moreover shoes were to be cast off; indeed on this day each one individually confesses his sins, and inflicts blows and stripes upon himself for them, as I myself have heard from them. For this was a day of penance for obtaining expiation, just as among us are Lent and Good Friday.
Hence, to embrace summarily all the mystical senses of this passage, allegorically this Feast of Expiation signified the expiation of the sacrifice of the Cross of Christ. Tropologically, it signified the cleansing of souls, both the daily and particular cleansing, and the annual one common to all at Easter.
Hear Origen here, Homily 33: "O wonderful festival — a feast day is called the affliction of the soul! See therefore, if you wish to celebrate a feast day; if you wish God to rejoice over you, afflict your soul and humble it; do not permit it to fulfill its desires, nor allow it to wander in wantonness; for when the soul has been afflicted and humbled in the sight of the Lord, then God is appeased toward it, and then there comes to it He whom God set forth as a propitiator, Christ Jesus, its Lord and Redeemer." For compunction expiates and sanctifies the soul; and this is acquired by meditating on the last things and the twofold lot, about which see verse 8.
So Abbot Ammon in the Lives of the Fathers, book V, title On Compunction, when asked to say a word of edification: "Think," he said, "as though you were a prisoner in jail, and say to yourself: Woe to me, how am I to stand before the tribunal of Christ, and how am I to give an account of my deeds? If you have always meditated thus, you can be saved."
And Abbot Elias: "I," he said, "fear three things: first, when my soul shall depart from my body; second, when I shall meet God; third, when the sentence shall be pronounced against me."
Archbishop Theophilus, when about to die, said: "Blessed are you, Abba Arsenius, because you always had this hour before your eyes."
Abbot Agathon, when about to die, remained three days motionless, holding his eyes open; and the brethren roused him, saying: Abba, where are you? And he answered: "I stand in the presence of the divine judgment." They said to him: And do you fear? And he said: "For my part, I have labored with what strength I could, in keeping the commandments of God; but I am a man, and I do not know whether my works have been pleasing before the Lord." They said to him: And do you not trust in your works, that they are according to God? And the old man said: "I do not presume, until I come before God; for the judgments of God are one thing, those of men another." Ibid. chapter XI, On Sobriety.
Abbot Evagrius said: "Be always mindful of your death, and do not forget the eternal judgment, and there will be no sin in your soul."
A certain renowned Abbot, living austerely in the desert, when asked: "How do you endure this labor?" answered: "All the labor of my time that I endure here is not worthy to be compared with one day of the torments that are prepared for sinners in the world to come." Ibid. chapter VII, On Patience.
Another old man said: "In every matter let a man rebuke his soul, saying to it: Remember that you must meet God." Ibid. book VII, chapter XXI.
Anagogically, this feast signified the expiation of the whole world, and the separation of the elect from the reprobate to be made on the day of judgment.
Verse 31: A Sabbath of Rest
31. For it is a sabbath of rest. — In Hebrew it is "a sabbath of sabbaths," or "a rest of rest," as if to say: The highest rest is to be observed and kept by you on this day; for the most celebrated feasts of the Jews were these two: first, the sabbath; second, this Day of Expiation. Whence on neither of these was it permitted to prepare food, which however was permitted on other feasts, as will be clear from chapter XXIII, verse 27.
Verse 32: The Priest Who Has Been Anointed
32. THE PRIEST WHO HAS BEEN ANOINTED — as if to say: Who has been consecrated high priest by the anointing of his head and hands; for by this anointing he is initiated and consecrated.
Verse 34: Moses Did as the Lord Commanded
34. THAT YOU MAY PRAY. — You, O high priests, who shall follow hereafter; for only the high priests could make expiation and pray solemnly on this day.
THEREFORE MOSES DID AS THE LORD HAD COMMANDED MOSES. — "Moses" [i.e., the indirect object referring to himself] is a Hebraism. Furthermore, "he did" does not mean by celebrating the Feast of Expiation, as Lyra would have it: for this feast was to be celebrated in the seventh month; but these events took place in the first month, as I showed at the beginning of the chapter. "He did," therefore, means that Moses promulgated to the people this law of God concerning the Feast of Expiation, to be observed in its proper time, namely in the seventh month, in Canaan; for this is what God had commanded him, verse 2.