Covenanter Witness Vol. 54 - Rparchives.org

away."
away."
the day. On this one day of the year,
only the high priest could enter into the
Holy of Holies," where the ark of the
covenant was and where God was sup
posed to live.
We learn about this service from God's
Word, the Bible. In those days there
were no Bibles and God taught the peo
ple then by acts which they could see.
This service was to show the people that
all are sinners and that they must seek
from God forgiveness for their sins.
The Day of Atonement looked forward
to the day when Christ would shed His
blood on the Cross to take away our
sins.
All the people were to appear before
God as seeking for mercy and were to
show a sorrow for their sins. Everyone,
even children, were required to fast for
a full day. No one could eat anything
all that time.
Early in the morning of the great day,
the high priest offered on the altar
before the Tabernacle what was called
a "sin-offering." A young ox was burned
on the altar and its blood was carried
through the Holy place into the Holy
of Holies and sprinkled on the lid of the
Ark of the Covenant. This act was to
show that the priest himself was a sin
ner and that he was seeking mercy and
forgiveness for his sins. The priest must
have his own sins forgiven before asking
forgiveness for others.
Then the priest came again to the
Great Altar before the Tabernacle. Two
goats were brought to him. Lots were
cast upon them and on the forehead of
one was written "For the Lord" and on
the other goat was written words that
meant "To be sent
These two
goats were considered to be carrying
the sins of the people. One goat was
killed and burned on the altar; and
the priest took some of the blood into
the Holy of Holies and sprinkled the
blood on the Ark of the Covenant as he
had done before. He was really asking
God to receive the blood and the offer
ing and to forgive the sins of the people.
Remember there two goats and now
the high priest came out of the Taber
nacle and laid his hands on the head of
the goat marked "To be sent
This act was called "The Scapegoat" and
he was then led away into the wilderness
to some desolate place where he would
never find his way back to camp. There
he was left to wander as he wanted.
This was the way God took to teach the
people that their sins were taken away,
never to come back again.
When the service was over the peo
ple considered their sins were forgiven
and forgotten by God. The people would
go home happy and end their long fast
with all the food they could eat.
396
God was trying to show the people
that sin is terrible. It separates man
from God; it brings death; it must be
taken away by blood.
Thus we see that God was teaching
man the way of forgiveness and peace
long before He sent His Son Jesus
Christ into the world to take away our
sins by His death on the Cross.
For Your Note-Book
Draw a picture of two goats. On the
Scapegoat, list all the sins you can,
which you need to ask God to take from
your life.
SABBATH SCHOOL, LESSON
July 10, 1955
W. J. McBurney
(Lessons based on International Sunday School
Lessons ; the International Bible LeBsons for
Christian Teaching, copyrighted by the Interna
tional Council of Religious Education.)
HABAKKUK'S FAITH TESTED
Printed. Habakkuk 1:1-4, 12, 13; 2:1-4;
3:17-19
MEMORY, "The righteous shall live by
faith."
Habakkuk 2:4
In the darkest hour, we know that the
dawn is near, if we see signs of it,
we know that the time has arrived. The
or if
old proverb, however, is not always true.
The darkest hour is sometimes just after
the sunset.
The sunset in Judah did not come
suddenly. It followed a long spiritual de
cline. Habakkuk saw the past and the
present in the light of God's revelation.
What he foretold was the natural result
of what was transpiring before him.
Judah had merited her own doom, and
the prophet shows them the folly of the
way of sin and destruction.
The Prophet Was Speaking for God
The Revelation of Habakkuk is an
explanation of what is going on, as much
as a warning of what is about to come.
God was destroying the power of the
enemies of Judah one after another. If
Judah would follow God's command,
they would have every opportunity for
their own prosperity and peace. Their
time was fast running out, yet they did
not heed the warning. Even in the wick
ed reigns of Jehoahaz and Jehoiakim.
the prophet still came to warn them.
The affairs of Judah were a heavy
burden on the heart of Habakkuk, and
he took it to the Lord in prayer. There
were some who shared the burden with
the prophet. But many in the nation
tried to cast off their fears. In this they
only deceived themselves. They were
like the drunk man that does not feel
the blow that crushes him. The prophet
is awake to their dangers. He questions
the Lord: why is his cry not heard
Why is all this evil shown to him And
why is the Lord not enforcing the law
against the wicked who are destroying
the righteous.
The Lord answers: Judah had only
to behold God's work among the
heathen, to see how He was allowing
them to work their own destruction.
Even the wicked Chaldeans were being
used against Judah's enemies. Time and
again the door to victory was opened
to Judah, but was immediately closed by
sin. They were followers, and chose bad
leaders, instead of those God sent.
A promise has been compared to a tele
scope that brings distant objects near
to our vision, if accepted in faith and
at hu
obedience. Those who look only
man history see only human factors.
God's promises show the future in its
true perspective. Our own desires may
be like an inverted telescope and make
a hungry lion look like a tabby cat.
Habakkuk's earnest questions were
not in doubt. He took them to God, the
author of Truth. The answer came. It
was not for Judah alone. It was an ap
plication of truth to the conduct of men
and nations. He was to write it. It was
for all who would come after. It is
not simply the story of a nation. It is a
study of the destiny of all nations. Just
now its value is for us. It tells us how
to meet national and world conditions.
Until quite recently, we were quite con
fident that we could meet any war that
could be waged against us. Now we are
faced with an instrument that we our
selves introduced into the world war
fare, that we cannot meet. Our only
human hope is that no nation will ever
use our own weapon against us. God's
word offers us safety if we trust and
obey Him. Destruction, if we trust in
the arm of flesh. Judah never needed
to heed the prophets more than we do
today. Our safety is in God's eternal
Holiness. We should wait for it (2:3).
The Hand of God
The blessing and doom of nations has
been written in history. It has been
analyzed in God's word so that we can
know its meaning and profit by it. God's
promises to Judah were not only of
blessing, but also of doom. So far, they
have all been fulfilled. Those promises
are also to us. They are being fulfilled
to us. If we had kept and enforced Pro
hibition, our Pacific War would have
lasted just one day.
It is no sign of God's disfavor that He
does not grant our requests as we desire.
In the twelvth verse, the prophet re
ceives assurance that they shall not die.
He is shown that those who are oppress
ing them, whom they so greatly fear, are
themselves ordained for punishment and
correction.
The Lord Chastens Whom He Loves
In verses 4-12 God gave Habakkuk the
full story of the course Judah was fol-
THE COVENANTER WITNESS