What Time Is It?
and he shall lay them on the head of the goat and send it away into the wilderness by the hand of a man who stands in readiness Leviticus 16:21
Stands In Readiness – What actors come to mind in the drama of the scapegoat? Do you see the priest, Aaron, placing his hands on the head of the goat, transferring the sin of Israel to the animal? Do you see the goat sent into the wilderness to die? That’s good. You have identified two of the three important players. But there is a third, someone whom we usually overlook. What a shame! We have forgotten that we are that third person in the drama.
Jesus is the scapegoat. We know this now, but in the time of Moses, Jesus was still a secret hidden in the heart of the Father. So, God prepared a symbolic teaching lesson; a lesson that should have acquainted His people with the plan of redemption. In this passage, Aaron transfers the sin of Israel onto the goat that is then sent outside the camp to die. Sin is removed through the death of the scapegoat. Thousands of years later, Jesus took the place of the goat and the Father, the ultimate priest, transferred our sin onto His Son.
But there is another role to be played. In ancient Israel, this role is designated by the term itti. This is the only verse in the entire Bible where this word appears. No wonder we overlook it. But its single occurrence does not make it less important. The word comes from the root et, a word that is always about “time.” Et does not specify a particular time. It is a word that means, “some undetermined period of or for something.” In this verse, this word tells us that there is a man who is willing and stands ready no matter how long it takes to carry out the task of leading the goat. At some point in time, Aaron passes the responsibility of handling the atoning sacrifice to this man. Symbolically, this man is you and me.
The sin of the world was placed on Jesus. He carries those sins away from the camp. But you and I are called to be ready when needed to guide that scapegoat away from God’s children. We have a job to do in the ritual of atonement. We don’t transfer the sin. We don’t die to redeem. But we do lead the sin-carrier away. You and I must be willing and ready to step forward when judgment needs to be removed from the camp. Our job is to walk with Jesus toward death so that others can be freed of their sin.
Are you ready to guide the sin-carrier away from the camp? Will you venture into the wilderness with the atoning sacrifice in order to free others from their judgment? Are you traveling with Jesus to the edge of destruction in order to assure that the message of forgiveness is accomplished? Are you standing ready when called?
