EAST TO THE
By Hillel ben David (Greg
Killian)
EAST TO THE
By Hillel ben David (Greg
Killian)
This
study represents the first connection that I have been able to find between Yom HaKippurim, the red heifer, and all of the sin sacrifices offered on behalf of the whole congregation of Israel with the death of Yeshua. The connection is the “place”. I intend to show
that the goat for HaShem and the Kohen
Gadole’s (High Priest’s) bull were both burned, along with ALL of the other
sin sacrifices, offered on behalf of all
First,
I would like to mention a few of the things that happened “in the east” in
order to highlight the fact that “east” is HaShem’s important direction.
Man expelled eastward out of the Garden
Bereshit (Genesis) 3:24.
Cain lived east in Nod ("to
move"). Bereshit (Genesis). 4:16
Abram pitched his tent here.
Bereshit (Genesis) 12:8
Cherubim. Bereshit (Genesis) 3:24
Ashes and bird crop (altar).
Vayikra (Leviticus).1:16
Yom HaKippurim blood sprinkled
eastward on mercy seat. Vayikra (Leviticus) 16:14
Tribes
on the East go first. Bamidbar (Numbers) 10:5
Moses and Aaron camped here.
Bamidbar (Numbers) 3:38
The ten
tribes were taken eastward as captives
II Melakim (Kings) 17:6.
The two tribes were taken
eastward into captivity II Melakim (Kings) 25:21.
2 Shmuel (Samuel) 15:30-32
The Shekinah Glory of HaShem withdrew
eastward.
Yechezkel (Ezekiel) 10:18-19
& 11:22- 23.
Mashiach
ascended into heaven from the
Red heifer burned on the
The penalty for sin was east of the Temple altar. Vayikra (Leviticus) 4:1- 12, 1:16, Yechezkel (Ezekiel)43:21, Bereans (Hebrews) 13:11-12
East of the
Now,
let’s examine Yeshua’s death and the reasons behind it. Since the location is
important, I will be making note of those events which indicate location. Keep
in mind that my goal it to connect the sin sacrifices, for all
A blasphemer was to
die "outside the camp":
Vayikra
(Leviticus) 24:10-16 Now the son of an Israelite
mother and an Egyptian father went out among the Israelites, and a fight broke
out in the camp between him and an Israelite. The son
of the Israelite woman blasphemed the Name with a curse; so they brought him to
Moses. (His mother's name was Shelomith, the daughter of Dibri the Danite.) They
put him in custody until the will of HaShem should be made clear to them. Then
HaShem said to Moses: "Take the blasphemer outside the camp. All
those who heard him are to lay their hands on his head, and the entire assembly
is to stone him. Say to the Israelites: 'If anyone
curses his God, he will be held responsible; Anyone who blasphemes the name of HaShem must be put to
death. The entire assembly must stone him. Whether an alien
or native-born, when he blasphemes the Name, he must be put to death.
Yeshua was
condemned for blasphemy:
Matityahu
(Matthew) 26:63-66 But Yeshua
remained silent. The high priest said to him, "I charge you under oath by
the living God: Tell us if you are the Mashiach,
the Son of God." "Yes, it is as you say," Yeshua replied.
"But I say to all of you: In the future you will see the Son of Man
sitting at the right hand of the Mighty One and coming on the clouds of heaven." Then the high priest
tore his clothes and said, "He has spoken blasphemy! Why do we need
any more witnesses? Look, now you have heard the blasphemy. What do you
think?" "He is worthy of death," they answered.
Yeshua died outside
the city gate and outside the camp, which was the penalty for blasphemers:
Bereans
(Hebrews) 13:9-14 Do not be carried away by all
kinds of strange teachings. It is good for our hearts to be strengthened by grace, not by ceremonial foods, which are of no value to
those who eat them. We have an altar from which those who minister at
the tabernacle have no right to eat. The high priest
carries the blood of animals into the
So,
where is this altar? On the
Where is
"outside the camp"?
Well,
lets look at an event which took place "outside the camp". Notice
that the bull is burned "outside the camp" while the blood is sprinkled
towards the front of the Tent of Moed:
Bamidbar
(Numbers) 19:1-9 HaShem said to Moses and Aaron: "This
is a requirement of the law that HaShem has commanded:
Tell the Israelites to bring you a red heifer without defect or blemish and
that has never been under a yoke. Give it to Eleazar the priest; it is to be
taken outside the camp and slaughtered in his presence. Then Eleazar the
priest is to take some of its blood on his finger and sprinkle it seven times toward the front of the Tent of Meeting. While
he watches, the heifer is to be burned--its hide, flesh, blood and offal. The
priest is to take some cedar wood, hyssop and scarlet wool and throw them onto
the burning heifer. After that, the priest must wash his clothes and bathe
himself with water. He may then come into the camp, but he will be ceremonially
unclean till evening. The man who burns it must also wash his clothes and bathe
with water, and he too will be unclean till evening. "A man who is clean
shall gather up the ashes of the heifer and put them in a ceremonially clean
place outside the camp. They shall be kept by the Israelite community for
use in the water of cleansing; it is for purification from sin.
The Mishna says something very interesting about this
event:
Middoth
2:4 All the walls that were there on the Temple Mount were high, with the exception of the
eastern wall, so that the Priest who burned the red heifer stood on top of the Mount
of Olives and was able to see directly into the entrance of the Sanctuary
when the blood was tossed.
Middoth
1:3 The surrounding wall of the whole quadrangle of the
Temple area of the Temple mount had five gates, namely
the two Chuldah Gates (named after the prophetess) on the south that served for
entrance and exit to the Temple Mount, the Kiphonos
Gate on the west that served for entrance and exit, the Tadi Gate on the north
which served no purpose, the Eastern Gate whereon the Castle of Shushan was
sculptured through which the High Priest who burned
the red heifer and all the priests that assisted
therewith went forth to the Mount of Olives (the Mount of Installation).
From
this we see that outside the camp, in this case, meant on the top of the
When Yeshua died, notice what people SAW:
Luqas
(Luke) 23:44-48 It was now about the sixth hour,
and darkness came over the whole land until the ninth hour, For the sun stopped
shining. And the curtain of the temple was torn in two.
Yeshua called out with a loud voice, "Father, into your hands I commit my
spirit." When he had said this, he breathed his last. The centurion,
seeing what had happened, praised God and said, "Surely this was a
righteous man." When all the people who had gathered to witness this sight
saw what took place, they beat their breasts and went away.
Matityahu
(Matthew) 27:50-54 And when Yeshua had cried out
again in a loud voice, he gave up his spirit. At that moment the curtain of
the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. The earth shook and the
rocks split. The tombs broke open and the bodies of
many holy people who had died were raised to life. They came out of the tombs,
and after Yeshua' resurrection they went into the holy city and appeared to many people. When the centurion
and those with him who were guarding Yeshua saw the earthquake and all that
had happened, they were terrified, and exclaimed, "Surely he was the
Son of God!"
Marqos
(Mark) 15:37-39 With a loud cry, Yeshua breathed
his last. The curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. And
when the centurion, who stood there in front of Yeshua, heard his cry and saw
that he so cried out, he said, "Surely this man was the Son of
God!"
I
believe that the only way that they could say that the curtain was torn at the
same “moment” that Yeshua died, was to see
it. What made the centurian say that
this was "the Son of God"? If the centurian knew how thick the
curtain was and how important the curtain was, he might very well understand
the significance. He surely did not think that the fact that Yeshua died and
cried out would make him the Son of God! So, the only place "outside the
camp" where the curtain could be see was on the
II
Luqas (Acts) 6:7-15 So the word of God spread. The
number of disciples in Jerusalem increased rapidly, and
a large number of priests became obedient to the faith. Now Stephen, a man full
of God's grace and power, did great wonders and miraculous signs
among the people. Opposition arose, however, from members of the Synagogue of the Freedmen (as it was called)--Jews of
II
Luqas (Acts) 7:51-59 "You stiff-necked people,
with uncircumcised hearts and ears! You are just like
your fathers: You always resist the Holy Spirit! Was
there ever a prophet your fathers did not persecute? They even killed those who
predicted the coming of the Righteous One. And now you have betrayed and
murdered him-- You who have received the law that was put into effect through
angels but have not obeyed it." When they heard this, they were furious
and gnashed their teeth at him. But Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, looked up
to heaven and saw the glory of God, and Yeshua
standing at the right hand of God. "Look," he said, "I see
heaven open and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God." At this
they covered their ears and, yelling at the top of their voices, they all
rushed at him, Dragged him out of the city and began to stone him.
Meanwhile, the witnesses laid their clothes at the feet of a young man named
Saul. While they were stoning him, Stephen prayed, "The Lord Yeshua,
receive my spirit."
Notice where the Yom HaKippurim bull and goat were burned:
Vayikra
(Leviticus) 16:26-27 "The man who releases the
goat as a scapegoat must wash his clothes and bathe himself with water;
afterward he may come into the camp. The bull and the goat for the sin offerings, whose blood was brought into the Most
Holy Place to make atonement, must be taken outside
the camp; their hides, flesh and offal are to be burned up.
Notice what else
went "outside the camp". The ordination offering:
Shemot
(Exodus) 29:10-14 "Bring the bull to the
front of the Tent of Meeting, and Aaron and his
sons shall lay their hands on its head. Slaughter it in HaShem's
presence at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting. Take
some of the bull's blood and put it on the horns of the altar with your finger,
and pour out the rest of it at the base of the altar. Then take all the fat
around the inner parts, the covering of the liver, and both kidneys
with the fat on them, and burn them on the altar. But burn the bull's flesh and
its hide and its offal outside the camp. It is a sin offering.
The Tent of Moed
(Meeting):
Shemot
(Exodus) 33:7-11 Now Moses used to take a tent
and pitch it outside the camp some distance away, calling it the
"tent of meeting." Anyone inquiring of HaShem would go to the tent of
meeting outside the camp. And whenever Moses went out to the tent, all the
people rose and stood at the entrances to their tents, watching Moses until he
entered the tent. As Moses went into the tent, the pillar of cloud would come
down and stay at the entrance, while HaShem spoke with Moses. Whenever the
people saw the pillar of cloud standing at the entrance to the tent, they all stood
and worshipped, each at the entrance to his tent. HaShem would speak to
Moses face to face, as a man speaks with his friend. Then Moses would return to
the camp, but his young aide Yahoshua (Joshua) son of Nun did not leave the
tent.
This place where
they worshipped is interesting because of:
II
Shmuel (Samuel) 15:29-32 So Zadok and Abiathar took the
ark of God back to Jerusalem and stayed there. But
David continued up the Mount of Olives, weeping
as he went; his head was covered and he was barefoot. All the people with him
covered their heads too and were weeping as they went
up. Now David had been told, "Ahithophel is among the conspirators with
Absalom." So David prayed, "HaShem, turn Ahithophel's
counsel into foolishness." When David arrived at the summit, where
people used to worship God, Hushai the Arkite was there to meet him, his
robe torn and dust on his head.
Unintenional sin by
the priest:
Vayikra
(Leviticus) 4:3-12 "'If the anointed priest sins, bringing guilt
on the people, he must bring to HaShem a young bull without defect as a sin offering for the sin he has committed. He is to
present the bull at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting
before HaShem. He is to lay his hand on its head and slaughter it before
HaShem. Then the anointed priest shall take some of the bull's blood and carry
it into the Tent of Meeting. He is to dip his
finger into the blood and sprinkle some of it seven
times before HaShem, in front of the curtain of the sanctuary.
The priest shall then put some of the blood on the horns of the altar of
fragrant incense that is before HaShem in the Tent
of Meeting. The rest of the bull's blood he shall pour out at the base of the
altar of burnt offering at the entrance to the Tent
of Meeting. He shall remove all the fat from the bull of the sin offering--the
fat that covers the inner parts or is connected to them, Both kidneys with the
fat on them near the loins, and the covering of the liver,
which he will remove with the kidneys-- Just as the fat
is removed from the ox sacrificed as a fellowship offering. Then the priest
shall burn them on the altar of burnt offering. But the hide of the bull and
all its flesh, as well as the head and legs, the inner parts and offal-- That
is, all the rest of the bull--he must take outside the camp to a place
ceremonially clean, where the ashes are thrown, and burn it in a wood fire on the ash heap.
Unintentional sin
by the WHOLE community of Israel:
Vayikra
(Leviticus) 4:13-21 "'If the whole Israelite
community sins unintentionally and does what is forbidden in any of
HaShem'S commands, even though the community is unaware of the matter, they are
guilty. When they become aware of the sin they
committed, the assembly must bring a young bull as a sin offering and present
it before the Tent of Meeting. The elders of the community are to lay their
hands on the bull's head before HaShem, and the bull shall be slaughtered
before HaShem. Then the anointed priest is to take some of the bull's blood
into the Tent of Meeting. He shall dip his finger into the blood and sprinkle
it before HaShem seven times in front of the curtain. He is to put some of the
blood on the horns of the altar that is before HaShem in the Tent of Meeting.
The rest of the blood he shall pour out at the base of the altar of burnt
offering at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting. He shall remove all the fat
from it and burn it on the altar, And do with this bull just as he did with the
bull for the sin offering. In this way the priest will make atonement for them,
and they will be forgiven. Then he shall take the bull outside the camp
and burn it as he burned the first bull. This is the sin offering for the
community.
The ashes of all
burnt offerings:
Vayikra
(Leviticus) 6:8-11 HaShem said to Moses: "Give
Aaron and his sons this command: 'These are the regulations for the burnt
offering: The burnt offering is to remain on the altar hearth throughout
the night, till morning, and the fire must be kept burning on the altar. The
priest shall then put on his linen clothes, with linen undergarments next to
his body, and shall remove the ashes of the burnt
offering that the fire has consumed on the altar and place them beside the
altar. Then he is to take off these clothes and put on others, and carry the
ashes outside the camp to a place that is ceremonially clean.
The ordination sin
offering:
Vayikra
(Leviticus) 8:13-17 Then he brought Aaron's sons
forward, put tunics on them, tied sashes around them and put headbands on them,
as HaShem commanded Moses. He then presented the bull
for the sin offering, and Aaron and his sons laid
their hands on its head. Moses slaughtered the bull and took some of the blood,
and with his finger he put it on all the horns of the altar to purify the
altar. He poured out the rest of the blood at the base of the altar. So he
consecrated it to make atonement for it. Moses also
took all the fat around the inner parts, the covering of the liver, and both kidneys and their fat, and burned it on the altar. But the
bull with its hide and its flesh and its offal he burned up outside the camp,
as HaShem commanded Moses.
The sin offering
for the people:
Vayikra
(Leviticus) 9:7-11 Moses said to Aaron, "Come
to the altar and sacrifice your sin offering and your burnt
offering and make atonement for yourself and the people; sacrifice the
offering that is for the people and make atonement for them, as HaShem has
commanded." So Aaron came to the altar and slaughtered the calf as a sin
offering for himself. His sons brought the blood to him, and he dipped his
finger into the blood and put it on the horns of the altar; the rest of the
blood he poured out at the base of the altar. On the altar he burned the fat,
the kidneys and the covering of the liver from the sin offering, as HaShem
commanded Moses; The flesh and the hide he burned up outside the camp.
Think of the
"camp" as the Garden of Eden, and notice who
is "outside the camp" now:
Vayikra
(Leviticus) 13:40-46 "When a man has lost his hair and is bald, he is clean. If he has lost his hair
from the front of his scalp and has a bald forehead, he is clean. But if he has
a reddish-white sore on his bald head or forehead, it is an infectious disease
breaking out on his head or forehead. The priest is to examine him, and if the swollen sore on
his head or forehead is reddish-white like an infectious skin disease, The man
is diseased and is unclean. The priest shall pronounce him unclean because of
the sore on his head. "The person with such an infectious disease must
wear torn clothes, let his hair be unkempt, cover the lower part of his face
and cry out, 'Unclean! Unclean!' As long as he has the infection he remains
unclean. He must live alone; he must live outside the camp.
Bamidbar
(Numbers) 5:1-4 HaShem said to Moses, "Command
the Israelites to send away from the camp anyone who has an infectious skin
disease or a discharge of any kind, or who is ceremonially unclean because of a
dead body. Send away male and female alike; send
them outside the camp so they will not defile their camp, where I dwell among them." The Israelites
did this; they sent them outside the camp. They did just as HaShem had
instructed Moses.
Notice that the
sacrifices that went "outside the camp" were the sacrifices which
dealt with the sin of the House of
Berachoth
9: 5 A man must not behave with
levity opposite the East Gate because it faces towards the Holy of Holies.
It
is also noteworthy that the
Bereshit
(Genesis) 3:24 After he drove the man out, he
placed on the east side of the Garden of Eden cherubim and a flaming
sword flashing back and forth to guard the way to the tree
of life.
Why
didn't HaShem have cherubim on all four
sides? Were the walls too high? was there only the gate where the water came
out? Consider that when the
Vayikra
(Leviticus) 4:11-12 But the hide of the bull and all
its flesh, as well as the head and legs, the inner parts and offal-- That is,
all the rest of the bull--he must take outside the camp to a place
ceremonially clean, where the ashes are thrown, and burn it in a wood fire
on the ash heap.
Vayikra
(Leviticus) 6:11 Then he is to take off these
clothes and put on others, and carry the ashes outside the camp to a place
that is ceremonially clean.
Bamidbar
(Numbers) 19:9 "A man who is clean shall
gather up the ashes of the heifer and put them in a ceremonially clean place
outside the camp. They shall be kept by the Israelite community for use in the
water of cleansing; it is for purification from sin.
This
study was designed to show a relationship between ALL of the sin sacrifices offered on behalf of ALL
Conversely,
coming towards HaShem is depicted as Westward:
Abram was called from
The tribes
returned from captivity going west
II Melakim (Kings) 17:6 &
25:21.
The Holy of Holies was in the
west end of the Tabernacle, as well as the First and
Second Temples, as it will be in future Third temple.
Therefore, coming to the presence of God with the Ark of the Covenant was only possible by going west from the east
Bamidbar (Numbers) 3:38,
Vayikra (Leviticus) 16:14, and
Yechezkel (Ezekiel) 43:1-5.
Yechezkel (Ezekiel) saw the Glory
of HaShem returning westward Yechezkel (Ezekiel) 43:1-5.
The wise men went west to find the
baby Yeshua Matityahu (Matthew) 2:1-2.
The Mashaich
will come from the east going west to enter the
Yechezkel (Ezekiel) 44:1-3 and
Rev. 19:11-16.
The blood (of the bullocks used
as sacrifices) was used westward in the Temple, while the flesh was burned to
the east on the Mount of Olives. Vayikra (Leviticus) 4:7, 11-12, Vayikra
(Leviticus) 1:16,
Yechezkel (Ezekiel) 43:21, and
Heb.13:10-12.
The Red Heifer was offered on the
The Children of Israel entered
the Promised Land over the
The
westerly direction in Scriptures indicates coming towards Hashem, a redemptive process. Going to the east indicates
movement away from HaShem.
* * *
The
altar in the
Among
the greatest codifiers of Jewish Law is the Rambam
(Rabbi Moshe Maimonides). He writes[1]:
"The Altar is
in a very precise location, which may never be changed." He
then goes on to tell that the Altars that Avraham, Noach, Kayin, Hevel, and Adam sacrificed on were all on this exact location. Offering
a sacrifice on any other location is considered to be a grave sin
and a desecration.
* * *
Yeshua also used the Mount of Olives for praying:
Yochanan (John) 22:39 And he came out, and went, as he was wont, to the
mount of Olives; and his disciples also followed him. 40 And when he was at the place, he said unto
them, Pray that ye enter not into temptation. 41 And he was withdrawn from them about a stone’s
cast, and kneeled down, and prayed, 42 Saying, Father, if thou be willing, remove
this cup from me: nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done.
This study was written by Hillel ben David
(Greg Killian).
Comments may be submitted to:
Greg Killian
7104 Inlay St SE
Lacey, WA 98513
Internet address: gkilli@aol.com
Web page: http://www.betemunah.org/
(360) 584-9352
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Send comments to Greg Killian at his email address: gkilli@aol.com