= 6 = THE SANCTUARY IN
HEAVEN
The finishing of
the mystery of God involves the opening of the second apartment of the
temple in heaven, wherein is the ark of God's testament. This is the
place where our Lord finishes his priesthood, and hence this apartment
of the heavenly temple must be the place of that tribunal at which the
righteous are acquitted, their sins blotted out and themselves accounted
worthy of the kingdom of God. The temple of God in heaven, and
especially its second apartment, is therefore worthy of our most
attentive study. The Scriptures contain many explicit testimonies to
the existence of the heavenly temple.
The Lord is in
his holy temple, the Lord's throne is in heaven; his eyes behold, his
eyelids try, the children of men. Psalm 11:4.
In my distress I
called upon the Lord, and cried to my God; and he did hear my voice
out of his temple, and my cry did enter into his ears. Then the earth
shook and trembled; the foundations of heaven moved and shook, because
he was wroth. 2 Samuel 22:7,8. See also Psalm 18:6,7
In the year that
king Uzziah died I saw also the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and
lifted up, and his train filled the temple. Above it stood the
seraphims; each one had six wings; with twain he covered his face, and
with twain he covered his feet, and with twain he did fly. And one
cried unto another, and said, Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord of hosts;
the whole earth is full of his glory. And the posts of the door moved
at the voice of him that cried, and the house was filled with smoke.
Isaiah 6:1-4
Hear, all ye
people; hearken, O earth, and all that therein is; and let the Lord
God be witness against you; the Lord from his holy temple. For,
behold, the Lord cometh forth out of his place, and will come down,
and tread upon the high places of the earth. Micah 1:2,3
And the temple
of God was opened in heaven, and there was seen in his temple the ark
of his testament; and there were lightnings, and voices, and
thunderings, and an earthquake, and great hail. Revelation 11:19
And another
angel came out of the temple which is in heaven, he also having a
sharp sickle. And another angel came out from the altar, which had
power over fire. Revelation 14:17,18.
And after that I
looked, and, behold, the temple of the tabernacle of the testimony in
heaven was opened. Revelation 15:5
And the seventh
angel poured out his vial into the air; and there came a great voice
out of the temple of heaven, from the throne, saying, It is done."
Revelation 16:17
Many other texts
might be quoted in which this building is mentioned either as God's
temple, tabernacle, sanctuary, or holy habitation. To some of these
texts we shall refer in the further study of this subject.
The heavenly
temple consists of two holy places. This is proved by many conclusive
arguments. The first of these is drawn from the statements respecting
the tabernacle erected by Moses. When God called Moses into the mount
to receive the tables of the law (Exodus 24:12), he first bade him make
a sanctuary that he might dwell among them, and that the priests might
minister in his presence. Exodus 25, 26, 27, 28. He also bade him to
make an ark to contain the tables of the law, to be placed in the second
apartment of the sanctuary. This building consisted of two holy places
(Exodus 26), and both itself and its sacred vessels were made like the
pattern showed in the mount.
And let them
make me a sanctuary; that I may dwell among them. According to all
that I show thee, after the pattern of the tabernacle, and the pattern
of all the instruments thereof, even so shall ye make it. Exodus
25:8,9
Who serve unto
the example and shadow of heavenly things, as Moses was admonished of
God when he was about to make the tabernacle; for, See, saith he, that
thou make all things according to the pattern showed to thee in the
mount. Hebrews 8:5. See also Exodus 25:40; 26:30; Acts 7:44
The tabernacle
thus constructed was a pattern of the heavenly temple. Thus Paul bears
testimony:-
It was therefore
necessary that the patterns of things in the heavens should be
purified with these; but the heavenly things themselves with better
sacrifices than these. For Christ is not entered into the holy places
made with hands, which are the figures of the true [the images of the
true holy places, Macknight's translation]; but into heaven itself,
now to appear in the presence of God for us. Hebrews 9:23,24
This establishes
one plain, incontrovertible argument, that the heavenly temple has two
holy places. The temple erected by Solomon furnishes the second
argument, and it is of the same character as that drawn from the
tabernacle. The temple was a larger and grander building than the
tabernacle, and differed from it in being an immovable structure, but it
was constructed on the same plan, in that it was an edifice consisting
of two holy places, with sacred vessels of the same kind, and occupied
with the very same ministration, as that which had previously served in
the tabernacle. 1 Kings 6, 7,8; 2 Chronicles 3,4,5. This building with
its two holy places was a pattern of the heavenly temple, as the words
or David and of Solomon declare:-
"Then David gave
to Solomon his son the pattern of the porch, and of the houses
thereof, and of the treasuries thereof, and of the upper chambers
thereof, and of the inner parlors thereof, and of the place of the
mercy-seat, and the pattern of all that he had by the Spirit, of the
courts of the house of the Lord, and of all the chambers round about,
of the treasuries of the house of God, and of the treasuries of the
dedicated things." "All this, said David, the Lord made me understand
in writing by his hand upon me, even all the works of this pattern."
1 Chronicles 28:11,12,19
This is a second
decisive argument that the heavenly sanctuary has two holy places. The
third is drawn from the fact that the plural term "holy places" is used
in the designation of the greater and more perfect tabernacle.
Thus when Paul
says, as expressed in our common version (Hebrews 8:2), "A minister of
the sanctuary, and of the true tabernacle, which the Lord pitched, and
not man," it is literally in the original, "a minister of the holy
places." And thus also when we read respecting the heavenly temple,
"The Holy Ghost this signifying, that the way into the holiest of all
was not yet made manifest, while as the first tabernacle was yet
standing," it is literally in the Greek, "the way of the holy places."
Hebrews 9:8. So also where we read of the greater and more perfect
tabernacle, in verse 12, that Christ "entered in once into the holy
place," it is also literally "holy places." Again, in verse 24, we read
in our common version the same thing, literally rendered, "the holy
places made with hands, which are the figures of the true," which last
word is plural in the original, showing that there are holy places in
the heavenly temple. And again in Hebrews 10:19, the term "holiest" is
not, in the original "holy of holies," as in chap.9:3, but simply "holy
places." These passages form a most convincing argument that there must
be two holy places in the heavenly temple. A fourth argument is found
in the fact that each of the two holy places of the heavenly temple is
definitely set forth in the description of that building not made with
hands.
The first
apartment is identified by the things which it contains. When John was
called in vision to ascend to the place of God's throne, the heavenly
temple, a door was opened in heaven, and the throne of God was revealed
to his view. This is manifestly the door of the heavenly temple, for
the throne of God which it discloses to view is within that temple.
Psalm 11:4; Revelation 16:17. That it was the first apartment of that
temple into which he looked, is evident from what he saw therein. "And
out of the throne proceeded lightnings and thundering and voices; and
there were seven lamps of fire burning before the throne, which are the
seven Spirits of God." Revelation 4:5. Here is a plain reference to the
seven lamps which burned in the first apartment of the earthly
sanctuary. Leviticus 24:2-4.
And again, when
the seven angels receive the seven trumpets, the scene of vision is
still the first apartment of the heavenly sanctuary. Thus we read:-
And I saw the
seven angels which stood before God; and to them were given seven
trumpets. And another angel came and stood at the altar, having a
golden censer; and there was given unto him much incense, that he
should offer it with the prayers of all saints upon the golden altar
which was before the throne. Revelation 8:2,3
The golden altar
stood in the first apartment of the sanctuary, i.e., in the same room
with the candlestick on which were the seven lamps. Exodus 40:24-26.
The place of God's throne at the time when the book with the seven seals
was delivered to Christ, and also when the seven trumpets were given to
the seven angels, is the first apartment of the heavenly sanctuary. But
when the seven vials are delivered into the hands of the seven angels
who have the duty of pouring them out, the second apartment of the
heavenly temple is opened, and they come out from thence to execute the
wrath of God upon men. This opening of the holiest takes place under
the seventh trumpet.
And after that I
looked, and, behold, the temple of the tabernacle of the testimony in
heaven was opened; and the seven angels came out of the temple, having
the seven plagues, clothed in pure and white linen, and having their
breasts girded with golden girdles. And one of the four beasts gave
unto the seven angels seven golden vials full of the wrath of God, who
liveth forever and ever. And the temple was filled with smoke from
the glory of God, and from his power; and no man was able to enter
into the temple, till the seven plagues of the seven angels were
fulfilled. Revelation 15:5-8
This opening of
the heavenly temple, which is followed by the pouring out of the
unmingled wrath of God, is an event connected with the closing up of
human probation. And it is certain that we have in this case the
opening of the holiest of all, here called the tabernacle of the
testimony. The expression, "tabernacle of the testimony," is a familiar
term taken from the Old Testament, and is precisely equivalent to
"tabernacle of the ten commandments." In proof of this, take the use of
this term in the Bible. We begin with the first use of the Hebrew word
gehdooth, and trace it through the books of Moses. Thus it occurs for
the first time in Exodus16:34: "Aaron laid it up before the
testimony." That is to say, he laid up the pot of manna before the ark
of the ten commandments. (See Hebrews 9:4.) The next is Exodus 25:16:
"Thou shalt put into the ark the testimony which I shall give thee."
This was the ten commandments. (See Exodus 31:18; Deuteronomy 10:4,5.)
Again (Exodus 25:21), "In the ark thou shalt put the testimony," i.e.,
the ten commandments. (See 1 Kings 8:9.) And now the ark itself takes
its name from what was put in it. "The two cherubims which are upon the
ark of the testimony." Exodus 25:22. "And thou shalt hang up the veil
under the taches, that thou mayest bring in thither within the veil the
ark of the testimony; and the veil shall divide unto you between the
holy place and the most holy. And thou shalt put the mercy-seat upon
the ark of the testimony in the most holy place." Exodus 26:33,34.
Here we have the ark of the ten commandments assigned to the most holy
place of the tabernacle, and the mercy-seat placed over the ark.
Presently we shall find that this testimony gives name to the tabernacle
itself. As we read onward we find in Exodus 27:21; 30:6,26,36; 31:7,18;
32:15; 34:29, the terms "testimony," "tables of testimony," "ark of the
testimony," each time by testimony meaning definitely the ten
commandments. The term, "tabernacle of testimony," occurs for the first
time in Exodus 38:21.
Thus we see that
the testimony of the Almighty gives name to the tables on which it was
written, to the ark in which the tables were placed, and to the
tabernacle itself, whose second apartment received the ark. Next, we
thrice read of the ark of the testimony. Exodus 39:35; 40:3,5. And now
we are brought to the acts of Moses in setting up the sanctuary. It is
said (Exodus 40:20), "He took and put the testimony into the ark," i.e.,
he put the law of God therein. Then he placed the ark itself within the
tabernacle, and covered the ark of the testimony by hanging up the
second veil. Exodus 40:21. In Leviticus16:13 the mercy-seat is said to
be upon the testimony. In Leviticus 24:3, the veil which hides the ark
is called the veil of the testimony. Next, we read of the tabernacle of
the testimony, in Numbers 1:50,53. Next, of the ark of the testimony.
Numbers 4:5; 7:89; Joshua 4:16. Next, of the tent of the testimony.
Numbers 9:15, and of the testimony itself. Numbers 17:10. Next, of the
tabernacle of witness, or testimony (for the two words are synonymous).
Numbers 10:11; 17:7,8; 18:2. In all these texts it is certain that the
ten commandments are called the testimony, and that they give name to
the tables, to the ark, to the veil, and to the tabernacle, especially
to the second apartment.
This term has,
therefore, a well-defined meaning in the Scriptures. By the testimony,
the tables of the testimony, the ark of the testimony, the veil of the
testimony, and the tabernacle of the testimony, are meant respectively
the ten commandments. (Exodus 31:18), the tables of the ten commandments
(Exodus 32:15), the ark of the ten commandments (Exodus 40:20), the veil
of the ten commandments (Exodus 40:21; Leviticus 24:3), and the
tabernacle of the ten commandments (Numbers 9:15; 10:11). The term,
"tabernacle of witness," or "testimony," does therefore definitely
signify the tabernacle of the ten commandments. Now it is remarkable
that this term occurs twice in the New Testament. In Acts 7:44, the
tabernacle of witness, i.e., of the ten commandments, is mentioned,
referring to the earthly sanctuary; and in Revelation 15:5, the heavenly
sanctuary is designated by this same term, the temple of the tabernacle
of the testimony in heaven; and we have proved conclusively that this is
equivalent to the temple of the tabernacle of the ten commandments in
heaven.
This text is
therefore a plain reference to the most holy place of the heavenly
temple, and to the law of God deposited therein, which gives name to the
building. This apartment of the heavenly temple is opened just prior to
the pouring out of the plagues. But we have a second statement of the
opening of the most holy place of the temple in Heaven. Thus we read of
the events under the seventh trumpet:-
And the temple
of God was opened in heaven, and there was seen in his temple the ark
of his testament; and there were lightnings, and voices, and
thunderings, and earthquake, and great hail. Revelation 11:19
Here is disclosed
to our view the second apartment of the heavenly temple, and here is
shown the grand central object, which gives name to the tabernacle
itself. It is the ark of God, sometimes called the ark of the covenant,
or testament (Numbers 10:33; Hebrews 9:4), and sometimes the ark of the
testimony (Exodus 25:22). It is because the heavenly temple contains
the ark of God's testimony that it is itself called the tabernacle of
the testimony in heaven. And the ark itself is not empty; it contains
what Revelation 11:19 calls God's testament, and what Revelation 15:5
calls "the testimony in heaven." And these two terms must signify the
ten commandments, and cannot signify anything else.
The existence of
the temple in heaven, and the fact that it has two holy places, like the
sanctuary of the first covenant, have been clearly proved. The judgment
work in the second apartment remains to engage our attention.
When Paul says, in
Romans 2:6, that God "will render to every man according to his deeds,"
he adds in the next verse this important statement: "To them who by
patient continuance in well-doing seek for glory and honor and
immortality, eternal life." Now it is manifest that this work of
rendering to every man according to his deeds can only be wrought after
the examination of those deeds in the judgment. It must be in
consequence of the decision of the judgment that the things promised are
rendered to men. It is also evident that the gift of immortality is one
of the things thus rendered. As the righteous receive this gift in the
very act of being resurrected from the grave, it is certain that the
decision of the judgment passes upon them before the voice of the
archangel and the trump of God awaken them to immortal life.
This part of the
judgment work takes place where our Lord finishes his priesthood; for
his last work as priest is to secure the acquittal of his people, and to
obtain the decision that their sins shall be blotted out. We have
learned from the Scriptures that the heavenly temple has two holy
places. A further examination will evince the fact that there are two
parts to the ministration of Christ, and that his last work is at the
tribunal of his Father, in the tabernacle of the testimony, where it is
determined who shall receive immortality.
The Levitical
priests served "unto the example and shadow of heavenly things." Hebrews
8:5. The most important part of the service pertaining to the earthly
sanctuary was that which was performed within the second apartment on
the tenth day of the seventh month. Leviticus 16. This is generally
considered as typifying the events of the whole gospel dispensation.
But we think the evidence conclusive that this chapter is a typical
representation of that part of our Lord's work which is embraced in the
hour of God's judgment, or in the days of the voice of the seventh angel
when he begins to sound.
The sixteenth
chapter of Leviticus is devoted solely to the work of finishing the
yearly round of service in the earthly sanctuary. This was wrought on
the great day of atonement, and was of the most impressive character.
First, the high priest was solemnly admonished that he was such only in
a typical sense and not such in reality. For on this day, which was by
far the most impressive of all, and when he entered the most holy place
of the sanctuary, he must put on the plainest and humblest dress, laying
aside that splendid dress which the law prescribed for him to wear on
other occasions. Leviticus 16:4 compared with Exodus 28. He was also to
make a public acknowledgment of his own sinfulness by proceeding to
offer a sin-offering for himself. Leviticus.16:3,6, 11-14. No part of
this can by typical of our Lord's work, for it was expressly designed to
impress upon the mind the infirmity and sinfulness of the high priest.
But this being
accomplished, the high priest entered upon that work which directly
shadowed forth the work of atonement. He took from the congregation of
the children of Israel two kids of the goats for a sin-offering.
Levitics 16:5. On these two goats he was to cast lots; one lot was for
the goat to be sacrificed, and one for the scape-goat. Then he slew the
goat upon which the lot fell for a sacrifice, and with his blood he
entered into the second apartment of the sanctuary. This blood he
sprinkled before the mercy-seat and upon it. He did this for two
purposes: (1) To make atonement for the people; (2) to cleanse the
sanctuary by removing from it the sins of the people of God. Then the
high priest returned into the first apartment and cleansed the altar
from the sins of the people. The sanctuary being cleansed, the high
priest comes out of the door of the building, and, having caused the
live goat to be brought, he lays both his hands upon his head and
confesses over him all the transgressions of the children of Israel in
all their sins. These he puts upon the head of the goat, and sends him
away by the hand of a fit man in to the wilderness. And the goat thus
sent bears away all their iniquities into a land not inhabited.
Leviticus 16:7-10, 15-22.
The work of the
high priest on the day of atonement was not his whole work in putting
away sin. While the ministration was confined to the first apartment
which was for the whole period of the year but this day, the priest
offered the blood of sin-offering in that apartment to make
reconciliation, i.e., to begin the work of atonement. Leviticus 4. It
was by this very work that the sins were transferred to the sanctuary
through the blood of sin-offering. The high priest on the day of
atonement takes up this unfinished work and completes it. The business
of the day is to finish the great work of atonement for the people of
God, and to remove their sins from the sanctuary, and place them upon
the head of the scape-goat. The work in the second apartment of the
earthly sanctuary does not therefore represent the whole gospel
dispensation, but simply that part of it devoted to the finishing of the
mystery of God in the days of the seventh angel's voice when he begins
to sound; in other words, it is the work embraced in that period of time
denominated the hour of God's judgment.
There was a period
in "the example and shadow of heavenly things" devoted to the finishing
of the high priest's work. There is such a period devoted to the
finishing of the work of Christ in the days of the voice of the seventh
angel, at the conclusion of the gospel dispensation. That work, in the
"shadow of good things to come," was accomplished in the second
apartment of the earthly sanctuary. This work in like manner is wrought
in the second apartment of the sanctuary in heaven. It is a remarkable
fact that the opening of the second apartment of the temple in heaven is
an event located under the seventh angel's voice, i.e., in the very time
when the work of probation is to be finished. Revelation 10:7; 11:15-19.
The opening of the
second apartment of the heavenly temple is with manifest reference to
the accomplishment of the events which transpire in the finishing of the
mystery of God. These are:
1. The session
of the judgment by the Ancient of Days. Daniel 7:9-14; Revelation
11:18; 14:6,7.
2. The conclusion
of the priesthood of Christ at this tribunal in the blotting out of
sins. Acts 3:19,20.
3. The coronation
of Christ. Revelation 11:15-17; Daniel 7:13,14; Ps.2:6-9.
4. Then the pouring
out of the vials of the wrath of God. Revelation 11:18; 15:1, 5-8.
The Saviour's
priesthood terminates in the second apartment of the heavenly
sanctuary. But the very occasion on which it terminates is that of the
blotting out of the sins of his people, when the Father sits in
judgment. Again, the blotting out of the sins of the people of God is
the very counterpart of that work in the holiest of the earthly
sanctuary, whereby the sins were removed from the sanctuary to be placed
upon the head of the scape-goat. The session of the investigative
judgment must therefore take place in that apartment of the heavenly
temple which witnesses the conclusion of our Lord's priesthood. And
hence we understand that the opening of that apartment of the temple in
heaven which contains the ark of the testament is for the session of the
judgment described in Daniel 7. The position of the Father during this
session of the investigative judgment, in the second apartment of the
"greater and more perfect tabernacle," is evidently alluded to in the
following texts:-
Be silent, O all
flesh, before the Lord; for he is raised up out of his holy
habitation. Zechariah 2:13
But the Lord is
in his holy temple; let all the earth keep silence before him.
Habakkuk 2:20
The Father enters
the second apartment that he may sit in judgment. Daniel 7. The Son
presents himself at his tribunal that he may finish as high priest, his
great work of atonement for the dead and the living. While the judgment
of the righteous dead is going forward, probation remains to the
righteous living. And hence it is that after the hour of God's judgment
has come, the third angel proclaims the latest message of mercy to the
world of mankind. But when the sins of the righteous dead have been
blotted out, and the righteous living have been prepared for the close
of their probation by the work of the third angel, the Son of God
terminates his priesthood, and takes his place as king upon the great
white cloud. Revelation 14:6-14.
The act of
blotting out is not the only event in the final disposal of the sins of
those who overcome. The removal of their sins from the sanctuary, at
the conclusion of the high priest's work therein, is followed by a most
remarkable transaction. The sins thus removed from the temple of God
are placed upon the head of the scape-goat. But our Lord Jesus Christ
cannot be typified by this goat; for the sins of men were laid upon him
before the work of his priesthood began in the sanctuary; but the
scape-goat receives the sins from the sanctuary after the whole work of
the priest is completed therein. The sins thus placed on the scape-goat
never pass from him to any other being or object.
But those goats
which were slain in sacrifice for sin, had the sins of the people laid
on them before the high priest entered the sanctuary to sprinkle the
blood of sin-offering before God. Indeed, it was by this very means
that the sins of the people were transferred to the sanctuary. This
work represents the sacrifice of the Son of God for us, and his
ascension to heaven to plead the cause of his people. But when his work
therein is accomplished, and the sins of the people of God are removed
thence (see Hebrews 9:22,23), that being who receives them at the hand
of our High Priest to bear them to a land not inhabited, can be no other
than Satan, the author of sin. The fulfillment of this will be when
Satan, at the commencement of the 1,000 years, is confined to the
desolated earth, his dreary prison during the long space between the two
resurrections. Revelation 20:1-7.
That the ancient
people of God understand the scape-goat to represent, not Christ, but
Satan, the following testimonies will show. It will be seen, moreover,
that there is direct evidence that Satan is intended in the very
signification and use of this word.
Charles Beecher,
in his work entitled "Redeemer and Redeemed," pp. 66-70, says:-
Two goats were
to be presented before the Lord by the high priest. They must be
exactly alike in value, size, age, color - they must be counterparts.
Placing these goats before him, the high priest put both hands into an
urn containing the golden lots, and drew them out, one in each hand.
On the one was engraven, La Yehovah (for Jehovah), on the other La
Azazel (for Azazel).
The goat on
which the lot La Yehovah fell was slain. After its blood had been
sprinkled in the holy of holies, the high priest laid his hands on the
head of the second goat, confessed the sins of the congregation, and
gave him to a fit man to lead away and let go in the wilderness; the
man thus employed being obliged to wash his clothes and person before
returning to the congregation.
Mr. Beecher states
two views respecting the meaning of this term Azazel, each of which he
shows to be manifestly untrue. He then gives his own view, as follows:-
The third
opinion is, that Azazel is a proper name of Satan. In support of
this, the following points are urged: The use of the preposition
implies it. The same preposition is used on both lots, La Yehova, La
Azazel; and if the one indicates a person, it seems natural the other
should, especially considering the act of casting lots. If one is for
Jehovah, the other would seem for some other person or being; not one
for Jehovah, and the other for the goat itself.
What goes to
confirm this is, that the most ancient paraphrases and translations
treat Azazel as a proper name. The Chaldee paraphrase and the targums
of Onkelos and Jonathan would certainly have translated it if it was
not a proper name, but they do not. The Septuagint, or oldest Greek
version, renders it by apopompaios, a word applied by the Greeks to a
malign deity, sometimes appeased by sacrifices.
Another
confirmation is found in the Book of Enoch, where the name Azalzel,
evidently a corruption of Azazel, is given to one of the fallen
angels, thus plainly showing what was the prevalent understanding of
the Jews at that day.
Still another
evidence is found in the Arabic, where Azazel is employed as the name
of the evil spirit.
In addition to
these, we have the evidence of the Jewish work, Zohar, and of the
Cabalistic and Rabbinical writers. They tell us that the following
proverb was current among the Jews: `On the day of atonement, a gift
to Sammael.' Hence Moses Gerundinenses feels called to say that it is
not a sacrifice, but only done because commanded by God.
Another step in
the evidence is when we find this same opinion passing from the Jewish
to the early Christian church. Origen was the most learned of the
Fathers, and on such a point as this, the meaning of a Hebrew word,
his testimony is reliable. Says Origen: `He who is called in the
Septuagint apopompaios and in the Hebrew Azazel, is no other than the
devil.'
Lastly, a
circumstance is mentioned of the Emperor Julian, the apostate, that
confirms the argument. He brought as an objection against the Bible,
that Moses commanded a sacrifice to the evil spirit. An objection he
never could have thought of, had not Azazel been generally regarded as
a proper name.
In view, then,
of the difficulties attending any other meaning, and the accumulated
evidence in favor of this, Hengstenberg affirms with great confidence
that Azazel cannot be anything else but another name for Satan. . . .
The meaning of
the term, viewed as a proper name, was stated in 1677, by Spencer,
Dean of Ely, to be Powerful Apostate, or Mighty Receder."
Mr. Beecher, on
the seventy-second page of his work, states that Professor Bush
considers Azazel to be a proper name of Satan.
Gesenius, the
great Hebrew lexicographer, says:-
Azazel, a word
found only in the law respecting the day of atonement.
Lev.16:8,10,26. . . . By this name is probably to be understood
originally some idol that was appeased with sacrifices, as Saturn and
Mars; but afterwards as the names of idols were often transferred to
demons, it seems to denote an evil demon dwelling in the desert and to
be placed with victims, in accordance with this very ancient and
Gentile rite. This name Azazel is also used by the Arabs for an evil
demon.
Milton represents
Azazel as one of the fallen angels, and the standard-bearer of Satan:-
That proud honor
claimed
Azazel as his
right, a cherub tall;
Who forthwith from
the glittering staff unfurled
The imperial
ensign."
- Paradise Lost,
book 1.
The "Comprehensive
Commentary" has the following important remarks:-
Scape-goat. See
different opinions in Bochart. Spencer, after the oldest opinions of
the Hebrews and Christians, thinks Azazel is the name of the devil;
and so Rosenmuller, whom see. The Syriac has Azzail, the angel
(strong one) who revolted.
"Cassell's
Illustrated Bible" speaks thus of the scape-goat:-
We offer the
following exposition as much more likely, and much more satisfactory:
That Azazel is a personal denomination for the evil one.
Certainly, these
are very important testimonies to show that Satan is typified by the
scape-goat. To show the reasonableness of that act which rolls back
upon Satan the sins of the people of God, and also to define the nature
of the act, let us carefully state the case. Every sin committed by men
is instigated by Satan. This part of the transgression is the sin of
Satan alone, and belongs solely to him, whether men repent or not. But
consenting to the tempter, and obeying him, is the sin of the one
tempted. This part of the transgression will, in the case of all who
avail themselves of the work of our High Priest, be placed upon the
antitypical scape-goat, Satan, and he will have to bear the full
punishment of all such sins.
One of the most
important events, therefore, in the opening of the great day of
judgment, is that of placing the sins of the overcomers upon the head of
the great author of sin. The fallen angels will, no doubt, share with
their great leader in this fearful burden of guilt. Satan and his
angels are reserved to the judgment of the great day. And one of its
first events after the righteous are made immortal is that they are
exalted to sit in judgment upon the fallen angels. Jude 6; 2 Peter 2:4;
1 Corinthians 6:2,3.
It is remarkable that
each of the visions of Daniel brings to view either the coronation of
Christ or that event which immediately precedes it, the close of his
priesthood. Thus, in Daniel 2:44 we read:-
And in the days
of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall
never be destroyed; and the kingdom shall not be left to other people;
but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it
shall stand forever.
But in the seventh
chapter the very manner and place of this event are given us. Thus when
the prophet describes the act of the Father in taking the place of
judgment, he represents the Son as being crowned at that tribunal:-
I saw in the
night visions, and, behold, one like the Son of man came with the
clouds of heaven, and came to the Ancient of Days, and they brought
him near before him. And there was given him dominion, and glory, and
a kingdom, that all people, nations, and languages, should serve him;
his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away,
and his kingdom that which shall not be destroyed. Daniel 7:13,14
How the kingdom
thus set up in the days of these kings shall break in pieces all the
wicked kingdoms of earth, is very plainly stated in Revelation 19:11-21.
The coronation of
our Lord is very distinctly marked in Daniel's fourth vision, as
recorded in chapters 10-12. Thus we read:-
And at that time
shall Michael stand up, the great prince which standeth for the
children of thy people; and there shall be a time of trouble, such as
never was since there was a nation even to that same time; and at that
time thy people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found
written in the book. Daniel 12:1
The standing up of
Michael is simply the commencement of the reign of Christ, as has been
shown. This is followed by the great time of trouble, which will be
briefly noticed hereafter. But the third vision of Daniel, which says
not one word respecting the coronation of our Lord, does distinctly mark
that event which directly precedes it, viz., the closing act of his
priesthood. Here is the record:-
Then I heard one
saint speaking, and another saint said unto that certain saint which
spake, How long shall be the vision concerning the daily sacrifice,
and the transgression of desolation, to give both the sanctuary and
the host to be trodden under foot? And he said unto me, Unto two
thousand and three hundred days; then shall the sanctuary be cleansed.
Daniel 8:13,14
Here is an event
to transpire in the conclusion of this vision; in other words, it occurs
in the end of the gospel dispensation. The sanctuary to be cleansed at
the conclusion of the new-covenant dispensation, must be the sanctuary
of the new covenant. A sanctuary implies of necessity a priesthood.
The cleansing of the sanctuary is that event which completes the work of
the priest who ministers therein. When, therefore, we read of the
cleansing of the sanctuary at the end of the twenty-three hundred days,
we understand that this is the closing event of the priesthood of the
Son of God. It is of necessity a work which brings human probation to a
close, and marks the transition from the priesthood to the kingly office
of the Saviour.
Paul tells us
there are two covenants, the old and the new. Galatians 4:24. He tells
us that the sanctuary of the old covenant was the tabernacle which Moses
made like that one showed him in the mount. Hebrews 9:1-5; 8:5; Exodus
25:8,9,40. This tabernacle was a pattern of the heavenly temple.
Hebrews 9:23,24; Revelation 11:19. When the temple was erected, some
five hundred years after the time of Moses, a larger and grander
building, indeed, that also was a pattern of the temple of God in
heaven. 1 Chronicles 28:11,12,19. But the sanctuary of the new covenant
is this heavenly temple itself. Here are the words of Paul defining the
new-covenant sanctuary to be the temple of God where our High Priest is
ministering for us.
Now of the
things which we have spoken this is the sum: We have such an high
priest, who is set on the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in
the heavens; a minister of the sanctuary, and of the true tabernacle,
which the Lord pitched, and not man. Hebrews 8:1,2
The temple of God
in heaven is, therefore, not only the great original which Moses and
Solomon copied in erecting the tabernacle and the temple, each in its
period being the sanctuary of the old covenant, but the heavenly temple
is certainly the new-covenant sanctuary. David and Jeremiah each
mention this sanctuary in heaven:-
For he hath
looked down from the height of his sanctuary; from heaven did the Lord
behold the earth. Psalm 102:19
A glorious high
throne from the beginning is the place of our sanctuary. Jeremiah
17:12. Compare with Revelation 16:17
No one will
dispute that "the sanctuary" in the days of Moses was the tabernacle.
Nor will they deny that 500 years later this gave place to the temple,
which was thenceforward, till its destruction, the sanctuary of the old
covenant. It will also be freely admitted that with the new covenant
came the great antitype of all this, viz., the temple of God in heaven,
which is the real sanctuary of the Lord. But it will be denied by many
that this sanctuary of God in heaven is brought into the vision of the
prophet.
The ninth chapter
of Daniel is a key to the eighth. A literal rendering of Daniel 9:24
informs us that "seventy weeks are cut off upon thy people and upon thy
holy city." Then it is certain that not all the vision pertained to old
Jerusalem. The period of 490 years belonged to that city, the place of
the earthly sanctuary. But the remainder, viz., 1,810 years, coming
wholly within the gospel dispensation, must pertain only to the
sanctuary of the New Testament. And it is remarkable that the very
verse which tells us how much of the vision pertained to the earthly
sanctuary does present to our view the sanctuary of the new covenant in
close connection with the introduction of the new covenant. Daniel
9:24,27. For one of the last events in the period of 70 weeks is the
anointing of the Most Holy. This is not the anointing of the Saviour,
for the term is literally, in Hebrew, the Holy of Holies, a plain
reference to the sanctuary itself. This anointing was performed in the
earthly sanctuary when the ministration therein began. Leviticus
8:10,11. The anointing of the Holy of Holies at the end of the 70 weeks
cannot relate to the earthly sanctuary, which was no longer the
sanctuary of prophecy, but must relate to the heavenly tabernacle, which
then became the sanctuary of prophecy. Its anointing was an event
preparatory to Christ's ministering therein, just as the earthly
sanctuary was anointed in both its holy places before the Levitical
ministration commenced in it. We cannot, therefore, doubt that the last
1,810 years of Daniel's 2,300 relate to the sanctuary of the new
covenant.
The objection that
this sanctuary cannot be trodden down is met by the fact that the New
Testament plainly declares that Christ, the Minister of this sanctuary,
is trodden under foot of wicked men. Hebrews 10:29; 8:1,2.
The further and
final objection that it cannot in the very nature of the case ever be
cleansed, is fully answered by the expressive language of Paul, who
states that the heavenly sanctuary is to be cleansed for the same reason
that the earthly one was. Hebrews 9:22,23. In a former article we have
seen that the cleansing of the earthly sanctuary marked the conclusion
of the yearly round of service. Leviticus 16. The services of the
heavenly sanctuary are performed once for all. The cleansing of the
sanctuary must therefore have its antitype only once, and that at the
close of the priesthood of Christ. The 2,300 days mark the time of that
event. When this work is entered upon by our Lord, it is the concluding
work of his priesthood, and the period for the finishing of human
probation.
This work finishes
our Lord's priesthood preparatory to his coronation. It takes place in
the second apartment of the sanctuary. Leviticus 16; Revelation 11:19.
As the session of the judgment by the Ancient of Days is the very place
where the transition from Christ's priesthood to his kingly office takes
place, we cannot err in placing the cleansing of the sanctuary in Daniel
8:14, in the closest connection with the blotting out of sins at the
Father's tribunal. Daniel 7:9-14; Acts 3:19,20.
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