Leviticus 16:14 kjv
And he shall take of the blood of the bullock, and sprinkle it with his finger upon the mercy seat eastward; and before the mercy seat shall he sprinkle of the blood with his finger seven times.
Leviticus 16:14 nkjv
He shall take some of the blood of the bull and sprinkle it with his finger on the mercy seat on the east side; and before the mercy seat he shall sprinkle some of the blood with his finger seven times.
Leviticus 16:14 niv
He is to take some of the bull's blood and with his finger sprinkle it on the front of the atonement cover; then he shall sprinkle some of it with his finger seven times before the atonement cover.
Leviticus 16:14 esv
And he shall take some of the blood of the bull and sprinkle it with his finger on the front of the mercy seat on the east side, and in front of the mercy seat he shall sprinkle some of the blood with his finger seven times.
Leviticus 16:14 nlt
Then he must take some of the blood of the bull, dip his finger in it, and sprinkle it on the east side of the atonement cover. He must sprinkle blood seven times with his finger in front of the atonement cover.
Leviticus 16 14 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Lev 16:2 | tell Aaron your brother not to come at all times into the Holy Place inside the veil, before the mercy seat... for I will appear in the cloud over the mercy seat. | Atonement on mercy seat. |
| Lev 16:3 | With this Aaron shall come into the Holy Place: with a young bull for a sin offering and a ram for a burnt offering. | Priest's personal sin offering. |
| Lev 16:6 | "Aaron shall offer the bull as a sin offering for himself and make atonement for himself and for his house." | Purpose of bull's blood. |
| Lev 16:11 | "Aaron shall present the bull of the sin offering which is for himself and make atonement for himself and for his house, and shall kill the bull of the sin offering..." | Priestly responsibility. |
| Lev 16:15 | Then he shall kill the goat of the sin offering that is for the people and bring its blood inside the veil and do with its blood as he did with the blood of the bull... | Parallel for people's sins. |
| Lev 16:19 | then he shall sprinkle some of the blood on it with his finger seven times and cleanse it and consecrate it from the impurities of the people of Israel. | Cleansing of the altar. |
| Lev 17:11 | "For the life of the flesh is in the blood, and I have given it for you on the altar to make atonement for your souls, for it is the blood that makes atonement..." | Significance of blood for atonement. |
| Exod 25:17 | "You shall make a mercy seat of pure gold. Two cubits and a half shall be its length, and a cubit and a half its breadth." | Description of mercy seat. |
| Num 7:89 | "When Moses went into the tent of meeting to speak with the LORD, he heard the voice speaking to him from above the mercy seat that was on the ark..." | God's presence at the mercy seat. |
| Lev 4:6 | and the priest shall dip his finger in the blood and sprinkle part of the blood seven times before the LORD in front of the veil of the sanctuary. | Ritual parallel: High Priest's sin offering (for congregation). |
| Lev 4:17 | and the priest shall dip his finger in the blood and sprinkle it seven times before the LORD in front of the veil. | Ritual parallel: community's unintentional sin. |
| Gen 2:2-3 | And on the seventh day God finished his work that he had done... So God blessed the seventh day and made it holy... | Symbolism of "seven" (completion). |
| Isa 1:18 | "Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall become like wool." | Cleansing from sin. |
| Psa 51:7 | Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean; wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow. | Plea for cleansing and purity. |
| Heb 9:7 | but into the second only the high priest goes, and he but once a year, and not without blood, which he offers for himself and for the unintentional sins of the people. | NT perspective on annual ritual. |
| Heb 9:11-12 | But when Christ appeared as a high priest of the good things to come... he entered once for all into the holy places, not by means of the blood of goats and calves... | Christ's superior sacrifice. |
| Heb 9:13-14 | For if the blood of goats and bulls... sanctifies for the purification of the flesh, how much more will the blood of Christ... purify our conscience from dead works...? | Comparison of animal blood to Christ's blood. |
| Heb 9:22 | Indeed, under the law almost everything is purified with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins. | Blood necessity for atonement. |
| Heb 10:10 | And by that will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all. | Christ's single, perfect offering. |
| Rom 3:25 | whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God's righteousness... | Christ as the "Mercy Seat." |
| Eph 1:7 | In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace. | Redemption through Christ's blood. |
| Col 1:20 | and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross. | Cosmic reconciliation by blood. |
| 1 Pet 1:18-19 | knowing that you were ransomed... not with perishable things such as silver or gold, but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without blemish or spot. | Value of Christ's blood. |
| Rev 1:5 | ...and from Jesus Christ the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth. To him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood. | Christ's blood freeing from sin. |
Leviticus 16 verses
Leviticus 16 14 Meaning
Leviticus 16:14 describes a pivotal moment on the Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur), where the High Priest, Aaron, performs a critical ritual. He is to take some of the blood from the bull offered for his own sins and, with his finger, sprinkle it onto the mercy seat (the lid of the Ark of the Covenant) at its eastern side. Additionally, he must sprinkle some of this same blood seven times directly in front of the mercy seat. This precise act symbolizes the High Priest making propitiation and purifying the Most Holy Place, thus making it possible for a holy God to dwell among an unholy people by covering their sin.
Leviticus 16 14 Context
Leviticus 16 details the rituals for the Day of Atonement, the most sacred day in the Israelite calendar. This annual observance was unique in its solemnity and purpose: the purification of the entire community, the priesthood, and the tabernacle/temple itself from all the sins and impurities of the past year. Verse 14 specifically describes the High Priest's actions with the blood of the bull, which served as a sin offering for himself and his house (Lev 16:6, 11). This blood was distinct from the blood of the goat offered for the people (Lev 16:15). The placement of the blood on and before the mercy seat within the Most Holy Place – God's dwelling place – was the climax of the atonement for the holy dwelling, allowing a holy God to remain in the midst of an imperfect people. It underscored the absolute necessity of blood sacrifice for confronting sin and the solemnity of approaching the Divine Presence. Historically, this ritual maintained the sanctity of the Tabernacle/Temple, preventing divine judgment from consuming a sinful nation.
Leviticus 16 14 Word analysis
- And he shall take: (Hebrew: v'laqach) This immediately establishes the High Priest's central and indispensable role in the atonement process. It denotes a deliberate action, signifying the start of the core ritual.
- some of the blood: (Hebrew: mid-dam) Blood (dam) is central to the Levitical system as the life-force given for atonement (Lev 17:11). The phrase "some of the blood" implies that not all the blood was used for this specific application, but a sufficient portion for the prescribed ritual. It points to a precise and careful ritual application, not an indiscriminate splashing.
- of the bull: (Hebrew: hap-par) Refers specifically to the young bull offered as a sin offering for Aaron, the High Priest, and his household (Lev 16:6, 11). This distinguishes it from the goat's blood offered later for the sins of the people. This act, therefore, addresses the High Priest's own unworthiness before he mediates for others.
- and sprinkle it: (Hebrew: v'hizzah) This specific verb, nazah, means to spatter or sprinkle. It signifies a careful, controlled application, contrasting with pouring or smearing. This controlled act emphasizes ritual precision and distinguishes it from pagan uses of blood which might involve more uncontrolled or chaotic application, or be used for divination. In Israel's context, sprinkling purified and consecrated.
- with his finger: (Hebrew: b'etzba'o) Emphasizes the personal, direct, and tactile involvement of the High Priest. It underscores the precision and solemnity required for this holy act, as well as the humanity of the priest performing it.
- on the mercy seat: (Hebrew: 'al-hak-kapporet) The kapporet (mercy seat) was the gold lid covering the Ark of the Covenant, signifying God's throne where He met with Israel (Exod 25:22; Num 7:89). The Hebrew term kapporet comes from the root kapar, meaning "to atone" or "to cover." It is the very place where God's righteous wrath could be averted by the "covering" blood, hence "mercy seat" or "propitiatory cover." The placement of the blood directly on this sacred object directly before God's visible presence was the core of the atonement. This foreshadows Christ who becomes our "propitiation" (Rom 3:25), satisfying divine justice.
- eastward: (Hebrew: qedmah) This direction is significant. The tabernacle's entrance was to the east (Exod 27:13). So, facing eastward from inside the Holy of Holies implies a facing towards the Holy Place and the rest of the tabernacle, ritually connecting this ultimate act of atonement to the outer sanctuary and, by extension, to the people.
- and before the mercy seat: (Hebrew: uliphnei hak-kapporet) This phrase indicates a second, related action. "Before" could mean on the ground or the pavement immediately in front of the ark/mercy seat. This additional sprinkling reinforced the thorough cleansing and purification of the most sacred space itself from the defilement of sin, preparing it for God's continued presence.
- he shall sprinkle some of the blood with his finger seven times: The repetition of "sprinkle some of the blood with his finger" for the second location emphasizes the precise and specific nature of the ritual. "Seven times" (Hebrew: sheva' pe'amim) is a consistent biblical number symbolizing completion, perfection, divine fullness, and absolute cleansing in a spiritual or cultic sense. This was not a partial or symbolic cleansing but a full, divinely ordained act of expiation and purification, declaring it truly and fully cleansed. This number is used throughout the Old Testament for acts of consecration and purification, underscoring the absolute efficacy of the ritual on the Day of Atonement.
Leviticus 16 14 Bonus section
The distinction between the "mercy seat" and the Ark of the Covenant is important. The Ark held the Tablets of the Law (God's righteous demands), while the mercy seat, as its lid, was the place where blood covered the law, mediating God's justice with His mercy. This arrangement graphically depicted how God's holy requirements (the law within) were appeased by the sacrifice (blood upon the mercy seat), allowing His presence to remain amidst a sinful people. The precise ritual here highlights God's demand for holiness and the gravity of sin, while simultaneously revealing His gracious provision for atonement. No human dared enter this sacred space, except the High Priest, only once a year, with atoning blood. This emphasis on strict adherence to divine command differentiates Israelite worship from contemporary pagan practices, which often lacked such a stringent moral dimension and exact ritual, instead focusing on manipulative magic or communion with chaotic deities.
Leviticus 16 14 Commentary
Leviticus 16:14 encapsulates the heart of the Day of Atonement: the covering of sin before a holy God through the application of blood. This single verse describes the pinnacle of the High Priest's work—entering the Most Holy Place to reconcile Israel to God. The blood, symbolizing life, serves as the vehicle for atonement, presented precisely on the mercy seat, where God promised to meet His people. The twofold sprinkling (on and before the mercy seat) ensures the thorough ritual cleansing of the divine dwelling. The sevenfold application signifies a complete and perfect atonement, wholly accepted by God. This elaborate, once-a-year ritual, performed by an imperfect human high priest who first atoned for his own sin, powerfully foreshadows the work of Jesus Christ, our perfect High Priest, who entered the heavenly sanctuary once for all with His own precious blood to secure eternal redemption for all who believe (Heb 9:11-14, 22). It is the quintessential Old Testament shadow pointing to the New Testament reality of full forgiveness and direct access to God through Christ.