Leviticus 16:1-17

1The Lord spoke to Moses after the two sons of Aaron died. The gift that they gave to the Lord was not holy. So they died.

2The Most Holy Place in the Tent of Meeting is behind the curtain. The Lord said to Moses, ‘Your brother Aaron cannot go behind the curtain at any time that he wants to. Tell him that. The Lord appears in a cloud over the lid of the Covenant Box. So Aaron will die if he does not obey the Lord.

3This is how Aaron must go into the Most Holy Place. He must bring a young bull for a sin offering. He must also bring a male sheep for a burnt offering.

4He must wash his body before he puts on his special clothes. He must wear his linen robe and linen clothes next to his body. They are holy. He must tie a linen belt round his body. He must put the linen hat on his head. These clothes are holy.

5He must take two male goats for a sin offering. And he must take a male sheep for a burnt offering. They are a gift from Israel's people.

6Aaron must offer the bull as an atonement to the Lord for himself, his family and his servants.

7He must take the two goats to the door of the Tent of Meeting. They are a gift to the Lord.

8He must use the special stones. They will help him to decide what he should do. He must decide which goat is for the Lord. And he must decide which goat he must send away.

9Aaron must take the goat that is for the Lord. And he must kill it. It is a sin offering.

10He must not kill the other goat. It is an atonement to the Lord. It will pay for the bad things that the people have done. It is to take away the people's punishment. He must send it away into the desert.’

11‘Aaron must bring the bull and he must kill it. It is his atonement for his family's sins.

12He must take a pot of the hot material. It is burning on the altar in front of the Lord. He must fill his two hands with incense. He must take the hot material and the incense behind the curtain.

13He must put the incense on the burning material. It is in front of the Lord. The smoke will cover the lid of the Covenant Box. So he will not die.

14He must take with him blood from the bull. He must use his finger to shake the blood. He must shake it onto the lid of the Covenant Box. He must shake the blood in front of the lid of the Covenant Box. He must shake it seven times with his finger.

15Aaron must kill the goat for the sin offering. It is a gift from the people. He must take the blood behind the curtain. He must shake the blood on the lid of the Covenant Box as he did with the bull's blood. And he must shake the blood in front of the lid of the Covenant Box.

16This will make atonement for all the sins of Israel's people. This will make the Holy Place clean. Aaron must do the same for the Tent of Meeting. That is because the people have done bad things in the camp. The Tent of meeting is in the middle of the camp.

17Aaron must give the offerings to God. He must give them for his family and he must give them for his servants. He must give them for all the people. Nobody can go into the Tent of Meeting while Aaron is in the Most Holy Place. He must be alone when he goes in. And he must be alone until he comes out. He must be alone when he gives the offerings to God. Those offerings make atonement for himself, for his family and for all Israel's people.