We are in chapter twenty-five of Exodus with our word for today used for the first time in the Bible. כַּפֹּרֶת cover of propitiation or turning away wrath, atonement cover, mercy seat. It is used 27 times in the Old Testament, 7 times in our chapter. Our word is used in the sense of a lid that covered the Ark of the Covenant. Let’s start with our chapter. Exodus 25:17-22 You shall make a כַפֹּ֖רֶת mercy seat of pure gold ... And you shall make two cherubim of gold; of hammered work shall you make them, on the two ends of הַכַּפֹּֽרֶת the mercy seat. Make one cherub on the one end, and one cherub on the other end. Of one piece with הַכַּפֹּ֛רֶת the mercy seat shall you make the cherubim on its two ends. The cherubim shall spread out their wings above, overshadowing הַכַּפֹּ֔רֶת the mercy seat with their wings, their faces one to another; toward הַכַּפֹּ֔רֶת the mercy seat shall the faces of the cherubim be. And you shall put הַכַּפֹּ֛רֶת the mercy seat on the top of the ark, and in the ark you shall put the testimony that I shall give you. There I will meet with you, and from above הַכַּפֹּ֗רֶת the mercy seat, from between the two cherubim that are on the ark of the testimony, I will speak with you about all that I will give you in commandment for the people of Israel. This is the place that God is setting up to meet with his people through the high priest representing them. If we remember a couple of days ago when we looked at our word ark. Not everyone could come into this area to meet with God. And even those that could were not able to do this whenever they wanted. Leviticus 16:2 The Lord said to Moses: “Tell your brother Aaron that he is not to come whenever he chooses into the Most Holy Place behind the curtain in front of הַכַּפֹּ֜רֶת the atonement cover on the ark, or else he will die. For I will appear in the cloud over הַכַּפֹּֽרֶת the atonement cover. Did you also notice that God was going to show up in the cloud over the atonement cover or mercy seat. So we have God making himself known in a special way between these two angel wings overshadowing the atonement cover and the cloud over it. And this area was separated off behind a curtain referred to as the Most Holy Place. All of this is amazing! The best part of God meeting his people is that he desires to take away their sin or at least point to Christ who would actually accomplish this once and for all. We see our word as part of the area where this was to take place. Leviticus 16:15-17 He shall then slaughter the goat for the sin offering for the people and take its blood behind the curtain and do with it as he did with the bull’s blood: He shall sprinkle it on הַכַּפֹּ֖רֶת the atonement cover and in front of it. In this way he will make atonement for the Most Holy Place because of the uncleanness and rebellion of the Israelites, whatever their sins have been. He is to do the same for the tent of meeting, which is among them in the midst of their uncleanness. No one is to be in the tent of meeting from the time Aaron goes in to make atonement in the Most Holy Place until he comes out, having made atonement for himself, his household and the whole community of Israel. The Holy Spirit ties all of this to Jesus who would take care of our sins once and for all. I’ll close with this wonderful passage. Hebrews 10:1-4, 10-14 For this reason it can never, by the same sacrifices repeated endlessly year after year, make perfect those who draw near to worship. Otherwise, would they not have stopped being offered? For the worshipers would have been cleansed once for all, and would no longer have felt guilty for their sins. But those sacrifices are an annual reminder of sins. It is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins … And by that will, we have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all ... For by one sacrifice he has made perfect forever those who are being made holy.
