There are several ways we refer to Jesus. He is our Savior, Redeemer, Lord, Master, The Lamb of God, Mediator, Judge, Holy One of Israel, Creator, Only Begotten Son, Immanuel, The Bright and Morning Star, The Good Shepherd, The Alpha and Omega, Chief Cornerstone, Great High Priest, The Lion of the Tribe of Judah, Messiah, The Word, The Way, The Truth, and The Life, Advocate, The Author and Finisher of our faith, He is the Christ. These are just a few. There are more, but there is one we rarely use. Jesus was our Scapegoat.

Two male goats are mentioned in Leviticus chapter 16. Both were involved with the sins of the Children of Israel on a significant day known as the Day of Atonement. One was offered as a sacrifice, and its blood was sprinkled on the Mercy Seat in the Holy of Holies. The blood was for the atoning of the sins of the people. As we are told in Hebrews 9:22, “Without the shedding of blood, there is no remission of sins.” This sacrifice took place first.

The other goat was given a name; he was called a “scapegoat.” While not often used in the 21^st century, it is still used to describe someone who bears the blame for someone else’s transgressions. It also implies that while the blame was attached to the scapegoat, the scapegoat itself was not guilty.

In Leviticus 16, after the first goat’s blood was sprinkled on the mercy seat, the High Priest would then lay hands on the head of the scapegoat, confessing the sins of the people over it, and then send it out of the camp. It was a tangible expression of the sins of the people being removed from them.

Jesus fulfilled the role of both of these goats. He shed His blood for the remission of our sins, and although He did not sin, He took upon Himself the sins of the world. 2 Corinthians 5:21 says, “God made Him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God.” He also fulfilled the role as High Priest, for as Hebrews 4:14 says, “Seeing then that we have a great High Priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession.”

We can enjoy salvation and the forgiveness of our sins because Jesus became the scapegoat for us all.