Lev 16:16 Do sins defile the sanctuary?

Russ,

I am not at all sure that I am following your thinking and questioning here. Does any the following quote from John Gill help?

Lev 16:16 - And he shall make an atonement for the holy place ,.... Even the holy of holies, as Aben Ezra interprets it, into which the high priest entered with blood for that purpose; the Targum of Jonathan adds, by a verbal confession, that is, of sin; but atonement was not made in that way, but by the blood of the bullock and goat, which was sprinkled towards the mercy seat, above and below: and this was made

because of the uncleanness of the children of Israel, and because of their transgressions in all their sins; which heap of words shows how many and heinous the sins of the people of Israel were, being defections from God, rebellions against him, transgressions of his law, and which brought pollution and guilt upon them, which could only be expiated by blood; and though the people of Israel did not enter so much as into the holy place, where the priests at times went, and much less into the holiest of all, yet their sins in some sense entered there, and came before the Lord that dwelt there; as the sins of men do even reach up to heaven itself, and cry for wrath and vengeance: and so made the Israelites unworthy of such a favour as for the Lord to dwell among them in that most holy place, in so solemn a manner; and for their high priest to enter there, and consult the oracle of God for them, and make intercession on their account, to which atonement was necessary; even as men by their sins render themselves unworthy of entering into the heavenly state, nor can they, without the atonement and sacrifice of Christ; and to this purification of the patterns of heavenly things; and of the heavenly things or places themselves, the apostle refers, Heb_9:23,

and shall he do for the tabernacle of the congregation that remaineth among them, in the midst of their uncleanness; that is, the court of the tabernacle where the Israelites were admitted, and where they often came in their uncleanness, either ignorantly or presumptuously, and yet notwithstanding the tabernacle remained among them; but, it was necessary that atonement should be made for the uncleanness in it, and around it, that it might continue, and they might have the privilege of coming into it, and worshipping in it. This shows that there are sins of holy things, and which attend the most solemn service, which are committed in the sanctuary of the Lord, and while waiting upon him in his house and ordinances; which must be expiated and removed. The same rites were observed, in making the atonement for this part of the sanctuary, as for the most holy place, particularly by sprinkling the blood in like manner, only, elsewhere; so says Jarchi, as he sprinkled of them both within, that is, of the blood of the bullock, and of the goat, within the vail, once above, and seven times below; so he sprinkled, by the vail without, of both of them, once above, and seven times below.

 

The tabernacle, the sacrifices, the priests, the great high priest, the holy place, the holy of holies, the Day of Atonement, etc. were all pictures of that which was to come. Jesus is our Great High Priest. He also is the Lamb of God which takes away the sin of the world.

Hebrews 9:1-2 Now even a first covenant had ordinances of divine service, and its sanctuary, a sanctuary of this world.
2 For there was a tabernacle prepared, the first, wherein were the candlestick, and the table, and the showbread; which is called the Holy place.

Hebrews 9:7 but into the second the high priest alone, once in the year, not without blood, which he offereth for himself, and for the errors of the people:

Hebrews 9:11 But Christ having come a high priest of the good things to come, through the greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this creation,

Hebrews 9:12 nor yet through the blood of goats and calves, but through his own blood, entered in once for all into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption.

The old was simply a picture of the new. Christ has entered once for all into the holy place, obtaining eternal redemption for all who believe. It was his blood that was shed. There is no more sacrifice to be made. All sins: past, present, and future, have been paid for. If all sins have been paid for by the blood of Christ, then the sanctuary is completely cleansed.
DHK

 

Russ,

Here are some comments on Lev. 16:16 by George Bush, Prof. of Hebrew and Oriental Literature, N. Y. City University:

16. And he shall make an atonement for the holy place, &c. That is, by the ceremonies foregoing, which he has just described. It was not a separate proceeding by which this expiation was made. But the ordinance itself is a most striking commentary upon the innate and actual depravity of fallen man. Though the high priest alone entered into the holy of holies, yet it thereby became defiled, and must be purified from the uncleanness contracted by its contact with his person, even while engaged in the most sacred duties. So also with the tabernacle and the altar. The defiling power of the collective iniquities of the people subjected those structures also to the necessity of a similar purgation.——

The tabernacle of the congregation that remaineth among them in the midst of their uncleanness. Heb. hash-shokën, that abideth. The root of the original word is shâkan, from which comes shekinah, and it would scarcely be out. of the way to render it here,—' that shekinizeth among them.' The Gr. however has [Greek word], builded, constructed, formed; and to this word the apostle doubtless had reference in Heb. 9. 11, ' through a greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is, not of this building (ou tautes tes ktiseos) ‘The temple of his body and the veil of his flesh, John 2. 21, Heb. 10. 20, were by imputation of our sins made as unclean, and sprinkled with his own precious blood, that he might reconcile us to God. Heb. 23. It was necessary that (Moses' tabernacle and Solomon's temple) the patterns of things in the heavens should be
purified with these (the sacrifices before mentioned), but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these.’—Ainsworth.

Bush, George. Notes, Critical And Practical, On The Book Of Leviticus: Designed As A General Help To Biblical Reading And Instruction. New York: Newman & Ivison, 1852.

 

Russ, here are some more comments from about the same time (1846) by Andrew Bonar:

Ver. 15-17. Then shall he kill the goat of the sin-offering that is for the people, and bring his blood within the veil, and do with that blood as he did with the blood of the bullock, and sprinkle it upon the mercy-seat, and before the mercy-seat. And he shall make an atonement for the holy place, because of the uncleanness of the children of Israel, and because of their transgressions in all their sins; and so shall he do for the tabernacle of the congregation that remaineth among them in the midst of their uncleanness. And there shall be no man in the tabernacle of the congregation when he goeth in to make an atonement in the holy place, until he come out, and have made an atonement for himself, and for his household, and for all the congregation of Israel.

He kills the people's sin-offering, confessing over it their uncleanness, transgressions, and sins. He enters the Most Holy Place, as before, to sprinkle the blood. This he does on the mercy-seat, and also on the floor before it, or on the side of it; thus filling the Holiest with the cry of atoning blood. Over it he stands, confessing Israel's sin, with strong crying and tears ; he enumerates their departures from the holy law, and spreads out before God, in the light of His countenance, their endless sins, their transgressions of every form, their uncleannesses of deepest dye. But that blood sprinkled there raises its cry—the life of the Living One is taken for the guilty—and to this blood Aaron points for pardon. This is none other than a Gethsemane! The Man of Sorrows, bearing our sins, is here. “0 God, Thou knowest my foolishness, and my sins are not hid from Thee" (Ps. Ixix. 5)." Surely He hath borne our griefs and carried our sorrows." " The Lord laid on Him the iniquity of us all." And His precious life—the life of the true Living One—is taken for our life, and is poured out before the Lord. The cry of blood was to rise both from the floor below, and the mercy-seat above! so, the Saviour's atonement pleaded for us both from earth below, while He was here, and in heaven above, when He ascended.

This act of the high priest's was reckoned to be a cleansing of the Holy Place itself. For the presence of guilty Israel denied the courts, and the bringing in of their case in the person of their representative was reckoned as a defilement. Therefore, there was need of a cleansing ; and this took place when their representative was accepted, and all he confessed was thoroughly forgiven. The forgiveness went forth in all its power through the Holy Place, carrying cleansing virtue with it to the worshippers, and to the ground whereon they stood. But thus we see how it is written in Hebrews ix. 23, that heaven needed purification if sinners were to enter: "It was therefore necessary that the patterns of things in the heavens should be purified with these ; but the heavenly things them- selves with better sacrifices than these;" viz., as verse 24 declares, by Christ Himself entering into them with the sacrifice Himself.

This may shew us, by the way, why God not only drove out the man from Eden, but removed Eden itself very soon. The place was polluted by having been the scene of the Fall—polluted by the most heinous of sins.

While all this was transacting, no one whatsoever was to be seen in the court of the tabernacle round the Holy Place—the Most Holy. It was to be evident that the priest alone made atonement, and none else. On one man dependeth their atonement. How often would the idea of another Adam cross their minds— all leaning on One ! And, oh, how tremblingly alive would they be to the danger of that one man, their representative, failing in any point of duty that day ! If he fail, Israel's guilt remains. The high priest himself feels his awful responsibility ; if he sin in this matter, he quenches the light of Israel, extinguishes their hopes, sends them away in blank despair. This one person is entrusted with their life and their all. And thus the Holy Spirit painted Jesus to the view of those who had clear, Abraham-like faith. He will be alone in His undertaking, (< One for all." Heaven and hell will look on intensely interested; for " now is the judgment of this world ; " now is the crisis in the hopes of perishing men. He himself feels the awful responsibility, and often, often as He goes onward, raises a cry, " Make haste to help me, 0 my God ! " " 0 my strength, haste Thee to help me! "Save me from the lion's mouth! " All alone He stands on Calvary ; nay, not draws near to offer help; His own Father keeps aloof, and the Mediator cries, " Lover and friend hast Thou put far from me, and mine acquaintance into darkness.”

The priest entered in awful solemnity, pressed beneath such a weight; Jesus, in like manner, entered in fear and anguish. But, to us, on this very account, all bitterness is past; we go boldly into the Holiest of All through the blood.

 

How can a sinful man stand before God? He can't. With the SDA's this must tie in with their problem of soul sleep. For with the Christian to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord.
At any rate I believe the more basic question to resolving this question is man's standing before God. God is holy. How can I, being unholy stand before a totally righteous and holy God. That is an impossiblity. The only way that I can stand before God is if I am made holy. I am made holy be the blood of Christ. When I accepted Christ, I was justified. He clothed me with his righteousness so that when God looks down upon me, He does not see the sinful self that I am, but rather me clothed in the righteous of Jesus Christ. My sins are cast behind his back to be remembered no more. They are buried in the depths of the deepest sea.

"There is therefore now no condemnation to them that are in Christ Jesus."

I therefore can stand holy and righteous before God. That being the case there is no sin in Heaven. That is an impossiblity. And it is impossible for anything in Heaven to be defiled in Heaven. There is nothing in Heaven that withstand the holiness of God. If that were true, Heaven would not be Heaven. In heaven nothing is polluted, including the heavenly sanctuary. Revelation 21 and 22 make this abundantly clear with verses like 21:8; and:

Revelation 22:14-16 Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city.
15 For without are dogs, and sorcerers, and whoremongers, and murderers, and idolaters, and whosoever loveth and maketh a lie.
16 I Jesus have sent mine angel to testify unto you these things in the churches. I am the root and the offspring of David, and the bright and morning star.
DHK

 

Amen!