The Sanctuary Study 21

2000 May XXXIII 5(00) -- The Final Atonement - Part 1 William Grotheer - continued study
In the Hebrew, as we noted in the first paragraph, the word "atonement" is in the plural form - "Day of Atonements" (23:27-28).
{23:27} Also on the tenth [day] of this seventh month [thereshall be] a day of atonement: it shall be an holy convocationunto you; and ye shall afflict your souls, and offer anoffering made by fire unto the LORD. {23:28} And ye shalldo no work in that same day: for it [is] a day of atonement,to make an atonement for you before the LORD your God.
Is this the "majestic plural" thus denoting its prime importance-
or is it simply a plural which is accounting for the multiple objectives obtained ceremonially by the high priestly ministry on that day? (16:33).
{16:33} And he shall make an atonement forthe holy sanctuary, and he shall make an atonement for thetabernacle of the congregation, and for the altar, and heshall make an atonement for the priests, and for all thepeople of the congregation.
The single distinct difference as to how the congregation of Israel was to relate to this day in contrast to the other feast days gives weight to the recognition of the use of the plural form as a "majestic plural."
On each of the other major feast days, the injunction was given - "Ye shall do no servile (occupational) work therein" (23:8, 21, 25, 35, 36) - while for the Day of Atonements, the command was - "Ye shall do no work in that same day" (23:28). This placed the Day of Atonements on the same level as the Sabbath day (23:3).
Not only did the Day of Atonements provide ceremonial cleansing for the people from all their "sins before the Lord" (16:30)
{16:30} For on that day shall [the priest] makean atonement for you, to cleanse you, [that] ye may be cleanfrom all your sins before the LORD.
but it also provided for a judgment to be executed if something was done, and if something was not done:
1) "Whatsoever soul it be that shall not be afflicted in that same day, he shall be cut off from among his people" (23:29).
{23:29} For whatsoever soul [it be] that shall not beafflicted in that same day, he shall be cut off from amonghis people.
2) "Whatsoever soul it be that doeth any work in that same day, the same soul will I destroy from among his people" (23:30).
{23:30} And whatsoever soul [it be] that doethany work in that same day, the same soul will I destroyfrom among his people.
How it was determined who did and who didn't is not given in the Biblical record, but some kind of an investigative judgment is implied on the part of God.
The Day of Atonements was thus a day of cleansing and a day of judgment.
This dual aspect of the day is reflected in the prophecies of Daniel (7:10; 8:14), and in the book of Revelation (14:7, 12).
Dan. {7:10} A fiery stream issued and came forth from beforehim: thousand thousands ministered unto him, and tenthousand times ten thousand stood before him: the judgmentwas set, and the books were opened.
Dan. {8:14} And he said untome, Unto two thousand and three hundred days; then shallthe sanctuary be cleansed.
Rev. {14:7} Saying with a loud voice,Fear God, and give glory to him; for the hour of hisjudgment is come: and worship him that made heaven, andearth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters
{14:12} Here is the patience of the saints: here [are]they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith ofJesus.
Revelation and Daniel --
Let us turn our attention to one verse from each of these books.
First, Revelation 14:6-7, which reads:
And I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth ..., saying with a loud voice, Fear God and give glory to Him; for the hour of His judgment is come.
Literally, the last clause reads - "Because came the hour of the judgment of Him."
The Greek word for "is come" is hlqen, a second aroist (past tense) indicative, and can be translated by either the simple English past tense, or in this case by the perfect tense as is done in the KJV.
However, how is the phrase, "the judgment of Him," to be understood?
It could indicate a simple possessive sense - "His judgment" - or it could mean that God goes on trial, that He faces a judgment - "the judgment of Him" (thV krisewV autou).
The book of Revelation gives a picture of both concepts.
In Chapter 20, John sees the "great white throne" and before this throne of God, stand the "dead," and they are "judged" by "those things which were written in the books, according to their works" (vs. 11-12).
This is God in judgment - "His judgment."
In Chapter 12, after the symbolic representation of a war between "the dragon" and "Michael," a loud voice is heard saying in heaven - "Now is come ... the kingdom of our God, and the power of His Christ (Messiah)" (ver. 10).
Has the kingdom of God, thus God, been in question?
Paul indicates that God abdicated in favor of Christ, "till He hath put all enemies under His feet" (I Cor. 15:24-28). The question follows - Did the sin problem place God on trial? If answered in the affirmative, then Revelation 14:7 could mean as it literally reads - "the judgment of Him."
We shall leave in abeyance any conclusions, but must also note in passing, that in Revelation a single book is introduced - "the book of life" (Rev. 20:12).
This book is also called, "the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world" (Rev. 13:8).
Further, since the names of those redeemed are in this book, and evidently not in the "books," Paul's comment to the Corinthian church is significant in a full consideration of any heavenly "judgment." He wrote - "We must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ" (II Cor. 5:10).
2 Cor. {5:10} For we must all appear before the judgment seat ofChrist; that every one may receive the things [done] in [his]body, according to that he hath done, whether [it be] goodor bad.
Turning next to Daniel, let us note Chapter 8 verse 14 which reads:
And he said unto me, Unto two thousand and three hundred days; then shall the sanctuary be cleansed.
The margin in the KJV indicates that the word translated, "cleansed" in the Hebrew means "justified." Other translations in this final clause read:
Then the sanctuary will be reconsecrated. (NIV) Then the Holy Place will be restored. (REB)Then the sanctuary shall be restored to its rightful state. (RSV)Then the Holy Place shall emerge victorious. (NEB) Then is the holy place declared right. (Young's Literal Translation)
Interestingly, the NKJV translates the verb "shall be cleansed" without a marginal reference to the Hebrew.
In the KJV, there are two marginal notations in this verse both giving the reading of the Hebrew text.
The NKJV retained only one of them, the first.
This could be saying one of two things:
1) That the Hebrew word, nisdaq, can mean, "cleansed," and should be so translated in this instance, or
2) That this word appearing in the Massoretic Hebrew text is incorrect, and that the LXX and the Vulgate should be followed which would have been translated from a different Hebrew and/or Aramaic text of Daniel than the text used by the Massorites.
The first of these possibilities is pressed by theologians at Andrews University as well as other research scholars of the Church. One problem, in determining the meaning of the verb nisdaq, is that it is in the Niphal form in Daniel 8:14, and used only this one time in the Old Testament.
In the Hebrew Lexicon by Brown, Driver and Briggs, the meaning is given in translation as "the holy place shall be put right." Also, "be justified," following Gesenius who so defines the word as well as giving the definition, "vindicated." However, Gesenius makes an interesting comment. Noting the Vulgate he adds - "Not unaptly mundabitur," the Latin verb, "shall be cleansed."
Other linguistic problems involving the entire book of Daniel; which reflect on Daniel 8:14, need to be addressed.
There are Hebrew scholars (Zimmermann and Ginsberg) who contend that the whole of the book of Daniel was originally written in the Aramaic, and that parts of it were translated into the Hebrew.
Ginsberg (Texts and Studies of the Jewish Theological Seminary of America, Vol. XIV, p.41-42) further maintains that the Aramaic word in Daniel 8:14 did mean, "shall be cleansed" as translated by the LXX and Vulgate.
Interestingly, this position of Ginsberg was challenged by an Andrews University scholar, Hans Erbes. It is evident that more exploration needs to be done in regard to linguistics surrounding Daniel 8:14, a key text in any study of the final atonement.
To summarize this linguistic problem, we need to keep in mind that we are discussing three texts of the Sacred Scriptures, one in Hebrew, the Massoretic; two translations, one in Greek, the LXX; and the other in Latin, the Vulgate.
The latter two agree that Daniel 8:14 should read as is given in the KJV and NKJV - "shall be cleansed."
The Massoretic text, which in point of time was last of the three uses a word in the Hebrew that is not used in Leviticus 16 for "cleansed," and which has as its primary meaning, "justified" or "vindicated."
It seems to me that it would be much simpler to accept as a fact that both the LXX and Jerome in the Vulgate were translating from earlier manuscripts than are represented in the Massoretic text as far as the book of Daniel is concerned.
Adventist scholarship, represented in Andrews University and the Biblical Research Institute, seeks to show that "one of the semantic nuances of nisdaq in Hebrew is 'cleanse,' as well as 'restore' and 'vindicate/justify,"' so as to harmonize all three ancient texts.
It would seem however, that the translators of the LXX and Jerome worked from a text of Daniel which read, taher, "cleanse" rather than nisdaq. Gesenius indicates that the adjective form of sadaq is usually translated in the LXX by the Greek word, dikaioV, meaning, "just or righteous." But the LXX does not use a form of dikaioV, but rather, kaqarisqhsetai, which Thayer says is the choice of the LXX for tihar, the Piel form of the Hebrew, "to cleanse."
The Gospel of John -- In a very sharp contention with the Jews over Sabbath observance and His claim to equality with God, Jesus made two pronouncements which relate to the judgment.
He declared:
The Father judgeth no man, but hath committed all judgment (krisin) unto the Son ... Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on Him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation (krisin - judgment) but is passed from death unto life. ... And (the Father) hath given Him authority to execute judgment (krisin) also, because He is the Son of man. (John 5:22, 24, 27)
What is Jesus saying? First, let us analyze these words:
1) "The Father judgeth no man." Then the question must be asked, is the "judgment" of Daniel 7:9-10, "the judgment of Him" as Revelation 14:6 can imply?
However, the response to such a conclusion can also be in the form of a question, Why then are the books opened? However, a careful reading discloses that the "dead" are not judged out of "the books" until the judgment of the "great white throne" (Rev. 20:11-12).
This then leaves the question still unanswered - why are the books opened in the judgment that "was set" in Daniel 7?
Into this picture, as noted previously, the prophecies of both Daniel and Revelation inject for consideration "another book" (Rev. 20:12; Dan. 12:1). This is "the book of life" (Rev. 20:12), which if one's name is found therein, he is "delivered" (Dan. 12:1).
This "book" belongs to "the Lamb, slain from the foundation of the world" (Rev. 13:8).
It lists the names of those who "overcome" through "the blood of (that) Lamb" (Rev. 3:5; 12:11). This brings us to the second declaration of Jesus in John 5:22.
2) "The Father ... hath committed all judgment unto the Son," and a reason is given in verse 27, "because He is a Son man" (No article in the Greek text).
First, what is meant by "all" judgment? It is obvious that two aspects of judgment are involved first a determinate involving those "who heareth (Christ's) word and believeth on Him that sent (Him)" (5:24), and secondly, an execution of judgment (v.27).
Paul speaks of Christ's second coming as a time He will take "vengeance on them that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ" (II Thess. 1:8).
Are these two "judgments" - determinate and executive - the meaning of "all judgment"? Or is "all" limited to the ones "thatheareth" the word of Jesus and "believeth" in the Father? The context is the question of equality of "honor" to the Father and the Son (v.23).
If this latter meaning is the intent, then those who "hear" and "believe" are placed in the Lamb's book of life, and "do not come into condemnation (krisiV - judgment, whether "determinate," or "executive"); but (have) passed from death unto life."
It needs also to be noted that four verbs, or verbal forms in this verse, in the Greek, are in the present tense while one - "sent" (pempw) - is in the past tense, and the final verb, "is passed" (metabebhken) is in the perfect. This linguistic factor cannot be overlooked in any analysis. If these words of Jesus in John 5 have any meaning at all in the "exploration" of the judgment, it is saying that the words of the hymn, "Safe in the arms of Jesus," is more than mere rhetoric.
Further, this pronouncement of Jesus in John 5 presents a major conflict with a long standing tradition.
Jesus as the Son of man demonstrated His authority to make determinate judgments. To the thief on the Cross, who pled, "Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom," Jesus replied, "Verily I say to thee today, shalt thou be with me in paradise" (Luke 23:42-43). Jesus gave His judgment that day. The question arises, does that thief have to face an investigative judgment again? If indeed the blood of the Lamb blots out sin, then the thief's sins are no more, and neither his name nor his deeds can be found "in the books," but his name is in "the book."
What would apply to the thief would equally apply to Enoch, Moses, Elijah, and the "many ... saints" which arose at the resurrection of Jesus (Matt. 27:52-53).
{27:52} And the graveswere opened; and many bodies of the saints which sleptarose, {27:53} And came out of the graves after hisresurrection, and went into the holy city, and appeared untomany.
Also included in this picture are the "four living creatures" and twenty-four "elders" who proclaimed of the Lamb - Thou "has redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation" (Rev. 5:9).
The question is simply, do these who have been redeemed have to face a second investigation to see if they can stay in heaven? This is placing them in double jeopardy. Dare we impute to God such an injustice? We dare not, for unto the Son all judgment has been "committed." When He gives the word - as to the dying thief - that word stands.
Further, there can be no question but the sequence which is emphasized in the prophecy of Daniel 7, points to the fact that the judgment pictured in verses 9-10, relates to the time indicated in Daniel 8:14, and that "the judgment," the "cleansing of the sanctuary," and the "final atonement" all focus on the same activity in the plans and purposes of God. It is left to us to carefully reconsider our tradition and bring it into line with all divine revelation involving judgment and the final atonement.
There is one important factor that is often, if not entirely, overlooked. Judgment must begin with the resolution of the issue over which sin began.
The Scripture is clear that sin began with an angel whose responsibilities placed him at the very Throne of God (Eze. 28:14).
It ultimately led to a part of the heavenly host, joining Lucifer in his rebellion against God (Rev. 12:4).
Therefore, we must conclude as a starting point, that there is deep significance to the fact that the prophecy of Daniel 7 regarding the judgment begins with the assembling of the entire angelic host before the Ancient of days.
There is still more exploration to be made. (To be continued)
*******
Such an intense deep study delving into the Greek and the Hebrew words, the meanings from learned scholars. Is this study necessary? I'd say it was very necessary. We can't let our own limited knowledge keep us from studying and learning from those with a broader understanding of originial wording. I deeply appreciate the fact that where a conclusive result cannot be found it is admitted readily. Trying to understand, taking the facts and letting the Holy Spirit guide us to the truth is what we need.
There is a coming judgment and how wonderful to know that if we are faithful to confess to Jesus and repent of our sins that He will cover them with His blood so that His blood is sufficent for us, saving us fully and completely. The cleansing of the saints is underway a cleansing that will one day soon enable us to see our Lord and Savior coming in a great cloud of angels to Redeem us to Him, to take us with Him to Heaven and to take all who have died in Him to heaven with Him as well. Such a wonderful promise we are given and it will a promise soon fulfilled, by the Grace and mercy of our Lord and Savior now and forever.
Amen