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For a few of my readers, some of the information contained in the following series may possibly come as a shock, and as a surprise. There are a number of ideas and concepts which have become an integral part of our modern Christian faith, and which have become engrained in our personal belief system, not because they are necessarily Scripture-based, but rather as a result of the endeavors of those entities and people who had power, as well as control, over the translation of the original Hebrew and Koine Greek manuscripts into our English language. In the Gospel of John, we find John the Baptist proclaiming the following:

". . . Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world."


As it will hopefully become obvious to you by the time you have finished reading this revelatory series, Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world, was consistently symbolized throughout the Old Testament, not as a lamb -- that is, not as the offspring of a ewe, or female sheep, -- but rather as a goat. To fully understand this Scriptural truth, let us go back in time some three thousand five hundred years, to the days when the Lord first gave Moses the Levitical Laws.

The Books of Leviticus and Numbers describe in considerable detail, the various types of sacrifices and offerings which were performed by Aaron the High Priest and his sons, and by the members of the Israelite congregation. These different kinds of sacrifices and offerings bore such names as meat offerings, drink offerings, wave offerings, heave offerings, peace offerings, sin offerings and trespass offerings. With each different type of offering, very specific procedures had to be carried out in order to please the Lord, and to make the proper atonement for sin when the sacrifice was a sin offering.

Most of these hallowed ceremonies involved the sacrifice of certain animals. These included bullocks -- or young steers -- sheep, goats, turtledoves and young pigeons. In addition to animals, they also included green ears of corn, loaves of bread, a tenth part of an ephah of fine flour, and various amounts of wine. When livestock was used, sometimes it had to be male, while at other times, it had to be female. In all cases, they had to be without spot or blemish. In other words, they had to be the finest of the flock. Consider the following verses:

"But whatsoever hath a blemish, that shall ye not offer: for it shall not be acceptable for you. And whosoever offereth a sacrifice of peace offerings unto the LORD to accomplish his vow, or a freewill offering in beeves or sheep, it shall be perfect to be accepted; there shall be no blemish therein. Blind, or broken, or maimed, or having a wen, or scurvy, or scabbed, ye shall not offer these unto the LORD, nor make an offering by fire of them upon the altar unto the LORD. Either a bullock or a lamb that hath any thing superfluous or lacking in his parts, that mayest thou offer for a freewill offering; but for a vow it shall not be accepted. Ye shall not offer unto the LORD that which is bruised, or crushed, or broken, or cut; neither shall ye make any offering thereof in your land."


In the twenty-third chapter of the Book of Leviticus, the Lord gave Moses instructions regarding the various feast days which the children of Israel were to observe once they entered into the Promised Land of Canaan. The aforementioned offerings were a part of these special occasions. These holy events included such ceremonies as the seventh day Sabbath, the Passover, the seven-day Feast of Unleavened Bread which began the day following the Passover, the Feast of Trumpets, the Day of Atonement, and the Feast of Tabernacles, which also lasted seven days. Consider the following verses:

"Six days shall work be done: but the seventh day is the sabbath of rest, an holy convocation; ye shall do no work therein: it is the sabbath of the LORD in all your dwellings. These are the feasts of the LORD, even holy convocations, which ye shall proclaim in their seasons. In the fourteenth day of the first month at even is the LORD'S passover. And on the fifteenth day of the same month is the feast of unleavened bread unto the LORD: seven days ye must eat unleavened bread . . . In the seventh month, in the first day of the month, shall ye have a sabbath, a memorial of blowing of trumpets, an holy convocation . . . Also on the tenth day of this seventh month there shall be a day of atonement: it shall be an holy convocation unto you; and ye shall afflict your souls, and offer an offering made by fire unto the LORD . . . The fifteenth day of this seventh month shall be the feast of tabernacles for seven days unto the LORD . . . These are the feasts of the LORD, which ye shall proclaim to be holy convocations, to offer an offering made by fire unto the LORD, a burnt offering, and a meat offering, a sacrifice, and drink offerings, every thing upon his day: Beside the sabbaths of the LORD, and beside your gifts, and beside all your vows, and beside all your freewill offerings, which ye give unto the LORD."


As can be seen by the following verses, the sacrifices which were made on the annual Day of Atonement, not only were used to purify the holy sanctuary, the tabernacle and the altar, but they were also used to cleanse the priests, as well as the entire Israelite congregation, of their sins. It is for this reason that this event was not taken lightly. It was a very serious ceremony, during which time everyone confessed their sins before the Lord:

"And this shall be a statute for ever unto you: that in the seventh month, on the tenth day of the month, ye shall afflict your souls, and do no work at all, whether it be one of your own country, or a stranger that sojourneth among you: For on that day shall the priest make an atonement for you, to cleanse you, that ye may be clean from all your sins before the LORD. It shall be a sabbath of rest unto you, and ye shall afflict your souls, by a statute for ever. And the priest, whom he shall anoint, and whom he shall consecrate to minister in the priest's office in his father's stead, shall make the atonement, and shall put on the linen clothes, even the holy garments: And he shall make an atonement for the holy sanctuary, and he shall make an atonement for the tabernacle of the congregation, and for the altar, and he shall make an atonement for the priests, and for all the people of the congregation. And this shall be an everlasting statute unto you, to make an atonement for the children of Israel for all their sins once a year. And he did as the LORD commanded Moses."


As was mandated by the Mosaic Law, on the Day of Atonement, a bullock, a ram and two goats were to be used by Aaron the High Priest, as a part of the sin offering which he had to make before the congregation, in front of the door of the Tabernacle. This is described for us in considerable detail, beginning in the fifth verse of Leviticus chapter sixteen. As will be noted in that chapter, the bullock was used as an offering for Aaron's own sins, as well as for those of his house, while the goat upon which the lot fell, was used as an offering for the sins of the people. Consider the following verses:

"And he shall take of the congregation of the children of Israel two kids of the goats for a sin offering, and one ram for a burnt offering. And Aaron shall offer his bullock of the sin offering, which is for himself, and make an atonement for himself, and for his house. And he shall take the two goats, and present them before the LORD at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation. And Aaron shall cast lots upon the two goats; one lot for the LORD, and the other lot for the scapegoat. And Aaron shall bring the goat upon which the LORD'S lot fell, and offer him for a sin offering . . . Then shall he kill the goat of the sin offering, that is for the people, and bring his blood within the vail, 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:"


While the Scriptural truth contained in the previous verses may be hard for some Christians to accept, it is something which none of us can deny. The Lord specifically instructed Aaron to take "two kids of the goats"; and then to use one of the goats as a sin offering for the people. The word "kids" is translated from the Hebrew word "sa`iyr". Pronounced as saw-eer', it means hairy, he-goat or buck. The word "goats" is derived from the Hebrew word "ez", pronounced aze, which means a female goat, she-goat, goat or kid.

Contrary to what is clearly being stated in the previous verses, some Christians have assumed that Jesus Christ has always been symbolized in the Bible by a sacrificial lamb, or young sheep. Thus, He is referred to as the Lamb of God. Like myself, perhaps some of you have embraced this idea, based upon the traditional belief that Jesus' Sacrifice was foreshadowed in the Old Testament, by an unblemished lamb which was killed during the night of the first Passover in Egypt. However, a close reading of the following verses reveals a startling truth:

". . . In the tenth day of this month they shall take to them every man a lamb, according to the house of their fathers, a lamb for an house: And if the household be too little for the lamb, let him and his neighbour next unto his house take it according to the number of the souls; every man according to his eating shall make your count for the lamb."


Thus far, the idea of Jesus Christ being typified by a lamb during the night of the first Passover, seems to be upheld by the Scriptures. However, please take note of what the next verse states:

"Your lamb shall be without blemish, a male of the first year: ye shall take it out from the sheep, or from the goats:"


As you can quickly discover, I have separated verse five for a good reason. It speaks a truth of which some Christians are not aware. Before I offer an explanation, let us take a look at a condensed version of the story a few verses later in the same chapter:

"Then Moses called for all the elders of Israel, and said unto them, Draw out and take you a lamb according to your families, and kill the passover. And ye shall take a bunch of hyssop, and dip it in the blood that is in the bason, and strike the lintel and the two side posts with the blood that is in the bason; and none of you shall go out at the door of his house until the morning. For the LORD will pass through to smite the Egyptians; and when he seeth the blood upon the lintel, and on the two side posts, the LORD will pass over the door, and will not suffer the destroyer to come in unto your houses to smite you."


Please notice that in the previous verses, the word "lamb" is derived from the Hebrew word "seh", or "sey", pronounced say, which refers to either a young sheep or a young goat. It is for this reason that when the Lord is giving Moses his instructions regarding the first Passover, He tells him "ye shall take it out from the sheep, or from the goats". There should be no doubt then, that the unblemished lamb could be either a sheep or a goat. While many Christians have become comfortable with the idea of Jesus Christ being represented by a soft, white, unblemished lamb which was killed during the Passover, this hallowed belief stands upon rather shaky ground; because the Lord accepted either a young sheep, or a goat, depending upon what was available to each Israelite family at the time of the first Passover.

Many artistic renditions of the Lamb of God have contributed to this false belief that Jesus has always been represented by a lamb in the Bible; because few artists have taken the time to understand what the Hebrew word for "lamb" actually means in some places in the Old Testament. We have clearly seen that the Passover "lamb" was either a young sheep or a young goat; and that in the case of the most hallowed event of the entire Jewish year, the Day of Atonement, Jesus -- who is our beloved Sacrificial Lamb, -- was actually represented by the kid of a goat, which was slain as an atonement for sin. We will be discussing the Passover observance of the New Testament era in part two of this series.

Believe me; if this is difficult for you to accept, I will be candid and admit that I also resisted this truth, and tried to find some other way to explain it. I have been so conditioned into imagining our Lord as a soft, little, white lamb, and viewing a goat as something evil and satanic, that this revelation from His Word took the better part of a day for me to finally accept. However, as a serious teacher of God's Word, I must be faithful to teach what is contained in the Scriptures. I will not compromise the truth of the Word of God for anyone; because I have no doubt that the Lord holds me accountable for teaching the truth contained in the Scriptures, as best as I know and understand it. At the same time, I am sure that He is faithful to forgive me for the things in which I am still ignorant. The Apostle Paul wrote the following words regarding being an able teacher of God's Word:

"A bishop then must be blameless, the husband of one wife, vigilant, sober, of good behaviour, given to hospitality, apt to teach;"


"And the servant of the Lord must not strive; but be gentle unto all men, apt to teach, patient,"


"Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth."


In the previous verses, the word "apt" is derived from the Greek word "didaktikos", pronounced did-ak-tik-os', which means apt and skillful in teaching. As I explain in "Speak the Pure Language of Truth", as the servants of the Lord, God holds us accountable for preaching the full Truth of the Gospel. We are not to water it down, or to compromise its message in order to not offend people; or in order to simply tickle their ears with what they want to hear, as seems to be the common practice with many preachers today. We need to tell the whole truth, come what may. We must carefully study the Scriptures and make sure that our doctrine is sound; and not a false invention or tradition of men. This thought is made clear by verses such as the following:

"That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive; But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ:"


"Be not carried about with divers and strange doctrines. For it is a good thing that the heart be established with grace; not with meats, which have not profited them that have been occupied therein."


"As I besought thee to abide still at Ephesus, when I went into Macedonia, that thou mightest charge some that they teach no other doctrine, Neither give heed to fables and endless genealogies, which minister questions, rather than godly edifying which is in faith: so do."


"Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils;"


"For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears;"


Taking into consideration the startling revelation from the previous verses regarding the sacrifice of a goat on the Day of Atonement, and the fact that the Passover "lamb" was in reality a lamb or a goat, we must ask ourselves, exactly how did the idea evolve that Jesus has always been represented by a cute, little, white lamb in the Bible? The answer can be found by studying in detail, the Mosaic Law and the various offerings and sacrifices which were mandated by it. As I mention in "The Kings of the North and the South", as well as in "Once Upon a Time: A True Story", because it is mentioned in the prophetic Book of Daniel, perhaps one of the sacrifices with which most Christians are familiar, is the daily sacrifice; which is also known as the continual burnt offering, or as the morning and the evening oblation. Consider the following verses found in Daniel's writings which mention this sacrifice:

"Yea, he magnified himself even to the prince of the host, and by him the daily sacrifice was taken away, and the place of his sanctuary was cast down. And an host was given him against the daily sacrifice by reason of transgression, and it cast down the truth to the ground; and it practised, and prospered. Then I heard one saint speaking, and another saint said unto that certain saint which spake, How long shall be the vision concerning the daily sacrifice, and the transgression of desolation, to give both the sanctuary and the host to be trodden under foot?"


"Yea, whiles I was speaking in prayer, even the man Gabriel, whom I had seen in the vision at the beginning, being caused to fly swiftly, touched me about the time of the evening oblation."


"And arms shall stand on his part, and they shall pollute the sanctuary of strength, and shall take away the daily sacrifice, and they shall place the abomination that maketh desolate."


"And from the time that the daily sacrifice shall be taken away, and the abomination that maketh desolate set up, there shall be a thousand two hundred and ninety days."


In the previous verses, the word "oblation" is derived from the Hebrew word "minchah", pronounced min-khaw', which means gift, tribute, offering, present, oblation, sacrifice, or meat offering. This offering was ordered by the Lord in the Book of Exodus, as well as in the Book of Numbers. It is called a continual burnt offering because, aside from the fact that the animal was completely consumed in the fire, it was performed twice daily throughout the year; in addition to the various other sacrifices which had to be performed. These two sacrifices were known appropriately as the morning and the evening oblation. Consider the following verses:

"Now this is that which thou shalt offer upon the altar; two lambs of the first year day by day continually. The one lamb thou shalt offer in the morning; and the other lamb thou shalt offer at even: And with the one lamb a tenth deal of flour mingled with the fourth part of an hin of beaten oil; and the fourth part of an hin of wine for a drink offering. And the other lamb thou shalt offer at even, and shalt do thereto according to the meat offering of the morning, and according to the drink offering thereof, for a sweet savour, an offering made by fire unto the LORD. This shall be a continual burnt offering throughout your generations at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation before the LORD: where I will meet you, to speak there unto thee."


"And thou shalt say unto them, This is the offering made by fire which ye shall offer unto the LORD; two lambs of the first year without spot day by day, for a continual burnt offering. The one lamb shalt thou offer in the morning, and the other lamb shalt thou offer at even; And a tenth part of an ephah of flour for a meat offering, mingled with the fourth part of an hin of beaten oil. It is a continual burnt offering, which was ordained in mount Sinai for a sweet savour, a sacrifice made by fire unto the LORD."


Based upon the actual Hebrew word which is used in these verses, the sacrificial animals which were used in these offerings were young sheep. The Hebrew word used here is "kebes", pronounced keh-bes', which means lamb, sheep or young ram. In this same chapter where the daily sacrifice is described, God also gave Moses instructions regarding the weekly sabbath sacrifice, as well as the monthly sacrifice, which was performed at the beginning of each month throughout the year. In both cases, the sacrificial animals which were used were sheep, taken from the Hebrew words "ayil" -- meaning ram -- and "kebes", which as we have already seen, means young sheep. However, the Lord continues by telling Moses to use a goat for the sin offering. Consider the following verses:

"And on the sabbath day two lambs of the first year without spot, and two tenth deals of flour for a meat offering, mingled with oil, and the drink offering thereof: This is the burnt offering of every sabbath, beside the continual burnt offering, and his drink offering. And in the beginnings of your months ye shall offer a burnt offering unto the LORD; two young bullocks, and one ram, seven lambs of the first year without spot . . . And one kid of the goats for a sin offering unto the LORD shall be offered, beside the continual burnt offering, and his drink offering."


This same pattern is followed in describing the sacrifices which were made daily during the seven days of the Feast of Unleavened Bread. As with the monthly sacrifice, the animals used were two bullocks, a ram and seven lambs. In addition to these, a goat was used for the atonement of sin. Consider these verses:

"And in the fifteenth day of this month is the feast: seven days shall unleavened bread be eaten. In the first day shall be an holy convocation; ye shall do no manner of servile work therein: But ye shall offer a sacrifice made by fire for a burnt offering unto the LORD; two young bullocks, and one ram, and seven lambs of the first year: they shall be unto you without blemish . . . And one goat for a sin offering, to make an atonement for you. Ye shall offer these beside the burnt offering in the morning, which is for a continual burnt offering. After this manner ye shall offer daily, throughout the seven days, the meat of the sacrifice made by fire, of a sweet savour unto the LORD: it shall be offered beside the continual burnt offering, and his drink offering."


The offering for the Feast of Firstfruits followed this very same pattern. This feast occurred following the harvest, and is described for us in the Book of Leviticus, as well as in the Book of Numbers. Let us take a look at the verses found in the Book of Leviticus first:

"Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them, When ye be come into the land which I give unto you, and shall reap the harvest thereof, then ye shall bring a sheaf of the firstfruits of your harvest unto the priest: And he shall wave the sheaf before the LORD, to be accepted for you: on the morrow after the sabbath the priest shall wave it. And ye shall offer that day when ye wave the sheaf an he lamb without blemish of the first year for a burnt offering unto the LORD."


Following this burnt offering, the Israelites were to wait an additional jubilee of fifty days past this offering, and then offer a second meat offering. In verse seventeen below, the Lord states "they are the firstfruits unto the LORD". So this seems to be an indication that this offering was really a continuation of the Feast of Firstfruits:

"And ye shall count unto you from the morrow after the sabbath, from the day that ye brought the sheaf of the wave offering; seven sabbaths shall be complete: Even unto the morrow after the seventh sabbath shall ye number fifty days; and ye shall offer a new meat offering unto the LORD. Ye shall bring out of your habitations two wave loaves of two tenth deals: they shall be of fine flour; they shall be baken with leaven; they are the firstfruits unto the LORD. And ye shall offer with the bread seven lambs without blemish of the first year, and one young bullock, and two rams: they shall be for a burnt offering unto the LORD, with their meat offering, and their drink offerings, even an offering made by fire, of sweet savour unto the LORD. Then ye shall sacrifice one kid of the goats for a sin offering, and two lambs of the first year for a sacrifice of peace offerings."


"Also in the day of the firstfruits, when ye bring a new meat offering unto the LORD, after your weeks be out, ye shall have an holy convocation; ye shall do no servile work: But ye shall offer the burnt offering for a sweet savour unto the LORD; two young bullocks, one ram, seven lambs of the first year . . . And one kid of the goats, to make an atonement for you. Ye shall offer them beside the continual burnt offering, and his meat offering, (they shall be unto you without blemish) and their drink offerings."


The Feast of Trumpets which occurred on the first day of the seventh month was no exception. It followed the same pattern by using one young bullock, one ram, seven lambs and one kid of the goats to make an atonement for sin, as we can easily determine by the following group of verses:

"And in the seventh month, on the first day of the month, ye shall have an holy convocation; ye shall do no servile work: it is a day of blowing the trumpets unto you. And ye shall offer a burnt offering for a sweet savour unto the LORD; one young bullock, one ram, and seven lambs of the first year without blemish:. . . And one kid of the goats for a sin offering, to make an atonement for you: Beside the burnt offering of the month, and his meat offering, and the daily burnt offering, and his meat offering, and their drink offerings, according unto their manner, for a sweet savour, a sacrifice made by fire unto the LORD."


In addition to the annual Day of Atonement offerings which were performed on the tenth day of the seventh month, the Lord instructed Moses to make other sacrifices on that day as well. These were identical to those which Aaron performed during the sacrifice at the beginning of each month, during the Feast of Unleavened Bread, during the Feast of the Firstfruits, and during the Feast of Trumpets. Like them, it required two bullocks, a ram, seven lambs and a goat for the sin offering; which was used in addition to the goat which was used for the annual Day of Atonement sacrifice. In other words, it appears that there were at least two goats which were used as an atonement for sin on the Day of Atonement. This is made clear by the following verses:

"And ye shall have on the tenth day of this seventh month an holy convocation; and ye shall afflict your souls: ye shall not do any work therein: But ye shall offer a burnt offering unto the LORD for a sweet savour; one young bullock, one ram, and seven lambs of the first year; they shall be unto you without blemish:. . . One kid of the goats for a sin offering; beside the sin offering of atonement, and the continual burnt offering, and the meat offering of it, and their drink offerings."


Five days later, on the fifteenth day of the seventh month, when the seven-day Feast of Tabernacles began, we again see this same pattern being followed. The only difference was that on the first day of the feast, thirteen bullocks were offered; and on each of the six days which followed, one bullock less was offered; so that on the seventh day, only seven bullocks were offered. In addition to the bullocks which were offered on each day, there were also offered two rams, fourteen lambs, and the one goat for the sin offering on each of the seven days. The following verse accompanies each of the seven days of the Feast of Tabernacles:

"And one kid of the goats for a sin offering; beside the continual burnt offering, his meat offering, and his drink offering."


On the eighth day following the Feast of Tabernacles, there was a solemn assembly, during which time, another sacrifice was made. This consisted of one bullock, one ram, seven lambs, and the one goat for an atonement of sin, as we can verify by the following set of verses:

"On the eighth day ye shall have a solemn assembly: ye shall do no servile work therein: But ye shall offer a burnt offering, a sacrifice made by fire, of a sweet savour unto the LORD: one bullock, one ram, seven lambs of the first year without blemish . . . And one goat for a sin offering; beside the continual burnt offering, and his meat offering, and his drink offering."


Please go to part two for the continuation of this series.

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