Yom Kippur - Day of Atonement


Ten Days of Awe
The first ten days in the 7th month of Tishri are called the Ten days of Repentance, The Days of Awe, or the “High Holy Days." During these ten days, according to Jewish tradition, God opens up three books of our life:



  1. Those who are righteous during the year
  2. Those who are wicked
  3. Those who are in between
If a person sincerely repents during these ten days then God will grant them forgiveness for another year. According to Maimonides we are constantly to regard our fate and destiny of the entire world as balanced between guilt and acquittal. So if we commit just one sin then we lean the scale towards fate and destruction. If we are to do one good deed then it leans towards salvation. – Sounds like works to me!

Yom Kippur
It is known as the Day of Atonement, the White Sabbath, or in the Talmud as the The Day.  During this 24-hour period in the synagogue everything is covered in white.  The Torah covering is replaced with a white one, and the tables are covered with white cloths.  The men will even wear white yarmulkes, which represent purity, holiness and atonement for sin.  The rabbis will even wear white robes representing the robes that the priest wore in the temple.

29 “This shall be a statute forever for you: In the seventh month, on the tenth day of the month, you shall afflict your souls, and do no work at all, whether a native of your own country or a stranger who dwells among you. 30 For on that day the priest shall make atonement for you, to cleanse you, that you may be clean from all your sins before the Lord. 31 It is a sabbath of solemn rest for you, and you shall afflict your souls. It is a statute forever. 32 And the priest, who is anointed and consecrated to minister as priest in his father’s place, shall make atonement, and put on the linen clothes, the holy garments; 33 then he shall make atonement for the Holy Sanctuary, and he shall make atonement for the tabernacle of meeting and for the altar, and he shall make atonement for the priests and for all the people of the assembly. 34 This shall be an everlasting statute for you, to make atonement for the children of Israel, for all their sins, once a year.” And he did as the Lord commanded Moses. (Leviticus 16:29-34 NKJV)

According to verse 29 on the 10th day of Tishri (seventh month in the scriptures) we are to afflict our souls and do no work at all. This word afflict has multiple meanings such as to become humble, to bow down or put down, or to stoop.

Care was taken to arrange the Jewish calendar so that the 10th of the month of Tishri should never fall on a Friday or a Sunday but always on a Saturday. Because it would, in some respects, be very inconvenient to celebrate the Day of Atonement either immediately before or immediately after the weekly Sabbath. To prevent such an inconvenient occurrence, it was determined that in some years either a day should be added to the following month of Cheshvan, or a day taken from the month of Kislev, which follows Cheshvan.

Yom Kippur marks the end of the High Holy Days and is our final chance to repent for our sins. So Jewish people will do a complete fast for 24 hours from both food and water while they are soul-searching. 

The rabbis have noted that repenting by fasting and prayer only atones for the vows or sins committed between God and man.  When a sin was committed between two people then that person went to the other person to ask them for them their forgiveness.  Just like a famous Jewish Rabbi mentioned in Matthew 18:15, If your brother sins, go and show him his fault in private; if he listens to you, you have won your brother.

It is the only time of year that the synagogues are packed out.  It is common to be in there all day long until sunset. There are five services that begin at sunset the night before and continue the next day. Then at the end of the service the shofar is blown with one long blast signifying that the people have extended themselves during the long day of prayer, and to reach out during the coming year toward new insights and a more meaningful life. 

The most famous prayer is the Kol Nidrei (All vows) prayer and is done in the Friday night service. This is the most powerful and emotional prayer throughout the entire service. These vows are the ones mentioned earlier between man and God and they are asking Him to remove them. All the services have prayers or readings that lead the people to have thoughts of repentance. That is why the book of Jonah is read during the afternoon service. In the morning service the prayers are concluded with what is known as the Yizkor or memorial service. It is supposed to be a prayer that is to help us to remember the dead, but it is more than that. Though it is uncertain of its actual beginnings, somewhere around the 5th century, it was introduced as a prayer for Yom Kippur. Then in the 11th-13th centuries, during the period of the Crusaders, it became mandatory for Jews to recite this because of the thousands of Jews that had died. However, please note that this prayer is not a prayer to remind us of the dead, but more of a prayer to the dead.

It is also customary during this time of year in some sects to have the traditional mikvah, which symbolizes the purification and regeneration, or new birth through repentance.

Atonement of Sins
In the more orthodox circles they observe what is known as Kaparot, or the making of atonement for sins, and this is still practiced by some even to this day.  This is not mentioned in the Talmud, but is believed to have begun during the time of the Babylonian captivity.  The early rabbis did not agree with it because it is considered barbaric.  The process involves taking a chicken by the head, with the right hand and then swinging it over their own head three times announcing: “This is my substitute, my vicarious offering, my atonement. This cock or hen shall meet death, but I shall enjoy a long pleasant life of peace.”  Then it is slaughtered and either eaten by the owner and his family, or given to the poor. However, since many have considered this to be such a barbaric procedure the custom of using coins has been replaced.  Then the money is given to the poor.

Why do some still believe very strongly even today that it is to be done with a chicken? Well they believe that there must the shedding of blood to atone for one's sins. That is true, but nowhere in scripture does it mention the use of a chicken for sacrifices. It was either to be a bull, lamb, goat, turtledoves or pigeons for the sin offering. That is why I am glad that there was only one ultimate sacrifice - Yeshua.

Until next time - Shalom!

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