From the Mercy Seat to Christ

You are about to embark on an adventure with the Word Nerd! 

We are going to learn a couple Hebrew and Greek words from the Bible. It will be painless, I promise. 

Here is the cheat sheet for today’s lesson:

These words aren’t just ancient vocabulary — they explain why we don't have to live in constant guilt.  

I hope you brought a water bottle and some manna to snack on, because our Word Nerd trip starts in a portable tent in the desert.  We are entering sacred ground as we peer into the innermost section of the tabernacle. Behind a thick curtain, in the Holy of Holies, was the Ark of the Covenant. If we could look inside the Ark, we would see stone tablets with the Law, bread that never got moldy, and a perpetually blooming tree branch.  

But today we are going to talk about what is above the Ark. Our Hebrew word -- kapporeth - was the cover of the Ark, with two large golden cherubim (angels) attached to it. This wasn’t just a fancy top for a fancy box. In Exodus 25:22, Yahweh says that he will meet with Moses above the mercy seat. This meeting place represented God’s presence with his people. The sovereign, omnipotent God is not an impersonal, distant deity. 

But there is a problem. How can a perfect, holy God meet with sinful, rebellious people? (You know, the same people who worshipped a golden calf and had a big party while Moses was on the mountain?) The answer to that question is found at the next stop on the tour. 

Jump back on the camel with me so we can head to Leviticus 16. Here, Yahweh tells Moses that only the high priest can enter behind the curtain of the Holy of Holies. And only once a year. Oh, and only if he came with a sin offering and a burnt offering. But there’s more. He has to wear specific garments, create a cloud of incense, and sprinkle blood on the atonement cover (mercy seat) -- not once, but seven times. Whew, that’s a lot to remember!

Their sin separated them from God, but God provided a way so that their sin would be covered. Because of the sacrificial blood that was sprinkled on the mercy seat, God showed favor to those who deserved only punishment and death for their sin. The atonement covered the people’s guilt. Mercy is God’s undeserved favor. This is what happened at the kapporeth — the mercy seat. 

And so the problem was solved. Well, until they sinned again. And the guilt returned. They needed a sacrifice that would not have to be repeated. 

To discover how that became possible, we are going to take our camels and travel to the New Testament. Since Duolingo hadn’t been invented yet, the author of Hebrews will help us with our Greek language lesson. 

In Hebrews 9, the author talks about the tabernacle and the Holy of Holies— using the word “hilasterion”  in verse 5 (translated as “mercy seat” in the ESV). Then he explains that these items and rituals pointed forward to a far better reality. 
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It is an illustration for the present time, because the gifts and sacrifices being offered were unable to cleanse the conscience of the worshiper. They consist only in food and drink and special washings—external regulations imposed until the time of reform. But when Christ came as high priest of the good things that have come, He went through the greater and more perfect tabernacle that is not made by hands and is not a part of this creation. He did not enter by the blood of goats and calves, but He entered the Most Holy Place once for all by His own blood, thus securing eternal redemption. For if the blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a heifer sprinkled on those who are ceremonially unclean sanctify them so that their bodies are clean, how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself unblemished to God, purify our consciences from works of death, so that we may serve the living God!
Hebrews 9:9-12

The blood that was sprinkled on the mercy seat — daily, monthly, yearly  — was a temporary fix for the separation between God and man. But they couldn’t “perfect our conscience”. People need a permanent heart change. The animal sacrifices couldn’t do that. 

Jesus’ sacrifice was the plan all along. Jesus was the sin offering. The one for all time. 

There is one more time that the word “hilasterion” is used in the New Testament.  Most translations use the English words “propitiation” or “atonement” for the Greek word “hilasterion”. But we will look at the CSB to appreciate the full connection with the “kapporeth” of the Old Testament.
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God presented him as the mercy seat by his blood, through faith, to demonstrate his righteousness, because in his restraint God passed over the sins previously committed. 
Romans 3:25 CSB

​Look closely. Did you see it? Jesus IS the mercy seat. 

God presented him. God wanted to be with his people. And so he offered his Son as the final sacrifice for sin. God the Father sent the Son to shed his blood for us.  

Stop and read those words from Romans 3:25 again. Slowly. And worship. 

We have been cleansed and perfected. When Yahweh sees us, he sees Jesus’ righteousness. When God gave us the faith to believe, our hearts were changed. Permanently. We still struggle with sin and doubt at times, but we don’t have to perform elaborate rituals or go through a religious leader to have our guilt removed. 

The things you think you have to do to keep the overwhelming guilt at bay? Replace them with meditation on Hebrews 9.

When you remember that awful thing you said (or thought) — go to Christ.

Each time you become aware of a sinful or selfish desire — remember what Christ did.

Our redemption has been secured. We can rest in the assurance of what He has done for us. Our feelings may cause us to doubt at times. But Scripture is clear.  If you trust in Jesus as your mercy seat, your guilt is gone.