Evaluating Adventism: Does the Sanctuary become polluted through the Sin Offering?

 

The Adventist Church teaches that, when the people brought a Sin Offering in the Sanctuary service, it transferred their sins from the person to the Sanctuary (see Great Controversy chapter 23: What is the Sanctuary? and Patriarchs and Prophets chapter 30: The Tabernacle and its Services).  This caused the Sanctuary to become polluted.  So, the Adventist Church teaches that the Sanctuary became polluted by the people bringing the Sin Offering.  Please look at all of the texts they provide to support this.  Do any of the texts they provide actually say the sins are transferred to the Sanctuary through the Sin Offering and do any of them actually say the Sin Offering caused the Sanctuary to become polluted?

When I quote a selection of verses from a chapter, I am indicating that these are the key verses.  It would still be good to read the entire section to make sure that I’m not taking something out of context.

In Numbers 5:1-3 says that those who have an unclean issue from their body, lepers, and people who touch the dead defile the camp with the Sanctuary in the middle by their presence.

They are discussed in more detail here.

In Leviticus 15: 2, 13-15, 25, 28-31, the Bible says when a man has an unclean bodily discharge or a woman has an issue of blood, these discharges pollute the Sanctuary unless they bring a Sin Offering when it is over (verse 31).  In other words, the Sanctuary is polluted by their presence, not by sins being transferred to it.  They have done nothing to break God’s Law.  And the Sin Offering doesn’t cause the Sanctuary to become polluted, it stops the pollution.

Leviticus 14 discusses the cleansing the leper is required to go through when healed.  Verse 19 specifies that the leper, whose leprous presence caused the Sanctuary to be polluted according to Numbers 5:1-3, is also required to bring a Sin Offering to complete their cleansing when they are healed of leprosy.

Numbers 19 describes the rather unique sacrifice used for cleansing people who come into contact with dead bodies.  Verse 9 tells us that it is a form of Sin Offering.  Verse 13 tells us that their presence defiles the Tabernacle unless they utilize this Sin Offering.

These three cases describe people who have done absolutely nothing to break God’s Law, but they have become ritually impure, and their impure presence defile the Sanctuary.  However, the Sin Offering is the final step in their cleansing process which stops their impurity from defiling the Sanctuary.

The Bible says the Sin Offering purifies and sanctifies the Sanctuary Alar, which is the opposite of causing it to be polluted (Leviticus 8:14-15; Exodus 29:36-37).  After the Sin Offering purifies the altar, the priests who touch the altar (Exodus 29:36-37) and the priests who touch the Sin Offering (Leviticus 6:25-27) become holy.  This is the opposite of becoming polluted by the Sin Offering.

If someone unintentionally, or through ignorance, breaks one of God’s Laws, they are required to bring a Sin Offering just as for these impurities.  This is just for sins committed unintentionally or through ignorance (Leviticus 4: 2, 13-14, 22-23, 27-28; Numbers 15:22-31).  There is no moral failing involved because the person never had any intention of breaking God’s Laws.  It was purely unintentional.  One way this could happen is that the person just wasn’t familiar with the entire Law and didn’t realize something they did was wrong.  Another way is that the person didn’t mean to commit the act.  For example, they ordered a cheese pizza and after eating a few bites realized it had pepperoni on it. 

However, if they deliberately broke God’s Law, they were cut off from the people, which would logically mean they couldn’t bring a Sin Offering (Numbers 15:30-31).  In fact, it would be an abomination for them to bring a Sin Offering (Proverbs 15:8).  If they bring it with a wicked intent, that increases the abomination.  You can only increase what already exists, which means it would still be an abomination for a wicked person to bring a Sin Offering with good intent (Proverbs 21:27)

The Hebrew words translated as “transgressions” and “iniquities” in the Old Testament indicate deliberate disobedience to God.  Their transgressions (deliberate sins) pollute the Sanctuary along with their uncleanness and unintentional sins (Leviticus 16:16).  However, they are barred from bringing a Sin Offering for intentional sins, so their deliberate sins pollute the Sanctuary.  Also, there will always be people within the nation that don’t bring one for uncleanness and unintentional sins.  So, the Sanctuary still accumulates pollution.

Some specific examples of these deliberate sins polluting the Sanctuary are bringing uncircumcised people in the Sanctuary, worshipping idols, general disobedience to God’s Law and following the abominations of the heathen(Ezekiel 44:7-10; 2 Chronicles 36:14; Ezekiel 22: 26; Zephaniah 3:4), warfare and violence in Jerusalem and the Temple (Psalm 79:1-3; Ezekiel 7:21-22; Ezekiel 9:6-7).  Note the Temple/Sanctuary is also referred to as God’s house and secret place in these verses.

Once a year the Sanctuary needed to be cleansed from the pollution accumulated by the deliberate sins (for which the sinner was cut off and couldn’t bring a Sin Offering) and uncleanness and unintentional sins for which someone neglected to bring a Sin Offering.  Leviticus 16 describes the ceremony (Day of Atonement or Yom Kippur) by which the Sanctuary was cleansed.  First the priest would offer a bullock for a Sin Offering for himself and his household and sprinkle the blood on the Mercy Seat (Leviticus 16: 6, 14).  The priest would then kill a goat for a Sin Offering for the entire congregation and sprinkle its blood to purify the Sanctuary (Leviticus 16:15-19).  The blood of the Sin Offering purified the Sanctuary (Leviticus 8:14-15; Exodus 29:36-37).  This is the opposite of causing the Sanctuary to become polluted by transferring sins to it.

Then the priest takes a live goat and “confess over him all the iniquities of the children of Israel, and all their transgressions in all their sins”.  So, here we do have what could be viewed as a transfer of the deliberate sins of the people onto a sacrifice.  However, these are sins for which no Sin Offering was made by the individual involved.  This sacrifice is not slaughtered.  Its blood is not shed.  And then “the goat shall bear upon him all their iniquities unto a land not inhabited”.  If the people ceased from work and afflicted their souls, which indicates sincere repentance, then they would be cleansed from their sins when the priest confessed them over the live goat (Leviticus 16:20-22, 29-31). 

The prophets asked God if they needed to bring blood sacrifices for their transgressions (deliberate sins).  God said “No”, they needed to turn back to obedience to God (Micah 6:6-8).  When David committed the death penalty offences of adultery and murder, and later repented, he did not bring a Sin Offering because he knew God didn’t require it.  Instead, he offered God sincere repentance (a broken and contrite heart).  Only after becoming righteous again, would he be allowed to resume bringing sacrifices (Psalm 51:1, 16-19). 

20 The soul that sinneth, it shall die: the son shall not bear the iniquity of the father, neither shall the father bear the iniquity of the son; the righteousness of the righteous shall be upon him, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon him. 21 But if the wicked turn from all his sins that he hath committed, and keep all my statutes, and do that which is lawful and right, he shall surely live, he shall not die. 22 None of his transgressions that he hath committed shall be remembered against him: in his righteousness that he hath done he shall live. 23 Have I any pleasure in the death of the wicked? saith the Lord Jehovah; and not rather that he should return from his way, and live? 24 But when the righteous turneth away from his righteousness, and committeth iniquity, and doeth according to all the abominations that the wicked man doeth, shall he live? None of his righteous deeds that he hath done shall be remembered: in his trespass that he hath trespassed, and in his sin that he hath sinned, in them shall he die. 25 Yet ye say, The way of the Lord is not equal. Hear now, O house of Israel: Is not my way equal? are not your ways unequal? 26 When the righteous man turneth away from his righteousness, and committeth iniquity, and dieth therein; in his iniquity that he hath done shall he die. 27 Again, when the wicked man turneth away from his wickedness that he hath committed, and doeth that which is lawful and right, he shall save his soul alive. (Ezekiel 18:20-27)

The Church says that someone has to die when we sin, someone has to pay the price, God has to punish someone because He cannot simply pardon our iniquities.

18 Who is a God like unto thee, that pardoneth iniquity, and passeth over the transgression of the remnant of his heritage? he retaineth not his anger for ever, because he delighteth in lovingkindness. 19 He will again have compassion upon us; he will tread our iniquities under foot; and thou wilt cast all their sins into the depths of the sea. 20 Thou wilt perform the truth to Jacob, and the lovingkindness to Abraham, which thou hast sworn unto our fathers from the days of old. (Micah 7:18-20)