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by
Doug Ward |
A number of English expressions are based on biblical passages. For
example, we speak of "separating the sheep from the goats" when we
want to distinguish superior and inferior members of a group. This expression
comes from Mt 25:31-46, where Jesus describes the final judgment as a
separation of sheep and goats. Those that help the needy are the sheep, who
will receive an eternal reward; while those that do not are the goats, who will
receive eternal punishment.
The
negative portrayal of goats in Mt 25 has puzzled scholars. Generally
in the Bible goats are associated with sheep, not contrasted with sheep, and
both are viewed positively (e.g. Dt 32:14; Isa 11:6). Both were sacrificial
animals (Ex 12:5), and flocks of both were seen as a sign of wealth (Ge 32:14;
1 Sa 25:2). The hair and skins of goats were among the valuable materials used
in the Israelite tabernacle in the wilderness (Ex 25:4-5). An honored guest
might be served a meal featuring a young goat (Jdg
13:15).
There
is one notable exception to the otherwise positive depiction of goats in the
Hebrew Scriptures. In a ritual conducted each year on the Day of Atonement (Yom
Kippur in Hebrew) in the days of the tabernacle and temple, the Israelite
high priest laid his hands on the head of a goat selected by lot from two
candidates and confessed over it the sins of the people. The goat was then led
away to a remote area to symbolize the removal of those sins from Israel (Lev
16:21-22).
The
goat, of course, was not to blame for the people's sins. Bible translator
William Tyndale (1494-1536) coined the English word "scapegoat"
(meaning "goat that escapes") for this goat. The word has since come
to be used for someone who is blamed for the wrongdoings of another.
Even
though this goat was innocent, over time it came to be identified with the sins
that it carried. When the ritual was conducted in Jerusalem during the Second
Temple period, people would spit on the goat or pull on its hair as it was being
led out of the city, and some would shout, "Bear our sins and be
gone!" Measures were taken to ensure that the goat did not come back, so
that those sins did not return. After the goat was led to "the
wilderness," a location five Sabbath days' journey from the city, it was
pushed backward over a cliff and fell to its death in a ravine below.1
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Comparing
Matthew 25 and Leviticus 16 |
There are parallels between Leviticus 16 and Matthew 25. In both the ancient
ritual and the future judgment scene, goats associated with sin are cursed and
sent away from the presence of God. Moreover, both involve two lots or options.
In Mt 25 the Son of Man places sheep on his right hand and goats on his left
(v. 33). In Lev 16 there are two goats, one being sacrificed for the sins of
the people and the other carrying those sins away. Jewish traditions associate
the sacrificed goat with the high priest's right hand and the scapegoat with
his left hand.2
In
Matthew 25 one of the options is positive, the other one negative. The sheep
inherit the kingdom of God (v. 34), while the goats go "into the eternal
fire prepared for the devil and his angels" (v. 41). With the two lots on
the Day of Atonement, the one for the sacrificed goat was designated "for
the Lord," the one for the scapegoat "for Azazel" (Lev 16:8).
The Hebrew word Azazel appears in the Bible only in Lev 16. Anciently
the word was often interpreted as a proper name denoting an entity being
contrasted with God. In this reading Azazel is a name of the devil or a demon.
The ritual, by having the scapegoat "sent away into the wilderness to
Azazel," (v. 10), assigned to Azazel ultimate responsibility for the sin
that he brought into the world.
A
prominent fallen angel named Azazel appears in the apocalyptic literature of
the Second Temple period. In particular, 1 Enoch 55:4 has God announcing to the
kings of the earth, "Ye shall have to behold Mine Elect One, how he sits
on the throne of glory and judges Azazel, and all his associates ... " We
can see a parallel with Mt 25, where the Son of Man "will sit on his
glorious throne" (v. 31) and judge the goats.
In
Matthew 25 people are separated into two groups, the sheep and goats.
Similarly, ancient interpreters associated the two lots of Lev 16 with groups
of people. For example, Philo of Alexandria, a Jewish contemporary of Jesus,
associated people who seek heavenly wisdom with the lot of the sacrificed goat
and people who seek carnal things with the lot of the scapegoat.3
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Implications
of the Goat Imagery |
The parallels between Leviticus and Matthew suggest that the goats of Lev 16
lie behind the goat imagery in Mt 25. Since the ritual of Lev 16 accomplished
the cleansing of the tabernacle or temple, the connection between Lev 16 and Mt
25 implies that the judgment of Mt 25:31-46 can be described as a sort of
cleansing of the cosmos.
The
festivals of Israel foreshadow key milestones in salvation history. Passover is
a prophecy of "Christ our Passover" (1 Co 5:7), while Pentecost
points to the firstfruits in a harvest of salvation
(1 Th 2:13; Jas 1:18; Rev 14:4). The Feast of Trumpets looks forward to the
return of Jesus, announced by the sound of a trumpet (Mt 24:30-31; 1 Th
4:16-17). Based on the goat imagery of Mt 25, one event predicted by the Day of
Atonement is the judgment that will follow Jesus' return.
1These traditions are
described in the Mishnah in tractate Yoma, chapter 6.
2See Hans M. Moscicke, "The Final Judgement as Ritual Purgation of
the Cosmos: The Influence of Scapegoat Traditions on Matt 25:31-46," New
Testament Studies 67 (2021), pp. 241-259.
3Moscicke,
p. 253.
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