Bible Question: In Leviticus16:8 it says lots were cast on the two goats one for the Lord and the other for Azazel(satan).The goat for the Lord was killed and the other was alive and sent to the wilderness for Azazel(satan).So my question is why would the goat that was led into the wilderness be called the scape-goat when it was for Azazel(satan)? |
Bible Answer: Hello a1- welcome to the forum. I don't find any record of Azazel and Satan being the same person. As for why the goat that was led into the wilderness is referred to as the scapegoat, I read somewhere that the use of the word "scapegoat" is due to a mistranslation; but I don't know for sure. We might continue to think of it as a "scapegoat", in our mondern understanding of that word, due to the fact that it represented taking on the burden (or blame, or punishment) of the sins of others. In some sense we might compare this to our Lord Jesus being our scapegoat in that he did bear the burden of our sins to the point of His being lead away and ultimately dying to pay their cost. Of course, unlike the annual goat spoken of in Leviticus, Christ chose the course. No one else could have done that. Jeff |