Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Leviticus 16:17
And there shall be no man in the tabernacle of the congregation when he goeth in to make an atonement in the holy [place], until he come out, and have made an atonement for himself, and for his household, and for all the congregation of Israel.
In the tabernacle of the congregation, i.e. in the holy place, where the priests and Levites were at other times. This was commanded for the greater reverence to the Divine Majesty, then in a more special manner appearing, and that none of them might cast an eye into the holy of holies as the high priest went in or came out.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
And there shall be no man in the tabernacle of the congregation,…. Not any of the priests, as Aben Ezra, no, not in the holy place where they ministered, nor in the court of the tabernacle, nor in any of the courts, nor indeed any of the people: all places were cleared
when he, the high priest,
goeth in to make an atonement in the holy [place] until he come out; this in the mystery of it was to signify, that atonement for sin is made only by Christ our high priest; he himself, and no other, bore our sins, and he himself purged them away, or by his sacrifice alone expiated them; his own arm wrought salvation, and of the people there were none with him to help and assist him; when he the Shepherd was smitten by the sword of justice, the sheep were scattered, all his disciples forsook him and fled; there were none to appear for him, or stand by him, or in the least to lend an assisting hand in the great work in which he was engaged; he is the only Mediator, between God and man, both of redemption and of intercession; he is the alone Saviour, to him only are sinners to look for salvation, and he is to have all the glory; he had no partner in the work, and he will have no rival in the honour of it:
and have made an atonement for himself, and for his household; his whole family, and all the priests, by the bullock of his sin offering, as Aben Ezra observes, and by carrying in the blood of it within the vail, and sprinkling it there:
and for all the congregation of Israel; by the goat of their sin offering, as the same writer notes, and doing with the blood of that as with the blood of the bullock; all typical of the atonement of Christ for his mystical self the church; for the whole family and household of God; for the general assembly and church of the firstborn, whose names are written in heaven.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
There was to be no one in the ohel moed when Aaron went into it to make expiation in the most holy place, until he came out (of the tabernacle) again; not because no one but the chief servant of Jehovah was worthy to be near or present either as spectator or assistant at this sacred act before Jehovah ( Knobel), but because no unholy person was to defile by his presence the sanctuary, which had just been cleansed; just as no layman at all was allowed to enter the holy place, or could go with impunity into the presence of the holy God.
Fuente: Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament
17. And there shall be no man. The driving away of all men from approaching the tabernacle during the act of atonement is a sort of punishment by temporary banishment, that they may perceive themselves to be driven from God’s face, whilst the place is purified which had been defiled by their sins. This was a melancholy sight, when all these for whose sake it was erected were obliged to desert it; but in this way they were reminded that every part and particle of our salvation depends on God’s mercy only, when they saw themselves excluded from the remedy designed for obtaining pardon, unless a new pardon should come to their aid, since they had fallen away from the hope of reconciliation.
Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary
(17) And there shall be no man.Whilst the high priest was performing this process of cleansing, no one, whether priest or Israelite, was permitted to be present, thus precluding the possibility of anyone being within the precincts who had unwittingly contracted defilement. The fact that the high priest was thus alone in the sanctuary, with no one to see how he conducted the ritual, gave rise to the practice of his being sworn, on the eve of the Day of Atonement, by the chief priests and the elders of the Sanhedrin that he would make no change whatever in the traditional ceremonies of the day, as follows :We adjure thee, by Him who hath caused His name to dwell in this house, that thou shalt not alter anything of all that we do say unto thee. This had especial reference to the points at issue between the Pharisees and Sadducees, as some of the high priests held the Sadducaic views. (See Lev. 16:2.)
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
17. There shall be no man in the tabernacle The entire tabernacle must be vacant. The priests must leave their place and mingle with the Levites on guard around the sacred abode of Jehovah. The penitent people stand in silence and awe while their solitary representative, with trembling, approaches the presence of the holy God. How strikingly this prefigures the fact that there is but one Mediator, the man Jesus Christ. He must ever be solitary in his office. No virgin mother, no saint, no angel can be associated with him in making his atonement and in pleading its merits on high. To thrust an imaginary associate into the office of Intercessor, where Jesus stands alone, is to degrade and vilify him. Heb 1:3; Heb 9:7. See concluding note, (6.)
For all the congregation Every penitent Israelite had a share in the benefits of that atonement, as every penitent believer in Jesus Christ receives pardoning grace through his atoning blood. The conditional repentance, though not expressed, is evidently implied; for the notion that the mere mechanical performance of the high priest, irrespective of the state of heart of the sinner, resulted in a reconciliation, is even in the Talmud itself mentioned only to be forthwith rejected. The universality of the atonement is here clearly fore-shadowed.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
“And there shall be no man in the tent of meeting when he goes in to make atonement in the holy place, until he come out, and have made atonement for himself, and for his household, and for all the assembly of Israel.”
And while all this was going on there was to be no one else in the tent of meeting. Throughout the whole process the High Priest was to act alone. Purified, atoned for, clothed in holy white garments, he alone was in a state to enter the tabernacle at this crucial time. Humanly speaking the task was his from start to finish. No other could take part. None could enter the sanctuary until atonement had been made for the Priest himself, for the other priests, for all his household, and for all the assembly of Israel.
This is a reminder to us that Christ’s great work of atonement was also wrought by Him and by Him alone. No other was worthy to take part, nor could. The work was His and His alone. No priest, nor any other, could have any part in it. The work was total and complete.
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
Observe what is here said of the high priest being alone; and then turn to what Isaiah saith of JESUS, Isa 63:5 . And do not forget that in our LORD’S agony in the garden, and in the height of his sufferings, all his disciples left him.
Fuente: Hawker’s Poor Man’s Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
Lev 16:17 And there shall be no man in the tabernacle of the congregation when he goeth in to make an atonement in the holy [place], until he come out, and have made an atonement for himself, and for his household, and for all the congregation of Israel.
Ver. 17. And there shall be no man. ] Christ will have no partner, and he needs no assistant. Heb 7:25 Isa 63:3
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
man = ‘adam. App-14. no human being. This effectually disposes of all priestly pretensions now, while the Antitype is “within the vail”. See Heb 4:14; Heb 6:20; Heb 9:24.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
no man: Exo 34:3, Isa 53:6, Dan 9:24, Luk 1:10, Act 4:12, 1Ti 2:5, Heb 1:3, Heb 9:7, 1Pe 2:24, 1Pe 3:18
and have made: Lev 16:10, Lev 16:11
Reciprocal: Lev 16:24 – and make
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Lev 16:17. There shall be no man in the tabernacle In the holy place, where the priests and Levites were at other times. This was commanded for the greater reverence to the divine majesty, then in a more special manner appearing, and that none of them might cast an eye into the holy of holies, as the high-priest went in or came out.