Leviticus 16:14
This page isn't yet indexed by search engines.
The verse emphasizes that the blood wasn't just sprinkled on the mercy seat, but also seven times before it, highlighting that God's mercy is accessed through the blood, but also that God's justice and holiness are addressed directly, signifying a complete atonement. This dual action shows how God's mercy and justice are perfectly reconciled through Christ's sacrifice.
And he shall take some of the blood of the bull and sprinkle it with his finger on the front of the mercy seat on the east side, and in front of the mercy seat he shall sprinkle some of the blood with his finger seven times.
English Standard Version (ESV)
Following his purification and donning special linen garments, the high priest re-enters the Holy of Holies, this time carrying blood from the bullock sacrificed for his own sins. He sprinkles this blood once towards the front of the mercy seat, then seven more times on the ground before it, signifying atonement for himself and his household. This act directly precedes the sprinkling of the goat's blood, which is for the sins of the people.
Why did God require blood to be sprinkled? It wasn't just a ritual; it was a profound statement about how He meets us in our sin.
The act of sprinkling blood on the mercy seat was central to the Day of Atonement. This wasn't a casual act, but a divine mandate that spoke volumes.
God's Access Granted Through Blood
The blood of the bullock, shed as a sin offering, was brought into the Most Holy Place. This act directly addressed the separation sin created between God and His people. The mercy seat, the very lid of the Ark of the Covenant, was where God's presence dwelled among His people. But sin made that presence terrifying, even deadly.
A Symbol of God's Gracious Provision
By sprinkling the blood on and before the mercy seat, the high priest signified that atonement was being made. It declared that God's justice, though rightly demanding a penalty for sin, was met by a provision—the shed blood—that allowed for mercy. This act pointed forward to the ultimate atonement made by Christ, whose blood cleanses us completely.
Why sprinkle the blood seven times? This number wasn't arbitrary; it signaled something profound about the efficacy of the atonement.
The repetition of sprinkling the blood seven times carries significant symbolic weight in Scripture. Seven is often a number representing divine perfection, completeness, and fulfillment.
A Complete Cleansing
Ask a follow-up
Sprinkling the blood seven times before the mercy seat emphasized the absolute totality of the atonement being made. It wasn't a partial or temporary fix, but a complete covering for sin. This was a divine declaration that the penalty for sin was fully satisfied.
Looking to Christ's Perfect Sacrifice
This perfect number also pointed to the ultimate sacrifice of Jesus Christ. His one-time offering on the cross was perfect and complete, securing eternal redemption for all who believe. The repeated sprinklings in the Old Testament foreshadowed the finished work of Christ, which needed no repetition.
Understand the original words
dam · Hebrew Noun
In the Old Testament, the life of the flesh is in the blood; it was required for atonement because life had to be given to satisfy the penalty for sin.
This passage highlights that the high priest could only enter the Most Holy Place once a year with blood, directly paralleling the solemnity and restricted access described in Leviticus 16:14.
Hebrews 9:11-12The author of Hebrews explicitly connects the Levitical ritual, including the sprinkling of blood, to Christ's work, presenting Him as the greater High Priest who entered not with the blood of goats and bulls but with His own.
1 John 1:7This verse speaks to the cleansing power of Christ's blood, echoing the Levitical blood sprinkled on the mercy seat that made atonement for sin and offered purification.
Romans 3:25Paul refers to God setting forth Jesus as a propitiation (or mercy seat) through faith in his blood, directly linking the concept of atonement and mercy seat from Leviticus 16:14 to Jesus' sacrifice.
Exodus 25:17This verse describes the mercy seat itself and the cherubim, providing the context for where and why the blood was to be sprinkled in Leviticus 16:14.
bensonLeviticus 16:14: "And he shall take of the blood of the bullock, and sprinkle it with his finger upon the mercy seat eastward; and before the mercy seat shall he sprinkle of the blood with his finger seven times."
Leviticus 16:14 . He shall take of the blood — He went out of the holy place, and then entered it a second time. We must observe, that as the burning of the incense preceded the sprinkling of the blood, it was hereby signified that he was to be prepared for entering into the most holy…
calvinLeviticus 16:1-34: "And the LORD spake unto Moses after the death of the two sons of Aaron, when they offered before the LORD, and died;"
And the LORD said unto Moses, Speak unto Aaron thy brother, that he come not at all times into the holy place within the vail before the mercy seat, which is upon the ark; that he die not: for I will appear in the cloud upon the mercy seat.
Dixitque Jellova ad Mosen, Loquere ad Aharon fratrem tuum, ut ne ingrediatnr omni tempore sanctuarium intra velum…
The verse emphasizes that the blood wasn't just sprinkled on the mercy seat, but also seven times before it, highlighting that God's mercy is accessed through the blood, but also that God's justice and holiness are addressed directly, signifying a complete atonement. This dual action shows how God's mercy and justice are perfectly reconciled through Christ's sacrifice.
Following his purification and donning special linen garments, the high priest re-enters the Holy of Holies, this time carrying blood from the bullock sacrificed for his own sins. He sprinkles this blood once towards the front of the mercy seat, then seven more times on the ground before it, signifying atonement for himself and his household. This act directly precedes the sprinkling of the goat's blood, which is for the sins of the people.
Following his purification and donning special linen garments, the high priest re-enters the Holy of Holies, this time carrying blood from the bullock sacrificed for his own sins. He sprinkles this blood once towards the front of the mercy seat, then seven more times on the ground before it, signifying atonement for himself and his household. This act directly precedes the sprinkling of the goat's blood, which is for the sins of the people.
"And he shall take some of the blood of the bull and sprinkle it with his finger on the front of the mercy seat on the east side, and in front of the mercy seat he shall sprinkle some of the blood with his finger seven times." — The verse emphasizes that the blood wasn't just sprinkled on the mercy seat, but also seven times before it, highlighting that God's mercy is accessed through the blood, but also that God's justi…
Get the original Greek and Hebrew, verse-by-verse context, and related passages inside the app.
Last reviewed October 2026
