Yom Kippur is the Hebrew name of the biblical Day of Atonement, one of the “festivals of the Lord” God commanded His people to observe (Leviticus 23:27). It’s the second of the festivals that fall during the autumn in the Northern Hemisphere, coming after the Feast of Trumpets.

Atonement is a day of fasting when God commands His people not to eat or drink for the whole 24-hour period. 

The Day of Atonement is rich with Christian meaning. It looks forward to the coming time when Satan will be removed as the “god of this world,” and also to the time when all of humankind will begin to live in peace with God as Jesus Christ as the King of Kings and Lord of Lords (2 Corinthians 4:4, Revelation 20:2-3).

For more information on the Day of Atonement and how it pictures mankind’s reconciliation with God, please read “Atonement: Removal of Sin’s Cause and Reconciliation to God.”