“And he shall go out to the altar that is before Yahweh, and make atonement for it, and shall take of the blood of the bull ox, and of the blood of the goat, and put it on the horns of the altar round about.”
After the presentations of blood in the Holy of Holies, ‘the altar that is before Yahweh' was to be atoned for. The blood of both bull ox and goat was to be put on its four horns. There is divided opinion on whether this unique description refers to the golden altar of incense or the altar of burnt offerings. The phrase would have been clear at the time (see Leviticus 4:6-7; Leviticus 4:17; Exodus 30:8). In view of the fact that the purpose here is of the purification of the whole sanctuary, and the work was being done by the High Priest alone with no other present, some argue that it was the golden altar of incense. Others argue equally that it was the altar of burnt offering which in its own way was ‘before Yahweh' (compare Leviticus 1:3), for it stood in the court before the entrance to the tabernacle. But Israel then would have known what the description referred to. Some would see Leviticus 16:20 as pointing to the altar of burnt offering.