ויקרא, פרק ט״ז, פסוק י״ט

At the height of the Yom Kippur service, the High Priest approaches the inner golden altar. During the rest of the year, this altar is dedicated exclusively to the burning of incense, but on this day, it receives sprinkled blood as part of a rare and unique atonement process to purify the sanctuary and its holy objects [ביאור שטיינזלץ, רלב״ג]. The sprinkling must be performed on a very specific part of the altar. The primary approach among commentators is that the blood is not applied to the walls, but directly onto its roof, or top surface [רש״י, שפתי חכמים, גור אריה]. Unlike the outer altar, which is divided into upper and lower sections, the inner golden altar has no such division, meaning the blood is applied directly to its main body [רלב״ג].

To ensure the blood touches the altar itself and not the ashes or coals resting upon it [מלבי״ם, אילת השחר], the High Priest sweeps the coals aside to expose the bare gold before sprinkling [תורה תמימה, צפנת פענח]. He uses a mixture of the bull's blood and the goat's blood, dipping his finger anew for each individual sprinkle [מלבי״ם]. The process begins at the southeastern corner, exactly where he previously finished applying blood to the altar's horns [רלב״ג, רש״ר הירש]. He performs the sprinkling with a whipping motion, striking downward like a branch, without aiming precisely upward or downward [פרדס יוסף].

This act achieves a dual purpose: purification and sanctification. The primary approach among commentators views this as a division of time, bringing purification from the past and sanctification for the future [רש״י, ביאור יש״ר]. The inner altar becomes indirectly defiled whenever people enter the sanctuary in a state of impurity [רד״צ הופמן], and the sprinkled blood cleanses it from these absorbed impurities [משכיל לדוד]. Alternatively, the concept of purification here may not refer to ritual purity, but rather to a physical clearing and revealing, much like a clear sky. This suggests that the act of purification is the very clearing of the coals to reveal the altar's golden surface [תורה תמימה].

Regarding the sanctification for the future, commentators offer different perspectives. Some explain that this future-oriented sanctification serves as a warning to the Israelites, urging them to be careful not to defile the sanctuary again [מזרחי, שפתי חכמים]. Others argue that the moment the altar became defiled, its original sanctity departed entirely. Therefore, it must be completely re-sanctified, just as it was during its initial consecration, ensuring that all future offerings placed upon it will be willingly accepted by God [משכיל לדוד, מלבי״ם].

Beyond the physical procedure, a profound spiritual idea is embedded in these actions. The sequence itself teaches that purity is a necessary prerequisite that leads to holiness [תורה תמימה]. Furthermore, placing blood on the altar's horns symbolizes the fortification of moral peaks, while the seven sprinkles on its roof represent planting God's holiness directly into practical, earthly life [רש״ר הירש]. Ultimately, Yom Kippur operates on two parallel levels: it repairs the spiritual flaws created in the higher worlds by the sins of the Israelites, while simultaneously purifying the lower, physical reality [שפתי כהן].