atonement: Traditionally, atonement has often been explained as a “covering over.” This means that sin is covered so it no longer stands between God and people.
Some modern scholars connect the word to another Semitic root (a related word family from ancient Middle Eastern languages). That root does not appear elsewhere in the Hebrew Bible. Based on that idea, they understand the word to mean “blot out,” “erase,” or “cleanse.”
In both views, the result is the same. The effects of sin are removed. Because of this, people and even sacred objects can remain in God’s presence without being destroyed.