 A bell was tied around the goat's neck, and a man from the congregation would lead the goat far out into the wilderness. The meaning was obvious. As the sound of the bell around the neck of the scapegoat became fainter and fainter, the sins of the people were removed farther and farther away from their lives. When at last they could no longer hear the bell, it meant that their sins were completely removed. Suppose the goat had found its way back to the camp.