| This is the New King James text of the passages. |
| << Lev 7 | |
Leviticus 8-10
Listen 
A big day in Tabernacle history (Leviticus 8:1-5)
1 And the LORD spoke to Moses, saying:
2 “Take Aaron and his sons with him, and the garments, the anointing oil, a bull as the sin offering, two rams, and a basket of unleavened bread;
3 and gather all the congregation together at the door of the tabernacle of meeting.”
4 ¶ So Moses did as the LORD commanded him. And the congregation was gathered together at the door of the tabernacle of meeting.
5 And Moses said to the congregation, “This is what the LORD commanded to be done.”
The tabernacle is assembled, and now it's time for the ribbon-cutting ceremony. But this is no ordinary ribbon cutting; I mean...we're talking about the opening of God's house for business among the Hebrews. God instructs Moses to assemble the whole congregation before the Tabernacle, and the ceremony begins.
By the way, there are some things that Moses is to bring with him to the ceremony. Here's the itemized list in verse 2:
We've been anticipating this day since Exodus 28 (see notes). It was there that Moses revealed that Aaron and his sons were to be the priests, and all of these specifications regarding the dress of the priesthood were specified. The actual ceremony that we see here was specified in Exodus 29 (see notes).
Aaron and his sons are ordained (Leviticus 8:6-36)
6 ¶ Then Moses brought Aaron and his sons and washed them with water.
7 And he put the tunic on him, girded him with the sash, clothed him with the robe, and put the ephod on him; and he girded him with the intricately woven band of the ephod, and with it tied the ephod on him.
8 Then he put the breastplate on him, and he put the Urim and the Thummim in the breastplate.
9 And he put the turban on his head. Also on the turban, on its front, he put the golden plate, the holy crown, as the LORD had commanded Moses.
10 ¶ Also Moses took the anointing oil, and anointed the tabernacle and all that was in it, and consecrated them.
11 He sprinkled some of it on the altar seven times, anointed the altar and all its utensils, and the laver and its base, to consecrate them.
12 And he poured some of the anointing oil on Aaron’s head and anointed him, to consecrate him.
13 ¶ Then Moses brought Aaron’s sons and put tunics on them, girded them with sashes, and put hats on them, as the LORD had commanded Moses.
14 ¶ And he brought the bull for the sin offering. Then Aaron and his sons laid their hands on the head of the bull for the sin offering,
15 and Moses killed it. Then he took the blood, and put some on the horns of the altar all around with his finger, and purified the altar. And he poured the blood at the base of the altar, and consecrated it, to make atonement for it.
16 Then he took all the fat that was on the entrails, the fatty lobe attached to the liver, and the two kidneys with their fat, and Moses burned them on the altar.
17 But the bull, its hide, its flesh, and its offal, he burned with fire outside the camp, as the LORD had commanded Moses.
18 ¶ Then he brought the ram as the burnt offering. And Aaron and his sons laid their hands on the head of the ram,
19 and Moses killed it. Then he sprinkled the blood all around on the altar.
20 And he cut the ram into pieces; and Moses burned the head, the pieces, and the fat.
21 Then he washed the entrails and the legs in water. And Moses burned the whole ram on the altar. It was a burnt sacrifice for a sweet aroma, an offering made by fire to the LORD, as the LORD had commanded Moses.
22 ¶ And he brought the second ram, the ram of consecration. Then Aaron and his sons laid their hands on the head of the ram,
23 and Moses killed it. Also he took some of its blood and put it on the tip of Aaron’s right ear, on the thumb of his right hand, and on the big toe of his right foot.
24 Then he brought Aaron’s sons. And Moses put some of the blood on the tips of their right ears, on the thumbs of their right hands, and on the big toes of their right feet. And Moses sprinkled the blood all around on the altar.
25 Then he took the fat and the fat tail, all the fat that was on the entrails, the fatty lobe attached to the liver, the two kidneys and their fat, and the right thigh;
26 and from the basket of unleavened bread that was before the LORD he took one unleavened cake, a cake of bread anointed with oil, and one wafer, and put them on the fat and on the right thigh;
27 and he put all these in Aaron’s hands and in his sons’ hands, and waved them as a wave offering before the LORD.
28 Then Moses took them from their hands and burned them on the altar, on the burnt offering. They were consecration offerings for a sweet aroma. That was an offering made by fire to the LORD.
29 And Moses took the breast and waved it as a wave offering before the LORD. It was Moses’ part of the ram of consecration, as the LORD had commanded Moses.
30 ¶ Then Moses took some of the anointing oil and some of the blood which was on the altar, and sprinkled it on Aaron, on his garments, on his sons, and on the garments of his sons with him; and he consecrated Aaron, his garments, his sons, and the garments of his sons with him.
31 ¶ And Moses said to Aaron and his sons, “Boil the flesh at the door of the tabernacle of meeting, and eat it there with the bread that is in the basket of consecration offerings, as I commanded, saying, ‘Aaron and his sons shall eat it.’
32 What remains of the flesh and of the bread you shall burn with fire.
33 And you shall not go outside the door of the tabernacle of meeting for seven days, until the days of your consecration are ended. For seven days he shall consecrate you.
34 As he has done this day, so the LORD has commanded to do, to make atonement for you.
35 Therefore you shall stay at the door of the tabernacle of meeting day and night for seven days, and keep the charge of the LORD, so that you may not die; for so I have been commanded.”
36 So Aaron and his sons did all the things that the LORD had commanded by the hand of Moses.
First they put that big ol' laver to use to get Aaron and his sons ceremonially washed up; then they are dressed up for the priesthood. This initial preparation for induction into the priesthood for each of them consists of three steps (verses 6-13): washing, clothing and anointing.
The next step consists of a series of three sacrifices on behalf of the priesthood, a bullock and two rams.
This is an eight-day process. Notice in each sacrificial instance here that Aaron and his sons put their hands upon the animals' heads as they are being sacrificed. Moses presides over the whole process. I find verses 23-24 interesting. Look at where the blood of the second ram is placed - on the priests' right ear, right thumb and right big toe. The sacrifice is boiled and eaten with unleavened bread. As mentioned earlier, the priests served bare footed.
Incidentally, you will notice the Urim and the Thummim (see notes) in verse 8. The necessity for these two items to be with the high priest is found in Exodus 28:30 (see notes), "And you shall put in the breastplate of judgment the Urim and the Thummim, and they shall be over Aaron’s heart when he goes in before the LORD. So Aaron shall bear the judgment of the children of Israel over his heart before the LORD continually." We're not sure what these two items looked like, and they are only mentioned six other times in the Old Testament. They obviously had much to do with knowing God's will. These items were placed into the breastplate of the High Priest beginning with Aaron. Those other mentions of the Urim and the Thummim are found in: Numbers 27:21 (see notes), Deuteronomy 33:8 (see notes), I Samuel 28:6 (see notes), Ezra 2:63 (see notes) and Nehemiah 7:65 (see notes). Upon the return to the land after the exile, we see in Ezra and Nehemiah that these two items were considered absolutely essential for the complete restoration of worship as it had been originally under Aaron. This worship was never resumed...to this day. In addition, the Ark of the Covenant (in the Most Holy Place i.e. Holy of Holies) was not restored back to the Temple in Jerusalem following Israel's return to the land. Hence, though they returned to Jerusalem in 535 B.C. (the fall in Jerusalem was consummated in 586 B.C.), worship was never restored to its Aaronic style.
We see in verse 33 that the same offerings were repeated daily for seven days while Aaron and his sons remained in the court of the Tabernacle.
Aaron makes his first offerings as High Priest (Leviticus 9)
1 It came to pass on the eighth day that Moses called Aaron and his sons and the elders of Israel.
2 And he said to Aaron, “Take for yourself a young bull as a sin offering and a ram as a burnt offering, without blemish, and offer them before the LORD.
3 And to the children of Israel you shall speak, saying, “Take a kid of the goats as a sin offering, and a calf and a lamb, both of the first year, without blemish, as a burnt offering,
4 also a bull and a ram as peace offerings, to sacrifice before the LORD, and a grain offering mixed with oil; for today the LORD will appear to you.’ ”
5 ¶ So they brought what Moses commanded before the tabernacle of meeting. And all the congregation drew near and stood before the LORD.
6 Then Moses said, “This is the thing which the LORD commanded you to do, and the glory of the LORD will appear to you.”
7 And Moses said to Aaron, “Go to the altar, offer your sin offering and your burnt offering, and make atonement for yourself and for the people. Offer the offering of the people, and make atonement for them, as the LORD commanded.”
8 ¶ Aaron therefore went to the altar and killed the calf of the sin offering, which was for himself.
9 Then the sons of Aaron brought the blood to him. And he dipped his finger in the blood, put it on the horns of the altar, and poured the blood at the base of the altar.
10 But the fat, the kidneys, and the fatty lobe from the liver of the sin offering he burned on the altar, as the LORD had commanded Moses.
11 The flesh and the hide he burned with fire outside the camp.
12 ¶ And he killed the burnt offering; and Aaron’s sons presented to him the blood, which he sprinkled all around on the altar.
13 Then they presented the burnt offering to him, with its pieces and head, and he burned them on the altar.
14 And he washed the entrails and the legs, and burned them with the burnt offering on the altar.
15 ¶ Then he brought the people’s offering, and took the goat, which was the sin offering for the people, and killed it and offered it for sin, like the first one.
16 And he brought the burnt offering and offered it according to the prescribed manner.
17 Then he brought the grain offering, took a handful of it, and burned it on the altar, besides the burnt sacrifice of the morning.
18 ¶ He also killed the bull and the ram as sacrifices of peace offerings, which were for the people. And Aaron’s sons presented to him the blood, which he sprinkled all around on the altar,
19 and the fat from the bull and the ram—the fatty tail, what covers the entrails and the kidneys, and the fatty lobe attached to the liver;
20 and they put the fat on the breasts. Then he burned the fat on the altar;
21 but the breasts and the right thigh Aaron waved as a wave offering before the LORD, as Moses had commanded.
22 ¶ Then Aaron lifted his hand toward the people, blessed them, and came down from offering the sin offering, the burnt offering, and peace offerings.
23 And Moses and Aaron went into the tabernacle of meeting, and came out and blessed the people. Then the glory of the LORD appeared to all the people,
24 and fire came out from before the LORD and consumed the burnt offering and the fat on the altar. When all the people saw it, they shouted and fell on their faces.
Aaron and his sons have been in seclusion inside the tabernacle for seven days now. That began in chapter 8 (see above). They emerge on day eight for the big public event before all of Israel.
This is Aaron's first sacrifice as High Priest; it's a sin offering for himself. It's rather amusing that the first sacrifice of Aaron's career turns out to be a calf. Hey! Wasn't it a golden calf that Aaron claimed had jumped out of the fire when Moses was up on the mountain back in Exodus 32 (see notes)? How ironic, don't you agree? We see Aaron and his sons making the sacrifices in accordance with the instructions that had been given in Leviticus 1-7 (see notes). Aaron first offers a sin offering and a burnt offering for himself in verses 8-14. Then Aaron offers a sin, a burnt, a grain, and a peace offering for the people in verses 15-18 - symbolizing atonement, dedication, sustenance, and communion. All of these were in compliance with the sacrifices specified in Leviticus 1-7 (see notes).
At the conclusion of this day's sacrificing, the whole operation is validated by the Lord himself in verse 24, "and fire came out from before the LORD and consumed the burnt offering and the fat on the altar. When all the people saw it, they shouted and fell on their faces." Life in Israel with the Tabernacle has begun.
What was so special about the fire? (Leviticus 10)
1 Then Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron, each took his censer and put fire in it, put incense on it, and offered profane fire before the LORD, which He had not commanded them.
2 So fire went out from the LORD and devoured them, and they died before the LORD.
3 And Moses said to Aaron, “This is what the LORD spoke, saying:
‘By those who come near Me
I must be regarded as holy;
And before all the people
I must be glorified.’ ” So Aaron held his peace.
4 ¶ Then Moses called Mishael and Elzaphan, the sons of Uzziel the uncle of Aaron, and said to them, “Come near, carry your brethren from before the sanctuary out of the camp.”
5 So they went near and carried them by their tunics out of the camp, as Moses had said.
6 ¶ And Moses said to Aaron, and to Eleazar and Ithamar, his sons, “Do not uncover your heads nor tear your clothes, lest you die, and wrath come upon all the people. But let your brethren, the whole house of Israel, bewail the burning which the LORD has kindled.
7 You shall not go out from the door of the tabernacle of meeting, lest you die, for the anointing oil of the LORD is upon you.” And they did according to the word of Moses.
8 ¶ Then the LORD spoke to Aaron, saying:
9 “Do not drink wine or intoxicating drink, you, nor your sons with you, when you go into the tabernacle of meeting, lest you die. It shall be a statute forever throughout your generations,
10 that you may distinguish between holy and unholy, and between unclean and clean,
11 and that you may teach the children of Israel all the statutes which the LORD has spoken to them by the hand of Moses.”
12 ¶ And Moses spoke to Aaron, and to Eleazar and Ithamar, his sons who were left: “Take the grain offering that remains of the offerings made by fire to the LORD, and eat it without leaven beside the altar; for it is most holy.
13 You shall eat it in a holy place, because it is your due and your sons’ due, of the sacrifices made by fire to the LORD; for so I have been commanded.
14 The breast of the wave offering and the thigh of the heave offering you shall eat in a clean place, you, your sons, and your daughters with you; for they are your due and your sons’ due, which are given from the sacrifices of peace offerings of the children of Israel.
15 The thigh of the heave offering and the breast of the wave offering they shall bring with the offerings of fat made by fire, to offer as a wave offering before the LORD. And it shall be yours and your sons’ with you, by a statute forever, as the LORD has commanded.”
16 ¶ Then Moses made careful inquiry about the goat of the sin offering, and there it was—burned up. And he was angry with Eleazar and Ithamar, the sons of Aaron who were left, saying,
17 “Why have you not eaten the sin offering in a holy place, since it is most holy, and God has given it to you to bear the guilt of the congregation, to make atonement for them before the LORD?
18 See! Its blood was not brought inside the holy place; indeed you should have eaten it in a holy place, as I commanded.”
19 ¶ And Aaron said to Moses, “Look, this day they have offered their sin offering and their burnt offering before the LORD, and such things have befallen me! If I had eaten the sin offering today, would it have been accepted in the sight of the LORD?”
20 So when Moses heard that, he was content.
Verse 1 begins with a Hebrew conjunction, "then." This event appears to have taken place on the same day (day 8) when they emerged from the tabernacle to complete the eight-day ritual, the portion of the ritual which was done in the sight of all of the people of Israel. The Hebrew text flows from chapter 9, right on into chapter 10.
For some vague reason involving fire, Aaron loses his two oldest sons here in this inaugural tabernacle ceremony. Well...that's not entirely accurate; verse 2 says, "So fire went out from the LORD and devoured them, and they died before the LORD." That doesn't really sound like an accident! So, what was the deal with the fire? Let me venture a conjecture here. Recall with me Leviticus 6:13 (see notes), " A fire shall always be burning on the altar; it shall never go out." In addition, we saw in Leviticus 9:24 (see above) that God himself sent fire to consume the burnt offering. So, could it be that this fire at the Brazen altar was a continuation of the fire that God started in 9:24, and that no other fire for Tabernacle purposes would do? When Aaron's boys, Nadab and Abihu, fail to take their Tabernacle responsibilities as seriously as they should by using "strange" fire, verse 2 says, "So fire went out from the LORD and devoured them, and they died before the LORD." Well, that settles that issue; in the future we'll use only consecrated fire. One thing is clear: The boys did not follow specifications in this ritual. In public worship, only what is prescribed is legitimate; what is not, is sacrilege.
We only find two occasion when God spoke directly to Aaron and not through Moses, here in verse 8 and Numbers 18:1 (see notes). Why do you suppose an additional stipulation was given by the Lord unto Aaron in verse 9? Leviticus 10:9 says, "Do not drink wine or intoxicating drink, you, nor your sons with you, when you go into the tabernacle of meeting, lest you die. It shall be a statute forever throughout your generations." Could it be that whatever Aaron's sons had done was done while they were drunk? We don't know, but it is interesting that the stipulation of verse 9 is given in this context. Verse 10 goes on with a general differentiation, "that you may distinguish between holy and unholy, and between unclean and clean." That, again, could be a reference to the differentiation between God's supernatural fire and man-made fire.
"No mourning the death of your sons," Aaron is told by Moses. Aaron and his two remaining sons are to continue on with the sacrifices that were begun that day. They are commanded to go ahead and eat the offerings on behalf of the people according to the procedures established in Leviticus 1-7 (see notes). But they didn't do it; they wouldn't eat up as prescribed. When Moses angrily insists on an explanation, Aaron replies in verse 19 by saying that having lost his two sons kinda took away their appetites. Moses understands.
Now...here's an interesting aside to the events of chapter 10. Notice the specific instructions given to Aaron, Eleazar and Ithamar after the untimely deaths of their immediate family members in verse 6, "And Moses said to Aaron, and to Eleazar and Ithamar, his sons, 'Do not uncover your heads nor tear your clothes, lest you die, and wrath come upon all the people. But let your brethren, the whole house of Israel, bewail the burning which the LORD has kindled.'" There's another similar statement concerning the high priest in Leviticus 21:10 (see notes), "He who is the high priest among his brethren, on whose head the anointing oil was poured and who is consecrated to wear the garments, shall not uncover his head nor tear his clothes." While the penalty for doing such is not specified in Leviticus 21:10, it is not unreasonable to assume that the consequence remains that stated in Leviticus 10:6, "...lest you die, and wrath come upon all the people." Now...let's roll the clock forward nearly 1,500 years to the appearance of Jesus before Caiaphas in Mark 14 (see notes):
61 But He kept silent and answered nothing. Again the high priest asked Him, saying to Him, "Are You the Christ, the Son of the Blessed?"
62 Jesus said, "I am. And you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Power, and coming with the clouds of heaven."
63 Then the high priest tore his clothes and said, "What further need do we have of witnesses?
64 You have heard the blasphemy! What do you think?" And they all condemned Him to be deserving of death.
Based upon these warnings in Leviticus, I first heard it suggested back in 1970 by Dr. Gordon Carpenter that Caiaphas formally refused the immediate establishment of the Davidic Kingdom and effectively ended the Aaronic priesthood with this simple act of defiance in Mark 14:63. Jesus was a priest after the order of Melchizedek, a priesthood that existed before Aaron and continues eternally through Jesus Christ. (Click here to read more details about Melchizedek.) It certainly seems plausible that Mark 14:63 recounts more than just a simple act of frustration by Caiaphas; it may have very well been the big deal breaker for the Aaronic priesthood that day.