FRAMEWORKS:
Leviticus 8 :
The Ordination of Aaron and His Sons
v.1-5
The Assembly Gather
v.6-9
Aaron Washed & Clothed
v.10-12
Aaron Anointed
v.13
Aaron's Sons Presented & Dressed
v.14,15
Sin Offering Bull's blood for atonement
v.16,17
Body Burned
v.18-21
Burnt Offering Ram slaughtered
v.22-24
Second Ram's blood used
v.25-28
Wave Offering becomes a Burnt Offering for the Priests
v.29-30
Priests consecrated with blood
v.31,32
Priests eat the meat
v.33-36
Seven days of ordination
v.1-5
The Assembly Gather
v.1
The
Lord
said to Moses,
v.2
“Bring
Aaron and his sons, their garments, the anointing oil, the bull
for the sin offering, the two rams and the basket containing bread
made without yeast,
v.3
and
gather the entire assembly at the entrance to the tent of meeting.”
v.4
Moses
did as the Lord
commanded
him, and the assembly gathered at the entrance to the tent of
meeting.
v.5
Moses
said to the assembly, “This is what the Lord
has commanded
to be done.”
[Notes:
The Ordination of Aaron, a one-off historical event,
was to take place before the people who would act as witnesses
and know there is no question as to his role or authority.]
v.6-9
Aaron Washed & Clothed
v.6
Then
Moses brought Aaron and his sons forward and washed them with
water.
v.7
He
put the tunic on Aaron, tied the sash around him, clothed him
with the robe and put the ephod on him. He also fastened the ephod
with a decorative waistband, which he tied around him.
v.8
He
placed the breast-piece on him and put the Urim and Thummim in
the breast-piece.
v.9
Then
he placed the turban on Aaron's head and set the gold plate, the
sacred emblem, on the front of it, as the Lord
commanded
Moses.
[Notes:
This is to be seen as a holy operation and so even as
Israel had had to clean themselves up before originally meeting
with God [Ex 19:10,14] Aaron is ritually washed before he was
dressed in the appointed priests apparel.]
v.10-12
Aaron Anointed
v.10
Then
Moses took the anointing oil and anointed the tabernacle and everything
in it, and so consecrated them.
v.11
He
sprinkled some of the oil on the altar seven times, anointing
the altar and all its utensils and the basin with its stand, to
consecrate them.
v.12
He
poured some of the anointing oil on Aaron's head and anointed
him to consecrate him.
[Notes:
The next part was anointing him with oil and the altar
etc. that he would oversee, as a sign of the touch of the Holy
Spirit on all that went on. The oil was poured over his head –
see reference in Psa 133:2]
v.13
Aaron's Sons Presented & Dressed
v.13
Then
he brought Aaron's sons forward, put tunics on them, tied sashes
around them and fastened caps on them, as the Lord
commanded
Moses.
[Notes:
The first phase had been to pick out Aaron. The second
phase now includes his sons, also to be assisting priests.]
v.14,15
Sin Offering Bull's blood for atonement
v.14
He
then presented the bull for the sin
offering, and Aaron and his sons laid their hands on
its head.
v.15
Moses
slaughtered the bull and took some of the blood, and with his
finger he put it on all the horns of the altar to purify
the altar . He poured out the rest of the blood at the
base of the altar. So he consecrated it to make atonement
for it.
[Notes:
Having dressed them all, they now have to acknowledge
their sinfulness and unworthiness to enter the presence of the
holy God without atonement being made through the sin offering.
This is not for any particular sin, but simply in the recognition,
as Paul declared centuries later, “All have sinned and come short
of the glory of God" – Rom 3:23 and also anything they put
their hands to, i.e. the altar.]
v.16,17
Body Burned
v.16
Moses
also took all the fat around the internal organs, the long lobe
of the liver, and both kidneys and their fat, and burned it on
the altar.
v.17
But
the bull with its hide and its flesh and its intestines he burned
up outside the camp, as the Lord
commanded
Moses.
[Notes:
So with the blood having been used, the inner parts
are burned on the altar and the rest burned outside the camp.]
v.18-21
Burnt Offering Ram slaughtered
v.18
He
then presented the ram for the burnt
offering , and Aaron and his sons laid their hands on
its head.
v.19
Then
Moses slaughtered the ram and splashed the blood against the sides
of the altar.
v.20
He
cut the ram into pieces and burned the head, the pieces and the
fat.
v.21
He
washed the internal organs and the legs with water and burned
the whole ram on the altar. It was a burnt offering, a pleasing
aroma, a food offering presented to the Lord,
as the Lord
commanded
Moses.
[Notes:
The bull had dealt with their sinfulness, now a ram
is killed as a simple burnt offering, a simple sign of giving
to God and desiring to bless Him, hence the picture of aroma ascending
to Him and it being food offered to Him.]
v.22-24
Second Ram's blood used
v.22
He
then presented the other ram, the ram for the ordination,
and Aaron and his sons laid their hands on its head.
v.23
Moses
slaughtered the ram and took some of its blood and put it on the
lobe of Aaron's right ear, on the thumb of his right hand and
on the big toe of his right foot.
v.24
Moses
also brought Aaron's sons forward and put some of the blood on
the lobes of their right ears, on the thumbs of their right hands
and on the big toes of their right feet. Then he splashed blood
against the sides of the altar.
[Notes:
So the first ram has been used for its ‘purifying' blood
and as a burnt offering indication of desire to please God, and
now the second one is used, not merely to get past their sinfulness,
but now to declare them holy and fit for the role of priest. Thus
the sacrificed blood is dabbed on each of their extremities as
we've noted before.]
v.25-28
Wave Offering becomes a Burnt Offering for the Priests
v.25
After
that, he took the fat, the fat tail, all the fat around the internal
organs, the long lobe of the liver, both kidneys and their fat
and the right thigh.
v.26
And
from the basket of bread made without yeast, which was before
the Lord,
he took one thick loaf, one thick loaf with olive oil mixed in,
and one thin loaf, and he put these on the fat portions and on
the right thigh.
v.27
He
put all these in the hands of Aaron and his sons, and they waved
them before the Lord
as a
wave offering.
v.28
Then
Moses took them from their hands and burned them on the altar
on top of the burnt offering as an ordination
offering, a pleasing aroma, a food offering presented to the Lord.
[Notes:
The blood of the second ram having been used, the ‘good
portions', together with a loaf, are waved by Aaron and his sons
as if to say, “Look Lord, we're giving this to you, we want to
bless you." They are then burnt on the altar as a burnt offering
indication of desire to please God, again the picture of aroma
ascending to Him and it being food offered to Him, a sign of fellowship
and desire to bless.]
v.29-30
Priests consecrated with blood
v.29
Moses
also took the breast, which was his share of the ordination ram,
and waved it before the Lord
as a wave
offering, as the Lord
commanded
Moses.
v.30
Then
Moses took some of the anointing oil and some of the blood from
the altar and sprinkled them on Aaron and his garments and on
his sons and their garments. So he consecrated Aaron
and his garments and his sons and their garments.
[Notes:
Moses takes the breast as his portion as officiating
priest, and takes some of the blood, sprinkling it on Aaron, almost
as a seal, if you like, of him having been atoned for by the death
of this animal and consecrated for God's service.]
v.31,32
Priests eat the meat
v.31
Moses
then said to Aaron and his sons, “Cook the meat at the entrance
to the tent of meeting and eat it there with the bread from the
basket of ordination offerings, as I was commanded: ‘Aaron and
his sons are to eat it.'
v.32
Then
burn up the rest of the meat and the bread.
[Notes:
As previously seen in Exodus 29 after burning the best
portions as a burnt offering, having used the blood to consecrate
the priests before God, the final act is for the priests to sit
at the entrance of the Tent and have a meal of the remaining meat
with bread.]
v.33-36
Seven days of ordination
v.33
Do
not leave the entrance to the tent of meeting for seven days,
until the days of your ordination are completed, for your ordination
will last seven days.
v.34
What
has been done today was commanded by the Lord
to make atonement
for you.
v.35
You
must stay at the entrance to the tent of meeting day and night
for seven days and do what the Lord
requires,
so you will not die; for that is what I have been commanded.”
v.36
So
Aaron and his sons did everything the Lord
commanded
through Moses.
Notes:
As previously stated in Ex 29:36,37, atonement is to
be made every day for seven days. Thus the week is consecrated.]