Leviticus 8
Leviticus • Sermon • Submitted
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· 11 viewsThis shows the serious nature of ministry and the need for holiness. Just as the High Priest/Priests were consecrated for service so Christ is our great High Priest set apart to mediate for us with God.
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Introduction
Introduction
The structure of this chapter is neatly done up in seven sections, each ending with the refrain “as the Lord commanded” signifying the obedience of Moses and Aaron. It emphasizes the necessity of obedience to the Lord if one hopes to truly worship Him.
This also folds nicely into three headings: the gathering, 1-4; the prepping, 5-13; the consecrating, 14-36.
This appears to me to be a covenant meal with the congregation being the witnesses. The offerings are those which have already been discussed in chapters 1-7.
I. The Gathering,
This appears to me to be a covenant meal with the congregation being the witnesses. The offerings are those which have already been discussed in chapters 1-7.
This chapter is the fulfillment account of the ordination legislation recorded in , and is directly connected to the command to ordain the tabernacle and priesthood in as well as the partial record of its fulfillment in –38.
1 Biblical Studies Press. (2005). The NET Bible First Edition; Bible. English. NET Bible.; The NET Bible. Biblical Studies Press.
If you read , you see the intended result of this consecration offering is threefold: God will dwell with the people, God will be their God, they will know I am the Lord their God. that statement is mirrored again in v.46. Then in after the tabernacle was completed and its vessels consecrated the Glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle.
So we come with that in mind to this passage and this section,
So first of all,
I. The Gathering,
Moses was to gather the assembly at the door of the tent of meeting. They were to come to the place where God’s presence was. They were in a sense gathering at God’s house. He was the one inviting them to come to this covenant meal (remember that we likened this earlier to a wedding celebration where the convenantal vows were recited before a bevy of witnesses and then a meal ate in ratification of that covenant).
note too that they were to gather the assembly at the door of the tent of meeting. They were to come to the place where God’s presence was. They were in a sense gathering at God’s house. He was the one inviting them to come to this covenant meal (remember that we likened this earlier to a wedding celebration where the convenantal vows were recited before a bevy of witnesses and then a meal ate in ratification of that covenant).
The fact that this was a meeting whereby there is a change in relationship shows us there are necessary elements of that ritual of change as in a wedding:vows, exchange of rings etc.
This is a rite of purification/consecration that puts Aaron and his sons in a renewed relationship with the Lord whereby they are able to act as holy mediators between God and the people. They were then also models of purity/holiness and wore clothing that was holy and set them apart for that ministry.
Noteworthy too is that as long as they had the tabernacle whenever they were to come before God in anything significant they always came to His house.
This is what in the NT I think Jesus is talking about in his parables of the wedding where those who were called didn’t come and then when he called the others they came and filled the house, though some were interlopers/fakes who were not clothed in wedding clothes.
so then we have the gathering of the people to be consecrated (1), and the nation as a whole (3)
v.2 we have the first command
a qal/impv -you take followed by a list of persons and items to take
then in v.3 the second imperative, Hiphil/impv- cause to gather the assembly at the door of the tent of meeting.
By these two commands God gives responsibility to Moses to ensure that the people are called and gathered and all that is necessary is collected in order to carry out the anointing of Aaron and his sons. thereby facilitating the covenant meal.
v.4
Moses did what he was commanded and the assembly was gathered at the door of the tent of meeting.
This refrain that Moses did as the Lord commanded Moses frames the entire chapter. It speaks of the thought that Moses and Aaron and his sons were models of obedience to the commands of the Lord. 7x this refrain is used at the end of each section indicating that attention to obedience v.4,9, 13, 17, 21, 29, 36. The last one makes the statement that Aaron and his sons did all the words which the Lord commanded Moses. Whereas the others were Moses doing what the Lord commanded. Their worship was to be an act of obedience or in obedience. God will not accept worship without obedience. Nadab and Abihu are an example as is King Saul when he offers sacrifice wrongly, .
AS I pointed out earlier, This refrain that Moses did as the Lord commanded Moses frames the entire chapter. It speaks of the thought that Moses and Aaron and his sons were models of obedience to the commands of the Lord. 7x this refrain is used at the end of each section indicating that attention to obedience v.4,9, 13, 17, 21, 29, 36. The last one makes the statement that Aaron and his sons did all the words which the Lord commanded Moses. Whereas the others were Moses doing what the Lord commanded. Their worship was to be an act of obedience or in obedience. God will not accept worship without obedience. Nadab and Abihu are an example as is King Saul when he offers sacrifice wrongly, .
So we have all the elements and persons gathered in order to observe the ritual purity that would place Aaron and his sons, and all the vessels, and tabernacle in a ready position of holiness to operate as Priests of God and to mediate with men. All is in place.
II. The prepping, 5-13
The purpose of this ritual was to make Aaron and his sons holy so they could officiate at the altar.
I’m going to divide this into 3 sections, washing, clothing, anointing
a few notes:
-God does the choosing, implied earlier when He chose both Moses and Aaron before the exodus
-Moses does the washing and clothing of Aaron and his sons. They do not do it themselves
A. Washing of the person is the first step for ritual holiness.
B. The second step was being clothed with the appropriate clothing that signified them as set apart for this service. Much as we do today with priests wearing robes, collar, etc. Or those in mourning wearing black. It was also a symbol to the people that these were priests and were due appropriate honor toward those who have this responsibility.
The clothing of the high priest with its gold plated on the turban set him apart from all the priests as the leader. The colors and and crown set him off as a royal official. IN this case the representative of the King (God) along with His royal attendants. The king dwelling amid his people in his holy palace.
the clothing elements represent the righteousness of Christ, the robe is the righteousness as we have seen before. The ephod an apron like garment. The breastpiece contained the names of the tribes of Israel so Aaron acts as the representative of the nation as Christ is our representative. The Urim and Thummim were the means for discerning the will of God, so Aaron was being giving that ability, then the turban and holy diadem were placed on his head indicating that Aaron was the acceptable representative of the people before God. .
-the clothing elements represent the righteousness of Christ, the robe is the righteousness as we have seen before. The ephod an apron like garment. The breastpiece contained the names of the tribes of Israel so Aaron acts as the representative of the nation as Christ is our representative. The Urim and Thummim were the means for discerning the will of God, so Aaron was being giving that ability, then the turban and holy diadem were placed on his head indicating that Aaron was the acceptable representative of the people before God. .
This entire section pictures Christ for the believer. The believer is clothed in the righteousness of Christ. We put on Christ, or rather God puts Him on us, we do not clothe ourselves. He bears the names of His people before the Lord, He is our representative head bringing us before the Father.The believer then is able to go before the Lord.
C. The Anointing
The next item is the anointing oil, a type of Holy Spirit. We are clothed with the righteousness of Christ, and indwelt by the Holy Spirit, that consecrates us for fellowship with the Father and empowers us to mediate between the lost and God.
v.13 is a summary statement that the same thing was done for the sons of Aaron making them suitable for service in the presence of God. Clothed in righteousness, anointed with the holy oil/Holy Spirit able to bear the gospel to the people through mediation of the sacrifices.
Now everything is in place to offer the three sacrifices of ordination.
This I think corresponds to Paul’s statement in about the washing of the water by the word. There you will remember that Paul had told them of their need to be filled with the Spirit, which surely corresponds to the anointing here, and then embarks on teaching them what that looks like in the life of a believer. in the context of marriage husbands are to love their wives like Christ loved the church. When you read that passage especially vss. 26,27 with this chapter in mind you see the correlation readily. In other words, Paul is saying that in the same way the priest had to be consecrated, through washing of regeneration, clothed with righteous robes (Christ) and anointed with oil (Holy Spirit) in order to function as priests and come to the altar so husbands are to be the same (Holy in Christ) if they are to function in a pleasing way to the Lord. Paul points out there he was not really speaking about marriage, but the relationship between Christ and the Church. That is because this is what he is saying. The need for those who are truly His to be consecrated/sanctified by the Holy Spirit, clothed in the righteousness of Christ, and washed by the word in regeneration in order for us to live a holy Christian life.
Finally, we come to the 3 sacrifices which constitutes the consecration of the priests.
III. The consecration, v.14-36
I’m not going to deal with these in detail because we have already looked at them. But we do need to note the differences and draw the meaning out of them for us today.
A. The sin offering, v.14-17
cf for the sin offering for the priests. In that passage Aaron took the blood into the holy place placing it on the incense altar. He was doing that for the sins of the people as their representative. IN this case , it is Moses instead of Aaron applying the blood, for this is on behalf of Aaron and the priests. They are being treated as the common person.
This was the sin offering that atoned for their sin and made the altar and everything in it pure.
v.15 the blood was placed on the altar in order to purify it, thus decontaminating it from sin making atonement for it cleansing it from impurity.
“he slew it” the referent of ‘he’ is probably Aaron. as well as in v.19, 23,
v.17
the sacrifice burned outside the camp according to the Lord’s command,
See , ; 23[HT].
The point here is that even the priests, the High Priest included needed to have his sin atoned for.
B. The Burnt offering, v.18-21
The burnt offering atoned for their general sin and showed they knew the Lord was worthy of praise.
This was designated a pleasing aroma to the Lord. A food offering that meant now the priests/offerer was accepted by the Lord.
By the way, is this not what Paul means when he points out in “he has made us accepted in the beloved,”?
C. The ordination offering, v.22-28
The ordination offering was a type of fellowship offering. After the purification from sin of all the elements, the atoning of sin for the priests then they could sit down for fellowship meal but only after sin had been atoned for. AS noted before this also confirmed the covenant. This was a covenantal promise to Aaron and his sons, cf. ; .
v.22
The ram of consecration/ordination the Hebrew word literally means to fill” and is an abbreviated form of the expression “to fill the hands” that expression is limited to the appointment of priests . It meant to consecrate to divine service, ; required purity
The significance of this is that the LXX uses the word teleioun (perfect or complete) here. This word is the same word used in Jesus high priestly prayer in , and by the writer of Hebrews to refer to Jesus the high Priest in ; .
v.23, 24 As the blood was applied to the extremities of the altar, so it is applied to the extremities of Aaron and his sons making them holy.
“the ear, because the priest was always to hearken to the word and commandment of God; the hand, because he was to discharge the priestly functions properly; and the foot, because he was to walk correctly in the sanctuary. Through this manipulation the three organs employed in the priestly service were placed, by means of their tips, en rapport with the sacrificial blood”1
1 Keil, C. F., & Delitzsch, F. (1996). Commentary on the Old Testament (Vol. 1, p. 547). Peabody, MA: Hendrickson.
This ritual indicates the priest is entirely dedicated to the service to the Lord.
In vss. 25-28 the offering is a pleasing aroma, thus acceptable to Him.
v.29 a share of the offering is given to Moses has his portion which would be the same if the priest was acting on behalf of a common person.
v.30-36
Moses did one last act of consecration by sprinkling Aaron and his sons and their garments with blood and oil. The oil was a symbol of the Holy Spirit whereby the priests were endowed with the power of divine life. Then Aaron and his sons had to cook their portion of the offering and eat it and the bread at the entrance to the tent. Holy food was to be eaten by holy people in a holy place. Leftovers were to be burned. this was a seven day process.
These three features of the ordination offering: the anointing of the bodily extremities, the offering of the wave offering, and the sprinkling of Aaron and sons and their garments with blood shows this is distinct from all other offerings.
“God’s grace is particularly evident in Aaron’s appointment to the high priesthood, for the very one who had been the chief sinner () now became the chief mediator for the people of God. Servants of God in all ages are in desperate need of the cleansing provided by God to be available and useful in his service. Believer-priests can still serve God today provided they be cleansed by means of the Holy Spirit and the Word (; ; ; ). The contrast between the sinful lives of the high priests and the life and work of the Great High Priest, Jesus Christ, to which these priests pointed, was not lost to the writer of the Hebrews ().”1
1 Rooker, M. F. (2000). Leviticus (Vol. 3A, p. 149). Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers.
Summary:
you have a Holy God and an unholy sinful people. How can the two dwell together? God chooses out a select group and makes them holy, consecrating or setting them apart and dressing them up in front of all the people. This holy group acts as a buffer between them and God.
Like the queen of England has her guard and officers we see whenever she goes out in public. They are dressed in royal garb. They are their to protect the queen. The priests are between God and the people to protect the people.
So then God’s holiness and this process destroys sin impurity like light destroys darkness.
So this makes clear the people need holy people to act as their representatives before the Lord., lest they die. And by providing them as mediators He assures them a means to come before him and dwell with Him without dying. It shows that God has a heart, compassion for His people. Ultimately, this representative is Jesus Christ. God’s own son, who acts as both our mediator, and our sacrifice enabling us to come into covenant fellowship with God through faith. Thus saving us.; ; ; ).
Also, this ceremony showed the priests the serious nature of their ministry. It helps them see they are not holy of themselves. They, like the people, need a sacrifice, lest they be filled with pride. It also shows the distinction between them and Jesus Christ as our high priest. He makes the perfect atoning sacrifice
This makes possible the worship system inaugurated in chapter 9.
Thank God that we can come boldly into the throne room of God in worship because of what Christ has done for us.