Exodus 29: 1 – 45
Get Right or be left
29 “And this is what you shall do to them to hallow them for ministering to Me as priests: Take one young bull and two rams without blemish, 2 and unleavened bread, unleavened cakes mixed with oil, and unleavened wafers anointed with oil (you shall make them of wheat flour). 3 You shall put them in one basket and bring them in the basket, with the bull and the two rams. 4 “And Aaron and his sons you shall bring to the door of the tabernacle of meeting, and you shall wash them with water. 5 Then you shall take the garments, put the tunic on Aaron, and the robe of the ephod, the ephod, and the breastplate, and gird him with the intricately woven band of the ephod. 6 You shall put the turban on his head, and put the holy crown on the turban. 7 And you shall take the anointing oil, pour it on his head, and anoint him. 8 Then you shall bring his sons and put tunics on them. 9 And you shall gird them with sashes, Aaron and his sons, and put the hats on them. The priesthood shall be theirs for a perpetual statute. So you shall consecrate Aaron and his sons. 10 “You shall also have the bull brought before the tabernacle of meeting, and Aaron and his sons shall put their hands on the head of the bull. 11 Then you shall kill the bull before the LORD, by the door of the tabernacle of meeting. 12 You shall take some of the blood of the bull and put it on the horns of the altar with your finger, and pour all the blood beside the base of the altar. 13 And you shall take all the fat that covers the entrails, the fatty lobe attached to the liver, and the two kidneys and the fat that is on them, and burn them on the altar. 14 But the flesh of the bull, with its skin and its offal, you shall burn with fire outside the camp. It is a sin offering. 15 “You shall also take one ram, and Aaron and his sons shall put their hands on the head of the ram; 16 and you shall kill the ram, and you shall take its blood and sprinkle it all around on the altar. 17 Then you shall cut the ram in pieces, wash its entrails and its legs, and put them with its pieces and with its head. 18 And you shall burn the whole ram on the altar. It is a burnt offering to the LORD; it is a sweet aroma, an offering made by fire to the LORD. 19 “You shall also take the other ram, and Aaron and his sons shall put their hands on the head of the ram. 20 Then you shall kill the ram, and take some of its blood and put it on the tip of the right ear of Aaron and on the tip of the right ear of his sons, on the thumb of their right hand and on the big toe of their right foot, and sprinkle the blood all around on the altar. 21 And you shall take some of the blood that is on the altar, and some of the anointing oil, and sprinkle it on Aaron and on his garments, on his sons and on the garments of his sons with him; and he and his garments shall be hallowed, and his sons and his sons’ garments with him. 22 “Also you shall take the fat of the ram, the fat tail, the fat that covers the entrails, the fatty lobe attached to the liver, the two kidneys and the fat on them, the right thigh (for it is a ram of consecration), 23 one loaf of bread, one cake made with oil, and one wafer from the basket of the unleavened bread that is before the LORD; 24 and you shall put all these in the hands of Aaron and in the hands of his sons, and you shall wave them as a wave offering before the LORD. 25 You shall receive them back from their hands and burn them on the altar as a burnt offering, as a sweet aroma before the LORD. It is an offering made by fire to the LORD. 26 “Then you shall take the breast of the ram of Aaron’s consecration and wave it as a wave offering before the LORD; and it shall be your portion. 27 And from the ram of the consecration you shall consecrate the breast of the wave offering which is waved, and the thigh of the heave offering which is raised, of that which is for Aaron and of that which is for his sons. 28 It shall be from the children of Israel for Aaron and his sons by a statute forever. For it is a heave offering; it shall be a heave offering from the children of Israel from the sacrifices of their peace offerings, that is, their heave offering to the LORD. 29 “And the holy garments of Aaron shall be his sons’ after him, to be anointed in them and to be consecrated in them. 30 That son who becomes priest in his place shall put them on for seven days, when he enters the tabernacle of meeting to minister in the holy place. 31 “And you shall take the ram of the consecration and boil its flesh in the holy place. 32 Then Aaron and his sons shall eat the flesh of the ram, and the bread that is in the basket, by the door of the tabernacle of meeting. 33 They shall eat those things with which the atonement was made, to consecrate and to sanctify them; but an outsider shall not eat them, because they are holy. 34 And if any of the flesh of the consecration offerings, or of the bread, remains until the morning, then you shall burn the remainder with fire. It shall not be eaten, because it is holy. 35 “Thus you shall do to Aaron and his sons, according to all that I have commanded you. Seven days you shall consecrate them. 36 And you shall offer a bull every day as a sin offering for atonement. You shall cleanse the altar when you make atonement for it, and you shall anoint it to sanctify it. 37 Seven days you shall make atonement for the altar and sanctify it. And the altar shall be most holy. Whatever touches the altar must be holy. 38 “Now this is what you shall offer on the altar: two lambs of the first year, day by day continually. 39 One lamb you shall offer in the morning, and the other lamb you shall offer at twilight. 40 With the one lamb shall be one-tenth of an ephah of flour mixed with one-fourth of a hin of pressed oil, and one-fourth of a hin of wine as a drink offering. 41 And the other lamb you shall offer at twilight; and you shall offer with it the grain offering and the drink offering, as in the morning, for a sweet aroma, an offering made by fire to the LORD. 42 This shall be a continual burnt offering throughout your generations at the door of the tabernacle of meeting before the LORD, where I will meet you to speak with you. 43 And there I will meet with the children of Israel, and the tabernacle shall be sanctified by My glory. 44 So I will consecrate the tabernacle of meeting and the altar. I will also consecrate both Aaron and his sons to minister to Me as priests. 45 I will dwell among the children of Israel and will be their God. 46 And they shall know that I am the LORD their God, who brought them up out of the land of Egypt, that I may dwell among them. I am the LORD their God.
Today’s title is ‘Get right or be left’. Can you describe where I am going with this point? For a hint, I am not talking about politics. My purpose is to proclaim The Lord Jesus Christ. I will reveal what this statement means before we end our study.
Something as simple as ‘left’ and ‘right’ may not seem significant but in the bible we learn the various important uses of these words.
The word ‘left’ can mean;
. That which remains [Genesis 7: 23]
. A direction [Genesis 13: 9]
. To leave something with someone. [Genesis 39: 6]
. The side of a person [Leviticus 14:16]
. A representation [Isaiah 1:8]
. To leave [Matthew 2:12]
Likewise, the word "right" can mean;
. That which is correct [Genesis 24:48]
. Also the side of a person [Psalm 16:8]
. Authority [Psalm 50:16]
. That which is proper [Matthew 20:4]
I want to also quickly list for you some other important scriptures that point out the significant use of ‘right’ or ‘left’.
1. The blessing of the right hand was greater than using the left
Genesis 48, “17 Now when Joseph saw that his father laid his right hand on the head of Ephraim, it displeased him; so he took hold of his father’s hand to remove it from Ephraim’s head to Manasseh’s head. 18 And Joseph said to his father, “Not so, my father, for this one is the firstborn; put your right hand on his head.”19 But his father refused and said, “I know, my son, I know. He also shall become a people, and he also shall be great; but truly his younger brother shall be greater than he, and his descendants shall become a multitude of nations.”
2. On the Day of Judgment those who are destined for ruin is put on the left side of our Lord Jesus and for those who will receive eternal life with Him are placed on His right side.
Matthew 25: 33, “31 “When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the holy angels with Him, then He will sit on the throne of His glory. 32 All the nations will be gathered before Him, and He will separate them one from another, as a shepherd divides his sheep from the goats. 33 And He will set the sheep on His right hand, but the goats on the left. 34 Then the King will say to those on His right hand, ‘Come, you blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: 35 for I was hungry and you gave Me food; I was thirsty and you gave Me drink; I was a stranger and you took Me in; 36 I was naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you visited Me; I was in prison and you came to Me.’37 “Then the righteous will answer Him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry and feed You, or thirsty and give You drink? 38 When did we see You a stranger and take You in, or naked and clothe You? 39 Or when did we see You sick, or in prison, and come to You?’ 40 And the King will answer and say to them, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me.’ 41 “Then He will also say to those on the left hand, ‘Depart from Me, you cursed, into the everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels: 42 for I was hungry and you gave Me no food; I was thirsty and you gave Me no drink; 43 I was a stranger and you did not take Me in, naked and you did not clothe Me, sick and in prison and you did not visit Me.’44 “Then they also will answer Him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to You?’ 45 Then He will answer them, saying, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to Me.’ 46 And these will go away into everlasting punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”
3. Wisdom is to the right and foolishness is to the left
Ecclesiastes 10, “A wise man’s heart is at his right hand, but a fool’s heart at his left.
And as we will review in today’s study ordination for the service of our Holy God is administered on the right ear, thumb, and toe.
In 28.41 Moses was to anoint the priests, and consecrate and sanctify them for their ministry in the priest’s office. How this was to be done is now described. The procedures were complicated, for they had to deal with all aspects of their purification and dedication.
29 “And this is what you shall do to them to hallow them for ministering to Me as priests: Take one young bull and two rams without blemish, 2 and unleavened bread, unleavened cakes mixed with oil, and unleavened wafers anointed with oil (you shall make them of wheat flour). 3 You shall put them in one basket and bring them in the basket, with the bull and the two rams.
The process of ‘sanctification’, that is, their cleansing and purifying and their setting apart to Yahweh as ‘holy’ will now be described.
The procedures that follow are to include a bullock, two unblemished rams, and unleavened bread, cakes and wafers made of wheat flour which have been mingled or anointed with oil. Then he is to bring them to the Tent of Meeting for the sanctification ceremony.
The rams have to be unblemished. Nothing that is less than perfect can be offered to Yahweh. The bread, cakes and wafers have to be unleavened, that is, no corrupting influence must have been involved in their making. The oil is probably an indication of their being ‘anointed’ that is, wholly set apart for the service of Yahweh Father God. Bread and cakes could be mingled with the oil, but the wafers had to be made without oil and it was therefore poured on them.
The young bullock is for a purification for sin offering, one ram for a whole burnt offering, and the other is a ‘ram of consecration’. The bread and cakes are for meal offerings.
4 “And Aaron and his sons you shall bring to the door of the tabernacle of meeting, and you shall wash them with water.
The washing with water is always preparatory. Water alone is never said to ‘cleanse’. Its purpose is the removal of ‘earthiness’s’ preparatory to what follows. The taint of earthiness that clung to men must be removed (as in the case of their having to wash their feet). They could not wear the holy garments until all trace of earthiness was removed.
It is noteworthy that none can enter the Tent of Meeting until the whole process is completed. It was no light thing to enter the Sanctuary. Assuming that the new Tent of Meeting, The Tabernacle, is indicated this must occur after it has been made and erected.
We can learn from this action a reminder that when we enter into prayer our first act should be to ensure cleansing from current sins. We must not enter God’s presence ‘unwashed’, for He Is Holy.
5 Then you shall take the garments, put the tunic on Aaron, and the robe of the ephod, the ephod, and the breastplate, and gird him with the intricately woven band of the ephod. 6 You shall put the turban on his head, and put the holy crown on the turban.
Having been washed, and having had all earthiness removed, Aaron is now arrayed in the priestly garments. By this he is depicted as covered by and before God as to purity, as representing the whole people, and as totally Yahweh’s, as ‘holy to Yahweh’.
7 And you shall take the anointing oil, pour it on his head, and anoint him.
While his sons will also be anointed all concentration here is on Aaron. He is to be ‘the Priest’, the foundation priest of a permanent priesthood. They derive their position through him, and their anointing is secondary. Nothing is to come in the way of this great fact that Aaron is to be ‘the Priest’, the anointed of Yahweh, and that once he is anointed his family are set aside as the priests of Yahweh ‘for everlasting’.
Anointing does not indicate the reception of power. It represents the specific setting aside of someone or something for a divine purpose (although with men chosen by God the reception of power often accompanies it). Nor does oil necessarily signify the Holy Spirit (the priests are never described as ‘filled with the Spirit of God’ or as having the Spirit of God coming on them). It indicates dedication to a holy purpose, and a setting apart as Yahweh’s. So here Aaron is set aside as the one who will act on behalf of Israel between man and God. He comes to God on behalf of Israel and himself and offers their worship and receives God’s favors. And all his family for future generations is anointed in him. Thus they too will be anointed as a sign of this fact. But that is not mentioned here because the concentration is in the official anointing of the whole Aaron priesthood.
8 Then you shall bring his sons and put tunics on them. 9 And you shall gird them with sashes, Aaron and his sons, and put the hats on them. The priesthood shall be theirs for a perpetual statute. So you shall consecrate Aaron and his sons.
His sons are now included with Aaron in the ceremony. They are to be robed along with Aaron, and girdled with the robes and girdles previously described (28.40). And from this day the priesthood will be in their family perpetually by a perpetual statute.
The statement ‘And you shall fill the hand of Aaron and the hand of his sons’ meant to consecrate someone to a responsibility. Thus a king may have his hand filled with a scepter. Here the filling of the hand is more abstract. It has in mind the whole of the forthcoming activities. They are to be completely consecrated to God. How solemn a moment was this? How tragic its consequences for at least two of them because of their arrogance or carelessness (Numbers 3.4).
10 “You shall also have the bull brought before the tabernacle of meeting, and Aaron and his sons shall put their hands on the head of the bull. 11 Then you shall kill the bull before the LORD, by the door of the tabernacle of meeting. 12 You shall take some of the blood of the bull and put it on the horns of the altar with your finger, and pour all the blood beside the base of the altar. 13 And you shall take all the fat that covers the entrails, the fatty lobe attached to the liver, and the two kidneys and the fat that is on them, and burn them on the altar.
Because it is a sin offering offered for the priest it must all be consumed in one way or another? No part of it may be eaten. It is to be brought to the altar before the Tent of Meeting and Aaron and his sons will then identify themselves with the ox bull by laying their hands on it. And then the ox bull is killed as representing them. It dies that they may live.
The blood is first put on the horns of the altar which point heavenward. The horns were clearly seen as this since they pointed upwards. So the fact of the shedding of the blood is to be drawn to His attention. Then the remainder of the blood is poured out at the base of the altar. The life given in death belongs to God. All life is His, especially life given in death so all must be His.
Then the fat and the delicate parts are burned on the altar as an offering to God. These were seen as the best parts of the sacrifice and therefore a due gift for God. They represented the thankfulness of the sinner as he was relieved of his sins. The reference to liver and kidneys is because in other nations they would often be kept aside for divination. It was not to be so with Israel. They were to be given to God.
And finally the remaining carcass, with its dung/offal (which was not seen as fit for God), is burnt outside the camp. Because the sole purpose of the ox bull is to bear their sin, its flesh, that part which is man’s, is not fit for an offering, and it cannot be eaten. It must be destroyed utterly, for that is the wages of sin. And it must be burned outside the camp lest it defile the camp. Had it been seen as ‘holy’ it could have been burned on the altar. No greater sense of the horror of sin and the destruction it brings is possible. But the offerer rejoices in that by the good favor of God his sin is now dealt with. He is forgiven. But in order for the whole to be effective the heart must be in it. It is only effective when the worshipper is sincere.
14 But the flesh of the bull, with its skin and its offal, you shall burn with fire outside the camp. It is a sin offering. 15 “You shall also take one ram, and Aaron and his sons shall put their hands on the head of the ram; 16 and you shall kill the ram, and you shall take its blood and sprinkle it all around on the altar. 17 Then you shall cut the ram in pieces, wash its entrails and its legs, and put them with its pieces and with its head. 18 And you shall burn the whole ram on the altar. It is a burnt offering to the LORD; it is a sweet aroma, an offering made by fire to the LORD.
The purification for sin offering was an ox bull that the cost of sin might be revealed. God wanted it recognized that sin was costly, and thus the purification for sin offering was deliberately and specifically shown to be the most costly of sacrifices.
The downgrading to a ram was necessary to bring this lesson out. It was not that the whole burnt offering was less worthy. The ram was still a costly offering. But its use stressed the extra costliness of sin. This ram was an offering of dedication, of self-giving, of wholehearted gratitude and love. The whole of it was offered on the altar. But the shedding of blood was still necessary, for the ones who brought it were sinners. Atonement is still included.
Again the ceremony includes the identification procedure. Each laid his hand on to identify himself with the offering. Then the ram was slain, and the blood cast round the altar. This stresses that while the offering is a whole burnt offering offered to God it still contained an atoning aspect. The blood is not offered up but is cast before God, indicating that the life has been given and the blood has been shed on behalf of those in which it is offered.
Then the remainder is offered to God. There are parts that have to be washed, the legs because they have been in contact with the earth, the inwards possibly because it is seen as having been in contact with the dung, and then all the pieces are gathered up in total and offered to God by being burnt up, fat, flesh, bones and skin. All is dedicated to God.
19 “You shall also take the other ram, and Aaron and his sons shall put their hands on the head of the ram. 20 Then you shall kill the ram, and take some of its blood and put it on the tip of the right ear of Aaron and on the tip of the right ear of his sons, on the thumb of their right hand and on the big toe of their right foot, and sprinkle the blood all around on the altar. 21 And you shall take some of the blood that is on the altar, and some of the anointing oil, and sprinkle it on Aaron and on his garments, on his sons and on the garments of his sons with him; and he and his garments shall be hallowed, and his sons and his sons’ garments with him.
The priest washed themselves to become ritually pure, and then donned special clothing to demarcate themselves for their activity in the Temple. Anointed with special oil, the priests sacrificed a sin offering to atone for their own shortcomings and errors before attempting to intercede for the atonement of the people.
After sacrificing the ram of burnt offering, Moses took some blood from the ram of ordination, and “put it on the ridge of Aaron‘s right ear, and on the thumb of his right hand, and on the big toe of his right foot.” He then repeated that same ritual for each of Aaron’s sons.
First we want to know why the anointing to the ear? The ear is for listening. How many times did God tell Moses and Aaron to do things that seemed unreal?
Next why was it applied to the right thumb? Next the blood was applied to their thumbs because the priests should work righteously and thumbs are needed to handle the things of God in the Temple. The priests needed their thumbs to cut and burn the sacrifice offerings of which there were many. Without the thumb it would be difficult to properly serve in the Temple
The hand speaks of two things. First, it speaks of ‘Worship’. Second, it speaks of ‘Service’. Certainly as priestly ministers they must remember that the service they are conducting is worship to God! Too many times this is forgotten and the service overshadows the true worship!
And lastly the question is why was it applied to the right great toe? The foot speaks of walking. The big toe was touched with the blood so that the priests would remember to walk righteously before the Lord. It is difficult to walk without the big toe, as balance can become an issue. So where the big toe of the priests were touched with the blood the priests would remember what was expected by them in their faith walk as they modeled walking humbly and circumspectly before the Lord
It is a proven fact that you are horribly crippled if you permanently lose your great toe. You cannot walk a straight line. Aaron needed sure footing to walk a straight line in his life in addition to his service in the Tabernacle. So does God's people today!
Notice the three things that were consecrated to God. Always, the right side was the spiritual blessing. The right ear being consecrated to the LORD would mean that the priest being consecrated would listen to clean things. His hearing would be cleansed by the blood of the sacrifice. The thumb of his right hand being anointed with the blood would indicate that everything he put his hand to do for the Lord would be clean through the blood.
22 “Also you shall take the fat of the ram, the fat tail, the fat that covers the entrails, the fatty lobe attached to the liver, the two kidneys and the fat on them, the right thigh (for it is a ram of consecration),
As always these are to be burned up and offered to Yahweh (verse 25). They are seen as ‘the fat of the land’, the very best. All parts that might be used wrongly for divination are also offered. And the offering of them all is an act of consecration.
23 one loaf of bread, one cake made with oil, and one wafer from the basket of the unleavened bread that is before the LORD; 24 and you shall put all these in the hands of Aaron and in the hands of his sons, and you shall wave them as a wave offering before the LORD. 25 You shall receive them back from their hands and burn them on the altar as a burnt offering, as a sweet aroma before the LORD. It is an offering made by fire to the LORD.
Along with the fat and its accompaniments a loaf of the unleavened bread, a cake of the bread mingled with oil, and a wafer are to be taken, and the whole are to be put into the hands of Aaron and his sons and are to be waved before Yahweh. This stresses that they are an offering to Him, a wave offering. We are probably to see that Moses causes their hands to wave the offerings before God for he is performing all the sacrificial activities and thereby he is enabling them to perform their first act as priests. Then the meal offerings are to be taken by Moses and burned on the altar on top of the whole burnt offering previously offered. This too is pleasing to Yahweh and delightful to Him. It is an offering made by fire to Yahweh.
26 “Then you shall take the breast of the ram of Aaron’s consecration and wave it as a wave offering before the LORD; and it shall be your portion.
Two permanent things that will affect the future for the priesthood have been instituted. 1). The wave/heave offering has been sanctified, and 2). the garments of ‘The Priest’ have been sanctified. The effect on future generations is now described.
27 And from the ram of the consecration you shall consecrate the breast of the wave offering which is waved, and the thigh of the heave offering which is raised, of that which is for Aaron and of that which is for his sons. 28 It shall be from the children of Israel for Aaron and his sons by a statute forever. For it is a heave offering; it shall be a heave offering from the children of Israel from the sacrifices of their peace offerings, that is, their heave offering to the LORD.
The act of Moses in taking the breast as a wave offering is an act that ‘sanctifies’ (makes holy) all future breasts and thighs/shoulders of peace offerings for consecration. In future from such peace offerings the breast will be waved before Yahweh and the shoulder will be ‘heaved’, (that is, waved once), and then both will be for the priests to eat. This will be their due from the children of Israel.
This is the technical name for such offerings. It may rather mean ‘a contribution offering’. The idea behind the wave offering and the heave/contribution offering is that what is waved/heaved/contributed is being offered to Yahweh but then retained for the use of His priests. It was a practical means by which priests could be provisioned, while there was at the same time no limitation on the offering of the total sacrifice to Yahweh, for it was offered by waving and heaving.
29 “And the holy garments of Aaron shall be his sons’ after him, to be anointed in them and to be consecrated in them. 30 That son who becomes priest in his place shall put them on for seven days, when he enters the tabernacle of meeting to minister in the holy place.
The second institution demonstrates what has been said earlier. The holy garments of Aaron differentiate the one known as ‘The Priest’ as against the many ‘priests’. Whoever is selected to replace ‘The Priest’ when he dies will have the holy garments of Aaron put on him, so as to be anointed in them and consecrated in them. And then for seven days will wear those garments in the Tent of Meeting without leaving it, as an act of dedication and consecration (Leviticus 8.33). The consecration is to last for seven days.
We now move back to the consecration of Aaron and his sons in the present.
31 “And you shall take the ram of the consecration and boil its flesh in the holy place. 32 Then Aaron and his sons shall eat the flesh of the ram, and the bread that is in the basket, by the door of the tabernacle of meeting. 33 They shall eat those things with which the atonement was made, to consecrate and to sanctify them; but an outsider shall not eat them, because they are holy. 34 And if any of the flesh of the consecration offerings, or of the bread, remains until the morning, then you shall burn the remainder with fire. It shall not be eaten, because it is holy.
Aaron and his sons were now to actively participate in the ceremony. The initial stage of their consecration is complete and they can now partake of the peace offering. It was a kind of one-sided fellowship meal, (God did not take part in the eating), an indication that the person was at peace with God through his offerings and sacrifices from a true heart, and an expression of worship and gratitude. Thus Aaron and his sons may eat what remains of the ram of consecration after Moses has arranged for it to be boiled in a holy place and may also eat the bread that Moses had brought in the basket to the Tent of Meeting. But any that is not eaten by morning was to be burned. This latter was because of its especial holiness.
We note firstly that the Peace Offering also ‘makes atonement’. The shedding of blood in whatever form ever has in mind the need for sin to be paid for, and emphasizes the fact that everything man does, even his dedication and consecration of himself, is tainted with sin, so that every blood sacrifice contained within it an element of atonement. But the eating of this sacrifice before Yahweh is indicating an acceptance by Him of their consecration and their being separated to God and declared ‘holy’. They are now his representatives on behalf of the people, consecrated and sanctified to His service.
Anyone not of Aaron’s family shall not eat of them for they are holy. What was not in accordance with God’s ordinance was ‘strange’. It is emphasizing their unique status as against the whole people. They are a family set apart from all others. When it comes to the priesthood all others are ‘strangers’. So this meat and bread is for the priests alone. Indeed later it is revealed that it must be eaten there in the presence of Yahweh after which they must remain there for the seven days of their consecration (Leviticus 8.31-33).
35 “Thus you shall do to Aaron and his sons, according to all that I have commanded you. Seven days you shall consecrate them. 36 And you shall offer a bull every day as a sin offering for atonement. You shall cleanse the altar when you make atonement for it, and you shall anoint it to sanctify it. 37 Seven days you shall make atonement for the altar and sanctify it. And the altar shall be most holy. Whatever touches the altar must be holy.
This probably means that the same ritual as is described above is to be gone through for seven days, the number of divine perfection. Their consecration must be total and complete.
Furthermore as well as the sacrificing of the sacrifice the altar is also to be anointed to sanctify it. So important is all this that the command is repeated. ‘Seven days shall you make atonement for the altar and sanctify it.’ In Leviticus 8.15 we learn that the altar is purified by putting the blood of the sin offering on the horns of the altar and sanctified by the blood being applied to the base of the altar, and that this also makes atonement for it.
So all that is to be used in making atonement for the people must first, themselves and itself, be cleansed, sanctified and atoned for, for they are of the sinful and profane world. Thus are they made ‘holy’, set apart to God for a holy purpose? This is now especially stressed as far as the altar is concerned
Whatever touches (or ‘would touch’) the altar will be holy.’ As a result of its consecration the altar becomes so holy that all that touches it becomes holy. This latter is not necessarily to be seen as a benefit for the person who touches it. Rather it is a warning. If a man touches the altar he becomes especially ‘set part to Yahweh’, and must either be slain or redeemed, for he has become Yahweh’s (in a similar way to the firstborn in 13.2). But this is to bring out that the altar is Yahweh’s. It is a holy thing.
All this is a reminder to us that if we as ‘royal priests’ (1 Peter 2.9) would be consecrated and sanctified to God it can only be through the shed blood of Christ Jesus our Lord and Savior and through our being set apart wholly to Him. Then we may partake of His bread and act as ‘priests’ on behalf of others, bringing them to the foot of the cross. Indeed all these offerings point to Christ. He Is our sacrifice for sin in order to make atonement for us, He Is our whole burnt offering through Whom we offer ourselves to God, He Is our peace offering through Whom we find peace with God and of Whom we can partake by coming to Him as the bread of life and to eat of His body by coming and believing (John 6.35, 53-56).
38 “Now this is what you shall offer on the altar: two lambs of the first year, day by day continually. 39 One lamb you shall offer in the morning, and the other lamb you shall offer at twilight. 40 With the one lamb shall be one-tenth of an ephah of flour mixed with one-fourth of a hin of pressed oil, and one-fourth of a hin of wine as a drink offering. 41 And the other lamb you shall offer at twilight; and you shall offer with it the grain offering and the drink offering, as in the morning, for a sweet aroma, an offering made by fire to the LORD. 42 This shall be a continual burnt offering throughout your generations at the door of the tabernacle of meeting before the LORD, where I will meet you to speak with you.
The priest and the altar having been consecrated and sanctified their first important use is now described, the continual whole burnt offering to be offered day by day continually through the centuries, a reminder that sin continues and that daily atonement is therefore required, and that daily there should be a full dedication of each member of Israel to the covenant and to the service of Yahweh. In the words of Paul they were to, ‘present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is the reasonable service for you to perform’ (Romans 12.1), in that case in order to do the will of God.
The description of offering ‘Two lambs of the first year day by day continually’ will be a daily reminder of their deliverance from Egypt. But the prime objective is a continual making of atonement for the whole people and a rededicating of them to the covenant of Yahweh. New life is being offered to God as it begins to mature, just as we should offer ourselves to God as we begin to mature, dying with Christ and rising with Him to newness of life. And that offering of a new life was a continual reminder that man’s need for atonement begins at an early age.
They are to be offered one in the morning, and one ‘between the two evenings’ and thus at around dusk. With each lamb were to be offered a meal offering of fine flour mingled with oil and a drink offering. Thus God was being offered meat, cereal and wine by means of them being burned up as a sign of gratitude for His full provision for man’s needs and as a sign of the dedication of all parts of their lives. It was a sweet savor to God, that is, it was well pleasing to Him. And it was an offering made by fire, and therefore wholly consumed and very holy. It was seen by God as of great worth.
‘It shall be a continual whole burnt offering throughout your generations at the door of the Tent of Meeting before Yahweh, where I will meet with you to speak there to you.’ The offering was a continuous one day by day long into the future It was offered on the brazen altar which was before the door of the Tent of Meeting. And from there Yahweh would speak to them, through Moses (and later Joshua), and through ‘the Priest’ by Urim and Thummim. The people could not enter the sanctuary. They could at the most only enter the courtyard before the Sanctuary. And their representatives would speak to them from the door of the Tent of Meeting.
The great importance of the daily offering is brought out in that it is that offering which is used here to illustrate the purpose of the anointing and consecrating of Aaron. It is the central offering which symbolizes all other offerings, the basic evidence of the acceptability of His people to God on a continual basis.
43 And there I will meet with the children of Israel, and the tabernacle shall be sanctified by My glory. 44 So I will consecrate the tabernacle of meeting and the altar. I will also consecrate both Aaron and his sons to minister to Me as priests. 45 I will dwell among the children of Israel and will be their God. 46 And they shall know that I am the LORD their God, who brought them up out of the land of Egypt, that I may dwell among them. I am the LORD their God.
The sanctifying of Aaron and his sons, and the offering of the continual daily offering enables Yahweh to meet with His people and dwell among them. Sufficient continual atonement is being made. Prior to this time the old Tent of Meeting was outside the camp, as were the cloud and the pillar of fire. The people were then watched over by Him but He did not dwell among them. But from now on the Tabernacle would be in the midst of the camp and He would be permanently among them because it was sanctified by Him for the purpose by His glory.
The whole Tent of Meeting and the altar will also be sanctified by Him. They are the places of His contact with His people, and they will be sanctified by His presence. And His glory will be made known there, and that above all will demonstrate that the Tent of Meeting is sanctified by Yahweh, set apart as His for its holy purpose.
In the book of Leviticus chapter 9.24 we learn that on the first occasion when the altar was used ‘the glory of Yahweh appeared to all the people and there came forth fire from before Yahweh and consumed on the altar the whole burnt offering and the fat’. So was the seal of God’s approval, and setting apart for His purpose, fulfilled on both Sanctuary and altar.
Commencing with their original consecration and sanctification, God will continue to sanctify them, keeping them set apart to His purposes and in a right state to serve Him. They will be special. This gave them a huge responsibility. But even in their case it was dependent on their responsiveness. He could not set apart to His glorious purposes those who were disobedient. And the result was that through disobedience in the fulfilling of their ministry Nadab and Abihu would be slain by the same fire of God as sanctified the altar (Leviticus 10.1). They were not there to experiment or treat God’s ordinances lightly. They were holy and must fulfill His requirements to the letter.
Thus as a result of the fact that the people have accepted His Lordship treaty (20.1-23.33), have built His Tabernacle as guided by Him (25.1-27.21), have obtained a priesthood sanctified to Yahweh as their representatives (28.1-29.37), and as they continually offer the daily whole burnt offerings (29 38-42), they will enjoy His permanent presence. His glory will dwell among them, and He will be their God. They will know in full, and with deep gratitude, that He Is Yahweh, the One Who delivered them from Egypt, the One Who Is continually there (as He had promised to Moses in 6.3). And He concludes these passages by declaring, ‘I am Yahweh their God.’ They are accepted as His people.
In this present time Christians are His dwelling place, kept holy by Christ’s offering of Himself once and for all (Hebrews 10.10), and by His continual ministry on our behalf as our High Priest (Hebrews 7.25), anointed not with oil but with the Holy Spirit. And He Is our altar (Hebrews 13.10) on which He has offered up Himself once for all, and through which we can now partake of Him.
In this chapter describing the anointing and sanctifying of the priest is a message for all of us believers, for all believers are His priests. We must ensure that we are continually robed in the priestly garments as we engage in worship and intercession for the world and for the work of God both at home and abroad. We must be anointed as those who are wholly set apart to His service and His will. And we must come to Him constantly through our Great and Holy Lord Jesus Christ Who was sacrificed for us, Who was our whole burnt offering, the declaration of our worship, dedication and son ship, and our purification for sin offering, putting us right with God and granting us daily forgiveness, and our consecration offering, for it is through the cross that we are wholly set apart as His. And we may partake of spiritual bread daily as we seek His face wherever we are, ‘praying without ceasing’. The morning and evening offerings remind us of Christ’s continual intercession for us through His blood so that He is able to save us to the uttermost (Hebrews 7.25).
So, in closing let me go over what I meant by the title ‘Get right or be left’. These 5 words have a significant meaning. Many times few words have greater impact than a long speech. I am reminded of one of the most famous speeches of all time was given by Abraham Lincoln in his ‘Gettysburg Address’. It took him all of 3 minutes to make probably the most amazing speech of all time. Many people do not understand that there was another speaker that day. His name was Edward Everett. His speech lasted over two hours. In the end Lincoln’s speech has been recorded for the ages while most people probably never even heard of Edward Everett yet alone that he was the other speaker.
In my life the speech of a man who was anointed by the Holy Spirit lasted a whopping 15 seconds. Yet his words had more impact that all the speakers that preceded him. This man was anointed by God Personally. He listened and obeyed the Lord’s calling on his life. He served the Lord for his whole life successfully as evident by the fruit he bore in millions of souls saved. And lastly he walked the proper walk with our Great God. His name is Chuck Smith.
Chuck is now at home with our Lord but I still remember his few words that were shared at a Pastor’s conference. Chuck was the major teacher/speaker at the evening service. In scheduling the teachers some mistakes were made. Chuck was supposed to begin at 8 PM. However the other teachers had gone over their allotted time. Finally it was past 9 PM when Chuck was introduced. Gracefully he stepped up to the podium, smiled, and stated ‘Get Right or be left’ and then returned to his seat.
Since there were thousands of attendees and many who were not believers Chuck’s words had more impact that all the other speakers. For in a way he gave the Gospel. His instruction was to get right with our Holy God or face the consequence of being left out of our Holy Master’s kingdom.
