New International Reader s Version - NIrV - 1996
Leviticus 8
1
The Lord spoke to Moses. He said,
2
"Bring Aaron and his sons to the entrance to the Tent of Meeting. Bring their clothes and the anointing oil. Bring the bull for the sin offering. Also bring two rams. And bring the basket with the bread that is made without yeast.
4
Moses did just as the Lord had commanded him. All of the people gathered together at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting.
5
Moses said to the people, "Here is what the Lord has commanded us to do."
6
Then Moses brought Aaron and his sons to the people. He washed Aaron and his sons with water.
Reference
7
He put the inner robe on Aaron. He tied the belt around him. He dressed him in the outer robe. He put the linen apron on him. He took the skillfully made waistband and tied the apron on him with it. He wanted to make sure it was securely tied to him.
Reference
Parallel theme
Exodus 28:4
8
Moses placed the chest cloth on Aaron. He put the Urim and Thummim in the chest cloth.
Reference
Parallel theme
Ezra 2:63
9
Then he placed the turban on Aaron's head. On the front of the turban he put the gold plate. It was a sacred crown. Moses did everything just as the Lord had commanded him.
10
Then Moses took the anointing oil and poured it on the holy tent. He also poured it on everything that was in it. That's how he set those things apart for the Lord.
11
He sprinkled some of the oil on the altar seven times. He poured oil on the altar and all of its tools. He poured it on the large bowl and its stand. He did it to set them apart.
12
He poured some of the anointing oil on Aaron's head. He anointed him to set him apart to serve the Lord.
Reference
13
Then Moses brought Aaron's sons to the people. He put the inner robes on them. He tied belts around them. He put headbands on them. He did everything just as the Lord had commanded him.
14
Then he brought the bull for the sin offering. Aaron and his sons placed their hands on its head.
Reference
Sin
Ezekiel 43:19
15
Moses killed the bull. He dipped his finger into some of the blood. He put it on all of the horns that stick out from the upper four corners of the altar. He did it to make the altar pure. He poured out the rest of the blood at the bottom of the altar. So he set it apart to make it pure.
Reference
Blood
Leviticus 4:7
16
Moses also removed all of the fat that was around the inside parts of the bull. He removed the covering of the liver. He took both kidneys and their fat. Then he burned all of it on the altar.
Reference
Sacrifice
Exodus 29:13
17
But he burned the rest of the bull outside the camp. He burned up its hide, its meat and its guts. He did it just as the Lord had commanded him.
Reference
Parallel theme
Exodus 29:14
18
Then Moses brought the ram for the burnt offering. Aaron and his sons placed their hands on its head.
Reference
Sacrifice
Leviticus 8:2
19
Moses killed the ram. He sprinkled the blood against every side of the altar.
20
He cut the ram into pieces. He burned the head, the other pieces and the fat.
21
He washed the inside parts and the legs with water. He burned the whole ram on the altar as a burnt offering. It had a pleasant smell. It was an offering that was made to the Lord with fire. Moses did everything just as the Lord had commanded him.
Reference
22
Then he brought the other ram. It was sacrificed to prepare the priests for serving the Lord. Aaron and his sons placed their hands on its head.
Reference
Parallel theme
Leviticus 8:2
23
Moses killed the ram. He put some of its blood on Aaron's right ear lobe. He put some on the thumb of Aaron's right hand. He also put some on the big toe of Aaron's right foot.
Reference
24
Then Moses brought Aaron's sons to the people. He put some of the blood on their right ear lobes. He put some on the thumbs of their right hands. He also put some on the big toes of their right feet. Then he sprinkled the rest of the blood against every side of the altar.
25
He removed the fat, the fat tail and all of the fat around the inside parts. He removed the covering of the liver. He removed both kidneys and their fat. And he removed the right thigh.
26
Then he took a flat cake of bread from the basket of bread that was made without yeast. The basket was in front of the Lord. Moses took a cake of bread that was made with olive oil. He also took a wafer. He put all of it on the fat parts of the ram and on its right thigh.
Reference
References Lord
Exodus 29:23
27
He put everything in the hands of Aaron and his sons. He told them to lift it up and wave it in front of the Lord as a wave offering.
28
Then Moses took it from their hands. He burned it on the altar on top of the burnt offering. It was the offering that was sacrificed to prepare the priests for serving the Lord. It had a pleasant smell. It was an offering that was made to the Lord with fire.
Reference
Creation
Exodus 29:25
29
Moses also lifted the ram's breast up and waved it in front of the Lord as a wave offering. The breast was Moses' share of the ram that was sacrificed to prepare the priests for serving the Lord. Moses did everything just as the Lord had commanded him.
30
Then Moses took some of the anointing oil. He also took some of the blood from the altar. He sprinkled some of the oil and blood on Aaron and his clothes. He also sprinkled some on Aaron's sons and their clothes. That's how he set apart Aaron and his clothes. And that's how he set apart Aaron's sons and their clothes.
Reference
31
Then Moses spoke to Aaron and his sons. He said, "Cook the meat at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting. Eat it there along with the bread from the basket of the offerings that are brought to prepare the priests for serving the Lord. Do it just as I commanded you. I said, 'Aaron and his sons must eat it.'
32
Then burn up the rest of the meat and the bread.
Reference
Parallel theme
Exodus 29:34
33
"Don't leave the entrance to the Tent of Meeting for seven days. Don't leave until the days that are required to prepare you for serving the Lord have been completed. Stay here for the full seven days.
Reference
Parallel theme
Exodus 29:35
35
Stay at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting for seven days. Stay here day and night. Do what the Lord requires. Then you won't die. That's the command the Lord gave me."
Reference
36
So Aaron and his sons did everything just as the Lord had commanded through Moses.
Reference
Parallel theme
Deuteronomy 12:32
Summary of Leviticus 8
Leviticus 8 describes the consecration of Aaron and his sons to the office of priests in order to perform their service. The Lord had provided to Moses directions concerning the priesthood, priestly garments, and sacrifices to be offered. Now these directions were put into practise. Aaron and his sons were formally set apart for service in the tabernacle and the people of Israel were called together to see what was done.
Moses brought Aaron, his sons, and the congregation to the door of the tabernacle. He told the people that what was to follow had been commanded by the Lord, because the priests were to be set apart by instruction from the Lord. The first step in the ceremony was the washing of Aaron and his sons with water. Moses brought them before the tabernacle and washed them, which was a necessary preliminary to their service as priests. Before beginning their ministry they had to be cleansed and prepared for the holy office they were to hold.
Moses then dressed Aaron in the priestly garments prepared for him. He put on the coat, the girdle, the robe, and the ephod, which was fastened by the beautifully woven girdle. Moses also placed the breastplate upon Aaron, inserting the Urim and Thummim. The whole of this clothing was distinctive and pointed to Aaron's position as the man anointed to the high priesthood. Moses further placed the mitre upon Aaron's head, securing the holy crown. All was done according to the instructions that had been given earlier.
When Aaron was dressed, Moses anointed with the oil the tabernacle and all that was in it. He poured some of the oil upon the altar and its vessels, the laver and its base, and all the other objects used in worship. He so anointed them that they might be made holy to the Lord for His service. Moses then poured out the oil upon Aaron's head, by which he was anointed and set apart to be the high priest of Israel. The ceremony clearly showed that the office of the priesthood was not merely a matter of tradition in the family, or a matter of politics, but that he was specially set apart by the Lord for his holy service.
Aaron's sons were brought forward and Moses dressed them, putting on them coats, girdles, and bonnets, as had been directed for their priestly garments. These garments marked them out as priests who were fitted for the service to the tabernacle.
Next, Moses brought a bullock for a sin offering, and Aaron and his sons laid their hands upon the bullock's head. Moses killed it, taking some of the blood with his finger and putting it upon the horns of the altar. The remainder of the blood was dashed at the bottom of the altar. Thereupon the fat and other portions of the bullock that had been ordered were burned upon the altar, while the remainder of the animal, including the hide, flesh, and dung, were burned outside the camp, according to the directions regarding the sin offering. Thus Aaron's sons were to have atonement made for them before they could begin their ministry.
Moses next brought a ram for a burnt offering and Aaron and his sons laid their hands upon its head. Moses killed the ram and mingled the blood about the altar. The ram was cut up and washed as directed, after which the several pieces were burned upon the altar. The burnt offering was presented to the Lord.
Then a second ram was brought, which was the ram of consecration. Again Aaron and his sons laid their hands upon its head before it was killed. Moses took some of the blood of the ram and put it upon the right ear of Aaron, upon the thumb of his right hand, and upon the great toe of his right foot. The same was done to Aaron's sons, blood being put upon their right ears, upon the thumbs of their right hands, and upon the great toes of their right feet. This was their formal consecration to the service of the Lord, and it involved them in all their powers of hearing, serving, and walking.
Moses then made sprinkling of the blood round about the altar. He took some of the anointing oil and some of the blood from the altar and sprinkled Aaron and his garments, and Aaron's sons and their garments, so that Aaron and his sons were thus made holy to the Lord. The ram was cut up as directed and Moses took some of the fat, the fat tail, the fat that covered the inward parts, the kidneys, the fat upon them, and the right shoulder from it, together with one unleavened cake, one cake of oil, and one wafer from the basket of unleavened bread that stood before the Lord. He laid these three upon the hands of Aaron and his sons as a wave offering before the Lord.
Moses took these offerings from their hands and burned them upon the altar, it being a sweet savour to the Lord. A part of the ram was reserved to Moses according to the directions given regarding the consecration offering.
Moses took the breast of the ram and waved it before the Lord, this being his share in the offering. Thus the portions for the priests and for Moses were presented to the Lord, and the rest of the offering was burned before Him.
The anointing oil and the blood were significant factors in the whole offering, showing that Aaron and his sons were marked out by God for a special order of service, and that their service had to do with the tabernacle, sacrifices, and worship of the people of Israel.
Moses then gave to Aaron and his sons a most solemn warning that what had been directed must be carried out. They were to boil the flesh of the consecration offering at the door of the tabernacle and eat it there with the bread that had been left in the basket. It was not to be taken out of the door of the tabernacle, and the remainder left until the morning was to be burnt. Moses told the priests that for seven days they were not to go away from the door of the tabernacle, but were to remain there in order to complete the days of their consecration. If they failed to abide by these directions, there would be judgment upon them, for the Lord had said that these things should be done.
And Aaron and his sons did all the things that the Lord had commanded by the hand of Moses, and so they observed the days of their consecration at the door of the tabernacle for seven days.
It was necessary that the seven-day consecration service should be performed, for the priesthood was not regarded as a beginning of light service to the people of Israel. Aaron and his sons were prepared, washed, girdled, anointed, and linked with the sacrifice that had been ordered, so that they might have every detail as a sign that by God's command they were set apart to the service of Israel.
Leviticus 8 is therefore the record of the beginning of the formal priesthood among the people of Israel. Aaron was set apart to the office of high priest while his sons were appointed to the offices of priests. Their garments, anointing, sacrifice, and consecration marked them as having been ordained to the service of the Lord. They thus received the right to stand in relation to the worship and sacrifices of the people of Israel, but at the same time they were bound to observe with the utmost exactness all the directions given in regard to it. Thus Leviticus 8 closes with a statement that Aaron and his sons fulfilled all the days of their consecration as Moses had ordered them.
Moses brought Aaron, his sons, and the congregation to the door of the tabernacle. He told the people that what was to follow had been commanded by the Lord, because the priests were to be set apart by instruction from the Lord. The first step in the ceremony was the washing of Aaron and his sons with water. Moses brought them before the tabernacle and washed them, which was a necessary preliminary to their service as priests. Before beginning their ministry they had to be cleansed and prepared for the holy office they were to hold.
Moses then dressed Aaron in the priestly garments prepared for him. He put on the coat, the girdle, the robe, and the ephod, which was fastened by the beautifully woven girdle. Moses also placed the breastplate upon Aaron, inserting the Urim and Thummim. The whole of this clothing was distinctive and pointed to Aaron's position as the man anointed to the high priesthood. Moses further placed the mitre upon Aaron's head, securing the holy crown. All was done according to the instructions that had been given earlier.
When Aaron was dressed, Moses anointed with the oil the tabernacle and all that was in it. He poured some of the oil upon the altar and its vessels, the laver and its base, and all the other objects used in worship. He so anointed them that they might be made holy to the Lord for His service. Moses then poured out the oil upon Aaron's head, by which he was anointed and set apart to be the high priest of Israel. The ceremony clearly showed that the office of the priesthood was not merely a matter of tradition in the family, or a matter of politics, but that he was specially set apart by the Lord for his holy service.
Aaron's sons were brought forward and Moses dressed them, putting on them coats, girdles, and bonnets, as had been directed for their priestly garments. These garments marked them out as priests who were fitted for the service to the tabernacle.
Next, Moses brought a bullock for a sin offering, and Aaron and his sons laid their hands upon the bullock's head. Moses killed it, taking some of the blood with his finger and putting it upon the horns of the altar. The remainder of the blood was dashed at the bottom of the altar. Thereupon the fat and other portions of the bullock that had been ordered were burned upon the altar, while the remainder of the animal, including the hide, flesh, and dung, were burned outside the camp, according to the directions regarding the sin offering. Thus Aaron's sons were to have atonement made for them before they could begin their ministry.
Moses next brought a ram for a burnt offering and Aaron and his sons laid their hands upon its head. Moses killed the ram and mingled the blood about the altar. The ram was cut up and washed as directed, after which the several pieces were burned upon the altar. The burnt offering was presented to the Lord.
Then a second ram was brought, which was the ram of consecration. Again Aaron and his sons laid their hands upon its head before it was killed. Moses took some of the blood of the ram and put it upon the right ear of Aaron, upon the thumb of his right hand, and upon the great toe of his right foot. The same was done to Aaron's sons, blood being put upon their right ears, upon the thumbs of their right hands, and upon the great toes of their right feet. This was their formal consecration to the service of the Lord, and it involved them in all their powers of hearing, serving, and walking.
Moses then made sprinkling of the blood round about the altar. He took some of the anointing oil and some of the blood from the altar and sprinkled Aaron and his garments, and Aaron's sons and their garments, so that Aaron and his sons were thus made holy to the Lord. The ram was cut up as directed and Moses took some of the fat, the fat tail, the fat that covered the inward parts, the kidneys, the fat upon them, and the right shoulder from it, together with one unleavened cake, one cake of oil, and one wafer from the basket of unleavened bread that stood before the Lord. He laid these three upon the hands of Aaron and his sons as a wave offering before the Lord.
Moses took these offerings from their hands and burned them upon the altar, it being a sweet savour to the Lord. A part of the ram was reserved to Moses according to the directions given regarding the consecration offering.
Moses took the breast of the ram and waved it before the Lord, this being his share in the offering. Thus the portions for the priests and for Moses were presented to the Lord, and the rest of the offering was burned before Him.
The anointing oil and the blood were significant factors in the whole offering, showing that Aaron and his sons were marked out by God for a special order of service, and that their service had to do with the tabernacle, sacrifices, and worship of the people of Israel.
Moses then gave to Aaron and his sons a most solemn warning that what had been directed must be carried out. They were to boil the flesh of the consecration offering at the door of the tabernacle and eat it there with the bread that had been left in the basket. It was not to be taken out of the door of the tabernacle, and the remainder left until the morning was to be burnt. Moses told the priests that for seven days they were not to go away from the door of the tabernacle, but were to remain there in order to complete the days of their consecration. If they failed to abide by these directions, there would be judgment upon them, for the Lord had said that these things should be done.
And Aaron and his sons did all the things that the Lord had commanded by the hand of Moses, and so they observed the days of their consecration at the door of the tabernacle for seven days.
It was necessary that the seven-day consecration service should be performed, for the priesthood was not regarded as a beginning of light service to the people of Israel. Aaron and his sons were prepared, washed, girdled, anointed, and linked with the sacrifice that had been ordered, so that they might have every detail as a sign that by God's command they were set apart to the service of Israel.
Leviticus 8 is therefore the record of the beginning of the formal priesthood among the people of Israel. Aaron was set apart to the office of high priest while his sons were appointed to the offices of priests. Their garments, anointing, sacrifice, and consecration marked them as having been ordained to the service of the Lord. They thus received the right to stand in relation to the worship and sacrifices of the people of Israel, but at the same time they were bound to observe with the utmost exactness all the directions given in regard to it. Thus Leviticus 8 closes with a statement that Aaron and his sons fulfilled all the days of their consecration as Moses had ordered them.