Posted on by Abe Austin

Scriptural Analysis- Leviticus 10:1-2

1 And Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron, took either of them his censer, and put fire therein, and put incense thereon, and offered strange fire before the Lord, which he commanded them not.

2 And there went out fire from the Lord, and devoured them, and they died before the Lord.

3 Then Moses said unto Aaron, This is it that the Lord spake, saying, I will be sanctified in them that come nigh me, and before all the people I will be glorified. And Aaron held his peace.

We have gone for a while without hearing of any rebellion from the Israelites, but sadly that streak comes to an end. Nadab and Abihu offer “strange fire” to the Lord, which clearly seems to mean some sort of idolatrous ritual.

I should note that not all commentators agree on that point. Some suppose that “strange fire” merely means the fire didn’t come from the correct place (the outer altar) or was offered at a wrong time in a ritual. However I see two pieces of evidence that make idolatry more likely. First is that the word used for “strange” is זָרָ֔ה (zarah), the same that is used when referencing “strange gods.” Secondly, is that later in this chapter we will see an actual minor error in ritual observation, and it does not incur any penalty. The severity of God’s punishment suggests a more serious infraction.

And that punishment certainly was severe! It is one thing to be slain by the Lord, to collapse dead in a moment, but Nadab and Abihu were consumed by miraculous fire! This was obviously an unforgettable lesson to the Israelites of the seriousness of their offense. Clearly God was not merely displeased, He was furious, and the dramatic execution calls to mind the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah.

But that is not all. The verses that immediately preceded these described divine fire of the Lord consuming the meat offering, accepting it in miraculous fashion. Well now Nadab and Abihu were the ones being consumed by divine fire, this time out of rejection. It is two sides of the same coin. It is something we have seen a few times already in the books of Moses: God’s glory purifies and God’s glory destroys. God’s judgment exalts the righteous and God’s judgment decimates the wicked. God’s words empower the campaign of the truthful, and God’s words breaks the schemes of the liar. God is great and God is terrible. All of our works, all of our offerings, all of ourselves are offerings to the Most High, consumed in His fire either to joy or to fearful destruction.

Posted on by Abe Austin

Scriptural Analysis- Leviticus 9:23-24

23 And Moses and Aaron went into the tabernacle of the congregation, and came out, and blessed the people: and the glory of the Lord appeared unto all the people.

24 And there came a fire out from before the Lord, and consumed upon the altar the burnt offering and the fat: which when all the people saw, they shouted, and fell on their faces.

Here we have the only private moment in the ritual, where Moses and Aaron enter into the tabernacle and disappear from the view of all of Israel. Not only was it not seen what transpired in there, it isn’t described in the instructions given to Moses for this moment. At the very least, it seems likely that Moses and Aaron would have gone through the inner-tabernacle rituals, such as lighting the lamps, burning incense, arranging the shewbread, and sprinkling blood. Did Aaron also commune with God directly? Did he speak with God face to face, as Moses had? We do not know. This moment has been kept private from all the world, just as our most sacred moments are typically kept private.

We do know that after they emerged, God responded in a grand show of divine approval. A heavenly flame went forth and consumed the offerings upon the altar. A few chapters ago we heard that the flame of the altar was never to go out. Fresh fuel had to be added to it in perpetuity. It seems that the flame that they had to keep burning was this same divine flame! This is obviously symbolic of the divine flame that lives in each of us, put in us by the grace of Christ, but which must be regularly nourished.

The significance of this miraculous flame is clear. When the Israelites had finished the construction of the tabernacle, the cloud of the Lord covered it and His presence claimed and accepted it. But that had just been the acceptance of the physical structure. Now God is accepting the priests and their labor. Thus, the body of the tabernacle and its soul are deemed acceptable to the Lord, and what transpired there would be imbued with His authority.

Posted on by Abe Austin

Scriptural Analysis- Leviticus 9:15-22

15 And he brought the people’s offering, and took the goat, which was the sin offering for the people, and slew it, and offered it for sin, as the first.

16 And he brought the burnt offering, and offered it according to the manner.

17 And he brought the meat offering, and took an handful thereof, and burnt it upon the altar, beside the burnt sacrifice of the morning.

18 He slew also the bullock and the ram for a sacrifice of peace offerings, which was for the people: and Aaron’s sons presented unto him the blood, which he sprinkled upon the altar round about,

19 And the fat of the bullock and of the ram, the rump, and that which covereth the inwards, and the kidneys, and the caul above the liver:

20 And they put the fat upon the breasts, and he burnt the fat upon the altar:

21 And the breasts and the right shoulder Aaron waved for a wave offering before the Lord; as Moses commanded.

22 And Aaron lifted up his hand toward the people, and blessed them, and came down from offering of the sin offering, and the burnt offering, and peace offerings.

In the last section Aaron performed the offerings for himself, with the help of his sons, and next he performed the offerings for the general population of Israel. Once again, his sons assisted by presenting the blood for sprinkling. Now, at last, everyone had been sanctified. Everyone had been committed to the Lord.

Admittedly, Moses was perhaps an outlier in this moment. I suppose he could be considered part of the body of Israel, a subject of this general offering that Aaron just completed. On the other hand, we could definitely say that his sanctification and purification had already transpired during one of his visits to the mountain. He did appear once with a shining face after all, which sounds pretty sanctified! Thus, by one way or another, Moses, Aaron, the priests, and all the Israelites were now one in God.

Aaron commemorated this moment by pronouncing a blessing upon the people. We do not read the words that he said, but this further shows the fatherly relationship he had to the great Israelite family.

Posted on by Abe Austin

Scriptural Analysis- Leviticus 9:8-14

8 Aaron therefore went unto the altar, and slew the calf of the sin offering, which was for himself.

9 And the sons of Aaron brought the blood unto him: and he dipped his finger in the blood, and put it upon the horns of the altar, and poured out the blood at the bottom of the altar:

10 But the fat, and the kidneys, and the caul above the liver of the sin offering, he burnt upon the altar; as the Lord commanded Moses.

11 And the flesh and the hide he burnt with fire without the camp.

12 And he slew the burnt offering; and Aaron’s sons presented unto him the blood, which he sprinkled round about upon the altar.

13 And they presented the burnt offering unto him, with the pieces thereof, and the head: and he burnt them upon the altar.

14 And he did wash the inwards and the legs, and burnt them upon the burnt offering on the altar.

Aaron performed the sin and burnt offering for himself, but his sons did help slightly by presenting the blood of the animals to him so that he could sprinkle and spread it. This once again continues the pattern of hierarchy, training, and downward distribution of authority for the priest class.

But that is not all. By having even but one step of the ritual performed by Aaron’s sons, it was made clear that not even the High Priest could fully administer to himself. Man cannot clean himself, not wholly. He must be served by another for that, even if only for the washing of his feet. Yes, he may be a vessel to administer in the cleaning of others, but that only makes him a facilitator, not a causer. It was sacrifice and blood, ultimately of Jesus, and symbolically of the animal, that did the actual cleaning, and it was only distributed by the works of the priest.

Today, too, we must remain humble and recognize that on our own we are nothing. We might be the mouth that convicts of sin, the hands that command illness to leave, or the heart that shares forgiveness. But we are not the essence of conviction, healing, or mercy. They merely pass through us to others, and through others to us.

Posted on by Abe Austin

Scriptural Analysis- Leviticus 9:5-7

5 And they brought that which Moses commanded before the tabernacle of the congregation: and all the congregation drew near and stood before the Lord.

6 And Moses said, This is the thing which the Lord commanded that ye should do: and the glory of the Lord shall appear unto you.

7 And Moses said unto Aaron, Go unto the altar, and offer thy sin offering, and thy burnt offering, and make an atonement for thyself, and for the people: and offer the offering of the people, and make an atonement for them; as the Lord commanded.

The people had been witnesses to the glory of God before, and in verse 6 Moses promises that they will be yet again, just as soon as Aaron has fulfilled his first priestly duties. The last time that we heard of them beholding the glory of the Lord was when they had finished the construction of the tabernacle. That had been a manifestation to the people of the Lord’s acceptance of the place, when the glory of the Lord comes again it will signify the Lord’s acceptance of the work performed therein.

This would be a key element of the Israelite faith moving forward. Miracles were shown so that those who observed them could provide testimony, could tell their children and their grandchildren that they truly knew that God was in the rituals of the tabernacle, that it was the method that He had chosen and show divine approval for. Presumably, most generations of the ancient Israelites did not get to see such signs, just as signs are rarer among us today. But the initial signs are made, and the testimony tradition begun, and history has shown that this can be enough for the pattern of faith to continue. For those that live to see signs, there is the obligation to testify of them. For those that do not, there is the obligation to believe that testimony.

Posted on by Abe Austin

Scriptural Analysis- Leviticus 9:1-4

1 And it came to pass on the eighth day, that Moses called Aaron and his sons, and the elders of Israel;

2 And he said unto Aaron, Take thee a young calf for a sin offering, and a ram for a burnt offering, without blemish, and offer them before the Lord.

3 And unto the children of Israel thou shalt speak, saying, Take ye a kid of the goats for a sin offering; and a calf and a lamb, both of the first year, without blemish, for a burnt offering;

4 Also a bullock and a ram for peace offerings, to sacrifice before the Lord; and a meat offering mingled with oil: for to day the Lord will appear unto you.

For seven days, Aaron had watched Moses performing the rituals and sacrifices of the tabernacle, but now it is a new week, a new beginning. and Aaron is going to start performing in his office as the high priest now. And then, after Aaron has performed his duties as the high priest, his sons, the regular priests, will began functioning in their roles also. From God to Moses to Aaron to his sons. From God to prophet to family patriarch to children. This is the pattern that is established.

But who was Aaron to perform the ritual for? Two parties, actually. In verse 2, we learn he is to bring offerings for himself and in verse 3 we learn he is to receive offerings from all of Israel. This establishes another important principle of the patriarchal order mentioned above: it is not merely about the downward flow of power and authority, but the upward flow of guilt and responsibility for sin. Indeed, the former only comes hand-in-hand with the latter. There is no authority without burden. The authority is for the addressing of that burden.

Aaron was being called to be the father of Israel, and that meant that in addition to managing his own sanctity before the Lord, he must manage that of all the children also. Paul made this same notion very clear when he compared the responsibility of husbands to that of Christ in Ephesians 5. Of course, none of this is meant to deny the free will of those who are under the patriarch. The Israelites could choose not to bring their offerings to the tabernacle, and the wife and children can choose not to follow the counsel of the father, and grace must be accounted for those fathers and high priests who can answer a full tally to the Lord. None of that changes the pattern that God has established for authority and responsibility, though. Once again, it is a loop that finds Christ at each end. The authority flows down from Christ, and the responsibility comes back up to him. He will ultimately answer for any missing souls, and he will empower the rescue of all that are willing to be found.

Posted on by Abe Austin

Scriptural Analysis- Leviticus 8:31-36

31 And Moses said unto Aaron and to his sons, Boil the flesh at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation: and there eat it with the bread that is in the basket of consecrations, as I commanded, saying, Aaron and his sons shall eat it.

32 And that which remaineth of the flesh and of the bread shall ye burn with fire.

33 And ye shall not go out of the door of the tabernacle of the congregation in seven days, until the days of your consecration be at an end: for seven days shall he consecrate you.

34 As he hath done this day, so the Lord hath commanded to do, to make an atonement for you.

35 Therefore shall ye abide at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation day and night seven days, and keep the charge of the Lord, that ye die not: for so I am commanded.

36 So Aaron and his sons did all things which the Lord commanded by the hand of Moses.

Presumably the instruction for Aaron and his sons eat their sacrifice portion at the door of the tabernacle is so that all of gathered Israel may be witness to the proper fulfillment of God’s command. We do not hear this being a requirement for general rituals, but at least now the Israelites would have the image in their mind of what transpires even on the times when they don’t see it.

Another thing that is unique about this initial performance of the rituals was the requirement for the priests to remain in the tabernacle for seven days, apparently on peril of death! Once Aaron and his sons had begun their consecration to the Lord, they were not to abandon the process half done. This cleansing and consecration ritual was a week-long process, one that entailed new sacrifices on each of the seven days.

Jesus pointed out in Luke 14:28-30, “For which of you, intending to build a tower, sitteth not down first, and counteth the cost, whether he have sufficient to finish it? Lest haply, after he hath laid the foundation, and is not able to finish it, all that behold it begin to mock him, Saying, This man began to build, and was not able to finish.”

So it was for the tabernacle priests. They were informed beforehand what “the cost” of being a priest was. They knew what rituals would be required, what commitments, and what restrictions. It was a good thing to be a priest, but not if they didn’t accept the cost of it. So it is for each of us as modern disciples. We have been told “the cost,” meaning the duties, the commitments, and the restrictions of bearing the name of Christ. It is a good thing to taken on his name, but not if we don’t accept that cost.

We will see in two chapters how two of Aaron’s sons did not meet the requirements of their station, defied the commandments that they had pledged to, and were destroyed because of it. We should assume no less serious of an outcome when we violate our covenants as well. We may not see such a dramatic event as being consumed by a ball of fire but never forget that even greater than the death of the body is the death of the soul.

Posted on by Abe Austin

Scriptural Analysis- Leviticus 8:25-29

25 And he took the fat, and the rump, and all the fat that was upon the inwards, and the caul above the liver, and the two kidneys, and their fat, and the right shoulder:

26 And out of the basket of unleavened bread, that was before the Lord, he took one unleavened cake, and a cake of oiled bread, and one wafer, and put them on the fat, and upon the right shoulder:

27 And he put all upon Aaron’s hands, and upon his sons’ hands, and waved them for a wave offering before the Lord.

28 And Moses took them from off their hands, and burnt them on the altar upon the burnt offering: they were consecrations for a sweet savour: it is an offering made by fire unto the Lord.

29 And Moses took the breast, and waved it for a wave offering before the Lord: for of the ram of consecration it was Moses’ part; as the Lord commanded Moses.

Once again, we see how in this initiation of Aaron and his sons, Moses is the officiator of the offering. They are not picking up the bread and the meat themselves; Moses is placing those into their hands. They are not the ones receiving the priestly portion of the food, Moses is. In tomorrow’s verses we will hear how Aaron and his sons partook of the food as well, but that will not be the priest’s portion, it will be the same part that was given to the common Israelite when they made their offering. There was the priest’s part, but there was also the common part, and that was the common part that was meant for Aaron this time around.

Having Aaron and his sons go through all these rituals from the perspective of the common Israelite demonstrates an important pattern. Now, whenever Aaron and his sons performed such rituals for the common Israelite, he would only be repeating what Moses had previously done for him. Thus, it is a pattern of those who have been helped in their journey, then helping the next person in theirs.

All true proselyting efforts are conducted by sinners who themselves found redemption, now showing other sinners that the same is possible for them also. Christ begins the pattern by redeems us, then invites us to join him on his side and help him initiate the next generation in the same process. It is a beautiful chain of being served and serving, where we all depend on and support one another.

Posted on by Abe Austin

Scriptural Analysis- Leviticus 8:22-24, 30

22 And he brought the other ram, the ram of consecration: and Aaron and his sons laid their hands upon the head of the ram.

23 And he slew it; and Moses took of the blood of it, and put it upon the tip of Aaron’s right ear, and upon the thumb of his right hand, and upon the great toe of his right foot.

24 And he brought Aaron’s sons, and Moses put of the blood upon the tip of their right ear, and upon the thumbs of their right hands, and upon the great toes of their right feet: and Moses sprinkled the blood upon the altar round about.

30 And Moses took of the anointing oil, and of the blood which was upon the altar, and sprinkled it upon Aaron, and upon his garments, and upon his sons, and upon his sons’ garments with him; and sanctified Aaron, and his garments, and his sons, and his sons’ garments with him.

Today we move from the burnt offering to the consecration offering, the one that brings Aaron and his sons into oneness and unity with God. I included for this section all of the verses that have to do with the blood of the sacrifice, and how it was smeared upon the ear, thumb, and large toe of each priest, and then mixed with oil and sprinkled on their garments. When we previously heard about this ritual, I didn’t have much to say about the placement of the blood on the parts of the body. When I started my study of Leviticus and put together my table of sacrifice symbolism, I reconsidered the gesture and saw it as a symbol of receiving God’s word (ear), work (thumb), and path (toe).

I still think that is a good interpretation. In addition, I thought about it a bit more today, and specifically about the final result after all the applications of blood to the priest. By the end of the ritual, the priest must have been a shocking sight! Finger, toe, and ear dipped in blood, and flecks of blood all across his clothing. In this I see a symbol for the priestly duty being messy work. We have heard much of his cleansing and his purification, but it is all so that he can go into the sin, the drama, and the dirty details of the sinner who brings his offering to the Lord. The priest is not to be a distant observer to the common Israelite’s repentance process, he is to be a roll-up-your-sleeves and get right into it participant. It is the same with Jehovah, who came into the darkest part of the world, was covered in blood, and bore all the messy stains of humanity. Christ, himself, was clean, but he was covered in our filth.

This is the sobering and sacred reality of being a part of the Lord’s work. God works with the sinners, with the awkward, and with the wounded. So must we as well. While we look to maintain our inner cleanliness, we do get ourselves involved in other’s dirtiness so we can help them work through their sins and problems and bring them somewhere better.

Posted on by Abe Austin

Scriptural Analysis- Leviticus 8:18-21

18 And he brought the ram for the burnt offering: and Aaron and his sons laid their hands upon the head of the ram.

19 And he killed it; and Moses sprinkled the blood upon the altar round about.

20 And he cut the ram into pieces; and Moses burnt the head, and the pieces, and the fat.

21 And he washed the inwards and the legs in water; and Moses burnt the whole ram upon the altar: it was a burnt sacrifice for a sweet savour, and an offering made by fire unto the Lord; as the Lord commanded Moses.

In our last post we had the sin offering as part of the consecration process of Aaron and his sons and priests, and today it is immediately followed by the burnt offering. Thus, the spiritual sequence for the priests was to first give up their sinful ways, and then to give their lives to God. Tomorrow will move on to the consecration offering, which completes the journey, and represents oneness and unity with God. That is the entire gospel journey in three simple steps.

And notice, that even though these rituals have been fulfilled in Christ, the underlying path still remains the same. Repentance for sin, surrender of self, and unity with God are still the path of discipleship even today. Not one jot or tittle has passed, only the manner in which we interface with that underlying pattern.

The ancient Israelites were not a people so different as we might think. We have more in common with them than not. And, most importantly, at the fundamental level we are identical. Just like them, we still are afflicted by sin. We still struggle to surrender our will to God. We still suffer from separation from the Almighty. We still need sacrifice, surrender, and grace to overcome those challenges. We are still God’s children, and He is still our Father. The path for us to follow has always been there, unchanged. The unique details of modern life are but surface periphery, meaningless vapor in the wind, while He remains a constant through it all.