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Lev. 5:6 priest, kohen; Strong #3548: A priest; especially a principal priest; a minister, a personal servant, an official, specifically the high priest who descended from Aaron. The kohen was the "personal servant" of the LORD, whose entire life revolved around his service to Jehovah, through the ministry in the tabernacle (or the temple in later times) as well as taking the sins of the people of Israel upon himself (see Exod. 28:29). A kohen serves the LORD as a priest (Exod. 28:1). Notice the six mentions of the words "minister", "serve" or "service" in the references to the high priest that appear in Hebrews 8:1-9:10. Up to this time the Jewish name "Cohen" identifies a family descended from Aaron, the high priest. |
Lev. 5:7 Two turtledoves or two doves: The rule for the purification of sin and the consequence of ritual impurity or the violation of a vow wasn't tied to the individual's economical condition. Thus the Law made provision for the poor. Mary, the mother of Jesus, presented two turtledoves or doves, instead of a more costly offering (Luke 2:24; for the ritual that follows the birth of a son, see Lev. 12:8).
Lev. 5:15 The guilt offering constituted a compensatory sacrifice of an exclusively male ram or lamb. It was offered fundamentally for defrauding holy things or invoking the name of the LORD in vain (by swearing falsely before a tribunal). On top of sacrificing the animal, the offender would pay "what he had defrauded" (v.16), and bring satisfaction for the sin.
It anticipated the vicarious death of Christ in compensation for our sins, a compensation that we could never pay (see Is. 53). It also denotes the transformation that comes to the Christian by forgiving and treating his neighbor with condescension (see Matt. 5:23,24).
Lev. 6:5 See section 5 of "TRUTH IN ACTION" at the end of Leviticus.
Lev. 6:9-7:38 These specific instructions for the priests complemented what had been said before about the different offerings.
Lev. 6:9 Command Aaron and his sons, and tell them: The energetic imperative "command" supposes that an immediate response is expected. Aaron and his sons are required to give initiative to this practice and continue it. The law (in Hebrew "Tora") denotes instruction. The Latin Vulgate version translates "Tora" as "law", from which comes the English word law. But it's better to consider the "Tora" as a collection of general instructions.
Lev. 6:12,13 See section 1 of "TRUTH IN ACTION" at the end of Leviticus.
Lev. 7:1 It is a very holy thing: Literally, holiness (in Hebrew, kodesh kodeshim), in allusion to the sacredness of the guilt offering, in comparison with all the other things set apart for the LORD.
Lev. 7:6 See section 4 of "TRUTH IN ACTION" at the end of Leviticus.
Lev. 7:10 All the sons of Aaron shall have: The priests would be permitted to eat certain offerings. They should consume them, however, within the holy place (v.6), which underlines the sacredness of an offering set apart for the LORD. The sons of Aaron serves as priests because of family inheritance and had to keep themselves pure and clean for the ritual.
Lev. 7:26 You shall eat no blood: Alludes to consuming the flesh without draining the blood beforehand (see I Sam. 14:33). This prohibition is due to the redemptive significance of blood.
Lev. 7:28-36 See section 4 of "TRUTH IN ACTION" at the end of Leviticus.
Lev. 8:1-36 Consecration of Priests (HBH) Moses called for all the congregation to assemble at the front of the tabernacle where they would witness the consecration of Aaron and his sons to the priesthood (8:1-5). Their adornment by the clothing and other trappings gave them identity and symbolically spoke of the meaning and function of their office (9:6-9; see Exod. 28). They were then anointed (Lev. 8:10-13). And on their behalf Moses offered up a sin offering (8:14-17), a burnt offering *8:18-21), and an offering of consecration that symbolized the total commitment of Aaron and his sons to the priestly ministry *8:22-30). Then, as with all peace offerings, they ate of the ram of consecration during a seven-day period of purification (8:31-36).
Lev. 8:2 The bull of atonement: Refers to the first step in the ordination of a priest. It deals with an offering of purification (see the note for 4:3). This ceremony is also explained in Exodus 29:35-39.
Lev. 8:12 And pour the oil of anointing on Aaron's head: Anointing separated Aaron for the service of the priesthood (see also Exod. 29:7), for the fulfillment of his sacred mission. Kings as well as priests were anointed to serve the congregation as leaders designated by GOD. Even the pagan monarch, Cyrus is mentioned as the anointed of the LORD (Messiah), due to the task that was entrusted to him (Is. 45:1). The authors of the writings preserved in the Dead Sea Scrolls spoke of two messiahs ("the anointed"), Aaron and David, which seems to demonstrate that they expected GOD to send them a priest and a King as Messiah in the end times. Jesus took the term "anointed" from Isaiah 61:1 when he spoke of his messianic work (Luke 4:18). Thus comes the term "Christ", which technically isn't a proper name, but the Greek expression of the Hebrew word maschiach (messiah).
Lev. 9:1-24 Function of Priests (HBH) Once Aaron and his sons had been duly set apart, they could and did offer sacrifice, a matter that occupies Leviticus 9. The purpose of these first sacrifices was to effect oneness between GOD and His people (9:1-7). The great variety of offerings, for both priests and people, attests to the significance of this particular day. The day was to mark the appearance of the LORD among them (9:4,24), an appearance that required their total commitment and purity (9:8-24).
LITERARY RICHES |
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Lev. 9:2 expiation (KJV-sin offering), chatta't; Strong #2403: A sin, an offense, an error. It's also used to describe the punishment for sin or the guilt offering. The verb root chata' means "to sin, have committed a fault, to damage, to offend". The substantive appears more than 270 times in the Old Testament and on 112 occasions it's translated as "guilt offering". |
Lev. 9:8 The bull of atonement: The entire process of the sacrifice, the sprinkling of blood and the offering of the fat, as described with precision in chapter 4, is here carried out in its most minute details by the newly ordained Aaron.
Lev. 9:22 Afterward Aaron lifted up his hand toward the people and blessed them: Aaron's blessing, recited standing next to the altar, is recorded in Numbers 6:22-27. He turned toward the people, raised his hands and pronounced the blessing. The people then responded. Aaron's blessing is still recited today in modern synagogues; in Jesus' time, the people in the temple responded with the words: "Blessed be the Name for his Honor; his kingdom is forever and ever".
Lev. 9:24 GOD's approval was evidenced when fire came down from Jehovah and consumed the burnt offering. This miraculous manifestation of the presence of GOD was repeated when Elijah confronted the prophets of Baal (I Ki. 18:36).
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