Exodus 29:1-30

Consecration of the Priests

1 "1Now this is what * you shall do to them to consecrate them to minister as priests to Me: take one young bull and two rams without blemish,
2 and 2unleavened bread and unleavened cakes mixed with oil, and unleavened wafers spread with oil; you shall make them of fine wheat flour.
3 "You shall put them in one basket, and present them in the basket along with the bull and the two rams.
4 "Then 3you shall bring Aaron and his sons to the doorway of the tent of meeting and wash them with water.
5 "You shall take the garments, and put on Aaron the 4tunic and 5the robe of the ephod and 6the ephod and 7the breastpiece, and gird him with the skillfully 8woven band of the ephod;
6 and you shall set the 9turban on his head and put 10the holy crown on the turban.
7 "Then you shall take 11the anointing oil and pour it on his head and anoint him.
8 "You shall bring his sons and put 12tunics on them.
9 "You shall gird them with 13sashes, Aaron and his sons, and bind caps on them, and they shall have 14the priesthood by a perpetual statute. So you shall 15ordain * Aaron and his sons.

The Sacrifices

10 "Then you shall bring the bull before the tent of meeting, and Aaron and his sons shall 16lay their hands on the head of the bull.
11 "You shall slaughter the bull before the LORD at the doorway of the tent of meeting.
12 "You shall 17take some of the blood of the bull and put it on 18the horns of the altar with your finger; and you shall pour out all the blood at the base of the altar.
13 "You shall 19take all the fat that covers the entrails and the lobe of the liver, and the two kidneys and the fat that is on them, and offer them up in smoke on the altar.
14 "But 20the flesh of the bull and its hide and its refuse, you shall burn with fire outside * the camp; it is a sin offering.
15 "21You shall also take the one ram, and Aaron and his sons shall lay their hands on the head of the ram;
16 and you shall slaughter the ram and shall take its blood and sprinkle it around on the altar.
17 "Then you shall cut the ram into its pieces, and wash its entrails and its legs, and put them with its pieces and its head.
18 "You shall offer up in smoke the whole ram on the altar; it is a burnt offering to the LORD: 22it is a soothing aroma, an offering by fire to the LORD.
19 "Then 23you shall take the other ram, and Aaron and his sons shall lay their hands on the head of the ram.
20 "You shall slaughter the ram, and take some of its blood and put it on the lobe of Aaron's right ear and on the lobes of his sons' right ears and on the thumbs of their right hands and on the big toes of their right feet, and sprinkle the rest of the blood around on the altar.
21 "Then you shall take some of the blood that is on the altar and some of the 24anointing oil, and sprinkle it on Aaron and on his garments and on his sons and on his sons' garments with him; so he and his garments shall be consecrated, as well as his sons and his sons' garments with him.
22 "You shall also take the fat from the ram and the fat tail, and the fat that covers the entrails and the lobe of the liver, and the two kidneys and the fat that is on them and the right thigh (for it is a ram of ordination ),
23 and one cake of bread and 25one cake of bread mixed with oil and one wafer from the basket of unleavened bread which is set before the LORD;
24 and you shall put all these in the hands of Aaron and in the hands of his sons, and shall wave them as a wave offering before the LORD.
25 "26You shall take them from their hands, and offer them up in smoke on the altar on the burnt offering for a soothing aroma before the LORD; it is an offering by fire to the LORD.
26 "Then you shall take 27the breast of Aaron's ram of ordination, and wave it as a wave offering before the LORD; and it shall be your portion.
27 "You shall consecrate the breast of the wave offering and the thigh of the heave offering which was waved and which was offered from the ram of ordination, from the one which was for Aaron and from the one which was for his sons.
28 "It shall be for Aaron and his sons as their portion forever from the sons of Israel, for it is a heave offering; and it shall be a heave offering from the sons of Israel from the sacrifices of their peace offerings, even their heave offering to the LORD.
29 "28The holy garments of Aaron shall be for his sons after him, that in them they may be anointed and ordained *.
30 "For seven days the one of his sons who is priest in his stead shall put them on when he enters the tent of meeting to minister in the holy place.

Exodus 29:1-30 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO EXODUS 29

This chapter gives an account of the form and order of the consecration of Aaron and his sons to the priestly office; preparatory to which Moses is ordered to take a young bullock, two rams, bread, cakes, and wafers unleavened, and bring them and Aaron and his sons to the door of the congregation, where the ceremony was to be publicly performed, and which began with washing them, Ex 29:1-4 and then proceeded by putting on the priestly garments directed to be made in the preceding chapter, first on Aaron, who also was anointed, Ex 29:5-7 and then upon his sons, Ex 29:8,9 after which the bullock and the two rams were to be slain, and orders are given what was to be done with their blood, and the several parts of them, as well as with the cakes and wafers, Ex 29:10-23 and directions are given to make these wave and heave offerings, Ex 29:24-28 and that the garments of Aaron's should be his son's that succeeded him, Ex 29:29,30, and that the flesh of the ram of consecration with the bread should be eaten by Aaron and his sons and no other, Ex 29:31-35, the altar also where they were to officiate was to be cleansed, sanctified, and an atonement made for it, Ex 29:36,37 after which two lambs every day, morning and evening, were to be offered on it in all succeeding generations, Ex 29:38-42, and the chapter is closed with a promise that the Lord would meet with the children of Israel at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, and would sanctify the tabernacle, and dwell among them, and be their God, Ex 29:43-46.

Cross References 28

  • 1. Leviticus 8:1-34
  • 2. Leviticus 2:4; Leviticus 6:19-23
  • 3. Exodus 40:12; Leviticus 8:6
  • 4. Exodus 28:39; Leviticus 8:7
  • 5. Exodus 28:31
  • 6. Exodus 28:6
  • 7. Exodus 28:15
  • 8. Exodus 28:8
  • 9. Exodus 28:4, 39
  • 10. Exodus 28:36, 37; Leviticus 8:9
  • 11. Exodus 30:25; Leviticus 8:12; Leviticus 21:10; Numbers 35:25; Psalms 133:2
  • 12. Exodus 28:39, 40; Leviticus 8:13
  • 13. Exodus 28:40
  • 14. Exodus 40:15; Numbers 3:10; Numbers 18:7; Numbers 25:13; Deuteronomy 18:5
  • 15. Exodus 28:41; Leviticus 8:1-36
  • 16. Leviticus 1:4; Leviticus 8:14
  • 17. Leviticus 8:15
  • 18. Exodus 27:2; Exodus 30:2
  • 19. Leviticus 3:3, 4
  • 20. Lev 4:11, 12, 21; Hebrews 13:11
  • 21. Leviticus 8:18
  • 22. Genesis 8:21; Exodus 29:25
  • 23. Leviticus 8:22
  • 24. Exodus 30:25, 31; Leviticus 8:30
  • 25. Leviticus 8:26
  • 26. Leviticus 8:28
  • 27. Leviticus 7:31, 34; Leviticus 8:29
  • 28. Numbers 20:26, 28

Footnotes 20

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