Worthy.Bible » YLT » Exodus » Chapter 29 » Verse 35

Exodus 29:35 Young's Literal Translation (YLT)

35 `And thou hast done thus to Aaron and to his sons, according to all that I have commanded thee; seven days thou dost consecrate their hand;

Cross Reference

Exodus 39:42-43 YLT

According to all that Jehovah hath commanded Moses, so have the sons of Israel done all the service; and Moses seeth all the work, and lo, they have done it as Jehovah hath commanded; so they have done. And Moses doth bless them.

Exodus 40:12-16 YLT

`And thou hast brought near Aaron and his sons unto the opening of the tent of meeting, and hast bathed them with water; and thou hast clothed Aaron with the holy garments, and anointed him, and sanctified him, and he hath acted as priest to Me. `And his sons thou dost bring near, and hast clothed them with coats, and anointed them as thou hast anointed their father, and they have acted as priests to Me, and their anointing hath been to be to them for a priesthood age-during, to their generations.' And Moses doth according to all that Jehovah hath commanded him; so he hath done.

Leviticus 8:4-36 YLT

And Moses doth as Jehovah hath commanded him, and the company is assembled unto the opening of the tent of meeting, and Moses saith unto the company, `This `is' the thing which Jehovah hath commanded to do.' And Moses bringeth near Aaron and his sons, and doth bathe them with water, and doth put on him the coat, and doth gird him with the girdle, and doth clothe him with the upper robe, and doth put on him the ephod, and doth gird him with the girdle of the ephod, and doth bind `it' to him with it, and doth put on him the breastplate, and doth put unto the breastplate the Lights and the Perfections, and doth put the mitre on his head, and doth put on the mitre, over-against its front, the golden flower of the holy crown, as Jehovah hath commanded Moses. And Moses taketh the anointing oil, and anointeth the tabernacle, and all that `is' in it, and sanctifieth them; and he sprinkleth of it on the altar seven times, and anointeth the altar, and all its vessels, and the laver, and its base, to sanctify them; and he poureth of the anointing oil on the head of Aaron, and anointeth him to sanctify him. And Moses bringeth near the sons of Aaron, and doth clothe them `with' coats, and girdeth them `with' girdles, and bindeth for them turbans, as Jehovah hath commanded Moses. And he bringeth nigh the bullock of the sin-offering, and Aaron layeth -- his sons also -- their hands on the head of the bullock of the sin-offering, and `one' slaughtereth, and Moses taketh the blood, and putteth on the horns of the altar round about with his finger, and cleanseth the altar, and the blood he hath poured out at the foundation of the altar, and sanctifieth it, to make atonement upon it. And he taketh all the fat that `is' on the inwards, and the redundance above the liver, and the two kidneys, and their fat, and Moses maketh Perfume on the altar, and the bullock, and its skin, and its flesh, and its dung, he hath burnt with fire, at the outside of the camp, as Jehovah hath commanded Moses. And he bringeth near the ram of the burnt-offering, and Aaron and his sons lay their hands on the head of the ram, and `one' slaughtereth, and Moses sprinkleth the blood on the altar round about; and the ram he hath cut into its pieces, and Moses maketh perfume with the head, and the pieces, and the fat, and the inwards and the legs he hath washed with water, and Moses maketh perfume with the whole ram on the altar; it `is' a burnt-offering, for sweet fragrance; it `is' a fire-offering to Jehovah, as Jehovah hath commanded Moses. And he bringeth near the second ram, a ram of the consecrations, and Aaron and his sons lay their hands on the head of the ram, and `one' slaughtereth, and Moses taketh of its blood, and putteth on the tip of the right ear of Aaron, and on the thumb of his right hand, and on the great toe of his right foot; and he bringeth near the sons of Aaron, and Moses putteth of the blood on the tip of their right ear, and on the thumb of their right hand, and on the great toe of their right foot. And Moses sprinkleth the blood on the altar round about, and taketh the fat, and the fat tail, and all the fat that `is' on the inwards, and the redundance above the liver, and the two kidneys, and their fat, and the right leg; and out of the basket of unleavened things, which `is' before Jehovah, he hath taken one unleavened cake, and one cake of oiled bread, and one thin cake, and putteth `them' on the fat, and on the right leg; and putteth the whole on the hands of Aaron, and on the hands of his sons, and waveth them -- a wave-offering before Jehovah. And Moses taketh them from off their hands, and maketh perfume on the altar, on the burnt-offering, they `are' consecrations for sweet fragrance; it `is' a fire-offering to Jehovah; and Moses taketh the breast, and waveth it -- a wave-offering before Jehovah; of the ram of the consecrations it hath been to Moses for a portion, as Jehovah hath commanded Moses. And Moses taketh of the anointing oil, and of the blood which `is' on the altar, and sprinkleth on Aaron, on his garments, and on his sons, and on the garments of his sons with him, and he sanctifieth Aaron, his garments, and his sons, and the garments of his sons with him. And Moses saith unto Aaron, and unto his sons, `Boil ye the flesh at the opening of the tent of meeting, and there ye do eat it and the bread which `is' in the basket of the consecrations, as I have commanded, saying, Aaron and his sons do eat it. `And the remnant of the flesh and of the bread with fire ye burn; and from the opening of the tent of meeting ye go not out seven days, till the day of the fulness, the days of your consecration -- for seven days he doth consecrate your hand; as he hath done on this day, Jehovah hath commanded to do, to make atonement for you; and at the opening of the tent of meeting ye abide, by day and by night seven days, and ye have kept the charge of Jehovah, and die not, for so I have been commanded.' And Aaron doth -- his sons also -- all the things which Jehovah hath commanded by the hand of Moses.

Leviticus 14:8-11 YLT

`And he who is to be cleansed hath washed his garments, and hath shaved all his hair, and hath bathed with water, and hath been clean, and afterwards he doth come in unto the camp, and hath dwelt at the outside of his tent seven days. `And it hath been, on the seventh day -- he shaveth all his hair, his head, and his beard, and his eyebrows, even all his hair he doth shave, and he hath washed his garments, and hath bathed his flesh with water, and hath been clean. `And on the eighth day he taketh two lambs, perfect ones, and one ewe-lamb, daughter of a year, a perfect one, and three tenth deals of flour `for' a present, mixed with oil, and one log of oil. `And the priest who is cleansing hath caused the man who is to be cleansed to stand with them before Jehovah, at the opening of the tent of meeting,

Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Matthew Henry Commentary » Commentary on Exodus 29

Commentary on Exodus 29 Matthew Henry Commentary


Chapter 29

Particular orders are given in this chapter,

  • I. Concerning the consecration of the priests, and the sanctification of the altar (v. 1-37).
  • II. Concerning the daily sacrifice (v. 38-41).

To which gracious promises are annexed that God would own and bless them in all their services (v. 42, etc.).

Exd 29:1-37

Here is,

  • I. The law concerning the consecration of Aaron and his sons to the priest's office, which was to be done with a great deal of ceremony and solemnity, that they themselves might be duly affected with the greatness of the work to which they were called, and that the people also might learn to magnify the office and none might dare to invade it.
    • 1. The ceremonies wherewith it was to be done were very fully and particularly appointed, because nothing of this kind had been done before, and because it was to be a statute for ever that the high priest should be thus inaugurated. Now,
      • (1.) The work to be done was the consecrating of the persons whom God had chosen to be priests, by which they devoted and gave up themselves to the service of God and God declared his acceptance of them; and the people were made to know that they glorified not themselves to be made priests, but were called of God, Heb. 5:4, 5. They were thus distinguished from common men, sequestered from common services, and set apart for God and an immediate attendance on him. Note, All that are to be employed for God are to be sanctified to him. The person must first be accepted, and then the performance. The Hebrew phrase for consecrating is filling the hand (v. 9): Thou shalt fill the hand of Aaron and his sons, and the ram of consecration is the ram of fillings, v. 22, 26. The consecrating of them was the perfecting of them; Christ is said to be perfect or consecrated for evermore, Heb. 7:28. Probably the phrase here is borrowed from the putting of the sacrifice into their hand, to be waved before the Lord, v. 24. But it intimates,
        • [1.] That ministers have their hands full; they have no time to trifle, so great, so copious, so constant is their work.
        • [2.] That they must have their hands filled. Of necessity they must have something to offer, and they cannot find it in themselves, it must be given them from above. They cannot fill the people's hearts unless God fill their hands; to him therefore they must go, and receive from his fulness.
      • (2.) The person to do it was Moses, by God's appointment. Though he was ordained for men, yet the people were not to consecrate him; Moses the servant of the Lord, and his agent herein, must do it. By God's special appointment he now did the priest's work, and therefore that which was the priest's part of the sacrifice was here ordered to be his, v. 26.
      • (3.) The place was at the door of the tabernacle of meeting, v. 4. God was pleased to dwell in the tabernacle, the people attending in the courts, so that the door between the court and the tabernacle was the fittest place for those to be consecrated in who were to mediate between God and man, and to stand between both, and lay their hands (as it were) upon both. They were consecrated at the door, for they were to be door-keepers.
      • (4.) It was done with many ceremonies.
        • [1.] They were to be washed (v. 4), signifying that those must be clean who bear the vessels of the Lord, Isa. 52:11. Those that would perfect holiness must cleanse themselves from all filthiness of flesh and spirit, 2 Co. 7:1; Isa. 1:16-18. They were now washed all over; but afterwards, when they went in to minister, they washed only their hands and feet (ch. 30:19); for he that is washed needs no more, Jn. 13:10.
        • [2.] They were to be clothed with the holy garments (v. 5, 6, 8, 9), to signify that it was not sufficient for them to put away the pollutions of sin, but they must put on the graces of the Spirit, be clothed with righteousness, Ps. 132:9. They must be girded, as men prepared and strengthened for their work; and they must be robed and crowned, as men that counted their work and office their true honour.
        • [3.] The high priest was to be anointed with the holy anointing oil (v. 7), that the church might be filled and delighted with the sweet savour of his administrations (for ointment and perfume rejoice the heart), and in token of the pouring out of the Spirit upon him, to qualify him for his work. Brotherly love is compared to this oil with which Aaron was anointed, Ps. 133:2. The inferior priests are said to be anointed (ch. 30:30), not on their heads, as the high priest (Lev. 21:10), the oil was only mingled with the blood that was sprinkled upon their garments.
        • [4.] Sacrifices were to be offered for them. The covenant of priesthood, as all other covenants, must be made by sacrifice.
          • First, There must be a sin-offering, to make atonement for them, v. 10-14. The law made those priests that had infirmity, and therefore they must first offer for their own sin, before they could make atonement for the people, Heb. 7:27, 28. They were to put their hand on the head of their sacrifice (v. 10), confessing that they deserved to die for their own sin, and desiring that the killing of the beast might expiate their guilt, and be accepted as a vicarious satisfaction. It was used as other sin-offerings were; only, whereas the flesh of other sin-offerings was eaten by the priests (Lev. 10:18), in token of the priest's taking away the sin of the people, this was appointed to be all burnt without the camp (v. 14), to signify the imperfection of the legal dispensation (as the learned bishop Patrick notes); for the sins of the priests themselves could not be taken away by those sacrifices, but they must expect a better high priest and a better sacrifice.
          • Secondly, There must be a burnt-offering, a ram wholly burnt, to the honour of God, in token of the dedication of themselves wholly to God and to his service, as living sacrifices, kindled with the fire and ascending in the flame of holy love, v. 15-18. The sin-offering must first be offered and then the burnt-offering; for, till guilt be removed, no acceptable service can be performed, Isa. 6:7.
          • Thirdly, There must be a peace-offering; it is called the ram of consecration, because there was more in this peculiar to the occasion than in the other two. In the burnt-offering God had the glory of their priesthood, in this they had the comfort of it; and, in token of a mutual covenant between God and them,
            • 1. The blood of the sacrifice was divided between God and them (v. 20, 21); part of the blood was sprinkled upon the altar round about, and part put upon them, upon their bodies (v. 20), and upon their garments, v. 21. Thus the benefit of the expiation made by the sacrifice was applied and assured to them, and their whole selves from head to foot sanctified to the service of God. The blood was put upon the extreme parts of the body, to signify that it was all, as it were, enclosed and taken in for God, the tip of the ear and the great toe not excepted. We reckon that the blood and oil sprinkled upon garments spot and stain them; yet the holy oil, and the blood of the sacrifice, sprinkled upon their garments, must be looked upon as the greatest adorning imaginable to them, for they signified the blood of Christ, and the graces of the Spirit, which constitute and complete the beauty of holiness, and recommend us to God; we read of robes made white with the blood of the Lamb.
            • 2. The flesh of the sacrifice, with the meat-offering annexed to it, was likewise divided between God and them, that (to speak with reverence) God and they might feast together, in token of friendship and fellowship.
              • (1.) Part of it was to be first waved before the Lord, and then burnt upon the altar; part of the flesh (v. 22), part of the bread, for bread and flesh must go together (v. 23); these were first put into the hands of Aaron to be waved to and fro, in token of their being offered to God (who, though unseen, yet compasses us round on every side), and then they were to be burnt upon the altar (v. 24, 25), for the altar was to devour God's part of the sacrifice. Thus God admitted Aaron and his sons to be his servants, and wait at his table, taking the mat of his altar from their hands. Here, in a parenthesis, as it were, comes in the law concerning the priests' part of the peace-offerings afterwards, the breast and shoulder, which were now divided; Moses had the breast, and the shoulder was burnt on the altar with God's part, v. 26-28.
              • (2.) The other part, both of the flesh of the ram and of the bread, Aaron and his sons were to eat at the door of the tabernacle (v. 31-33), to signify that he called them not only servants but friends, Jn. 15:15. He supped with them, and they with him. Their eating of the things wherewith the atonement was made signified their receiving the atonement, as the expression is (Rom. 5:11), their thankful acceptance of the benefit of it, and their joyful communion with God thereupon, which was the true intent and meaning of a feast upon a sacrifice. If any of it was left, it must be burnt, that it might not be in any danger of putrefying, and to show that it was an extraordinary peace-offering.
    • 2. The time that was to be spent in this consecration: Seven days shalt thou consecrate them, v. 35. Though all the ceremonies were performed on the first day, yet,
      • (1.) They were not to look upon their consecration as completed till the seven days' end, which put a solemnity upon their admission, and a distance between this and their former state, and obliged them to enter upon their work with a pause, giving them time to consider the weight and seriousness of it. This was to be observed in after-ages, v. 30. He that was to succeed Aaron in the high-priesthood must put on the holy garments seven days together, in token of a deliberate and gradual advance into his office, and that one sabbath might pass over him in his consecration.
      • (2.) Every day of the seven, in this first consecration, a bullock was to be offered for a sin-offering (v. 36), which was to intimate to them,
        • [1.] That it was of very great concern to them to get their sins pardoned, and that though atonement was made, and they had the comfort of it, yet they must still keep up a penitent sense of sin and often repeat the confession of it.
        • [2.] That those sacrifices which were thus offered day by day to make atonement could not make the comers thereunto perfect, for then they would have ceased to be offered, as the apostle argues, Heb. 10:1, 2. They must therefore expect the bringing in of a better hope.
    • 3. This consecration of the priests was a shadow of good things to come.
      • (1.) Our Lord Jesus is the great high-priest of our profession, called of God to be so, consecrated for evermore, anointed with the Spirit above his fellows (whence he is called Messiah, the Christ), clothed with the holy garments, even with glory and beauty, sanctified by his own blood, not that of bullocks and rams (Heb. 9:12), made perfect, or consecrated, through sufferings, Heb. 2:10. Thus in him this was a perpetual statute, v. 9.
      • (2.) All believers are spiritual priests, to offer spiritual sacrifices (1 Pt. 2:5), washed in the blood of Christ, and so made to our God priests, Rev. 1:5, 6. They also are clothed with the beauty of holiness, and have received the anointing, 1 Jn. 2:27. Their hands are filled with work, to which they must continually attend; and it is through Christ, the great sacrifice, that they are dedicated to this service. His blood sprinkled upon the conscience purges it from dead works, that they may, as priests, serve the living God. The Spirit of God (as Ainsworth notes) is called the finger of God (Lu. 11:20, compared with Mt. 12:28), and by him the merit of Christ is effectually applied to our souls, as here Moses with his finger was to put the blood upon Aaron. It is likewise intimated that gospel ministers are to be solemnly set apart to the work of the ministry with great deliberation and seriousness both in the ordainers and in the ordained, as those that are to be employed in a great work and entrusted with a great charge.
  • II. The consecration of the altar, which seems to have been coincident with that of the priests, and the sin-offerings which were offered every day for seven days together had reference to the altar as well as the priests, v. 36, 37. An atonement was made for the altar. Though that was not a subject capable of sin, nor, having never yet been used, could it be said to be polluted with the sins of the people, yet, since the fall, there can be no sanctification to God but there must first be an atonement for sin, which renders us both unworthy and unfit to be employed for God. The altar was also sanctified, not only set apart itself to a sacred use, but made so holy as to sanctify the gifts that were offered upon it, Mt. 23:19. Christ is our altar; for our sakes he sanctified himself, that we and our performances might be sanctified and recommended to God, Jn. 17:19.

Exd 29:38-46

In this paragraph we have,

  • I. The daily service appointed. A lamb was to be offered upon the altar every morning, and a lamb every evening, each with a meat-offering, both made by fire, as a continual burnt-offering throughout their generations, v. 38-41. Whether there were any other sacrifices to be offered or not, these were sure to be offered, at the public charge, for the benefit and comfort of all Israel, to make atonement for their daily sins, and to be an acknowledgement to God of their daily mercies. This was that which the duty of every day required. The taking away of this daily sacrifice by Antiochus, for so many evenings and mornings, was that great calamity of the church which was foretold, Dan. 8:11. Note,
    • 1. This typified the continual intercession which Christ ever lives to make, in virtue of his satisfaction, for the continual sanctification of his church: though he offered himself once for all, yet that one offering thus becomes a continual offering.
    • 2. This teaches us to offer up to God the spiritual sacrifices of prayer and praise every day, morning and evening, in humble acknowledgement of our dependence upon him and our obligations to him. Our daily devotions must be looked upon as the most needful of our daily works and the most pleasant of our daily comforts. Whatever business we have, this must never be omitted, either morning or evening; prayer-time must be kept up as duly as meat-time. The daily sacrifices were as the daily meals in God's house, and therefore they were always attended with bread and wine. Those starve their own souls that keep not up a constant attendance on the throne of grace.
  • II. Great and precious promises made of God's favour to Israel, and the tokens of his special presence with them, while they thus kept up his institutions among them. He speaks as one well pleased with the appointment of the daily sacrifice; for, before he proceeds to the other appointments that follow, he interposes these promises. It is constancy in religion that brings in the comfort of it. He promises,
    • 1. That he would keep up communion with them; that he would not only meet Moses, and speak to him, but that he would meet the children of Israel, (v. 43), to accept the daily sacrifices offered up on their behalf. Note, God will not fail to give those the meeting who diligently and conscientiously attend upon him in the ordinances of his own appointment.
    • 2. That he would own his own institutions, the tabernacle, the altar, the priesthood (v. 43, 44); he would take possession of that which was consecrated to him. Note, What is sanctified to the glory of God shall be sanctified by his glory. If we do our part, God will do his, and will mark and fit that for himself which is in sincerity given up to him.
    • 3. That he would reside among them as God in covenant with them, and would give them sure and comfortable tokens of his peculiar favour to them, and his special presence with them (v. 45, 46): I will dwell among the children of Israel. Note, Where God sets up the tabernacle of his ordinances he will himself dwell. Lo, I am with you always, Mt. 28:20. Those that abide in God's house shall have God to abide with them. I will be their God, and they shall know that I am so. Note, Those are truly happy that have a covenant-interest in God as theirs and the comfortable evidence of that interest. If we have this, we have enough, and need no more to make us happy.