Exodus 29 Commentary

“Then shalt thou take the anointing oil, and pour it upon his head, and anoint him.”

Pour, in the form of a cross or T, according to many of the Rabbin, &c. The inferior priests were anointed only on the hands. The Levites were sprinkled with oil, mixed with the blood of the victims. The custom of anointing prophets, priests, and kings, was peculiar to the Jews; as if to foreshow Christ, the great anointed of the Lord. (St. Augustine; Psalm xliv.; Daniel ix. 24.)

“And thou shalt cause a bullock to be brought before the tabernacle of the congregation: and Aaron and his sons shall put their hands upon the head of the bullock.”

Head. Confessing that they are sinners, and deserve to die. Thus they shall substitute the victim instead of themselves, and obtain pardon. In the holocaust, (ver. 15,) and the peace-offering, (ver. 19,) they impose their hands, having first washed them) and pronounce some prayer. (Calmet)

“And thou shalt kill the bullock before the LORD, by the door of the tabernacle of the congregation.”

Beside. Al, is now wanting in the printed Hebrew and Samaritan, though expressed by the Protestant translators, (who often help their text) and by all the ancient versions. Kennicott mentions one manuscript, which retains it very properly. (Haydock) — The victim was offered on the altar of holocausts, before the tabernacle, the seat of God’s majesty. (Calmet) — Moses was the priest on this occasion. (Menochius) (Psalm xcviii. 6.)

“And thou shalt take of the blood of the bullock, and put it upon the horns of the altar with thy finger, and pour all the blood beside the bottom of the altar.”

Horns. This was done in all the sacrifices of expiation. After Aaron was ordained, he carried the blood into the sanctuary, for the sins of all. (Calmet)

“And thou shalt take all the fat that covereth the inwards, and the caul that is above the liver, and the two kidneys, and the fat that is upon them, and burn them upon the altar. the caul: it seemeth by anatomy, and the Hebrew doctors, to be the midriff”

Burnt-offering, (incensum.) To evaporate like incense. (Menochius) — God requires what is most fat and delicious. (Calmet) — The Persians never reserved any of the victims for their idols, except the caul. (Strabo xv.)

“But the flesh of the bullock, and his skin, and his dung, shalt thou burn with fire without the camp: it is a sin offering.”

Sin of the high priest and people. In the other sin-offerings, this was not done. (Menochius)

“And thou shalt slay the ram, and thou shalt take his blood, and sprinkle it round about upon the altar.”

About, upon the altar, and at the foot of it. So the pagans did. (Eusebius, pręp. iv. 9.)

“And thou shalt burn the whole ram upon the altar: it is a burnt offering unto the LORD: it is a sweet savour, an offering made by fire unto the LORD.”

Victim. Hebrew ishe, means a whole burnt-offering.

“Then shalt thou kill the ram, and take of his blood, and put it upon the tip of the right ear of Aaron, and upon the tip of the right ear of his sons, and upon the thumb of their right hand, and upon the great toe of their right foot, and sprinkle the blood upon the altar round about.”

Tip, or “softer part,” Septuagint. This ceremony insinuated, that the priests ought to be all attentive, and perform their office with diligence. (Philo, Vit. Mos. 3)

“Also thou shalt take of the ram the fat and the rump, and the fat that covereth the inwards, and the caul above the liver, and the two kidneys, and the fat that is upon them, and the right shoulder; for it is a ram of consecration:”

Rump, or tail, for which the sheep of Arabia were famed; some having tails three yards long, others a yard thick. (Herodotus, iii. 113.) They weighed from 12 to 30 pounds, and were almost all fat. (Calmet)

“And one loaf of bread, and one cake of oiled bread, and one wafer out of the basket of the unleavened bread that is before the LORD:”

Roll. (torta) Hebrew kikkar, “a loaf.” Septuagint, “a loaf or cake of oil.” (Haydock)

“And thou shalt put all in the hands of Aaron, and in the hands of his sons; and shalt wave them for a wave offering before the LORD. shalt wave: or, shalt shake to and fro”

Elevating, and then letting them descend towards the earth. After which, Moses lifted the victims towards the east and west, and from north to south, to shew that God is the Sovereign of the world. (R. Solomon) — Cato (Rustic. 34,) mentions a similar custom, of agitating or waving bread, in honour of Janus and of Jupiter. (Calmet)

“And it shall be Aaron's and his sons' by a statute for ever from the children of Israel: for it is an heave offering: and it shall be an heave offering from the children of Israel of the sacrifice of their peace offerings, even their heave offering unto the LORD.”

Israel. As these parts have been offered by Aaron to the Lord, so the Israelites shall present them to him and his sons, when they offer sacrifice. (Menochius) — All the different kinds of victims were immolated on this occasion, because the priests were consecrated to offer them all. (Du Hamel)

“And the holy garments of Aaron shall be his sons' after him, to be anointed therein, and to be consecrated in them.”

Vesture. A new one was not made for every high priest. (Calmet) — One of the other priests had to perform the ceremony of consecration. (Menochius)

“And that son that is priest in his stead shall put them on seven days, when he cometh into the tabernacle of the congregation to minister in the holy place. that son: Heb. he of his sons”

Days. During which he could not leave the sanctuary, Leviticus viii. 33. On each day, the aforesaid ceremonies were to be repeated, ver. 35.

“And thou shalt take the ram of the consecration, and seethe his flesh in the holy place.”

Holy place. The court of the tabernacle, where a constant fire was kept, to prepare the food of the priests, and sometimes of others, who wished to eat their share of the victims in the presence of the Lord.

“And they shall eat those things wherewith the atonement was made, to consecrate and to sanctify them: but a stranger shall not eat thereof, because they are holy.”

Stranger. The Levites themselves could not partake of these things.

“Seven days thou shalt make an atonement for the altar, and sanctify it; and it shall be an altar most holy : whatsoever toucheth the altar shall be holy.”

Seven. This number is frequently prescribed in Scripture. Balaam required seven altars, (Numbers xxiii.) and the Egyptians never spent less than seven days in their expiations. (Porphyrius, Abstin. 4.) (Calmet) — Shall be holy, consecrated according to this rite, (Menochius) or defiled; for sacred things purify those who approach in a proper manner, while they defile, or increase the guilt of the unworthy. (Calmet) — By the unleavened bread, (ver. 23,) we are reminded of the blessed eucharist; and by oil, of the grace of the spirit. (Du Hamel)

“The one lamb thou shalt offer in the morning; and the other lamb thou shalt offer at even:”

Morning. About sun-rise. — Evening, or between the two vespers, Exodus xii. 6. The lambs were provided by the people; flour, wine, and oil, by the priests. (Philo) — The wine was poured at the foot of the altar, the flour and oil were burnt upon it, and not placed on the head of the victim, as was customary among the pagans, frontique invergit vina sacerdos. (Virgil, vi.; Maimonides) By these sacrifices, God was to be adored as the author both of day and night; (Menochius) and we are admonished of our duty of praying to him, particularly at those times. (Haydock) — All the sacrifices prefigured that of Christ, (St. Augustine, contra advers. i. 18,) but none more than these of lambs. (Origen in Jo.) (Worthington)

“And with the one lamb a tenth deal of flour mingled with the fourth part of an hin of beaten oil; and the fourth part of an hin of wine for a drink offering.”

Part of an epha, half of which was used in each sacrifice.

“And there I will meet with the children of Israel, and the tabernacle shall be sanctified by my glory. the tabernacle: or, Israel”

Glory, or presence, or by the flame which shall come down from heaven to consume the victim, Leviticus ix. 24. (Calmet)