Exodus 29:1-37

Exodus 29:1-37

[1] And this is the thing  that thou shalt do  unto them to hallow  them, to minister unto me in the priest's office:  Take  one  young  bullock,  and two  rams  without blemish,  [2] And unleavened  bread,  and cakes  unleavened  tempered  with oil,  and wafers  unleavened  anointed  with oil:  of wheaten  flour  shalt thou make  [3] And thou shalt put  them into one  basket,  and bring  them in the basket,  with the bullock  and the two  rams.  [4] And Aaron  and his sons  thou shalt bring  unto the door  of the tabernacle  of the congregation,  and shalt wash  them with water.  [5] And thou shalt take  the garments,  and put  upon Aaron  the coat,  and the robe  of the ephod,  and the breastplate,  and gird  him with the curious girdle  of the ephod:  [6] And thou shalt put  the mitre  upon his head,  and put  the holy  crown  upon the mitre.  [7] Then shalt thou take  the anointing  oil,  and pour  it upon his head,  and anoint  [8] And thou shalt bring  his sons,  and put  coats  [9] And thou shalt gird  them with girdles,  Aaron  and his sons,  and put  the bonnets  on them: and the priest's office  shall be theirs for a perpetual  statute:  and thou shalt consecrate  Aaron  and his sons.  [10] 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.  [11] And thou shalt kill  the bullock  before  the LORD,  by the door  of the tabernacle  of the congregation.  [12] 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.  [13] 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.  [14] 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.  [15] Thou shalt also take  one  ram;  and Aaron  and his sons  shall put  their hands  upon the head  of the ram.  [16] And thou shalt slay  the ram,  and thou shalt take  his blood,  and sprinkle  it round about  upon the altar.  [17] And thou shalt cut  the ram  in pieces,  and wash  the inwards  of him, and his legs,  and put  them unto his pieces,  and unto his head.  [18] 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.  [19] And thou shalt take  the other  ram;  and Aaron  and his sons  shall put  their hands  upon the head  of the ram.  [20] 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.  [21] And thou shalt take  of the blood  that is upon the altar,  and of the anointing  oil,  and sprinkle  it upon Aaron,  and upon his garments,  and upon his sons,  and upon the garments  of his sons  with him: and he shall be hallowed,  and his garments,  and his sons,  garments  [22] 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:  [23] 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:  [24] 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.  [25] And thou shalt receive  them of their hands,  and burn  them upon the altar  for a burnt offering,  for a sweet  savour  before  the LORD:  it is an offering made by fire  unto the LORD.  [26] And thou shalt take  the breast  of the ram  of Aaron's  consecration,  and wave  it for a wave offering  before  the LORD:  and it shall be thy part.  [27] And thou shalt sanctify  the breast  of the wave offering,  and the shoulder  of the heave offering,  which is waved,  and which is heaved up,  of the ram  of the consecration,  even of that which  is for Aaron,  and of that which is for his sons:  [28] 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:  from the children  of Israel  of the sacrifice  of their peace offerings,  even their heave offering  unto the LORD.  [29] And the holy  garments  of Aaron  shall be his sons'  after  him, to be anointed  therein, and to be consecrated  in them. [30] 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  [31] And thou shalt take  the ram  of the consecration,  and seethe  his flesh  in the holy  place.  [32] And Aaron  and his sons  shall eat  the flesh  of the ram,  and the bread  that is in the basket,  by the door  of the tabernacle  of the congregation.  [33] 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.  [34] And if ought of the flesh  of the consecrations,  or of the bread,  remain  unto the morning,  then thou shalt burn  the remainder  with fire:  it shall not be eaten,  because it is holy.  [35] And thus shalt thou do  unto Aaron,  and to his sons,  according to all things which I have commanded  thee: seven  days  shalt thou consecrate  [36] And thou shalt offer  every day  a bullock  for a sin offering  and thou shalt cleanse  the altar,  when thou hast made an atonement  for it, and thou shalt anoint  it, to sanctify  [37] 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. 

What does Exodus 29:1-37 Mean?

Contextual Meaning

The Israelites carried out the instructions given here later. The record of this seven-day ritual appears in Leviticus 8. I shall defer comment since Moses explained the offerings and procedures specified in this chapter more fully in Leviticus. The facts that God specified this ceremony in such detail and Moses recorded it at such length point to its importance for Israel.
"To Israel had been granted the privilege of being a special people; to Aaron and his sons was granted now the privilege of being a special mediating instrument between that people and Yahweh, their Lord. A covenant meal was always part of such an arrangement (cf. Exodus 24:11; Exodus 32:6), and that is precisely what is implied in the sharing of the ram of consecration by Yahweh and the priests." [1]
All the priests bathed, representing the necessity of cleanliness before God. The priests had sacrificial blood applied to their ears, thumbs, and big toes ( Exodus 29:20). This symbolized their complete consecration: to hear the word of God, to serve as mediators, and to walk as an example to others. They experienced sprinkling with blood signifying their complete sanctification. Their anointing with oil ( Exodus 29:21) represented their endowment with power by God"s Spirit for divine service.
"The investiture of the high priest consisted of nine acts ( Leviticus 8:7-9), whereas that of the ordinary priests involved but three." [2]