8:1. “And the
Lord spake unto Moses, saying,”
8:2. “Take
Aaron and his sons with him, and the garments, and the anointing oil, and a
bullock for the sin offering, and two rams, and a basket of unleavened
bread;”
Moses represents the
principle of law; and Aaron, the principle of grace, and it is to be noted
that in the preceding chapter, God's communication comes through both Moses
and Aaron, and for a good reason: law and grace are both involved when it
comes to our spiritual food, for had the sentence of the law not been
executed against our Representative at Calvary, there could be no spiritual
life to be nurtured by spiritual food. But grace has given Him to be our
Representative, to die in our stead, and in resurrection, to become the
spiritual food to nourish the new life bestowed by grace, and appropriated
by faith.
Since Aaron represents the
Lord Jesus Christ; and his sons, believers, the lesson being taught here
typologically relates to the Lord and to us who have become His sons through
faith in Him as our Savior and Lord, “Behold I and the children which God
has given me,” and “Now are we the sons of God,” Hebrews 2:13 and 1 John 3:2
Garments are to the body
what habits are to the life, so the new garments with which Aaron and his
sons were to be clothed, declare symbolically that believers are clothed in
Christ’s righteousness; and since the anointing oil represents the Holy
Spirit, their being anointed portrays the truth that every believer is also
anointed, i.e., we are indwelt, sealed, and empowered for service, by His
Holy Spirit; and the bullock for the sin offering, portrays Christ as the
One Who has voluntarily become our sin offering by dying in our guilty stead
for our sins. Since the ram is the biblical symbol of dedication, the one
sacrificed as a burnt offering, see verse 18, represents Christ’s dedication
of Himself even unto death, as being first for the Father’s glory; while the
second portrays Him as dying in our guilty stead for our sins, so that we
might be cleansed and fitted to serve God as a royal company of priests, see
1 Peter 2:9.
The basket of unleavened
bread represents the written Word which is as essential for our spiritual
well-being as is literal bread for our physical and mental health.
8:3. “And
gather thou all the congregation together unto the door of the tabernacle of
the congregation.”
God would have all the
congregation know that He had chosen Aaron and his sons to be His priests,
and thus allay any suspicion that they themselves were acting
presumptuously.
The same principle applies
today in the Church relative to the recognition of those whom God has gifted
as evangelists, elders, and teachers. Every believer is given his spiritual
gift at the moment of his conversion, but no one knows what that gift is
until, by his diligent faithfulness in doing what God gives him to do, it
becomes apparent to the assembly that the man has been given the gift of
evangelizing, shepherding, or teaching, he himself, almost invariably, being
the last to know that God has so endued him.
It is to be noted relative
to spiritual gift, that God has given two commands: “Neglect not the gift
that is in thee,” 1 Timothy 4:14; and “stir up the gift of God, which is in
thee,” 2 Timothy 1:6. The sorry state of the Church today, however, is
eloquent testimony to the fact that these commands have been blatantly
disobeyed.
While natural gift and
spiritual gift are altogether different, they do have some common features,
e.g., the great painters and musicians, while born with natural talent,
would never have become great had they not devoted countless hours to
developing their gift; and so is it with spiritual gift: unless developed by
assiduity it will lie dormant, its existence unsuspected, and wasted.
8:4. “And
Moses did as the Lord commanded him; and the assembly was gathered together
unto the door of the tabernacle of the congregation.”
Relative to “the door of
the tabernacle,” we must note that that entrance was a figure or type of the
Lord Jesus Christ Who said, “I am the door,” John 10:7, 9, so that their
gathering there to hear God’s word is the symbolic reminder that today God
speaks to men through His Son by means of the written Word, as it is
written, “God ... hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son....”
Hebrews 1:1-2. If we would hear God’s voice we must read the Bible.
8:5. “And
Moses said unto the congregation, This is the thing which the Lord commanded
to be done.”
What Moses was about to do
was what God had commanded to be done; and the care with which he obeyed
rebukes the nonchalance with which His commands are treated today even by
multitudes of professing Christians.
8:6. “And
Moses brought Aaron and his sons, and washed them with water.”
The physical cleansing
resulting from the literal washing, points symbolically to the fact that the
righteousness which is Christ’s inherently, belongs also to those who have
trusted Him as Savior. But it declares also that those who would render God
service must also be clean as to their walk or manner of life, i.e., every
known sin must be confessed to God, repented of, and forsaken, for God will
not use an unclean vessel, as it is written, “But as he who has called you
is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation (living); because it is
written, Be ye holy, for I am holy,” 1 Peter 1:15-16.
It is to be noted that
this overall washing was a one-time-only cleansing pointing to the complete
spiritual purification undergone by the believer at the moment of
conversion. Thereafter the priests had only to wash their hands and feet,
an act which declares symbolically that after conversion the believer only
needs daily to confess, repent of, and forsake the sin which occurs in his
life each day.
8:7. “And he
put upon him the coat, and girded him with the girdle, and clothed him with
the robe, and put the ephod upon him, and he girded him with the curious
girdle of the ephod, and bound it unto him therewith.”
The coat was an
undergarment or tunic, around which was tied the girdle or sash, and over
these were placed the robe and the ephod or sacred apron, and then on top of
them around his waist the “curious” girdle. i.e., the skilfully or
artistically made belt or waistband.
To gird, incidentally, is
to secure, encircle, support, fortify, etc., and relative to the believer’s
spiritual armor it is instructive to note what is written in Ephesians 6:14,
“Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth ....” the Bible
informing us that God’s Word is truth, John 17:17, “... thy word is truth.”
Inasmuch as five is the
number of responsibility, the five articles constituting Aaron’s priestly
uniform point to the fact that we who are constituted a royal kingdom of
priests, 1 Peter 2:9, are responsible to “serve God acceptably with
reverence and godly fear,” Hebrews 12:28. There being two sets of garments,
the inner and the outer, declares the truth that as the inward life which
God sees, is to be holy, so the outer life which man sees must also be holy.
The two girdles may also
represent the Scriptures: the Old and New Testaments; both of which are to
“gird” not only the outward life, but also the inward.
8:8. “And he
put the breastplate upon him: also he put in the breastplate the Urim and
the Thummim.”
The breastplate was
literally the linen pouch suspended from the shoulders of Aaron’s robe,
covering his breast, and studded with precious stones, each one having
engraved upon it the name of one of the tribes of Israel. Placed within
this pouch were the Urim, meaning lights, and the Thummim meaning
perfections, two precious stones used in a manner not explained, to
ascertain God’s will in connection with His people Israel. (A possible
means of use may have been that one stone represented Yes, and the other No,
the question used to ascertain God’s will being couched in such a way as to
permit a Yes or No answer, for example, Shall we go to battle? Aaron would
then withdraw one of the stones, without knowing which until he saw it).
8:9. “And he
put the miter upon his head; also upon the miter, even upon his forefront,
did he put the golden plate, the holy crown; as the Lord commanded Moses.”
The miter was a tall
pointed cap similar to that of a present-day bishop; and the golden plate or
crown on the front of it portrayed the glory of the One of Whom the priest
was the human representative. Today, in contrast, the man is to uncover his
head in the gatherings of the Church, for as declared in 1 Corinthians 11:7
“For a man indeed ought not to cover his head, forasmuch as he is the image
and glory of God ....”
8:10. “And Moses took the anointing oil, and anointed the
tabernacle and all that was therein, and sanctified them.”
Since oil is a symbol of
the Holy Spirit, and since the Tabernacle is a symbol of the Church, the
truth being declared in the application of the oil to the Tabernacle and all
its furniture, is that all those who comprise the Church are indwelt,
sealed, and empowered by the Holy Spirit, and sanctified, i.e., set apart
for God.
8:11. “And he sprinkled thereof upon the altar seven times,
and anointed the altar and all his vessels, both the laver and his foot, to
sanctify them.”
The altar, which was an OT
type of the cross, was uniquely associated with Israel’s worship, their
sacrifices being types of the Lord Jesus Christ. Its being sprinkled
therefore, seven times (number of perfection or completeness) with the oil,
reminds us that everything connected with the offering of His one perfect
Sacrifice on the cross was also under the control of the Holy Spirit, as it
is written in Hebrews 9:14 “How much more shall the blood of Christ, who
through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge
your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?”
The laver was the large
brazen cistern of unspecified size located in the outer court of the
Tabernacle, which held the water used for the cleansing of the priests in
connection with their presentation of the peoples’ sacrifices. It
represents the written Word, see for example Ephesians 5:26 “That he
(Christ) might sanctify and cleanse it (the Church) with the washing of
water by the word,” the water here being very clearly a type or
symbol of the written Word. Its “foot,” the base or pedestal upon which the
laver sat, may be symbolic of the throne of God, the unshakeable foundation
upon which every word of Scripture rests.
8:12. “And he poured of the anointing oil upon Aaron’s head,
and anointed him, to sanctify him.”
The oil is a symbol of the
Holy Spirit, and since Aaron is a type of Christ, the symbolic picture here
is of the Lord Jesus Christ’s being anointed with the Holy Spirit, as it is
written, “Thou has loved righteousness, and hated iniquity; therefore God,
even thy God, hath anointed thee with the oil of gladness above thy
fellows,” Hebrews 1:9.
The fact that the oil was
poured upon Aaron’s head speaks of the fulness of the measure of the
Lord’s anointing. With us there is continuous fluctuation of the extent to
which the Holy Spirit has control of our lives. There was no such variation
in Christ’s life. He was never less than completely filled with the Holy
Spirit.
“... to sanctify him.”
“Sanctify” means “to set apart,” and here Aaron is being set apart to serve
God as His high priest, in which capacity he is a type of Christ Who is our
great High Priest, see for example, Hebrews 2:17; 3:1; 4:14,15.
8:13. “And Moses brought Aaron’s sons, and put coats upon
them, and girded them with girdles, and put bonnets upon them; as the Lord
commanded Moses.”
Aaron’s sons represent
believers of this present Church age, the Lord Jesus Christ Himself
describing us as “the children” whom God has given Him, see Hebrews 2:13.
Their having coats put upon them portrays our state relative to
righteousness: the “filthy rags” of self-righteousness which were formerly
our only covering, have been exchanged for the spotless robe of Christ’s
righteousness.
The counterpart of their
having been girded with girdles, is that we are also girded, spiritually,
with the written Word, as declared in Ephesians 6:14, “Stand therefore,
having your loins girt about with truth ....” the definition of “truth”
being given in John 17:17, “... thy word is truth.”
Their having bonnets put
upon their heads speaks symbolically of their minds being guarded, and the
application of the type to us is stated in Romans 12:2, “... be ye
transformed by the renewing of your mind,” Philippians 2:5, “Let this mind
be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus,” and 1 Peter 1:13, “... gird up
the loins of your mind.”
“... as the Lord commanded
Moses,” warns us that for them, and for us, this was a command, not an
option.
8:14. “And he brought the bullock for the sin offering: and
Aaron and his sons laid their hands upon the head of the bullock for the sin
offering.”
Sin must be dealt with:
atoned for, and put away, before their priestly service could begin, and the
same truth applies to us. Before attempting to render any service, we must
examine ourselves, confessing, repenting of, and forsaking every known sin,
for God will not use an unclean vessel.
Here the bullock, the
largest and most costly of the offerings, is a type of Christ as the One,
Who by the offering of Himself, has atoned for and put away our sin.
8:15. “And he slew it; and Moses took the blood, and put it
upon the horns of the altar round about with his finger, and purified the
altar, and poured the blood at the bottom of the altar, and sanctified it,
to make reconciliation upon it.”
Its being slain declares
the truth that Christ must die before our sins could be atoned for and put
away. The application of the blood to the horns of the altar announces that
Christ’s sacrificial death was first for God’s glory; its being poured at
the bottom of the altar, telling us that it was also for the remission of
our sins.
The sanctification of the
altar, i.e., its being set apart for the presentation of Israel’s offerings
to God, typifies the truth that the Lord’s Table, around which we gather on
the first day of the week to remember the Lord’s death, and present our
worship to the Father, is also sanctified by the Lord’s blood shed at
Calvary for the remission of our sins.
“... to make
reconciliation upon it” points to the truth that by virtue of the Lord’s
precious blood, reconciliation has been effected between a holy God and
every believer, as it is written, “... that he (Christ) might reconcile both
(Jew and Gentile) in one body by the cross, having slain the enmity thereby:
and he came and preached peace to you which were afar off, and to them that
were nigh. For through him we both have access by one Spirit unto the
Father,” Ephesians 2:16-18. He is satisfied, and we ought to be too.
8:16. “And he took all the fat that was upon the inwards,
and the caul above the liver, and the two kidneys, and their fat, and Moses
burned it upon the altar.”
Fat is too rich for man’s
digestion, except in very small amounts. In the offerings it represents
that apprehension of Christ’s worth which is beyond human comprehension, God
alone being able to measure its merit. That truth is further emphasized in
the fact that all the fat mentioned here was attached to the inwards, the
hidden organs which man couldn’t see. The truth being declared symbolically
is that Christ’s sacrifice was first for the Father’s glory, and then for
the redemption of men’s souls.
8:17. “But the bullock, and his hide, his flesh, and his
dung, he burnt with fire without the camp: as the Lord commanded Moses.”
This presents another
aspect of Christ’s sacrifice which is the diametric opposite of the one we
have just discussed: it sets Him before us as the One who was willing to be
made sin so that we might be made righteous in God’s sight, as it is written
in 2 Corinthians 5:21, “For he hath made him who knew no sin, to be sin for
us, that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him.”
8:18. “And he brought the ram for the burnt offering: and
Aaron and his sons laid their hands upon the head of the ram.”
As noted already, the ram
was almost invariably the sacrifice associated with dedication, that fact
being confirmed here in that it was presented as a burnt offering in
connection with the dedication of Aaron and his sons. It speaks of Christ’s
life and death as being first for God’s glory. The fact that Aaron and his
sons “laid their hands upon the head of the ram” was the symbol of their
identification with it: their lives and service were also to be for God’s
glory.
The laying of their hands
on the ram’s head rather than on another part of its body, e.g., its
shoulders or back, is the symbolic reminder that dedicated service can’t be
separated from spiritual intelligence: they belong together.
8:19. “And he killed it, and Moses sprinkled the blood upon
the altar round about.”
While the death of the ram
foreshadows that of Christ, it also reminds us that effective service
requires that we too are to live as those who are also dead to the world,
having been crucified to it by the cross of Christ, see Galatians 6:14, “But
God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ,
by whom the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world.”
The blood sprinkled on and
around the altar continues to declare the value of Christ’s death in God’s
sight; but it declares also the value to God of the life of the believer who
lives in this world as having been crucified to it, and it unto him.
It is generally understood
that it was Moses who slew the ram, but since he represents the principle of
law, the truth thus declared is that it is man’s violation of God’s law that
required Christ to die in our stead if we were to live.
8:20. “And he cut the ram into pieces; and Moses burnt the
head, and the pieces, and the fat.”
It is also generally
accepted that it was Moses who dissected the animal; while the special
mention of the head first, reminds us that the Lord Jesus Christ came to
earth fully aware of all that lay before Him, including the terrible death
He would die as man’s Representative, before returning to heaven.
The pieces into which it
was cut seem to portray the truth that every phase and activity of the
Lord’s life, from His childhood till His death, were characterized by the
same holiness as marked the few years of His public ministry.
8:21. “And he washed the inwards and the legs in water; and
Moses burnt the whole ram upon the altar: it was a burnt sacrifice for a
sweet savor, and an offering made by fire unto the Lord; as the Lord
commanded Moses.”
The inwards represent the
Lord’s inner life which only the Father could see, while the legs portray
His public life lived under the scrutiny of men; the washing of both parts
with water declaring that every part of His life was washed in, i.e.,
governed by the “water” of the written Word. Because His life was thus
“washed” it was a perpetual burnt offering, a sweet savor to the Father.
But since fire is a symbol of the Holy Spirit, and also of testing, its
being “an offering made by fire unto the Lord” tells us that amid all the
testings of earth, Christ’s whole life as Son of man, was lived under the
Holy Spirit’s control, hence its being a sweet savor to the Father.
The practical lesson for
us is that if our lives are to be pleasing to God amid all the testings of
earth, they too must be lived in the same manner. And that this mode of
life is not merely an option but an imperative, is declared in the words “as
the Lord commanded Moses.”
8:22. “And he brought the other ram, the ram of
consecration: and Aaron and his sons laid their hands upon the head of the
ram.”
As discussed above, the
ram of consecration portrays the life of the Lord Jesus Christ as being
completely devoted to the will of the Father, even unto death. Aaron and
his sons laying their hands on the head of this ram, declares symbolically
that we too are to identify with Him by a similar dedication of our lives to
God
8:23. “And he slew it; and Moses took of the blood of it,
and put it upon the tip of Aaron’s right ear, and upon the thumb of his
right hand, and upon the great toe of his right foot.”
The slain ram continues to
portray the Lord in His death; and the laying of the hands of Aaron and his
sons upon its head continues to picture our identification with Christ in
His death. We too have become dead to this world and all that pertains to
it, hence the imperative of avoiding involvement with it and its affairs
more than is absolutely necessary. We are to pass through it as pilgrims
and strangers traversing an enemy’s land on our way home to heaven.
The placing of the ram’s
blood on the tip of Aaron’s right ear is the symbolic declaration of the
fact that our ears are to be attuned to Christ’s voice speaking to us from
the pages of Scripture. We are to obey it.
The right hand is the
symbol of power and service, and the blood upon it tells us that we are to
be about the Lord’s business during our brief sojourn here on earth. And
since the foot is the symbol of our walk or manner of life, the blood upon
the great toe of Aaron’s right foot declares the imperative of living our
lives in such fashion as to demonstrate that we belong to Christ, and are
responsible to live so as to glorify Him.
8:24. “And he brought Aaron’s sons, and Moses put of the
blood upon the tip of their right ear, and upon the thumbs of their right
hands, and upon the great toes of their right feet: and Moses sprinkled the
blood upon the altar round about.”
The blood-anointed ear
speaks of obedience to God’s Word; the anointed right thumb, of obedient
service; the anointed right big toe, of an obedient walk. In all of this,
Christ, typified here by Aaron, was perfectly obedient, but Aaron, being
only a man, was not: there were failures in his life. What is portrayed
here typologically, applies to us as redeemed men, and in spite of the
failure that is inseparable from our human-though-redeemed state, we are to
strive after the perfection of the divine pattern.
Since that blood with
which they were anointed represents the precious blood of Christ with which
we are anointed spiritually, its being sprinkled upon and round about the
altar continues to remind us that the Lord’s sacrifice was first for the
Father’s glory.
8:25. “And he took the fat, and the rump, and all the fat
that was upon the inwards, and the caul above the liver, and the two
kidneys, and their fat, and the right shoulder:
“... the caul” is the
innermost membrane of the sac surrounding an embryo, but in the present
context it is the fatty membrane located above the liver. The rump and the
shoulder, the most heavily fleshed sections of an animal, are the only
non-fatty parts mentioned here. They speak of Christ as the spiritual food
of His redeemed people available to us in the Old and New Testaments.
8:26. “And out of the basket of unleavened bread, that was
before the Lord, he took one unleavened cake, and a cake of oiled bread, and
one wafer, and put them on the fat, and upon the right shoulder:”
The one unleavened cake
taken from the basket of unleavened bread portrays Christ in His sinless
humanity; and the cake of oiled bread represents Him as being anointed with
the Holy Spirit; while the one wafer (a very thin cake) points to His being
tested under God’s judgment against sin, He, Christ, having voluntarily
taken our sins upon Himself, and yet remaining Himself sinless.
The placing of these
things upon the fat - which represents the richness of Christ’s life -
continues to point to the truth that
His taking our sins upon
Himself did not diminish His own inherent holiness. The placing of them
also upon the right shoulder - the side of power and might - informs us that
He, and only He, could die the death which is the concomitant of sin, and
yet rise again to live in the power of an endless life, see Hebrews 7:16,
“Who is made, not after the law of a carnal commandment, but after the power
of an endless life.”
8:27. “And he put all upon Aaron’s hands, and upon his
sons’ hands, and waved them for a wave offering before the Lord.”
A wave offering was one
which the offerer held out horizontally towards the altar, whereas the heave
offering was lifted up vertically towards heaven. The wave offering speaks
principally of man’s service here on earth; the heave offering, of his
worship presented to God in heaven. In the present instance the wave
offering speaks not only of the earthly service of Aaron and his sons -
which is itself typological of ours - but also of the Lord’s service here on
earth. In His life and death He was the true wave offering typified by all
the others offered during the OT age.
8:28. “And Moses took them from off their hands, and burnt
them on the altar upon the burnt offering: they were consecrations for a
sweet savor: it is an offering made by fire unto the Lord.”
It was Moses, the
representative of law, who received these things from the hands of Aaron and
his sons, and who, as their representative, offered them to God, Who bids us
see in them that one perfect sacrifice of which all the others were but
types.
Inasmuch however, as they
were “consecrations,” i.e., for the consecration of Aaron and his sons to
God’s service - Aaron being a type of Christ; and his sons, of us - the
practical lesson being taught is that we too who are constituted a royal
kingdom of priests, are also to consciously dedicate ourselves to God’s
service, the Lord Jesus Christ, our great High Priest, being our perfect
Example.
“... it is an offering
made by fire,” reminds us that a dedication made in the energy of the flesh
is worthless: the Holy Spirit, represented here by the fire, must be given
complete control of our lives; He alone must direct our service.
8:29. “And Moses took the breast, and waved it for a wave
offering before the Lord: for of the ram of consecration it was Moses’ part;
as the Lord commanded Moses.”
In Scripture the breast
always speaks of affection, love, and tenderness, but since Moses represents
law, his being given the breast as his portion, is very clearly to teach us
that our service is not to be a cold, legalistic thing divorced from love,
for if love is not the impelling force behind all that we do, then our
service is worthless, as is declared in 1 Corinthians 13:1-3, “Though I
speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not love, I am become
as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal. And though I have the gift of
prophecy, and understand all mysteries, and all knowledge; and though I have
all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not love, I am
nothing. And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I
give my body to be burned, and have not love, it profiteth me nothing.”
8:30. “And Moses took of the anointing oil, and of the
blood which was upon the altar, and sprinkled it upon Aaron, and upon his
garments, and upon his sons, and upon his sons’ garments with him; and
sanctified Aaron, and his garments, and his sons, and his sons’ garments
with him.”
As discussed already, oil
is a symbol of the Holy Spirit; and the blood represents that of Christ by
which we are redeemed. The sprinkling therefore of the oil and blood upon
Aaron and his sons, and upon their garments, speaks symbolically of the fact
that every believer is similarly redeemed and anointed. Since garments
represent the outward life seen by men, their being sprinkled with the oil
and blood teaches us that our changed state is to be made apparent to men by
our manner of living. The blood and oil upon their flesh is to remind us
that the holiness which meets the eye of man is not to be a mere outward
superficiality: it must also meet the omniscient eye of God.
Their being sanctified
means simply that they were set apart for God, as we also have been, and our
lives should be such as will make that evident to those who observe our
daily lives.
8:31. “And Moses said unto Aaron and to his sons, Boil the
flesh at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation: and there eat it
with bread that is in the basket of consecrations, as I commanded, saying,
Aaron and his sons shall eat it.”
This verse tells us that
Bible study is an imperative, not an option, for the spiritual counterpart
of literal eating is the nurturing of our spiritual lives with the bread of
heaven, the Scriptures.
There are two essentials
involved in boiling: 1) a vessel to hold the water and the item being
boiled, and 2) a fire; and their counterparts are necessary in connection
with Bible study. The believer is the vessel; the water is the part of the
Word already known; the item being boiled is the portion of Scripture
presently being studied; and the fire is the Holy Spirit; “the bread in the
basket of consecrations” is the whole Word.
Their having to prepare
and eat their food “at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation,”
i.e., at the place where their daily service began, declares the truth that
each day must begin with the study of a portion of Scripture if we would
hope to render effective service.
Its being reserved
exclusively for Aaron and his sons is the symbolic announcement of the truth
that only believers can understand the Scriptures, as it is written, “But
the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are
foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually
discerned,” 1 Corinthians 2:14, “receiveth” here meaning to receive
favorably, give ear, embrace, make one’s own, approve, not to reject.
8:32. “And that which remaineth of the flesh and of the
bread shall ye burn with fire.”
The lesson being taught in
this command is that there must be a daily intake of spiritual food, i.e., a
daily reading and meditating on a portion of Scripture. Yesterday’s portion
is not sufficient for today.
8:33. “And ye shall not go out of the door of the
tabernacle of the congregation in seven days, until the days of your
consecration be at an end: for seven days shall he consecrate you.”
Since seven is the number
of perfection or completion, these seven days represent the whole of the
believer’s life, and teach the lesson that as long as he lives the believer
must continue to read, meditate upon, and obey what is written in
Scripture.
8:34. “As he hath done this day, so the Lord hath commanded
to do, to make an atonement for you.”
This means simply that the
ritual of that day was to be continued for the seven days of the dedication
period, “... to make an atonement for you” being the reminder that only
those whose sins have been atoned for, i.e., believers, can render God
service.
8:35. “Therefore shall ye abide at the door of the
tabernacle of the congregation day and night seven days, and keep the charge
of the Lord, that ye die not: for so I am commanded.”
Their having to “abide at
the door of the tabernacle ...” through which they would go out at the end
of their period of service, is the symbolic reminder that we too are to
abide spiritually in the same place. We are to live each day in the
realization that it could be our last on earth. Today could be the day in
which we will be called home to heaven.
Their having “to keep the
charge of the Lord,” i.e., obey God’s commands, warns us that we too are
under the same obligation.
“... that ye die not.”
This may not be taken to teach that a believer could lose his salvation, but
rather that time spent in disobedience is time in which we might as well be
dead, for it will bring us no reward on that day when we shall stand at the
Bema, the judgment seat of Christ.
8:36. “So Aaron and his sons did all things which the Lord
commanded by the hand of Moses.”
As discussed already,
Aaron is a type of Christ as our great High Priest; and his sons, types of
believers. We are to duplicate their obedience. “... all things which the
Lord commanded by the hand of Moses” is the repeated reminder that obedience
is an imperative, not an option.
[Leviticus 9]