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Expanded Comments |
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| 1 'And this [is] the thing which thou dost to them, to hallow them, for being priests to Me: Take one bullock, a son of the herd, and two rams, perfect ones, |
One young bullock – All that happened to the bullock represented what was to be done to Jesus and to his Body, the Church, as human beings. T41
And two rams – The ram for the burnt-offering to show how God receives our sacrifice, and the ram of consecration to show what effect the sacrifice will have upon us. T45
Without blemish – Had our Lord not been absolutely free from sin he never could have redeemed us. R1186:6
The sacrifice which we are privileged to make is of things to which we have a right through Christ, which in themselves are lawful and right. R1187:1
The sacrifice of all our rights implies the sacrifice of life itself as human beings. R1187:4
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| 2 and bread unleavened, and cakes unleavened anointed with oil, of fine wheaten flour thou dost make them, |
And unleavened bread – Representing the actual purity of Jesus and the imputed purity of the Church-justification. T46
Tempered with oil – Representing the indwelling spirit of God-- sanctification. T46
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| 3 and thou hast put them on one basket, and hast brought them near in the basket, also the bullock and the two rams. |
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| 4 'And Aaron and his sons thou dost bring near unto the opening of the tent of meeting, and hast bathed them with water; |
Aaron and his sons – Representing the new spiritual nature of The Christ. T41
Bring unto the door – Symbol of the death of the human will. T21
Wash them with water – To represent the purity of Jesus, who knew no sin, and his Church, cleansed through his precious blood and "the washing of water by the word." (Eph. 5:26) T29
The consecration of the priests began at the laver. R117:1
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| 5 and thou hast taken the garments, and hast clothed Aaron with the coat, and the upper robe of the ephod, and the ephod, and the breastplate, and hast girded him with the girdle of the ephod, |
The coat – Representing Christ's purity, while its embroidery showed works of grace. T29
Robe of the ephod – Representing Christ's faithfulness. T30
And the ephod – Type of the Abrahamic covenant (front part) and the New covenant (back part). T30
And the breastplate – Type of the Law. T34
With the curious girdle – Representing a servant. "The Messenger (servant) of the covenant whom ye delight in." (Mal. 3:1) T33
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| 6 and hast set the mitre on his head, and hast put the holy crown on the mitre, |
Put the holy crown – Representing the power to rule. B83
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| 7 and hast taken the anointing oil, and hast poured [it] on his head, and hast anointed him. |
The anointing oil – Typifying the holy Spirit. T29, T37, T116; D650; R5654:5
And anoint him – Only the High Priest was anointed. As with the under-priests, the antitypical priests are merely partakers of the spirit of Christ, and only those who are in Christ Jesus partake of his anointing. T37
The High Priest was anointed with oil, which constituted the divine evidence of his call to the priestly office. SM598:2
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| 8 'And his sons thou dost bring near, and hast clothed them [with] coats, |
Bring his sons – Sons only. Similarly, only the males were chosen to be the special public servants and ambassadors of the Gospel. F265
Put coats upon them - Linen garments, representing the righteousness of Jesus imputed to us. F36
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| 9 and hast girded them [with] a girdle (Aaron and his sons), and hast bound on them bonnets; and the priesthood hath been theirs by a statute age-during, and thou hast consecrated the hand of Aaron, and the hand of his sons, |
With girdles – Representing us as servants of righteousness. T36
Bonnets on them – To indicate that they were not the head, but merely members of the body. God gave Jesus "to be the head over all things to the church, which is his body." (Eph. 1:22, 23) T36
In covering their heads the under-priests said, we are headless, the High Priest is our head. The spiritual Royal Priesthood must all be headless also. R2845:4
For a perpetual statute – Or, age-lasting. Aaron's family lost the priesthood 1800 years ago. HG582:3*
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| 10 and hast brought near the bullock before the tent of meeting, and Aaron hath laid his sons also their hands on the head of the bullock. |
Cause a bullock – No goat, because it was not "for the people." (Lev. 16:15) R4384:6
Tabernacle of the congregation - More properly, the tent of meeting. So called, not because the Israelites met here as a congregation, but because it was here that God met with the children of Israel and communicated with them. R4029:6
Put their hands – Thus saying, this sacrifice represents us. T41; R73:1
Upon the head of the bullock – In the consecration of the priests a bullock only is shown as the sin offering (no goat, because it was not "for the people"). R4384:6
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| 11 'And thou hast slaughtered the bullock before Jehovah, at the opening of the tent of meeting, |
And thou – Moses, representing the Law. T41
Kill the bullock – To meet the demands of the Law. T41
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| 12 and hast taken of the blood of the bullock, and hast put [it] on the horns of the altar with thy finger, and all the blood thou dost pour out at the foundation of the altar; |
Take of the blood – Representing the life given. T42
Upon the horns – Horns are symbols of power. T42
Of the altar – The "finger of the Lord" thus pointed out that the altar of earthly sacrifices was acceptable to God by reason of the shed blood, and that all who realize the power of the altar must first recognize the blood which sanctifies it. T42; R73:1
Bottom of the altar – The blood poured at the base of the altar showed that through the blood of the sacrifice even the earth was purchased back from the curse. T42
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| 13 and thou hast taken all the fat which is covering the inwards, and the redundance on the liver, and the two kidneys, and the fat which [is] on them, and hast made perfume on the altar; |
Take all the fat – Symbol of loving zeal. T57
And burn them – Representing the steady, continuous submission to the fiery ordeal of suffering. T71
Upon the altar – Showing that God accepts the heart devotion which prompts the sacrifice. T42
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| 14 and the flesh of the bullock, and his skin, and his dung, thou dost burn with fire at the outside of the camp; it [is] a sin-offering. |
And his dung – The world dis-esteems the sacrifices of the saints as the consuming of "the filth and offscouring of the earth." (1 Cor. 4:13) "They shall say all manner of evil against you falsely for my sake." (Matt. 5:11) T62
Burn with fire – Representing the destruction to which the world was doomed, and from which it will ultimately be delivered by the sacrifice of The Christ. T42
Representing the gradual destruction of the flesh. R4385:1
Jesus' flesh suffered the destruction which otherwise would have come upon all men. R73:2
Without the camp – Thus the humanity of the Royal Priesthood is destroyed as a vile thing in the eyes of the world. T42, T62
"Let us go forth therefore unto him without the camp, bearing his reproach." (Heb. 13:13) T62
Outside the camp signifies ostracism, rejection of men, dishonor. R4385:1
As living next door to a worldly neighbor and bearing the reproach of those, living as a consecrated priest of the Lord. Q688:T
We are in harmony with this burning outside the camp. The New Creature says, "Let the flesh burn." We suffer in this burning, but do so willingly. CR487:1
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| 15 'And the one ram thou dost take, and Aaron and his sons have laid their hands on the head of the ram, |
Also take one ram – The first ram, showing how God receives our sacrifice. T45
Aaron and his sons – Representing the new spiritual nature of The Christ. T41
Put their hands – Thus indicating that it represented them. T42
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| 16 and thou hast slaughtered the ram, and hast taken its blood, and hast sprinkled [it] on the altar round about, |
And thou – Moses, representing the Law. T41
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| 17 and the ram thou dost cut into its pieces, and hast washed its inwards, and its legs, and hast put [them] on its pieces, and on its head; |
Wash the inwards – Representing the washing of water through the word. (Eph 5:26) T45
Unto his pieces – Representing the members of Christ's Body. T45; SM559:2
The pieces, laid in order to the head, represent the relationship of the members of the Body with the Lord, the Head of the Body. R4384:6
And unto his head – Representing the Lord Jesus, who was laid on the altar first. T45
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| 18 and thou hast made perfume with the whole ram on the altar. It [is] a burnt-offering to Jehovah, a sweet fragrance; a fire-offering it [is] to Jehovah. |
Burn the whole ram – Representing steady submission to fiery trials. T71
A burnt offering – Representing the Lord and the Church in their united, and yet divided, relationship. R4384:6
Is a sweet savour – Showing how God accepts the sacrifice. T45; R73:2
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| 19 'And thou hast taken the second ram, and Aaron hath laid his sons also their hands on the head of the ram, |
Take the other ram – To show the effect the sacrifice has on us. T45
Aaron and his sons – Representing the new spiritual nature of The Christ. T41
Put their hands – Thus indicating that it represented them. T42
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| 20 and thou hast slaughtered the ram, and hast taken of its blood, and hast put on the tip of the right ear of Aaron, and on the tip of the right ear of his sons, and on the thumb of their right hand, and on the great toe of their right foot, and hast sprinkled the blood on the altar round about; |
Then shalt thou – Moses, representing the Law. T41
Take of his blood – Representing the consecrated life. T45
Of the right ear – Representing that by consecration we get the "hearing of faith." (Gal. 3:2) T45
Of his sons – Showing that our consecration is individual. T45
Their right hand – Our hands are consecrated, so that what so ever our hands find to do we do it with our might, as unto the Lord. T45
Their right foot – Our feet are consecrated, so that henceforth we "walk not as other Gentiles," (Eph 4:17) but "walk in newness of life," (Rom. 6:4) "walk by faith," (2 Cor. 5:7) "Walk in the spirit," (Gal. 5:16) "walk in the light," (1John 1:7) and even "as we received Christ, so walk in him." (Col. 2:6) T45
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| 21 and thou hast taken of the blood which [is] on the altar, and of the anointing oil, and hast sprinkled on Aaron, and on his garments, and on his sons, and on the garments of his sons with him, and he hath been hallowed, he, and his garments, and his sons, and the garments of his sons with him. |
Take of the blood – Teaching that our consecration is accepted only because we are justified by the precious blood of our Redeemer. T46; F131
And of the anointing oil – "There are three that bear record: the spirit and the water and the blood, and these three agree in one." (1 John 5:8). R73:5
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| 22 'And thou hast taken from the ram the fat, and the fat tail, and the fat which is covering the inwards, and the redundance on the liver, and the two kidneys, and the fat which [is] on them, and the right leg, for it [is] a ram of consecration, |
The fat – Symbol of loving zeal. T57
The more love (fat) there is connected with our consecration, the more quickly will it be accepted by him as entire consecration. R73:4
The two kidneys – Representing our heart sentiments, our best powers. T45
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| 23 and one round cake of bread, and one cake of oiled bread, and one thin cake out of the basket of the unleavened things which [is] before Jehovah. |
One loaf of bread – Unleavened, representing the actual purity of Jesus and the imputed purity of the Church--justification. T46
First, we acknowledge the purity of the man Christ Jesus. R73:4
Cake of oiled bread – Representing the indwelling spirit of God-- sanctification. T46
Showing Jesus as our High Priest "filled with the spirit." R73:4
One wafer – Showing our appreciation of him as our glorified Lord. R73:4
The basket – Representative of all their bread. R73:4
Of the unleavened bread – Purity. R73:4
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| 24 'And thou hast set the whole on the hands of Aaron, and on the hands of his sons, and hast waved them a wave-offering before Jehovah; |
Put all -The acknowledgments of Christ, shown by the three cakes, are necessary to the acceptance of our consecration. R73:4
For a wave offering – Passed to and fro before the Lord. T45
Representing that a consecrated offering is not given to the Lord for a limited time, but never ceases until we have finished our course. T45
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| 25 and thou hast taken them out of their hand, and hast made perfume on the altar beside the burnt-offering, for sweet fragrance before Jehovah; a fire-offering it [is] to Jehovah. |
Of their hands – They did not lay them down, and so we may not cease to offer all our powers in God's service until all are consumed. T46
Burn them – God's acceptance is shown by fire. R73:4
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| 26 'And thou hast taken the breast from the ram of the consecration which [is] for Aaron, and hast waved it a wave-offering before Jehovah, and it hath become thy portion; |
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| 27 and thou hast sanctified the breast of the wave-offering, and the leg of the heave-offering, which hath been waved, and which hath been lifted up from the ram of the consecration, of that which [is] for Aaron, and of that which [is] for his sons; |
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| 28 and it hath been for Aaron and for his sons, by a statute age-during from the sons of Israel, for it [is] a heave-offering; and it is a heave offering from the sons of Israel, from the sacrifices of their peace-offerings their heave-offering to Jehovah. |
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| 29 'And the holy garments which are Aaron's, are for his sons after him, to be anointed in them, and to consecrate in them their hand; |
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| 30 seven days doth the priest in his stead (of his sons) put them on, when he goeth in unto the tent of meeting, to minister in the sanctuary. |
Seven days – Showing that we are consecrated to God's service for all of our time. T47
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| 31 'And the ram of the consecration thou dost take, and hast boiled its flesh in the holy place; |
Seethe his flesh – It was no part of the sacrifice, merely the preparing of the portion which was to be eaten. T47
In the holy place – When "place" is not in italics, the Court is always meant. T13; R237:3*, R178:2*
Representing our more earthly phase of life. R237:3*
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| 32 and Aaron hath eaten his sons also the flesh of the ram, and the bread which [is] in the basket, at the opening of the tent of meeting; |
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| 33 and they have eaten those things by which there is atonement to consecrate their hand, to sanctify them; and a stranger doth not eat for they [are] holy; |
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| 34 and if there be left of the flesh of the consecration or of the bread till the morning, then thou hast burned that which is left with fire; it is not eaten, for it [is] holy. |
Burn the remainder – Showing that we are to be completely and entirely consecrated, and none of our time and power should be wasted. T47; R73:5
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| 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; |
Seven days – Showing that we are consecrated, not part of our time, but all of it; seven being the number of completion. R73:6
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| 36 and a bullock, a sin-offering, thou dost prepare daily for the atonements, and thou hast atoned for the altar, in thy making atonement on it, and hast anointed it to sanctify it; |
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| 37 seven days thou dost make atonement for the altar, and hast sanctified it, and the altar hath been most holy; all that is coming against the altar is holy. |
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| 38 'And this [is] that which thou dost prepare on the altar; two lambs, sons of a year, daily continually; |
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| 39 the one lamb thou dost prepare in the morning, and the second lamb thou dost prepare between the evenings; |
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| 40 and a tenth [deal] of fine flour, mixed with beaten oil, a fourth part of a hin, and a libation, a fourth part of a hin, of wine, [is] for the one lamb. |
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| 41 'And the second lamb thou dost prepare between the evenings; according to the present of the morning, and according to its libation, thou dost prepare for it, for sweet fragrance, a fire-offering, to Jehovah: |
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| 42 a continual burnt-offering for your generations, at the opening of the tent of meeting, before Jehovah, whither I am met with you, to speak unto thee there, |
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| 43 and I have met there with the sons of Israel, and it hath been sanctified by My honour. |
There I will meet – The Church is now a habitation of God, filled with a large measure of his glory. R1982:2
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| 44 'And I have sanctified the tent of meeting, and the altar, and Aaron and his sons I sanctify for being priests to Me, |
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| 45 and I have tabernacled in the midst of the sons of Israel, and have become their God, |
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| 46 and they have known that I [am] Jehovah their God, who hath brought them out of the land of Egypt, that I may tabernacle in their midst; I [am] Jehovah their God. |
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