Priests – In O.T.

NOTABLE PRIESTS OF THE OLD TESTAMENT

The third role a man could play in Old Testament faith and life was that of priest. The priesthood was reserved for descendants of Aaron, a Levite. The men of the other Levitical families were assigned to assist the priests in their ministry, to maintain the worship center, and to serve as singers and worship leaders. The NelsonIllustrated Bible Handbook describes the Old Testament priesthood:

Three institutions dominate the life of Israel as she developed within the Promised Land. These are expressed in the persons of prophets, priests, and the king. Of the three, two originate in the exodus period. Moses is the prototype prophet. Aaron is the prototype Levitical priest.

What was the role of the priesthood in Israel, and what are we to learn from this institution?

The word “priest” appears more than 700 times in the Old Testament. While the root meaning of the word itself is uncertain, the role of the priest is carefully explained. The priest was to represent the people before God, and to represent God to the people.

As a representative of the people of Israel, priests appeared before the Lord to make sacrifices and offerings. As God’s representative, the ministry of the priests was more complex. They were to instruct in the law (Deut. 33:8–10; Hos. 4:1–10), to give judgment on legal issues (Deut. 33:7–11), and to discover the will of God, using the Ephod (1 Sam. 23:6–12). The priests also watched over matters of ritual cleanness associated with disease (Lev. 13–15).

There were several orders of Old Testament priests. At the top of the hierarchy was the high priest, who alone could enter the inmost chamber of the tabernacle or temple. He officiated on the Day of Atonement. The second level included the sons of Aaron, who were the hereditary priests. These served at the temple altar and officiated at regular sacrifices. There was also a priestly role for the rest of the tribe of Levi (of which Aaron’s family was a part). Although the Levites never served the altar, they did carry the parts of the portable tabernacle during the wilderness years. In David’s time they provided worship music, and later served as wandering law teachers in time of revival. Like the priests, the offerings and tithes given by the people supported the Levites.

After the Babylonian exile there was a change in the teaching function. Men like Ezra dedicated themselves to study and teach the Scriptures. By Jesus’ time, the class of rabbis (teachers) was set apart as students and teachers of the Bible and Jewish traditions. By then the priests focused entirely on ceremonial matters.

The great institutional significance of the priesthood was mediatorial. In the priests who stood daily at the tabernacle or temple, making the prescribed sacrifices to the Lord, the average Israelite had living evidence that a way of approach to God was open and available to him (pp. 103–104).

We’ll look at two men who represent the basic ministries of the priests in the Old Testament.

AARON

Scripture references:
Exodus—Deuteronomy;
various references

————————v————————

————————v————————

AARON’S ROLE IN SCRIPTURE

Aaron was with Moses when Moses confronted Egypt’s pharaoh, often serving as Moses’ spokesman. While clearly secondary to Moses, Aaron was viewed as a coleader of the Exodus. When the Israelites complained, they criticized both Moses and Aaron. Most of the 322 references to Aaron associate him with Moses. He is referred to independently only when Moses is not present or when the subject is Aaron’s role as high priest.

————————

Each garment worn by Israel’s high priest had spiritual significance.

————————v————————

Aaron’s role as high priest and founder of the family that became Israel’s priests gave Aaron his significance. As long as Old Testament Law was in force, from Mount Sinai to the death of Christ, the Aaronic priesthood was an essential element of Hebrew faith and life.

EXPLORING AARON’S RELATIONSHIPS

In a way, Aaron can almost be viewed as a man lost in Moses’ shadow. He was with Moses at critical junctures of the history of the Exodus. Yet, Aaron never seemed central or even essential. The spotlight clearly was on Moses. Aaron was almost insubstantial, standing beside his brother, taking each stand with him, but all too easy to ignore.

Two incidents, however, portray Aaron out of Moses’ shadow. And neither is flattering.

Aaron and the golden calf (Ex. 32). At Mount Sinai God called Moses up the mountain to meet with Him alone. God gave Moses the Ten Commandments and the rest of the Law under which the Israelites were to live for the next 1,400 years.

While Moses was on the mountain, Aaron was in charge. And when the people demanded that Aaron make them a golden calf as a visible representation of deity, Aaron complied. Not only did Aaron comply; he constructed an altar where sacrifices might be offered and announced that the next day they would hold a worship feast to the Lord! When Moses, alerted by God to what was happening, returned, he confronted Aaron. Aaron cowered and said, “You know the people, that they are set on evil” (Ex. 22:22). Aaron explained that he had given in to the people’s demand, had simply thrown gold into a fire, “and this calf came out.”

The incident reveals Aaron as a truly weak man. He realized that the people’s desire was evil, yet he did what they asked. Like so many “leaders,” Aaron saw which way the crowds were surging and hurried to get out in front of them. Aaron would have been the first to take political polls in our day to determine his personal convictions!

Aaron and Miriam criticized Moses (Num. 12). After leaving Sinai, Moses’ brother and sister became jealous. They criticized Moses, using the excuse that he was married to an “Ethiopian woman.” Their added question, “Has the Lord indeed spoken only through Moses? Has He not spoken through us also?” (Num. 12:2) was a clear attempt to undermine Moses’ authority and ultimately to replace him.

God intervened and confronted the two, confirming Moses’ priority. As a punishment, Miriam became leprous and was forced to live outside the camp for seven days. As leprosy would have disqualified Aaron from his priesthood, he was spared. But the rebuke to the two was sharp and clear.

AARON: AN EXAMPLE FOR TODAY

In each incident, we see Aaron as a weak individual. He was easily influenced by his sister and easily swayed by the Israelites. Yet, when Moses was present, Aaron consistently stood with him against the complaints and sins of the people. Aaron seems to be a classic example of a person who is willing to make right choices as long as there is a stronger personality nearby to provide the backbone. But when faced with going against the urgings of others on his own, Aaron was too weak to take a stand.

Perhaps this trait made Aaron an ideal choice for high priest. The writer of Hebrews points out that a high priest “can have compassion on those who are ignorant and going astray, since he himself is also subject to weakness” (Heb. 5:2). If ever a high priest was subject to weakness, Aaron was. He must have been extremely sensitive to the need for those sacrifices through which a person might confess sin and be restored to right relationship with the Lord.

•     Aaron reminds us to be gentle with the weak. Some men need to draw strength from others if they are to make the choices they know they should. God has compassion for the weak, and so should we.

•     Aaron reassures us that our failures do not disqualify us from significant roles in God’s plan. Aaron could never have been a Moses, but we need our Aarons as well.

•     Aaron alerts us to the necessity of evaluating our own strengths and weaknesses. We need to be honest with ourselves so we will avoid situations we simply are not equipped to handle on our own.

•     Aaron encourages us to be faithful followers. Not everyone is called to be a leader. But not every follower is as faithful as Aaron was in support of Moses. A congregation of faithful followers is as necessary as a visionary leader if we are to have an impact for the Lord on our world.

EZRA

Scripture references:
Ezra 7–10; Nehemiah 8

————————v————————

————————v————————

EZRA’S ROLE IN SCRIPTURE

Cyrus, the king of Persia who replaced the Babylonians as the dominant eastern power, permitted Jews to return to their homeland. Ezra led a second group back to the homeland some eighty years after a first contingent from Babylon arrived in 538 b.c. Ezra was a priest who had dedicated himself in Babylon to “seek the Law of the Lord, and to do it, and to teach statutes and ordinances in Israel” (Ezra 7:10). While Aaron represents the priestly ministry of sacrifice, Ezra represents the priestly ministry of teaching.

Later when Nehemiah came to Judah as governor, the two initiated a return to the Law, elements of which the settlers in Jerusalem and Judah had ignored. Many credit Ezra with launching the scribal movement with its commitment to study the Scriptures and especially the Law—a commitment that has marked Judaism for over two millennia.

EXPLORING EZRA’S RELATIONSHIPS

As a teacher of God’s Word, Ezra maintained a relationship with God and at the same time a relationship with the people he instructed.

Ezra’s relationship with the Lord (Ezra 8:21–35; Nehemiah 8; 9).Ezra 7:10 reveals Ezra’s priorities. An incident recorded in chapter 8 demonstrates his faith. When Ezra received permission to go to Jerusalem to return wealth taken from the temple a hundred fifty years before, he was ashamed to asked the ruler for a military escort. He would travel through dangerous lands, but he was determined to seek God’s help alone. Ezra and his companions “fasted and entreated our God for this, and He answered our prayer” (Ezra 8:23).

When Ezra arrived, he discovered that some of the Jews, including priests and Levites, had intermarried with their pagan neighbors. Ezra was deeply shaken. These were the very sins for which the Jews had been driven from the land! Rather than rail at the people, Ezra again fasted and prayed, confessing his shame and the iniquity of God’s people. Ezra’s obvious heartbreak and appeals to the Lord moved the community so much that soon all were weeping and confessing. The guilty then voluntarily determined to separate from their pagan wives and to be faithful to the Lord.

Later, after Nehemiah had arrived and rebuilt the walls of Jerusalem, Ezra gave a seven-day public reading and exposition of the Scriptures after which the people celebrated with worship.

Ezra’s relationship with the people (Ezra 8:21–35; Neh. 8; 9).From the beginning, Ezra led by example. He demonstrated his trust in God by fasting and praying before his group set out for Judah. Once there, he demonstrated his anguish over the Jews’ disobedience in public prayer and confession. While Ezra’s commission granted him the right to administer God’s Law judicially (7:25), Ezra was concerned with the hearts of the people he had come to teach. Rather than force conformity to God’s Laws, Ezra showed by his own behavior how totally committed he was to doing God’s will and how deeply he felt the Jews’ disobedience.

EZRA: AN EXAMPLE FOR TODAY

Ezra serves as an ideal model for those who would teach God’s Word. He was committed to study, to obey, and to teach. Ezra taught by example and by showing how deeply he cared that God’s people lived in right relationship to Him.

•     Ezra set his heart on learning, doing, and teaching God’s Word. Each element is important. Teaching the Bible as information is dry and irrelevant. Teachers need to be doers of the Word if they are to have an impact on others.

•     Ezra relied on God’s power not only to protect him on his dangerous journey to Judah but also to move the hearts of persons living in sin. We are unable to change a single person’s heart, but God can—and will.

•     Ezra identified with the people he was called to teach. It would have been easy for Ezra to stand aside and condemn the sinners of Judah. Instead, Ezra took their sins to heart and wept for them before the Lord. Teachers who move others will identify with and weep for their students.

•     Ezra was unwilling to compromise the truths taught in God’s Word. There was no room for “reinterpreting” the teachings of Scripture to better fit modern times. We, too, are to hold fast to Scripture as our authority on faith and morals, and to take our stand with God’s Word whatever the world around us may say.

^[1]