*H Take unto thee also Aaron thy brother with his sons, from among the children of Israel, that they may minister to me in the priest's office: Aaron, Nadab, and Abiu, Eleazar, and Ithamar.
Ver. 1. Take, &c. Priests must be called by God, as Aaron was. Heb. v. W.
*H And thou shalt make a holy vesture for Aaron, thy brother, for glory and for beauty.
Ver. 2. And beauty, that all may be filled with awe, and adore the majesty of God. C. — Our priestly vestments, which are objects of derision to the ignorant, are made so rich and beautiful for the same purpose. They have the sanction of God, by a parity of reason; and the authority of his church. H.
*H And thou shalt speak to all the wise of heart, whom I have filled with the spirit of wisdom, that they may make Aaron's vestments, in which he being consecrated, may minister to me.
Ver. 3. Heart. The Hebrews generally attributed to the heart, what we give to the head. — Wisdom. All good, both in the order of grace and of nature, proceeds from God. — Consecrated, as if they imparted a sort of virtue. C.
*H And these shall be the vestments that they shall make: A rational and an ephod, a tunic and a strait linen garment, a mitre and a girdle. They shall make the holy vestments for thy brother Aaron and his sons, that they may do the office of priesthood unto me.
Ver. 4. Rational and ephod. See C. xxv. 7. — Tunic, long robe or cloak of blue wool. — Garment, next the body, and woven very close and thick. — Mitre, like a tiara or turban of linen, or rather of byssus, or fine cotton. This was never laid aside in the temple; as, to appear uncovered was then esteemed a mark of insolence. Eneas introduced the Phrygian custom into Italy, of sacrificing with a cap on the head. — Girdle, for his under-garment, besides that which formed a part of the ephod. C. — By these vestments, we are admonished to exercise the virtues of discretion, &c. S. Jer. ep. ad Fab.
*H And they shall make the ephod of gold, and violet, and purple, and scarlet twice dyed, and fine twisted linen, embroidered with divers colours.
Ver. 6. Ephod, (superhumerale.) That of the other priests was made of linen; and such were worn by Samuel, and by David, when he danced before the ark. M.
*H It shall have the two edges joined in the top on both sides, that they may be closed together.
Ver. 7. Together, by the hooks, under the two precious stones. Josep. iii. 8.
*H The very workmanship also, and all the variety of the work, shall be of gold, and violet, and purple, and scarlet twice dyed, and fine twisted linen.
Ver. 8. Work. Heb. "all the work, and the girdle, shall be of the same" materials, and not sewed on afterwards. C.
*H And thou shalt take two onyx stones, and shalt grave on them the names of the children of Israel:
Ver. 9. Onyx. Sept. emeralds. C. — Heb. shoham, which the Protestants render onyx-stone. H.
*H Six names on one stone, and the other six on the other, according to the order of their birth.
Ver. 10. Birth. On the right shoulder were engraven Ruben, Simeon, Juda, Dan, Nephtali, and Gad. On the left, Aser, Issachar, Zabulon, Ephraim, Manasses, and Benjamin. The high priest himself represented the tribe of Levi. M.
*H And thou shalt put them in both sides of the ephod, a memorial for the children of Israel. And Aaron shall bear their names before the Lord upon both shoulders, for a remembrance.
Ver. 12. Remembrance, for both, v. 29. The sins or burdens of the people, were thus to be borne by the high priest, and he was to make intercession for them. T.
*H Thou shalt make also hooks of gold.
Ver. 13. Hooks. Sept. aspidiscas, "imitating the form or biting of an asp." C. — Gold, on the ephod, by which the rational was suspended from the shoulders. H.
*H And two little chains of the purest gold, linked one to another, which thou shalt put into the hooks.
Ver. 14. Linked, &c. The present Heb. has "at the ends," migbaloth. But the Vulg. seems to have read more properly k instead of g, as in C. xxvi. 4. C.
*H And thou shalt make the rational of judgment with embroidered work of divers colours, according to the workmanship of the ephod, of gold, violet, and purple, and scarlet twice dyed, and fine twisted linen.
Ver. 15. The rational of judgment. This part of the high priest's attire, which he wore at his breast, was called the rational of judgment; partly because it admonished both priest and people of their duty to God; by carrying the names of all their tribes in his presence; and by the Urim and Thummim, that is, doctrine and truth, which were written upon it: and partly because it gave divine answers and oracles, as if it were rational and endowed with judgment.
*H It shall be four square and doubled: it shall be the measure of a span both in length and in breadth.
Ver. 16. Span, or half a cubit, (Ezec. xliii. 13. 17,) formed like a purse, in which the Rabbins say the Urim and Thummim were placed. C.
*H And thou shalt set in it four rows of stones . In the first row shall be a sardius stone, and a topaz, and an emerald:
Ver. 17. Stones. It is difficult to ascertain the true names of these stones, interpreters are so much at variance; as they are also respecting the names of the 12 patriarchs, which were engraven upon each. They probably stood according to the order of their birth, v. 10. 21. Thus Ruben, Simeon, and Levi, would occupy the first places, upon the sardius, topaz, and emerald. See on these stones, Plin. xxvii. 5. xxxviii. 8.
*H In the second a carbuncle, a sapphire, and a jasper:
Ver. 18. The carbuncle, (ruby) sapphire, and jasper, (or diamond) had on them Juda, Dan, and Nephtali.
*H In the third a ligurius, an agate, and an amethyst:
Ver. 19. Ligurius, agate, and amethyst, (or eumeces, Plin. xxxvii. 7,) had Gad, Aser, and Issachar.
*H In the fourth a chrysolite, an onyx, and a beryl. They shall be set in gold by their rows.
Ver. 20. Chrysolite, (beryl or opale,) onyx, (Sept. beryl; Chal. or emerald, C.) beryl, (Heb. jasper; Sept. &c. onyx) were inscribed with the names of Zabulon, Joseph, and Benjamin. In Ezec. xxviii. 13, the jasper stone comes in the sixth place, as it does in the Vulg. here. C. — The mystical interpretation of these stones, may be seen in A Lapide. S. Epiphanius has written a learned work on the 12 precious stones. H.
*H And may be fastened by the rings thereof unto the rings of the ephod with a violet fillet, that the joining artificially wrought may continue, and the rational and the ephod may not be loosed one from the other.
Ver. 28. Another. Hence the ephod, rational, urim, &c. are used to denote the same thing. See 1 K. xxx. 7. C.
*H And thou shalt put in the rational of judgment doctrine and truth, which shall be on Aaron's breast, when he shall go in before the Lord: and he shall bear the judgment of the children of Israel on his breast, in the sight of the Lord always.
Ver. 30. Doctrine and truth. Heb. Urim and Thummim: illuminations and perfections. These words, written on the rational, seem to signify the light of doctrine, and the integrity of life, with which the priests of God ought to approach to him. Ch. — Aurim means things brilliant, "declarations," Sept. and thomim, "perfections," or "truths." Some imagine, that God required the stones of the rational to be of the utmost brilliancy and perfection; Oleaster and Josephus (Ant. iii. 8,) say, it was by the appearance of those stones that the high priest was enlightened, when he consulted God. If God approved of what was in agitation, they assumed a surprising brightness, as well as those on the high priest's shoulders. But this had not happened for 200 years before he began his history. The Urim and Thummim were not in the second temple, 1 Esd. ii. 63. Some think these words were engraven on stones in the rational. Whether God explained his will by articulate sounds, as (Matt. iii. 17,) this is my beloved son, or internally instructed the high priest, when he was consulted, cannot be determined. C. — S. Chrysostom is of the former opinion. "If any thing was to be known, a voice came from between the cherubim, from the propitiatory, to declare what would happen." As the Jews lost the propitiatory, when they were led captives to Babylon, it seems they never afterwards obtained this privilege of having an oracle. God sometimes instructed them by his prophets. But, for a long time, none had appeared; that all might attend more earnestly to the voice of the Messias. T. — Judgment. He shall be the supreme judge in religious matters, and must strive to pass sentence according to the dictates of my law, with truth. H. — The chief judge in Egypt wore a golden chain, hanging from the neck on the breast, to which was attached the image of Truth, on a sapphire stone. Olian (Var. Hist. xxxiv. 14,) also observes, that this office was always held by a venerable and honest priest.
*H And beneath at the feet of the same tunic, round about, thou shalt make as it were pomegranates, of violet, and purple, and scarlet twice dyed, with little bells set between:
Ver. 33. Bells, to denote the harmony of the universe, (Philo) and that all the actions of a priest ought to give edification. S. Jerom.
*H And Aaron shall be vested with it in the office of his ministry, that the sound may be heard, when he goeth in and cometh out of the sanctuary, in the sight of the Lord, and that he may not die.
Ver. 35. Die, for coming in disrespectfully, without giving notice. See Judith xiv. 8.
*H Thou shalt make also a plate of the purest gold: wherein thou shalt grave with engraver's work, Holy to the Lord.
Ver. 36. Plate; reaching from ear to ear, two fingers' breadth, tied behind like a diadem. Wisd. xviii. 24. — Holy, or "sanctity, belongeth to the Lord," and all who approach to Him, ought to be holy. C. — Josephus represents the ornaments of the high priest's head, like the triple crown of the pope. Ant. iii. 8.
*H Hanging over the forehead of the high priest. And Aaron shall bear the iniquities of those things, which the children of Israel have offered and sanctified, in all their gifts and offerings. And the plate shall be always on his forehead, that the Lord may be well pleased with them.
Ver. 38. Iniquities. This means, perhaps, that he shall wear these grand vestments and crown only on the solemn day of expiation, when he makes atonement for all the sins of the people, as a figure of Jesus Christ. Josephus tells us, that on other occasions, he wore a less costly attire. De Bel. v. 6. or 15. C. — By bearing on his forehead kodesh la Yehovah, "Holiness to the Lord," he confessed that all mankind were sinners, and stood in need of pardon. H.
*H Moreover, for the sons of Aaron thou shalt prepare linen tunics, and girdles and mitres for glory and beauty:
Ver. 40. Linen. In Ezechiel (xliv. 17,) woollen garments are forbidden to be worn by priests. Many of the pagans required their priests to be clothed in white linen. All these prescriptions of God, which seem to us so minute, had a more sublime and mysterious meaning. For in the priestly robe...was the whole world, by the colours denoting the air, light, earth, and water: the two stones on his shoulders, signified the sun and moon, as the 12 did the signs of the zodiac, or the glory of the fathers; and thy majesty was written upon the diadem of his head. Wisd. xviii. 24. Thus the priest was a mediator between God and his people, and was to be solicitous for the welfare of all. S. Tho. 1. 2. q. 102. a. 5. S. Aug. S. Jer. &c.
*H And with all these things thou shalt vest Aaron thy brother, and his sons with him. And thou shalt consecrate the hands of them all, and shalt sanctify them, that they may do the office of priesthood unto me.
Ver. 41. Consecrate. Heb. and Sept. "thou shalt anoint and fill their hands" with oil, and the instruments of their office.
*H Thou shalt make also linen breeches, to cover the flesh of their nakedness, from the reins to the thighs:
Ver. 42. Linen breeches, descending as far as the knees. S. Jer. In the C. xxxix. 29, they seem to have been made of byssus, or cotton. But as linen is prescribed in all other places, perhaps a word has crept in there, by mistake of the transcribers. They were intended to remind the priests of superior modesty, as they were not commonly worn. Homer never mentions them. Virgil only specifies the cloak and tunic of Evander. Augustus wore breeches and stockings in winter. Sueton. — But the ancient breeches were not like ours, but resembled rather an apron or girdle, enveloping both thighs, and hanging from the waist. C.