*H And when the eighth day was come, Moses called Aaron and his sons, and the ancients of Israel, and said to Aaron:
Ver. 1. Come. From the consecration of the tabernacle, (M.) and of Aaron. — Israel. The princes of the tribes. C. — They were to offer sacrifice by the hands of their new priests.
* Footnote ** Exodus 29 : 1
And thou shalt also do this, that they may be consecrated to me in priesthood. Take a calf from the herd, and two rams without blemish,*H Take of the herd a calf for sin, and a ram for a holocaust, both without blemish, and offer them before the Lord.
Ver. 2. Calf. As they had formerly adored a calf, so now they sacrifice one to God. S. Jer. in Jer. vii.
*H And to the children of Israel thou shalt say: Take ye a he goat for sin, and a calf, and a lamb, both of a year old, and without blemish for a holocaust.
Ver. 3. Children. Sam. and Sept. "the ancients," or princes of the people, for whom a he-goat is sacrificed. — Old. Not above, though they might be younger.
*H Also a bullock and a ram for peace offerings. And immolate them before the Lord, offering for the sacrifice of every one of them flour tempered with oil: for to day the Lord will appear to you.
Ver. 4. Offering, &c. Heb. simply, "and a flour-offering tempered with oil; for," &c. H. — All these sacrifices were accompanied with an offering of this nature, as they were in imitation of a dinner presented to God. M. — You. By the cloud, resting upon the tabernacle, or by fire proceeding thence. God will manifest his presence by miracles, v. 24.
*H And he said to Aaron: Approach to the altar, and offer sacrifice for thy sin. Offer the holocaust, and pray for thyself and for the people: and when thou hast slain the people's victim, pray for them, as the Lord hath commanded.
Ver. 7. Thy sin. Christ needed not daily (as the other priests) to offer sacrifices, first for his own sins, and then for the people's. Heb. vii. 27.
*H And his sons brought him the blood of it: and he dipped his finger therein, and touched the horns of the altar, and poured the rest at the foot thereof.
Ver. 9. The altar of holocausts; as he is yet considered only as a private person; afterwards he touches the altar of perfumes. C.
*H And the fat, and the little kidneys, and the caul of the liver, which are for sin, he burnt upon the altar, as the Lord had commanded Moses.
Ver. 10. Burnt, or placed in order to be burnt by the fire sent by God, v. 24. M.
*H But the flesh and skins thereof he burnt with fire without the camp.
Ver. 11. Camp. According to the prescriptions given. C. iv. 12.
*H Having first washed the entrails and the feet with water.
Ver. 14. Water. Heb. adds, "he burnt them upon the holocaust, upon the altar."
*H Then offering for the sin of the people, he slew the he goat: and expiating the altar,
Ver. 15. And expiating the altar. Heb. "he offered it (the goat) for sin, as the first," for himself, placing the parts of the victim upon his own holocaust. H. — The Chaldee says, "he expiated the altar with the blood of the he-goat, as he did before."
*H Adding in the sacrifice the libations, which are offered withal, and burning them upon the altar, besides the ceremonies of the morning holocaust.
Ver. 17. Holocaust. Which were religiously observed every day. The law respecting the libations was given already, though it be related, Num. xv. 4. M.
*H Aaron separated their breasts, and the right shoulders, elevating them before the Lord, as Moses had commanded.
Ver. 21. Elevating them. After which they were used by the priest. C. vii. 31. C. — As. Samar. and some Heb. MSS. read, "as the Lord had commanded Moses." Kennic.
*H And stretching forth his hands to the people, he blessed them. And so the victims for sin, and the holocausts, and the peace offerings being finished, he came down.
Ver. 22. Hands. Thus representing the form of a cross, on which Christ redeemed us; in memory of which we still make the same sign. W. — Them. The blessing is recorded, Num. vi. 24. And the Lord bless thee, &c. M. — In blessing an individual, the priest laid his hands upon him; but he stretched them out towards the multitude, as a mark of superiority.
*H And Moses and Aaron went into the tabernacle of the testimony, and afterwards came forth and blessed the people. And the glory of the Lord appeared to all the multitude.
Ver. 23. Testimony. To offer incense, which always preceded the morning holocaust. — Glory; or fire, probably issuing from the tabernacle, and consuming the victims in a moment. Thus God was pleased to shew his approbation of the priests and victims, (C.) and at the same time, to impress a religious awe upon the minds of the spectators. H. — This fire was carefully preserved and nourished by the priests with wood; though the Rabbins say, this was done only to conceal the miracle of its perpetual continuance. A fire, of the same nature, came down upon the victims, when Solomon dedicated his temple, (2 Par. vii. 1,) and was kept burning till the captivity, when it was hidden in a cistern. Being found afterwards, like a muddy water, God kindled it again, (2 Macc. i. 18. ii. 10,) and it was not lost till the persecution of Epiphanes.
*H And, behold, a fire, coming forth from the Lord, devoured the holocaust, and the fat that was upon the altar: which when the multitude saw, they praised the Lord, falling on their faces.
Ver. 24. The Lord: 2 Mac. ii. 10, explains this text. Fire came down from heaven, appearing like a flash of lightning, in the midst of the victims. Jos. Ant. iii. 9. C.