Offerings of Aaron and His Sons

The ordination lasted seven days (Lev 8:33). Then there comes an “eighth day”. The eighth day speaks of a new beginning. Something starts that has never been before. After the ordination Aaron and his sons will bring their first offerings. It is a day that will never be repeated in its meaning. You can only do something for the first time once.

Our ordination lasts our entire life, but there is again and again an eighth day. Our priesthood can always be new. With this eighth day is connected the appearance of the glory of the LORD (Lev 9:4; 6; 23). We are going to see more and more of the glory of the Lord Jesus. If He then actually appears, only then our priestly service will take place in a completely new way.

Aaron’s service is in the foreground in this chapter. Moses addresses him. Aaron is the one who brings the offerings. His sons, who are a picture of the church that has insight into the service of the true Aaron, disappear into the background. They will give him the blood every time. The sons of Aaron in a spiritual sense are those who have received a special impression of the meaning and value of the blood of the true offering, the Lord Jesus, by occupying themselves with it. Blood is the foundation of all true priestly service.

Offerings of the people

On the eighth day, it is also expected of “the sons of Israel” to bring offerings. Always the offering of Christ remains the foundation. We can base our whole lives on this and also all eternity. Everything has value to God only if it is connected with His Son and the offering He has brought. Forever we will remember Him as the One to Whom we owe that we may be in glory. In the different offerings we see how we will think of Him.

He has removed all obstacles by becoming the “sin offering” for us. Forever we will remember Him as the One Who is glorified by God and by Whom God could perform all His purposes by becoming for Him the “burnt offering”. He is the One through Whom there will be eternal fellowship with the Father and the Son and with one another by becoming the “peace offering”. Forever we will remember His perfect life on earth, where He did everything by the Holy Spirit, as we see it in the “grain offering mixed with oil”.

To the Front of the Tent of Meeting

What we consider and be busy with, the offering of the Lord Jesus in all its aspects for all eternity, may already begin on earth at the “tent of meeting”. When we come together as a church, we may enjoy the privilege of performing priestly service in a special way. There, the Lord Jesus Himself is in the midst and He begins the song of praise (Heb 2:12) to the glory of God, and we may, as it were, join Him in it. We will then see the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

Aaron and His Sons Offer the Offerings

Aaron is only a picture of the Lord Jesus. The Lord Jesus does not have to offer for Himself; Aaron, as a sinful man, must bring offerings for himself (Heb 5:1-3; Heb 7:28). Aaron brings the offerings of and for himself and the people. The various offerings and their significance have already been before our attention in the previous chapters. God shows in these pictures that He, as it were, does not become tired of speaking and hearing about His Son.

Before Aaron offers for others, he first offers for himself. It is a principle in God’s Word that we must first pay close attention to ourselves before we can occupy ourselves with someone else: “Pay close attention to yourself and to your teaching; persevere in these things, for as you do this you will ensure salvation both for yourself and for those who hear you” (1Tim 4:16; Mt 7:3-5).

Aaron Blesses the People

After bringing the offerings Aaron blesses the people. This is the blessing with which Christ blesses His people on the basis of the offering made: “And He led them out as far as Bethany, and He lifted up His hands and blessed them” (Lk 24:50). The offering of Christ is always the basis of the blessings of Israel – and of the church – by which the people can be maintained in their existence.

As for the church, the Lord Jesus does not have to come out. For us the veil is torn and we have access into the holy place (Heb 10:19), where we see that God has accepted the offering. The Holy Spirit has come to give us the certainty of the offering accomplished and accepted by God. We can enter with confidence.

We can also notice the blessing that is given today by Himself on the basis of the His offering. It is the blessing that is brought to man in the gospel.

Blessing and Glory

What is written in the first part of this verse applies to Israel in the present time. Moses enters the tent of meeting with Aaron. Moses and Aaron are together a picture of the Lord Jesus as “the Apostle and High Priest of our confession” (Heb 3:1). The entry of Moses and Aaron into the tent of meeting is a picture of the entry of the Lord Jesus into the holy place, into the heavens, of which the tabernacle is a picture (Heb 9:23-24). He is still in the holy place. When He appears again, they will see Him and come to repentance and confession (Zec 12:10) and worship Him (Lev 9:24b). When He appears to His people (Heb 9:28), He will bless them.

The LORD Accepts the Offering

Then a great moment comes: the burnt offering and the fat pieces, that is what is only for the LORD, are consumed by Him with fire (Jdg 6:21; Jdg 13:20; 1Kgs 18:38; 1Chr 21:26; 2Chr 7:1). It presents the complete acceptance of the work of the Lord Jesus by God as a work accomplished entirely to His glory in a power that only God knows perfectly and can enjoy.

The reaction of the people is to rejoice also in what God has given in the offering. They fall on their faces in worship before Him. All honor and admiration go out to Him Who, by reason of the offering, has connected them to Himself and has chosen them to be His people to dwell among them.