Leviticus9
New International Version
1On the eighth day Moses summoned Aaron and his sons and the elders of Israel.
2He said to Aaron, “Take a bull calf for your sin offering and a ram for your burnt offering, both without defect, and present them before the Lord.
3Then say to the Israelites: ‘Take a male goat for a sin offering, a calf and a lamb—both a year old and without defect—for a burnt offering,
4and an ox and a ram for a fellowship offering to sacrifice before the Lord, together with a grain offering mixed with olive oil. For today the Lord will appear to you.’”
5They took the things Moses commanded to the front of the tent of meeting, and the entire assembly came near and stood before the Lord.
6Then Moses said, “This is what the Lord has commanded you to do, so that the glory of the Lord may appear to you.”
7Moses said to Aaron, “Come to the altar and sacrifice your sin offering and your burnt offering and make atonement for yourself and the people; sacrifice the offering that is for the people and make atonement for them, as the Lord has commanded.”
8So Aaron came to the altar and slaughtered the calf as a sin offering for himself.
9His sons brought the blood to him, and he dipped his finger into the blood and put it on the horns of the altar; the rest of the blood he poured out at the base of the altar.
10On the altar he burned the fat, the kidneys and the long lobe of the liver from the sin offering, as the Lord commanded Moses;
11the flesh and the hide he burned up outside the camp.
12Then he slaughtered the burnt offering. His sons handed him the blood, and he splashed it against the sides of the altar.
13They handed him the burnt offering piece by piece, including the head, and he burned them on the altar.
14He washed the internal organs and the legs and burned them on top of the burnt offering on the altar.
15Aaron then brought the offering that was for the people. He took the goat for the people’s sin offering and slaughtered it and offered it for a sin offering as he did with the first one.
16He brought the burnt offering and offered it in the prescribed way.
17He also brought the grain offering, took a handful of it and burned it on the altar in addition to the morning’s burnt offering.
18He slaughtered the ox and the ram as the fellowship offering for the people. His sons handed him the blood, and he splashed it against the sides of the altar.
19But the fat portions of the ox and the ram—the fat tail, the layer of fat, the kidneys and the long lobe of the liver—
20these they laid on the breasts, and then Aaron burned the fat on the altar.
21Aaron waved the breasts and the right thigh before the Lord as a wave offering, as Moses commanded.
22Then Aaron lifted his hands toward the people and blessed them. And having sacrificed the sin offering, the burnt offering and the fellowship offering, he stepped down.
23Moses and Aaron then went into the tent of meeting. When they came out, they blessed the people; and the glory of the Lord appeared to all the people.
24Fire came out from the presence of the Lord and consumed the burnt offering and the fat portions on the altar. And when all the people saw it, they shouted for joy and fell facedown.
Study Guide
Public-domain commentary and original-language notes for Leviticus 9.
Chapter Summary
In this chapter: The first offerings of Aaron for himself and the people. (1–21). Moses and Aaron bless the people, Fire cometh upon the altar from the Lord. (22–24).
vv1-21
These many sacrifices, which were all done away by the death of Christ, teach us that our best services need washing in his blood, and that the guilt of our best sacrifices needs to be done away by one more pure and more noble than they. Let us be thankful that we have such a High Priest. The priests had not a day's respite from service allowed. God's spiritual priests have constant work, which the duty of every day requires; they that would give up their account with joy, must redeem time. The glory of God appeared in the sight of the people, and owned what they had done. We are not now to expect such appearances, but God draws nigh to those who draw nigh to him, and the offerings of faith are acceptable to him; though the sacrifices being spiritual, the tokens of the acceptance are spiritual likewise. When Aaron had done all that was to be done about the sacrifices, he lifted up his hands towards the people, and blessed them. Aaron could but crave a blessing, God alone can command it.
vv22-24
When the solemnity was finished, and the blessing pronounced, God testified his acceptance. There came a fire out from before the Lord, and consumed the sacrifice. This fire might justly have fastened upon the people, and have consumed them for their sins; but its consuming the sacrifice signified God's acceptance of it, as an atonement for the sinner. This also was a figure of good things to come. The Spirit descended upon the apostles in fire. And the descent of this holy fire into our souls, to kindle in them pious and devout affections toward God, and such a holy zeal as burns up the flesh and the lusts of it, is a certain token of God's gracious acceptance of our persons and performances. Nothing goes to God, but what comes from him. We must have grace, that holy fire, from the God of grace, else we cannot serve him acceptably, Heb 12:28. The people were affected with this discovery of God's glory and grace. They received it with the highest joy; triumphing in the assurance given them that they had God nigh unto them. And with the lowest reverence; humbly adoring the majesty of that God, who vouchsafed thus to manifest himself to them. That is a sinful fear of God, which drives us from him; a gracious fear makes us bow before him.
Key Words
שְׁמִינִי: eight
יוֹם: a day (as the warm hours), whether literal (from sunrise to sunset, or from one sunset to the next), or figurative (a space of time defined by an associated term), (often used adverb)
מֹשֶׁה: Mosheh, the Israelite lawgiver
קָרָא: to call out to (i.e. properly, address by name, but used in a wide variety of applications)
אַהֲרוֹן: Aharon, the brother of Moses
בֵּן: a son (as a builder of the family name), in the widest sense (of literal and figurative relationship, including grandson, subject, nation, quality or condition, etc., (like father or brother), etc.)
זָקֵן: old
יִשְׂרָאֵל: Jisrael, a symbolical name of Jacob; also (typically) of his posterity
אָמַר: to say (used with great latitude)
לָקַח: to take (in the widest variety of applications)
Cross References
Leviticus 9Aaron had to offer for his own sins first, unlike sinless Christ who offered once for all.
Supported by Matthew Henry, Matthew Poole, JFB
The prescribed priestly formula of blessing that Aaron used to bless the people.
Supported by JFB
The high priest's obligation to offer sacrifices for his own sins as well as the people's.
Supported by Matthew Poole, JFB
Contrast between the Aaronic high priest's daily/annual offerings for himself and Christ's perfect offering.
Supported by Matthew Henry, Matthew Poole, JFB
Direct parallel where fire falls from heaven to consume the sacrifices at the temple's dedication.
Supported by Matthew Poole
God answers by miraculous fire from heaven to consume the sacrifice, validating His true worship.
Supported by Matthew Henry
The significance of the 'eighth day' for the dedication and entrance into active priestly service.
Supported by Matthew Poole
The physical manifestation of the glory of the Lord filling the Tabernacle, validating the priesthood.
Supported by Matthew Poole
The burning of the sin offering's carcass outside the camp prefigures Christ suffering outside the gate.
Supported by JFB
Jesus, our great High Priest, lifts up his hands and blesses his disciples before ascending.
Supported by Matthew Henry
Fulfillment of Moses' promise that the glory of the Lord would appear to them today.
Supported by Matthew Poole, John Calvin
David calls on the Lord, and He answers him from heaven by fire on the altar.
Supported by Matthew Henry
The seven days of consecration which directly preceded this climactic eighth-day service.
Supported by Matthew Poole
Aaron's requirement to first make atonement for himself and his house before the people's offering.
Supported by Matthew Poole
Typological connection of burning the offering without the camp to Christ's sanctifying suffering outside Jerusalem.
Supported by JFB
The explicit law requiring the flesh and hide of the priest's sin offering to be burned.
Supported by JFB
The theological principle that the less is blessed of the better, referencing Melchizedek and Aaron.
Supported by JFB
The glory of the Lord abiding on Mount Sinai, initiating the covenant worship pattern.
Supported by Matthew Poole
Hebrew 'turn to ashes' refers to God accepting a burnt offering by fire.
Supported by Matthew Henry
The holy fire initiated by God must be kept burning continually and never go out.
Supported by JFB
Compare the young bullock required for a priest's specific sin with the young calf here.
Supported by Matthew Poole
The standard command to select young bullocks and rams without blemish for consecration.
Supported by Matthew Poole
The prophetic vision of the return of the glory of God of Israel, shining resplendently.
Supported by Matthew Poole
Fire rises out of the rock and consumes Gideon's offering as a sign of acceptance.
Supported by Matthew Henry
The same divine fire that accepted Aaron's sacrifice consumes his sons for offering strange fire.
Supported by Matthew Henry
Scriptural pattern of animals being acceptable for sacrifice starting from the eighth day onward.
Supported by Matthew Poole
The historical manifestation of God's glory on Mount Sinai parallel to this tabernacle manifestation.
Supported by Matthew Poole