Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Leviticus 8:22
And he brought the other ram, the ram of consecration: and Aaron and his sons laid their hands upon the head of the ram.
(iii) The ram of consecration (22 36), cp. Exo 29:19-26
The last sacrifice is that of the ram of consecration. As some portions are consumed by the offerers ( Lev 8:31) it resembles the Peace-Offerings, but special rites are added, indicating the character and duties of the priestly office. The blood of the ram is applied to the ear, hand, and foot of Aaron and his sons. The ear attentive to the commands of God, the hand ready to do His will, the foot prepared to walk in His ways are thus signified. The blood is also thrown (as enjoined in Lev 3:2) against the altar round about.
In Lev 8:23-24 the blood is put first on Aaron and afterwards on his sons; cp. Exo 29:20, where a separate bringing near of the sons is not enjoined.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
Lev 8:22-23
Moses took of the blood.
Consecration by blood
1. There is, first, the selection of the victim. Behold My servant whom I have chosen, is Gods message to us concerning Him; and again, He says, I have exalted one chosen out of the people; and, in the New Testament, He is called the Christ, the chosen of God (Luk 23:35)
. The Great Sacrifice, the propitiation for our sins, the lamb for the burnt-offering, is entirely of Gods selection. And in this of itself we have the blessed assurance of its suitableness and perfection.
2. There is the transfer of the sinners sin to this selected victim. Though in one sense this is done by God, through that same eternal purpose by which the victim was selected, yet in another sense, and as a thing brought about, or becoming a fact, in time, it is the sinner that does this when he accepts the sacrifice, and, putting his hand upon it, confesses his sin over it
3. There is the death of the victim. Without that shedding of blood, which is the means of death, and the evidence of its having taken place, is no remission.
4. There is the transfer of this death to the sinner by putting the blood upon him. The sinners death is first of all transferred to the Surety, who dies as the sinners substitute. Then the Suretys death is transferred back again to the sinner, and placed to his account as if it had been his own. In confession we transfer our death to the Surety. In believing we transfer His death to ourselves, so that, in the sight of God, it comes to be reckoned truly ours. This transference of the Suretys death to us is that which is set before us by the putting the blood upon us. For blood means death–or life taken away; and the putting of blood upon us is the intimation the death has passed upon us–and that death, none other than the death of the Surety. Put yourself in the position which God asks thee to do; that is, believe the Fathers testimony to the death of His Son. The moment that then believest, the blood is sprinkled, the death is transferred, thou art counted as one who hast died, and so paid the penalty–and thou art forgiven, accepted, clean!
5. There is the sinners new life thus received through death. Made partakers of Christs resurrection and Christs life, they go forth to do His will, in the strength of His risen life. It is as resurrection-men that they serve Him, and who are drawing from that resurrection-fountain daily treasures of life, wherewith to labour for Him who died for them and who rose again. If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things that are above, and make use of your risen life for duty, for temptation, for battle, for trial, for suffering. It will be sufficient for every time of need.
6. There is the entire consecration of the whole man to God, in consequence of His having thus died and risen. That which proclaimed them dead, in consequence of the applied death of the sacrifice, sets them apart for holy purposes in Gods house. Thus it is that the death and resurrection of our true ram of consecration, our better sacrifice, operate upon us. They sanctify us, as the apostles expression is, in the Epistle to the Hebrews: Jesus also, that He might sanctify the people with His own blood, suffered without the gate. The whole man, from head to feet, becomes a sacred thing, dedicated to the service of the living God. (H. Bonar, D. D.)
Fuente: Biblical Illustrator Edited by Joseph S. Exell
22-30. brought the other ram,&c.After the sin offering and burnt offering had been presented on theirbehalf, this was their peace offering, by which they declared thepleasure which they felt in entering upon the service of God andbeing brought into close communion with Him as the ministers of Hissanctuary, together with their confident reliance on His grace tohelp them in all their sacred duties.
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
Ver. 22-25. And he brought the other ram, the ram of consecration,…. Or “filling” b, or “fulnesses”; because, as Jarchi says, these filled and perfected the priests in their priesthood; this was the finishing and consummation of their consecration: what is said in this and the three following verses Le 8:23 is the same as is ordered, Ex 29:19 and needs no further explanation;
[See comments on Ex 29:19] [See comments on Ex 29:20] [See comments on Ex 29:21] [See comments on Ex 29:22].
b “plenitudinum”, Montanus; “impletionum, [vel] potius completionum”, Drusius; Heb. “impletionum”, Piscator.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
Verses 22-30:
The “ram of consecration” is the ram offered as the Peace
Offering, see Le 7:28-34. Following the “wave” and “heave” part of the ritual, Moses then placed some of the blood of the sacrifice upon the tip of the right ear, the thumb of the right hand, and upon the big toe of the right foot of Aaron. Then he repeated this ritual for Aaron’s sons, the ordinary priests. This pictures that all their senses and all their powers are consecrated to God’s service. Relative to today, it symbolizes that the child of God is to dedicate himself completely to God. The same blood which brings peace with God (Col 1:20) also serves to consecrate the child of God to His service, 1Co 6:19; Ro 12:1, 2.
Fuente: Garner-Howes Baptist Commentary
(22) And he brought the other ram.That is, the second of the two rams mentioned in Lev. 8:2.
The ram of consecration.That is, the sacrifice of consecration. This concluding sacrifice, which in form resembles the thank offering and the peace offering, was designed to express the gratitude which Aaron and his sons felt for having been chosen to the office of priests, and their peace and fellowship with God.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
22. Consecration This literally signifies filling; as meeting all requirements. Lev 8:27-28; Num 3:3, note.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
The Offering of the Ram of Consecration Along With A Grain Offering As A Pleasing Odour ( Lev 8:22-29 ).
In view of the fact that they all partake of this sacrifice (Lev 8:31) it would appear to be a Peace Sacrifice. It represents Christ Who was made our Peace and our Wellbeing. By partaking of Him we find peace with God and are made spiritually whole.
Lev 8:22
‘And he presented the other ram, the ram of consecration (of ‘filling up’), and Aaron and his sons laid their hands on the head of the ram.’
The other ram to be offered is now brought forward. It is called the ram of consecration. The word for consecration is used only of this ceremony. It comes from a root meaning ‘to fill up’. Compare Exo 29:9, ‘to fill the hand’, which also indicated consecration to the priesthood. In texts from Mari of about the eighteenth century BC a similar word is used of conquerors being ‘filled’ with the booty of the conquered. Thus the thought here is of what Aaron and his sons receive by this consecration.
Through the offering of this ram they are being given a permanent privilege which will last through many generations, to be living representatives of God. And along with that goes the tithes and offerings of the people, participation in a portion of many offerings and sacrifices, and in cities in which to dwell, and in rights to teach the Law. Their hands are being filled to overflowing, as symbolised by the offerings placed in their hands (Lev 8:27), but all so that they may be available to be the servants of God. Their hands are being filled with blessings and with great responsibilities. The ‘filling of the hand’ has in the first place the parts of the ram of consecration, the fat and the shoulder, and the unleavened bread, in mind (Lev 8:27). But these were symbols of what would in future be theirs.
And it is through our Ram of Consecration Himself that, having been purified and dedicated through Him as our purification for sin offering and our whole burnt offering, we can be raised to serve as His heavenly priests, ministering on earth with sacrifices of praise (Heb 13:15) and thanksgiving, offering ourselves up constantly as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God (Rom 12:1) and being a pleasing odour to Him and to others through our witness and testimony (2Co 2:14-15).
Lev 8:23-24
‘And he slew it, and Moses took of its blood, and put it on the tip of Aaron’s right ear, and upon the thumb of his right hand, and upon the great toe of his right foot. And he brought Aaron’s sons, and Moses put of the blood on the tip of their right ear, and on the thumb of their right hand, and on the great toe of their right foot, and Moses sprinkled the blood on the altar round about.’
Aaron then slew the offering and Moses caught the blood in a basin and his first act was then to put some of the blood on the tip of Aaron’s right ear, and on the thumb of his right hand, and on the great toe of his right foot. It was put on each extremity. As with the application of the blood to the horns and base of the altar (the extremities of the altar) in the case of the purification for sin offering this was for purification. The Priest had to be pure in ear and hand and foot. He had to have an ear to hear the voice of God, a hand to do the will of God and a foot to go in the way of God. Thus was he to be totally dedicated to the service of God.
So the dedication signified by the whole burnt offering was now sealed in depth by this individual application. The same ceremony applied to his sons. They too were dedicated in full in the same way. And then the same blood was applied to the sides of the altar for atonement. All that the Priest and his sons had done in the past was now atoned for. They came into office made at one with God, and with their sins forgiven. Their ears were purified, their hands clean, their feet dedicated. They were, as it were, made whole, and in their wholeness they were bound to His service for ever with every faculty that they possessed.
So when a person comes to Christ for forgiveness is he set apart to God, and his ear, hand and foot are marked with the blood of Christ as from then on dedicated to the service of Christ. We are no longer our own, we are bought with a price (1Co 6:19-20). From then on we are here only to hear His voice, to do His will and to walk in His way (Joh 10:27-29). Anything less falls short of true Christian conversion (although in our case too the initial process may take ‘seven days’, that is, a divinely perfect period).
Lev 8:25-27
‘And he took the fat, and the fat tail, and all the fat that was on the inwards, and the covering of the liver, and the two kidneys, and their fat, and the right thigh, and out of the basket of unleavened bread, which was before Yahweh, he took one unleavened cake, and one cake of oiled bread, and one wafer, and placed them on the fat, and on the right thigh, and he put the whole on the hands of Aaron, and on the hands of his sons, and waved them for a wave-offering before Yahweh.’
The fat and vital parts of the ram of consecration, and the right thigh, together with some of the grain offering, was then placed on the hands of Aaron and his sons so that they could wave them before Yahweh as a wave-offering, possibly by moving them from side to side. This indicated that they were offering them to God and that they came to God on their behalf.
It was also the first time that they had carried out this action which in future they would perform countless times. It was an initiatory act.
As His priests we also must offer the fat on the altar. All that is best, all that is surplus to our necessity should be offered and ‘burned up’ in the service of God as an offering to Him, that He might receive it to do with as He will, thereby laying up for ourselves treasure in Heaven where it can never fail (Mat 5:19-21).
Lev 8:28
‘And Moses took them from off their hands, and burnt them on the altar on the burnt-offering. They were a consecration for a pleasing odour. It was an offering made by fire to Yahweh.’
Moses then took what they had waved before Yahweh and burnt them on the altar of burnt offering. The fat and vital parts were that which was always offered to Yahweh, as representing both the choicest portions and as representing the vitality of the animal; the thigh was that which was usually set apart for the priest. Here therefore it was a voluntary gift to Yahweh by the priests and an indication that they recognised that all that they in future received would have come from God; and the grain offering was the memorial portion offered from every grain offering. They all came up to Yahweh as a pleasing odour, and as an offering made by fire. They were received with pleasure as something fully purified and belonging to God.
Thus what they had to offer up to Him included what was their right, as a token that what they would afterwards receive came from His hand. We have in this a reminder that all that we have comes from God, and that we too should offer it back to Him so that He may use it as He will. Such an offering, genuinely made, is a pleasing odour to Him.
Lev 8:29
‘And Moses took the breast, and waved it for a wave-offering before Yahweh. It was Moses’ portion of the ram of consecration, as Yahweh commanded Moses.’
Moses then took the breast, and that he waved before Yahweh. Again it was being offered to Yahweh as belonging to Him to be utilised as He proposed. Perhaps in this case God’s purpose was that it should be set aside for Moses as the officiant, for we are not told that it was burned on the altar.
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
To the former sacrifices, very properly succeeded the ram of consecration, particularly denoting the dedication of the priests to GOD’S service. And the ceremony of application to the several parts of the priest’s bodies, implied that the dedication was universal. Rom 12:1 .
Fuente: Hawker’s Poor Man’s Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
the other ram. Mentioned in Lev 8:2. See Exo 29:19-24.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
the ram of consecration: Lev 8:2, Lev 8:29, Lev 7:37, Exo 29:19-31, Joh 17:19, 1Co 1:30, 2Co 5:21, Eph 5:25, Eph 5:27, Rev 1:5, Rev 1:6, “The ram of consecration” was evidently a sacrifice of peace offering though presented on a particular occasion. Part of the blood was applied, not as that of the sin offering, to the horns of the altar, but to Aaron and his sons; to the tips of their right ears, the thumbs of their right hands, and the great toes of their right feet: implying their obligation to hearken diligently to the word of God – to do his work in the best manner which they could, and to walk in his ways with steady perseverance; and also, that they could not do these things acceptably except through the atoning blood, received and applied by faith. Then part of the blood reserved upon the altar, probably in a basin for that purpose, was mingled with the holy anointing oil, and sprinkled on the garments both of Aaron and his sons, to hallow them to the Lord. “This may be looked upon as a lively representation of our purification by the blood of jesus Christ, through his Holy Spirit.” – Bp. Patrick
Reciprocal: Exo 29:9 – consecrate Lev 1:4 – put Lev 3:2 – lay Lev 8:28 – they were
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Lev 8:22. He brought the ram of consecration This was brought for a peace-offering, Exo 29:19; Exo 29:31-32. The order wherein these sacrifices were brought, was most rational; for first, a sacrifice for sin was offered, (Lev 8:14,) as an acknowledgment of their unworthiness; then followed the whole burnt-offering, (Lev 8:18,) which was a sign of their devoting themselves henceforth wholly to the service of God. After this followed the sacrifice of peace-offering, (Lev 8:31,) which betokened their being so far in favour with God as to hold communion with him, and partake of his sacred feast. The blood of this was, in part, put on the priests, their ears, thumbs, and toes; and, in part, sprinkled on the altar, signifying that they were (so to speak) married to the altar, and must all their days attend upon it.