the Sanctuary. He purified [1] Aaron with water, and clothed him with divers sacred vestments[2], chief of which was the ephod, a marvellous work of gold and purple and fine linen, the edges of which were ornamented with rich embroidery of gold.
He suspended from his neck the rational, on which were twelve stones, each bearing the name of one of the twelve tribes (Fig. 33); he placed upon his head the mitre, in the middle of which, in front, was a gold plate, with the inscription:
“Holy to the Lord.” Finally, he poured oil upon his head, and consecrated him.
After his sons and the Levites had also been consecrated, Aaron advanced to the altar, and, having offered a victim, stretched his hand over the people, and blessed them.
And behold! a fire came forth from the pillar of cloud and consumed the holocaust. Seeing this, the people fell prostrate on the ground, praising the Lord.
COMMENTARY.
Sacrifice is the highest and most perfect form of worship; therefore, God ordained sacrifices to be the centre of divine worship under the Old Law. What was sacrificed, was given to God, and had to be wholly consumed in His honour. Thus victims were killed and burnt, wine was poured out, and incense was burnt. These actions were meant to express on the part of him who made the offering some such thought as this: “Thou, O Lord, hast created all things! Everything
- ↑ Purified. In the brass laver in the outer court.
- ↑ Vestments . The vestments common to all priests were 1) a long white linen robe with a tesselated or diaper pattern (something like our alb) reaching down to the ankles; 2) a girdle of linen ; 3) a bonnet or turban of linen (Fig. 34, p. 170). Besides these the High Priest (Fig. 35, p. 171) had the following special vestments: 1) a mitre of blue with a gold plate engraved with the words: “Holy to the Lord", and worn on the forehead of the High Priest; 2) the tunic or robe of blue and of woven work, forming part of the ephod, and having trimmings of pomegranates in blue, red and crimson, with golden bells between them, tinkling at every movement of the High Priest; 3) the ephod consisting of two parts, one covering the back, the other the front, clasped together on the shoulder with two large onyx stones, each having engraved on it six names of the tribes of Israel, and fastened by a girdle of gold, blue, purple and scarlet; 4) the breast-plate or rational suspended from the neck. One part of the sacerdotal dress was the Urim and Thummim, but it is difficult to say which.
