March 16
Lesson 3 (KJV)
The Ordination of Priests
Devotional Reading: Psalm 133
Background Scripture: Exodus 29:1–37; Leviticus 8:1–36
Exodus 29:1–9, 35–37
1 And this is the thing that thou shalt do unto them to hallow them, to minister unto me in the priest’s office: take one young bullock, and two rams without blemish,
2 And unleavened bread, cakes unleavened tempered with oil, and wafers unleavened anointed with oil: of wheaten flour shalt thou make them.
3 And thou shalt put them into one basket, and bring them in the basket, with the bullock and the two rams.
4 And Aaron and his sons thou shalt bring unto the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, and shalt wash them with water.
5 And thou shalt take the garments, and put upon Aaron the coat, and the robe of the ephod, and the ephod, and the breastplate, and gird him with the curious girdle of the ephod:
6 And thou shalt put the mitre upon his head and the holy crown upon the mitre.
7 Then shalt thou take the anointing oil, pour it upon his head, and anoint him.
8 And thou shalt bring his sons, and put coats upon them.
9 And thou shalt gird them with girdles, Aaron and his sons, and put the bonnets on them: and the priest’s office shall be theirs for a perpetual statute: and thou shalt consecrate Aaron and his sons.
35 And thus shalt thou do unto Aaron, and to his sons, according to all I have commanded: seven days shalt thou consecrate them.
36 And thou shalt offer every day a bullock for a sin offering for atonement: and thou shalt cleanse the altar, when thou hast made an atonement for it, and thou shalt anoint it, to sanctify it.
37 Seven days thou shalt make an atonement for the altar, and sanctify it; and it shall be an altar most holy: whatsoever toucheth the altar shall be blessed.
Key Text
The priest’s office shall be theirs for a perpetual statute: and thou shalt consecrate Aaron and his sons.—Exodus 29:9b
Costly Sacrifices
Unit 1: Tabernacle, Sacrifices, and Atonement
Lessons 1–5
Lesson Aims
After participating in this lesson, each learner will be able to:
1. Define “ordination” in the sense of “consecration.”
2. Compare ordination/consecration in the Old Testament with its value and practice in the New Testament.
3. Make a plan to serve as a member of the Christian’s holy and royal priesthood per 1 Peter 2:5, 9.
Lesson Outline
Introduction
A. Ordination
B. Lesson Context
I. Preparing the Offerings (Exodus 29:1–3)
A. Animals and Bread (vv. 1–2)
B. Collection and Presentation (v. 3)
God, the Painter?
II. Preparing the Ordinands (Exodus 29:4–9)
A. Persons, Place, and Purification (v. 4)
B. Aaron, Attire, and Anointing (vv. 5–7)
C. Descendants, Dress, and Duration (vv. 8–9)
Hand-Me-Down Clothes
III. Requiring a Week (Exodus 29:35–37)
A. For the Priests (v. 35)
B. For the Altar (vv. 36–37)
Conclusion
A. The Old in the New
B. Prayer
C. Thought to Remember
How to Say It
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Abihu |
Uh-bye-hew. |
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Eleazar |
El-ih-a-zar or E-lih-a-zar. |
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ephod |
ee-fod. |
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Gomorrah |
Guh-more-uh. |
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Ithamar |
Ith-uh-mar. |
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Nadab |
Nay-dab. |
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Sodom |
Sod-um. |
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What Do You Think? How might the concept of “unleavened” apply to modern-day believers? Digging Deeper How do Matthew 16:6 and 1 Corinthians 5:6–8 direct your response? |
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What Do You Think? What can you teach others regarding valid and invalid connections between baptism and Aaron’s washing with water? Digging Deeper How are 1 Corinthians 6:11; Titus 3:4–7; and Hebrews 10:19–22 relevant? |
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What Do You Think? In what cases would you initiate an anointing with oil? Digging Deeper How do Mark 6:13 and James 5:14–15 inform your response? |
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What Do You Think? What kinds of “waiting periods” do you need to adopt personally? Digging Deeper What Scripture convicts you most in this regard? |
Conclusion
A. The Old in the New
The importance of today’s lesson is seen in the fact that ordination to the priesthood was instructed in Exodus 29, carried out in detail in Leviticus 8, and viewed as an accomplished fact in Exodus 40. Such repetition should catch our attention!
Even so, we may wonder about modern relevance. Today’s text describes persons and events from over 3,000 years ago. Aaron and Moses are long dead. Neither the tabernacle nor the Jerusalem temple stands today. A natural, perhaps instinctive way of seeing relevance is to see parallels between the ordination of priests in the Old Testament and the modern practice of ordaining gospel ministers. There is value in doing so, but that’s not the primary point of relevance.
That primary relevance is at least twofold. The first is that the functions of the tabernacle, priests, and blood sacrifices form the framework for understanding Jesus’ sacrifice as an atonement (propitiation) for our sins (Romans 3:25; Hebrews 2:17; etc.). The second concerns the fact and obligations of our own priesthood (Romans 12:1; 1 Peter 2:5; etc.). We neglect facts of the old covenant as foundations for the new covenant at our peril (Romans 15:4; 1 Corinthians 10:11).
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What Do You Think? How would you respond to someone who says that Scripture texts like today’s are meaningless to modern-day believers? Digging Deeper In what ways has your mindset regarding the Old Testament changed because of this lesson? |
B. Prayer
Heavenly Father, may we honor Your plan to provide the priesthoods of old and new covenants. Convict us on how we can better celebrate our priesthood of all believers as it reflects Your holiness. We pray this is the name of our great high priest, the once-for-all sacrifice for our sins, Jesus. Amen.
C. Thought to Remember
Honor your part in the priesthood of all believers.
Involvement Learning
Enhance your lesson with KJV Bible Student (from your curriculum supplier) and the reproducible activity page (at www.standardlesson.com or in the back of the KJV Standard Lesson Commentary Deluxe Edition).
Mark S. Krause et al., “The Ordination of Priests,” in The KJV Standard Lesson Commentary, 2024–2025, ed. Jason Hitchcock et al., vol. 72, The KJV Standard Lesson Commentary (Colorado Springs, CO: Standard Publishing, 2025), 255–256.
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