Cornelius a Lapide
Table of Contents
Synopsis of the Chapter
Aaron is consecrated by Moses as high priest, and the sons of Aaron are consecrated as priests; hence first, they are washed and clothed in priestly garments, verse 6. Second, verse 14, a bull is offered for sin; and verse 18, a ram for a burnt offering; and verse 22, another ram for a peace offering. Third, verse 24, their right ear and thumbs are anointed. Fourth, verse 33, they are commanded to remain in the tabernacle for seven days.
Vulgate Text: Leviticus 8:1-36
1. And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: 2. Take Aaron with his sons, their garments, and the oil of anointing, a bull for sin, two rams, and a basket with unleavened bread, 3. and you shall gather the whole assembly to the entrance of the tabernacle. 4. Moses did as the Lord had commanded, and when the whole multitude was gathered before the doors of the tabernacle, 5. he said: This is the word that the Lord has commanded to be done. 6. And immediately he presented Aaron and his sons. And when he had washed them, 7. he clothed the high priest with the linen undergarment, girding him with the belt, and vesting him with the blue robe, and over it placed the ephod, 8. which he fastened with the girdle and fitted to the rational, in which was Doctrine and Truth. 9. He also covered his head with the mitre; and upon it, against the forehead, he placed the golden plate consecrated in sanctification, as the Lord had commanded him. 10. He took also the oil of anointing, with which he anointed the tabernacle with all its furnishings. 11. And when, sanctifying, he had sprinkled the altar seven times, he anointed it, and all its vessels, and the laver with its base he sanctified with oil. 12. And pouring it upon Aaron's head, he anointed and consecrated him; 13. and he also clothed his sons who had been presented, vesting them in linen tunics, girding them with belts, and placing mitres on them, as the Lord had commanded. 14. He also offered a bull for sin; and when Aaron and his sons had laid their hands upon its head, 15. he slaughtered it; and drawing the blood, and dipping his finger, he touched the horns of the altar all around, and when it was expiated and sanctified, he poured the remaining blood at its base. 16. But the fat that was over the entrails, and the caul of the liver, and the two kidneys with their little layers of fat, he burned upon the altar: 17. the bull with its skin and flesh and dung he burned outside the camp, as the Lord had commanded. 18. He also offered a ram for a burnt offering: upon whose head Aaron and his sons laid their hands, 19. and he slaughtered it, and poured its blood around the altar. 20. And cutting the ram itself into pieces, he burned its head, limbs, and fat with fire, 21. having first washed the intestines and feet, and he burned the whole ram together upon the altar, because it was a burnt offering of sweetest odor to the Lord, as He had commanded him. 22. He also offered the second ram, for the consecration of priests; and Aaron and his sons laid their hands upon its head: 23. and when Moses had slaughtered it, taking some of its blood, he touched the tip of Aaron's right ear, and the thumb of his right hand, and likewise of his foot. 24. He also presented the sons of Aaron; and when he had touched the tip of each one's right ear with the blood of the slaughtered ram, and the thumbs of the right hand and foot, he poured the rest upon the altar all around; 25. but the fat, and the tail, and all the fat that covers the intestines, and the caul of the liver, and the two kidneys with their fat and the right shoulder he set apart. 26. And taking from the basket of unleavened bread that was before the Lord, bread without leaven, and a cake spread with oil, and a wafer, he placed them upon the fat and the right shoulder, 27. delivering them all together to Aaron and his sons. And after they had raised them before the Lord, 28. receiving them again from their hands, he burned them upon the altar of burnt offering, because it was the offering of consecration, for a sweet odor of sacrifice to the Lord. 29. And he took the breast, elevating it before the Lord, from the ram of consecration as his own portion, as the Lord had commanded him. 30. And taking the ointment and the blood that was on the altar, he sprinkled it upon Aaron and his garments, and upon his sons and their garments. 31. And when he had sanctified them in their vestments, he commanded them, saying: Cook the flesh before the entrance of the tabernacle, and there eat it. Eat also the bread of consecration that has been placed in the basket, as the Lord commanded me, saying: Aaron and his sons shall eat them: 32. but whatever is left over of the flesh and bread, fire shall consume. 33. You shall not go out from the entrance of the tabernacle for seven days, until the day when the time of your consecration is completed. For the consecration is finished in seven days: 34. as has been done at the present time, so that the rite of the sacrifice might be completed. 35. Day and night you shall remain in the tabernacle, keeping the watches of the Lord, lest you die: for so it has been commanded to me. 36. And Aaron and his sons did all the things that the Lord spoke through the hand of Moses.
This chapter is the same as chapter XXIX of Exodus. For the rite of the consecration of Aaron and the priests, which is prescribed there, is here narrated as having been performed and completed. Moses therefore repeats these things in Leviticus so that he might include in this single book all the ceremonies of the sacrifices, and especially those customarily employed in the consecration of priests. And so I shall dispatch this chapter with a few notes: for the rest, see chapter XXIX of Exodus.
Verse 1: And the Lord Spoke to Moses
1. AND THE LORD SPOKE TO MOSES. — It is probable that all these things narrated in this chapter are recounted here by way of recapitulation: for the tabernacle had already been erected before this, as is clear from Exodus, last chapter, verse 16; but at the same time, together with the erection of the tabernacle, this consecration of Aaron and the priests was performed, as is clear from the same passage, verse 12.
Verse 5: This Is the Word Which the Lord Commanded to Be Done
5. THIS IS THE WORD WHICH THE LORD COMMANDED TO BE DONE. — Josephus relates that the Israelites wanted to make Moses high priest, but that he excused himself by this command of the Lord, who ordered Aaron to be consecrated as high priest, because he himself was occupied with conversing with the Lord and governing the people.
Verse 6: And Immediately He Presented Aaron and His Sons
6. AND IMMEDIATELY HE PRESENTED AARON AND HIS SONS. — For 'presented' the Hebrew has iacreb, that is, 'he caused to approach'; the Septuagint has 'he brought'; the Chaldean, 'he applied'; so also our translator renders it in Exodus 29:4, saying: 'You shall bring Aaron and his sons to the door of the tabernacle,' that is, by placing them before the Lord and offering them for the ministry of God: for in this way the Levites were solemnly offered to the Lord in their consecration, Numbers 8:41 and 21.
Verse 7: He Vested the High Priest
Verse 7. HE VESTED THE HIGH PRIEST. — The High Priest was clothed in eight vestments in this order. He put on first, linen breeches; second, over them a linen tunic; third, he girded this tunic with a belt; fourth, over this linen tunic he put the hyacinthine tunic; fifth, over this he placed the ephod with the breastplate; sixth, he girded the ephod with a many-colored belt; seventh, he covered the head with a tiara; eighth, to the tiara he attached the golden plate, on which was inscribed 'Holiness,' or 'Holy to the Lord.' The lesser priests, however, wore only four vestments, namely first, breeches; second, a linen tunic; third, a sash; fourth, a tiara: they therefore lacked the hyacinthine tunic, the ephod with the breastplate, its belt, and the golden plate inscribed with the tetragrammaton name. See the commentary on Exodus XXVIII.
Aaron Represented the Tabernacle
Note: Aaron, as high priest and vicar of God, clothed in his pontifical vestments, represented the tabernacle, that is, the Church, and consequently God as the ruler of the tabernacle and dwelling in it as in His own house. For first, the breastplate, or the rational of judgment, represented the ark: for just as the ark contained the stone tablets, so the rational contained 12 gems. Second, just as the ark in its tablets contained the written law, so the rational contained the writing of the Urim and Thummim: for in it were written doctrine and truth. Third, the ephod of the rational represented the propitiatory of the ark. Fourth, the ark had two cherubim: so the tunic of the high priest had two onyx stones. Fifth, the plate of the high priest on which was inscribed 'Holiness of the Lord' represented the glory of the Lord which dwelt in the tabernacle. Sixth, the tunic of the high priest signified the veil and curtains which enclosed the entire interior of the tabernacle. Seventh, just as the tabernacle represented heaven and all the elements: so in the full-length robe was the whole world, says the Wise Man.
The Five Prerogatives of the High Priest
Note second: The high priest differed from other priests by five prerogatives. First, the high priest was the firstborn or eldest son of Aaron and of his successors: the others were younger in age.
Second, he throughout his whole life was one alone; the others were many. Third, into the sanctuary, namely into the Holy of Holies, he alone entered once a year, namely on the Day of Atonement: the others were never permitted to enter it. Fourth, the high priest had different vestments and greater ornamentation than the others. Fifth, upon the death of the high priest, fugitive murderers returned to their homes: which did not happen upon the death of other priests.
The Linen Undergarment
The Linen Undergarment — which in Exodus 28 is called the linen and close-fitting tunic.
Verse 9: The Golden Plate Consecrated in Sanctification
9. THE GOLDEN PLATE CONSECRATED IN SANCTIFICATION — that is to say, the golden plate consecrated by the anointing of oil for holy uses. In Hebrew it is nezer haccodes, that is, the crown or diadem of holiness, that is, holy.
Verse 11: And When He Was Sanctifying
11. AND WHEN HE WAS SANCTIFYING — namely the tabernacle and its furnishings, by anointing them with holy oil. This sanctification therefore was nothing other than the anointing of the tabernacle and its vessels, by which they were consecrated to God.
Verse 14: He Also Offered a Calf for Sin
14. HE ALSO OFFERED A CALF FOR SIN. — In Exodus chapter 29, verses 35 and 36, a calf is commanded to be offered daily for seven days: therefore this was done accordingly, even though it is not expressly stated here; nevertheless it is sufficiently implied in verse 34.
Verse 15: He Poured the Remaining Blood at Its Base
15. When the altar had been expiated and sanctified, HE POURED THE REMAINING BLOOD AT ITS BASE. — In Hebrew it reads: Thus he expiated the altar, and poured the blood at the base of the altar, and expiated it for sanctifying upon it, that is, as the Septuagint has it, for making propitiation upon it, so that henceforth this altar, consecrated by that rite, would serve for sacrifices by which God is propitiated and appeased. Therefore by this ceremony the altar was consecrated.
Verse 30: He Sprinkled It upon Aaron
30. AND TAKING THE OINTMENT AND THE BLOOD THAT WAS ON THE ALTAR, HE SPRINKLED IT UPON AARON. — Note: This ointment was composed of myrrh, cinnamon, calamus, cassia, and olive oil, as is clear from Exodus 30:23 and 30. The anointing, therefore, or rather the pouring of ointment on the head, was the consecration of the high priest, as is clear here in verse 12 and Exodus 29:7. The anointing common to both the high priest and the lesser priests was the sprinkling of ointment mixed with blood upon them and their vestments; in addition, the anointing of the right ear and the thumbs, as is clear from Exodus 29:20.
The Threefold Lustration of the High Priest
In the consecration of the high priest, therefore, there was a threefold lustration: namely pouring, anointing, and sprinkling, both of oil and of blood; in the consecration of the lesser priests, however, there was only a twofold lustration, namely anointing and sprinkling. For the pouring, which denoted the fullness of grace, spirit, and power, was proper to the high priest. God wished to teach here that in the ecclesiastical hierarchy there should be order, or subordination, with mutual respect and harmony. St. Jerome aptly writes to Nepotian: 'Be subject,' he says, 'to your Bishop, and love him as a parent of your soul. But let Bishops know that they are priests, not lords: let them honor clerics as clerics, so that due honor may be given to Bishops as Bishops by the clergy. Well known is the saying of the orator Domitius: Why should I,' he said, 'regard you as a leader, when you do not regard me as a senator?'
Second, this anointing admonished the high priest how much he ought to excel in mercy (whose symbol is oil), charity, and other virtues, and to surpass all others. 'The light of the flock,' says St. Gregory, 'is the flame of the shepherd. For it is fitting that the Lord's Shepherd and priest should shine forth in character and life, so that the people committed to him may be able, as in a mirror of his life, both to choose what to follow and to see what to correct.' The same author, in his Pastoral: 'With what rashness,' he says, 'is the pastoral office undertaken by the inexperienced? since the governance of souls is the art of arts. This is the mastery of discipline, that one may know how to spare faults with discretion and to cut away with piety.' And again: 'The conduct of the Bishop,' he says, 'ought to surpass the conduct of the people as much as the life of the shepherd usually differs from the flock.' For as Claudian says, in I Stilicon:
Indeed, the examples of rulers flow down to the common people;
And as camps follow the trumpets of generals, so they follow their morals.
The same author thus admonishes the Emperor Honorius, Consulate 4:
This moreover I will admonish you with frequent speech,
That you may know you live in the center of the whole earth,
That your deeds are open to all nations,
And that no secrecy can be given anywhere to royal vices.
Mystical Meaning of the Anointing and Oil
Mystically, regarding the threefold anointing and oil — first, of compunction; second, of devotion; third, of piety — see St. Bernard, Sermon 10 on the Canticles. 'The ointment of contrition,' he says, 'is good, with which the feet of the Lord are anointed; the ointment of devotion is better, with which the head is anointed; the ointment of piety is best, with which the whole body of the Lord is anointed. The ointment of contrition consists in the remembrance of sins; of devotion, in the remembrance of God's benefits; of piety, in the relief of one's neighbors.'
The same author, Sermon 22 on the Canticles: 'Four,' he says, 'are the ointments of Christ the High Priest: wisdom, justice, sanctification, redemption; wisdom, in preaching; justice, in the absolution of sins; sanctification, in way of life; redemption, in His passion.' In the same place, he says the four ointments of Christ are the four cardinal virtues: for the High Priest and every faithful person who serves God and devotes himself to His service ought to be imbued and strengthened by these against both adversity and prosperity.
The same author throughout Sermon 2 on the Canticles treats of the anointing and oil of mercy, and among other things says: 'O whatever soul you are who is so disposed, so imbued with the dew of mercy, so overflowing with the depths of piety, so making yourself all things to all people, so becoming to yourself like a lost vessel, that you may everywhere and always be at hand to meet and help others, so finally dead to yourself that you may live for all: you truly possess, happy soul, the third and best ointment, and your hands have distilled the liquid of all sweetness. God will remember every sacrifice of yours, and your holocaust will grow rich.'
He then brings forth examples. 'Such was Paul, when he says: Who is weak, and I am not weak? Who is scandalized, and I am not on fire? And Job saying in chapters 29 and 31: I was an eye to the blind, and a foot to the lame: I was a father to the poor, I broke the jaws of the wicked. If I ate my morsel alone, etc. And Joseph, who after he made all Egypt run after him at the fragrance of his ointments, in the end also offered the same fragrance to those who had sold him. And Samuel mourning for Saul who was seeking to kill him. And Moses saying: Forgive this people; but if not, blot me out of your book which you have written. O truly a man anointed with the anointing of mercy! And David: Remember, he says, O Lord, David and all his meekness. And Jeremiah, of whom it is said in 2 Maccabees 15: This is the lover of his brethren and of the people of Israel: this is he who prays much for the people and the entire holy city. With this ointment of piety the Magdalene anointed Christ.'
Verse 33: For in Seven Days the Consecration Is Completed
33. FOR IN SEVEN DAYS THE CONSECRATION IS COMPLETED. — In Hebrew, 'in seven days he will fill,' supply 'with oil,' that is, he will consecrate by the anointing of oil your hands: so the Septuagint; and this first, so that during these seven days the newly ordained priests might learn to forget earthly things and to dwell with God in the tabernacle, that is, in the court of the tabernacle. Second, so that during these seven days they might be reminded that they have been consecrated to God for their entire life, and have passed into His family and household. For seven days are all the days of the week. So Cyril, in Book II of On Adoration: 'For seven days,' he says, 'that is, always and perpetually.'
Verse 34: As Has Been Done at Present
34. AS HAS BEEN DONE AT PRESENT THAT THE RITE OF SACRIFICE MIGHT BE COMPLETED — that is to say, just as you and your vestments were sprinkled with the blood of the victim on this day, to complete the rite of the sacrifice offered for consecration: so it is necessary to do this, and to repeat this sprinkling for seven days, during which the consecration of the priests is completed.
Verse 36: And They Did All Things
36. AND THEY DID ALL THINGS THAT THE LORD HAD SPOKEN THROUGH THE HAND OF MOSES — that is, through Moses, as through His instrument and hand. For the hand is the instrument of instruments, says Aristotle, Book II of On the Soul. This Hebraism occurs frequently in Scripture.