Priests
Priests
First notice of persons acting as - Ge 4:3,4
During patriarchal age heads of families acted as - Ge 8:20; 12:8; 35:7
After the exodus young men (first-born) deputed to act as - Ex 24:5; 19:22
The sons of Aaron appointed as, by perpetual statute - Ex 29:9; 40:15
All except seed of Aaron excluded from being - Nu 3:10; 16:40; 18:7
Sanctified by God for the office - Ex 29:44
Publicly consecrated - Ex 28:3; Nu 3:3
CEREMONIES AT CONSECRATION OF
Required to remain in the tabernacle seven days after consecration - Le 8:33-36
No blemished or defective persons could be consecrated - Le 21:17-23
Required to prove their genealogy before they exercised the office - Ezr 2:62; Ne 7:64
GARMENTS OF
Required to wash in the brazen laver before they performed their services - Ex 30:18-21
SERVICES OF
- Keeping the charge of the tabernacle
- Nu 18:1,5,7 - Covering the sacred things of the sanctuary before removal
- Nu 4:5-15 - Offering sacrifices
- Le 1:1-6:30; 2Ch 29:34; 35:11 - Lighting and trimming the lamps of the sanctuary
- Ex 27:20,21; Le 24:3,4 - Keeping the sacred fire always burning on the altar
- Le 6:12,13 - Burning incense
- Ex 20:7,8; Lu 1:9 - Placing and removing show-bread
- Le 24:5-9 - Offering first fruits
- Le 23:10,11; De 26:3,4 - Blessing the people
- Nu 6:23-27 - Purifying the unclean
- Le 15:30,31 - Deciding in cases of jealousy
- Nu 5:14,15 - Deciding in cases of leprosy
- Le 13:2-59; 14:34-45 - Judging in cases of controversy
- De 17:8-13; 21:5 - Teaching the law
- De 33:8,10; Mal 2:7 - Blowing the trumpets on various occasions
- Nu 10:1-10; Jos 6:3,4 - Carrying the ark
- Jos 3:6,17; 6:12 - Encouraging the people when they went to war
- De 20:1-4 - Valuing things devoted
- Le 27:8
Were to live by the altar as they had no inheritance - De 18:1,2; 1Co 9:13
REVENUES OF
- Tenth of the tithes paid to the Levites
- Nu 18:26,28; Ne 10:37,38; Heb 7:5 - First-fruits
- Nu 18:8,12,13; De 18:4 - Redemption-money of the first-born
- Nu 3:48,51; 18:15,16 - First-born of animals or their substitutes
- Nu 18:17,18; Ex 13:12,13 - First of the wool of sheep
- De 18:4 - Show-bread after its removal
- Le 24:9; 1Sa 21:4-6; Mt 12:4 - Part of all sacrifices
- Le 7:6-10,31,34; Nu 6:19,20; 18:8-11; De 18:3 - All devoted things
- Nu 18:14 - All restitutions when the owner could not be found
- Nu 5:8 - A fixed portion of the spoil taken in war
- Nu 31:29,41
Thirteen of the Levitical cities given to, for residence - 1Ch 6:57-60; Nu 35:1-8
Might purchase and hold other lands in possession - 1Ki 2:26; Jer 32:8,9
SPECIAL LAWS RESPECTING
- Not to marry divorced or improper persons
- Le 21:7 - Not to defile themselves for the dead except the nearest of
kin - Le 21:1-6 - Not to drink wine, &c while attending in the tabernacle
- Le 10:9; Eze 44:21 - Not to defile themselves by eating what died or was torn
- Le 22:8 - While unclean could not perform any service
- Le 22:1,2; Nu 19:6,7 - While unclean could not eat of the holy things
- Le 22:3-7 - No sojourner or hired servant to eat of their portion
- Le 22:10 - All bought and home-born servants to eat of their portion
- Le 22:11 - Children of, married to strangers, not to eat of their
portion - Le 22:12 - Restitution to be made to, by persons ignorantly eating of
their holy things - Le 22:14-16
Divided by David into twenty-four courses - 1Ch 24:1-19; 2Ch 8:14; 35:4,5
The four courses which returned from Babylon subdivided into 24 - Ezr 2:36-39; Lu 1:5
Each course of, had its president or chief - 1Ch 24:6,31; 2Ch 36:14
Services of, divided by lot - Lu 1:9
Punishment for invading the office of - Nu 16:1-35; 18:7; 2Ch 26:16-21
On special occasions persons not of Aaron's family acted as - Jud 6:24-27; 1Sa 7:9; 1Ki 18:33
WERE SOMETIMES
- Greedy
- 1Sa 2:13-17 - Drunken
- Isa 28:7 - Profane and wicked
- 1Sa 2:22-24 - Unjust
- Jer 6:13 - Corrupters of the law
- Isa 28:7; Mal 2:8 - Slow to sanctify, themselves for God's services
- 2Ch 29:34
Generally participated in punishment of the people - Jer 14:18; La 2:20
Made of the lowest of the people by Jeroboam and others - 1Ki 12:21; 2Ki 17:32
Services of, ineffectual for removing sin - Heb 7:11; 10:11
ILLUSTRATIVE OF