World English Bible
- “This is the thing that you shall do to them to make them holy, to minister to me in the priest’s office: take one young bull and two rams without defect,
- unleavened bread, unleavened cakes mixed with oil, and unleavened wafers anointed with oil. You shall make them of fine wheat flour.
- You shall put them into one basket, and bring them in the basket, with the bull and the two rams.
- You shall bring Aaron and his sons to the door of the Tent of Meeting, and shall wash them with water.
- You shall take the garments, and put on Aaron the tunic, the robe of the ephod, the ephod, and the breastplate, and clothe him with the skillfully woven band of the ephod.
- You shall set the turban on his head, and put the holy crown on the turban.
- Then you shall take the anointing oil, and pour it on his head, and anoint him.
- You shall bring his sons, and put tunics on them.
- You shall clothe them with belts, Aaron and his sons, and bind headbands on them. They shall have the priesthood by a perpetual statute. You shall consecrate Aaron and his sons.
- “You shall bring the bull before the Tent of Meeting; and Aaron and his sons shall lay their hands on the head of the bull.
- You shall kill the bull before the LORD at the door of the Tent of Meeting.
- You shall take of the blood of the bull, and put it on the horns of the altar with your finger; and you shall pour out all the blood at the base of the altar.
- You shall take all the fat that covers the innards, the cover of the liver, the two kidneys, and the fat that is on them, and burn them on the altar.
- But the meat of the bull, and its skin, and its dung, you shall burn with fire outside of the camp. It is a sin offering.
- “You shall also take the one ram, and Aaron and his sons shall lay their hands on the head of the ram.
- You shall kill the ram, and you shall take its blood, and sprinkle it around on the altar.
- You shall cut the ram into its pieces, and wash its innards, and its legs, and put them with its pieces, and with its head.
- You shall burn the whole ram on the altar: it is a burnt offering to the LORD; it is a pleasant aroma, an offering made by fire to the LORD.
- “You shall take the other ram, and Aaron and his sons shall lay their hands on the head of the ram.
- Then you shall kill the ram, and take some of its blood, and put it on the tip of the right ear of Aaron, and on the tip of the right ear of his sons, and on the thumb of their right hand, and on the big toe of their right foot; and sprinkle the blood around on the altar.
- You shall take of the blood that is on the altar, and of the anointing oil, and sprinkle it on Aaron, and on his garments, and on his sons, and on the garments of his sons with him: and he shall be made holy, and his garments, and his sons, and his sons’ garments with him.
- Also you shall take some of the ram’s fat, the fat tail, the fat that covers the innards, the cover of the liver, the two kidneys, the fat that is on them, and the right thigh (for it is a ram of consecration),
- and one loaf of bread, one cake of oiled bread, and one wafer out of the basket of unleavened bread that is before the LORD.
- You shall put all of this in Aaron’s hands, and in his sons’ hands, and shall wave them for a wave offering before the LORD.
- You shall take them from their hands, and burn them on the altar on the burnt offering, for a pleasant aroma before the LORD: it is an offering made by fire to the LORD.
- “You shall take the breast of Aaron’s ram of consecration, and wave it for a wave offering before the LORD. It shall be your portion.
- You shall sanctify the breast of the wave offering and the thigh of the wave offering, which is waved, and which is raised up, of the ram of consecration, even of that which is for Aaron, and of that which is for his sons.
- It shall be for Aaron and his sons as their portion forever from the children of Israel; for it is a wave offering. It shall be a wave offering from the children of Israel of the sacrifices of their peace offerings, even their wave offering to the LORD.
- “The holy garments of Aaron shall be for his sons after him, to be anointed in them, and to be consecrated in them.
- Seven days shall the son who is priest in his place put them on, when he comes into the Tent of Meeting to minister in the holy place.
- “You shall take the ram of consecration and boil its meat in a holy place.
- Aaron and his sons shall eat the meat of the ram, and the bread that is in the basket, at the door of the Tent of Meeting.
- They shall eat those things with which atonement was made, to consecrate and sanctify them; but a stranger shall not eat of it, because they are holy.
- If anything of the meat of the consecration, or of the bread, remains to the morning, then you shall burn the remainder with fire. It shall not be eaten, because it is holy.
- “You shall do so to Aaron and to his sons, according to all that I have commanded you. You shall consecrate them seven days.
- Every day you shall offer the bull of sin offering for atonement. You shall cleanse the altar when you make atonement for it. You shall anoint it, to sanctify it.
- Seven days you shall make atonement for the altar, and sanctify it; and the altar shall be most holy. Whatever touches the altar shall be holy.
- “Now this is that which you shall offer on the altar: two lambs a year old day by day continually.
- The one lamb you shall offer in the morning; and the other lamb you shall offer at evening;
- and with the one lamb a tenth part of an ephah of fine flour mixed with the fourth part of a hin of beaten oil, and the fourth part of a hin of wine for a drink offering.
- The other lamb you shall offer at evening, and shall do to it according to the meal offering of the morning and according to its drink offering, for a pleasant aroma, an offering made by fire to the LORD.
- It shall be a continual burnt offering throughout your generations at the door of the Tent of Meeting before the LORD, where I will meet with you, to speak there to you.
- There I will meet with the children of Israel; and the place shall be sanctified by my glory.
- I will sanctify the Tent of Meeting and the altar. I will also sanctify Aaron and his sons to minister to me in the priest’s office.
- I will dwell among the children of Israel, and will be their God.
- They shall know that I am the LORD their God, who brought them out of the land of Egypt, that I might dwell among them: I am the LORD their God.
Exodus 29 reveals in detail the rituals necessary for consecrating Aaron and his sons to serve as priests before the Lord. At first glance, this chapter—with blood on altars, specific garments, precise sacrifices, and sacred anointings—might seem distant, even alien to us today. Yet, when we delve deeper, we find rich treasures of meaning that speak profoundly to our hearts about holiness, sacrifice, ministry, and our calling in Christ.
The chapter opens with God instructing Moses:
“This is what you are to do to consecrate them, so they may serve me as priests…” (Exodus 29:1, New International Version)
Notice that God Himself initiates this process of holiness. The Hebrew word here for “consecrate” is מָלֵא יָדָם (“male yadām”), literally meaning to “fill their hands.” It is an idiomatic expression denoting empowerment and divine commissioning for a specific task or office. God personally empowers, fills, and prepares His ministers for their service, deeply emphasizing His grace and sovereignty.
In ancient Near Eastern cultures, ritual consecration and anointing carried a universal symbolism: it marked someone as set apart, distinct, exclusively reserved for divine purposes. Priestly consecration in other cultures often hinted at human attempts to appease indifferent gods, but here in Exodus, the initiative and direction come wholly from God Himself, displaying His intention for relational intimacy and fellowship.
We might wonder why the consecration ritual was so graphic, involving blood on the altar, sprinkled garments, and even marked ears, thumbs, and toes (Exodus 29:20). Blood signified life (Leviticus 17:11), and its shedding symbolized both human sinfulness that required substitutionary sacrifice and cleansing that allowed access to God’s holy presence. The application of blood to the priests’ bodies symbolized total surrender—what they listened to (ears), what they worked on (thumbs), and how they walked (toes) were all entirely devoted and cleansed unto God.
Church father Augustine recognized such Old Testament sacrifices pointed forward to Christ’s complete and final sacrifice. As Hebrews confirms, without the shedding of blood, divine forgiveness would remain elusive (Hebrews 9:22). Aaron’s priesthood foreshadows Jesus, our ultimate High Priest, whose blood alone sanctifies forever those who trust Him (Hebrews 10:14).
In Exodus 29:40-41, daily sacrifices included bread, oil, and wine as peace offerings, emphasizing fellowship. In Israelite society, sharing bread and wine publicly symbolized companionship, peace, and unity. Consuming the meal of peace symbolized communion with God, intimate fellowship activated through the completed sacrifice. Similarly, Jesus invites us today, as His disciples, to partake regularly at His table, sealing our restored fellowship with Himself and each other (Matthew 26:26-29).
God prescribed sacrifices every day (verses 38-46), morning by morning, evening by evening. The daily rhythm of incense and sacrifice symbolized continual worship, surrender, and intimate communion. In Romans 12:1, Paul calls us to present our bodies as “living sacrifices,” echoing Exodus 29’s lasting message. God’s presence is not restricted to special divides of “sacred” and “secular”; rather, our entire lives become holy offerings pleasing to Him.
Archaeologically, we’ve found evidence from ancient Israelite worship cultures and their neighbors underscoring that daily rituals continually reinforced identity and devotion. For modern Western Christians accustomed to compartmentalizing sacred activities—limited mostly to Sundays—this ancient daily emphasis challenges us today: how do we intentionally bring our whole being into constant fellowship and devotion?
Western believers might overlook the tremendous significance of this consecration because priestly structures seem unfamiliar. However, Apostle Peter describes Christians collectively as a “holy priesthood” in Christ (1 Peter 2:5, 9), invited into God’s presence through Christ’s sacrifice alone, without needing separate human intermediary priesthood.
We are consecrated by redemption through Christ; our lives, too, are marked by His blood through faith. As Jesus was anointed and sent (Luke 4:18-19), we too receive the Spirit’s empowering, set apart to serve and minister grace to our neighbors, bringing glory to God.
Consider singing or meditating on “Take My Life and Let It Be” by Frances Ridley Havergal. Each verse beautifully emphasizes absolute surrender to God, resonating deeply with Exodus 29’s consecration theme:
“Take my hands and let them move
At the impulse of Thy love;
Take my feet and let them be
Swift and beautiful for Thee.”
Lord God, we humbly acknowledge You as holy, mighty, and merciful, and we stand in awe of Your provision in Christ, our great High Priest. Just as You consecrated Aaron and his sons through powerful symbols and sacrifices, may we today live in awareness of Christ’s ultimate sacrifice for us. Consecrate us afresh, Lord, filling our hands, hearts, and lives with purpose, and making us daily offerings pleasing to You. May we become vessels through whom Your grace, love, and holiness flow freely to the world around us. Through Jesus Christ our Lord, Amen.