Topical Bible: Priest: The Time of Moses: Hereditary, Descent of office

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In the time of Moses, the office of the priesthood was established as a hereditary position, specifically designated for the descendants of Aaron, the brother of Moses. This divine appointment is rooted in the instructions given by God to Moses on Mount Sinai, as recorded in the Book of Exodus. The priesthood was a sacred office, integral to the religious and communal life of the Israelites, serving as mediators between God and His people.

Divine Appointment and Hereditary Nature

The hereditary nature of the priesthood is explicitly outlined in the Scriptures. In Exodus 28:1 , God commands Moses, "Bring near to you your brother Aaron and his sons with him, from among the Israelites, to serve Me as priests—Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, Eleazar and Ithamar." This directive establishes Aaron and his male descendants as the exclusive line through which the priestly duties would be carried out. The priesthood was not open to other tribes or families within Israel, underscoring its hereditary and divinely ordained nature.

Duties and Responsibilities

The priests were responsible for performing sacrifices, maintaining the Tabernacle (and later the Temple), and teaching the Law to the people. They acted as intermediaries, offering sacrifices on behalf of the Israelites to atone for their sins and to maintain a covenant relationship with God. Leviticus 10:11 emphasizes their role in instruction: "You must teach the Israelites all the statutes that the LORD has given them through Moses."

The High Priest

Among the priests, the High Priest held a unique and elevated position. The High Priest was the only one permitted to enter the Most Holy Place, and only once a year on the Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur), as described in Leviticus 16. Aaron, as the first High Priest, set the precedent for this role, which was passed down to his descendants. The High Priest wore special garments, including the ephod and breastplate, as detailed in Exodus 28, signifying his unique status and responsibilities.

Succession and Continuity

The succession of the priesthood was strictly maintained within Aaron's lineage, ensuring continuity of the office. Numbers 25:13 highlights the covenant of a perpetual priesthood: "It will be a covenant of perpetual priesthood for him and his descendants, because he was zealous for his God and made atonement for the Israelites." This covenant underscores the enduring nature of the priestly office within Aaron's family, emphasizing the importance of lineage and divine selection.

Challenges and Reaffirmation

Throughout Israel's history, challenges to the hereditary priesthood arose, yet the divine mandate was consistently reaffirmed. For instance, the rebellion of Korah, as recounted in Numbers 16, was a direct challenge to the Aaronic priesthood. However, God's judgment against the rebels and the subsequent reaffirmation of Aaron's line through the budding of his staff (Numbers 17) reinforced the divine choice of Aaron's descendants as the rightful priests.

In summary, during the time of Moses, the priesthood was a hereditary office, divinely appointed to the descendants of Aaron. This lineage was central to the religious life of Israel, with priests serving as essential mediators between God and His people, upholding the covenant and ensuring the proper worship and instruction of the nation.

Nave's Topical Index

Exodus 27:21
In the tabernacle of the congregation without the veil, which is before the testimony, Aaron and his sons shall order it from evening to morning before the LORD: it shall be a statute for ever to their generations on the behalf of the children of Israel.
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Exodus 28:43
And they shall be on Aaron, and on his sons, when they come in to the tabernacle of the congregation, or when they come near to the altar to minister in the holy place; that they bear not iniquity, and die: it shall be a statute for ever to him and his seed after him.
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Exodus 29:9
And you shall 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 you shall consecrate Aaron and his sons.
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Library

Appendix iv. An Abstract of Jewish History from the Reign of ...
... coins which bear in Hebrew the device: Matthatjah the High-Priest, and in ... the Sanhedrin,
and assumes its existence not only in the time of Moses, David, and ...
/.../the life and times of jesus the messiah/appendix iv an abstract of.htm

Tiglath-Pileser iii. And the Organisation of the Assyrian Empire ...
... This is the title given in Exodus 24:7 to a writing in which Moses is said to ... From
the midst of Ephraim, another seer, this time a priest, Hosea, son of ...
/.../chapter iitiglath-pileser iii and the.htm

The Unjust Steward - Dives and Lazarus - Jewish Agricultural Notes ...
... speaks of the dress of a corrupt High-Priest as having ... At the same time, the request
seems to imply an ... They need no witness-bearer: they have Moses and the ...
/.../the life and times of jesus the messiah/chapter xviii the unjust steward.htm

The Hebrews and the Philistines --Damascus
... See the Blessing of Moses (Dent, xxxiii.22). ... Eli, the priest to whose care it was
at this time consigned, had earned universal respect by the austerity of ...
/.../chapter iiithe hebrews and the.htm

Appeal to the Christian Women of the South
... the Father;" the spiritual blessing of the Great High Priest of his ... Or that He who
raised up a Moses, an Aaron, and ... he can own no property; but the time is to ...
/.../an appeal to the christian women of the south/appeal to the christian women.htm

The Reaction against Egypt
... We install him, therefore, in his office, we give to him ... in character, and that every
clan had its hereditary chief and ... them, may go back to the time of the ...
/.../chapter iithe reaction against egypt.htm

The Last Days of the Old Eastern World
... presumptive, and had probably filled the office of regent ... being the handsomest man
of his time, but neither ... in the hands of their hereditary princes, without a ...
/.../chapter iithe last days of 2.htm

The Medes and the Second Chaldaean Empire
... Darius, are represented as tracing their descent from Huvakshatara. ... reign of two
years,* had no time to desert ... of government; their removal from office had been ...
/.../chapter iiithe medes and the.htm

The Iranian Conquest
... the Trojan war,*** one thousand before Moses, and six ... months, Khelbes ten months,
the high priest Abbar three ... of Lydia, satisfied at the same time the passion ...
/.../chapter ithe iranian conquest.htm

part i
... changest a dead substance into a living one"as, for instance, Moses' rod into ... But
what do we see at the time of the exclamations of the priest and the ...
//christianbookshelf.org/calvin/my life in christ/part i.htm