Leviticus · chapter 9 of 27
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Leviticus 9 tells of the eighth day, when Aaron begins his service as priest. He offers sacrifices for himself and for the people, blesses the congregation together with Moses, and they enter the tent. Then the glory of the Lord appears to all, and fire comes out and consumes the burnt offering on the altar. The people shout for joy and fall on their faces.
After seven days of consecration, the priestly service officially begins. This chapter is the climax of the first part of Leviticus: God answers his people's obedience by showing his glory. Everything taught about the offerings is put into practice, and God confirms with fire that he accepts the worship he himself commanded.
On the eighth day Moses calls Aaron, his sons and the elders of Israel. He tells Aaron to bring a bull calf as a sin offering and a ram as a burnt offering for himself, and tells the people to bring a male goat for a sin offering, a calf and a lamb for a burnt offering, and an ox and a ram for the peace offering, together with a grain offering, because that day the Lord will appear to them.
Aaron approaches the altar and offers first for himself: the calf as a sin offering and the burnt offering. Then he presents the people's offering: the goat, the burnt offering, the grain offering and the peace offering. His sons hand him the blood and he applies it as commanded.
Aaron lifts his hands toward the people and blesses them. When he comes down from the altar, Moses and Aaron go into the tent and, when they come out, bless the people again. Then the glory of the Lord appears to all the people, and fire comes out from before the Lord and consumes the burnt offering and the fat on the altar. When they see it, all the people shout for joy and fall on their faces.
References follow ESV book names and verse numbers. Read each verse in your Bible before the explanation.
Moses says that what the Lord commands is to be done so that the glory of the Lord may appear to them. Obedience to God's word opens the way to his presence: it is not about manipulating God but receiving what he has promised.
Aaron lifts his hands toward the people and blesses them, then steps down after offering the sacrifices. The priest, who first was purified, now pronounces blessing on others: his ministry is to stand between God and his people.
Fire comes out from before the Lord and consumes the burnt offering and the fat on the altar, and the people shout and fall on their faces. God himself accepts the sacrifice with a visible sign, and Israel responds with worship and awe.
6 questions with answers and references, ready for Sunday school, small group or a Bible quiz night.
Answer: On the eighth day. — Leviticus 9:1
Answer: A calf as a sin offering and a ram as a burnt offering. — Leviticus 9:2
Answer: That the glory of the Lord would appear to them. — Leviticus 9:6
Answer: He lifted them and blessed them. — Leviticus 9:22
Answer: Moses and Aaron. — Leviticus 9:23
Answer: It consumed the burnt offering and the fat on the altar, and the people shouted and fell on their faces. — Leviticus 9:24
Leviticus 9 shows that true worship combines obedience and awe. Aaron does everything as commanded, and God responds with his glory. In a small group you can talk about how much we expect God's presence when we meet and how much we prepare for it.
There is also a lesson about the priesthood: Aaron offers first for himself and then for the people. Hebrews teaches that Christ, without sin, did not need to do so, and that his one sacrifice is enough forever. Before such grace, the believer's natural response is still that of Israel: reverent joy and worship.
Leviticus 9 closes with the glory of the Lord and the fire that approve the worship of the tabernacle. Leviticus 10 contrasts this scene with a tragedy: two sons of Aaron offer unauthorized fire and die, and the text insists that God must be treated as holy.
Because as a priest he was also a sinner and had to be cleansed before interceding for the people. The letter to the Hebrews contrasts this with Christ, who is a sinless high priest and so has no need to offer for himself.
It is the visible manifestation of God's presence, as had already happened when it filled the tabernacle in Exodus. Here it appears to all the people and is accompanied by fire, as a sign that God accepts the sacrifice and dwells with Israel.