Exodus 29:20

Translations

Modern

Slaughter the ram, take some of its blood, and put it on the right earlobes of Aaron and his sons, on the thumbs of their right hands, and on the big toes of their right feet. Splatter the remaining blood on all sides of the altar.

Traditional

Then shalt thou kill the ram, and take of his blood, and put it upon the tip of the right ear of Aaron, and upon the tip of the right ear of his sons, and upon the thumb of their right hand, and upon the great toe of their right foot, and sprinkle the blood upon the altar round about.

Literal

And you shall slaughter the ram, and you shall take from 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 hands, and on the big toe of their right foot, and sprinkle the blood on the altar all around.

Latin

Quem cum immolaveris, sumes de sanguine ejus, et pones super extremum auriculæ dextræ Aaron et filiorum ejus, et super pollices manus eorum ac pedis dextri, fundesque sanguinem super altare per circuitum.

Original

Hebrew

English

Slaughter the ram, take some of its blood, and put it on the right earlobes of Aaron and his sons, on the thumbs of their right hands, and on the big toes of their right feet. Splatter the remaining blood on all sides of the altar.

Notes

Exodus 29:20–21

The placing of the blood on the earlobes, thumbs, and big toes represented dedication of the entire person to God. Sprinkling it on their clothes indicated that the clothing, too, could be used only for holy purposes.

Exodus 29:19–28

This ordination offering is very similar to the peace offering, which is also called the fellowship offering (Leviticus 3).

In this offering, the fat was burned as a gift to the Lord. The breast and the thigh were first lifted up before the Lord as a sign that they belonged to him (29:24–26). After that, they became the portion for the priests to eat (29:26–28).

In a regular peace offering, the person who brought the sacrifice also ate part of the meat. This meal was a fellowship meal shared in God’s presence (Leviticus 7:11–18). In this case, the priests ate the meal as part of their ordination (Exodus 29:31–34).

Exodus 29:10–34

The consecration of Aaron's priesthood involved:

a sin offering (29:10–14),
a burnt offering (29:15–18), and
an ordination offering (29:19–28).

These patterns were later used for the people's regular offerings (see 29:38–46; Leviticus 1–5). In each case, Aaron and his sons placed their hands on the heads of the sacrificial animals (Exodus 29:10, 15, 19). This act showed that sin is a matter of life and death. God will only remove sin by a death.

Because it represents life, blood was important in these ceremonies (29:12, 16, 20, 21).

Exodus 29:1–37

Moses had to consecrate (or sanctify) Aaron and his sons to serve the Lord. The focus on making the priests holy appears throughout the ceremonies (29:6, 21, 28, 29, 34, 36, 37). God set them apart not only for service. But he set them apart to serve a God whose nature is very different from that of sinful humans. Leviticus 8 gives the account of how they followed these instructions.

Theme notes and profiles

Aaron Pure Worship Temple Design as a Picture of God's Truth

Events

Tabernacle Built

Related verses

Isaiah 50:5
The Lord GOD has opened My ears, and I have not been rebellious, nor have I turned back.
Isaiah 52:15
…so He will sprinkle many nations. Kings will shut their mouths because of Him. For they will see what they have not been told, and they will understand what they have not heard.
Leviticus 8:24
Moses also presented Aaron’s sons and put some of the blood on their right earlobes, on the thumbs of their right hands, and on the big toes of their right feet. Then he splattered the blood on all sides of the altar.
Leviticus 16:14–15
And he is to take some of the bull’s blood and sprinkle it with his finger on the east side of the mercy seat; then he shall sprinkle some of it with his finger seven times before the mercy seat.
Leviticus 14:16
…dip his right forefinger into the oil in his left palm, and sprinkle some of the oil with his finger seven times before the LORD.
Hebrews 12:24
…to Jesus the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel.
Hebrews 10:22
…let us draw near with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and our bodies washed with pure water.
Leviticus 14:14
The priest is to take some of the blood from the guilt offering and put it on the right earlobe of the one to be cleansed, on the thumb of his right hand, and on the big toe of his right foot.
Mark 7:33
So Jesus took him aside privately, away from the crowd, and put His fingers into the man’s ears. Then He spit and touched the man’s tongue.
Leviticus 16:19
He is to sprinkle some of the blood on it with his finger seven times to cleanse it and consecrate it from the uncleanness of the Israelites.
Leviticus 14:7
Seven times he shall sprinkle the one to be cleansed of the skin disease. Then he shall pronounce him clean and release the live bird into the open field.
Hebrews 9:19–23
For when Moses had proclaimed every commandment of the law to all the people, he took the blood of calves and goats, along with water, scarlet wool, and hyssop, and sprinkled the scroll and all the people,

Parallels

Leviticus 8:22–36

People

Aaron: Moses' brother, first high priest of Israel

Glossary

Biblical Concept of Law Book of Exodus Deuteronomy, Book of History of Israel Holiness Leviticus, Book of Liver Offerings and Sacrifices Ordain, Ordination Ordination Offering Tabernacle Temple

Topics

Ear: Blood Put Upon, in Consecration of Priest Offerings: Peace: Laws Concerning Priest: The Time of Moses: Consecration of Priests: Ceremonies at Consecration of Purification by Blood of the Consecration Ram The Ear: Blood Put on the Right Ear of Priests at Consecration The Feet: Parts of, Mentioned in Scripture: Toes The Hands: Parts of, Mentioned: The Thumb The Hands: The Right Hand of Priests Touched with Blood of Consecration-Ram Thumb: Blood Put On, in Consecration Toe: Anointed in Consecration

Exodus 29:20

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Original?

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Related verses?

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