Consecration of the Priests^(A)

29 “This is what you are to do to consecrate^(B) them, so they may serve me as priests: Take a young bull and two rams without defect.^{(C) 2} And from the finest wheat flour make round loaves without yeast, thick loaves without yeast and with olive oil mixed in, and thin loaves without yeast and brushed with olive oil.^{(D) 3} Put them in a basket and present them along with the bull and the two rams.^{(E) 4} Then bring Aaron and his sons to the entrance to the tent of meeting and wash them with water.^{(F) 5} Take the garments^(G) and dress Aaron with the tunic, the robe of the ephod, the ephod itself and the breastpiece. Fasten the ephod on him by its skillfully woven waistband.^{(H) 6} Put the turban^(I) on his head and attach the sacred emblem^(J) to the turban. ⁷ Take the anointing oil^(K) and anoint him by pouring it on his head. ⁸ Bring his sons and dress them in tunics^{(L) 9} and fasten caps on them. Then tie sashes on Aaron and his sons.^[a](M) The priesthood is theirs by a lasting ordinance.^(N)

“Then you shall ordain Aaron and his sons.

¹⁹ “Take the other ram,^(A) and Aaron and his sons shall lay their hands on its head.^{(B) 20} Slaughter it, take some of its blood and put it on the lobes of the right ears of Aaron and his sons, on the thumbs of their right hands, and on the big toes of their right feet.^(C) Then splash blood against the sides of the altar.^{(D) 21} And take some blood^(E) from the altar and some of the anointing oil^(F) and sprinkle it on Aaron and his garments and on his sons and their garments. Then he and his sons and their garments will be consecrated.^(G)

²² “Take from this ram the fat,^(H) the fat tail, the fat on the internal organs, the long lobe of the liver, both kidneys with the fat on them, and the right thigh. (This is the ram for the ordination.) ²³ From the basket of bread made without yeast, which is before the Lord, take one round loaf, one thick loaf with olive oil mixed in, and one thin loaf. ²⁴ Put all these in the hands of Aaron and his sons and have them wave them before the Lord as a wave offering.^{(I) 25} Then take them from their hands and burn them on the altar along with the burnt offering for a pleasing aroma to the Lord, a food offering presented to the Lord.^{(J) 26} After you take the breast of the ram for Aaron’s ordination, wave it before the Lord as a wave offering, and it will be your share.^(K)

²⁷ “Consecrate those parts of the ordination ram that belong to Aaron and his sons:^(L) the breast that was waved and the thigh that was presented. ²⁸ This is always to be the perpetual share from the Israelites for Aaron and his sons. It is the contribution the Israelites are to make to the Lord from their fellowship offerings.^(M)

²⁹ “Aaron’s sacred garments^(N) will belong to his descendants so that they can be anointed and ordained in them.^{(O) 30} The son^(P) who succeeds him as priest and comes to the tent of meeting to minister in the Holy Place is to wear them seven days.

³¹ “Take the ram^(Q) for the ordination and cook the meat in a sacred place.^{(R) 32} At the entrance to the tent of meeting, Aaron and his sons are to eat the meat of the ram and the bread^(S) that is in the basket. ³³ They are to eat these offerings by which atonement was made for their ordination and consecration. But no one else may eat^(T) them, because they are sacred. ³⁴ And if any of the meat of the ordination ram or any bread is left over till morning,^(U) burn it up. It must not be eaten, because it is sacred.

³⁵ “Do for Aaron and his sons everything I have commanded you, taking seven days to ordain them.

¹² “Bring Aaron and his sons to the entrance to the tent of meeting^(A) and wash them with water.^{(B) 13} Then dress Aaron in the sacred garments,^(C) anoint him and consecrate^(D) him so he may serve me as priest. ¹⁴ Bring his sons and dress them in tunics.^{(E) 15} Anoint them just as you anointed their father, so they may serve me as priests. Their anointing will be to a priesthood that will continue throughout their generations.^(F)” ¹⁶ Moses did everything just as the Lord commanded^(G) him.

²⁰ “This is the offering Aaron and his sons are to bring to the Lord on the day he^[a] is anointed:^(A) a tenth of an ephah^[b](B) of the finest flour^(C) as a regular grain offering,^(D) half of it in the morning and half in the evening. ²¹ It must be prepared with oil on a griddle;^(E) bring it well-mixed and present the grain offering broken^[c] in pieces as an aroma pleasing to the Lord. ²² The son who is to succeed him as anointed priest^(F) shall prepare it. It is the Lord’s perpetual share and is to be burned completely.^{(G) 23} Every grain offering of a priest shall be burned completely; it must not be eaten.”

⁶ Then Moses brought Aaron and his sons forward and washed them with water.^{(A) 7} He put the tunic on Aaron, tied the sash around him, clothed him with the robe and put the ephod on him. He also fastened the ephod with a decorative waistband, which he tied around him.^{(B) 8} He placed the breastpiece^(C) on him and put the Urim and Thummim^(D) in the breastpiece. ⁹ Then he placed the turban^(E) on Aaron’s head and set the gold plate, the sacred emblem,^(F) on the front of it, as the Lord commanded Moses.^(G)

¹⁰ Then Moses took the anointing oil^(H) and anointed^(I) the tabernacle^(J) and everything in it, and so consecrated them. ¹¹ He sprinkled some of the oil on the altar seven times, anointing the altar and all its utensils and the basin with its stand, to consecrate them.^{(K) 12} He poured some of the anointing oil on Aaron’s head and anointed^(L) him to consecrate him.^{(M) 13} Then he brought Aaron’s sons^(N) forward, put tunics^(O) on them, tied sashes around them and fastened caps on them, as the Lord commanded Moses.^(P)

¹⁴ He then presented the bull^(Q) for the sin offering,^(R) and Aaron and his sons laid their hands on its head.^{(S) 15} Moses slaughtered the bull and took some of the blood,^(T) and with his finger he put it on all the horns of the altar^(U) to purify the altar.^(V) He poured out the rest of the blood at the base of the altar. So he consecrated it to make atonement for it.^{(W) 16} Moses also took all the fat around the internal organs, the long lobe of the liver, and both kidneys and their fat, and burned it on the altar. ¹⁷ But the bull with its hide and its flesh and its intestines^(X) he burned up outside the camp,^(Y) as the Lord commanded Moses.

¹⁸ He then presented the ram^(Z) for the burnt offering, and Aaron and his sons laid their hands on its head. ¹⁹ Then Moses slaughtered the ram and splashed the blood against the sides of the altar. ²⁰ He cut the ram into pieces and burned the head, the pieces and the fat.^{(AA) 21} He washed the internal organs and the legs with water and burned the whole ram on the altar. It was a burnt offering, a pleasing aroma, a food offering presented to the Lord, as the Lord commanded Moses.

²² He then presented the other ram, the ram for the ordination,^(AB) and Aaron and his sons laid their hands on its head.^{(AC) 23} Moses slaughtered the ram and took some of its blood and put it on the lobe of Aaron’s right ear, on the thumb of his right hand and on the big toe of his right foot.^{(AD) 24} Moses also brought Aaron’s sons forward and put some of the blood on the lobes of their right ears, on the thumbs of their right hands and on the big toes of their right feet. Then he splashed blood against the sides of the altar.^{(AE) 25} After that, he took the fat^(AF), the fat tail, all the fat around the internal organs, the long lobe of the liver, both kidneys and their fat and the right thigh. ²⁶ And from the basket of bread made without yeast, which was before the Lord, he took one thick loaf, one thick loaf with olive oil mixed in, and one thin loaf,^(AG) and he put these on the fat portions and on the right thigh. ²⁷ He put all these in the hands of Aaron and his sons, and they waved them before the Lord^(AH) as a wave offering. ²⁸ Then Moses took them from their hands and burned them on the altar on top of the burnt offering as an ordination offering, a pleasing aroma, a food offering presented to the Lord. ²⁹ Moses also took the breast, which was his share of the ordination ram,^(AI) and waved it before the Lord as a wave offering, as the Lord commanded Moses.

³⁰ Then Moses^(AJ) took some of the anointing oil and some of the blood from the altar and sprinkled them on Aaron and his garments^(AK) and on his sons and their garments. So he consecrated^(AL) Aaron and his garments and his sons and their garments.

³¹ Moses then said to Aaron and his sons, “Cook the meat at the entrance to the tent of meeting^(AM) and eat it there with the bread from the basket of ordination offerings, as I was commanded: ‘Aaron and his sons are to eat it.’ ³² Then burn up the rest of the meat and the bread. ³³ Do not leave the entrance to the tent of meeting for seven days, until the days of your ordination are completed, for your ordination will last seven days.^{(AN) 34} What has been done today was commanded by the Lord^(AO) to make atonement for you. ³⁵ You must stay at the entrance to the tent of meeting day and night for seven days and do what the Lord requires,^(AP) so you will not die; for that is what I have been commanded.”