Aaron
| Aaron | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Family | Father: Amram, Mother: Jochebed Sister: Miriam, Brother: Moses Wife: Elisheba Sons: Nadab, Abihu, Eleazar, Ithamar Grandson: Phinehas |
| Birthplace | Goshen, Egypt |
| Burial place | Mount Hor |
| Major achievements | First high priest of Israel; Assistant to Moses during the life in the desert |
Aaron (Hebrew: אַהֲרוֹן)[1] was the first high priest of Israel. He was a grandson of Kohath of the tribe of Levi and the son of Amram; he was the younger brother of Miriam and the elder brother of Moses.[2] While assisting Moses, he helped lead the people of Israel throughout their life in the desert. During the time of Moses, after the completion of the Tabernacle, Aaron became the first high priest and played a central role in establishing the sacrificial system of the Old Testament. He married Elisheba, the daughter of Amminadab of the tribe of Judah, and their four sons—Nadab, Abihu, Eleazar, and Ithamar[3]—also served in the priesthood.
Historical Background
When Joseph served as governor of Egypt, the people of Israel settled in the fertile land of Goshen. But after a new Pharaoh who did not know Joseph came to power, the oppression of Israel began.[4] The Israelites, enslaved and burdened by harsh labor, groaned under their suffering and cried out. God heard their cries, remembered the covenant He had made with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and looked upon His people with compassion.[5] At Mount Horeb, from the midst of a burning bush, He called Moses and gave him the mission to deliver His people.[6]
Life of Aaron
Spokesman for Moses
When God gave Moses the mission of delivering the Israelites, Moses hesitated, saying he was not eloquent. In response, God appointed his brother Aaron to assist him. God stated that the eloquent Aaron would be Moses’ mouth and would serve him as if serving God. When Moses met Aaron, he told him everything God had commanded. Aaron then gathered the elders of Israel, introduced Moses, and accepted him as their leader.
Aaron spoke God’s words before Pharaoh on Moses’ behalf,[7] stretched out his staff to bring about the plagues as God commanded,[8] and held up Moses’ hands during the battle against the Amalekites.[9] Only Moses and Aaron were permitted to ascend Mount Sinai when God appeared to the people and spoke.[10] Although Aaron was three years older than Moses,[11] he followed Moses faithfully in obedience to God’s word.[12]
The Idolatry Incident
After being freed from slavery in Egypt and witnessing the power of the Passover and the miracle of the Red Sea, the Israelites began their life in the desert. When they reached the Desert of Sinai, Moses went up Mount Sinai after being called by God. In his absence, Aaron and Hur were appointed as temporary leaders.[13]
When forty days passed and Moses had not returned, the people became anxious. They demanded that Aaron make them gods to lead them, saying they did not know what had happened to Moses. Aaron told them to bring their gold earrings, melted them down, and formed a calf. He built an altar in front of it and proclaimed that the next day would be a festival to the LORD. The people then offered sacrifices, ate and drank, and engaged in revelry, worshiping the golden calf as the god that had brought them out of Egypt.[14]
When Moses came down from the mountain and saw what had happened, he broke the tablets of the Ten Commandments in anger. He burned the calf, ground it into powder, scattered it on the water, and made the people drink it. When Moses rebuked Aaron for leading the people into such great sin, Aaron shifted the blame onto the people.[15] God was angered by this idolatry and intended to destroy Aaron, but He forgave him in response to Moses’ intercession.[16][17]
Appointment as the First High Priest
On the first day of the first month of the second year after the Exodus, the tabernacle of God was completed, and Moses arranged all the holy furnishings inside it. God then gave Moses detailed instructions regarding the sacrificial rituals to be performed in the tabernacle and appointed Aaron and his sons to the priesthood. Aaron was anointed with oil, consecrated,[18] and established as the first high priest of Israel.[19]
The Order of Aaron
After the ordination of Aaron and his sons, Moses instructed Aaron to bring a young bull without defect for a sin offering and a ram for a burnt offering,[20] while the people also brought animals for their offerings. When everything had been prepared and presented before the tent of meeting, Aaron slaughtered the bull. He put some of its blood on the horns of the altar and poured the rest at its base. When Moses and Aaron blessed the people, fire came out from before God and consumed the burnt offering and the fat portions on the altar.[21] This was the first sacrifice offered after the completion of the tabernacle. From that moment onward, the priesthood of the Old Testament began with Aaron and was passed down to his descendants, known as the order of Aaron. Priests of this order continually offered sacrifices by shedding the blood of animals. The order of Aaron was later transformed in the New Testament era when Jesus came as the high priest in the order of Melchizedek.[22][23]
Death of Two Sons
Two of Aaron’s sons, Nadab and Abihu, offered unauthorized fire before the LORD—fire that He had not commanded—near the curtain that shielded the Most Holy Place. Fire came out from God’s presence and consumed them. This occurred because they violated God’s command and approached the sanctuary improperly. Moses told Aaron that this was God’s judgment, and he warned Aaron and his remaining sons, Eleazar and Ithamar, not to mourn or leave the entrance of the tent of meeting. They obeyed Moses’ instruction.[24]
Aaron’s Budding Staff
Later, a rebellion arose against Moses and Aaron, led by Korah and his followers, who resented that only Aaron’s descendants could inherit the priesthood. After God judged and destroyed them, He commanded that twelve staffs, each inscribed with the name of a tribal leader, be placed in the tabernacle. The next day, when Moses entered the tabernacle, he found that Aaron’s staff—representing the tribe of Levi—had sprouted, budded, blossomed, and produced almonds. This miraculous sign proved that Aaron was God’s chosen leader.[25] Moses presented the staff to the people[26] and then placed it inside the ark of the covenant along with the gold jar of manna.[27][28]
The Waters of Meribah
When the Israelites camped at Kadesh and found no water, God instructed Moses and Aaron to bring water from the rock using their staff. However, Moses and Aaron said to the people, “Must we bring you water out of this rock?” This displeased God because they attributed the miracle to themselves instead of giving glory to Him. As a result, both Moses and Aaron were forbidden from entering the land of Canaan.[29]
Death
When the Israelites arrived at Mount Hor, God informed that Aaron’s life would soon come to an end. On the first day of the fifth month of the fortieth year after the Exodus, Aaron died on Mount Hor at the age of 123.[30] The Israelites mourned for him for thirty days.[31] After Aaron’s death, his third son, Eleazar, succeeded him as high priest.
See also
References
- ↑ Strong's Hebrew: 175. אַהֲרוֹן, Bible Hub
- ↑ Numbers 26:59
- ↑ Exodus 6:23
- ↑ Exodus 1:8–14.
- ↑ Exodus 2:23–25
- ↑ Exodus 3:2–10.
- ↑ "Exodus 7:1–2".
- ↑ Exodus 8:5–6
- ↑ Exodus 17:11–13
- ↑ Exodus 19:24
- ↑ Exodus 7:7
- ↑ Exodus 4:10–31.
- ↑ Exodus 24:12–14
- ↑ Exodus 32:1–6
- ↑ Exodus 32:18–22
- ↑ Deuteronomy 9:20–21
- ↑ Moses’ Intercessory Prayer, TGC, July 19, 2006
- ↑ Leviticus 8:12
- ↑ Exodus 40:1–16.
- ↑ Leviticus 9:2
- ↑ Leviticus 9:1–24.
- ↑ Hebrews 7:11–25
- ↑ The Order of Aaron and the Order of Melchizedek, WATV.org
- ↑ Leviticus 10:1–7.
- ↑ Numbers 17:8, Bible Hub
- ↑ Numbers 17:1–9.
- ↑ Numbers 17:10
- ↑ Hebrews 9:4
- ↑ Numbers 20:10–12
- ↑ Numbers 33:38–39
- ↑ Numbers 20:22–29