meet it in the time of David and Solomon (1 Chron. xvi. 39., xxi. 29.; 1 Kings iii. 4., ix. 2. &c.). The latter king ordered it to be brought to Jerusalem, and, with all its vessels, to be deposited in the Temple, (1 Kings viii. 4.) From this time it is no more mentioned in the sacred records."* ELEMENTARY AND GENERAL QUESTIONS. 297. What was the place appointed for the celebration of the Mosaic ritual worship? 298. Mention the several Scriptural designations of the Tabernacle, and their significations. 299. Explain the symbolical meaning of the Tabernacle, as a whole. 300. Describe its typical significance. 301. Repeat 1 Tim. iii. 16.; Col. ii. 9.; John i. 14.: John ii. 19. 302. Repeat 1 Tim. iii. 15.: Eph. ii. 22, 23.; 1 Cor. iii. 9., vi. 19.; Eph. iii. 17.; 1 Pet. ii. 5, 6. 303. Repeat Acts x. 38.; 2 Cor. i. 21.; 1 John ii. 20. 304. Give a general description of the Court of the Tabernacle and its contents. 305. Describe the Altar of Burnt Offerings,-its construction,-posi 306. Explain its symbolical and typical significance. 307. Describe the Laver,-its construction,-position, 308. Of what was it a symbol and a type? 309. Repeat Exod. xxx. 20.; Ps. xxvi. 6.; Heb. x. 22.; Eph. v. 26.; Titus iii. 5. 310. Into how many compartments was the interior of the Tabernacle divided? 311. What formed the partition? 312. What did this division signify? 313. Who alone had access to the Holy Place, and to the Most Holy, respectively? 314. Repeat Exodus xxvi. 31-33.; Lev. vii. 8, 9.; Heb. ix. 7. 315. State the contents of the Holy Place. 316. Describe the Candlestick, its construction,— position, — and use. 317. Explain its symbolical and typical import. -- 318. Describe the Table of Shew-bread, its construction, - position, - and use. 319. Explain its symbolical and typical meaning. 320. State the contents of the Most Holy Place. 321. Describe the Ark of the Covenant, -its structure, position, and use. contents, 322. Explain its symbolical and typical significance. and use. 325. What do we commonly understand to have been in the Ark? what was over it, before it, at its side? 326. What was (probably) the form of the Cherubim? 327. What did they signify? * Commentary on Exodus xl. 34-38. ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS. 328. What is known concerning the position of the Tabernacle in the Court? 329. Describe the structure of the Tabernacle, and its coverings. 330. How do you understand Exodus xxvi. 22-24.? 331. Describe the embroidery of the Tabernacle curtains and hangings. 332. State the dimensions of the Court, — of the Tabernacle, - of the Holy Place, of the Most Holy Place. 333. Describe accurately the composition of the incense which was burnt on the Golden Altar. 334. Explain Heb. ix. 4., with reference to 1 Kings viii. 9. 335. Give a brief sketch of the history of the Tabernacle. 336. What is the last event of its history recorded in Scripture? CHAPTER XIX. MOSAIC RITUAL.—THE LEVITICAL PRIESTHOOD. (Exodus xxviii. xxix.; Lev. viii. ix.; Num. iii. iv.) As the Tabernacle was the palace of the great Theocratic King, with the most Holy Place as its presence-chamber, so the ministers of the Tabernacle were the King's servants and attendants of several grades. The office of priesthood was assigned to Aaron and his posterity, of the tribe of Levi; while all the other male members of this tribe were required to render assistance to the priests in the discharge of their office. The priests were the higher officers of the great King; and no other persons, even of the tribe of Levi, could assume this dignity under penalty of the Divine displeasure. (Exod. xix. 22.; Ñum. xvi. Η50.; xviii. 13.) It has been remarked that, by this means, the theocracy, without being converted into a hierarchy *, was secured and strengthened by receiving permanent representatives of the Divine authority. * "It is the distinguishing mark of Mosaism that the whole people, down to the lowest individual, shared the same knowledge, and was admitted to the same sources of information; that the priests had no exclusive privileges whatever; that they were merely the representatives of the first-born sons, in whose stead they were instituted; that Mosaism created no hierarchy, but a genuine theocracy; that, in fact, the Mosaic legislation constitutes a religious democracy on the basis of perfect equality."-KALISCH, on Exod. xxviii. 4. - The Levites themselves were assisted by certain servants, consisting partly of persons voluntarily dedicated to this service (Lev. xxvii. 1—8), — partly of some of the conquered Canaanites, namely the inhabitants of Gibeon, Beeroth, Cephira, and Kirjath-jearim (Josh. ix. 23-29),-and afterwards also of persons presented and set apart for this work by David, Solomon, and others (Ezra ii. 54. 58., viii. 20.; Neh. xi. 3.), hence called Nethinim, i. e. devoted, presented, which in the time of Moses was applied to the Levites themselves (Num. iii. 9.; viii. 16—19.). After the Captivity the office even of these Nethinim was regarded as a post of honour (Neh. x. 29.) a name THE LEVITES, at their first institution, were consecrated, or solemnly set apart for the duties of their office. (Num. viii. 5— 22.; 1 Chron. vi. 33.) At first no distinctive dress was assigned to them; afterwards a vestment of white linen was appointed for at least those of them who were engaged in conducting the sacred music, and in carrying the ark. (1 Chron. xv. 27.; 2 Chron. v. 12.) The office of the Levites was, in general, to perform everything in the Tabernacle (or Temple), which was not especially assigned to the priests, except those lowest services which belonged to the servants (hewers of wood and drawers of water). It was their duty to watch over the sacred edifice, to keep it clean, to close it in the evening and to open it in the morning, and to preserve order in the court; in the journey through the wilderness they carried the several portions of the Tabernacle and its furniture, under the direction of the priests. And to their care were entrusted the stores of flour, wine, oil, incense, &c., required for use in public worship. Under David and in the Temple, they were employed as singers, and players on musical instruments. In later times they slew the victims which were about to be offered in sacrifice. The three sons of Levi were Gershon, Kohath, and Merari (Num. iii. 17.); and all the families of the tribe were classified according to these three houses, to each of which was assigned its appropriate office in the transport of the several parts of the Tabernacle. (Num. iii. 21-26., vi. 1-33.) The age during which they were required to discharge the more onerous parts of their duty was from thirty years to fifty; but they undertook some of its lighter offices as early as the age of twenty-five, and continued to discharge them after fifty. In later times they entered on their office, then no longer burdensome, as early as the age of twenty. (Num. iv., viii, 23—26.; 1 Chron. xxiii. 24, 27.; 2 Chron. xxxi. 17.; Ezra, iii. 8.) い After the settlement of the people in Canaan, the Levites were entrusted with the exercise of certain judicial functions, and with the custody of the genealogies or registers. David, finding that in his time the males of full age belonging to this tribe numbered 38,000, distributed them into four divisions; appointing 24,000 for the work of the house of the Lord, which were divided into twenty-four courses of 1000 each, to officiate in rotation weekly (1 Chron. xxiii. 6-24.), 6000 as officers and judges, 4000 as porters or door-keepers, and 4000 as musicians and singing-men. The latter were subdivided into twenty-four orders or classes, who were to perform the duties of their office by weekly courses. (1 Chron. xxv.) All these divisions and courses were placed under presidents or heads. Under Jehoshaphat some of the Levites were appointed to instruct the rural population in the Law. (2 Chron. xxxv. 3.) After the Captivity they were employed as interpreters to explain, in Aramaic, or the vernacular language, the Hebrew of the sacred books when read in public, Hebrew having then become a dead language. (Neh. viii. 7.) It was always their duty to make the Scriptures their special study, in order to expound them to the people. (Mal. ii. 6—9.) THE PRIEST (Cohen), was so called, most probably, on account of his privilege of near approach to God, in performing the duties of the sanctuary, or as sustaining the capacity of mediator between God and man. The word seems properly to denote one who has the right of entrée into the presence of a sovereign (see 1 Chron. xviii. 17.); and, as we have already seen, Jehovah was the King of the Israelites, and the Tabernacle was his palace. The priesthood was confined to the family of Aaron; while the descendants of Moses remained among the ordinary Levites, and, even in the second generation, had fallen into poverty. (Judges, xvii. 7-10; xviii. 30.) Kohath, the eldest son of Levi, had four sons, Amram, Izhar, Hebron, Uzziel (Exod. vi. 18.) The eldest of these, Amram, was the father of Moses and Aaron. Aaron had four sons; but two of them, Nadab and Abihu, were destroyed by fire from heaven for the sin of offering strange fire before the Lord (Lev. x. 1-7.; 1 Chron. xxiv. 1, 2.), leaving only the other two, Eleazar and Ithamar, to form the first link after Aaron in the line of priests. Their descendants became so numerous that David distributed them into twenty-four orders, sixteen of the family of Eleazar, and eight of that of Ithamar (1 Chron. xxiv. 9-19.); an arrangement which was maintained by Solomon (2 Chron. viii. 14.), and, after having been for some time neglected, was restored by Hezekiah and Josiah (2 Chron. xxxi. 2., xxxv. 4, 5.). The several orders served the priest's office in weekly rotation. Of these orders (or classes) only four were included in the return from the Captivity (Ezra ii. 36—39. ; Neh. vii. 39—42., xii. 1.) ; but, either the others returned afterwards, or a new distribution into the same number of classes, bearing the original names, was subsequently made; for we find that the Maccabees were of the (first) class of Jehoiarib; and in Luke i. 5. we read of the class of Abia (the eighth). The priest's dress (Exod. xxviii.; Lev. viii.) consisted of white linen drawers, a white linen tunic, or long close garment with sleeves*, a girdle of richly embroidered linen (embroidered in blue, red, and crimson, on a white ground, so as to resemble the skin of a serpent, Joseph. Ant. iii. 7. 2.), encircling the body twice, and tied in a knot in front, so as to hang down to the ancles (the loose part being thrown across the shoulders when the priest was engaged in any active service), and a turban or tiara, which was originally of a conical shape, high and pointed, but afterwards, as in the time of Josephus (Ant. iii. 7. 3.), round: it was fastened to the head by ribbons. We find no mention of sandals; and hence it is probable that the priests officiated barefoot, according to the prevalent custom of the East. The qualifications for the office of priesthood were, proof of descent from Aaron (Ezra ii. 62.; Neh. vii. 64.), and freedom from personal blemish (Lev. xxi. 16, 17.). During their period (week) of service, the priests were required to abstain from wine and strong drink. (Lev. x. 8-11.) No age was prescribed for their entrance on office, or for their retirement. The duties of the officiating priests were, to keep up the fire on the Brazen Altar, and to offer the sacrifices, with the prescribed ceremonies (including, of course, the daily morning and evening sacrifice),—to burn incense on the golden altar every morning and evening, in the morning to trim the lamps of the golden candlestick, and in the evening to supply them with oil, and to light them,- to place the bread and wine on the table of shew-bread, on the Sabbath, -to blow the trumpets at appointed times, and to announce the festivals. It belonged also to the priest's office to pronounce the blessing on the people which we read in Numbers vi. 24, 25. * Called, in our version of Exod. xxviii. 4., “an embroidered coat;" rather perhaps a tesselated garment, i. e. having the forms of squares interwoven in it. See KALISCH in loc. |