Chronological

Consecration of the Kohanim

8 Then Adonai spoke to Moses, saying: ² “Take Aaron and his sons with him, the garments, the anointing oil, the bull of the sin offering, the two rams and the basket of matzot. ³ Then assemble all the congregation at the entrance of the Tent of Meeting.”

⁴ So Moses did as Adonai commanded him. When the congregation was assembled at the entrance of the Tent of Meeting, ⁵ Moses said to the congregation, “This is what Adonai has commanded to be done.”

⁶ Moses brought Aaron and his sons and washed them with water. ⁷ He put the tunic on Aaron, tied the sash on him, clothed him with the robe, put the ephod on him, and tied the skillfully decorated sash of the ephod around him and fastened it on him. ⁸ He then placed the breastplate on Aaron, and inside the breastplate he put the Urim and the Thummim. ⁹ He set the turban on his head, and on front of the turban he set the golden plate, the holy crown, just as Adonai commanded Moses. ¹⁰ Moses took the anointing oil and anointed the Tabernacle and all that was in it, and so consecrated them. ¹¹ He sprinkled the oil on the altar seven times and anointed the altar and all its utensils, the basin with its stand, to consecrate them. ¹² He poured some of the anointing oil on Aaron’s head and anointed him to consecrate him. ¹³ Then Moses brought Aaron’s sons, and clothed them with tunics, tied sashes on them, and fastened headbands on them, as Adonai had commanded Moses.

¹⁴ Then he brought the bull of the sin offering, and Aaron and his sons laid their hands on the head of the bull of the sin offering. ¹⁵ Moses then slaughtered it, took the blood and dabbed it onto the horns of the altar with his finger, and so purified the altar. Then he poured out the blood at the base of the altar and consecrated it, to make atonement for it. ¹⁶ He then took all the fat that was on the innards, the cover of the liver, and the two kidneys and their fat, and burned it up as smoke on the altar. ¹⁷ But the bull and its hide, its flesh and its dung, he burned with fire outside the camp, as Adonai had commanded. ¹⁸ He then presented the ram of the burnt offering, and Aaron and his sons laid their hands on the head of the ram. ¹⁹ Then Moses slaughtered it and splashed the blood around on the altar. ²⁰ After he cut the ram into its pieces, Moses burned the head, the pieces, and the fat. ²¹ He washed the innards and the legs with water. Then Moses burned the whole ram up in smoke on the altar. It was a burnt offering for a soothing aroma, an offering by fire to Adonai, as Adonai had commanded Moses.

²² Then he presented the second ram, the ram of ordination, and Aaron and his sons laid their hands on the head of the ram. ²³ Moses slaughtered it, took some of its blood and put it on the tip of Aaron’s right ear, on the thumb of his right hand and on the great toe of his right foot. ²⁴ Then Moses brought Aaron’s sons and put some of the blood on the tips of their right ears, on the thumbs of their right hands and on the great toes of their right feet. Then Moses splashed the blood around on the altar. ²⁵ He took the fat, the fat tail, and all the fat that was on the innards, as well as the cover of the liver, the two kidneys with their fat and the right thigh. ²⁶ Then out of the basket of matzah that was before Adonai, he took one matzah cake, one cake of oiled bread and one wafer, and placed them on the fat and on the right thigh. ²⁷ He put all these in Aaron’s hands and in the hands of his sons, and waved them for a wave offering before Adonai. ²⁸ Then Moses took them from their hands and burned them up in smoke on the altar with the burnt offering. They were a consecration for a soothing aroma. It was an offering by fire to Adonai. ²⁹ Moses took the breast and waved it for a wave offering before Adonai. It was Moses’ portion of the ram of ordination, just as Adonai commanded Moses.

³⁰ Then Moses took some of the anointing oil and some of the blood which was on the altar, and sprinkled it on Aaron, on his garments, and on his sons, and on his sons’ garments with him. So he consecrated Aaron, his garments, his sons and his sons’ garments with him.

³¹ Moses then said to Aaron and to his sons, “Boil the meat at the entrance of the Tent of Meeting and eat it there, along with the bread that is in the basket of ordination, as I commanded, saying: ‘Aaron and his sons are to eat it.’ ³² What remains of the meat and of the bread you shall burn with fire.

³³ You are not to go out from the entrance of the Tent of Meeting for seven days, until the days of your ordination are fulfilled, for he will be filling your hands for seven days. ³⁴ What has been done this day, Adonai has commanded to be done, in order to make atonement for you. ³⁵ You are to stay at the entrance of the Tent of Meeting day and night for seven days, and keep Adonai’s command, so that you do not die, for so I have been commanded.” ³⁶ Thus Aaron and his sons did all the things that Adonai commanded through Moses.

Parashat Shemini

Kohanim Begin Their Ministry

9 Now it happened on the eighth day that Moses called Aaron, his sons, and the elders of Israel. ² Then he said to Aaron, “Take a calf from the herd for a sin offering, and a ram for a burnt offering, both without blemish, and offer them before Adonai. ³ You are to speak to Bnei-Yisrael, saying: Take a male goat for a sin offering, along with a calf and a lamb, both yearlings without blemish, for a burnt offering, ⁴ plus a bull and a ram for fellowship offerings, to sacrifice before Adonai, along with a grain offering mixed with oil. For today Adonai appears to you.”

⁵ So they brought what Moses commanded before the Tent of Meeting, and the entire congregation drew near and stood before Adonai. ⁶ Moses said, “This is what Adonai commanded that you shall do, so that the glory of Adonai may appear to you.” ⁷ Moses said to Aaron, “Draw near to the altar, and bring your sin offering, and your burnt offering, and make atonement for yourself and for the people.^[a] Then present the offering for the people, and make atonement for them, as Adonai commanded.”

⁸ So Aaron drew near to the altar, and slaughtered the calf of the sin offering, which was for himself. ⁹ The sons of Aaron presented the blood to him. Then he dipped his finger in the blood, dabbed it onto the horns of the altar, and poured out the blood at the base of the altar. ¹⁰ But the fat, the kidneys and the cover from the liver of the sin offering he burned up as smoke on the altar, as Adonai had commanded Moses. ¹¹ The flesh and the hide he burned in a fire outside the camp. ¹² Aaron slaughtered the burnt offering, then his sons presented the blood to him and he splashed it around on the altar. ¹³ They handed the burnt offering to him piece by piece, along with the head, and he burned them up as smoke on the altar. ¹⁴ He washed the innards and the legs and he offered them in smoke upon the burnt offering on the altar. ¹⁵ Then he presented the people’s gift, took the goat of the sin offering which was for the people, slaughtered it, and offered it for sin, just like the first one. ¹⁶ He presented the burnt offering and offered it according to the decree.

¹⁷ Then Aaron presented the grain offering, filling his hand with some of it and burning it up as smoke on the altar, alongside the burnt offering of the morning. ¹⁸ He also slaughtered the bull and the ram as the sacrifice of fellowship offerings for the people. Then his sons brought him the blood, which he splashed around on the altar, ¹⁹ as well as the fat from the bull and the ram, the fat tail, and the layer over the innards along with the kidneys and the covering of the liver. ²⁰ They put the fat upon the breasts, and he burned it on the altar. ²¹ But the breasts and the right thigh Aaron waved for a wave offering before Adonai, as Moses had commanded. ²² Then Aaron lifted up his hands toward the people and blessed them.^[b] Then he stepped down from presenting the sin offering, the burnt offering and the fellowship offerings.

²³ Moses and Aaron then went into the Tent of Meeting. When they came back out and blessed the people, the glory of Adonai appeared to all the people. ²⁴ Fire came out from the presence of Adonai, and devoured the burnt offering and the fat on the altar. When all the people saw it, they shouted and fell on their faces.

Holy Fire Consumes Unauthorized Fire

10 Now Aaron’s sons Nadab and Abihu each took his own censer, put fire in it, laid incense over it, and offered unauthorized fire before Adonai—which He had not commanded them. ² So fire came out from the presence of Adonai and consumed them. So they died before Adonai. ³ Then Moses said to Aaron, “This is what Adonai spoke of, saying:

To those who are near Me

I will show myself holy.

Upon the faces of all the people

I will be glorified.”

Then Aaron kept silent.

⁴ Then Moses called Mishael and Elzaphan, the sons of Aaron’s uncle Uzziel, and said to them, “Come near, carry your relatives away from the front of the Sanctuary to outside of the camp.” ⁵ So they drew near and carried them, still in their tunics, outside of the camp, as Moses had said.

⁶ Then Moses said to Aaron, and to Eleazar and Ithamar his sons: “Do not uncover your heads or tear your clothes, so you may not die and He will not be angry with the entire congregation. But let your kinsmen—the whole house of Israel—mourn over the burning that Adonai has kindled. ⁷ You must not go out from the entrance of the Tent of Meeting, or you will die, for the anointing oil of Adonai is on you.” So they acted according to the word of Moses.

⁸ Adonai spoke to Aaron saying: ⁹ “Do not drink wine or fermented drink, neither you nor your sons with you, when you go into the Tent of Meeting, so that you do not die. This is to be a statute forever throughout your generations. ¹⁰ You are to make a distinction between the holy and the common and between the unclean and the clean. ¹¹ And you are to teach Bnei-Yisrael all the statutes which Adonai has spoken to them through Moses.”

¹² Moses spoke to Aaron and to Eleazar and Itamar his surviving sons: “Take the grain offering left over from Adonai’s offerings by fire, and eat it without hametz beside the altar, for it is most holy. ¹³ You are to eat it in a holy place, because it is your portion and your sons’ portion of the offerings of Adonai made by fire. For so I have been commanded. ¹⁴ You are to eat the breast that was waved and the thigh that was presented in a clean place—you, your sons and your daughters with you—for they are given as your portion, and your children’s portion, out of the sacrifices of the fellowship offerings of Bnei-Yisrael. ¹⁵ They are to bring the thigh that is presented and the breast that is waved with fat portions scorched by fire, to wave it as a wave offering before Adonai. So it will be yours and your sons’ with you, a share forever, as Adonai has commanded.”

¹⁶ Then Moses searched carefully for the goat of the sin offering and noticed it had been burned up. So he snapped at Eleazar and Itamar, the surviving sons of Aaron, saying: ¹⁷ “Why have you not eaten the sin offering in the place of the Sanctuary, since it is most holy, and He gave it to you in order to bear the iniquity of the congregation, to make atonement for them before Adonai? ¹⁸ Look, its blood was not brought into the inner part of the sanctuary. You certainly should have eaten it in the Sanctuary, as I commanded.”

¹⁹ But Aaron said to Moses, “Behold, today they presented their sin offering and their burnt offering before Adonai. When things like these have happened to me, would it have been good in the eyes of Adonai if I had eaten the sin offering today?” ²⁰ When Moses heard this, it was good in his eyes.