Chapter 4
The Priests and the People,
Prefiguring Christ's Relation to His People

Let us now look at the Old Testament priests.

The mediatorial role of priests

The priests of the Old Testament serve as mediators between God and human beings. Because of human sin, people cannot come into the presence of God in his holiness. Instead, the priests represent the people and approach God on behalf of the people. For example, on the Day of Atonement Aaron is instructed to offer a sin offering first of all for himself (Lev. 16:6, 11). Then he performs services dealing with the sins of the people (Lev. 16:15-16, 19-22). The priest "makes atonement for himself and for the people" (Lev. 9:7, 16:24). The story of Num. 15-18 confirms that the descendants of Aaron alone are to represent the people. Similarly we find statements about the priest "bearing guilt" on behalf of the people. "He will bear the guilt involved in the sacred gifts the Israelites consecrate, whatever their gifts may be" (Exod 28:38). "It [the priest's portion of the sin offering] was given to you to take away the guilt of the community by making atonement for them before the LORD" (Lev. 10:17). "You, your sons and your father's family are to bear the responsibility for offenses against the sanctuary, and you and your sons alone are to bear the responsibility for offenses against the priesthood" (Num. 18:1). "The Levites . . . are to do the work of the Tent of Meeting and bear the responsibility for offenses against it" (Num. 18:23).

The priests thus present the sins of the people to God for cleansing. They also convey the blessing of God to the people.

Tell Aaron and his sons, "This is how you are to bless the Israelites. Say to them:

"The LORD bless you and keep you; the LORD make his face shine upon you and be gracious to you; the LORD turn his face toward you and give you peace."

So they will put my name on the Israelites, and I will bless them. (Num. 6:23-27)

In all these respects the priests serve as figures mediating between God and the people. They prefigure a final mediatorial figure who will have no need to offer sacrifices for his own sins, because he is the perfect mediator.

Such a high priest meets our need--one who is holy, blameless, pure, set apart from sinners, exalted above the heavens. Unlike the other high priests, he does not need to offer sacrifices day after day, first for his own sins, and then for the sins of the people. He sacrificed for their sins once for all when he offered himself. For the law appoints as high priests men who are weak; but the oath, which came after the law, appointed the Son, who has been made perfect forever. (Heb. 7:26-28)

Even in the Old Testament we see many hints of the inadequacy of the priests descended from Aaron. Aaron himself got involved in the grievous sin of making the golden calf (Exod. 32). Two of his sons died because of their presumption in offering "unholy fire" to the Lord (Lev. 10). At the end of the period of the judges Eli's sons became corrupt, and the Lord had to replace them with Samuel (1 Sam. 2). The sins of the priests became one of the causes of the exile (Micah 3:11; Jer. 1:18; Ezek. 22:26). The Lord explicitly pronounced that a new priest would have to arise "in the order of Melchizedek" instead of being a descendant of Aaron (Ps. 110:4). Like Melchizedek he is both a priest and a king (Ps. 110:2). Unlike the descendants of Aaron, who die and have to be succeeded by new priests, he is a "priest forever" (Ps. 110:4). Hebrews comments concerning the way in which these passages point out the incompleteness and ultimately the inadequacy of the Old Testament priests:

If perfection could have been attained through the Levitical priesthood (for on the basis of it the law was given to the people), why was there still need for another priest to come--one in the order of Melchizedek, not in the order of Aaron? For when there is a change of the priesthood, there must also be a change of the law. . . . Now there were many of those priests, since death prevented them from continuing in office; but because Jesus lives forever, he has a permanent priesthood. Therefore he is able to save completely those who come to God through him, because he always lives to intercede for them. (Heb. 7:11-25)

Similarities of priests to the tabernacle

The priests themselves are cleansed in a procedure reminiscent of the cleansing of the tabernacle. The priests must be cleansed by blood. On the day of the consecration of the priests a sin offering and a whole burnt offering are first presented on their behalf (Lev. 8). They are cleansed from sin and symbolically dedicated wholly to the Lord. Then a special ram is slaughtered. The blood of the ram is placed on their extremities, the lobe of the right ear, the thumb of the right hand, and the big toe of the right foot (Lev. 8:22-24). Since most people are right-handed, the right side is chosen as the principal, representative, "orderly" side. The ear, the upper extremity, is touched first because it is the extremity nearest heaven. Then those extremities are touched that are involved in manipulating the sacrifices and walking on the ground of the tabernacle. Thus the priests' relations to all the holy things around them are cleansed from defilement.

They are also given garments woven of material similar to the tabernacle material, of gold and blue and scarlet. The high priest is crowned with a turban with a gold plate inscribed, "Holy to the Lord" (Exod. 28:36). The high priest himself is in fact a kind of vertical replica of the tabernacle. His garments correspond to the curtains of the tabernacle. His head band with the inscription "Holy to the Lord" corresponds to the Most Holy Place, the representation of heaven. His hands manipulate the blood that mediates between heaven and earth. His feet remain planted on the earth. Ears, hands, and feet are all consecrated with blood, corresponding to the consecration of all parts of the tabernacle. Thus he is not only a human being, sinful like ourselves, but a human being clothed with the majesty of heaven.

Majestic as he is, he is not majestic enough. In the development of Old Testament history the priesthood itself fails to be truly consecrated (1 Sam. 2:30-36). Even Aaron himself fails in the incident of the golden calf (Exod. 32:2-6). The priests die and must be succeeded by others in a process of endless repetition. These priests are really only a shadow and copy of reality, just as the tabernacle itself is a shadow and copy of heaven. The real priest must be heavenly. That is, he must be a man from heaven, true God and true man (Heb. 1:1-5). He is himself the final union of heaven and earth, a man who is the "radiance of God's glory and the exact representation of his being" (Heb. 1:3). He is the original of which cloud, fire, tabernacle, throne, and animals' blood are the copies.

We can see the similarity between priest and tabernacle in another way. Take an aerial view of the tabernacle, as in figure 1. Place the Most Holy Place at the top. What do you see? God has drawn a rough diagram of a human figure. The Most Holy Place corresponds to the head. The Holy Place corresponds to the trunk. The altar corresponds to the feet. Fittingly the feet are firmly planted in the earth, signified by the courtyard and by the bronze character of the altar. The head is especially marked with holiness, corresponding to the plate on Aaron's head, "Holy to the LORD." The table of the bread of Presence and the lampstand are positioned like two hands. And these areas of the Holy Place are indeed where the priests' hands are busy. More significantly, they symbolize the heavenly work of the LORD, whose hands are busy blessing Israel with light and food, season by season.

What about the washing basin? The washing basin is positioned between the bronze altar and the Holy Place. The above analogy would lead us to think that the washing basin stands in the place where the organs of reproduction would be. With its cleansing waters this basin speaks of new birth, that is, renewal by the water of life coming from God.

Later replications of the tabernacle

Do you think that we are going too far? Maybe so. But look at the temple. The temple of Solomon described in 1 Kings 6-7 and 2 Chronicles 3-4 is a kind of an enlarged and advanced version of the tabernacle, as is suitable to the advance made when God's dwelling becomes a permanent building. The lampstand is transformed into ten lampstands, five on each side of the Holy Place, corresponding to the fingers on the man's two hands. The table is transformed into ten tables, five on each side, again corresponding to the fingers on the man's two hands. Two pillars appear in the courtyard, suggestive of a man's two legs, side by side on the north and the south (1 Kings 7:15-22). The pillars are named "Jakin" (Hebrew for "he establishes") and "Boaz" ("with strength"). Undoubtedly the two names are to be read in sequence, "he establishes with strength." The names thus suggest an association with the strength of a man's legs, the strongest part of his body. Ps. 147:10 says that God's pleasure "is not in the strength of the horse, nor his delight in the legs of a man," where strength and legs are parallel. The strength of the temple must be found in a holy priest who fears God's name.

Out in the courtyard the basin of new birth has been enlarged and become a sea, 10 cubits by 5 cubits high, a replica of the Holy Place. It is 30 cubits around, corresponding to the three-story character of the temple as a whole. Not only so, but the sea has spawned little sons, ten little seas or basins (2 Chr. 4:6). Under the sea are twelve bulls, corresponding in their virility to the 12 tribes of Israel. These bulls face to north and west and south and east, to the four corners of the earth, as if they were ready to carry the water out to the other nations of the earth. Such imagery is indeed suitable to the time of Solomon. Other nations come to the temple to pray when they hear of the international wisdom of king Solomon (2 Chr. 6:32-33; 2 Chr. 9; 1 Kings 4:29-34). In fact, the furnishings for the courtyard are manufactured not by an Israelite but a half foreigner, Huram, whose father is from Tyre and whose mother is Israelite (1 Kings 7:13-46).

The smaller basins replicate the sea in striking ways. The stands of the basins are four cubits by four cubits, replicating the four corners of the earth to which the twelve bulls look (1 Kings 7:27). They are three high corresponding to the three bulls looking in each direction. The tenfold replication of the sea corresponds to the diameter of the sea and to the original dimensions of the Most Holy Place in the tabernacle. That is, it replicates its original. The stands for the basins have wheels underneath (1 Kings 7:32-33), four wheels corresponding to the four cubit dimension. The wheel signify the ability of the stands to move off toward the four corners of the earth, and also suggest that they have already moved out from their origin in the large sea. On the stands are engraved cherubim, lions, and palm trees (1 Kings 7:36), the cherubim connecting them with the temple and the lions and palm trees further suggesting the extension to new regions. Thus a multiplicative process or spawning process is suggested by the entire symbolism. The water truly signifies the water of rebirth.

The symbolism becomes even clearer in the case of the temple of Ezekiel described in Ezek. 40-48. No mention is made of a bronze sea or washing basins. Instead, living water flows out from the base of the temple, becoming a great stream watering the eastern regions (Ezek. 47). Ezekiel thus represents another stage of advance in a picture of life-giving power of water from God.

Pagan counterfeit worship

The priesthood and the tabernacle in Israel present us with proper images of heavenly things. But paganism always attempts to produce idolatrous substitutes for the true God. We can see this counterfeiting procedure of paganism at work in Nebuchadnezzar's dream in Dan. 2. Nebuchadnezzar's dream is given to him by God (Dan. 2:28,30,45). But the details of its imagery contrast strikingly with the imagery given to Daniel himself in a later dream in Dan. 7. Daniel sees four earthly kingdoms in their true dimensions, as four rapacious beasts. The pagan Nebuchadnezzar sees the same four kingdoms as a pagan would see them, in a much more attractive and man-like form. In fact, Nebuchadnezzar sees what is undoubtedly an idol image. All the four kingdoms that the image represents are at root idolatrous kingdoms, aspiring to have godlike powers and therefore trampling God's people under foot. The dream that Nebuchadnezzar saw in Dan. 2 may or may not have motivated him to set up the idol image described in Dan. 3. But no one should miss the fact that this image of gold has a striking resemblance to the head of gold in Dan. 2 that is identified with Nebuchadnezzar himself (Dan. 2:38).

Thus Nebuchadnezzar's dream reveals a false priesthood and a false worship that earthly kingdoms would set up. These earthly kingdoms are to be destroyed and superseded by God's kingdom. Nebuchadnezzar as a pagan is given no inner insight into the constitution of God's kingdom, but sees only the contrast with earthly kingdoms. God's kingdom is a "rock cut out of a mountain, but not by human hands" (Dan. 2:45). Daniel in his dream sees the true dimensions of the new heavenly kingdom. He sees a heavenly man in contrast to the bestial character of the four kingdoms (Dan. 7:13-14).

Thus the representation of the final heavenly kingdom in the form of "one like a son of man" (Dan. 7:13) is no accident. This Son of Man figure combines in himself the features of much previous revelation. He is man, the antithesis of the bestial character of the four earthly kingdoms. He is also heavenly in origin, "coming with the clouds of heaven," (Dan. 7:13), the symbolism of the coming of God himself. He is also, I would suggest, a priest, the mediator of God's presence and blessing to his people (cf. Dan. 7:27). One can see connections between this figure in Daniel and both the heavenly man-like figure in Ezek. 1:26-28 and Ezekiel the prophet, who is a priest repeatedly called "son of man." In Ezekiel the heavenly picture of God in Ezek. 1:26-28 and the human priesthood of Ezekiel himself are still held apart. In Daniel they are subtly combined using the fluid imagery available in visionary depiction.

The people of Israel

The people of Israel as a whole are to be "a kingdom of priests and a holy nation" (Exod. 19:6). The Aaronic priests, as we have seen, are imitators of God and his divine order. The people in turn are imitators of the Aaronic priests. Moreover, the fundamental command, "Be holy because I, the LORD your God, am holy" (Lev. 19:2) is directed to everyone. Each person individually is to imitate God in holiness, and the nation as a whole is to be "a holy nation" imitating God corporately.

The holiness of which the Old Testament speaks is not merely a matter of mysterious inward attitudes or scrupulosities with respect to certain minor matters. It is first of all theological in character. God has acted in the exodus to redeem Israel, and has called them to be in fellowship with him. Through the Red Sea and the tabernacle and the cloud and the manna and the other elements in the Mosaic era, he has blessed them and distinguished them from all other peoples (Deut. 7:7-11). Therefore they are to live in conformity with the status they have been given as the special people of God. Every aspect of their lives is transformed: their relation to God's special presence among them (approach to the tabernacle), their expectation for the future (possession of the land), their attitudes of pride or coveting (Deut. 8:10-20; 5:21), their use of the land (Lev. 25:23), their sexual relations (Lev. 18:1-30), their diet (Deut. 11), their farming practices (Deut. 24:19-22), their use of money (Deut. 24:17-18; 23:19-20), their social relations to one another (Lev. 19:13-18).

In these respects Israel was intended to model the character of God and thus be a witness to surrounding nations.

Observe them [the laws] carefully, for this will show your wisdom and understanding to the nations, who will hear about all these decrees and say, "Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people." What other nation is so great as to have their gods near them the way the LORD our God is near to us. . . . (Deut. 4:6-7)

As "priests" in a broad sense, they would be mediators of the presence of God to the other nations. God had promised to Abraham that "all people on earth will be blessed through you" (Gen. 12:3). Zechariah pictures the fulfillment of this purpose in saying, "In those days ten men from all languages and nations will take firm hold of one Jew by the edge of his robe and say, `Let us go with you, because we have heard that God is with you."

Israel was not only a nation of priests, but God's "firstborn son" (Exod. 4:22; cf. Deut. 8:5). Israel failed, however, to live in obedience to God. She was corrupted by injustice (Isa. 1:21). Her very failure testified to the need for a final, obedient son who would come from the line of David and would establish justice (Isa. 11:1-5; 9:6-7). In Isaiah God promises to raise up his servant, whom he names "Israel" (Isa. 49:3), but who will also "bring Jacob back to him" (Isa. 49:5). Injustice and impurity are cleansed (Isa. 4:4) by the servant's death as a sacrificial lamb (Isa. 53). Isaiah is speaking, of course, about the work of Jesus Christ. Christ is the final, definitive seed of Abraham (Gal. 3:16). And when Christ comes, Matthew notes that his life is patterned after the life of Israel the son (Matt. 1:15). Or rather, he notes that the Old Testament history of Israel was patterned after the true and final Son.

The church in turn is patterned after the fullness of Christ (Eph. 4:7-16). The experience of Christians is thus in a multifaceted way analogous to that of Israel (1 Cor 10:1-13; Heb 12:14-29; Gal. 4:21-31). We are the firstfruits of a new humanity in a new heavens and new earth (James 1:18; Rev. 14:4; 21:1). Christopher J. H. Wright sums up these matters by saying that Israel as a people is related "paradigmatically" to fallen mankind, "eschatologically" to the whole of redeemed humanity, and "typologically" to the church.¹ He could have added to these observations the fact that Israel is a type pointing to Christ first of all, and only through Christ to the church and to the new humanity. These rich connections indicate the multidimensional significance of the Old Testament for us.