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Aaron was the brother of Moses (Exo. 4:14); he was Moses’ representative, his spokesman to Pharaoh and to the people (Exo. 4:16). While Moses stayed on Mount Sinai for forty days, Aaron made a golden calf for the people and thus brought a great sin upon them (Exo. 32:1-6, 21). But because of Moses’ petition, they were able to escape God’s destruction. Then, following their exodus from Egypt, when the tabernacle was erected, on the first day of the first month of the second year, Aaron and his sons were anointed and sanctified to serve as priests. The period of consecration was seven days (Lev. 8:33). On the eighth day they began to offer the sacrifices (Lev. 9:1-22), thus ministering in their priestly office before God and maintaining God’s testimony.
Aaron typifies Christ as the High Priest (Heb. 5:1-5). Christ did not glorify Himself to become a High Priest, but He who said to Him, “You are My Son, this day I have begotten You.” He is One who is able to sympathize with our weaknesses, for He has been tried in all respects like us, yet without sin (Heb. 4:15). He, through His own blood, entered once for all into the Holy of Holies, having found an eternal redemption (Heb. 9:12b).
In their priestly service, Aaron and his sons first took care of all the offerings (Lev. 6:8—7:34). The offerings typify the different aspects of Christ as man’s supply. From the standpoint of experience, the trespass offering is first, the sin offering second, the peace offering third, the meal offering fourth, and the burnt offering fifth. Some parts of these offerings are the wave offerings and some parts are the heave offerings (Lev. 7:29-34). The priests had to take care of all these offerings. Aaron offered the sacrifices of the sin offering, the burnt offering, the meal offering, and the peace offering for the people, typifying Christ in one aspect as the sin offering for God’s people, and in another aspect as the One who offered Himself to God together with all God’s people to live a life for God, and now leads them to live in Him for the mutual enjoyment of God and man in peace, and for the maintaining of God’s testimony.
As fallen sinners we are under five conditions: we do not live for God, we do not have a proper and balanced living and conduct, we have problems with God and are not able to maintain peace with God, we have the sinful nature, and we commit sinful deeds. Because of our fivefold situation, Christ became the offerings to solve and to meet these five needs.
The burnt offering signifies that Christ’s living on earth was absolutely for God. He offered Himself without blemish and spot to God to do God’s will and became a sweet savor to satisfy God’s desire. As a result, we are also accepted by God through our union with Him (Lev. 1:1-17; Heb. 10:5-7; Phil. 2:5-8).
The meal offering signifies that Christ’s human living was so proper, even, tender, fine, balanced, pure, and sinless. He became a sweet savor for God’s enjoyment and also the food for our satisfaction (Lev. 2:1-16; Matt. 11:29; 12:19-20; Heb. 4:15).
The peace offering signifies that Christ became the peace and the fellowship between God and us by shedding His blood and dying for us. On the one hand, He is a sweet savor as food to God; on the other hand, He is our nourishment, enabling us to enjoy Christ with God and to have peace and fellowship with God in Christ. In this way both God and man are satisfied (Col. 1:20-22; Rom. 5:1; 2 Cor. 5:18-20).
The sin offering signifies that Christ was made sin for us that through His death on the cross sin might be condemned. Thus He dealt with the sin in our nature that we might be forgiven by God in our nature (Lev. 4:1-23; 2 Cor. 5:21; Rom. 8:3).
The trespass offering signifies that Christ bore our sins in His own body and was judged by God on the cross to deal with our sinful deeds that we may be forgiven in our sinful conduct (Lev. 5:1-19; 1 Pet. 2:24; 3:18; Isa. 53:5-6, 10-11).
In addition to the five basic offerings, there are three more offerings.
The breast of the sacrifice was offered as the wave offering (Lev. 10:15). The breast denotes God’s love. Waving implies resurrection. The wave offering signifies the resurrected Christ in love.
The shoulder of the sacrifice was offered as the heave offering (Exo. 29:27). The shoulder is the strength for movement; hence, the heave offering signifies the powerful Christ in ascension.
This is supplementary to the five basic offerings (Num. 15:1-10; 28:7-10). In the drink offering, wine was offered. The drink offering signifies Christ as the enjoyment of the offerer; this kind of offering enables the offerer to be filled with Christ as the heavenly wine, and even to become the wine to be offered to God (Phil. 2:17; 2 Tim. 4:6).
The purpose of God’s calling was not only to bring the children of Israel out of Egypt, the land of bondage, but also to bring them into Canaan, the land flowing with milk and honey (Exo. 3:8, 10, 17). In typology, to bring the children of Israel into the good land signifies the bringing of man into Christ, the all-inclusive One typified by the good land. Today Christ is the good land flowing with milk and honey.
The children of Israel were redeemed through the Passover, delivered out of the tyranny of Egypt, and brought to the mountain of God to receive the revelation concerning the tabernacle, the dwelling place of God. Due to their unbelief, however, most of them fell in the wilderness and were not able to reach the goal (Heb. 3:8, 10, 17). Even Moses, because he struck the rock twice in Kadesh (Num. 20:11) and thus disobeyed God’s economy, was not allowed to bring the children of Israel into the good land (Num. 20:12). Eventually he died in the wilderness (Deut. 34:5).
God spoke to Joshua, the son of Nun, Moses’ minister, to rise up and cross over Jordan with all the people to the land that He would give to them as their inheritance (Josh. 1:2, 6). Joshua 11:23 says, “Joshua took the whole land, according to all that the Lord said unto Moses; and Joshua gave it for an inheritance unto Israel according to their divisions by their tribes. And the land rested from war.”
There were seven tribes in the land of Canaan: the Hittites, the Girgashites, the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites (Deut. 7:1). After the children of Israel entered into the good land under the leadership of Joshua, they defeated the seven tribes who were the enemies occupying the land. These enemies typify the rulers and the authorities in the air (Eph. 6:12), who try to frustrate us from the enjoyment of the all-inclusive Christ. The Egyptians were dealt with when the children of Israel ate the Passover lamb. But after they entered into the good land, they were not fighting with the Egyptians but with the many nations of the land. In type, these nations refer to the evil forces of darkness, the evil authorities, the rulers, and the authorities of the air. These usurping forces in the heavenlies always try to prevent us from enjoying the riches of the all-inclusive Christ. Hence, in order to enjoy the all-inclusive riches of Christ, we must defeat the rulers, the principalities, the powers, and the authorities in the heavenlies.
According to the Bible, the real rest comes when man expresses God and represents God for God’s satisfaction. When the children of Israel entered into the good land under Joshua’s leadership, they defeated the enemy and settled down to live. Then they built the temple and thus were able to express and represent God. When God is expressed and represented, both God and man are satisfied. This is the real rest.
From the time the children of Israel left Egypt to the time of the prophet Samuel when David was king of the whole nation of Israel (2 Sam. 5:3-4), it was about 450 years (Acts 13:17-20; Judg. 11:26; 1 Kings 6:1). A major section of this period may be called the age of the judges. During this age, the children of Israel could not utterly drive out and destroy the seven tribes in Canaan. Consequently, they gradually forsook God, followed the customs of the nations, had mixed marriages with the nations, and worshipped other gods. Therefore, God delivered them into the hands of the nations according to His warnings. But whenever they repented, God would listen to their prayers and would deliver them through the hand of a judge. The children of Israel would forsake God, but they would then repent and God would deliver them. But eventually they would forsake God again. This cycle was repeated, as many as seven times.
Thirteen judges are mentioned in the book of Judges: Othniel (3:9), Ehud (3:15), Shamgar (3:31), Deborah (4:4), Barak (4:6), Gideon (6:11), Tola (10:1), Jair (10:3), Jephthah (12:7), Ibzan (12:8), Elon (12:11), Abdon (12:13), and Samson (15:20). Besides these, in the book of Judges there were other judges whose names are not mentioned, such as Eli (1 Sam. 4:18), Samuel (1 Sam. 7:13), Joel and Abiah (1 Sam. 8:2).
After the children of Israel possessed the land as their inheritance, they did not obey God’s word to utterly drive out and destroy all the seven tribes inhabiting Canaan (Judg. 1:27-36). As a result, the children of Israel dwelled among them, took their daughters to be their wives, gave their daughters to their sons, and served their gods, thus doing evil in the sight of the Lord. The children of Israel forsook the Lord God of their fathers who brought them out of the land of Egypt, and they followed the gods of the people that were around them. They bowed themselves down to them, and provoked Jehovah to anger. So God delivered them into the hands of spoilers, and He sold them into the hands of their enemies so that they could no longer stand. Wherever they went out, the hand of the Lord was against them for evil (2:11-15).
Even though God raised up judges to deliver them out of the hands of those who spoiled them, they would not hearken, but they defiled themselves with other gods and bowed down to them; they turned quickly out of the way in which their fathers walked. They corrupted themselves more than their fathers and did not cease from their own doings nor from their stubborn way (2:16-19).
The age of the judges may be considered the darkest period in the history of Israel. At that time, among the children of Israel there were rebellions against God, idolatry (Judg. 17—18), infighting (Judg. 9), hostility and controversy among the tribes (Judg. 20—21), fornication (Judg. 19), filthiness, brutal killings, and all manner of evil doing. Every man did that which was right in his own eyes (Judg. 17:6; 21:25). It was also a period of tragedy. The unbelief of the children of Israel caused them to wander for forty years so that even their carcasses fell in the wilderness (Heb. 3:7, 19). But their forsaking God and their idolatry after they entered the land issued in a situation of defeat and tragedy that lasted not merely forty years, but ten times forty years.
The children of Israel forsook God repeatedly, followed the nations’ customs, and bowed themselves down to other gods, but as soon as they repented, God listened to their cries, and delivered them out of the hand of their enemies through the judges. In God’s grace and faithfulness the children of Israel needed only to repent from their hearts and to cry to God; then God would listen to their prayers and deliver them. As many as seven times, they rebelled, were enslaved, repented, and were delivered.
Some of the judges raised up by God were born of poor and humble families, such as Gideon, who was poor in Manasseh and the least in his father’s house (Judg. 6:15). Some were women, such as Deborah (Judg. 4:4). Some were like Jephthah, the son of a harlot (Judg. 11:1). Some were like Samson, who was a voluntarily consecrated Nazarite (Judg. 13:3-5). However, because Jehovah’s Spirit had come upon them (Judg. 3:10; 6:34; 11:29; 13:25; 14:6, 19; 15:14), they could prevail against their strong enemies and could be deliverers to the children of Israel. As it is said, “Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the Lord of hosts” (Zech. 4:6).
God raised up judges for the sake of the children of Israel, and God was with the judges. God delivered them out of the hands of their enemies as long as the judges were present. This continued until Samuel was raised up by God. Then the age of the judges was ended.
Eli was both a priest and a judge (1 Sam. 4:18; 1:9). When God’s ark was in Shiloh, he ministered to God in the priestly office. He blessed Hannah, Samuel’s mother, that she might have a son (1 Sam. 1:17). He also taught the child Samuel how to minister to the Lord (1 Sam. 2:11).
Eli had two sons, Hophni and Phinehas, and both were wicked. They both were priests but they did not know the Lord. Their custom with the people was that, when any man offered a sacrifice, the priest’s servant came, while the flesh was boiling, with a fleshhook of three teeth in his hand, and he thrust it into the pan, or kettle, or caldron, or pot; all that the fleshhook brought up the priest took for himself. Because they abhorred the offerings of the Lord, their sin was very great before Him (1 Sam. 2:12-17), to such an extent that He would slay them (1 Sam. 2:25).
But Eli allowed his two sons to make themselves fat with the best of all the offerings of God’s people, for he honored his sons more than God (1 Sam. 2:29). He knew that his sons defiled themselves, but he did not restrain them (1 Sam. 3:13). Therefore God swore to the house of Eli that the iniquity of Eli’s house would never be cleansed with sacrifice or offerings (1 Sam. 3:14).
When the children of Israel went out to fight against the Philistines, God allowed His ark to be taken, and the two sons of Eli were slain (1 Sam. 4:11). When Eli heard that the ark of the Lord was taken, he fell from the seat backward by the side of the gate, and his neck broke and he died (1 Sam. 4:18). From the time God established Samuel as a prophet (1 Sam. 3:20) until the death of Eli, the priests no longer held the important position but were replaced by the prophets.
The Lord had given Moses a supplement in chapter six of Numbers. This supplement was His special provision against the degradation of the priesthood. The Lord had appointed and ordained only the house of Aaron, of the tribe of Levi, to be the priests. The rest of the Levites who served in the tabernacle were not the priests.
God’s intention had been to make the whole nation of Israel a kingdom of priests; however, through Israel’s failure, the Lord chose the Levites as a tribe of priests to replace a nation of priests in Israel. But not all of the tribe of Levi were chosen by the Lord. Only those of the house of Aaron were to be the priests. But the house of Aaron eventually came to the point of being fully and utterly fallen at the time of Eli’s sons (1 Sam. 2:12-17). However, the Lord foresaw the situation. Besides His ordination of the house of Aaron as priests, He had made a supplement in the sixth chapter of Numbers. This supplement was given in case there should be an inadequacy in the ordained priests. When the house of Aaron fell, this supplement was put into practical use.
The principle of the Nazarite is voluntary consecration. It is not by being appointed, ordained, or even chosen by the Lord, but by voluntarily consecrating yourself to Him. At the time of Eli, the Lord was really poor as far as the priesthood was concerned; so Hannah lent Samuel to the Lord. She told the Lord that if He would give her a son, then she would lend him to the Lord (1 Sam. 1:11, “give...unto” in the original has the meaning of “lend...to”). When the situation is abnormal, the Lord becomes poor with respect to His administration, and there is the need for someone to voluntarily lend himself to the Lord.
Samuel was of the tribe of Levi (1 Chron. 6:33-38), of Mount Ephraim (1 Sam. 1:1-2). He was not of the house of Aaron. But he became a priest by being consecrated, separated, and lent to God. Samuel became a priest by coming through the side door, not by coming through the main entrance. He became a priest according to the supplement provided in Numbers 6, not according to an appointment or ordination. By the principle of the Nazarite he became a voluntarily consecrated person to replace the ordained priest.
Samuel was not only a priest, but also a judge. The judges were in the line of authority. He was a person both in the priesthood and in the kingship. In such a position he ended the age of the judges and turned the age into the age of the kingdom.
Samuel was also a prophet, one who spoke for God. First Samuel 3:19-21 says, “And Samuel grew, and the Lord was with him, and did let none of his words fall to the ground. And all Israel from Dan even to Beer-sheba knew that Samuel was established to be a prophet of the Lord...for the Lord revealed himself to Samuel in Shiloh by the word of the Lord.”
With Samuel there was the priesthood, the kingship, and the prophethood. Through him the age of degradation was turned into the age of the kingdom. Samuel could be so much used by God simply because he came into God’s administration through the principle of the Nazarite and became a voluntarily consecrated person.
In the section from Moses to Samuel, Aaron is the second important figure. In him we see the priesthood and all the offerings. Afterwards, in Joshua we see God’s power destroying the enemies in the land of Canaan and bringing His chosen people into the rest of the good land. Following this is the age of the judges where we see the confusion caused by God’s chosen people forsaking God and the revival gained by their turning back to Him. Next, we see the fall of the priesthood in Eli. Finally, in Samuel we see a person voluntarily consecrated as a Nazarite, replacing the ordained priests, ending the age of the judges, speaking for God as a prophet (prophesying for God), and bringing in the age of the kings.
