The First Sacrifices Offered by Aaron and His Sons
1 Eight days later Moses called together Aaron, his sons, and Israel's leaders. 2 Then he said to Aaron:
Find a young bull and a ram that have nothing wrong with them. Offer the bull to the Lord as a sacrifice for sin and the ram as a sacrifice to please him.
3 Tell the people of Israel that they must offer sacrifices as well. They must offer a goat as a sacrifice for sin, and a bull and a ram as a sacrifice to please the Lord. The bull and the ram must be a year old and have nothing wrong with them. 4 Then the people must offer a bull and a ram as a sacrifice to ask the Lord's blessing and also a grain sacrifice mixed with oil. Do this, because the Lord will appear to you today.
5 After the animals and the grain had been brought to the front of the sacred tent, and the people were standing there in the presence of the Lord, 6 Moses said:
The Lord has ordered you to do this, so that he may appear to you in all of his glory. 7 Aaron, step up to the altar and offer the sacrifice to please the Lord, then offer the sacrifices for the forgiveness of your sins and for the sins of the people, just as the Lord has commanded.
8 Aaron stepped up to the altar and killed the bull that was to be the sacrifice for his sins. 9 His sons brought him the blood. He dipped a finger in it, smeared some on the four corners of the bronze altar, and poured out the rest at its foot. 10 But he sent up in smoke the fat, the kidneys, and the lower part of the liver, just as the Lord had commanded Moses. 11 Then Aaron burned the skin and the flesh outside the camp.
12 After Aaron had killed the ram that was sacrificed to please the Lord, Aaron's sons brought him the blood, and he splattered it against all four sides of the altar. 13 They brought him each piece of the animal, including the head, and he burned them all on the altar. 14 He washed the insides and the hind legs and also sent them up in smoke.
15 Next, Aaron sacrificed the goat for the sins of the people, as he had done with the sacrifice for his own sins. 16 And so, he burned this sacrifice on the altar in the proper way. 17 He also presented the grain sacrifice and burned a handful of the flour on the altar as part of the morning sacrifice.
18 Finally, he killed the bull and the ram as a sacrifice to ask the Lord's blessing on the people. Aaron's sons brought him the blood, and he splattered it against the four sides of the altar. 19 His sons placed all the fat, as well as the kidneys and the lower part of the liver 20 on top of the choice ribs. 21 Then Aaron burned the fat on the altar and lifted up the ribs and the right hind leg to show that these were dedicated to the Lord. This was done just as the Lord had instructed Moses.
22 Aaron held out his hand and gave the people his blessing, before coming down from the bronze altar where he had offered the sacrifices. 23 He and Moses went into the sacred tent, and when they came out, they gave the people their blessing. Then the Lord appeared to the people in all of his glory. 24 The Lord sent fiery flames that burned up everything on the altar, and when everyone saw this, they shouted and fell to their knees to worship the Lord.
Aaron Offers Sacrifices
1 The day after the ordination rites were completed, Moses called Aaron and his sons and the leaders of Israel. 2 He said to Aaron, “Take a young bull and a ram without any defects and offer them to the Lord, the bull for a sin offering and the ram for a burnt offering. 3 Then tell the people of Israel to take a male goat for a sin offering, a one-year-old calf, and a one-year-old lamb without any defects for a burnt offering, 4 and a bull and a ram for a fellowship offering. They are to sacrifice them to the Lord with the grain offering mixed with oil. They must do this because the Lord will appear to them today.”
5 They brought to the front of the Tent everything that Moses had commanded, and the whole community assembled there to worship the Lord. 6 Moses said, “The Lord has commanded you to do all this, so that the dazzling light of his presence can appear to you.” 7 Then he said to Aaron, “Go to the altar and offer the sin offering and the burnt offering to take away your sins and the sins of the people. Present this offering to take away the sins of the people, just as the Lord commanded.”
8 Aaron went to the altar and killed the young bull which was for his own sin offering. 9 His sons brought him the blood, and he dipped his finger in it, put some of it on the projections at the corners of the altar, and poured out the rest of it at the base of the altar. 10 Then he burned on the altar the fat, the kidneys, and the best part of the liver, just as the Lord had commanded Moses. 11 But he burned the meat and the skin outside the camp.
12 He killed the animal which was for his own burnt offering. His sons brought him the blood, and he threw it on all four sides of the altar. 13 They handed him the head and the other pieces of the animal, and he burned them on the altar. 14 Then he washed the internal organs and the hind legs and burned them on the altar on top of the rest of the burnt offering.
15 After that, he presented the people's offerings. He took the goat that was to be offered for the people's sins, killed it, and offered it, as he had done with his own sin offering. 16 He also brought the animal for the burnt offering and offered it according to the regulations. 17 He presented the grain offering and took a handful of flour and burned it on the altar. (This was in addition to the daily burnt offering.) 18 He killed the bull and the ram as a fellowship offering for the people. His sons brought him the blood, and he threw it on all four sides of the altar. 19 Aaron put the fat parts of the bull and the ram 20 on top of the breasts of the animals and carried it all to the altar. He burned the fat on the altar 21 and presented the breasts and the right hind legs as the special gift to the Lord for the priests, as Moses had commanded.
22 When Aaron had finished all the sacrifices, he raised his hands over the people and blessed them, and then stepped down. 23 Moses and Aaron went into the Tent of the Lord's presence, and when they came out, they blessed the people, and the dazzling light of the Lord's presence appeared to all the people. 24 Suddenly the Lord sent a fire, and it consumed the burnt offering and the fat parts on the altar. When the people saw it, they all shouted and bowed down with their faces to the ground.