In ancient religions, priests were mediators between the people and their gods. They were religious officials whose duty was to pass on the instructions of the gods to the people and offer the people’s sacrifices to the gods (Gen 41:45; 47:22; Exod 2:16; 18:1; 2 Kings 11:18; Acts 14:13). The earliest priest of the one true God that the Bible mentions is Melchizedek. He was God’s representative to whom Abraham offered gifts, and the worshippers’ representative through whom Abraham drew near to God (Gen 14:17-24). Such priests were rare, as God had not yet instituted an organized religious system. Among the ancestors of Israel, the head of the family usually acted as the family priest (Gen 8:20; 22:13; 31:54; 46:1). Before Israel was formally established as God’s people by covenant, Moses served as the nation’s priest (Exod 3:13-15,18; 24:2,6,8,12).
Aaronic (or Levitical) priesthood
At the establishment of Israel’s religious system, Aaron and his sons were the priests, Aaron being set apart as the high priest. In the generations that followed, only male descendants of Aaron could be priests. Those who belonged to the same tribe as Aaron (the tribe of Levi), but who were not of Aaron’s family, were responsible for many of the practical aspects of Israel’s religious affairs, but they were not priests (Exod 6:16-25; 32:25-29; Num 3:2-3; 3:9-10; see LEVITE). Priests mediated between the people and God. They presented the people’s sacrifices to God (Heb 8:3; see SACRIFICE), and passed on God’s instruction to the people (Mal 2:7). They were to be the teachers and moral guides of the nation (Deut 27:9-10; 31:9-13; 33:10). They also carried out daily functions in relation to the altar in the tabernacle courtyard (Lev 6:12,14) and the altar and lamp inside the Holy Place (Exod 27:20-21; 30:7-8). Only priests could enter the Holy Place, and only the high priest could enter the Most Holy Place. Even then he could do so only once a year, on the Day of Atonement (Lev 16:2-3; Heb 9:6-7; see DAY OF ATONEMENT).
Representative functions
As religious officials representing the people, priests wore clothing that set them apart from others. An ordinary priest’s clothing was fairly plain, consisting of a full-length long-sleeved white coat and a white cap (Exod 28:40-43). The high priest’s clothing, by contrast, was both distinctive and colourful. Although the high priest wore a white coat similar to that of the ordinary priests (Exod 28:39), it was largely hidden from view because of a blue robe that he wore over it (Exod 28:31-35). Over the blue robe was a multicoloured garment called an ephod, which was the most prominent garment of the high priest’s dress (Exod 28:5- 14; see EPHOD). Tied to the ephod was a flat pouch called the breastpiece, inside which were the Urim and Thummim (Exod 28:15-30; see URIM AND THUMMIM). On his head the high priest wore a turban with a gold plate declaring ‘holiness to the Lord’ (Exod 28:36-39). The high priest’s dress was intended to display dignity and splendour (Exod 28:2). It also showed symbolically that the high priest acted not as an individual but as the representative of the whole nation. He had the names of the tribes of Israel engraved on stones on the breastpiece and on stones on his shoulder pieces, so that when he went into the presence of God he symbolically took the people with him (Exod 28:9-12,21,29).
Before the priests could begin their service, they were appointed to their position in an elaborate dedication ceremony. Since they themselves were not free from sin, they had to offer sacrifices for themselves before they could act on behalf of others (Exod 29:1-37; cf. Heb 7:27). Because they were aware of their own need for forgiveness, the priests should have had a sympathetic understanding of the weaknesses of the people on whose behalf they ministered (Heb. 5:1-3). Priests were to maintain disciplined behaviour, moral uprightness and ceremonial cleanliness (Lev 10:8-11; 21:1-8,13-14; 22:1-9). Any priests who had physical defects could not carry out representative functions for the people, though they could share in less public priestly activity (Lev 21:16-24). The people provided the income of those who did religious work on their behalf. They gave a tithe (i.e. a tenth) of their own income to the Levites, and the Levites in turn gave a tenth to the priests (Num 18:25-28; see TITHES). The priests received further income from portions of sacrifices, animal firstlings and harvest firstfruits that were allotted to them. This income helped compensate for the priests’ lack of tribal or family land (Num 5:9-10; 18:8-20; Deut 18:1-5; 26:1-4).
Other responsibiliti
One duty of the priests was to ensure that people maintained a high level of cleanliness, whether in matters of ceremonial holiness, physical health or personal hygiene (Lev 13:3,10,20,30; 14:2-3,36,48; 15:13-15,28-30; Matt 8:4; see UNCLEANNESS). Priests also supervised the keeping of vows (Lev 27:1-25; Num 6:6-12; see VOWS) and assisted civil officials in giving judgments in certain moral issues (Num 5:11-31; Deut 17:8-13; 19:15-21; 21:1-9). They had ceremonial and practical functions in national affairs such as mobilization for war, land allocation and public celebrations (Num 10:1-10; Josh 3:14-17; 14:1; 19:51; 1 Chron 15:24; 2 Chron 13:12). By the time of David there were too many priests for the amount of work to be done. David therefore divided the priests (and the Levites) into twenty-four sections, each of whom served for one week every six months (1 Chron 24:1-6; Luke 1:8). The remaining four weeks of the year were taken up with the annual festivals, which all males were to attend and which therefore required all priests to be on duty (Exod 23:14-17).
Changing role of the priests
Throughout Israel’s history there were both good and bad priests. Many were zealous for righteousness and had a good influence on national leaders and the people as a whole (Num 25:1-13; 2 Sam 15:27; 1 Kings 1:8; 2 Kings 12:2; 2 Chron 11:13-17; Ezra 5:1-2; Neh 8:1-9; see EZRA; JEHOIADA; JOSHUA THE SON OF JEHOZADAK; PHINEHAS; ZADOK). Some of the nation’s better kings gave priests important leadership responsibilities in an effort to reform the nation and administer it according to God’s law (2 Chron 17:7-9; 19:8-11; 29:3-4,11; 31:2-5; 34:8-9,20-21; 35:1-6; see CHRONICLES, BOOKS OF). Other priests, however, were rebellious, corrupt, immoral and idolatrous. They were among the chief causes of the nation’s ultimate destruction (Lev 10:1- 2; 1 Sam 2:12-17; 3:10-14; 2 Kings 16:11-16; Isa 28:7; Jer 2:8; 6:13-15; Ezek 22:26; Hosea 6:9; Micah 3:11; Zeph 3:3-4; Mal 2:7-8). After the captivity in Babylon, the Jews moved back to their homeland and rebuilt the nation. By this time a new emphasis had developed on teaching the law of Moses, and a new group of teachers had become prominent in Israel. These were known as scribes, or teachers of the law (see SCRIBES). As the years passed, the priests became more concerned with exercising political power, though they still carried out ceremonial functions (Luke 1:8; 5:14). By New Testament times two major religious parties dominated Jewish affairs. The scribes were the main influence in the more traditionally religious party, the Pharisees, but the chief priests controlled the politically dominant party, the Sadducees (Acts 5:17; see SADDUCEES). All these people, whether priests or scribes, Sadducees or Pharisees, readily cooperated to get rid of Jesus (Matt 21:15,45-46; 22:15,23; 26:57; 27:41; Mark 11:18; John 11:57).
High priesthood of Jesus
The writer of the book of Hebrews pictures the life, death and present ministry of Jesus as that of a great high priest. Jesus’ high priesthood, however, belongs not to the order of Aaron (for Jesus was not a descendant of Aaron) but to the order of Melchizedek. This was a higher priesthood than Aaron’s, for it was not limited to one era, one nation, one family or one class of people. Christ’s priesthood is therefore timeless and is available to all (Heb 7:1-3,11-17,23-25). Although Christ did not belong to the Aaronic priesthood, his priestly work followed the pattern of the Aaronic priesthood. Yet it was far superior, for it achieved perfectly what the Aaronic priesthood merely pictured. Like the Aaronic priests, Christ was appointed to his position by God. He also had a sympathetic understanding of the problems of those whom he represented before God. But, unlike the Aaronic priests, he was without sin and so had no need to offer sacrifices for his own sins before acting on behalf of others (Heb 2:17-18; 4:15-16; 5:1-6; 7:26-28).
Aaronic priests offered sacrifices repeatedly, but the sacrifices could never make people perfect, because they could never take away sins. Christ offered himself as a sacrifice. By that one act he completed his sacrificial work and brought perfect cleansing to all believers (Heb 10:1-4,11-14). The Aaronic high priest could enter the Most Holy Place (God’s symbolic dwelling place) only once a year, and then only by taking with him the blood of a sacrificial animal. Christ, through his own blood, entered the actual presence of God and secured an eternal salvation (Heb 8:1-2; 9:6-14,24-26). Because Christ is in God’s presence as their heavenly representative, Christians can now enter God’s presence. They need no earthly priest to mediate on their behalf. Through Christ they can come to God directly and confidently, knowing that they can depend on Christ’s help in pleading for their needs before God (Heb 4:14-16; 7:25; 9:24; 10:19-22; Rom 8:34; 1 John 2:1; see ADVOCATE). Christians have added confidence in Christ’s concern for them when they see the prayer that he prayed for his disciples shortly before his crucifixion (John 17:9-26). Furthermore, they know that Christ’s personal entrance into the presence of God is the guarantee that one day they too will personally enter the presence of God, and find there an eternal dwelling place (Heb 6:19-20).
All God’s people are priests
Although Israel’s religious system had an appointed order of priests, there was a sense (not specifically connected with the religious system) in which all the people were priests. Israel, as the chosen people of God, was a kingdom of priests, a holy nation. The people of Israel were to serve God, both by bringing him worship and by being his representatives in making him known to other nations (Exod. 19:5-6; Isa 61:6). The words recorded in Exodus 19:5-6 applied to the Old Testament people of God, but in the New Testament the same words are applied to the new people of God, the Christian church. Christ’s people are now God’s chosen race, a kingdom of priests and a holy nation (1 Peter 2:9-10; cf. Rev 1:6; 5:9-10). They serve God by bringing him the sacrifice of worship and praise (1 Peter 2:5; cf. Heb 13:15) and by making him known to the nations of the world (1 Peter 2:9; cf. Rom 15:16).