Exodus 29:26

Exo 29:26 And thou shalt take the breast of the ram of Aaron’s consecration, and wave it [for] a wave offering before the LORD: and it shall be thy part.

Ver. 26. It shall be thy part.] Because he did for this time extraordinarily execute the priest’s of office.

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Exo_29:26-28

Which is waved, and which is heaved up.

The wave-offerings and heave-offerings

1. As illustrating the state of the heart in those who truly offer themselves up to God, there is something impressive and beautiful in the ancient wave-offerings and heave-offerings. Waving is one of natures universal laws. The whole creation, with its myriads of planets, suns and heavens, lives because it waves to and fro the central life. The life of God waves to and fro between our spirits and Him.

2. In prayer our souls are heaved up towards the eternal Soul of our souls. Nothing heaves up the soul like a perfect love. Our daily heave-offering is a labour that has a great reward. Our aspirations, our inner hearings and upliftings, are the works which will follow us into the eternal world. They will follow us by being actually constituent elements of our future body.

3. Some persons think it strange that we should be exhorted to hasten the coming of the kingdom of God. But all who have a thrilling expectation of it may be sure that the vital element of the new coming is waving in upon them, and that as they heave up their souls and expand with desire to draw down the heavenly fire they are unconsciously hastening the coming of the day of God. (J. Pulsford, D. D.)

The peace-offering

This was the most important sacrifice of all. It consisted of a ram, called The Ram of Consecration, or more literally, the Ram of the Fillings, because the hands of the consecrated persons were filled by portions of it being placed upon them. Of this ram of consecration, after Aaron and his sons had imposed hands upon it, and it had been slain, some of the blood was placed upon the tip of Aarons right ear, and upon the thumb of his right hand, and upon the great toe of his right foot, and similarly upon the same three members of his sons, the remainder of the blood being sprinkled upon the altar round about (Exo_29:19-20; Lev_8:22-24). This represented the consecration to God of such members of the body as would be more especially called into exercise by the duties of the priestly vocation. The ear was consecrated to listen to the voice of God, the hand to do His will, the foot to walk in His ways. Secondly, those parts of the peace-offering, which hereafter, in the exercise of their priestly office, it would be their duty to receive of the offerer and burn upon the altar, were laid upon the hands of Aaron and his sons, together with a meat-offering, and waved as a wave-offering before the Lord (Exo_29:22-24; Lev_8:25-27), and then burnt upon the altar (Exo_29:25; Lev_8:28). This ceremony was called the filling of the hands, and so essential a part of the consecration ceremony was it, that the expression to fill the hand became equivalent to consecrate to the priesthood. The sacrifice itself was called the ram of consecration, or the ram of fillings. The intention of this action was to deliver to the ordained persons the sacrifices which they were in future to offer to God; it was a formal initiation into the sacrificial duties of their office. It indicated that from that time forward, the right and duty of officiating at the altar, and of superintending the burning of the sacrifices, would be theirs. Similarly, in the early ordinals of the Greek Church, a portion of the sacrifice, i.e., of the consecrated elements, was placed in the hands of the person who was ordained priest: a tradition still observed in the Eastern Church, and which, in a remarkable manner, links together the priesthoods of the Jewish and Christian Churches. The next part of the ceremony connected with the ram of consecration, was the sprinkling of Aaron and his sons and their vestments with its blood, mingled with anointing oil (Lev_8:30). Hence it could be said that the sons of Aaron were anointed as their father was anointed (Exo_40:15); they, like him, were sprinkled with oil, but he alone, as high priest, had the oil poured upon his head, and could thus be called, in contradistinction to the other priests, preeminently the anointed priest. In this secondary anointing, it is to be observed, that the clothes were sprinkled and consecrated upon and with the persons. The clothes represented the office filled by the person. The person and the clothes together represented the priest; therefore the consecration was performed on both together. Lastly came the sacrificial meal: the solemn eating of the body of the consecrating peace-offering by Aaron and his sons within the precincts of the Tabernacle (Lev_8:3). It is interesting to observe that the apostles were consecrated to their priestly office by a like filling of the hands, and by a like sacrificial meal, when our Lord placed in their hands the broken bread with the words, Take, eat, this is My body. (E. F. Willis, M. A.)

The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

This sacrifice the Priest did move toward the East, West, North, and South.

Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain. Text via Bolls.life.

(26) Thou shalt take the breast.—It was the general law that in “wave offerings” the breast should be the officiating priest’s (Lev_7:29-31); hence, on this occasion, it was assigned to Moses.

A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

26. The breast of the ram to be ‘waved’ before Jehovah, and then ven to Moses (cf. Lev_8:29). The breast of the ordinary peace offering, after being ‘waved’ before Jehovah, was the perquisite of the priests (Lev_7:30 f.); here it is given analogously to Moses (who throughout the present ceremony acts the part of priest).

wave] used here in the strict sense explained on v. 24.

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

And thou shalt take the breast of the ram of Aaron's consecrations,.... The ram being slain and cut to pieces, this part is particularly disposed of:

and wave it for a wave offering before the Lord; in the manner before described:

and it shall be thy part: the part of Moses, he officiating now as a priest; and we find accordingly in later times that this part of the sacrifice belonged to the priest, Lev 7:31.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

To wit, the breast alone, whereas both shoulder and breast were given to Aaron afterwards; the reason whereof might be, either because Moses was not a proper and complete priest, as Aaron afterward was, but only appointed by God for this time to do that work; or because now there were in a manner two priests, the one consecrating, to wit, Moses; the other consecrated, to wit, Aaron; therefore these parts were divided, the breast went to the former to be eaten, the shoulder offered unto God for the latter, Exo 29:22; he being not yet a perfect priest, and therefore not in a capacity of eating it.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

26-28. Be thy part — As the officiating minister on this extraordinary occasion, Moses was to receive the breast of the ram of Aaron’s consecration. And here it is enunciated as a statute for ever, that the breast of the wave offering and the shoulder of the heave offering shall belong to the priests as their lawful portion of the peace offerings. These were evidently regarded as choice portions of the animal. The distinction between the wave offering (תנופה) and the heave offering (תרומה) is indicated by the Hebrew names, the former signifying horizontal motion to and fro, the latter vertical motion, perpendicular to the horizon. These constituted a double form of symbolical consecration, in adoration to Him who rules in all and over all.

Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Thou shalt take the breast. Henceforth Aaron and his sons were to have the breast of all wave-offerings; (Lev_7:31-34) but on this occasion, as Moses officiated, the breast was to be his.

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

General Information:

Yahweh continues speaking to Moses.

ram of dedication

"ram that you dedicated" or "ram that you killed"

Aaron's ram of dedication

"the ram that you used to dedicate Aaron"

a perpetual ordinance

"a permanent law"

translationWords

Aaron

ewe

set apart

sacrifice

Yahweh

Israel

eternity

descend

fellowship offering

priest

unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.

OF THE RAM OF CONSECRATION WHICH IS AARON’S. He did not mention here Aaron’s sons, although the ram was for the consecration of all of them. The reason for this is that Scripture commanded [in the first part of the verse before us], And thou [i.e., Moses] shalt take the breast of the wave-offering of the ram of consecration because it is Aaron’s, since the breast of the offering is by right not Aaron’s, for it does not belong to the owner of the animal [but to the priest, 7:31. and since on this occasion Aaron and his sons were the owners of the ram of consecration, and Moses the officiating priest, the breast in this instance belonged to Moses]. Now having stated the reason why it does not belong of right to Aaron, there was no need any more to declare that it does not belong to his sons, for they follow him in their rights [and where it does not belong to him, it likewise does not belong to them]. Further, however, He does say, And thou shalt sanctify the breast of the wave-offering… of the ram of consecration, even of that which is Aaron’s, and of that which is his sons’, for the intent is to state: “just as he [Moses] takes of the offering which belongs to them all, the breast and the shoulder, so shall they — the father and the sons [High Priest and common priests] — take of the future [peace-] offerings which they [the children of Israel] will offer up.”

Ramban (Nachmanides) on the Tanakh — English translation: “Commentary on the Torah by Ramban (Nachmanides). Translated and annotated by Charles B. Chavel. New York, Shilo Pub. House, 1971-1976” (CC BY 4.0). Text via Sefaria.