Exodus 40:15 - meaning, Hebrew and Greek word study, commentary
Exodus 40:15
And thou shalt anoint them, as thou didst anoint their father, that they may minister unto me in the priest’s office: for their anointing shall surely be an everlasting priesthood throughout their generations.
to rub with oil · conjunction + verb, qal sequential perfect, 2nd person masculine singular
anoint
מָשַׁ֙חְתָּ֙ma.Shach.ta
H4886
to rub with oil · verb, qal perfect, 2nd person masculine singular
father
אֲבִיהֶ֔ם'a.vi.Hem
H1
father · noun, common masculine singular construct + pronominal suffix, 3rd person masculine plural
priest’s office
וְכִהֲנ֖וּve.khi.ha.Nu
H3547
to officiate as a priest · conjunction + verb, piel sequential perfect, 3rd person common plural
anointing
מָשְׁחָתָ֛םma.she.cha.Tam
H4888
unction (the act) · noun, common feminine singular construct + pronominal suffix, 3rd person masculine plural
everlasting
עוֹלָ֖םo.Lam
H5769
properly · noun, common masculine singular absolute
priesthood
לִכְהֻנַּ֥תlikh.hu.Nat
H3550
priesthood · preposition + noun, common feminine singular construct
generations
לְדֹרֹתָֽםle.do.ro.Tam
H1755
properly · preposition + noun, common feminine plural construct + pronominal suffix, 3rd person masculine plural
Strong's Exhaustive Concordance (James Strong, 1890/1894), public domain; digitized by Open Scriptures (CC BY-SA). KJV word tagging: eBible.org (public domain). Original-language text, parsing and brief lexicon: STEPBible.org data from Tyndale House, Cambridge (CC BY 4.0).
Cross-references
Numbers 25:13 And he shall have it, and his seed after him, even the covenant of an everlasting priesthood; because he was zealous for his God, and made a…
Psalms 110:4 The LORD hath sworn, and will not repent, Thou art a priest for ever after the order of Melchizedek.
Hebrews 5:1-14 For every high priest taken from among men is ordained for men in things pertaining to God, that he may offer both gifts and sacrifices for…
Hebrews 7:17-24 For he testifieth, Thou art a priest for ever after the order of Melchisedec.
Hebrews 8:1-10 Now of the things which we have spoken this is the sum: We have such an high priest, who is set on the right hand of the throne of the Majes…
Exodus 12:14 And this day shall be unto you for a memorial; and ye shall keep it a feast to the LORD throughout your generations; ye shall keep it a feas…
Exodus 29:9 And thou shalt gird them with girdles, Aaron and his sons, and put the bonnets on them: and the priest’s office shall be theirs for a perpet…
Exodus 30:31 And thou shalt speak unto the children of Israel, saying, This shall be an holy anointing oil unto me throughout your generations.
Cross-references from OpenBible.info (CC BY), in the lineage of the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (public domain).
Commentary
Matthew Henry on Exodus 40:1-15
The materials and furniture of the tabernacle had been viewed severally and approved, and now they must be put together. 1. God here directs Moses to set up the tabernacle and the utensils of it in their places. Though the work of the tabernacle was finished, and every thing ready for rearing, and the people, no doubt, were very desirous to see it up, yet Moses will not erect it till he has express orders for doing so. It is good to see God going before us in every step, Psa 37:23. The time for doing this is fixed to the first day of the first month (Exo 40:2), which wanted but fourteen days of a year since they came out of Egypt; and a good year's work there was done in it. Probably the wor…
anoint them, as thou didst anoint their fathers--The sacred oil was used, but it does not appear that the ceremony was performed exactly in the same manner; for although the anointing oil was sprinkled over the garments both of Aaron and his sons (Exo 29:21; Lev 8:30), it was not poured over the heads of the latter. This distinction was reserved for the high priest (Exo 29:7; Lev 8:12; Psa 133:2).
Adam Clarke on Exodus 40:15
For their anointing shall surely be an everlasting priesthood - By this anointing a right was given to Aaron and his family to be high priests among the Jews for ever; so that all who should be born of this family should have a right to the priesthood without the repetition of this unction, as they should enjoy this honor in their father's right, who had it by a particular grant from God. But it appears that the high priest, on his consecration, did receive the holy unction; see Lev 4:3; Lev 6:22; Lev 21:10. And this continued till the destruction of the first temple, and the Babylonish captivity; and according to Eusebius, Cyril of Jerusalem, and others, this custom continued among the Jews…
Anointing — in Holy Scripture, is either, I. Material—with oil—or II. Spiritual—with the Holy Ghost. I. MATERIAL.—
Everlasting — Eternal, applied to God (Gen. 21:33; Deut. 33:27; Ps. 41:13; 90:2). We also read of the “everlasting hills” (Gen. 49:26); an “everlasting priesthood” (Ex. 40:15; Num. 25:13). (See ETERNAL.)
Messiah — (Heb. mashiah), in all the thirty-nine instances of its occurring in the Old Testament, is rendered by the LXX. “Christos.” It means anointed. Thus priests (Ex. 28:41; 40:15; Num. 3:3), prophets (1…
Ointment — Various fragrant preparations, also compounds for medical purposes, are so called (Ex. 30:25; Ps. 133:2; Isa. 1:6; Amos 6:6; John 12:3; Rev. 18:13).
Tabernacle — (1.) A house or dwelling-place (Job 5:24; 18:6, etc.). (2.) A portable shrine (comp. Acts 19:24) containing the image of Moloch (Amos 5:26; marg. and R.V., “Siccuth”). (3.) The human body (2 Cor.…
Anointing · .OF PRIESTS — .OF PRIESTS
Anointing Of The Holy Spirit · Typified — Typified
Anointing, Sacred · Persons who received: Priests — Persons who received: Priests
Christ, The High Priest · Typified: Aaron, &c — Typified: Aaron, &c
Desert, Journey Of Israel Through The · Tabernacle first set up — Tabernacle first set up
Priest · .Consecration of — .Consecration of
Priests · The sons of Aaron appointed as, by perpetual statute
And thou shall anoint them as thou didst anoint their father,.... For Aaron was first anointed, and then his sons:
that they may minister unto me in the priest's office; which they might not do before their anointing, though separated for it, and called unto it:
for their anointing shall surely be an everlasting priesthood throughout their generations; that is, this ceremony of anointing was to be used in all ages at the investiture of the high priest with his office, until the Messiah should come, who would put an end to the Aaronic priesthood; for not common priests, only the successors of the high priest, were anointed in later times; this present unction serving for all the priests tha…
Exodus 40:2.
On the first day of the first month I cannot at all approve of the opinion of those commentators who think that the tabernacle was only now set up. That it was already complete in all its parts before Moses went the second time into the Mount, we infer from the fact that the ark was then prepared in which the tables were deposited, as we shall see from the context. Besides, it has elsewhere [394] been shewn by sound arguments, as I think, that it was pitched without the camp in token of divorce, from the time that the people had made the calf. What, then, is the meaning of the setting-up which is now spoken of? I reply, that it is said to have been set up, when [395] it was bro…
— The sons of Aaron appointed as, by perpetual statute
Sanctification · Typified — Typified
Theocracy, The, Or Immediate Government By God · Consisted in his: Appointing ecclesiastical officers — Consisted in his: Appointing ecclesiastical officers
Dictionary: Easton's (1897) and Smith's (1863), public domain. Topics: Nave's Topical Bible (1896) and Torrey's Topical Textbook (1897), public domain. Both as parsed by NEUU (CC BY 4.0).
