Articles
The Priestly Line - 1 Chr. 6
The Priestly Line - 1 Chr. 6
God chose Aaron and his sons to be the high priests for Israel. Generation after generation descended from Aaron and continued this priesthood. There were many priests because they kept dying and were replaced by their offspring. Yet, throughout the years, it was always to be from this chosen family. How did they tell? Today we have birth certificates; then, they had genealogy lists. Our certificates indicate the date we were born, theirs emphasized their whole genealogy.
When Israel returned from Babylonian captivity and the priesthood was restored, many were excluded from the right of being a priest because they could not prove their genealogy (Ezra 2:62). No, it was not OK to anoint one as priest if he was not of the right genealogy. In the days of the Judges it was done but that was because 'every man did that which was right in his own eyes' instead of faithfully following God's covenant. Jeroboam made priests from 'all who wanted to', but then he also was just making up his own religion "which he devised from his own heart" (1Kg. 12:31-33).
Turning to the New Testament, we see the Hebrew writer acknowledging that it was 'the sons of Levi who receive the priest's office' (7:4), that 'no one takes the honor to himself, but receives it when he is called by God, even as Aaron was' (5:4). Thus, even Jesus could not be a priest unless and until the very law was changed (7:13).
Three things thus stand out: 1) Jesus was chosen by the Father to be our High Priest (5:5-6). 2) He IS our high priest, who serves in the very presence of God (8:1f). 3) With his priesthood, there was the bringing in of a New Covenant under which we serve and by which we are reconciled and saved (8:6, 9:15; 10:9-10).
While our genealogy today is of no value in our relationship to Jesus, the genealogy of a person was of supreme importance to various duties and relationships under the Old Covenant. Today: "you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus. For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ... And if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s descendants, heirs according to promise" (Galatians 3:26–29)
Do you belong to Christ, having believed and been baptized into Him? Hugh DeLong
