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which began with the first dawn—the nature of the sacrificial ceremonies, founded on the admitted fact that all mankind are sinners, and leading to Him who was the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world, (Rev. xiii, 8)—the awful silence at prayer-the solemn benediction from the steps of the holy place-the general and harmonious song of praise, and the open and regular repetition of all these services very strongly contrast with the abominations of the heathen rites, concerning which the apostle so emphatically says, "It is a shame even to speak of those things which were done of them in secret,' in their, falsely so called, religious services, Eph. v, 12.

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There were various minute regulations to insure the reverent and orderly conduct of the people at large, when attending the services in the inner court. Many of these became mere forms in the latter days of the Jewish state: some were burdensome; others, which were wholly of their own devising, were trifling, or even absurd.

The sagan, it has been stated, acted as the substitute for the high priest, or as his assistant. Zephaniah, mentioned 2 Kings xxv, 18, as the second priest, probably was this officer. From the priests were selected two overseers of the treasuries, seven overseers of the gates and chambers where the vestments and utensils were deposited; also deputy collectors, the president of the weekly course, and the heads of the houses of their fathers. There were fifteen overseers to superintend the due performance of various duties. Among them we need only mention three: "the man of the mountain of the Lord's house," whose duty it was to visit the nightly guards, the Levites; the overseer of the sick-the priests were often unwell, from being thinly clothed and barefooted during the services; and the overseer of the water, who had to take care that the temple was abundantly supplied. Nicodemus, who came to Jesus by night, is supposed by some to have held this office.

The Levites acted as guards during the night, at twentyone out of twenty-four stations, in the courts of the temple. Priests were stationed at the other three. These guards were visited by the officer called "the man of the mountain." If any Levite were found asleep, he was beaten upon the spot, and his garments set on fire by the torches carried by those who accompanied this visitor. Some think

this is alluded to, Rev. xvi, 15. It has also been thought that Psalm cxxxiv was repeated by this officer and the guards when visited.

The stationary men, or Israelites of the station, are not mentioned in Scripture; but, from the Jewish writings, we learn that latterly there were twenty-four courses of persons, selected from the nation at large, who attended in rotation, in the same manner as the Levites. The objects in view in this appointment seem to have been, that there should always be a sufficient number of persons present at the temple services; particularly as the representatives of the nation, at the sacrifices appointed to be offered for the whole people. We do not learn their number, but are told that those at home met the priests and Levites in the synagogues of their respective cities to pray, read the law, and entreat that the services of their brethren, then in attendance at Jerusalem, might be accepted for the people. They might not be trimmed by a barber, nor have their clothes washed during their attendance; they were expected especially to manifest devout behavior during that time. They also then read a portion of Scripture daily, part of Genesis i and ii.

Some of these daily services were added after the return from captivity; but the main outline was the same, from the first erection of the tabernacle to the destruction of the last temple by the Romans. During the reigns of the idolatrous kings the services were discontinued, particularly by Ahaz, who shut up the house of the Lord, and suffered the courts to be defiled with filth, 2 Chron. xxviii, 24; xxix, 16. After the captivity, the services were very regularly attended to; any omissions were occasioned, not by neglect on the part of the Jews, but by the violence of their enemies.

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THE animals sacrificed at the Jewish altar were selected according to the circumstances and situation in life of the offerer, but only five sorts were accepted. These were bullocks, goats, sheep, turtle-doves, and young pigeons. Of all these, burnt-offerings might be offered, so called from a Hebrew word signifying "to ascend," as in smoke or flame. And here bear in mind the object for which these offerings were made. The offerer, conscious of the evil of his heart, and the sins he had committed, was desirous that these should be done away by faith in the Messiah, typified by these sacrifices; or, having committed some actual offense, he wished to express his sorrow and desire of pardon through the same Great Sacrifice, and therefore brought his offering, according to the precept of the law in such a

case.

The offerer was to appear "before the Lord," (Lev. i, 3,) to present himself in the court of the tabernacle, in front of

it, or "before the door." When the temple. was erected, this was understood to mean in the court of Israel. Having brought the animal, he laid his hand upon its head while yet alive. This was emblematical; it denoted a solemn transfer of sin from himself to the victim, and that by its death he acknowledged his own liability to suffer: thus every sacrifice was a type of Christ's suffering for us. This was usually done on the north side of the altar, among the rings. The offerer stood with his face towards the holy place, and said, "I have sinned; I have done perversely; I have rebelled and done thus;" mentioning, either aloud or to himself, his offense, or the cause of the offering;"but I return by repentance before Thee; and let this be my expiation." The animal was then fastened to one of the rings if large, or only its feet tied if small; its head was laid towards the south, and its face turned to the holy place. At first the animal often was struck, and the blood received, by the offerer; but, in the time of the temple worship, this was done by the priests, who were then more numerous, and better skilled in doing it. The blood being received in sacred vessels was taken to the altar, the vessels being handed by one to another as they were filled. The blood was sprinkled on the sides of the altar by a priest, as already stated. The person whose office it was to flay and divide the animal, hung it, when dead, upon one of the hooks, took off the skin, which was given to the priests; and, dividing the carcass into several parts, handed them in succession to other priests in waiting, by whom they were carried to the ascent of the altar, and sprinkled with salt, Lev. ii, 13. To this Christ referred, Mark ix, 49, 50. It is considered that, as salt preserves things from putrefying, so the application of it to the sacrifices signified that the covenant of grace is lasting. The priest who had to lay the pieces on the altar, then cut out the sinew mentioned Gen. xxxii, 32, threw it among the ashes, and laid the pieces upon the burning pile of wood, nearly in their natural position. In the holocausts, or whole burnt-offerings, all the pieces were consumed.

Birds were always brought in pairs; one was carried round the altar, its head wrung off, and the blood sprinkled, its feathers stripped, and its crop turned out and the contents cast among the ashes. The body was then cut

open, salted as well as the head, and both were laid upon the fire.

The SIN-OFFERING was also a burnt-offering, but differed from what has been already described in some particulars. The victims were offered for sins committed inadvertently, or through ignorance, but for which the offender would have deserved cutting off if done willingly. There were some other occasions enumerated in Leviticus, both public and private, when sin-offerings were to be made, but the later Jewish doctors enumerated three hundred and sixtyfive precepts; for forty-three of these, if broken, a sin-offering was required. The beast being killed, as already described, some of the blood was sprinkled in the holy place, before the veil, as well as on the altar, and if for individuals, also on the golden altar of incense. The fat and inwards only were burned upon the altar, the carcasses were given to the priests, who might eat the flesh within the temple; but, in the sin-offering for the priests or for the congregation, (Lev. iv,) only the fat was burned upon the altar; all the rest, even the skin, was carried to the place where the ashes used to be cast out, and there burned. The birds were offered as already described, but were given to the priests. They ate of the sacrifices after the services were concluded; so their chief meal must have been in the evening: it was unlawful to eat after midnight.

The principle set forth by the sin-offerings, we have seen, was to seek atonement for sins committed from ignorance. And in several parts of the New Testament, as in Romans viii, 3; 2 Cor. v, 21, Christ is spoken of as a sinoffering, the original word meaning both sin and the offering for sin, as Magee and others clearly show. But, as the offerings went to the priests, in corrupt times they desired to promote their own advantage more than the devotion of the people. To this, perhaps, Hosea referred, chap. iv, 8, when he said, "They eat up the sin" (the original word also signifies sin-offering) "of my people, and they set their heart on their iniquity." They sought their own advantage, instead of the reformation of the people.

Another class of sacrifices was the TRESPASS-OFFERINGS. These were for doubtful cases, as when a person was in doubt whether what he did were criminal or not, such as the case stated Lev. v, 2-6; but the Jewish doctors, in

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