First Israelite High Priest, Chief functionary of the Tabernacle and in the Temple rituals, and elder brother of Moses and brother of Miriam. He was the spokesman of Moses because he was slow of speech and of a slow tongue.
Aaron was the traditional founder of the hereditary Jewish Priesthood and an Old Testament type of Christ. As a High Priest, he alone entered the Holy of Holies once a year to offer incense during the ritual of atonement. The sacrificial ritual brought reconciliation of man and God. The main spiritual vehicles for atonement were considered to be repentance, prayer, hospitality, spiritual charity from sincere hearts, and good spiritual deeds. Suffering and death both were considered to have an atonement effect.
The Holy of Hollies (Hebrew: Kodesh Ha-Kodashim) was the most sacred area where the Ark of the Covenant was kept. It was curtained off from the rest of the sanctuary, and inside was the foundation Rock at the very centre of the world, and it was the base on which the world was created. A rope was attached to his waist so that, if necessary, he could be brought out from the Holy of Hollies should he died. Even Satan did not dare to accuse Israel when the High Priest entered the Holy of Hollies, for the High Priest is said to be greater even than the archangels, since the latter can only plead for Israel with words, while the former can also intercede on their behalf with ritual deeds.
A High Priest excelled his fellow priests in strength, spiritual riches, wisdom, and appearance. The elaborate Old Testament description of his garments confirm the spiritual level that the High Priest needed to reach in order to be the only one qualified to enter the Holy of Hollies. His vestments included a turban or mitre; a breastplate set with 12 gems, one for each of the 12 Tribes of Israel, with the Urim and the Thummim in it; and a robe adorned with bells; and a censer boat that he alone could offer incense in the Holy of Hollies.
Aaron is depicted as a lover of Peace who would go in turn to each of the two parties to a quarrel and, by telling how sorry they felt because of it, he would apologize in the name of the other party, when they next met, their quarrel was over because each believed the other had apologized.
This characteristic made Aaron suitable as High Priest, whose sacrifices brought peace between Israel and their Father in heaven. It was said that a man without a wife (church) remained without atonement and that the spiritual People of Israel served as an atonement for the nations of the world.
Aaron was closely associated with Moses in events connected with the Exodus from Egypt. He was the possessor of a miraculous rod or wand which bursted into almond blossom overnight to vindicate him when his divine suitability of the exclusive right of hist tribe to the privileges of priesthood was challenged. Aaron and the head of each of the other tribes of Israel laid their staffs in the Ark of the Covenant. Aaron's rod blossomed and produced ripe almonds, a sign that the Tribe of Levi, of which he was the leader, had been divinely chosen for the office. (Numbers 17).
Aaron, like his brother Moses, was not allowed to enter the Promised Land. When he died on the Mountain of Hor when he was 123 years old, it was through a kiss of the shek-hinah, a Hebrew word for "indwelling," meaning by the divine presence or immanence of God, the easiest form of death, and God Himself prepared his funeral bier and a golden candelabrum to light the way.(Numbers 20). He was the ancestor of Elizabeth, mother of John the Baptist. (Luke 1).
He was also very popular among the Israelites, and this explain why "all the House of Israel" mourned him.
Symbolic of the great loss his death represented was the cessation of the Pillar of Cloud and of Fire, which until then had guided the Israelites through the desert because of Aaron's merits.
Although Aaron was responsible for making the Golden Calf, he did so because he did not want the Israelites to be guilty of the greater sin of killing their High Priest if he refused.
Aaron is one of the Seven Faithful Shepherds of Israel, a title given to outstanding biblical leaders, who are invited to the sukkah, a Hebrew word for Tabernacle, each evening as spiritual guests.
During the Festival of the Tabernacles (Sukkot) the spiritual Jews transferred their living quarters from the house to a Tabernacle, which was a makeshift booth whose roof was of branches or vegetation thin enough to let the rain in. People ate in it and many even slept in it. The Tabernacle was meant to remind the spiritual Jews of the booths in which their ancestors dwelt when they wandered in the wilderness during the Exodus, and of the clouds of glory which surrounded them. They were protected by God from the elements, and by remembering this, they are reminded that it is not the brick and mortar of the house which affords ultimate protection but God Himself.
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