Aaron and his sons had been through rigorous training, with endless details. Now the test!
On the eighth day of the priests’ consecration ceremony, there was a flurry of activity. Something very exciting was going to happen! “For,” said Moses, “today the Lord will appear to you” (Lev 9:4). For the first time, Aaron and his sons, now consecrated to the Lord, were going to actually offer the sacrifices. Up until this moment, Moses had been acting as God’s representative. The priests were told to put on display all the offerings they had been learning about. Aaron was told, “Take for yourself a young bull as a sin offering and a ram as a burnt offering” (v 2). Then the children of Israel were to take “a kid of the goats as a sin offering, and a calf and a lamb, both of the first year, without blemish, as a burnt offering, also a bull and a ram as peace offerings, to sacrifice before the Lord, and a grain offering mixed with oil” (vv 3-4). Only the trespass offering, which dealt with particular offenses, was not featured. The following verses (vv 8-21) show Aaron following, in exacting detail, all the commands of the Lord as Moses watched. Here we have the ideal way to teach someone the ways of the Lord. God tells Moses what to do. Moses tells Aaron and his sons. Then Moses does it while the priests observe. The priests then do it while Moses observes. The final step? “Then the glory of the Lord appeared to all the people” (v 23), affirming that it all was pleasing to the Lord. The circle was complete. But wait! Suddenly “fire came out from before the Lord and consumed the burnt offering and the fat on the altar” (v 24). Surely this was supernatural fire! Like a blowtorch, it went right through the veil and tabernacle door without igniting them! But the bronze altar was ignited, to burn as long as Israel existed. The priests were now certified!