Leviticus 8:12
in Leviticus 8He also poured some of the anointing oil on Aaron’s head and anointed him to consecrate him.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And he poured of the anointing oil upon Aaron’s head, and anointed him, to sanctify him.
KJV
And he poured of the anointing oil upon Aaron’s head, and anointed him, to sanctify him.
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This verse in Leviticus 8
Commentary
6 notes on this verseYou must know that this chrism [chrismation] is prefigured in the Old Testament. When Moses, conferring on his brother the divine appointment, was ordering him high priest, he anointed him after he had bathed in water, and thenceforward he was called "christ" ["anointed"], clearly after the figurative Chrism.
This site's exposition
he poured of the anointing oil upon Aaron
on Leviticus 8:12-13
Aaron is anointed by pouring and his sons are only clothed. The Hebrew verb used here is the root behind the noun messiah, so the word anointed comes from the ceremony being performed in this verse. Psalm 133:2 remembers the moment as ointment running down Aaron's beard and makes it the picture of brethren dwelling together in unity. The sons get their share of the oil at verse 30, mixed with blood and sprinkled rather than poured.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
And he poured of the anointing oil upon Aaron's head,.... Which ran down to his beard, and to the collar of his coat, the robe of the ephod, but not to the skirts of his garments, as we wrongly render it, Psa 133:
30 And Moses took of the anointing oil, and of the blood which was upon the altar, and sprinkled it upon Aaron, and upon his garments, and upon his sons, and upon his sons' garments with him; and sanctified Aaron, and his garments, and his sons, and his sons' garments with him. The covenant of priesthood must be made by sacrifice, as well as other covenants, Ps. l.
quarantine:scripture (2026-07-29) — scripture-overlap:84%@v28-30
The Nineteenth Century2 voices
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
proposed
took the anointing oil, &c.--which was designed to intimate that persons who acted as leaders in the solemn services of worship should have the unction of the Holy One both in His gifts and graces.
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — starts-lowercase
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
proposed
As investing the priest with official garments was a recognition before men of the official position of the person (see Exo 28:3 note), so the anointing him with oil was an acknowledgment that all fitness for his office, all the powers with which he would rightly fulfill its duties, must come from the Lord. So, again, with the sanctification of the holy things. Each of them was intended by divine wisdom to convey a spiritual meaning to the mind of man. They were means of grace to the devout worshipper.
How the passage was read
What the Jewish commentators add
On the verses either side of this one
AND HE SPRINKLED THEREOF [i.e., of the anointing oil] UPON THE ALTAR. Rashi commented: “I do not know where Moses was commanded about these sprinklings.
This section is reception history: how the passage was read and kept in the Jewish tradition. Where a reading parts from an essential of the Christian faith, the section says so at that point.
Texts and citation data: Sefaria; each excerpt follows its version’s licence. 4 further sources are cited on this chapter that carry no English text this site may quote or only restate the verse.
The words behind it
9 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וַיִּצֹק֙ | vaiyitzok | and he poured | H3332 → | 50 times |
| מִשֶּׁ֣מֶן | mishemen | some of [the] oil of | H8081 → | 193 times |
| הַמִּשְׁחָ֔ה | hamishchah | <the> anointing | H4888 → | 26 times |
| עַ֖ל | ʾal | on | H5921 → | 5755 times |
| רֹ֣אשׁ | rosh | [the] head of | H7218 → | 599 times |
| אַהֲרֹ֑ן | ʾaharon | Aaron | H175 → | 347 times |
| וַיִּמְשַׁ֥ח | vaiyimshach | and he anointed | H4886 → | 70 times |
| אֹת֖וֹ | ʾoto | <obj.> him | H853 → | 10935 times |
| לְקַדְּשֽׁוֹ׃ | lekadesho | to set apart as holy him | H6942 → | 171 times |
וַיִּצֹק֙and he poured
vaiyitzokH3332 →50 times
מִשֶּׁ֣מֶןsome of [the] oil of
mishemenH8081 →193 times
הַמִּשְׁחָ֔ה<the> anointing
hamishchahH4888 →26 times
עַ֖לon
ʾalH5921 →5755 times
רֹ֣אשׁ[the] head of
roshH7218 →599 times
אַהֲרֹ֑ןAaron
ʾaharonH175 →347 times
וַיִּמְשַׁ֥חand he anointed
vaiyimshachH4886 →70 times
אֹת֖וֹ<obj.> him
ʾotoH853 →10935 times
לְקַדְּשֽׁוֹ׃to set apart as holy him
lekadeshoH6942 →171 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Psalms 133:2It is like fine oil on the head, running down on the beard, running down Aaron’s beard over the collar of his robes.
it leads to
- Exodus 29:7
Then take the anointing oil and anoint him by pouring it on his head.
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Exodus 30:25–30
Prepare from these a sacred anointing oil, a fragrant blend, the work of a perfumer; it will be a sacred anointing oil.
- Proverbs 27:9
Oil and incense bring joy to the heart, and the sweetness of a friend is counsel to the soul.
- Exodus 39:24
They made pomegranates of blue, purple, and scarlet yarn and finely spun linen on the lower hem of the robe.
- John 12:3
Then Mary took about a pint of expensive perfume, made of pure nard, and she anointed Jesus’ feet and wiped them with her hair. And the house was filled with the fragrance of the…
- Exodus 29:7
Through
Exodus 28:41After you put these garments on your brother Aaron and his sons, anoint them, ordain them, and consecrate them so that they may serve Me as priests.
it leads to
- Exodus 40:15
Anoint them just as you anointed their father, so that they may also serve Me as priests. Their anointing will qualify them for a permanent priesthood throughout their generations.”
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Leviticus 8:1–36
Then the LORD said to Moses,
- Leviticus 10:7
You shall not go outside the entrance to the Tent of Meeting, or you will die, for the LORD’s anointing oil is on you.” So they did as Moses instructed.
- Exodus 40:15
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies1
About Leviticus
This page draws on Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Cyril of Jerusalem, Catechetical Lecture 3.6; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.