Exodus 29:1-21  Consecration of the Priest

[Study Aired December 5, 2022]

Exo 29:1  And this is the thing that thou shalt do unto them to hallow them, to minister unto me in the priest’s office: Take one young bullock, and two rams without blemish,
Exo 29:2  And unleavened bread, and cakes unleavened tempered with oil, and wafers unleavened anointed with oil: of wheaten flour shalt thou make them. 
Exo 29:3  And thou shalt put them into one basket, and bring them in the basket, with the bullock and the two rams. 
Exo 29:4  And Aaron and his sons thou shalt bring unto the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, and shalt wash them with water. 
Exo 29:5  And thou shalt take the garments, and put upon Aaron the coat, and the robe of the ephod, and the ephod, and the breastplate, and gird him with the curious girdle of the ephod: 
Exo 29:6  And thou shalt put the mitre upon his head, and put the holy crown upon the mitre.
Exo 29:7  Then shalt thou take the anointing oil, and pour it upon his head, and anoint him.
Exo 29:8  And thou shalt bring his sons, and put coats upon them. 
Exo 29:9  And thou shalt gird them with girdles, Aaron and his sons, and put the bonnets on them: and the priest’s office shall be theirs for a perpetual statute: and thou shalt consecrate Aaron and his sons.
Exo 29:10  And thou shalt cause a bullock to be brought before the tabernacle of the congregation: and Aaron and his sons shall put their hands upon the head of the bullock. 
Exo 29:11  And thou shalt kill the bullock before the LORD, by the door of the tabernacle of the congregation. 
Exo 29:12  And thou shalt take of the blood of the bullock, and put it upon the horns of the altar with thy finger, and pour all the blood beside the bottom of the altar. 
Exo 29:13  And thou shalt take all the fat that covereth the inwards, and the caul that is above the liver, and the two kidneys, and the fat that is upon them, and burn them upon the altar. 
Exo 29:14  But the flesh of the bullock, and his skin, and his dung, shalt thou burn with fire without the camp: it is a sin offering. 
Exo 29:15  Thou shalt also take one ram; and Aaron and his sons shall put their hands upon the head of the ram.
Exo 29:16  And thou shalt slay the ram, and thou shalt take his blood, and sprinkle it round about upon the altar. 
Exo 29:17  And thou shalt cut the ram in pieces, and wash the inwards of him, and his legs, and put them unto his pieces, and unto his head. 
Exo 29:18  And thou shalt burn the whole ram upon the altar: it is a burnt offering unto the LORD: it is a sweet savour, an offering made by fire unto the LORD.
Exo 29:19  And thou shalt take the other ram; and Aaron and his sons shall put their hands upon the head of the ram.
Exo 29:20  Then shalt thou kill the ram, and take of his blood, and put it upon the tip of the right ear of Aaron, and upon the tip of the right ear of his sons, and upon the thumb of their right hand, and upon the great toe of their right foot, and sprinkle the blood upon the altar round about. 
Exo 29:21  And thou shalt take of the blood that is upon the altar, and of the anointing oil, and sprinkle it upon Aaron, and upon his garments, and upon his sons, and upon the garments of his sons with him: and he shall be hallowed, and his garments, and his sons, and his sons’ garments with him.

This chapter deals with the consecration of the priests. As we know, we are the royal priesthood and are therefore required to be consecrated. In biblical terms, the word “consecration” means to separate oneself from things that are unclean, especially anything that would contaminate one’s relationship with God. Consecration therefore carries the connotation of sanctification, holiness, or purity. 

Exo 30:29  And thou shalt sanctify them, that they may be most holy: whatsoever toucheth them shall be holy.

Lev 20:7  Consecrate yourselves, therefore, and be holy, for I am the LORD your God. 

Being consecrated is a critical component of our relationship with God. Our consecration marks the beginning of the Lord doing wonders in our lives. The wonders the Lord does in our lives involves the destruction of our old man within and the birth and growth of the new man. 

Jos 3:5  And Joshua said unto the people, Sanctify yourselves: for tomorrow the LORD will do wonders among you.

Jos 3:9  And Joshua said unto the children of Israel, Come hither, and hear the words of Jehovah your God. 
Jos 3:10  And Joshua said, Hereby ye shall know that the living God is among you, and that he will without fail drive out from before you the Canaanite, and the Hittite, and the Hivite, and the Perizzite, and the Girgashite, and the Amorite, and the Jebusite.

2Co 6:17  Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you, 
2Co 6:18  And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty.

Consecration or sanctification is the work of the Lord. Man plays no part in it. 

Eze 20:12  Moreover also I gave them my sabbaths, to be a sign between me and them, that they might know that I am the LORD that sanctify them.

Eze 37:28  And the heathen shall know that I the LORD do sanctify Israel, when my sanctuary shall be in the midst of them for evermore.

The act of consecration involves our lives being offered as a living sacrifice to our Lord Jesus Christ as we are totally separated from the defilement of the world. It is therefore a process and not a one-time act. 

Rom 12:1  I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service.
Rom 12:2  And be not fashioned according to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is the good and acceptable and perfect will of God.

In today’s study, we shall learn about the process the Lord takes us through to become consecrated as a Priest.

Exo 29:1  And this is the thing that thou shalt do unto them to hallow them, to minister unto me in the priest’s office: Take one young bullock, and two rams without blemish,

Sanctification or consecration starts with Christ. The young bullock represents our Lord Jesus Christ whose life was without blame while he walked through the earth. His life was taken at a tender young age of 33. The two rams also represent Christ. As we shall see later, the bullock and the rams are to be offered as sacrifice to atone for the sins of a priest. This is to let us know that we must acknowledge our sins and request for a renewed relationship with Christ to start the process of consecration or sanctification. 

Heb 10:12  But this man (Jesus), after he had offered one sacrifice for sins forever, sat down on the right hand of God; 
Heb 10:13  From henceforth expecting till his enemies be made his footstool. 
Heb 10:14  For by one offering he hath perfected forever them that are sanctified. (ESV)

Exo 29:2  And unleavened bread, and cakes unleavened tempered with oil, and wafers unleavened anointed with oil: of wheaten flour shalt thou make them. 
Exo 29:3  And thou shalt put them into one basket, and bring them in the basket, with the bullock and the two rams. 

The fact that the unleavened bread, the unleavened loaf mixed with oil and the wafers with oil are to be put in one basket signify these items are the same. In other words, these items represent the truth of the word of the Lord which is spirit (oil). 

Joh 6:63  It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh is no help at all. The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and life.

The process of becoming consecrated as a priest or set apart for the Lord’s work involves being given to know the mysteries of the kingdom of God as the Lord opens our heavens to receive the spirit of the word. In verse 3, we are told that the basket of unleavened bread must go with the bullock and the two rams. What this means is that the unveiling of the truth of the mysteries of the kingdom (unleavened bread) is about the unveiling of Christ to us, who is represented by the bullock and the two rams.

Rev 1:1  The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave unto him, to shew unto his servants things which must shortly come to pass; and he sent and signified it by his angel unto his servant John: 

Mat 13:11  He answered and said unto them, Because it is given unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it is not given. 

Mat 13:16  But blessed are your eyes, for they see: and your ears, for they hear. 
Mat 13:17  For verily I say unto you, That many prophets and righteous men have desired to see those things which ye see, and have not seen them; and to hear those things which ye hear, and have not heard them.

Exo 29:4  And Aaron and his sons thou shalt bring unto the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, and shalt wash them with water. 

Aaron and his sons symbolize the elect of every generation. All the Lord’s elect are priests before the Lord, and before we perform the role of a priest, we must be brought before the door of the tabernacle of the congregation. 

1Pe 2:9  But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light:

At this stage in our lives, we are not worthy to enter the temple to worship the Lord, and so we can only stand at the door of the tabernacle. It is at this point that our Lord starts to open our eyes to see as we are washed with water which is the word of God. This washing with water results in us going through fiery trials because of the word we have received. These fiery trials represent the seven plagues of the seven angels which we must go through before we can enter the temple to minister to the Lord as Priests.

Rev 15:8  And the temple was filled with smoke from the glory of God, and from his power; and no man was able to enter into the temple, till the seven plagues of the seven angels were fulfilled.

Mat 13:21  Yet hath he not root in himself, but dureth for a while: for when tribulation or persecution ariseth because of the word, by and by he is offended.

Exo 29:5  And thou shalt take the garments, and put upon Aaron the coat, and the robe of the ephod, and the ephod, and the breastplate, and gird him with the curious girdle of the ephod: 
Exo 29:6  And thou shalt put the mitre upon his head, and put the holy crown upon the mitre.

Through these fiery trials we endure, we learn righteousness. This righteousness represents the righteousness of Christ which is symbolized by the linen garments we put on as Priests in verses 5 and 6.

Isa 26:8  Yea, in the way of thy judgments, O LORD, have we waited for thee; the desire of our soul is to thy name, and to the remembrance of thee.
Isa 26:9  With my soul have I desired thee in the night; yea, with my spirit within me will I seek thee early: for when thy judgments are in the earth, the inhabitants of the world will learn righteousness. 

Rev 19:8  And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints.

The garments the priest must put on are the coat, the robe of ephod, the ephod, the breastplate, the girdle (or belt) and the mitre which is a turban. As we indicated in previous studies, we mentioned that these garments are not different from putting on the whole armor of God so we can stand the evil wiles of the devil. The ephod was a garment of great importance and was a type of apron. It was an object to be revered in ancient Israelite culture. The ephod of the high priest was very special because it had a chest of 12 jewels on its front which represents the twelve tribes of Israel. The ephod is worn as a ceremonial dress by the high Priest. We know that the High priest is our Lord Jesus Christ. From the scriptures, our Lord Jesus Christ’s garment which He wore represents Him. That is why when the woman with the flow of blood touched Jesus’ garment, Jesus said that someone has touched Him. 

Luk 8:43  And a woman having an issue of blood twelve years, which had spent all her living upon physicians, neither could be healed of any, 
Luk 8:44  Came behind him, and touched the border of his garment: and immediately her issue of blood stanched.
Luk 8:45  And Jesus said, Who touched me? When all denied, Peter and they that were with him said, Master, the multitude throng thee and press thee, and sayest thou, Who touched me?

What this means is that the spiritual significance of putting on the ephod garment is to put on Christ.

Rom 13:14  But put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make not provision for the flesh, to fulfil the lusts thereof.

The question is, “What does it mean to put on Christ?” The verse above shows us that to put on Christ means not to focus on gratifying the desires of the sinful nature. In the preceding verse of Romans 13:14, we are told that we have to wake up from our sleep by casting off the works of darkness and putting on the armor of light which is the same as putting on Christ. These verses suggest that the works of darkness are the same as gratifying the desires of the flesh which bring us to spiritual sleep. 

Rom 13:11  And that, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep: for now is our salvation nearer than when we believed. 
Rom 13:12  The night is far spent, the day is at hand: let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armour of light. 
Rom 13:13  Let us walk honestly, as in the day; not in rioting and drunkenness, not in chambering and wantonness, not in strife and envying.

The coat is simply a tunic which is worn by the priest first after having washed in the laver at the outer court. 

Lev 8:6  And Moses brought Aaron and his sons, and washed them with water. 
Lev 8:7  And he put upon him the coat, and girded him with the girdle, and clothed him with the robe, and put the ephod upon him, and he girded him with the curious girdle of the ephod, and bound it unto him therewith.

The coat was the innermost garment worn by the high priest, and it seems to be derived from a verb meaning “to cover or hide.” The putting on of the broidered coat therefore signifies the birth of the hidden man in us, who is Christ, after we have left Babylon (outer court) to enter into the presence of the Lord (holy place). The coat, therefore, signifies our Lord Jesus Christ. 

1Pe 3:3  Whose adorning let it not be that outward adorning of plaiting the hair, and of wearing of gold, or of putting on of apparel; 
1Pe 3:4  But let it be the hidden man of the heart, in that which is not corruptible, even the ornament of a meek and quiet spirit, which is in the sight of God of great price.

The robe is one of the sacred articles of clothing for the High Priest. It was worn under the ephod. The significance of the robe was the bells attached to it. Their sounding as a result of Aaron’s movement was to alert those outside the Holy place that Aaron is alive and well. This robe is therefore a symbol of Christ. It is when we are in Him that we are spiritually alive.

Exo 28:35  And it shall be upon Aaron to minister: and his sound shall be heard when he goeth in unto the holy place before the LORD, and when he cometh out, that he die not.

The spiritual significance of the breastplate part of the priestly garment is not different from the breastplate of the armor of God. The breastplate therefore signifies our righteousness or the righteousness of Christ. The girdle represents the truth of the word of the Lord, and the mitre or the turban is the helmet of salvation. 

Eph 6:14  Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness;

Eph 6:17  And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God:

Putting on the priestly garments is therefore the same as putting on Christ. 

Exo 29:7  Then shalt thou take the anointing oil, and pour it upon his head, and anoint him. 

The anointing oil which was poured on Aaron’s head signifies the Holy Spirit which comes to our heavens to teach us all truth. 

Joh 16:13  Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come.
Joh 16:14  He shall glorify me: for he shall receive of mine, and shall shew it unto you.
Joh 16:15  All things that the Father hath are mine: therefore said I, that he shall take of mine, and shall shew it unto you.

The anointing oil on our heads is what brings us together in unity as we serve the Lord as priests. This is because the Holy spirit in each one of us speaks the same thing, and as a result, we all have the same mind. Having the same mind is what facilitate the blessings of the Lord as shown in the Psalm below: 

Psa 133:1  A Song of degrees of David. Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity!
Psa 133:2  It is like the precious ointment upon the head, that ran down upon the beard, even Aaron’s beard: that went down to the skirts of his garments;
Psa 133:3  As the dew of Hermon, and as the dew that descended upon the mountains of Zion: for there the LORD commanded the blessing, even life for evermore.

1Co 1:10  Now I beseech you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you; but that ye be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment.

Exo 29:8  And thou shalt bring his sons, and put coats upon them. 
Exo 29:9  And thou shalt gird them with girdles, Aaron and his sons, and put the bonnets on them: and the priest’s office shall be theirs for a perpetual statute: and thou shalt consecrate Aaron and his sons. 

These two verses show us that without putting on Christ or the righteousness of Christ (priestly garments), we cannot serve in the priestly office. As shown earlier, consecration means to separate oneself from things that are unclean, especially anything that would contaminate one’s relationship with God. Consecrating Aaron and his sons therefore means to put on Christ, our righteousness.

Exo 29:10  And thou shalt cause a bullock to be brought before the tabernacle of the congregation: and Aaron and his sons shall put their hands upon the head of the bullock. 
Exo 29:11  And thou shalt kill the bullock before the LORD, by the door of the tabernacle of the congregation. 
Exo 29:12  And thou shalt take of the blood of the bullock, and put it upon the horns of the altar with thy finger, and pour all the blood beside the bottom of the altar. 
Exo 29:13  And thou shalt take all the fat that covereth the inwards, and the caul that is above the liver, and the two kidneys, and the fat that is upon them, and burn them upon the altar. 
Exo 29:14  But the flesh of the bullock, and his skin, and his dung, shalt thou burn with fire without the camp: it is a sin offering. 

As we stated earlier, the bullock without blemish represents the Lord Jesus Christ who gave His life for us as a sin offering. Leviticus chapter 4 deals with the sin offering for four different categories of people: the high priest, the whole congregation of Israel, a leader, and a commoner. These categories include all humanity. We have all sinned and fallen short of the glory of God, and therefore Christ’s work covers all humanity. However, in this age, the redemptive work of Christ is available only to His elect. In the fullness of time, all humanity will be saved through the redemptive work of Christ.

Rom 3:23  for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,
Rom 3:24  and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus,
Rom 3:25  whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God’s righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins. (ESV)

2Co 5:21  For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.

Lev 4:1  And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, 
Lev 4:2  Speak unto the children of Israel, saying, If a soul shall sin through ignorance against any of the commandments of the LORD concerning things which ought not to be done, and shall do against any of them: 
Lev 4:3  If the priest that is anointed do sin according to the sin of the people; then let him bring for his sin, which he hath sinned, a young bullock without blemish unto the LORD for a sin offering. 
Lev 4:4  And he shall bring the bullock unto the door of the tabernacle of the congregation before the LORD; and shall lay his hand upon the bullock’s head, and kill the bullock before the LORD. 
Lev 4:5  And the priest that is anointed shall take of the bullock’s blood, and bring it to the tabernacle of the congregation: 

Lev 4:13  And if the whole congregation of Israel sin through ignorance, and the thing be hid from the eyes of the assembly, and they have done somewhat against any of the commandments of the LORD concerning things which should not be done, and are guilty; 

Lev 4:22  When a ruler hath sinned, and done somewhat through ignorance against any of the commandments of the LORD his God concerning things which should not be done, and is guilty; 

Lev 4:27  And if any one of the common people sin through ignorance, while he doeth somewhat against any of the commandments of the LORD concerning things which ought not to be done, and be guilty;

The sin offering is not a sweet savor offering. It deals with confessed sins which must be dealt with before we can be consecrated as priests before God. Verse 14 shows us that the sin offering is not burnt on the altar like the sweet savor offerings – It is burnt on wood on the bare ground, outside the camp.

Lev 4:11  And the skin of the bullock, and all his flesh, with his head, and with his legs, and his inwards, and his dung, 
Lev 4:12  Even the whole bullock shall he carry forth without the camp unto a clean place, where the ashes are poured out, and burn him on the wood with fire: where the ashes are poured out shall he be burnt. 

Jesus, who represents the young bullock, went through the process of being killed outside the camp or the gate of Jerusalem to atone for our sins. Outside the camp signifies that our Lord Jesus Christ was rejected by the Lord’s people (Babylon). 

Heb 13:11  For the bodies of those beasts, whose blood is brought into the sanctuary by the high priest for sin, are burned without the camp. 
Heb 13:12  Wherefore Jesus also, that he might sanctify the people with his own blood, suffered without the gate. 
Heb 13:13  Let us go forth therefore unto him without the camp, bearing his reproach. 

As the Lord’s elect, we are also to go through the same experience of being rejected by the established church system of this world. We are therefore to go outside the camp to experience the fiery trials which burn out all that has to do with our flesh.

1Co 3:11  For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ. 
1Co 3:12  Now if any man build upon this foundation gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, stubble; 
1Co 3:13  Every man’s work shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every man’s work of what sort it is. 

Exo 29:15  Thou shalt also take one ram; and Aaron and his sons shall put their hands upon the head of the ram.
Exo 29:16  And thou shalt slay the ram, and thou shalt take his blood, and sprinkle it round about upon the altar. 
Exo 29:17  And thou shalt cut the ram in pieces, and wash the inwards of him, and his legs, and put them unto his pieces, and unto his head. 
Exo 29:18  And thou shalt burn the whole ram upon the altar: it is a burnt offering unto the LORD: it is a sweet savour, an offering made by fire unto the LORD.

Verses 15 to 18 give details of how a burnt offering is carried out. The Hebrew word for “burnt offering” actually means to “ascend” which literally means to “go up in smoke”.  The smoke from the sacrifice ascended to God as a soothing aroma.

Lev 1:8  And the priests, Aaron’s sons, shall lay the parts, the head, and the fat, in order upon the wood that is on the fire which is upon the altar: 
Lev 1:9  But his inwards and his legs shall he wash in water: and the priest shall burn all on the altar, to be a burnt sacrifice, an offering made by fire, of a sweet savour unto the LORD.

The burnt offering is a sweet savor with which man pleases God. In this case, the whole of the ram is burnt by fire on the altar. As we are aware, we can only please the Lord when we are in Him. The spiritual significance of the burnt offering is that it is when we come to know the Lord and die daily to sin through our fiery trials that we start pleasing the Lord. In other words, it is as we offer our bodies as living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to the Lord, that we please Him.

2Co 2:15  For we are unto God a sweet savour of Christ, in them that are saved, and in them that perish:
2Co 2:16  To the one we are the savour of death unto death; and to the other the savour of life unto life. And who is sufficient for these things?

Rom 12:1  I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.
Rom 12:2  And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.

Exo 29:19  And thou shalt take the other ram; and Aaron and his sons shall put their hands upon the head of the ram.
Exo 29:20  Then shalt thou kill the ram, and take of his blood, and put it upon the tip of the right ear of Aaron, and upon the tip of the right ear of his sons, and upon the thumb of their right hand, and upon the great toe of their right foot, and sprinkle the blood upon the altar round about.
Exo 29:21  And thou shalt take of the blood that is upon the altar, and of the anointing oil, and sprinkle it upon Aaron, and upon his garments, and upon his sons, and upon the garments of his sons with him: and he shall be hallowed, and his garments, and his sons, and his sons’ garments with him.

In verses 19 to 21, the blood of the other ram killed was to be used to touch the right ear, thumb and great toe of Aaron and his sons. This is all done to cleanse the priest.  The touching of the right ear with blood signifies the opening of the ears to hear the word of the Lord. 

Mat 13:16  But blessed are your eyes, for they see, and your ears, for they hear.
Mat 13:17  For truly, I say to you, many prophets and righteous people longed to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it.

The application of blood to the right thumb symbolizes the cleansing of the work of our hands. What this means is that as Priest, the work of our hands should be favorable to the Lord.

Psa 90:17  Let the favor of the Lord our God be upon us, and establish the work of our hands upon us; yes, establish the work of our hands!

The touching of the great toe of Aaron with blood of the ram signifies the cleansing of our walk with the Lord in this life. This implies that as Priest before the Lord, our walk before Him should be blameless.

Deu 13:4  You shall walk after the LORD your God and fear him and keep his commandments and obey his voice, and you shall serve him and hold fast to him.

We must remember that it is through the blood of Jesus that all these roles of a Priest are possible. He, who has laid the foundation through the shedding of His blood will ensure that what He starts in us, He will be able to bring to completion. 

Php 1:6  Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ:

The Lord Himself will cloth us with His garment of righteousness as He consecrates us for the priestly office. If He did that to Joshua the High Priest, will He not do that for us who are called and chosen before the foundation of this world to be holy and without blame in this life? He will surely do that shouting, grace, grace unto it.

Zec 3:3  Now Joshua was clothed with filthy garments, and stood before the angel.
Zec 3:4  And he answered and spake unto those that stood before him, saying, Take away the filthy garments from him. And unto him he said, Behold, I have caused thine iniquity to pass from thee, and I will clothe thee with change of raiment. 
Zec 3:5  And I said, Let them set a fair mitre upon his head. So they set a fair mitre upon his head, and clothed him with garments. And the angel of the LORD stood by.

Zec 4:6  Then he answered and spake unto me, saying, This is the word of the LORD unto Zerubbabel, saying, Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the LORD of hosts.
Zec 4:7  Who art thou, O great mountain? before Zerubbabel thou shalt become a plain: and he shall bring forth the headstone thereof with shoutings, crying, Grace, grace unto it.

May the Lord be merciful to us as He continues to consecrate us for the Priestly office!! Amen!!