The Temple Service in the Days of our Savior Described, Chapter 6
CHAP. VI.
Sect. 1. Of the four and twenty courses of the Priests.
IT is a very received opinion among the Hebrew Doctors,[a]Talm. Ierus. in Taanith. per. 4. Maym. in Kele Mikd. per. 4. Kimch. in 1. Chr. 24. R. Sol. ibid. that the courses of the Priests were first ordained by Moses; namely [as some of them say] four of Eleazar, and four of Ithamar; but as others, eight of the one, and eight of the other. They that conceive that Moses ordained but eight in all, hold that Samuel added eight more, and made them sixteen, and then came David, and added yet other eight, and made them four and twenty. But those that hold that Moses ordained sixteen, conceive that David and Samuel joyned counsels together, in adding the other eight to them. In which intricacy to perplex our selves to dispute whether it were this way or that way, is both needless and useless, since the first time the scripture tells us of any Courses, it tells us of the four and twenty, and David the ordainer and distributer of them: he by the spirit of God, giving them their number, and a divine lot appointing their order.
For our better viewing and observing of these courses, and service of the Priests in them; it may not be amiss to begin with the consideration of their age, when they entred into the service, and their manner of induction to it, and then to see the manner and condition of their courses.
1. We read in the Jewish writers exceeding frequent mention of foreign The springalls of the Priesthood; for so I may wel render it; or buds of the Priesthood, for so the word signifies in propriety: as in the treatise Joma it is said, That[b]Ioma. per. 1. on the night that preceded the day of Expiation, if the High priest began to slumler, the foreign Springalls of the Priesthood filliped with their fingers to waken him: where the Gloss expounds it, That they were young men, the hair of whose beards began to bud. And in the treatise Tamid, [c]Tam. per. 1.it is said, that the Ancients of the House of their father, lay upon benches, but the foreign Springalls of the Priesthood lay on the ground, there the Gloss giveth the very same exposition of the phrase that it did before: But R. Nathan expounds it,[d]Aruch in foreign. The sons of the Priests that were now fit for the service: and[e]Vid. Gloss. in Mishueh. & Gemar. in Tam. in locum citat. some others do also expound it, foreign, such as were new come to the service; which in the same place in the Mishueh are called foreign Youths.
2. Now the ages of the Priests at their entrance into the service, we find to bee threefold, or held out in the scripture in a threefold variety: for the first law about the age of the Priests at their entrance into the service, was at thirty yeers of age, Num. 4.3. and so the Levites, ver. 23. and 30. and 35. But another text speaketh of the Levites going in to wait from twenty five yeers old and upward, Num. 8.25. And a third text speaketh of the sons of Levi, doing the service from twenty yeers old and upward, 1 Chron. 23.24.27. In which variety there is not contradiction, but alteration in reference to severall respects: The fixed and consistent time was thirty yeers old initiant [and so our Saviour answered the type at his entrance into his Ministery, Luk. 3.] but at five and twenty they were Probationers, and might do some services, saith Ahen Ezra, but they might not do all:[f]Ahen Ez. in Num. 8. for they might wait upon the Tabernacle, but they might not bear the Ark. And[g]D. Kimch. in 1 Chr. 23. therefore when the Ark was now setled in the temple and no more to be born up and down; David by divine warrant, warrants their entrance to their function at twenty yeers old: And then were they but foreign Springalls of the Priesthood, the downe of their cheeks but now breaking out. The attendance of Samuel at the Tabernacle at Shiloh from a very child was a case extraordinary, and[h]Id. in 1 Sam. 2. his work there was but a Candidate and Probationer, to learn the manner of the service and the song.
3. The manner of their installment and admission to the service was thus;[i]Mid. per. 5. Maym. in Biath. Mikd. per. 6. The great Sanhedrin sate dayly in the room Gazith, to judg concerning the Priests that came to age, to enter into the service, to see whether they were of the Priests line rightly descended or no; and if they proved so, then to see whether they were without blemish: if they proved not truly and compleatly Priests born, they were cloathed in black, and vailed in black, and so turned away, and no more to do with them: but if he proved of the Priests line rightly begotten, and there were any blemish in him of the 140 blemishes,[k]Id. ib. per. 8. for so many they number, then he was set to the worming of the wood, of which we have spoken in the description of the Court of the women. But if he proved rightly descended, and without any blemish, then was he clothed in white, and inrolled among the rest of the Priests, and he went in and served at the Altar as the others did: and to these customes, that speech alludeth, in Rev. 3.5. He that overcometh, the same shall be clothed in white raiment, and I will not blot out his name out of the book of life.
And here a story mentioned by Suidas may not be unworthy to be related, though it be not so worthy to be beleeved, and that is this.
[l]Suidas in voce foreign.One Theodosius a Jew in the time of Justinian the Emperor related to one Philip a Christian [who perswaded him to become a Christian also] as a great secret among the Jewish nation, and known but to few neither; That in the time of the Temple standing, even while Jesus Christ lived as a private person, a certain Priest died at Jerusalem, and the heads of the Priests met together to choose another in his stead: And while one named one, & another another, a certain Priest stood up and named Jesus the son of Ioseph the Carpenter, as one known to them for a man of most singular wisdom and integrity: But when some objected that Ioseph was not of the tribe of Levi, but of Iudah, and so Iesus his son was not capable of the Priesthood; and it was answered again, that he was come of a stock that had so mixed with the tribe of Levi that he might be admitted, hee was generally approved of, as one fit to succeed in the room of the Priest deceased. Now because it was the custome to inroll the names of those that were admitted to be Priests, and the names of their parents, they called the mother of Iesus to give them account of his parentage, [for Ioseph was now dead] and when she had told them that he had no earthly father, but was conceived by the Holy Ghost, and that she bare him, as divers could witnesse which were present at her travail, but that she was yet a virgin: and when they had taken the witness of some that were with her at her child-birth, and had received testimony from other women whom they set to search her, that shee was still a virgin, they entred the name and parentage of Iesus into their register; in these words, Such a day such a Priest died, the son of such a man, and such a woman; and by the common suffrage there was chosen in his stead, Jesus the son of the living God, and of the virgin Mary. And this register book [saith this relater] at the sacking and destruction of Ierusalem, was preserved by the care and industry of some of the chief of the Jews, and is now laid up privately at Tiberias: and this story [saith Suidas] I had from some that heard it from Philip; to whom it was related.
Not to insist upon the examination of this story, but to leave it as we found it, and to return to the Courses that wee are about; It is held by the Jews, and that not without some ground, that of all the four and twenty Courses that served under the first Temple, four only returned out of the captivity of Babel; namely Jedajah, Harim, Pashur, Immer. Thus the Jerusalem Talmud, and Tosaphoth ad Taanith [m]Talm. Ie…us. ubi ante. Tosaph. ad Taanith. per. 4.reckon them, from Ezra 3.36, 37, 38, 39. But the Babylon Talmud in stead of Harim [n]Tal. Bab. ib.nameth Iojarib; and the Gloss upon it doth justly scruple, how Pashur is now become one of the Courses, who was none of them before.
But how shall these four families do, to make four and twenty Courses, as was the primitive and originall distribution, and that by prophetick and divine appointment? The Prophets therfore that were amongst the children of the captivity [say the same authors] found out a way to cast them into so many Courses, and their way was this.
They made four and twenty lots, and they wrote the names of the heads of the four and twenty Courses upon them, and put them into the lottery box. Jedajah took …ut five, and himself one, there is six. Harim took out five, and himself one, there is six. Pashur took out five, and himself one, there is six. Immer took out five, and himself one, there is six. And the Prophets that were among them conditioned with them, that though Jojarib came out of captivity, yet should hee not drive out the cou…se that was before him.
Now the meaning of this tradition is this: That in drawing these lots with the names of the heads of the old courses upon them, they only intended to find out, what courses of the old names must be made out of every one of these four families, and they did not intend to alter the order of the Courses, but to let them run as they did in the ancient round: only the course of Iojarib which of old was the first, is now put to give place to Iedajah. And the reason of this was because Iedajah was of the High-priests family, of the house of Ioshua the son of Iozedek, and so they allotted him the preheminence, Ezra 2.36. The Gloss indeed upon the Babylon Talmud, gives the reason to bee, because[o]Gl…ss. ib. in this their new molding, every one was to take his course as his lot was drawn, and that in the order that the lot came up in the drawers hand they served their weeks. But if this were a reason, why should not Iojarib be a drawer of the lots as well as Jedajah, since the record saith he was present? and if they were so indifferent for the altering of the order of the Courses, why should they be so punctuall for their number, since the one in the primitive institution was appointed for divine direction as well as the other? When the Evangelist Luke saith that Zachary the father of John the Baptist was of the Course of Abia, Luk. 1.5. he undoubtedly referreth to the order of Abia's course as it is ranked in 1 Chron. 24. For the family of Abia was not now extant among the Courses, for there is no mention at all of him among the Priests that returned out of captivity, and therefore the Evangelist saith, not that Zachary was of his family but of his course, that is, of a Course that bare his name: but as for the order of the Course, he either referreth to the Text mentioned, or to a place to be found in scripture, and so his words to be construed and understood by it, or else there is no order of his course to be found at all.
The Courses being thus divided after the captivity anew, but ordered and ranked as of old, and in time encreased and grown numerous foreign Every Course [saith the Mishuch in the place aforecited] had a station in Jerusalem; which the Ierusalem Gemara expoundeth thus, It is a tradition that 2400 were the station at Jerusalem, and halfe a station was at Jericho. And Jericho also was able to have produced a whole station, but because it would give the honour to Jerusalem, it yeelded but halfe: And when any Course was to go up to Jerusalem, half the Course went up to Jerusalem out of the land of Israel, and half the Course went up out of Jericho; which the Babylonian Gemara wordeth thus, There were four and twenty Courses in the land of Israel, and twelve at Jericho.
Not that there are six & thirty courses to be supposed, but that the four and twenty were thus divided; that half or more of every course were continually resident in Jerusalem, and about it; that they might unfailingly be ready for the service when the time of their course came: and the other part, or halfe of every course, was up and down dispersed through the Land: only at and about Jericho, there was a great number constantly of every course residing there, as the others did at Hierusalem; who when the week of their course came, went up, either to assist their brethren of the Course in their service, or to help to cater provisions for them, while they served: foreign They ordered for their Brethren, saith one glosse upon the place, foreign That their brethren might have sufficient of water and provision, saith another: And as for the rest of that Course that were neither at Hierusalem nor at Jericho, but dispersed up and downe the Country, they and the Levites and the Stationary men, that were appertaining to that Course, met together in their Synagogues, according as they were neer together, and fasted, and prayed, and read the Law, and made supplications that their Brethrens service now in hand at Hierusalem, might be accepted: foreign Israel that was of that Course, saith the Mishuch even now cited gathered themselves in to their Cities and fasted &c. Where by the word Israel is not meant the Israelites or Stationary men of that Course, as they stood in opposition and distinct to Priests and Levites, but it meaneth al the Priests and Levites, and Stationary men that were of that Course, who were dispersed through the Land of Israel, in distinction to those that were then at Hierusalem at the service.
As the Courses were every one of them thus divided, in regard of place and attendance, so was every one of them also distinguished into degrees.
1. There was foreign The head of the Course, who was President over them all, and who resembled that eminent person from whom the Course tooke its name: the most of these Heads no doubt were of the great Sanhedrim, and though in the affairs of the Temple the Sagan, Katholikin, Immercalin, and Gizbarin, of whom hath been spoken already, were above them; yet in this great Councell they were all equall, and these altogether are those that are so frequently mentioned by the Gospels, as members of that industry, by the name of Chiefe-priests.
2. There was foreign The heads of the houses of their fathers: [p]Maym. in Kele Migdash per. 4.for the President of the Course, divided the Course so among the houses of the Fathers, that every house or family might serve its day. And those that were in these severall families under the Head of the house of their Father, were called foreign, private or ordinary Priests.
These Courses entered on the Sabbath, and on the next Sabbath they went out, 2 Kings 11.7. 2 Chron. 23.4. serving only a weeke at a time; and so their attendance was required twice in the yeare.
The serving of every Course, was thus divided.
[q]Talm. Ier. & Tosaph. ubi supr.The Course that bad five houses of Fathers in it, three served three dayes, and two served four dayes.
The Course that had six houses of Fathers in it, five served five daies, and one served two dayes.
The Course that had seven houses of Fathers in it, they served every one their day.
The Course that had eight houses of Fathers in it, six served six daies, and two one day.
And the Course that had nine houses of Fathers in it, five served five dayes, and four served two dayes.
[r]Tesaph. ibid.In their attendance, the men of the Course were permitted to drinke wine in the night, but not in the day; because it might be, that the service of their brethren might be too heavy for the house of the Father that was to serve, and they might be necessitated to come in and help, which they might not do, having drunk wine. But the men of the house of the Father that were to serve, might not drinke wine either by day, or by night. Whosoever knew his course and the house of his Father, he was forbidden wine onelyonly for that day that his fathers house served; He that knew his course, but not his fathers house (the knowledge of which in long continuance might be lost) be was forbidden wine all that weeke.
In some exigents the Priests might serve though they were uncleane.[s]Maym. in Biath. Migdash. per. 4. Every offering either of the Congregation, or of a particular person, the time for the offering of which is fixed, (as all the offerings time of the Congregations be) they dispense with the Sabbath, and with uncleannesse, but that is with uncleannesse, or defiling by the dead only; As for example; the time fixed for such a Sacrifice is come, and the most of the Congregation that should offer it, are defiled by the dead; as 2 Chron. 30.17. or the Congregation is cleane, but the Priests that should offer it, are defiled by the dead; or both of them are cleane, and the vessels of the service are so defiled, yet must it be offered in this uncleannesse, and the cleane, and uncleane may be imployed about it alike, and they may all goe into the Court. But those that are uncleane with any other uncleannesse, as by fluxes, issues, touching of creeping things, any carkasse, or the like, may not be imployed about the service, nor may they go into the Court.