Chapter II: Divisions of the Ceremonial Laws, § 8.
CHAPTER II: DIVISIONS OF THE CEREMONIAL LAWS
§ 8. Roughly and briefly speaking, the ceremonial laws are divine ordinances about ecclesiastical rites given to the people of Israel through Moses. They can be distinguished in this way: Some contain the ecclesiastical rites to be observed in the public exercise of external worship. All the splendor and ornamentation of the Levitical priesthood, the tabernacle with all its parts and vessels, etc., are of this kind. Yet other [ceremonial laws] prescribe private observances regarding food, clothing, and various washings.
The first kind of ceremonial laws speaks about sacred persons, things, places, or times. The sacred persons in the Old Testament were: (1) the high priest, (2) the other priests, (3) the Levites.
The priests (a) were chosen before the entire people. (b) They were sprinkled with the water of atonement, their hair was shaved, and their bodies were washed. (c) They were dressed in special vestments. (d) They were consecrated through anointing. (e) Sacrifices were offered on their behalf. (f) They were assigned to ministry.
The garments of the high priest were: (1) a linen coat, (2) a blue6 tunic with bells, (3) an ephod, (4) a breastplate or pectoral, (5) a sash, (6) a turban, (7) a gold plate on the front of the turban, (8) linen breeches. The lesser priests had only four of these: the linen coat, breeches, sash, and turban. The chief priest was anointed on the head, but only the hands of the lesser priests were anointed. Levites were not anointed.
The duties of the priests were: (1) to teach the Law and answer questions about it, (2) to pray, (3) to sacrifice, (4) to bless, (5) to diagnose leprosy, (6) to cleanse.
The sacred things were either sacraments or sacrifices, which differ as acts of receiving and giving [λῆψις καὶ λόσις]. There were two sacraments in the Old Testament: circumcision, which was given to Abraham (Genesis 17), and the Passover lamb (Exodus 12). We shall discuss these more fully in their own place [On Circumcision and the Paschal Lamb (Commonplace XXII)]. The sacrifices were of varying kinds, and we shall see to them a bit later [§§ 12–13]. The sacred vessels and utensils may fittingly be categorized with the sacred things.
I take the expression “sacred places” to mean the tabernacle of the covenant along with all its parts. This was followed later by two temples: the first built by Solomon; the second, by Zerubbabel.
Sacred times include feasts and festival days. These were weekly, as the Sabbath (Exod. 20:10; Lev. 23:3); monthly, such as the beginnings of the months (Num. 10:10; [28:11]); or annually. These last either came every year or were commanded to be observed on some particular years. The former were either primary, such as the Feast of Passover, of Weeks, and of Booths (Exod. 23:14; 34:23; Deut. 16:1, 10, 13; some people distinguish the Feast of Ingathering from this); or they were secondary, such as the Feast of Trumpets (Lev. 23:24) and of Atonement (Lev. 23:[27]). The latter were sabbatical years (Lev. 25:4) and jubilee years (Lev. 25:13). The former of these were celebrated every seventh year while the latter were celebrated every fiftieth year.
To the private ordinances I assign the distinction of animals (Lev. 11:2); Levitical uncleanness which one contracted from contact with a woman soon after childbirth [puerpera] (Lev. 12:4), leprosy (Lev. 14:46), or a bodily discharge either natural or of illness (Leviticus 15); the various washings for that uncleanness; rules about food (Lev. 17:12), clothing (Deut. 22:11–12), plowing (v. 10), sowing (v. 9), hunting birds (v. 6), etc.