The OT Priest Had Three Core Functions - Levitical Priesthood Duties - Sacrifice Intercession Teaching - High Priest Priests Kohanim Levites - Exodus 28-29 Leviticus 1-10

The Priesthood Restored: What the Scriptures Say About the Priest

Ask most people what a priest does, and the answer depends on which church they grew up in. In many traditions, the priest is the one who administers the sacraments, visits the sick, runs religious education, and cares for the parish. These are good and useful works, but when we open the Scriptures, we find that the picture is different. The Bible never describes the priestly work in those terms. To understand the priesthood, we must return to the Word of God.

The Priests of the Old Testament

Under the Law of Moses, the priests had three core functions.

First, they offered sacrifices for atonement. God told Solomon, “If my people... humble themselves, and pray... then I will hear from heaven and forgive their sin” (2 Chronicles 7:14). Sacrifice was the way Israel approached a holy God and received cleansing for sin, and the priests carried out this work at the altar.

Second, they offered incense and interceded for the nation. “Aaron shall burn fragrant incense on it every morning” (Exodus 30:7). The incense represented the prayers of God’s people rising before him. Psalm 141:2 makes the connection: “Let my prayer be set before you as incense.”

Third, they kept, sought, and shared the knowledge of God. Malachi 2:7 says, “For the lips of a priest should keep knowledge, and people should seek instruction from his mouth.” The priest was the teacher of the law, the one who helped the people understand what God required.

The Priesthood of the New Testament

The New Testament does not abolish the priestly calling. It transforms it, and it gives those functions to every believer who has been made a child of God.

First, believers offer themselves and others as living sacrifices. Paul speaks of his ministry as “the priestly service of the gospel of God, so that the Gentiles may become an acceptable offering” (Romans 15:16). Romans 12:1 urges us to “present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God.” James 5:20 adds that whoever turns a sinner from the error of his way saves that soul from death. Our priestly service is to bring lost people to Christ.

Second, believers offer intercessory prayers. Paul urges that “petitions, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgiving be offered on behalf of all men” (1 Timothy 2:1). In Revelation 8:3-4, an angel offers incense with the prayers of the saints before God’s throne. Prayer is not a side activity for the church. It is part of our priestly work.

Third, believers keep, seek, and share the knowledge of God. Paul prayed that the Colossians would be filled with “the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding” (Colossians 1:9). The Bereans examined the Scriptures daily to see whether things were so (Acts 17:11), and Paul told Timothy to give himself to the public reading of Scripture, to exhortation, and to teaching (1 Timothy 4:13).

Jesus Is Our Great High Priest

Everything the earthly priests did points to Jesus. He is the perfect High Priest, and his work is complete.

He became the full and final sacrifice for our atonement. The writer of Hebrews says, “We have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all” (Hebrews 10:10). The sacrifices of the Law had to be repeated, but Jesus offered himself one time for all.

He is interceding for us right now. “He always lives to make intercession for them” (Hebrews 7:25). We do not need another person to stand between us and God, because Jesus has already opened the way.

In him are found all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge (Colossians 2:3). The one who keeps and shares the knowledge of God is the Word himself, and the Holy Spirit leads us into all truth.

What This Means for Us

If every believer shares the priestly calling, then no one is a spectator in the church. Each of us is called to offer our lives to God, to pray for the nations and for our leaders, to bring the lost to Christ, and to grow in the knowledge of God through his Word. Our priest is Jesus, and we are a royal priesthood together (1 Peter 2:9).

A Prayer

Father, thank you for Jesus, our great High Priest, who offered himself once for all and who lives forever to intercede for us. Make us a holy priesthood, offering our lives as living sacrifices, praying for the nations, bringing the lost home, and growing in the knowledge of your Word. In the name of Yeshua, Amen.

Shalom