That was a pretty long scripture reference, but there are many points relative to our study that we need to examine. First of all, you probably noticed in our mission statement that one of our directives is to expose the "traditions of men". This chapter is an excellent place to start. There has been a "tradition" that has been handed down through the years that is simply not true and we will prove it with scripture.

You have probably heard at one time or another that the high priest had a rope tied around his ankle whenever he went into the Holy of Holies so if he died, they could get his body out. This is based on Exodus 28:31-35 ³¹"You shall make the robe of the ephod all of blue. ³²There shall be an opening at its top in the middle of it; around its opening there shall be a binding of woven work, like the opening of a coat of mail, so that it will not be torn. ³³You shall make on its hem pomegranates of blue and purple and scarlet material, all around on its hem, and bells of gold between them all around: ³⁴a golden bell and a pomegranate, a golden bell and a pomegranate, all around on the hem of the robe. ³⁵It shall be on Aaron when he ministers; and its tinkling shall be heard when he enters and leaves the holy place before the LORD, so that he will not die."

Firstly, you will notice in verse 35 that it says the Holy Place, not the Holy of Holies (The Holy Place behind the veil). Secondly, it also says that the ephod is worn when he enters the Holy Place, so that he will not die. If it is worn so he will not die, then how could he die if he had it on? Thirdly, the ephod is not even worn when he enters the Holy of Holies. How do we know? Let's take a look at another scripture that will clearly point this out.

Leviticus 16:2-4

²The LORD said to Moses: "Tell your brother Aaron that he shall not enter at any time into the holy place inside the veil, before the mercy seat which is on the ark, or he will die; for I will appear in the cloud over the mercy seat.

³Aaron shall enter the holy place with this: with a bull for a sin offering and a ram for a burnt offering.

⁴He shall put on the holy linen tunic, and the linen undergarments shall be next to his body, and he shall be girded with the linen sash and attired with the linen turban (these are holy garments) Then he shall bathe his body in water and put them on.

Leviticus 16 tells us that the holy garments, which are worn when entering the Holy of Holies are the linen tunic, the linen undergarments, the linen sash and the linen turban. At no point does it mention the ephod nor does it say anything at all about "The Holy Rope". If the ephod is not worn into the Holy of Holies, then how would they hear the bells stop ringing to know when to pull the dead priest out? I have no idea when or where this originated, but is has been around for quite a while. I even found it in my NIV study bible! Maybe it's because someone didn't notice any difference between "The Holy Place" and "The Holy Place inside the veil, before the mercy seat." Just to recap:

1. Exodus 28:4 says to make a breastpiece and an ephod and a robe and a tunic of checkered work, a turban and a sash
2. Leviticus 16:4 says "He shall put on the holy linen tunic, and the linen undergarments shall be next to his body, and he shall be girded with the linen sash and attired with the linen turban (these are holy garments)"

As we can see, there isn't a lot of information given here, but there are a couple of keys which we'll come back to a little later in our study. The next mention of priesthood, other than Psalms 110 which, as we discussed earlier, refers to Messiahs priesthood, appears in Exodus when the children of Israel are standing before Mt. Sinai.

Exodus:19:6 "And ye shall be unto me a kingdom of priests, and an holy nation. These are the words which thou shalt speak unto the children of Israel."

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