20250430 [새벽묵상] 제사장의 역할이란 무엇인가? | What is the role of a priest? (민/Num 16:36~50)

16:36 여호와께서 모세에게 말씀하여 이르시되

16:37 너는 제사장 아론의 아들 엘르아살에게 명령하여 붙는 불 가운데에서 향로를 가져다가 그 불을 다른 곳에 쏟으라 그 향로는 거룩함이니라

16:38 사람들은 범죄하여 그들의 생명을 스스로 해하였거니와 그들이 향로를 여호와 앞에 드렸으므로 그 향로가 거룩하게 되었나니 그 향로를 쳐서 제단을 싸는 철판을 만들라 이스라엘 자손에게 표가 되리라 하신지라

36 The Lord said to Moses, 37 “Tell Eleazar son of Aaron, the priest, to remove the censers from the charred remains and scatter the coals some distance away, for the censers are holy— 38 the censers of the men who sinned at the cost of their lives. Hammer the censers into sheets to overlay the altar, for they were presented before the Lord and have become holy. Let them be a sign to the Israelites.”

16:39 제사장 엘르아살이 불탄 자들이 드렸던 놋 향로를 가져다가 쳐서 제단을 싸서

16:40 이스라엘 자손의 기념물이 되게 하였으니 이는 아론 자손이 아닌 다른 사람은 여호와 앞에 분향하러 가까이 오지 못하게 함이며 또 고라와 그의 무리와 같이 되지 않게 하기 위함이라 여호와께서 모세를 시켜 그에게 명령하신 대로 하였더라

39 So Eleazar the priest collected the bronze censers brought by those who had been burned to death, and he had them hammered out to overlay the altar, 40 as the Lord directed him through Moses. This was to remind the Israelites that no one except a descendant of Aaron should come to burn incense before the Lord, or he would become like Korah and his followers.

16:41 이튿날 이스라엘 자손의 온 회중이 모세와 아론을 원망하여 이르되 너희가 여호와의 백성을 죽였도다 하고

41 The next day the whole Israelite community grumbled against Moses and Aaron. “You have killed the Lord’s people,” they said.

16:42 회중이 모여 모세와 아론을 칠 때에 회막을 바라본즉 구름이 회막을 덮었고 여호와의 영광이 나타났더라

16:43 모세와 아론이 회막 앞에 이르매

16:44 여호와께서 모세에게 말씀하여 이르시되

16:45 너희는 이 회중에게서 떠나라 내가 순식간에 그들을 멸하려 하노라 하시매 그 두 사람이 엎드리니라

42 But when the assembly gathered in opposition to Moses and Aaron and turned toward the tent of meeting, suddenly the cloud covered it and the glory of the Lord appeared. 43 Then Moses and Aaron went to the front of the tent of meeting, 44 and the Lord said to Moses, 45 “Get away from this assembly so I can put an end to them at once.” And they fell facedown.

16:46 이에 모세가 아론에게 이르되 너는 향로를 가져다가 제단의 불을 그것에 담고 그 위에 향을 피워 가지고 급히 회중에게로 가서 그들을 위하여 속죄하라 여호와께서 진노하셨으므로 염병이 시작되었음이니라

16:47 아론이 모세의 명령을 따라 향로를 가지고 회중에게로 달려간즉 백성 중에 염병이 시작되었는지라 이에 백성을 위하여 속죄하고

16:48 죽은 자와 산 자 사이에 섰을 때에 염병이 그치니라

16:49 고라의 일로 죽은 자 외에 염병에 죽은 자가 만 사천칠백 명이었더라

16:50 염병이 그치매 아론이 회막 문 모세에게로 돌아오니라

46 Then Moses said to Aaron, “Take your censer and put incense in it, along with burning coals from the altar, and hurry to the assembly to make atonement for them. Wrath has come out from the Lord; the plague has started.” 47 So Aaron did as Moses said, and ran into the midst of the assembly. The plague had already started among the people, but Aaron offered the incense and made atonement for them. 48 He stood between the living and the dead, and the plague stopped. 49 But 14,700 people died from the plague, in addition to those who had died because of Korah. 50 Then Aaron returned to Moses at the entrance to the tent of meeting, for the plague had stopped.

                  지금까지 구약성경의 이야기로 많은 영화들이 제작이 되었지요.  십계나 삼손과 들릴라등 손에 꼽히는 명작들이 있는 것으로 압니다. 그런데 오늘 본문의 말씀은 제가 개인적으로 누군가 영화로 만들어 줬으면 좋겠다고 생각하는 구절입니다. 너무 박진감이 넘치지 않습니까? 온 회중이 모여서 모세와 아론을 규탄하는 바로 그때 하나님의 영광이 회막 구름 가운데 장엄하게 나타나십니다. 그리고 하나님의 심판의 염병이 사람들 사이에 번지기 시작하여 무수히 많은 사람들이 픽, 픽, 픽, 픽, 쓰러져갑니다. 그러자 모세의 명령을 들은 아론이 제단 숯불을 향로에 담아 도미노처럼 쓰러지는 사람들 사이로 급히 달려갑니다. 마침내 아론이 산 자와 죽은 자 사이에 섰을  바로 그때! 마치 죽음의 물결이 보이지 않는 벽에 부딪히듯 아론이 서있는 곳에서 염병이 더이상 나아가지 못합니다. 마치 삶과 죽음이 향로를 든 아론 좌우로 극명하게 구분되는 영화의 한 장면 같은 오늘의 본문입니다. 이 본문에서 많은 주제들을 다룰 수 있겠지만 오늘 저는 이렇게 삶과 죽음의 경계에 서는 제사장의 역할이란 무엇인가? 에 대해 말씀을 나누고 싶습니다.

You know, many movies have been made from stories in the Old Testament. We've got classics like "The Ten Commandments" and "Samson and Delilah," just to name a few.

But personally, the passage we're looking at today? This is one I wish someone would turn into a movie! I mean, talk about nail-biting action!

You see, the whole community is gathered, and they're accusing Moses and Aaron. And right at that moment, the glory of the Lord appears in a majestic cloud over the tent of meeting. And then, bam! God's judgment, a plague, starts spreading like wildfire through the people, and folks are just dropping like flies, one after another after another.

So Moses tells Aaron what to do. Aaron grabs a censer, fills it with burning coals from the altar, and he races into the crowd, weaving through the folks who are just collapsing like dominoes.

And finally, Aaron stands there, right between the living and the dead. And wouldn't you know it? It's like a tidal wave of death hits an invisible wall! The plague stops right where Aaron is standing.

It's like a scene straight out of a movie, isn't it? Life and death are clearly separated, with Aaron holding that censer right in the middle. Now, we could dig into a lot of themes in this passage today, but what I really want to talk about is this: What is the role of the priest who stands on that line, that boundary between life and death?

본문의 말씀은 크게 두 부분으로 나눌 수 있습니다. 하나는 36-40절 까지 고라의 반란에 대한 뒷수습에 대한 이야기이고 41-50절까지는 백성의 반란에 따른 하나님의 심판에 대한 이야기입니다. 얼핏 보면 분리되어 있는 이야기처럼 보이지만 사실 전반부에서는 제사장 엘르아살의 역할에 대한 이야기이고 후반부는 대제사장 아론의 역할에 대한 이야기이지요. 결국 오늘의 본문은 고라의 반란으로 촉발된 “왜 너희만 제사장이냐?” 라고 하는 질문에 대한 대답이라고 볼 수 있겠습니다.

We can pretty much break down this passage into two main parts. The first part, from verses 36 to 40, is about dealing with the aftermath of Korah's rebellion. The second part, from verses 41 to 50, is about God's judgment because of the people's rebellion. Now, at first glance, these might seem like separate stories, but really, the first part is about the role of Eleazar the priest, and the second part is about the role of Aaron the high priest.

Ultimately, you could say our passage today is an answer to the question that came out of Korah's rebellion, that question being, "Why do only YOU get to be priests?"

자, 오늘 말씀 전반부에서 드러나는 제사장의 역할은 거룩함입니다. 그리고 하나님께서는 그렇게 당신께 제사를 드리기 위해 구분된 거룩한 자, 제사장들은 바로 아론의 자손임을 분명히 하십니다. 오늘 말씀 37절에서 제사장 엘르아살이라고 말씀하셔도 될 것을 굳이 “너는 제사장 아론의 아들 엘르아살에게 명령하여” 라고 하시지 않습니까? 그 명령은 무엇입니까? “향로를 가져다가 그 불을 다른 곳에 쏟으라 그 향로는 거룩함이니라.” 어제의 18절 말씀을 보면 고라와 250명의 무리들이 담았던 불은 하나님께서 인가하신 제단의 숯불이 아니었습니다. 그들은 제각기 향로를 가져다가 불을 담고 향을 피웠습니다. 그 불은 거룩한 불이 아니었던 것이죠. 그래서 하나님께서는 그 불을 다른 곳에 쏟으라고 명령하시는 것이었습니다. 게다가 그들은 하나님께서 인가하신 제사장들이 아니었습니다. 거룩한 제사장이 아니라 레위인들에 불과한 이들이 거룩하지 않은 불을 들고 하나님 앞에 섰을 때 그들은 하나님으로부터 나오는 불에 불살라져버리고 말았습니다. 하나님의 그 붙는 불 가운데서 그들의 죗값을 생명으로 치뤘기에 그들이 하나님 앞에 드렸던 그 향로들은 거룩하게 된 것입니다. 그래서 37절과 38절에서 하나님께서 그 향로가 거룩하다 말씀하시는 것입니다. 그렇다면 이렇게 거룩하게 된 향로는 누가 만질 수 있을까요? 오직 하나님께 구분된 사람. 즉 거룩한 제사장만이 만질 수 있습니다. 하나님 앞에 거룩함이란 이렇게 엄정한 것입니다. 거룩함은 하나님께 속한 것이기 때문입니다. 하나님은 이번 일을 통해 이스라엘 자손들이 하나님께 거룩함이란 얼마나 엄격한 것인지 대대로 기억하기 원하셨습니다. 그래서 하나님께서는 엘르아살에게 명령하셔서 그 향로를 쳐서 제단을 싸는 금속판을 만들게 하신 것입니다. 40절입니다. “이스라엘 자손의 기념물이 되게 하셨으니 이는 아론 자손이 아닌 다른 사람은 여호와 앞에 분향하러 가까이 오지 못하게 함이며 또 고라와 그의 무리와 같이 되지 않게 하기 위함이라” 다른 말로 하면 이 일로 아론 자손만이 하나님을 위하여 구분된 거룩한 제사장이며 이를 어길 시에는 죽음으로 거룩하게 될 것이라는 말인 것이지요. 이렇듯 제사장의 가장 큰 역할은 바로 하나님을 위하여 구분된 것. 즉, 거룩함입니다.

Alright, so the first thing we see about the role of the priest in the first part of our reading today is holiness. And God makes it crystal clear that those set apart as holy to offer sacrifices to Him are to be descendants of Aaron.

Look at verse 37. Instead of just saying "Eleazar the priest," God specifically says, "Tell Eleazar son of Aaron the priest to take the censers out of the fire, for they are holy". What's that command all about? "Take the censers out of the fire and scatter the coals some distance away, for the censers are holy".

Now, if you look back at verse 18 from yesterday's reading, the fire that Korah and his 250 followers used? That wasn't the authorized fire from God's altar. They each brought their own censers, filled them with fire, and offered incense. That fire wasn't holy fire.

That's why God commanded them to scatter those coals. On top of that, these guys weren't the authorized priests. They were just Levites, not holy priests, and when they stood before God with unholy fire, they were consumed by the fire that came from God Himself.

Because they paid for their sin with their lives in that consuming fire from God, the censers they used became holy. That's why in verses 37 and 38, God says those censers are holy. So then, who can touch censers that have become holy in this way? Only those set apart for God – in other words, the holy priests. Holiness before God is a serious, serious matter.

Holiness belongs to God. Through this whole incident, God wanted the Israelites to remember for generations just how strict holiness is to Him. That's why God commanded Eleazar to hammer out the censers and overlay the altar with them. Look at verse 40:

"as a memorial to the Israelites that no outsider who is not a descendant of Aaron should come to burn incense before the Lord, or he would become like Korah and his followers". In other words, this event was to remind them that only Aaron's descendants were set apart as holy priests for God, and anyone who defied this would become holy through death.

So, the primary role of the priest is to be set apart for God, which is holiness.

                  자 그렇다면 이렇게 거룩하게 구별된 제사장들이 대체 무슨 일을 하기에 이렇게 엄격하게 구분되어야만 하는가? 바로 오늘 말씀 하반절에 드러난 제사장의 역할은 공동체를 위한 속죄입니다. 고라의 반역 사건으로 많은 사람이 무시무시한 징벌을 받았지만, 놀랍게도 이스라엘 백성은 하룻밤 만에 그 두려움을 잊고 이튿날 온 회중이 모여 모세를 규탄합니다. 그들은 41절을 보니 모세와 아론이 “여호와의 백성을 죽였도다,” 라며 반역자들을 옹호하는 모습을 보입니다. 그렇습니다. 고라와 같은 지도자들의 반란이 마치 적은 누룩이 온 반죽에 퍼지는 것과 같이 벌써 온 백성들에게 퍼져있는 것입니다. 반란은 아직 끝나지 않은 것입니다. 42절을 보니 그들도 어제 고라가 그러했던 것 처럼 온 회중이 모여 모세와 아론을 치려 하고 있습니다. 바로 그 긴박한 순간에 어김없이 여호와의 영광이 나타나셨습니다. 지금 자신들의 목숨이 위태위태한 그 때에 모세와 아론이 가장 먼저 하였던 것은 하나님의 영광이 나타난 회막 앞으로 나아간 것입니다. 그들은 촌각을 다투는 자신들의 상황을 정리하는 것 보다 먼저 하나님의 말씀을 듣는 것을 선택하였습니다. 45절에 하나님께서 명령하십니다. “너희는 이 회중에게서 떠나라 내가 순식간에 그들을 멸하려 하노라 하시매” 진노 중에서도 모세와 아론을 살리려 이들에게서 떠나라고 명령하시는 하나님 앞에 모세와 아론은 엎드립니다. 그들이 범하지도 않은 죄악에 휘말려 죽을 수도 있음에도 그들은 하나님 앞에 이스라엘 백성들을 위하여 중보하기로 결정한 것입니다.

Now, you might ask, what do these holy, set-apart priests actually DO that requires such strict separation? Well, the role of the priest revealed in the second half of our passage today is atonement for the community.

After Korah's rebellion, a whole lot of people faced terrifying punishment. But amazingly, the Israelites forgot their fear overnight, and the very next day, the whole community gathered and grumbled against Moses. In verse 41, they even defended the rebels, saying Moses and Aaron "have killed the Lord's people". That's right. The rebellion of leaders like Korah had already spread throughout the whole community, just like a little yeast works its way through the whole batch of dough.

The rebellion wasn't over. In verse 42, just like Korah did the day before, the whole community gathered to oppose Moses and Aaron. And in that critical moment, the glory of the Lord appeared, just as it had before. At a time when their very lives were on the line, the first thing Moses and Aaron did was go to the front of the tent of meeting, where the glory of God had appeared.

They chose to listen to God's word first, even before dealing with their own immediate, life-threatening situation. In verse 45, God commanded them: "'Get away from this assembly so that I can put an end to them at once.' And they fell facedown". Even in His wrath, God was protecting Moses and Aaron, telling them to get away from the people. And Moses and Aaron fell facedown before God. Even though they could have been swept away and died in a sin they didn't commit, they chose to intercede for the Israelites before God.

46절에서 이에, 그 즉시, 모세는 아론에게 명령합니다.  “너는 향로를 가져다가 제단의 불을 그것에 담고 그 위에 향을 피워가지고 급히 회중에게로 가서 그들을 위하여 속죄하라” 바로 이것이 오늘의 말씀의 핵심입니다. 제사장은 하나님께 거룩히 구별된 자로서 거룩한 향로를 가져다가 하나님께서 인가하신 거룩한 제단의 불을 가지고 거룩한 향을 피우는 자입니다. 그리고 그렇게 하는 목적은 바로 공동체를 위하여 속죄하는 것입니다. 이들이 거룩하게 구별 된 것은 바로 거룩한 이들이 하나님 앞에서 공동체를 위하여 속죄하기 위함인 것입니다. 레위기 16:12-13을 보면 일년에 한번 대속죄일에 오직 대제사장만이 많은 속죄제사를 치루고 지성소로 들어가는 장면이 나옵니다. 그곳에서 그는 오늘 말씀과 같이 향로에 제단 숯불을 채워 곱게 간 향기로운 향들을 두손 가득 채워 휘장안으로 들어가 그 연기로 증거궤 위의 속죄소, 즉 하나님의 자비의 보좌, Mercy Seat을 가립니다. 무엇을 위함입니까? 모든 백성의 죄를 용서해 달라고 하나님의 존전에서 중보하기 위함입니다.  47절에 대제사장인 아론이 향로를 들고 하나님께서 떠나라고 하신 회중 속으로 급하게 달려들어갑니다. 그가 백성을 위하여 속죄 하였을 때에 하나님의 심판이 그치고 그를 기점으로 산자와 죽은자가 나뉘는 기이한 일이 일어납니다. 대제사장 아론의 속죄로 인하여 하나님의 진노와 심판이 멈춘 것입니다.

In verse 46, right then and there, Moses tells Aaron, "'Take your censer and put incense in it, along with burning coals from the altar, and hurry to the assembly to make atonement for them'” THIS is the heart of today's message. The priest is someone set apart as holy for God. He takes a holy censer, fills it with holy fire from God's authorized altar, and offers holy incense.

And the purpose of all that? It's to make atonement for the community. They are set apart as holy precisely so that these holy individuals can make atonement for the community before God. Leviticus 16:12-13 tells us about the Day of Atonement, when only the high priest entered the Most Holy Place after making many atonement sacrifices. There, just as in our passage today, he would fill a censer with coals from the altar, take a double handful of finely ground fragrant incense, and go behind the curtain to cover the atonement cover on the ark of the covenant – the mercy seat, God's throne of grace – with the smoke. Why? To intercede before God's presence, asking for forgiveness for all the people's sins.

In verse 47, Aaron the high priest, carrying the censer, ran quickly into the assembly that God had told them to leave. When he made atonement for the people, God's judgment stopped, and a strange thing happened: the living and the dead were divided, starting right where he stood. Because of the atonement made by Aaron the high priest, God's wrath and judgment were stopped.

                  말씀을 맺습니다. 오늘 말씀을 통해 우리는 제사장이란 하나님께 구별된 거룩한 자다. 그리고 그들이 이렇게 구별된 것은 곧 공동체를 위하여 속죄를 하기 위함이다 라는 것을 배웠습니다. 대제사장인 아론이 거룩한 향로를 들고 백성을 위하여 속죄하였을 떄에 하나님의 진노와 심판이 멈춘 것을 보았습니다. 우리에게는 아론은 없지만 그보다 더 위대하신 대제사장이 계십니다. 예수님께서 바로 그 대제사장이십니다. 하나님의 가장 거룩한 자. 아론의 아들이 아닌 거룩하신 하나님의 독생자께서 우리를 위하여 속죄 하심으로 우리를 향한 하나님의 진노와 심판은 거두어졌습니다. 바로 예수님이야말로 죽음과 삶, 그 경계에서 우리를 영생으로 초청하시는 하나님의 거룩한 대제사장이신 것입니다. 주님은 거룩한 향로가 아닌 자신의 생명을 불태워 우리에게 영생의 길을 열어주셨습니다. 거룩하신 예수님, 우리를 위해 속죄하시는 예수님, 우리의 대제사장 되신 예수님을 기억하며 오늘 하루 승리하시기를 축원합니다. 기도하시겠습니다.

Let me close with this. From today's passage, we've learned that a priest is someone set apart as holy for God. And the reason they are set apart in this way is to make atonement for the community. We saw how God's wrath and judgment stopped when Aaron the high priest, carrying the holy censer, made atonement for the people.

We don't have Aaron anymore, but we have a High Priest who is far greater than he was. Jesus is that High Priest! God's most holy One. The son of God, set apart, who made atonement for us, and because of that, God's wrath and judgment against us have been lifted. Jesus Himself is that holy priest of God who stands on that boundary between death and life, inviting us into eternal life.

The Lord didn't use a holy censer; He offered up His very life to open the way to eternal life for us. Let's remember the holy Jesus, the Jesus who makes atonement for us, Jesus our High Priest, and live in victory today. Let's pray.