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The priesthood of ancient Israel was the class of male individuals, who, according to the Hebrew Bible, were patrilineal descendants from Aaron (the elder brother of Moses) and the tribe of Levi, who served in the Tabernacle, Solomon's Temple and Second Temple until the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 CE.
Following the Temple's destruction at the end of the First Jewish–Roman War and the displacement to the Galilee of the bulk of the remaining Jewish population in Judea at the end of the Bar Kochba revolt, Jewish tradition in the Talmud and poems from the period record that the descendants of each priestly watch established a separate residential seat in towns and villages of the Galilee, and ...
Since the priests served a unique role of service amongst the nation of Israel, e.g. service in the Holy Temple and consumption of the Holy Terumah, so the Torah required them to follow unique rules of ritual purity, in order to protect them against ritual defilement . Some of these rules are still maintained today in Orthodox Judaism.
The high priest, like all priests, would minister barefoot when he was serving in the Temple. Like all priests, he had to immerse himself in the mikvah before vesting, and wash his hands and his feet before performing any sacred act. Neither common nor high priests could serve unless they wore their priestly vestments. [47]
As the Yom Kippur Temple service requires the high priest, Josephus' account would suggest a seven-year gap in service soon after the restoration of the Temple. Politically, Israel's overlords probably would not have allowed a power vacuum to last for so long.
Wine forbidden to priests in the tabernacle: Leviticus 10:8–15; Individuals with the Tzaraat skin affliction were not permitted entry to the tabernacle: Leviticus 22:4; Sacrifice only at the tabernacle: Leviticus 17; Priests could only enter into the third room of the tent once a year: Leviticus 16
In 1 Chronicles 16:39 Zadok is named as the leader of the priests who served "before the tabernacle of the Lord at the high place that was at Gibeon", although he is later recorded as working alongside Ahimelech devising a schedule of priestly service to support David's preparations for the construction of the Temple in Jerusalem. [20]
According to Jonathan Eybeschutz, the priests descending from Zadok will function as high priests, and the firstborn will function as standard priests. [62] Various opinions have been proposed about which service the firstborn will do, whether they will receive terumah or maaser, and other implications of their future status. [63]