And the Lord spake unto Moses and Aaron in Mount Hor ,.... When they were at the foot of that mountain, in the valley adjoining to it: by the coast of the land of Edom ; which they were still upon the borders of, and were going round it, not being permitted to go through it: saying ; as follows. read more
Aaron shall be gathered unto his people ,.... That is, shall die, for this phrase is a periphrasis of death, and is used in common both of good and bad men, and designs death in general, without regard to persons and places men go to at death: for he shall not enter into the land which I have given unto the children of Israel ; the land of Canaan; and Aaron the priest, and so Moses the lawgiver, not being suffered to enter into that land, show the weakness and imperfection of the law,... read more
Take Aaron and Eleazar his son ,.... His eldest son, who was to succeed him in the priesthood, and did: and bring them up unto Mount Hor ; to the top of it, they being now at the foot of it, where the people of Israel lay encamped. read more
And strip Aaron of his garments ,.... His priestly garments, as the Targum of Jonathan, and so Jarchi: and put them upon Eleazar his son ; thereby declaring him to be high priest in his father's stead: and Aaron shall be gathered unto his people, and shall die there ; the phrase of gathering to his people is here explained of his dying. read more
And Moses did as the Lord commanded ,.... Though it must be very cutting, distressing, and afflicting to him, to part with a brother so dear to him, and who had been so many years a companion of him, and a partner with him in the care and government of the people of Israel; but it being the Lord's will, he submits unto it, and faithfully and readily obeyed his orders, as he always did: and they went up into Mount Hor , in the sight of all the congregation; that is, Moses, Aaron, and... read more
And Moses stripped Aaron of his garments ,.... His priestly garments, which, very probably, were put on at the foot of the mountain, on purpose for the transaction of this affair, since they were not in common worn, but only when in service; the same hands that clothed Aaron with them at first, stripped him of them, and both were done at the command of God; as the stripping of those garments was a divesting Aaron of his office, so it was a figure of the disannulling of his priesthood, when... read more
And when all the congregation saw that Aaron was dead ,.... Not that they saw his dead body, but they perceived by the relation of Moses, and by various circumstances, as not seeing Aaron come down, whom they saw go up, and seeing Eleazar with Aaron's garments on him, and perhaps by tokens of mourning in Moses and Eleazar; so the Targums of Jonathan and Jerusalem say, they saw them come down from the top of the mountain, with their garments rent, and ashes on their heads, weeping and... read more
Strip Aaron of his garments - This was, in effect, depriving him of his office; and putting the clothes on his son Eleazar implied a transfer of that office to him. A transfer of office, from this circumstance of putting the clothes of the late possessor on the person intended to succeed him, was called investing or investment, (clothing); as removing a person from an office was termed divesting or unclothing. Among the Catholics, and in the Church of England, this same method is used in... read more
And Aaron died there - Hence, as Dr. Lightfoot has justly observed, we have an "indisputable proof that the earthly Canaan was not the utmost felicity at which God's promises to the Israelites aimed since the best men among them were excluded from it." The remark of some of the fathers here is worthy of attention: "Neither Moses the representative of the law, nor Miriam the representative of the prophets, nor Aaron the representative of the priesthood and its sacrificial rites, could bring... read more
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Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - Numbers 20:22-29
The chapter began with the funeral of Miriam, and it ends with the funeral of her brother Aaron. When death comes into a family, it often strikes double. Israel had not improved the former affliction they were under, by the death of the prophetess, and therefore, soon after, God took away their priest, to try if they would lay that to heart. This happened at the very next stage, when they removed to Mount Hor, fetching a compass round the Edomites? country, leaving it on their left hand.... read more