Finger
Fingers
Leviticus 4:6 And the priest shall dip his finger (אֶצְבָּע֖וֹ)[1] in the blood, and sprinkle (וְהִזָּ֨ה)[2] of the blood seven times before the LORD, before the vail of the sanctuary.
אֶצְבַּע (etsbaʿ)[1] denotes the finger in its literal sense yet carries rich symbolic and theological nuances across roughly thirty-one Old Testament occurrences. Whether describing human activity, priestly ritual, or divine action, the word consistently underscores precision, intentionality, and personal involvement.
אֶצְבַּע threads through Scripture as a concrete yet profound image: a finger that fashions galaxies, engraves law, applies sacrificial blood, measures temple pillars, and, when misused, wounds neighbors. Believers are summoned to behold the Lord’s mighty finger and to let their own fingers—indeed, their whole lives—serve His precise and holy purposes.
Accountability: Human fingers can glorify God (Psalms 144:1)[3] or express rebellion (Isaiah 58:9)[4].
The priest’s finger serves as an intermediary tool in sacrificial rites:
- Consecration of the altar (Exodus 29:12).
- Sin offerings (Leviticus 4:6, 17).
- Priestly ordination (Leviticus 8:15; 9:9).
- Cleansing of lepers (Leviticus 14:16, 25–28).
- Day of Atonement blood application (Leviticus 16:14, 18).
- Red-heifer purification water (Numbers 19:4).
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 0676 אֶצְבַּע ‘etsba‘ ets-bah’ from the same as 06648 צֶבַע tseba dye (as in 06647 צְבַע tsëba‘ dip) (in the sense of grasping); n f; [BDB-840b] {See TWOT on 1873 @@ "1873a" } AV-finger 32; 32
- 1) finger, toe
- ↑ 05137 נָזָה nazah naw-zaw’ a primitive root; v; [BDB-633a, BDB-633b] {See TWOT on 1335 } {See TWOT on 1336 } AV-sprinkle 24; 24
- 1) to spurt, spatter, sprinkle
- 1a) (Qal) to spurt, spatter
- 1b) (Hiphil) to cause to spurt, sprinkle upon
- 2) to spring, leap
- 2a) (Hiphil) to cause to leap, startle
- 1) to spurt, spatter, sprinkle
- ↑ 1 ¶ Blessed be the LORD my strength, which teacheth my hands to war, and my fingers to fight:
- ↑ 9 Then shalt thou call, and the LORD shall answer; thou shalt cry, and he shall say, Here I am. If thou take away from the midst of thee the yoke, the putting forth of the finger, and speaking vanity;