And they stood in their place after their manner, according to the law of Moses the man of God: the priests sprinkled the blood, which they received of the hand of the Levites.
The priests sprinkled the blood, which they received of the hand of the Levites. This was a deviation from the established rules and practices in presenting the offerings of the temple; and the reason was, that numbers present on the occasion having not sanctified themselves, the Levites slaughtered the paschal victims (see the note at 2 Chronicles 35:5) for everyone that was unclean; while at other times the heads of families killed the lambs themselves, the priests receiving the blood from their hands and presenting it on the altar.
The practice seems to have been introduced after the erection of the temple-when the people had to kill the Passover "in the court of the temple" - of taking some of the blood and sprinkling it upon the altar; but it was not observed at the first celebration of the Passover in Egypt, nor the second in the Sinaitic wilderness; and it nowhere appears that there was any command laid upon the priests to that effect (see the note at 2 Chronicles 35:11). Multitudes of the Israelites, especially from certain tribes (2 Chronicles 30:18), were in this unsanctified state, and yet they ate the Passover-an exceptional feature, and one opposed to the law (Numbers 9:6: cf. Josephus, 'Jewish Wars,' b. 6:, ch. 9:, sec. 3); but this exception was allowed in answer to Hezekiah's prayer (2 Chronicles 30:18-20).