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Numbers 2010
Lecture 2
25 July 2010
GOD CHOSE THE LEVITES
Numbers 3:1-4:49
Key verse: 3:11-12
The LORD also said to Moses, "I have taken the Levites from among the
Israelites in place of the first male offspring of every Israelite woman. The
Levites are mine,
When talking of the Old Testament, Jesus said that ‘these are the scriptures that
testify about me’ (Jn 5:39). The book of Numbers and these passages are telling us
something about Jesus. We are dealing here with the Levites. The Levites are mentioned
more than 70 times in the book of Numbers, more than any other book of the bible. The
Levites are a particular echo of our High Priest Jesus and of our relationship to God. In
practical terms these chapters are about God separating the Levites and entrusting them
with the task to look after the Tent of Meeting. In chapters 1 and 2, God had commanded
Moses to take a census and had set out the layout of the camp. We now see two further
censuses but only of the Levites. God choose the Levites to be his – ‘They are mine’ (13).
He gave them responsibility for the Tent of Meeting. Through this we see God’s
ownership, the grace of calling and the important principle of substitution. May we
accept the grace of God who separated us in today’s generation to serve the church of
God.
I. God who handed the Levites over to Aaron (3:1-51)
Look at verse 1. “This is the account of the family of Aaron and Moses at the time
the LORD talked with Moses on Mount Sinai.” This verse is about the genealogy of
Aaron and Moses. Rather than Moses, it was Aaron that became the ancestor of the
priests (Ex 40:15). God separated priests from amongst the Levites and established
spiritual order.
First, the holy task of priests (2-4). Look at verse 2. Aaron had 4 sons: Nadab the
firstborn, then Abihu, Eleazar and Ithamar. They were anointed and separated as priests.
As can be seen from Exodus 28-29 Aaron and his sons were dressed with holy and
beautiful garments and were designated as priests in a detailed ceremony. The ceremony
that appointed them continued for 7 days before all the Israelites. At this appointment
God’s holiness was underlined as each day they made sin offerings and burnt offerings.
Through this the importance and glory of being a priest was emphasized. Broadly there
are 3 priestly duties. First, was to offer sacrifices to God. Through this, people made
thanksgiving offerings to God or sin offerings in order to receive forgiveness. Second,
was to teach the law of God. It was the priests who proclaimed God’s blessings and his
forgiveness and taught the word of God. The third task was to maintain the purity of the
temple and camp. Priests purified the temple and undertook ceremonial rituals to ensure
that the community was able to serve God (Lev 10:10-11). They were to teach the people
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to distinguish between common and holy things. It meant that if the priests were not
faithful to such tasks, then the community that they served would inevitably face God’s
wrath. Therefore those who received the task of being a priest had to make every effort to
live before God and be holy. They must accept the task of making God’s community pure
with all their strength.
Yet what happened? Look at verse 4. “Nadab and Abihu, however, fell dead
before the LORD when they made an offering with unauthorized fire before him in the
Desert of Sinai. They had no sons; so only Eleazar and Ithamar served as priests during
the lifetime of their father Aaron.” Nadab and Abihu fell dead when they made an
offering with unauthorized fire before God (Lev 10:1-2). The KJV refers to ‘strange fire’
and the precise events are obscure. Some believe they should have used burning coals
from the alter but used coals from other places (Lev 16:12). This could be linked to
drunkenness because after punishing Nadab and Abihu, God said to Aaron, “You and
your sons are not to drink wine or other fermented drink whenever you go into the Tent
of Meeting, or you will die. This is a lasting ordinance for the generations to come (Lev
16:12).” Through this, we can guess that without holy fear they became drunk and used
unauthorized fire. Yet whatever the precise reason, they were killed while offering
sacrifices because they did not honour God’s holiness and righteousness. They lacked
holy fear of God. They died without children and their priestly line stopped. No doubt
their two younger brothers must have taken the duty of a priest with great fear and
trembling. The death of the first two priests tells us that the election of the Levites as
priests was not because they were morally better or superior than everybody else. It
warns us of the attitude a priest should have – one of holy fear and respect for God. God
chose us and entrusted believers with the holy task of being a priest by his one-sided
grace (Ro 15:16). May we not despise this duty as a priest but bear this grace with a holy
fear and trembling.
Second, the Levites were to assist Aaron (5-13). Look at verses 5-6. “The LORD
said to Moses, "Bring the tribe of Levi and present them to Aaron the priest to assist him.”
God commanded the Levites to assist Aaron like servants. God had the Levites do the
holy tasks in the Tent of Meeting for Aaron and in a sense for all the Israelites. They not
only served the priests but all those who came to the Tent of Meeting. They had to look
after all the items in the Tent of Meeting and make an environment for Aaron and his
sons to properly make the sacrifices and offerings. Look at verse 9. God said to Moses,
“Give the Levites to Aaron and his sons; they are the Israelites who are to be given
wholly to him.” The Levites were those who were given wholly to Aaron. Therefore they
had to serve God as those who belonged to Aaron. The parallel for Christians is that we
serve God as those who belong to Jesus, our eternal priest (Ro 1:6). Christians are
spiritually Levites who are presented to Jesus and given fully to him. At the same time
we assist the servants whom God has appointed and in this way we serve the church of
Christ. So for example Priscilla and Aquila served Paul even at the risk of their own lives
(Ro 16:4). God carries out his world mission in this way.
At the same time, God strictly separated the Levites from the priests and clearly
set up a spiritual order. Look at verse 10. “Appoint Aaron and his sons to serve as priests;
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anyone else who approaches the sanctuary must be put to death.” God allowed Aaron and
his sons to serve as priests and the Levites were limited to just assisting them. The
implication is that if the spiritual order between priests and the Levites disappeared the
sacrificial system would collapse and God could not be with his people. So the role of the
Levites was a vital part in enabling people to come to God. So what was the reason for
God especially choosing the Levites?
Third, God who chose the Levites by grace (11-13). Look at verses 11-12. “I have
taken the Levites from among the Israelites in place of the first male offspring of every
Israelite woman. The Levites are mine”. We see here the incredible grace of God. God
took the Levites in place of the first male offspring of every Israelites woman. When God
struck down Egypt with 10 plagues, he killed all the first born male of the Egyptians but
saved the first born Israelites through the blood of the lamb on the doorpost (13, Ex 13:2).
In this way the firstborn male of the Israelites became God’s. Here God took the Levites
in place of the first male offspring of every Israelite woman. So he said, “The Levites are
mine.” Separating them from other tribes, God commanded them to assist the priests and
his people. By doing so, God wanted them to remember the Exodus and the Saviour God
all the time. But why the Levites? We don’t know. We don’t know why God chose the
Levites to be his. But what we do know is that it was God’s one sided grace. In Genesis,
Jacob twice cursed the Levites saying “Cursed be their anger” (Ge 49:5-7) when referring
to Simeon and Levi’s attack on the Shechemites. Yet incredibly despite this curse God
had mercy on these Levites and gave them the privilege to serve God as full time workers.
It was entirely God’s one sided grace and mercy. It’s always this way. God said through
the prophet Isaiah, “Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name;
you are mine.” (Isa 43:1) Likewise believers became God’s possession not by the blood
of animals but by the blood of Jesus Christ – the Lamb of God (1 Pe 1:29, 2:9). We
should receive a curse like Levi. We should be cut off from God because of the horror of
our sin. But by Jesus receiving the curse in our place we are redeemed (Gal 3:13). By the
grace of Jesus we come to have the privilege of serving God. This is entirely God’s one
sided grace. It meant the Apostle Paul could cry out, “But by the grace of God I am what
I am”. (1 Co 15:10).
Fourth we see the important principle of redemption (14-51). Look at verses 14-15.
“The LORD said to Moses in the Desert of Sinai, "Count the Levites by their families and
clans. Count every male a month old or more."” When counting the other tribes God
numbered those aged 20 and over. But the Levites were not being mustered for war but
for special service. They were replacing or being substituted for the first male offspring
of the Israelites. The total number of the Levites counted was 22,000 (39).
Yet in verses 40-51 we see that when Moses counted the firstborn of the Israelites,
as the LORD commanded him and the total number of firstborn males was 22,273. The
figures are not easy to reconcile but the point being made is that the first male offspring
of the Israelites outnumbered the Levites. There were 273 more people than Levites. It
would be easy to not worry about 273 people when thinking of 22,000 people. But in
order to make sure that each person was redeemed God had them collect five shekels for
each person. 1,365 shekels were paid as redemption money to Aaron and his sons.
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Through this the Levites fully substituted and redeemed the firstborn male offspring of
the Israelites. In effect the Israelites though the Levites served God in place of them. Now
every time the father of a firstborn went up to the tabernacle to offer sacrifice, one of the
things that he would be reminded of would be this. He would see the Levite and think
‘You know, if that Levite weren’t there, if that priest weren’t there, I wouldn’t have my
firstborn son. Because when God saved us out of Egypt, He saved us on a night when all
the firstborn of Egypt died, and my son didn’t.’ When we see Jesus we see the same – he
took our iniquities, he died for us and took our place and redeemed us from the curse (Gal
3:13).
(The layout of the Levites is set out in verses 17-38. Levi had three sons and their names
were Gershon, Kohath and Merari (17). The descendants of Gershon were 7,500 camped
on the west of the Tent of the Meeting and the leader of the families of the Gershonites
was Eliasaph (18-26). They were responsible for the care of the tabernacle and tent, its
coverings, the curtain at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting, the curtains of the courtyard,
the curtain at the entrance to the courtyard surrounding the tabernacle and altar, and the
ropes—and everything related to their use (25-26). The descendants of Kohath were
8,600, camping on the south of the Tent of the Meeting. The leader of the families of the
Kohathite clans was Elizaphan and they were responsible for the care of the ark, the table,
the lamp stand, the altars, the articles of the sanctuary used in ministering, the curtain,
and everything related to their use (30-31).The descendants of Merari were 6,200
camping on the north of the Tent of Meeting and Zuriel was the leader of them (33-37).
The Merarites were appointed to take care of the frames of the tabernacle, its crossbars,
posts, bases, all its equipment, and everything related to their use, as well as the posts of
the surrounding courtyard with their bases, tent pegs and ropes (36-37). Moses and Aaron
and his sons were to camp to the east of the tabernacle, toward the sunrise, in front of the
Tent of Meeting (38). They were responsible for the care of the sanctuary on behalf of the
Israelites. Anyone else who approached the sanctuary was to be put to death. This task
was an especially holy task so God sternly warned others from coming closer to the
sanctuary.)
II. God who gave the task to the Levites (4:1-49)
In chapter 3 God commanded that a census be taken of the descendants of the
Levites age from one month upward. In chapter 4 God commands a further census (the
third so far) but not for the purpose of substitution but to identify those able to serve in
the work of God. Look at verses 1-3. “The LORD said to Moses and Aaron: "Take a
census of the Kohathite branch of the Levites by their clans and families. Count all the
men from thirty to fifty years of age who come to serve in the work in the Tent of
Meeting.” Before when taking a census for an army God counted those who were age 20
and over. But here in this second census of the Levites, he commanded that they count
those who were age between 30 and 50. This tells us that those who assist the servants of
God should not only be physically strong but also mentally mature. The bible does not
have much positive to say about young people! Before 30 people tend to be immature and
can be led by temper and the passions of youth (2 Ti 2:22). So God looked for those with
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a degree of maturity. But not too old. Heavy service was to stop at 50 so that those who
served would be healthy and active and give their best years to serving God.
What was the work of Kohathites? They were to carry the holy furnishings and all
the holy articles. But they must not touch the holy things or see inside of the Tent of
Meeting. Only after Aaron and his sons had finished covering the holy furnishings and all
the holy articles, and when the camp was ready to move, would the Kohathites able to
come in and do the carrying. In verses 5-14 we see that when the camp was to move,
Aaron and his sons went into the Tent of the Meeting and took down the shielding curtain,
covered the ark of the Testimony, the Table of the Presence, fragrant incense, lamp stand
and all other related articles and put its poles in place. Look at verse 15a. “After Aaron
and his sons have finished covering the holy furnishings and all the holy articles, and
when the camp is ready to move, the Kohathites are to come to do the carrying.” After
the priests had covered all the holy articles, then Kohathites could do the carrying. It was
a privilege to carry these precious items but one they must do with holy fear. If they
touched them without coverings they would be killed. God said to Moses and Aaron
again to warn Kohathites to be careful when they came near the most holy things so that
they might not die (17-19).
Next God commanded them to take a census of Gershonites who were between 30
and 50 years old (21-22). God entrusted them to carry the soft furnishings – the curtains
of the tabernacle, the Tent of Meeting, its covering and the outer covering of hides of sea
cows, the curtains for the entrance to the Tent of Meeting, the curtains of the courtyard
surrounding the tabernacle and altar, the curtain for the entrance, the ropes and all the
equipment used in its service (25-26). God had them under the direction of Ithamar son of
Aaron, the priest (28).
Next, God commanded them to take a census of the Merarites who were from 30
to 50 that would serve in the work at the Tent of Meeting (29-30). Their duty was to carry
the frames of the tabernacle, its crossbars, posts and bases, as well as the posts of the
surrounding courtyard with their bases, tent pegs, ropes, all their equipment and
everything related to their use. The upright frames of the tabernacle were 67.5 cm wide
and 4.5m long. They were covered with gold and must have been quite heavy (Ex 26:1518). And crossbars connected frames (Ex 26:26-28) and posts were made of Acacia wood
and were covered with gold with the bases made of silver (Ex 26:32,37). The posts of the
surrounding courtyard were the posts as fence for the Tent of Meeting whose bases were
made of bronze. The articles carried by the Merarites were very heavy and their work was
hard.
From this we see God gave the Levites various duties. God gave the carrying of
the holy articles to the Kohathites. This task was very important and their lives were at
risk. If they made a small mistake, they could die. Remember Uzzah who reached out to
steady the ark when carried on a cart and died (1 Ch 13:9). The duties of the Gershonites
were to set up and take down the Tent of Meeting and they had to be ready to do this
before others. The descendants of Merarites had to carry heavy articles such as poles and
bases. From God’s perspective, all these tasks were important. In serving the Tent of
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Meeting, there was not just one job to do but various kinds of work. Some have trivial
chores and others rough work. Some have to carry heavy things, others lighter. We
cannot say that they work of Kohathites is more precious than the work of the Merarites.
To God the Levites themselves are the most important. So God had them camp around
the Tent of Meeting and gave them specific tasks. What might this mean for us? God has
good works prepared in advance for us to do (Eph 2:10). He calls each one with a task
and ministry in mind. The important need is to be faithful to the work each of us has
before God. Just as there are different parts of the body so there are different roles. If we
think that the eyes are important, all of us cannot be eyes (1 Co 12:17). All of us cannot
be hands. If everybody only carried light things who would carry the heavy objects? In
many ways the Tent of Meeting refers to the church in the desert (Acts 7:38). When we
serve the church of God, there are different duties. “It was he who gave some to be
apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and
teachers, to prepare God's people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be
built up” (Eph 4:11-12). Whatever our role, all service is of the church of Christ and
service of our Lord Jesus. It is not true that a certain type of service is precious and
another type of service is not. Yet sadly this is how many of us think. We can look down
or up at others or certain work. In our community there are different jobs – even in the
last hour there have been tasks such as laying out the seats we sit on, placing the books
we sing from, making the sign we read, preparing the songs we hear and sing. Prayer,
preparing this message and so on. God gave particular tasks to us according to his
sovereign will. Therefore, whatever duties are given to us, we have to accept them as
from Jesus and be faithful to them. I pray that we may serve our tasks using our talents
and with our all strength.
In conclusion God chose worthless sinners, redeemed us by the blood of Jesus and
called us as his possession. Not only this but also God granted us the privilege and
mission to work in campus vineyard at the closest to God. I pray that we as those who
belong to Christ serve wondering students in campus and may be faithful to the tasks in
our community.