Numbers 3
Summary for Num 3:1-4:49: 3:1–4:49 a The duties of Israel’s priests and Levites included the transportation, assembly, safety, and upkeep of the Tabernacle. The physical arrangement of Israel’s tribes reflected concern for these activities.Summary for Num 3:1-4: 3:1-4 b The family line of Aaron provided the professional priests who led Israel’s worship. Aaron’s four sons were the foundation of Israel’s priesthood; they stood in God’s presence and served him on behalf of the people. They were appointed to lead the people and serve the Lord as ministers in the Tabernacle and as guardians of God’s covenant with his people.
3:4 c The deaths of Nadab and Abihu (see Lev 10:1-2 d) highlighted the importance of guarding the holiness of the sanctuary and of strict obedience to God’s instructions (Num 26:61 e; Lev 16:1 f; 1 Chr 24:2 g; cp. Acts 5:1-11 h; 1 Cor 10:6-11 i; 11:29-30 j).
• Eleazar and Ithamar: See profile for Eleazar at end of chapter.
Summary for Num 3:5-13: 3:5-13 k The Levites were appointed as assistants to the priests, who were represented by Aaron. Their ministry included sacred duties (3:7 l) in maintaining the Tabernacle and its furnishings (3:8 m; described in greater detail in 4:1-33 n).
3:10 o The sanctuary was sacred (1:51 p; 3:38 q; 18:7 r); it was not to be approached by the unqualified (cp. 3:4 s).
Summary for Num 3:11-13: 3:11-13 t The firstborn sons ... of Israel belonged to God, having been spared when the Egyptian firstborn sons died (3:13 u; see Exod 11–12 v). The Levites were chosen ... to serve as substitutes in their place.
Summary for Num 3:14-39: 3:14-39 w This first phase of a two-stage registration of the tribe of Levi (see 4:34-49 x for stage two) summarized each family group’s special responsibilities (described in greater detail in 4:1-33 y). This numbering was not linked with military duties, so it enrolled male Levites from the age of one month (3:40-41 z).
• Three family groups are descended from Gershon, Kohath, and Merari, the three sons of Levi. These clans (often called the Gershonites, Kohathites, and Merarites) later inherited the “cities of refuge” (Josh 21 aa) and filled various important posts in the Jerusalem Temple (2 Chr 29:3-17 ab).
Summary for Num 3:27-32: 3:27-32 ac Aaron and Moses, sons of Amram, were descendants of Kohath (see Exod 6:18 ad, 20 ae, 26 af). Because they were caretakers of the sanctuary (the Most Holy Place) and its very sacred furnishings (described in Num 3–4 ag), the Kohathites were the most highly regarded of the three clans.
3:28 ah 8,600: Some Greek manuscripts read 8,300. The “six” (Hebrew shsh) in 8,600 could result from misreading a “three” (Hebrew shlsh).
3:32 ai Eleazar, Aaron’s third son, presided over the Levites as administrator (perhaps as an executive secretary), while his father dealt with other matters; he had special ... oversight of the Tabernacle (4:16-20 aj). He played an important role in Israel’s wilderness period and later succeeded his father as high priest (see 16:37-39 ak; 19:3-6 al; 20:25-28 am; 26:1-3 an).
3:38 ao The preeminent campsite east of the Tabernacle was reserved for ... Moses, Aaron, and his priestly sons.
3:39 ap 22,000: The numbers listed for each clan (3:22 aq, 28 ar, 34 as) add up to 22,300. See study note on 3:28.
Summary for Num 3:40-51: 3:40-51 at There were 273 more firstborn sons in Israel (in the non-Levite tribes) than there were Levite males (cp. 3:39 au). Because the Levites served as substitutes for the firstborn of Israel (3:41 av; see study note on 3:11-13), a redemption price (3:48 aw) of five pieces of silver (3:47 ax) had to be paid for each of the extra firstborn sons (3:46 ay; cp. Lev 27:6 az). It is not clear who covered this cost. This provision for a special class of substitutes points to Christ’s role as a substitute; through his death, Christ paid the redemption price for all humanity (see Mark 10:45 ba; Gal 3:13 bb; Eph 1:7 bc; Heb 9:15 bd).
Profile: Eleazar
Eleazar was the third son of Aaron, the first high priest (Exod 6:23 be). Eleazar’s two older brothers, Nadab and Abihu, offended God by offering incense in a different way than what God had commanded (Lev 10:1-7 bf). Because of their disobedience, God killed them. Since Eleazar was the next oldest son, he was now in line to succeed his father as high priest. He performed priestly duties during his father’s lifetime, and he helped his father and Moses when some Levites rebelled because they wanted equal status with Aaron’s priestly family (Num 16:36-40 bg).
Aaron died in the wilderness a short time before the Israelites entered the Promised Land. He was not allowed to enter because he and Moses had rebelled against God by striking the rock at Meribah (20:1-13 bh). Before Aaron’s death, he, Moses, and Eleazar went up on Mount Hor, where Moses removed the priestly garments from Aaron and put them on his son (20:22-29 bi).
After this, Eleazar served as high priest for the rest of his life, which included the time of Canaan’s conquest. When it was time to divide the land among the tribes, Eleazar and Joshua cast the sacred lots to determine where each tribe would settle (Josh 14:1-5 bj). When Eleazar died, he was succeeded by his son Phinehas, who had distinguished himself by his covenant faithfulness when Israel had turned to the gods of Moab (Num 25 bk). Eleazar’s descendants included Zadok, the faithful priest who replaced Abiathar (1 Kgs 2:26-27 bl, 35 bm; see 1 Chr 6:3-8 bn, 50-53 bo), and Ezra, who was instrumental in reestablishing Judea after the Exile (see Ezra 7:1-5 bp). In Ezekiel’s ideal temple, only the descendants of Eleazar through Zadok would be permitted to serve (Ezek 44:15 bq).
Passages for Further Study
Exod 6:23-25 br; Lev 10:6-7 bs; Num 3:1-4 bt; 16:36-40 bu; 20:22-26 bv; 26:1-4 bw; Josh 14:1 bx
Numbers 4
Summary for Num 4:1-49: 4:1-49 by This section expands the discussion begun in 3:21-37 bz on the duties of the three clans of Levites. The Levites—on the march and encamped—carried and cared for the Tabernacle and were always surrounded by the other tribes so that they and their precious cargo would be safe (2:17 ca). The sacred things associated with God were placed in the middle of the tribes, and the role of the priests and their Levitical assistants was to keep them holy by keeping them separate.• God, in his holiness, is worthy of attention to the details of his will. His Tabernacle and its furnishings were sacred, and the tribe of Levi was responsible to maintain the distinction between holy and common, between clean and unclean. This explains why so much information is provided about the duties of the three clans of Levites. 4:1 cb Moses and Aaron were mediators of God’s will regarding the care and transport of the Tabernacle, the primary charge of the three Levitical families.
4:3 cc Of the 22,000 Levites (3:39 cd), only men between the ages of thirty and fifty, those in the prime of their life, were allowed to serve in the sanctuary. The summary of this registration (another “numbering”) found in 4:34-49 ce gives the total number of qualified males as 8,580.
Summary for Num 4:4-20: 4:4-20 cf The duties of the Kohathites (see 3:27-32 cg) are listed first because they performed a special service related to the most sacred objects (perhaps because Aaron and the priests came from this clan; 1 Chr 6:2-3 ch). The tasks of carrying, setting up, and disassembling these sacred coverings and furnishings were extremely important. All the things entrusted to Kohath’s descendants—the Ark of the Covenant, the table of the Bread of the Presence, the lampstand (Hebrew menorah), the gold incense altar, and the altar for sacrifices—held tremendous value. These objects are first described in Exod 25–30 ci, but Numbers shows how they were integrated into Hebrew life. The Kohathites carried these items on poles or in frames, and they were not to touch them or enter the sanctuary to look at them on penalty of death.
4:15 cj Aaron and his surviving sons Eleazar and Ithamar had to cover the sanctuary and all the sacred articles completely before the camp was ready to move, with the groups of non-Levitical tribes marching before and behind the Levites who carried the Tabernacle. The royalty of these objects is seen in the symbolic colors of the coverings, and their sacredness underlies the stern warning that even though the Kohathites were the designated handlers, they must not touch the sacred objects, or they would die. Such respect marked the holiness of Israel’s Lord. The dangers of disregarding these instructions are apparent in 1 Sam 6:19-20 ck and 2 Sam 6:6-7 cl.
Summary for Num 4:21-28: 4:21-28 cm The men of the Gershonite clan (see 3:21-26 cn) were responsible for general service and carrying loads (4:24 co). This involved handling the curtains and coverings, ropes, and related equipment that was less central to Israel’s worship. Their duties focused on the Tabernacle in general instead of on the sacred objects of the inner sanctuary that were the responsibility of Kohath’s clan.
Summary for Num 4:29-33: 4:29-33 cp Even this assignment to the Merarite clan, which focused on items of lesser priority than those handled by the Kohathites and Gershonites, had to be done in a specific way, and the various loads were assigned to each man by name (4:32 cq; cp. 1 Cor 14:40 cr). While the Gershonites and Merarites lacked the status of Kohath’s family, each group contributed to the process of moving and erecting the Tabernacle.
Summary for Num 4:34-49: 4:34-49 cs The process of numbering and recording the Levites’ names and making sure that each man understood his assignment was an important step in organizing Israel to travel and camp in the correct manner and in safeguarding the Tabernacle.
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