Numbers 4

Darby Translation (DARBY) · English

1 And Jehovah spoke to Moses and to Aaron, saying, 2 Take the sum of the sons of Kohath from among the sons of Levi, after their families, according to their fathers' houses, 3 from thirty years old and upward even unto fifty years old, all that enter into the service, to do the work in the tent of meeting. 4 This shall be the service of the sons of Kohath in the tent of meeting: it is most holy. 5 And when the camp setteth forward, Aaron and his sons shall go in, and they shall take down the veil of separation and cover the ark of testimony with it; 6 and shall put thereon a covering of badgers' skin, and shall spread over it a cloth wholly of blue, and shall put its staves [to it]. 7 And upon the table of shewbread they shall spread a cloth of blue; and put thereon the dishes, and the cups, and the bowls, and goblets of the drink-offering; and the continual bread shall be thereon. 8 And they shall spread upon them a cloth of scarlet, and cover it with a covering of badgers' skin, and shall put its staves [to it]. 9 And they shall take a cloth of blue, and cover the candlestick of the light, and its lamps, and its snuffers, and its snuff-trays, and all the oil vessels thereof, wherewith they perform its service; 10 and they shall put it and all the utensils thereof within a covering of badgers' skin, and shall put it upon a pole. 11 And upon the golden altar they shall spread a cloth of blue, and cover it with a covering of badgers' skin, and shall put its staves [to it]. 12 And they shall take all the instruments of service, wherewith they serve in the sanctuary, and put them in a cloth of blue, and cover them with a covering of badgers' skin, and shall put them upon a pole. 13 And they shall cleanse the altar of the ashes, and spread a purple cloth thereon; 14 and they shall put upon it all the utensils thereof, wherewith they perform service about it: the firepans, the forks, and the shovels, and the bowls, — all the utensils of the altar; and they shall spread upon it a covering of badgers' skin, and put its staves [to it]. 15 And when Aaron and his sons have ended covering the sanctuary, and all the utensils of the sanctuary, when the camp setteth forward, then afterwards the sons of Kohath shall come to carry it; but they shall not touch the holy things, lest they die. This is what the sons of Kohath have to carry in the tent of meeting. 16 And Eleazar the son of Aaron the priest shall have the oversight of the oil for the light, and the fragrant incense, and the continual oblation, and the anointing oil, — the oversight of the whole tabernacle, and of all that is therein, over the sanctuary, and over its furniture. 17 And Jehovah spoke to Moses and to Aaron, saying, 18 Ye shall not cut off the families of the Kohathites from among the Levites, 19 but this shall ye do unto them, that they may live, and not die, when they draw near unto the most holy things: Aaron and his sons shall go in, and appoint them every one to his service and to his burden; 20 but they shall not go in and see for a moment the holy things, lest they die. 21 And Jehovah spoke to Moses, saying, 22 Take also the sum of the sons of Gershon, according to their fathers' houses, after their families. 23 From thirty years old and upward to fifty years old shalt thou number them; every one that cometh to labour in the work, to perform the service in the tent of meeting. 24 This shall be the service of the families of the Gershonites, in serving, and in carrying: 25 they shall carry the curtains of the tabernacle, and the tent of meeting, its covering, and the covering of badgers' skin that is above upon it, and the curtain of the entrance to the tent of meeting, 26 and the hangings of the court, and the curtain of the entrance, of the gate of the court, which surroundeth the tabernacle and the altar, and the cords thereof, and all the instruments of their service; and all that is to be done for these things shall they perform. 27 At the commandment of Aaron and his sons shall be all the service of the sons of the Gershonites, in all their carrying, and in all their service; and ye shall appoint unto them in charge all their carrying. 28 This is the service of the families of the sons of Gershon in the tent of meeting, and their charge shall be under the hand of Ithamar the son of Aaron the priest. 29 The sons of Merari: after their families, according to their fathers' houses shalt thou number them; 30 from thirty years old and upward even to fifty years old shalt thou number them, every one that entereth into the labour, to perform the service of the tent of meeting. 31 And this shall be the charge of their burden, according to all their service in the tent of meeting: the boards of the tabernacle, and the bars thereof, and the pillars thereof, and bases thereof, 32 and the pillars of the court round about, and their bases, and their pegs, and their cords, all their instruments, according to all their service; and by name ye shall number to them the materials which are their charge to carry. 33 This is the service of the families of the sons of Merari, according to all their service in the tent of meeting, under the hand of Ithamar the son of Aaron the priest. 34 And Moses and Aaron and the princes of the assembly numbered the sons of the Kohathites after their families, and according to their fathers' houses, 35 from thirty years old and upward even to fifty years old, every one that entered into the labour, for service in the tent of meeting. 36 And those that were numbered of them according to their families were two thousand seven hundred and fifty. 37 These are they that were numbered of the families of the Kohathites, every one that served in the tent of meeting, whom Moses and Aaron numbered according to the commandment of Jehovah through Moses. 38 And those that were numbered of the sons of Gershon, after their families, and according to their fathers' houses, 39 from thirty years old and upward even to fifty years old, every one that entered into the labour, for service in the tent of meeting, 40 even those that were numbered of them, after their families, according to their fathers' houses, were two thousand six hundred and thirty. 41 These are they that were numbered of the families of the sons of Gershon, all that served in the tent of meeting, whom Moses and Aaron numbered according to the commandment of Jehovah. 42 And those that were numbered of the families of the sons of Merari, after their families, according to their fathers' houses, 43 from thirty years old and upward even to fifty years old, every one that entered into the labour, for service in the tent of meeting, 44 even those that were numbered of them according to their families, were three thousand two hundred. 45 These are they that were numbered of the families of the sons of Merari, whom Moses and Aaron numbered according to the commandment of Jehovah through Moses. 46 All those that were numbered of the Levites, whom Moses and Aaron and the princes of Israel numbered, after their families and according to their fathers' houses, 47 from thirty years old and upward even to fifty years old, every one that came to serve [in] the work of the service, and [in] the work of carrying, in the tent of meeting, 48 even those that were numbered of them, were eight thousand five hundred and eighty. 49 According to the commandment of Jehovah they were numbered by Moses, every one for his service, and for his burden, and numbered by him, as Jehovah had commanded Moses.

Commentary — not Bible text

Numbers 4:1-2

Introduction

Moses is commanded to take the sum of the sons of Kohath from thirty years old and upward, Num 4:1-4. The service which they had to perform, Num 4:5-15. The office of Eleazar, Num 4:16. The family of Kohath to be continued among the Levites, Num 4:17-19. They are not to go into the holy of holies, Num 4:20. The sum of the sons of Gershon, Num 4:21-23. The service they had to perform, Num 4:24-27. They are to be under Ithamar, Num 4:28. The sum of the sons of Merari, Num 4:29, Num 4:30. The service they had to perform, Num 4:31-33. The sum of all the families of Kohath, 2,750, Num 4:34-37. The sum of the families of Gershon, 2,630, Num 4:38-41. The sum of the families of Merari, 3,200, Num 4:42-45. The sum total of the families of Gershon, Kohath, and Merari, 8,580, Num 4:46-49.

Numbers 4:3-19

Verse 3

From thirty years old - In Num 8:24, the Levites are ordered to enter on the service of the tabernacle at the age of twenty-five years; and in 1Chr 23:24, they were ordered to commence that work at twenty years of age. How can these different times be reconciled?

1. At the time of which Moses speaks here, the Levitical service was exceedingly severe, and consequently required men full grown, strong, and stout, to perform it; the age therefore of thirty years was appointed as the period for commencing this service, the weightier part of which is probably here intended.

2. In Num 8:24, Moses seems to speak of the service in a general way; the severe, which was to be performed by the full-grown Levites, and the less laborious work which younger men might assist in: hence the age of twenty-five is fixed.

3. In David's time and afterwards, in the fixed tabernacle and temple, the laboriousness of the service no longer existed, and hence twenty years was the age fixed on for all Levites to enter into the work of the sanctuary. The rabbins say that the Levites began to learn to do the service at twenty-five, and that having been instructed five years, they began the public service at thirty, and thus they reconcile the two periods referred to above. We may well suppose that the sons of the prophets continued a considerable time under instructions before they were called fully to exercise themselves in the prophetic office.

Until fifty years old - This was allowing twenty years for public severe service; a very considerate and merciful ordinance. A preacher who devotes his whole time and strength to the service of the Church of God from twenty to fifty or sixty years of age, should be then excused from his severer labor, and maintained at the charge of the sanctuary. This would not only be a great comfort to a worn-out servant of God, but also of great use to the work of the ministry, which, to be faithfully and effectually performed, requires all the powers of the body and mind of man. Old faithful ministers are to be highly respected for their work's sake, and to be supplied with all the necessaries and comforts of life; but how little can they do in the public ministry of the word, however willing to work, when their eye waxes dim and their bodily strength fails! See Num 8:25. Both for their own sakes, and for the good of the Church, they should be excused from a labor to which they must be almost every way inadequate. But notwithstanding this comparative inactivity, their counsels, advice, and experience will always be considered as a treasure to the Church of Christ

Numbers 4:20-35

Verse 20

When the holy things are covered - Literally, כבלע keballa, when they are swallowed down; which shows the promptitude with which every thing belonging to the holy of holies was put out of sight, for these mysteries must ever be treated with the deepest reverence; and indeed without this they could not have been to them the representatives of heavenly realities. See the concluding note Num 4:36 (note).

Numbers 4:36-49

Verse 36

Those that were numbered - In Num 3:27, etc., we have an account of the whole number of the Levites, and here of those only who were able to serve the Lord in the sanctuary. By comparing the two places we find the numbers to stand thus: -

LeviteFamily AbleMen UnableMen Total Kohathites 2,750 5,850 8,600 Gershonites 2,630 4,870 7,500 Merarites 3,200 3,000 6,200

Thus we find that the whole number of the Levites amounted to 22,300, of whom 3,580 were fit for service, and 13,720 unfit, being either too old or too young. What an astonishing number of men, all properly ecclesiastics; all performing some service by which God was glorified, and the congregation at large benefited! See Ainsworth.

From this and the preceding chapter we see the very severe labor which the Levites were obliged to perform while the journeyings of the Israelites lasted. When we consider that there was not less than 10 tons 13 cwt. 24 lb. 14 oz., i. e., almost ten tons and fourteen hundred pounds' weight of metal employed in the tabernacle, (see the notes on Exodus 38 (note)), besides the immense weight of the skins, hangings, cords, boards, and posts, we shall find it was no very easy matter to transport this movable temple from place to place.

The Gershonites, who were 7,500 men in the service, had to carry the tent, coverings, veils, hangings of the court, etc., etc., Num 3:25, Num 3:26.

The Kohathites, who were 8,600 men, had to carry the ark, table, candlestick, altars, and instruments of the sanctuary, Num 3:31.

The Merarites, who were 6,200 men, had to carry the boards, bars, pillars, sockets, and all matters connected with these belonging to the tabernacle, with the pillars of the court, their sockets, pins, and cords, Num 3:36, Num 3:37.

The tabernacle was an epitome of the temple: the temple and tabernacle were representatives of the Church of the living God, and of the humanity of our blessed Lord. As God dwelt in the tabernacle and temple, so his fullness dwelt in the man Christ Jesus. These again were types of the Christian Church, which is termed the body of Christ, Eph 1:23, where he dwells in the plenitude of the graces of his Spirit.

Mr. Ainsworth has a very useful note on the Num 4:20 verse of this chapter, the most edifying part of which I shall here lay before the reader. He considers the tabernacle and temple, not only as pointing out the old dispensation, the annulling of which was typified by their destruction, but he considers also the former as emblematical of the body of man. "The apostle," says he, "treating of the death of the saints, uses this similitude: 'If our earthly house of this tabernacle were dissolved, we have a building of God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. For we that are in This Tabernacle do groan, being burdened, not for that we would be unclothed, but clothed upon, that mortality might be swallowed up of life;' 2Cor 5:1-4. So Peter calls his death the putting off of his Tabernacle, 2Pet 1:14. And this similitude is very fit; for, as here, in the tabernacle of Moses,

1. The holy things were first covered and taken away, (see Num 4:20), so the soul and its powers are first withdrawn from the body by death.

2. As the curtains and coverings were taken off and folded up, so the skin and flesh of our bodies are pulled off and consumed.

3. As the boards of the tabernacle were disjointed and pulled asunder, so shall our bones and sinews: compare Job's description of the formation of man, Num 10:8-12; and Solomon's account of his dissolution, Ecc 12:3, Ecc 12:4.

4. As the disjointed and dissolved tabernacle was afterwards set up again, Num 10:21, so shall our bodies in the day of the resurrection; see 1Cor 15:51-54.

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