Holiness, Confession, and Restitution

Numbers 5:1-10

    1 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: 2 “Command the children of Israel that they put out of the camp every leper, everyone who has a discharge, and whoever becomes defiled by a corpse. 3 You shall put out both male and female; you shall put them outside the camp, that they may not defile their camps in the midst of which I dwell.” 4 And the children of Israel did so, and put them outside the camp; as the Lord spoke to Moses, so the children of Israel did.
    5 Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 6 “Speak to the children of Israel: ‘When a man or woman commits any sin that men commit in unfaithfulness against the Lord, and that person is guilty, 7 then he shall confess the sin which he has committed. He shall make restitution for his trespass in full, plus one-fifth of it, and give it to the one he has wronged. 8 But if the man has no relative to whom restitution may be made for the wrong, the restitution for the wrong must go to the Lord for the priest, in addition to the ram of the atonement with which atonement is made for him. 9 Every offering of all the holy things of the children of Israel, which they bring to the priest, shall be his. 10 And every man's holy things shall be his; whatever any man gives the priest shall be his.’ ”

Sinfulness did not belong in the holy camp of the Lord God.  Israel was to put the diseased outside of the congregation, not only for physical well-being, but also as a warning for not dealing with sin and letting it spread to others.  The very next paragraph might seem to be unrelated, but it adds to the command by specifying how to deal with sin.  It is by confession, that is, by acknowledging it is sin and that the one going against God’s word realizes and confessed that unfaithful thought and deed to God and man.  Furthermore, the one who is wronged should then receive restitution by the perpetrator.  If the person wronged and nobody in the family can be located to give the restitution to, then it was to be offered to God.  Likewise when we wrong others as Christians, we ought to follow the same pattern of forgiveness and restitution to man and God as Matthew 5:24 instructs us to do when we have offended our brother or sister.  This is our holiness before God and man by confessing our sins and making restitution with both. 

Counted for Service

Numbers 4:34-49 

    34 And Moses, Aaron, and the leaders of the congregation numbered the sons of the Kohathites by their families and by their fathers’ house, 35 from thirty years old and above, even to fifty years old, everyone who entered the service for work in the tabernacle of meeting; 36 and those who were numbered by their families were two thousand seven hundred and fifty. 37 These were the ones who were numbered of the families of the Kohathites, all who might serve in the tabernacle of meeting, whom Moses and Aaron numbered according to the commandment of the Lord by the hand of Moses.
    38 And those who were numbered of the sons of Gershon, by their families and by their fathers’ house, 39 from thirty years old and above, even to fifty years old, everyone who entered the service for work in the tabernacle of meeting— 40 those who were numbered by their families, by their fathers’ house, were two thousand six hundred and thirty. 41 These are the ones who were numbered of the families of the sons of Gershon, of all who might serve in the tabernacle of meeting, whom Moses and Aaron numbered according to the commandment of the Lord.
    42 Those of the families of the sons of Merari who were numbered, by their families, by their fathers’ house, 43 from thirty years old and above, even to fifty years old, everyone who entered the service for work in the tabernacle of meeting— 44 those who were numbered by their families were three thousand two hundred. 45 These are the ones who were numbered of the families of the sons of Merari, whom Moses and Aaron numbered according to the word of the Lord by the hand of Moses.
    46 All who were numbered of the Levites, whom Moses, Aaron, and the leaders of Israel numbered, by their families and by their fathers’ houses, 47 from thirty years old and above, even to fifty years old, everyone who came to do the work of service and the work of bearing burdens in the tabernacle of meeting— 48 those who were numbered were eight thousand five hundred and eighty.
    49 According to the commandment of the Lord they were numbered by the hand of Moses, each according to his service and according to his task; thus were they numbered by him, as the Lord commanded Moses.

The Levitical priests were numbered after assigned their roles of service to the Aaronic priests.  Their numbers are recorded here as a testimony to God’s calling and work in the tabernacle of meeting where atoning sacrifices were made for the sins of His people.  By the Lord’s command and through the hand of Moses they were counted to serve and bear the burdens as it says here.  We learn that God initially did not number the priests and levites, just those who were able to go to war; afterwards these were counted as well, but for the service of worship and not war.  He gave command for separate census counts to separate the two roles of national defense in His name to take the promised land, and for service of ministry to intercede atonement for His people.  Likewise, we serve in our respective countries to sustain our way of life as God provides as well as in ministry of the gospel to the body of Christ and the world around us.  We are ambassadors of Christ (2 Corinthians 5:20) for reconciliation by His atonement once for all (Hebrews 9:12) whom He calls.  We minister His grace to one another as well because we are a kingdom of priests (Exodus 19:6, Revelation 1:6, 5:10) to serve others as we serve Him in the roles and by the gifts He gives each of us individually (1 Corinthians 12:11). 

Levitical Priest’s Service

Numbers 4:1-33

    1 Then the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying: 2 “Take a census of the sons of Kohath from among the children of Levi, by their families, by their fathers’ house, 3 from thirty years old and above, even to fifty years old, all who enter the service to do the work in the tabernacle of meeting. 4 “This is the service of the sons of Kohath in the tabernacle of meeting, relating to the most holy things: 5 When the camp prepares to journey, Aaron and his sons shall come, and they shall take down the covering veil and cover the ark of the Testimony with it. 6 Then they shall put on it a covering of badger skins, and spread over that a cloth entirely of blue; and they shall insert its poles.
    7 “On the table of showbread they shall spread a blue cloth, and put on it the dishes, the pans, the bowls, and the pitchers for pouring; and the showbread shall be on it. 8 They shall spread over them a scarlet cloth, and cover the same with a covering of badger skins; and they shall insert its poles. 9 And they shall take a blue cloth and cover the lampstand of the light, with its lamps, its wick-trimmers, its trays, and all its oil vessels, with which they service it. 10 Then they shall put it with all its utensils in a covering of badger skins, and put it on a carrying beam.
    11 “Over the golden altar they shall spread a blue cloth, and cover it with a covering of badger skins; and they shall insert its poles. 12 Then they shall take all the utensils of service with which they minister in the sanctuary, put them in a blue cloth, cover them with a covering of badger skins, and put them on a carrying beam. 13 Also they shall take away the ashes from the altar, and spread a purple cloth over it. 14 They shall put on it all its implements with which they minister there—the firepans, the forks, the shovels, the basins, and all the utensils of the altar—and they shall spread on it a covering of badger skins, and insert its poles. 15 And when Aaron and his sons have finished covering the sanctuary and all the furnishings of the sanctuary, when the camp is set to go, then the sons of Kohath shall come to carry them; but they shall not touch any holy thing, lest they die. “These are the things in the tabernacle of meeting which the sons of Kohath are to carry.  16 “The appointed duty of Eleazar the son of Aaron the priest is the oil for the light, the sweet incense, the daily grain offering, the anointing oil, the oversight of all the tabernacle, of all that is in it, with the sanctuary and its furnishings.”  17 Then the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying: 18 “Do not cut off the tribe of the families of the Kohathites from among the Levites; 19 but do this in regard to them, that they may live and not die when they approach the most holy things: Aaron and his sons shall go in and appoint each of them to his service and his task. 20 But they shall not go in to watch while the holy things are being covered, lest they die.”
    21 Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: 22 “Also take a census of the sons of Gershon, by their fathers’ house, by their families. 23 From thirty years old and above, even to fifty years old, you shall number them, all who enter to perform the service, to do the work in the tabernacle of meeting. 24 This is the service of the families of the Gershonites, in serving and carrying: 25 They shall carry the curtains of the tabernacle and the tabernacle of meeting with its covering, the covering of badger skins that is on it, the screen for the door of the tabernacle of meeting, 26 the screen for the door of the gate of the court, the hangings of the court which are around the tabernacle and altar, and their cords, all the furnishings for their service and all that is made for these things: so shall they serve.  27 “Aaron and his sons shall assign all the service of the sons of the Gershonites, all their tasks and all their service. And you shall appoint to them all their tasks as their duty. 28 This is the service of the families of the sons of Gershon in the tabernacle of meeting. And their duties shall be under the authority of Ithamar the son of Aaron the priest.
    29 “As for the sons of Merari, you shall number them by their families and by their fathers’ house. 30 From thirty years old and above, even to fifty years old, you shall number them, everyone who enters the service to do the work of the tabernacle of meeting. 31 And this is what they must carry as all their service for the tabernacle of meeting: the boards of the tabernacle, its bars, its pillars, its sockets, 32 and the pillars around the court with their sockets, pegs, and cords, with all their furnishings and all their service; and you shall assign to each man by name the items he must carry. 33 This is the service of the families of the sons of Merari, as all their service for the tabernacle of meeting, under the authority of Ithamar the son of Aaron the priest.”

Sons of Levi are given their duties to serve Aaron and the priests in the ministry of the tabernacle.  The Kohathites, Gerahonites, and those of Merari are first addressed; they are given specific duties as the Lord assigned through Moses.  It is important to note that it is God who prepared and assigned each for His work, and it was not Moses who did this.  These worked under the sons of Aaron, the priests, to do God’s work.  We see the parallel in the church of Jesus Christ, where authorities of elders are placed over others doing His work (Ephesians 4:11-16) within the body.  It is not one man directing this as God’s spokesman like Moses; no pope rules over that which Christ alone is the head.  The Holy Spirit gives the gifts to glorify that body with the Son’s authority given by the Father of all.  We serve the servants who serve Christ. 

Levites as Firstborn

Numbers 3:40-51 

    40 Then the Lord said to Moses: “Number all the firstborn males of the children of Israel from a month old and above, and take the number of their names. 41 And you shall take the Levites for Me—I am the Lord—instead of all the firstborn among the children of Israel, and the livestock of the Levites instead of all the firstborn among the livestock of the children of Israel.” 42 So Moses numbered all the firstborn among the children of Israel, as the Lord commanded him. 43 And all the firstborn males, according to the number of names from a month old and above, of those who were numbered of them, were twenty-two thousand two hundred and seventy-three.
    44 Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: 45 “Take the Levites instead of all the firstborn among the children of Israel, and the livestock of the Levites instead of their livestock. The Levites shall be Mine: I am the Lord. 46 And for the redemption of the two hundred and seventy-three of the firstborn of the children of Israel, who are more than the number of the Levites, 47 you shall take five shekels for each one individually; you shall take them in the currency of the shekel of the sanctuary, the shekel of twenty gerahs. 48 And you shall give the money, with which the excess number of them is redeemed, to Aaron and his sons.”
    49 So Moses took the redemption money from those who were over and above those who were redeemed by the Levites. 50 From the firstborn of the children of Israel he took the money, one thousand three hundred and sixty-five shekels, according to the shekel of the sanctuary. 51 And Moses gave their redemption money to Aaron and his sons, according to the word of the Lord, as the Lord commanded Moses.

The firstborn of Israel were not counted in the numbering because of the Passover in Egypt which spared them as those of the Egyptians were taken.  Now when the firstborn of God’s people were to be counted, the Levites were given instead to Him in their place.  These were redeemed with money given to God’s work to the priests of Aaron’s line to serve Him.  Christ was similarly given as the firstborn from the grave to pay our price and provide for us to serve Him in the work of the gospel.  There are many such parallels and foreshadowing of the redemption and work of Christ and His called ones in these examples given us. 

The Priesthood’s Servants Are Numbered

Numbers 3:1-39 

    1 Now these are the records of Aaron and Moses when the Lord spoke with Moses on Mount Sinai. 2 And these are the names of the sons of Aaron: Nadab, the firstborn, and Abihu, Eleazar, and Ithamar. 3 These are the names of the sons of Aaron, the anointed priests, whom he consecrated to minister as priests. 4 Nadab and Abihu had died before the Lord when they offered profane fire before the Lord in the Wilderness of Sinai; and they had no children. So Eleazar and Ithamar ministered as priests in the presence of Aaron their father.
    5 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: 6 “Bring the tribe of Levi near, and present them before Aaron the priest, that they may serve him. 7 And they shall attend to his needs and the needs of the whole congregation before the tabernacle of meeting, to do the work of the tabernacle. 8 Also they shall attend to all the furnishings of the tabernacle of meeting, and to the needs of the children of Israel, to do the work of the tabernacle. 9 And you shall give the Levites to Aaron and his sons; they are given entirely to him from among the children of Israel. 10 So you shall appoint Aaron and his sons, and they shall attend to their priesthood; but the outsider who comes near shall be put to death.”
    11 Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: 12 “Now behold, I Myself have taken the Levites from among the children of Israel instead of every firstborn who opens the womb among the children of Israel. Therefore the Levites shall be Mine, 13 because all the firstborn are Mine. On the day that I struck all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, I sanctified to Myself all the firstborn in Israel, both man and beast. They shall be Mine: I am the Lord.”
    14 Then the Lord spoke to Moses in the Wilderness of Sinai, saying: 15 “Number the children of Levi by their fathers’ houses, by their families; you shall number every male from a month old and above.”  16 So Moses numbered them according to the word of the Lord, as he was commanded. 17 These were the sons of Levi by their names: Gershon, Kohath, and Merari. 18 And these are the names of the sons of Gershon by their families: Libni and Shimei. 19 And the sons of Kohath by their families: Amram, Izehar, Hebron, and Uzziel. 20 And the sons of Merari by their families: Mahli and Mushi. These are the families of the Levites by their fathers’ houses.
    21 From Gershon came the family of the Libnites and the family of the Shimites; these were the families of the Gershonites. 22 Those who were numbered, according to the number of all the males from a month old and above—of those who were numbered there were seven thousand five hundred. 23 The families of the Gershonites were to camp behind the tabernacle westward. 24 And the leader of the father's house of the Gershonites was Eliasaph the son of Lael. 25 The duties of the children of Gershon in the tabernacle of meeting included the tabernacle, the tent with its covering, the screen for the door of the tabernacle of meeting, 26 the screen for the door of the court, the hangings of the court which are around the tabernacle and the altar, and their cords, according to all the work relating to them.
    27 From Kohath came the family of the Amramites, the family of the Izharites, the family of the Hebronites, and the family of the Uzzielites; these were the families of the Kohathites. 28 According to the number of all the males, from a month old and above, there were eight thousand six hundred keeping charge of the sanctuary. 29 The families of the children of Kohath were to camp on the south side of the tabernacle. 30 And the leader of the fathers’ house of the families of the Kohathites was Elizaphan the son of Uzziel. 31 Their duty included the ark, the table, the lampstand, the altars, the utensils of the sanctuary with which they ministered, the screen, and all the work relating to them.
    32 And Eleazar the son of Aaron the priest was to be chief over the leaders of the Levites, with oversight of those who kept charge of the sanctuary.
    33 From Merari came the family of the Mahlites and the family of the Mushites; these were the families of Merari. 34 And those who were numbered, according to the number of all the males from a month old and above, were six thousand two hundred. 35 The leader of the fathers' house of the families of Merari was Zuriel the son of Abihail. These were to camp on the north side of the tabernacle. 36 And the appointed duty of the children of Merari included the boards of the tabernacle, its bars, its pillars, its sockets, its utensils, all the work relating to them, 37 and the pillars of the court all around, with their sockets, their pegs, and their cords.
    38 Moreover those who were to camp before the tabernacle on the east, before the tabernacle of meeting, were Moses, Aaron, and his sons, keeping charge of the sanctuary, to meet the needs of the children of Israel; but the outsider who came near was to be put to death. 39 All who were numbered of the Levites, whom Moses and Aaron numbered at the commandment of the Lord, by their families, all the males from a month old and above, were twenty-two thousand.

Up to this point the Levites were seemingly exempt from the census numbering of God’s people.  They were servants of the tabernacle and of the priests Aaron and his sons, given by the Lord to serve under them.  Since the Levites were taken out of all the firstborn of the tribes and set aside to God, they were His firstborn from the time He killed Egypt’s firstborn; as a sacrifice, they were now dedicated to Him out of all His people.  Before this time, they were not numbered, though they definitely counted to God.  Now it is time to count them as well to further see God’s Grace and promise of fruitfulness fulfilled, this time set apart (chosen) in dedicated service under the priests.  There were twenty-two thousand of them as the census revealed.  We see a parallel in God’s chosen in Christ who serve under our Great High Priest, the firstborn’s firstborn from the dead (Romans 8:29, Colossians 1:18, Hebrews 12:23).  Of course we are also a kingdom of priests who minister the gospel under the chief Priest, and serve the heavenly tabernacle’s ministry, not an earthly one.  We are called out, chosen to be numbered to serve as well. 

Family Roles in Service

Numbers 2:1-34 

    1 And the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying: 2 “Everyone of the children of Israel shall camp by his own standard, beside the emblems of his father's house; they shall camp some distance from the tabernacle of meeting. 3 On the east side, toward the rising of the sun, those of the standard of the forces with Judah shall camp according to their armies; and Nahshon the son of Amminadab shall be the leader of the children of Judah.” 4 And his army was numbered at seventy-four thousand six hundred. 5 “Those who camp next to him shall be the tribe of Issachar, and Nethanel the son of Zuar shall be the leader of the children of Issachar.” 6 And his army was numbered at fifty-four thousand four hundred.
    7 “Then comes the tribe of Zebulun, and Eliab the son of Helon shall be the leader of the children of Zebulun.” 8 And his army was numbered at fifty-seven thousand four hundred. 9 “All who were numbered according to their armies of the forces with Judah, one hundred and eighty-six thousand four hundred—these shall break camp first.
    10 “On the south side shall be the standard of the forces with Reuben according to their armies, and the leader of the children of Reuben shall be Elizur the son of Shedeur.” 11 And his army was numbered at forty-six thousand five hundred.
    12 “Those who camp next to him shall be the tribe of Simeon, and the leader of the children of Simeon shall be Shelumiel the son of Zurishaddai.” 13 And his army was numbered at fifty-nine thousand three hundred.

14 “Then comes the tribe of Gad, and the leader of the children of Gad shall be Eliasaph the son of Reuel.” 15 And his army was numbered at forty-five thousand six hundred and fifty. 16 “All who were numbered according to their armies of the forces with Reuben, one hundred and fifty-one thousand four hundred and fifty—they shall be the second to break camp.
    

    17 “And the tabernacle of meeting shall move out with the camp of the Levites in the middle of the camps; as they camp, so they shall move out, everyone in his place, by their standards.

    18 “On the west side shall be the standard of the forces with Ephraim according to their armies, and the leader of the children of Ephraim shall be Elishama the son of Ammihud.” 19 And his army was numbered at forty thousand five hundred.
    20 “Next to him comes the tribe of Manasseh, and the leader of the children of Manasseh shall be Gamaliel the son of Pedahzur.” 21 And his army was numbered at thirty-two thousand two hundred.
    22 “Then comes the tribe of Benjamin, and the leader of the children of Benjamin shall be Abidan the son of Gideoni.” 23 And his army was numbered at thirty-five thousand four hundred. 24 “All who were numbered according to their armies of the forces with Ephraim, one hundred and eight thousand one hundred—they shall be the third to break camp.
    25 “The standard of the forces with Dan shall be on the north side according to their armies, and the leader of the children of Dan shall be Ahiezer the son of Ammishaddai.” 26 And his army was numbered at sixty-two thousand seven hundred.
    27 “Those who camp next to him shall be the tribe of Asher, and the leader of the children of Asher shall be Pagiel the son of Ocran.” 28 And his army was numbered at forty-one thousand five hundred.
    29 “Then comes the tribe of Naphtali, and the leader of the children of Naphtali shall be Ahira the son of Enan.” 30 And his army was numbered at fifty-three thousand four hundred. 31 “All who were numbered of the forces with Dan, one hundred and fifty-seven thousand six hundred—they shall break camp last, with their standards.”
    32 These are the ones who were numbered of the children of Israel by their fathers’ houses. All who were numbered according to their armies of the forces were six hundred and three thousand five hundred and fifty. 33 But the Levites were not numbered among the children of Israel, just as the Lord commanded Moses.  34 Thus the children of Israel did according to all that the Lord commanded Moses; so they camped by their standards and so they broke camp, each one by his family, according to their fathers’ houses.

The families of Israel each had a specific role and position to take around the tabernacle of God.  Their numbers are given here again to demonstrate and remind of God’s faithfulness to His promise, and each family tribe is numbered except for those who were for service in the tabernacle and not for war (the Levites).  In the middle of these descriptions is the command for the tabernacle to be moved when the Levites break camp to travel at God’s direction (Numbers 2:17).  The last verse then demonstrates the obedience of God’s people to act accordingly where they camped and how they broke camp to travel as they followed His leading by the priests who were led by Moses who was led by God and His word.  This hierarchy is similar to the pattern given for the church, as the people are under Christ who leads elders and pastors and teachers and the rest of the body under Him as the head. 

The Final Count

Numbers 1:28-54

    28 From the children of Issachar, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: 29 those who were numbered of the tribe of Issachar were fifty-four thousand four hundred.
    30 From the children of Zebulun, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: 31 those who were numbered of the tribe of Zebulun were fifty-seven thousand four hundred.
    32 From the sons of Joseph, the children of Ephraim, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: 33 those who were numbered of the tribe of Ephraim were forty thousand five hundred.
    34 From the children of Manasseh, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: 35 those who were numbered of the tribe of Manasseh were thirty-two thousand two hundred.
    36 From the children of Benjamin, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: 37 those who were numbered of the tribe of Benjamin were thirty-five thousand four hundred.
    38 From the children of Dan, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: 39 those who were numbered of the tribe of Dan were sixty-two thousand seven hundred. 
    40 From the children of Asher, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: 41 those who were numbered of the tribe of Asher were forty-one thousand five hundred.
    42 From the children of Naphtali, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: 43 those who were numbered of the tribe of Naphtali were fifty-three thousand four hundred.
    44 These are the ones who were numbered, whom Moses and Aaron numbered, with the leaders of Israel, twelve men, each one representing his father's house. 45 So all who were numbered of the children of Israel, by their fathers’ houses, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war in Israel— 46 all who were numbered were six hundred and three thousand five hundred and fifty.
    47 But the Levites were not numbered among them by their fathers’ tribe; 48 for the Lord had spoken to Moses, saying: 49 “Only the tribe of Levi you shall not number, nor take a census of them among the children of Israel; 50 but you shall appoint the Levites over the tabernacle of the Testimony, over all its furnishings, and over all things that belong to it; they shall carry the tabernacle and all its furnishings; they shall attend to it and camp around the tabernacle. 51 And when the tabernacle is to go forward, the Levites shall take it down; and when the tabernacle is to be set up, the Levites shall set it up. The outsider who comes near shall be put to death. 52 The children of Israel shall pitch their tents, everyone by his own camp, everyone by his own standard, according to their armies; 53 but the Levites shall camp around the tabernacle of the Testimony, that there may be no wrath on the congregation of the children of Israel; and the Levites shall keep charge of the tabernacle of the Testimony.”
    54 Thus the children of Israel did; according to all that the Lord commanded Moses, so they did.

These verses count the rest of the Israelites by those old enough to fight in defense of His people.  The families of Issachar, Zebulun, Joseph, Manasseh, Benjamin, Dan, Asher, and Naphtali are tallied in Gods census to demonstrate His faithfulness in multiplying His people as promised.  The total was six hundred and three thousand five hundred and fifty.  A far cry from the seventy who went down to join Joseph and his family in Egypt.  Of course, the Levitical priests were not counted because they were to minister to the Lord in the sacrifices and sanctuary, not go to war.  They fought in a sense for Israel’s sin through intercessory sacrifices.  These things the people did according to God’s command, to count the people as a testimony to His faithfulness at His word (not for selfish pride in their numbers as in 1 Chronicles 21:1).  We learn that God proves His faithfulness to us at times to increase our faltering faith, and to remind us of His sovereign work through His covenant.  In the new covenant of Christ Jesus, we have the assurance of His accounting which we will know the final numbers when we meet Him in the kingdom. 

Numbered While Wandering

Numbers 1:1-27 

    1 Now the Lord spoke to Moses in the Wilderness of Sinai, in the tabernacle of meeting, on the first day of the second month, in the second year after they had come out of the land of Egypt, saying: 2 “Take a census of all the congregation of the children of Israel, by their families, by their fathers’ houses, according to the number of names, every male individually, 3 from twenty years old and above—all who are able to go to war in Israel. You and Aaron shall number them by their armies. 4 And with you there shall be a man from every tribe, each one the head of his father's house.  5 “These are the names of the men who shall stand with you: from Reuben, Elizur the son of Shedeur; 6 from Simeon, Shelumiel the son of Zurishaddai; 7 from Judah, Nahshon the son of Amminadab; 8 from Issachar, Nethanel the son of Zuar; 9 from Zebulun, Eliab the son of Helon; 10 from the sons of Joseph: from Ephraim, Elishama the son of Ammihud; from Manasseh, Gamaliel the son of Pedahzur; 11 from Benjamin, Abidan the son of Gideoni; 12 from Dan, Ahiezer the son of Ammishaddai; 13 from Asher, Pagiel the son of Ocran; 14 from Gad, Eliasaph the son of Deuel; 15 from Naphtali, Ahira the son of Enan.” 16 These were chosen from the congregation, leaders of their fathers’ tribes, heads of the divisions in Israel.  17 Then Moses and Aaron took these men who had been mentioned by name, 18 and they assembled all the congregation together on the first day of the second month; and they recited their ancestry by families, by their fathers’ houses, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and above, each one individually. 19 As the Lord commanded Moses, so he numbered them in the Wilderness of Sinai.
    20 Now the children of Reuben, Israel's oldest son, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, according to the number of names, every male individually, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: 21 those who were numbered of the tribe of Reuben were forty-six thousand five hundred.
    22 From the children of Simeon, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, of those who were numbered, according to the number of names, every male individually, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: 23 those who were numbered of the tribe of Simeon were fifty-nine thousand three hundred.
    24 From the children of Gad, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: 25 those who were numbered of the tribe of Gad were forty-five thousand six hundred and fifty.
    26 From the children of Judah, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: 27 those who were numbered of the tribe of Judah were seventy-four thousand six hundred.

The book of numbers is where God has Moses count the number of Israel who He delivered out of the bondage of Egypt and into the desert where they were traveling through.  This census in the second year after they were freed was only of those able to fight, those males over twenty, by each tribe family.  These verses count the first numbers of the twelve tribes, of Reuben, Simeon, Gad, and Judah. They varied from forty-six to seventy-four thousand, a far cry from the seventy of Jacob who went down to Egypt four hundred and thirty years before their deliverance (Exodus 1:5, 12:40-41, Acts 7:6).  God had blessed and multiplied them as promised, in spite of and through their captive enslavement.  He had commanded and promised this from Adam to the fathers through faith by covenant, and now numbered them to display His work of the fulfillment of His promise.  They were numbered while wandering, yet the promise of a land already given would see their numbers continue to multiply and fill the earth.  We are also promised a heavenly country by the new covenant in Christ’s blood, and are counted among those chosen out of sin’s bondage as His people in similar manner. 

Devotion and Redemption

Leviticus 27:1-34 

    1 Now the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 2 “Speak to the children of Israel, and say to them: ‘When a man consecrates by a vow certain persons to the Lord, according to your valuation, 3 if your valuation is of a male from twenty years old up to sixty years old, then your valuation shall be fifty shekels of silver, according to the shekel of the sanctuary. 4 If it is a female, then your valuation shall be thirty shekels; 5 and if from five years old up to twenty years old, then your valuation for a male shall be twenty shekels, and for a female ten shekels; 6 and if from a month old up to five years old, then your valuation for a male shall be five shekels of silver, and for a female your valuation shall be three shekels of silver; 7 and if from sixty years old and above, if it is a male, then your valuation shall be fifteen shekels, and for a female ten shekels. 8 “But if he is too poor to pay your valuation, then he shall present himself before the priest, and the priest shall set a value for him; according to the ability of him who vowed, the priest shall value him.
    9 “If it is an animal that men may bring as an offering to the Lord, all that anyone gives to the Lord shall be holy. 10 He shall not substitute it or exchange it, good for bad or bad for good; and if he at all exchanges animal for animal, then both it and the one exchanged for it shall be holy. 11 If it is an unclean animal which they do not offer as a sacrifice to the Lord, then he shall present the animal before the priest; 12 and the priest shall set a value for it, whether it is good or bad; as you, the priest, value it, so it shall be. 13 But if he wants at all to redeem it, then he must add one-fifth to your valuation.
    14 “And when a man dedicates his house to be holy to the Lord, then the priest shall set a value for it, whether it is good or bad; as the priest values it, so it shall stand. 15 If he who dedicated it wants to redeem his house, then he must add one-fifth of the money of your valuation to it, and it shall be his.
    16 “If a man dedicates to the Lord part of a field of his possession, then your valuation shall be according to the seed for it. A homer of barley seed shall be valued at fifty shekels of silver. 17 If he dedicates his field from the Year of Jubilee, according to your valuation it shall stand. 18 But if he dedicates his field after the Jubilee, then the priest shall reckon to him the money due according to the years that remain till the Year of Jubilee, and it shall be deducted from your valuation. 19 And if he who dedicates the field ever wishes to redeem it, then he must add one-fifth of the money of your valuation to it, and it shall belong to him. 20 But if he does not want to redeem the field, or if he has sold the field to another man, it shall not be redeemed anymore; 21 but the field, when it is released in the Jubilee, shall be holy to the Lord, as a devoted field; it shall be the possession of the priest.
    22 “And if a man dedicates to the Lord a field which he has bought, which is not the field of his possession, 23 then the priest shall reckon to him the worth of your valuation, up to the Year of Jubilee, and he shall give your valuation on that day as a holy offering to the Lord. 24 In the Year of Jubilee the field shall return to him from whom it was bought, to the one who owned the land as a possession. 25 And all your valuations shall be according to the shekel of the sanctuary: twenty gerahs to the shekel.
    26 “But the firstborn of the animals, which should be the Lord's firstborn, no man shall dedicate; whether it is an ox or sheep, it is the Lord's. 27 And if it is an unclean animal, then he shall redeem it according to your valuation, and shall add one-fifth to it; or if it is not redeemed, then it shall be sold according to your valuation.
    28 ‘Nevertheless no devoted offering that a man may devote to the Lord of all that he has, both man and beast, or the field of his possession, shall be sold or redeemed; every devoted offering is most holy to the Lord. 29 No person under the ban, who may become doomed to destruction among men, shall be redeemed, but shall surely be put to death. 30 And all the tithe of the land, whether of the seed of the land or of the fruit of the tree, is the Lord's. It is holy to the Lord. 31 If a man wants at all to redeem any of his tithes, he shall add one-fifth to it. 32 And concerning the tithe of the herd or the flock, of whatever passes under the rod, the tenth one shall be holy to the Lord. 33 He shall not inquire whether it is good or bad, nor shall he exchange it; and if he exchanges it at all, then both it and the one exchanged for it shall be holy; it shall not be redeemed.’ ”
    34 These are the commandments which the Lord commanded Moses for the children of Israel on Mount Sinai.

Everything offered as a devotion to the Lord is His, and is therefore holy.  Whatever was given control and ownership to God, whether persons, lands, animals, and tithes - these all were dedicated to Him as commanded through Moses.  We can see from these that the firstborn is His, which is completed in His Son Jesus the Christ.  He is set apart and sets us apart as living sacrifices which are to be wholly devoted to our Lord in both body and soul.  We have been bought at such a price, and are now eternally redeemed as His holy possessions and better yet, His children!  Each day and all we possess comes from and must be offered back to Him daily.  We have become priests and minister ourselves as living sacrifices (Revelation 5:10, Romans 12:1, 1 Peter 2:5).  This is true devotion and redemption. 

Consequences of Sin

Leviticus 26:27-46

    27 “And after all this, if you do not obey Me, but walk contrary to Me, 28 then I also will walk contrary to you in fury; and I, even I, will chastise you seven times for your sins.  29 You shall eat the flesh of your sons, and you shall eat the flesh of your daughters.  30 I will destroy your high places, cut down your incense altars, and cast your carcasses on the lifeless forms of your idols; and My soul shall abhor you.  31 I will lay your cities waste and bring your sanctuaries to desolation, and I will not smell the fragrance of your sweet aromas.  32 I will bring the land to desolation, and your enemies who dwell in it shall be astonished at it.  33 I will scatter you among the nations and draw out a sword after you; your land shall be desolate and your cities waste.  34 Then the land shall enjoy its sabbaths as long as it lies desolate and you are in your enemies’ land; then the land shall rest and enjoy its sabbaths.  35 As long as it lies desolate it shall rest—for the time it did not rest on your sabbaths when you dwelt in it.
    36 “And as for those of you who are left, I will send faintness into their hearts in the lands of their enemies; the sound of a shaken leaf shall cause them to flee; they shall flee as though fleeing from a sword, and they shall fall when no one pursues.  37 They shall stumble over one another, as it were before a sword, when no one pursues; and you shall have no power to stand before your enemies.  38 You shall perish among the nations, and the land of your enemies shall eat you up.  39 And those of you who are left shall waste away in their iniquity in your enemies’ lands; also in their fathers’ iniquities, which are with them, they shall waste away.
    40 ‘But if they confess their iniquity and the iniquity of their fathers, with their unfaithfulness in which they were unfaithful to Me, and that they also have walked contrary to Me, 41 and that I also have walked contrary to them and have brought them into the land of their enemies; if their uncircumcised hearts are humbled, and they accept their guilt—42 then I will remember My covenant with Jacob, and My covenant with Isaac and My covenant with Abraham I will remember; I will remember the land. 43 The land also shall be left empty by them, and will enjoy its sabbaths while it lies desolate without them; they will accept their guilt, because they despised My judgments and because their soul abhorred My statutes.
    44 Yet for all that, when they are in the land of their enemies, I will not cast them away, nor shall I abhor them, to utterly destroy them and break My covenant with them; for I am the Lord their God.  45 But for their sake I will remember the covenant of their ancestors, whom I brought out of the land of Egypt in the sight of the nations, that I might be their God: I am the Lord.’ ”
    46 These are the statutes and judgments and laws which the Lord made between Himself and the children of Israel on Mount Sinai by the hand of Moses.

The recompense for disobedience is further spelled out by God to His people.  If they live in opposition to God and His clear commands, His righteous intent for His people, then He will walk in fury towards them in return.  His wrath on sin is as real then as it is now; He is the Lord who does not change and will judge in the end.  Destruction and scattering were promised Israel for constant and willful disregard of His holiness and direction, which may also tear apart our current church bodies and denominations if our corporate willful sin is left unheeded.  Though many of these warnings here are specific to Israel, there are many principles in scripture’s later examples of disobedient rebellion which we can learn from.  What are His people told?  To confess the sin and unfaithfulness to our God, humbling ourselves and turning back to follow Him instead of running sin’s course away from our Lord and Master.  Grace never gives license to continue in disobedience without repentance or consequences.  We accept our guilt and dwell on His new covenant in Christ and His atoning blood of absolution and atonement. He has delivered us from the bondage of sin that we might be able to obey and follow Christ by His enabling Spirit who loves in His people now.  He never leaves nor forsakes us, based on His work and sealed agreement (covenant) for our eternal security of mercy and grace! 

Blessing and Recompense

Leviticus 26:1-26 

1 “You shall not make idols for yourselves; neither a carved image nor a sacred pillar shall you rear up for yourselves; nor shall you set up an engraved stone in your land, to bow down to it; for I am the Lord your God. 2 You shall keep My Sabbaths and reverence My sanctuary: I am the Lord.
    3 “If you walk in My statutes and keep My commandments, and perform them, 4 then I will give you rain in its season, the land shall yield its produce, and the trees of the field shall yield their fruit.  5 Your threshing shall last till the time of vintage, and the vintage shall last till the time of sowing; you shall eat your bread to the full, and dwell in your land safely.  6 I will give peace in the land, and you shall lie down, and none will make you afraid; I will rid the land of evil beasts, and the sword will not go through your land.  7 You will chase your enemies, and they shall fall by the sword before you.  8 Five of you shall chase a hundred, and a hundred of you shall put ten thousand to flight; your enemies shall fall by the sword before you.
    9 “For I will look on you favorably and make you fruitful, multiply you and confirm My covenant with you.  10 You shall eat the old harvest, and clear out the old because of the new. 11 I will set My tabernacle among you, and My soul shall not abhor you. 12 I will walk among you and be your God, and you shall be My people. 13 I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, that you should not be their slaves; I have broken the bands of your yoke and made you walk upright.
    14 “But if you do not obey Me, and do not observe all these commandments, 15 and if you despise My statutes, or if your soul abhors My judgments, so that you do not perform all My commandments, but break My covenant, 16 I also will do this to you: I will even appoint terror over you, wasting disease and fever which shall consume the eyes and cause sorrow of heart.  And you shall sow your seed in vain, for your enemies shall eat it.  17 I will set My face against you, and you shall be defeated by your enemies.  Those who hate you shall reign over you, and you shall flee when no one pursues you.
    18 “And after all this, if you do not obey Me, then I will punish you seven times more for your sins.  19 I will break the pride of your power; I will make your heavens like iron and your earth like bronze.  20 And your strength shall be spent in vain; for your land shall not yield its produce, nor shall the trees of the land yield their fruit.
    21 “Then, if you walk contrary to Me, and are not willing to obey Me, I will bring on you seven times more plagues, according to your sins.  22 I will also send wild beasts among you, which shall rob you of your children, destroy your livestock, and make you few in number; and your highways shall be desolate.
    23 “And if by these things you are not reformed by Me, but walk contrary to Me, 24 then I also will walk contrary to you, and I will punish you yet seven times for your sins.  25 And I will bring a sword against you that will execute the vengeance of the covenant; when you are gathered together within your cities I will send pestilence among you; and you shall be delivered into the hand of the enemy.  26 When I have cut off your supply of bread, ten women shall bake your bread in one oven, and they shall bring back your bread by weight, and you shall eat and not be satisfied.

Blessings for obedience and recompense for disobedience are spelled out here to God’s people.  It begins with having no other gods or idols, the first commandment of devotion to their Lord and Deliverer who brought them out of the bondage of Egypt, symbolizing the snares of sin and the discontent after deliverance.  They were to rest in Him and their works to contemplate His work on their behalf, and then reciprocate in thankful following of His will and word.  They were promised His provision and victory over their enemies as they followed after the Lord, being fruitful and fed as God walked among them after delivering them; their enslaving bonds had been broken and they could walk upright as free and loved.  Ah, but the warnings of recompense for disobedience were also spelled out.  If they did not follow in obedience to all they were commanded or if they did not like what they were told by God and broke the covenant which He made with them in His mercy and grace, then He would bring terror and defeat.  They would have all taken away and not be fruitful or even provided for, but would find sorrow of soul and fear of their enemies pursuing them.  God would turn His face from them because of their sin (Isaiah 59:2) and they would be running scared.  Even this was to bring them to turn back, to repent and be restored; if they refused, then they would be punished seven times more, perfectly.  Further disobedience in refusing to follow the steps laid out would bring unfruitfulness, disease, attacks, and more for breaking His covenant.  They would be delivered into the enemy’s hand (1 Timothy 1:20) until they turned back to the Lord.  We also find that the sin of rebellion, disobedience, brings God’s correction to call us back to following Christ when we wander off, and we know He wants our full worship and loyalty for our good and His glory.  Let us follow. 

Permanent and Temporary Enslavement

Leviticus 25:39-55 

    39 “And if one of your brethren who dwells by you becomes poor, and sells himself to you, you shall not compel him to serve as a slave. 40 As a hired servant and a sojourner he shall be with you, and shall serve you until the Year of Jubilee. 41 And then he shall depart from you—he and his children with him—and shall return to his own family. He shall return to the possession of his fathers. 42 For they are My servants, whom I brought out of the land of Egypt; they shall not be sold as slaves. 43 You shall not rule over him with rigor, but you shall fear your God. 44 And as for your male and female slaves whom you may have—from the nations that are around you, from them you may buy male and female slaves. 45 Moreover you may buy the children of the strangers who dwell among you, and their families who are with you, which they beget in your land; and they shall become your property. 46 And you may take them as an inheritance for your children after you, to inherit them as a possession; they shall be your permanent slaves. But regarding your brethren, the children of Israel, you shall not rule over one another with rigor.
    47 “Now if a sojourner or stranger close to you becomes rich, and one of your brethren who dwells by him becomes poor, and sells himself to the stranger or sojourner close to you, or to a member of the stranger's family, 48 after he is sold he may be redeemed again. One of his brothers may redeem him; 49 or his uncle or his uncle's son may redeem him; or anyone who is near of kin to him in his family may redeem him; or if he is able he may redeem himself. 50 Thus he shall reckon with him who bought him: The price of his release shall be according to the number of years, from the year that he was sold to him until the Year of Jubilee; it shall be according to the time of a hired servant for him. 51 If there are still many years remaining, according to them he shall repay the price of his redemption from the money with which he was bought. 52 And if there remain but a few years until the Year of Jubilee, then he shall reckon with him, and according to his years he shall repay him the price of his redemption. 53 He shall be with him as a yearly hired servant, and he shall not rule with rigor over him in your sight. 54 And if he is not redeemed in these years, then he shall be released in the Year of Jubilee—he and his children with him. 55 For the children of Israel are servants to Me; they are My servants whom I brought out of the land of Egypt: I am the Lord your God.

These are difficult issues concerning willing slaves and those bought from foreign lands of the people Israel was to conquer and possess their lands.  It is easier to understand those from among God’s people who find themselves poor and without any other recourse than to enter indentured servitude.  It is harder to grasp owning slaves from the other nations, even if they were commanded by God to be driven out and conquered.  The hired servants were to be set free in the fiftieth year of Jubilee, which could be a long time if servitude was entered into just after a year of Jubilee.  However, those bought and sold from the other nations became inheritable property.  This is not as horrific as the scourge of African slavery, which was cruel and inhuman in all aspects, yet it still was not God’s original plan apart from fallen mankind.  Those indentured slaves of God’s people could be redeemed if they did not want to wait for the fifty-year cycle of the Jubilee, but those from other peoples had to be given freedom.  Who do we most resemble?  On one hand, as His people we are willing slaves to Him forever, and on the other hand, before we are reconciled to God in Christ we are permanently enslaved to the sin of our fallen nature.  We know it is sinful to call modern slavery as if it were the same thing as in these times of Moses, and should never condone or excuse such slavery.  On a purely spiritual level, however, we ourselves are such slaves, beaten and mistreated by our adversary as we rebel in servitude to sin.  Ah, but in Christ we are free from being slaves of sin and, having been bought by the blood sacrifice of Jesus Christ, become Bondservants (willing slaves) to our Lord (Romans 6:16-22).  Our slavery turns from a horrific unwilling servitude to a joyful and willful service to our Lord and Master of all creation!  This permanent willing enslavement is so much better than the temporary unwilling bondage we have been set free from (John 8:36).

Redemption

Leviticus 25:23-38
23 “The land shall not be sold permanently, for the land is Mine; for you are strangers and sojourners with Me. 24 And in all the land of your possession you shall grant redemption of the land.
    25 “If one of your brethren becomes poor, and has sold some of his possession, and if his redeeming relative comes to redeem it, then he may redeem what his brother sold. 26 Or if the man has no one to redeem it, but he himself becomes able to redeem it, 27 then let him count the years since its sale, and restore the remainder to the man to whom he sold it, that he may return to his possession. 28 But if he is not able to have it restored to himself, then what was sold shall remain in the hand of him who bought it until the Year of Jubilee; and in the Jubilee it shall be released, and he shall return to his possession.
    29 “If a man sells a house in a walled city, then he may redeem it within a whole year after it is sold; within a full year he may redeem it. 30 But if it is not redeemed within the space of a full year, then the house in the walled city shall belong permanently to him who bought it, throughout his generations. It shall not be released in the Jubilee. 31 However the houses of villages which have no wall around them shall be counted as the fields of the country. They may be redeemed, and they shall be released in the Jubilee. 32 Nevertheless the cities of the Levites, and the houses in the cities of their possession, the Levites may redeem at any time. 33 And if a man purchases a house from the Levites, then the house that was sold in the city of his possession shall be released in the Jubilee; for the houses in the cities of the Levites are their possession among the children of Israel. 34 But the field of the common-land of their cities may not be sold, for it is their perpetual possession.
    35 “If one of your brethren becomes poor, and falls into poverty among you, then you shall help him, like a stranger or a sojourner, that he may live with you. 36 Take no usury or interest from him; but fear your God, that your brother may live with you. 37 You shall not lend him your money for usury, nor lend him your food at a profit. 38 I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, to give you the land of Canaan and to be your God.

Various laws of buying back what was sold, especially due to falling into need due to poverty, are addressed here.  First of all, the land could not be permanently sold because it was God’s which He had given into His people’s hands.  As for possessions sold, family members could buy the things back, redeeming those items.  The person selling could also redeem the articles, but could also wait until the Year of Jubilee when all would be redeemed and returned anyway. There were separate laws for houses within a city’s walls and for those outside in the country, as well as for those of the Levite priests who had perpetual ownership of their lands.  This went further with those becoming poor, however, for they were to be helped and taken in to live as if helping a stranger or wanderer passing through.  The fear of God was to keep them from charging interest by even lending food at a profit; they were to care for each other.  This kind of redemption was for material things, but consider how much more our Lord redeems the spiritual!  We ought then to also be willing to freely share and meet needs when there are true needs among us.  Above all else, we are to redeem the time give us in these evil days (Ephesians 5:16, Colossians 4:5). 

Seven Times Seven

Leviticus 25:1-22 

1 And the Lord spoke to Moses on Mount Sinai, saying, 2 “Speak to the children of Israel, and say to them: ‘When you come into the land which I give you, then the land shall keep a sabbath to the Lord. 3 Six years you shall sow your field, and six years you shall prune your vineyard, and gather its fruit; 4 but in the seventh year there shall be a sabbath of solemn rest for the land, a sabbath to the Lord. You shall neither sow your field nor prune your vineyard. 5 What grows of its own accord of your harvest you shall not reap, nor gather the grapes of your untended vine, for it is a year of rest for the land. 6 And the sabbath produce of the land shall be food for you: for you, your male and female servants, your hired man, and the stranger who dwells with you, 7 for your livestock and the beasts that are in your land—all its produce shall be for food.
    8 “And you shall count seven sabbaths of years for yourself, seven times seven years; and the time of the seven sabbaths of years shall be to you forty-nine years. 9 Then you shall cause the trumpet of the Jubilee to sound on the tenth day of the seventh month; on the Day of Atonement you shall make the trumpet to sound throughout all your land. 10 And you shall consecrate the fiftieth year, and proclaim liberty throughout all the land to all its inhabitants. It shall be a Jubilee for you; and each of you shall return to his possession, and each of you shall return to his family. 11 That fiftieth year shall be a Jubilee to you; in it you shall neither sow nor reap what grows of its own accord, nor gather the grapes of your untended vine. 12 For it is the Jubilee; it shall be holy to you; you shall eat its produce from the field.
    13 “In this Year of Jubilee, each of you shall return to his possession. 14 And if you sell anything to your neighbor or buy from your neighbor's hand, you shall not oppress one another. 15 According to the number of years after the Jubilee you shall buy from your neighbor, and according to the number of years of crops he shall sell to you. 16 According to the multitude of years you shall increase its price, and according to the fewer number of years you shall diminish its price; for he sells to you according to the number of the years of the crops. 17 Therefore you shall not oppress one another, but you shall fear your God; for I am the Lord your God.
    18 “So you shall observe My statutes and keep My judgments, and perform them; and you will dwell in the land in safety. 19 Then the land will yield its fruit, and you will eat your fill, and dwell there in safety.  20 “And if you say, “What shall we eat in the seventh year, since we shall not sow nor gather in our produce?” 21 Then I will command My blessing on you in the sixth year, and it will bring forth produce enough for three years. 22 And you shall sow in the eighth year, and eat old produce until the ninth year; until its produce comes in, you shall eat of the old harvest.

For several reasons God had His people rest the land every seven years.  One was to honor God’s work in creation when He gave an example of rest, and another was for the land itself to lay fallow for continued growing of crops by replenishment of soil nutrients.  Both reasons were for their good and God’s glory.  The sabbath was made for man as Jesus would later state plainly (Mark 2:27).  It was not to be a burdensome chore to keep, but a thankful display and understanding of God’s work on their behalf for their good.  This brings Him glory.  Here there was another level to this celebration, a special recurring event of seven times seven years.  This Jubilee would allow them to rest from farming completely, eating for three years from the sixth of seven by His provision.  It was a lesson to trust and rest in the Lord to meet the needs and to therefore treat others fairly and with the same grace as was given them.  We do not need to wait forty nine years to do this, but can lean on (Proverbs 3:5-6) His wisdom and provision every day in Christ.  These things were given for our example. 

Blasphemy, Curse and be Cursed

Leviticus 24:10-23
10 Now the son of an Israelite woman, whose father was an Egyptian, went out among the children of Israel; and this Israelite woman's son and a man of Israel fought each other in the camp. 11 And the Israelite woman's son blasphemed the name of the Lord and cursed; and so they brought him to Moses. (His mother's name was Shelomith the daughter of Dibri, of the tribe of Dan.) 12 Then they put him in custody, that the mind of the Lord might be shown to them.
    13 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 14 “Take outside the camp him who has cursed; then let all who heard him lay their hands on his head, and let all the congregation stone him.  15 “Then you shall speak to the children of Israel, saying: ‘Whoever curses his God shall bear his sin. 16 And whoever blasphemes the name of the Lord shall surely be put to death. All the congregation shall certainly stone him, the stranger as well as him who is born in the land. When he blasphemes the name of the Lord, he shall be put to death.
    17 “Whoever kills any man shall surely be put to death. 18 Whoever kills an animal shall make it good, animal for animal.  19 ‘If a man causes disfigurement of his neighbor, as he has done, so shall it be done to him— 20 fracture for fracture, eye for eye, tooth for tooth; as he has caused disfigurement of a man, so shall it be done to him. 21 And whoever kills an animal shall restore it; but whoever kills a man shall be put to death. 22 You shall have the same law for the stranger and for one from your own country; for I am the Lord your God.’ ”
    23 Then Moses spoke to the children of Israel; and they took outside the camp him who had cursed, and stoned him with stones. So the children of Israel did as the Lord commanded Moses.

Cursing God by maligning His name and character shows we think little of Him but hate, which is the opposite of glorifying His name and person.  Here we see that God sought to teach this reverent awe by immediate punishment, while often now He waits for the final judgement (Romans 1:28-32) if they do not repent.  This boy blasphemed the Lord and was taken outside the camp (away from the holy place of worship) and stoned to death, with the warning to those not of His people that they are also held accountable.  Then death is pronounced as a penalty for murder, and restitution for other crimes spelled out as a way to compensate the loss of another by sinful actions.  This is the basis of our laws in the past few centuries in the western world as well, with the laws applying equally to all perpetrators.  The Israelites carried out the punishment which God passed, but in the end it will be no government which upholds God’s laws in the end, but has committed all judgement to the Son (John 5:22, Jude 1:15).  Today’s governments and rulers are not theocratic as Israel was, and only imperfectly enforce justice, but God’s will be both severe and merciful (Romans 11:22).  We therefore had best be reconciled to the Father through the Lord Jesus Christ to endure true justice for eternity by His justifying righteousness, or face the full requirements of the Law apart from His grace.  Otherwise we refuse to give Him glory as we curse Him and are cursed in our disobedience of unbelief (John 6:29). 

Perpetual Service of Light and Bread

Leviticus 24:1-9 

1 Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: 2 “Command the children of Israel that they bring to you pure oil of pressed olives for the light, to make the lamps burn continually. 3 Outside the veil of the Testimony, in the tabernacle of meeting, Aaron shall be in charge of it from evening until morning before the Lord continually; it shall be a statute forever in your generations. 4 He shall be in charge of the lamps on the pure gold lampstand before the Lord continually.
    5 “And you shall take fine flour and bake twelve cakes with it. Two-tenths of an ephah shall be in each cake. 6 You shall set them in two rows, six in a row, on the pure gold table before the Lord. 7 And you shall put pure frankincense on each row, that it may be on the bread for a memorial, an offering made by fire to the Lord. 8 Every Sabbath he shall set it in order before the Lord continually, being taken from the children of Israel by an everlasting covenant. 9 And it shall be for Aaron and his sons, and they shall eat it in a holy place; for it is most holy to him from the offerings of the Lord made by fire, by a perpetual statute.”

The priests were to always keep up the tabernacle temple of worship to honor God.  They were to ensure the light always shone by constantly keeping the oil in the lamps.  They were also to ensure that the showbread was set before the Lord as a memorial to remind them He is their sustenance.  These ministries were to be perpetually done by the Aaronic priesthood through the generations.  The word perpetual here is עוֹלָם ‘ôlâm, meaning eternal or from all time and to all time, yet certainly this does not mean that these earthly priests would be doing this forever.  The temple was destroyed in 70 AD and there were times in Israel’s past when the temple was abandoned as well.  What then, is the command without fulfillment?  No, it is fulfilled by the heavenly High Priest, Jesus Christ!  He lives and ministers forever (Hebrews 10:11-12) by His one eternal and perpetual sacrifice, and so ministers Himself as the light of men and the bread from heaven (John 1:4, 6:48).  The priesthood of Aaron and their ministry came to and end, being imperfect, but His reign and ministry never end.  Amen. . 

Temporary Dwellings

Leviticus 23:33-44 

33 Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 34 “Speak to the children of Israel, saying: ‘The fifteenth day of this seventh month shall be the Feast of Tabernacles for seven days to the Lord. 35 On the first day there shall be a holy convocation. You shall do no customary work on it. 36 For seven days you shall offer an offering made by fire to the Lord. On the eighth day you shall have a holy convocation, and you shall offer an offering made by fire to the Lord. It is a sacred assembly, and you shall do no customary work on it.
    37 “These are the feasts of the Lord which you shall proclaim to be holy convocations, to offer an offering made by fire to the Lord, a burnt offering and a grain offering, a sacrifice and drink offerings, everything on its day— 38 besides the Sabbaths of the Lord, besides your gifts, besides all your vows, and besides all your freewill offerings which you give to the Lord.
    39 ‘Also on the fifteenth day of the seventh month, when you have gathered in the fruit of the land, you shall keep the feast of the Lord for seven days; on the first day there shall be a sabbath-rest, and on the eighth day a sabbath-rest. 40 And you shall take for yourselves on the first day the fruit of beautiful trees, branches of palm trees, the boughs of leafy trees, and willows of the brook; and you shall rejoice before the Lord your God for seven days. 41 You shall keep it as a feast to the Lord for seven days in the year. It shall be a statute forever in your generations. You shall celebrate it in the seventh month. 42 You shall dwell in booths for seven days. All who are native Israelites shall dwell in booths, 43 that your generations may know that I made the children of Israel dwell in booths when I brought them out of the land of Egypt: I am the Lord your God.’ ”
    44 So Moses declared to the children of Israel the feasts of the Lord.

Once a year Israel was to remember when they were delivered from the bondage of Egypt, symbolic of sin’s oppressive rule over them, by living in the kind of temporary huts they threw together while making their way to the country of promise.  They were told to remember by seven days of holy gathering together as a people to celebrate and reflect together on God’s Grace to set them free with a future hope of the promise.  This remembrance was filled with sacrifices and rest from their works, and inaugurated with palm branches, similar to when Jesus triumphantly entered Jerusalem (a kind of spiritual Egypt, Revelation 11:8) with rejoicing.  We also celebrate our deliverance from the bondage of sin by our Savior’s sacrifice and rejoice as we remember the gospel of His great work.  Blessed is He who came in His name to rescue us from sin’s bondage and penalty!  We celebrate these things in the Lord’s Supper while anticipating His return as we travel in our temporary dwellings (1 Corinthians 3:16) and consider both our deliverance as well as our future country of promise (Hebrews 11:16). 

Rest, Reflection, and Repentance

Leviticus 23:23-32
23 Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 24 “Speak to the children of Israel, saying: ‘In the seventh month, on the first day of the month, you shall have a sabbath-rest, a memorial of blowing of trumpets, a holy convocation. 25 You shall do no customary work on it; and you shall offer an offering made by fire to the Lord.’ ”
    26 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: 27 “Also the tenth day of this seventh month shall be the Day of Atonement. It shall be a holy convocation for you; you shall afflict your souls, and offer an offering made by fire to the Lord. 28 And you shall do no work on that same day, for it is the Day of Atonement, to make atonement for you before the Lord your God. 29 For any person who is not afflicted in soul on that same day shall be cut off from his people. 30 And any person who does any work on that same day, that person I will destroy from among his people. 31 You shall do no manner of work; it shall be a statute forever throughout your generations in all your dwellings. 32 It shall be to you a sabbath of solemn rest, and you shall afflict your souls; on the ninth day of the month at evening, from evening to evening, you shall celebrate your sabbath.”

After the celebration feasts of worship, we find God telling Moses to teach the people about rest, reflection, and repentance in further times of remembrance.  The rest in the festival of trumpets heralds forth a holy time to stop their works to remember God’s work in their deliverance from bondage and faithful keeping on their journey to the place promised them to come.  The reflection continues with repentance of sin on a Day of Atonement.  They were to to sacrifice for atonement to appease God’s wrath on their sin, but also to afflict themselves by considering the offense toward Him and afflicting themselves in godly repentance to turn from it and towards their Lord.  They were to not do any work to make it right, but rest in God and His atoning work, just as we rest in the forever atoning sacrifice of Christ as our eternal atonement.  We rest in His work, not attempting to justify ourselves or find redemption in our own efforts; Jesus Christ is our sabbath rest (Hebrews 4:9-10).  We do not work to gain merit and earn atonement for our sins, but lean securely in His everlasting arms of grace and mercy by His sacrifice and work. 

Feasts of Sabbath, Passover, Firstfruits, and Weeks

Leviticus 23:1-22
1 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 2 “Speak to the children of Israel, and say to them: ‘The feasts of the Lord, which you shall proclaim to be holy convocations, these are My feasts.
    3 ‘Six days shall work be done, but the seventh day is a Sabbath of solemn rest, a holy convocation. You shall do no work on it; it is the Sabbath of the Lord in all your dwellings.
    4 ‘These are the feasts of the Lord, holy convocations which you shall proclaim at their appointed times. 5 On the fourteenth day of the first month at twilight is the Lord's Passover. 6 And on the fifteenth day of the same month is the Feast of Unleavened Bread to the Lord; seven days you must eat unleavened bread. 7 On the first day you shall have a holy convocation; you shall do no customary work on it. 8 But you shall offer an offering made by fire to the Lord for seven days. The seventh day shall be a holy convocation; you shall do no customary work on it.’ ”
    9 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 10 “Speak to the children of Israel, and say to them: ‘When you come into the land which I give to you, and reap its harvest, then you shall bring a sheaf of the firstfruits of your harvest to the priest. 11 He shall wave the sheaf before the Lord, to be accepted on your behalf; on the day after the Sabbath the priest shall wave it. 12 And you shall offer on that day, when you wave the sheaf, a male lamb of the first year, without blemish, as a burnt offering to the Lord. 13 Its grain offering shall be two-tenths of an ephah of fine flour mixed with oil, an offering made by fire to the Lord, for a sweet aroma; and its drink offering shall be of wine, one-fourth of a hin. 14 You shall eat neither bread nor parched grain nor fresh grain until the same day that you have brought an offering to your God; it shall be a statute forever throughout your generations in all your dwellings.
    15 “And you shall count for yourselves from the day after the Sabbath, from the day that you brought the sheaf of the wave offering: seven Sabbaths shall be completed. 16 Count fifty days to the day after the seventh Sabbath; then you shall offer a new grain offering to the Lord. 17 You shall bring from your dwellings two wave loaves of two-tenths of an ephah. They shall be of fine flour; they shall be baked with leaven. They are the firstfruits to the Lord. 18 And you shall offer with the bread seven lambs of the first year, without blemish, one young bull, and two rams. They shall be as a burnt offering to the Lord, with their grain offering and their drink offerings, an offering made by fire for a sweet aroma to the Lord. 19 Then you shall sacrifice one kid of the goats as a sin offering, and two male lambs of the first year as a sacrifice of a peace offering. 20 The priest shall wave them with the bread of the firstfruits as a wave offering before the Lord, with the two lambs. They shall be holy to the Lord for the priest. 21 And you shall proclaim on the same day that it is a holy convocation to you. You shall do no customary work on it. It shall be a statute forever in all your dwellings throughout your generations.   22 ‘When you reap the harvest of your land, you shall not wholly reap the corners of your field when you reap, nor shall you gather any gleaning from your harvest. You shall leave them for the poor and for the stranger: I am the Lord your God.’ ”

These were the feasts of holy celebration and worship which God commanded for His people to remember and honor Him.  The Feasts of Sabbath, Passover, Firstfruits, and Weeks are described here as set times to develop holy habits in specific ways to test their obedience and honor of the one they were to celebrate in worship for all He did for them.  These were to be times of reflection, remembrance, and trust in their Lord and God.  We see the shadow here of true worship in spirit and truth which are in Christ’s person and work.  For we are to learn good habits out of willing and thankful hearts which still require ways to develop godly and holy habits.  We have the remembrance of the Lord’s Supper and the consecration of baptism to identify as His, redeemed in Christ’s righteousness and following to become holy in our daily sanctification of conformity to Christ.  While we are not under the law of regulations to please God by salvation through the merit of our works, we do develop good habits from the heart as a way to follow Him by His word as enabled by His Spirit living in us.  These remind us that He is the Lord our God and of our Lord God and our devotion to Him which is developed through godly and holy habits of remembrance.  

The Perfect Acceptable Sacrifice

Leviticus 22:17-33 

17 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 18 “Speak to Aaron and his sons, and to all the children of Israel, and say to them: ‘Whatever man of the house of Israel, or of the strangers in Israel, who offers his sacrifice for any of his vows or for any of his freewill offerings, which they offer to the Lord as a burnt offering— 19 you shall offer of your own free will a male without blemish from the cattle, from the sheep, or from the goats. 20 Whatever has a defect, you shall not offer, for it shall not be acceptable on your behalf. 21 And whoever offers a sacrifice of a peace offering to the Lord, to fulfill his vow, or a freewill offering from the cattle or the sheep, it must be perfect to be accepted; there shall be no defect in it. 22 Those that are blind or broken or maimed, or have an ulcer or eczema or scabs, you shall not offer to the Lord, nor make an offering by fire of them on the altar to the Lord. 23 Either a bull or a lamb that has any limb too long or too short you may offer as a freewill offering, but for a vow it shall not be accepted.
    24 ‘You shall not offer to the Lord what is bruised or crushed, or torn or cut; nor shall you make any offering of them in your land. 25 Nor from a foreigner's hand shall you offer any of these as the bread of your God, because their corruption is in them, and defects are in them. They shall not be accepted on your behalf.’ ”
    26 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: 27 “When a bull or a sheep or a goat is born, it shall be seven days with its mother; and from the eighth day and thereafter it shall be accepted as an offering made by fire to the Lord. 28 Whether it is a cow or ewe, do not kill both her and her young on the same day. 29 And when you offer a sacrifice of thanksgiving to the Lord, offer it of your own free will. 30 On the same day it shall be eaten; you shall leave none of it until morning: I am the Lord.
    31 “Therefore you shall keep My commandments, and perform them: I am the Lord. 32 You shall not profane My holy name, but I will be hallowed among the children of Israel. I am the Lord who sanctifies you, 33 who brought you out of the land of Egypt, to be your God: I am the Lord.”

Only the best is to be offered to God.  In the animal sacrificial system here, the offerings for vows, peace, sin, and free will all had to be the best one had; this perfect offering was never completely perfect, but the sacrifice of and by Jesus Christ was perfect in every way.  The imperfections of animal sacrifices which could be seen were not honoring or acceptable to God, nor were those from outsiders.  Every offering also had to be willingly given, not forced out of compulsion.  We are now willing living sacrifices to our Lord, and should give our best back to Him out of willing hearts of desire and not because we have to.  We give thanks and freely give our lives to Him who sacrificed all for us.  We now obey His commands, knowing they are for His glory and our good as well.  He has brought us not out of bondage from Egypt, but from eternal enslavement to sin.  We are therefore no longer under sin’s reigning power (though not free from its presence in our nature until we are glorified with Him in the end), and reflecting on this position should drive us to be ever more self-sacrificing and God-honoring in all we live for.  This is why it is difficult for us as living sacrifices to stay on the altar when the flames come near, but we are called to trust as Isaac with Abraham (Genesis 22:2, 14, 16-18, Hebrews 11:17-19).  These things are written for our example to live by faith with hope because of our perfect and acceptable sacrifice whom God provided for us.