Numbers 18:21-32
Tithes for Support of the Levites
21 “Behold, I have given the children of Levi all the tithes in Israel as an inheritance in return for the work which they perform, the work of the tabernacle of meeting. 22 Hereafter the children of Israel shall not come near the tabernacle of meeting, lest they bear sin and die. 23 But the Levites shall perform the work of the tabernacle of meeting, and they shall bear their iniquity; it shall be a statute forever, throughout your generations, that among the children of Israel they shall have no inheritance. 24 For the tithes of the children of Israel, which they offer up as a heave offering to the LORD, I have given to the Levites as an inheritance; therefore I have said to them, ‘Among the children of Israel they shall have no inheritance.’”
The Tithe of the Levites
25 Then the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, 26 “Speak thus to the Levites, and say to them: ‘When you take from the children of Israel the tithes which I have given you from them as your inheritance, then you shall offer up a heave offering of it to the LORD, a tenth of the tithe. 27 And your heave offering shall be reckoned to you as though it were the grain of the threshing floor and as the fullness of the winepress. 28 Thus you shall also offer a heave offering to the LORD from all your tithes which you receive from the children of Israel, and you shall give the LORD’s heave offering from it to Aaron the priest. 29 Of all your gifts you shall offer up every heave offering due to the LORD, from all the best of them, the consecrated part of them.’ 30 Therefore you shall say to them: ‘When you have lifted up the best of it, then the rest shall be accounted to the Levites as the produce of the threshing floor and as the produce of the winepress. 31 You may eat it in any place, you and your households, for it is your reward for your work in the tabernacle of meeting. 32 And you shall bear no sin because of it, when you have lifted up the best of it. But you shall not profane the holy gifts of the children of Israel, lest you die.’”
Tithes to support the Levites serving and keeping up the tabernacle were required in order for them to perform their duties and were their inheritance in place of the land. These were to draw near to do all the work of the temple while all others had to keep their distance from that meeting place with the LORD, except Moses and Aaron and his priests, of course. The others who approached would ‘bear sin and die’ as it is written here. This has no equivalence in the church today, for all are to draw near to God (Hebrews 10:22) to receive atoning forgiveness by the sacrifice of Jesus Christ who is also the High Priest offering Himself. He has torn the veil of the temple and the most holy place away to grant us free access by grace as we serve Him. Even those serving in the church today, pastors and elders with deacons as new sorts of priests and those keeping up the buildings now, even they are not the only ones allowed to approach the throne of grace (Hebrews 4:16) as before. When those ministering in the church now collect tithes to support the building and its servants, we realize that is not their inheritance (Ephesians 1:14, 1 Peter 1:3-5), but Christ alone is our all now and forever as an eternal inheritance in the heavenly land to come! May we imitate the good of the pattern of the Levites in how we steward the possessions and gifts we have been given and offer them up to the Lord to whom they and we all belong. May we take these things to heart and not profane these holy gifts which we minister to our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, for we are all saints (Romans 1:7, 1 Corinthians 1:2) in Christ’s holiness and are also priests to our God (Revelation 1:6, 5:10) in Him.
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