Numbers 8:1-26
1 And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,
2 Speak unto Aaron, and say unto him, When thou lightest the lamps, the seven lamps shall give light over against the candlestick.
3 And Aaron did so; he lighted the lamps thereof over against the candlestick, as the LORD commanded Moses.
4 And this work of the candlestick was of beaten gold, unto the shaft thereof, unto the flowers thereof, was beaten work: according unto the pattern which the LORD had shewed Moses, so he made the candlestick.
5 And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,
6 Take the Levites from among the children of Israel, and cleanse them.
7 And thus shalt thou do unto them, to cleanse them: Sprinkle water of purifying upon them, and let them shavea all their flesh, and let them wash their clothes, and so make themselves clean.
8 Then let them take a young bullock with his meat offering, even fine flour mingled with oil, and another young bullock shalt thou take for a sin offering.
9 And thou shalt bring the Levites before the tabernacle of the congregation: and thou shalt gather the whole assembly of the children of Israel together:
10 And thou shalt bring the Levites before the LORD: and the children of Israel shall put their hands upon the Levites:
11 And Aaron shall offerb the Levites before the LORD for an offering of the children of Israel, that they may execute the service of the LORD.
12 And the Levites shall lay their hands upon the heads of the bullocks: and thou shalt offer the one for a sin offering, and the other for a burnt offering, unto the LORD, to make an atonement for the Levites.
13 And thou shalt set the Levites before Aaron, and before his sons, and offer them for an offering unto the LORD.
14 Thus shalt thou separate the Levites from among the children of Israel: and the Levites shall be mine.
15 And after that shall the Levites go in to do the service of the tabernacle of the congregation: and thou shalt cleanse them, and offer them for an offering.
16 For they are wholly given unto me from among the children of Israel; instead of such as open every womb, even instead of the firstborn of all the children of Israel, have I taken them unto me.
17 For all the firstborn of the children of Israel are mine, both man and beast: on the day that I smote every firstborn in the land of Egypt I sanctified them for myself.
18 And I have taken the Levites for all the firstborn of the children of Israel.
19 And I have given the Levites as a giftc to Aaron and to his sons from among the children of Israel, to do the service of the children of Israel in the tabernacle of the congregation, and to make an atonement for the children of Israel: that there be no plague among the children of Israel, when the children of Israel come nigh unto the sanctuary.
20 And Moses, and Aaron, and all the congregation of the children of Israel, did to the Levites according unto all that the LORD commanded Moses concerning the Levites, so did the children of Israel unto them.
21 And the Levites were purified, and they washed their clothes; and Aaron offered them as an offering before the LORD; and Aaron made an atonement for them to cleanse them.
22 And after that went the Levites in to do their service in the tabernacle of the congregation before Aaron, and before his sons: as the LORD had commanded Moses concerning the Levites, so did they unto them.
23 And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,
24 This is it that belongeth unto the Levites: from twenty and five years old and upward they shall go in to wait upon the service of the tabernacle of the congregation:
25 And from the age of fifty years they shall ceased waiting upon the service thereof, and shall serve no more:
26 But shall minister with their brethren in the tabernacle of the congregation, to keep the charge, and shall do no service. Thus shalt thou do unto the Levites touching their charge.
6. The Consecration of the Levites
CHAPTER 8
1. The lighting of the candlestick (Numbers 8:1)
2. The consecration of the Levites (Numbers 8:5)
3. The charge to the Levites repeated (Numbers 8:23)
The candlestick is the type of Christ as in the sanctuary, that is, Christ in glory. The lighting of the seven lamps introduced in the beginning of the wilderness book is of blessed meaning. The seven lamps were to illuminate the candlestick of beaten gold, throw their light upon the candlestick so that the gold and beautiful workmanship might be seen. The oil in the seven lamps represents the Holy Spirit. Spiritually applied we have the picture here of the Spirit of God shedding light upon Christ. For this He is given to His people, to glorify Christ. And this is the great need of the people of God in their journey through the wilderness. The eyes of the pilgrim and stranger, the passenger passing through the wilderness, must be fixed upon Christ in glory.
The consecration of the Levites consisted in sprinkling with water, shaving the whole body, washing of their clothes. They had to stand before the tabernacle of the congregation and the whole assembly of the children of Israel was gathered together. The children of Israel had to put their hands upon the Levites. The whole congregation became thus identified with the service of the Levites. The Levites represented the entire congregation of Israel and served in their behalf. The sprinkling with water in their consecration stands typically for the purification from sins. This they could not do for themselves, another had to do it. But the sharp razor they were able to take to remove from their bodies all the hair, which stands for that which belongs to the flesh, the old nature. They had also to wash their clothes, which typically signifies the water (the Word) applied to our habits and to our ways. The lessons are many. He who would be a true Levite in service must constantly use the sharp knife of self-judgment to remove all what is of self.
Their period of service was fixed. It was uniform, from 25 to 50 years. It was a gracious provision that at 50 the Levite was permitted to retire from the harder work. There is no clash here with the statement of chapter 4. From 25 to 30 they could do the lighter work of the tabernacle, even as the Levites over 50 years were exempt from the harder tasks. The Lord still fixes the period in which His servants are to serve Him, as He also looks out for their comfort (Joh_21:12; Joh_21:18-19).