And the LORD spake unto Moses in the wilderness of Sinai, saying,
The verse stands in the opening part of Numbers, which takes its name from the two numberings of Israel, one early in the book and the other near its close. The first four chapters deal exclusively with the numbering of the people, the numbering of the tribe of Levi, and the office of the various families of Levi. It belongs to the account of the sanctuary in the wilderness, where God assigned the tribe of Levi to care for the tabernacle and divided the Levites by the families of its three sons, Gershon, Kohath, and Merari.
It introduces the Lord's command, census, and instructions to Moses concerning the numbering, duties, divisions, and work of the Levites, showing that God gave careful directions for numbering and organizing His people. It begins the instruction given in the wilderness of Sinai by which the labor of Levitical duty is laid upon the sons of Moses. The priesthood is perpetuated through the families of Aaron's sons Eleazar and Ithamar after the death of Nadab and Abihu, while Moses' descendants do the Levitical work. Priests and Levites are thus distinctly segregated in relation to the sanctuary and its services, with offices that are in no sense similar or interchangeable.
The verse belongs to the law governing the Levites' duties in transporting the sanctuary: the Kohathites were assigned to carry the ark and sacred vessels on their shoulders, while the other Levitical families received oxen to transport their loads. The Kohathites were not to approach the sacred objects until they had been covered, or touch them even afterward; Aaron's sons alone handled the objects in preparing them for transport, and this law explains why placing the ark on a cart and touching it were violations of God's instructions. The chapter establishes the Aaronic priesthood in the tribe of Levi for the dispensation before the Crucifixion, when serving as a priest from another tribe was a sin. This priesthood was age-lasting for its appointed period, until the type met its antitype in Christ.
The verse stands in the opening part of Numbers, which takes its name from the two numberings of Israel, one early in the book and the other near its close. The first four chapters deal exclusively with the numbering of the people, the numbering of the tribe of Levi, and the office of the various families of Levi. It belongs to the account of the sanctuary in the wilderness, where God assigned the tribe of Levi to care for the tabernacle and divided the Levites by the families of its three sons, Gershon, Kohath, and Merari.
It introduces the Lord's command, census, and instructions to Moses concerning the numbering, duties, divisions, and work of the Levites, showing that God gave careful directions for numbering and organizing His people. It begins the instruction given in the wilderness of Sinai by which the labor of Levitical duty is laid upon the sons of Moses. The priesthood is perpetuated through the families of Aaron's sons Eleazar and Ithamar after the death of Nadab and Abihu, while Moses' descendants do the Levitical work. Priests and Levites are thus distinctly segregated in relation to the sanctuary and its services, with offices that are in no sense similar or interchangeable.
The verse belongs to the law governing the Levites' duties in transporting the sanctuary: the Kohathites were assigned to carry the ark and sacred vessels on their shoulders, while the other Levitical families received oxen to transport their loads. The Kohathites were not to approach the sacred objects until they had been covered, or touch them even afterward; Aaron's sons alone handled the objects in preparing them for transport, and this law explains why placing the ark on a cart and touching it were violations of God's instructions. The chapter establishes the Aaronic priesthood in the tribe of Levi for the dispensation before the Crucifixion, when serving as a priest from another tribe was a sin. This priesthood was age-lasting for its appointed period, until the type met its antitype in Christ.