Sunday, August 7, 2022

Numbers 3:21

Numbers 3:21 says, Of Gershon was the family of the Libnites, and the family of the Shimites: these are the families of the Gershonites.  Verse twenty-two adds, Those that were numbered of them, according to the number of all the males, from a month old and upward, even those that were numbered of them were seven thousand and five hundred.  In Gershons family which included the Libnites and the Shimites, there were seven thousand five hundred males over the age of one month.  Verse twenty-nine continues, The families of the Gershonites shall pitch behind the tabernacle westward.  The families of the Gershonites were to set up camp behind the tabernacle to the west side.  They would be between the tabernacle and the rest of the tribes of Israel.  We no longer have anyone between God and us but Jesus Christ.  Once we accept Him as our Savior and Lord, we do not have anyone who can stand between Him and us.  Verse twenty-four states, And the chief of the house of the father of the Gershonites shall be Eliasaph the son of Lael.  Eliasaph was to be the head of the tribe.  Verse twenty-five adds, And the charge of the sons of Gershon in the tabernacle of the congregation shall be the tabernacle, and the tent, the covering thereof, and the hanging for the door of the tabernacle of the congregation,  Verse twenty-six continues, And the hangings of the court, and the curtain for the door of the court, which is by the tabernacle, and by the altar round about, and the cords of it for all the service thereof.  They were to be responsible for setting up and taking down the tabernacle, and hanging of the inner curtains.  Verse twenty-seven says, And of Kohath was the family of the Amramites, and the family of the Izeharites, and the family of the Hebronites, and the family of the Uzzielites: these are the families of the Kohathites.  Verse twenty-eight adds, In the number of all the males, from a month old and upward, were eight thousand and six hundred, keeping the charge of the sanctuary.  The number of males from one month old in the house of Kohath, which included the Amramites, Izeharites, Hebronites, and Uzzielites, was eight thousand six hundred.  Verse twenty-nine states, The families of the sons of Kohath shall pitch on the side of the tabernacle westward.  Verse thirty adds, And the chief of the house of the father of the families of the Kohathites shall be Elizaphan the son of Uzziel.  Elizaphan was to be in charge of them, and they were to set up on the north west side of the tabernacle, again between the other tribes and the tabernacle.  Verse thirty-one continues, And their charge shall be the ark, and the table, and the candlestick, and the altars, and the vessels of the sanctuary wherewith they minister, and the hanging, and all the service thereof.  They were responsible for the ark of the covenant, and the implements associated with it.  It might seem that they either had a greater position of responsibility or one of less physical work, but they were simply a part of God's overall work, as are we today as followers of Christ.  Verse thirty-two concludes, And Eleazar the son of Aaron the priest shall be chief over the chief of the Levites, and have the oversight of them that keep the charge of the sanctuary.  Eleazar, Aaron's son, was to be over them, to ensure that they kept the charge of the sanctuary.  Today, Jesus Christ is our High Priest, Who will ensure that we worship God correctly, as long as we obey Him.  Verse thirty-three says, Merari was the family of the Mahlites, and the family of the Mushites: these are the families of Merari.  Verse thirty-four adds, And those that were numbered of them, according to the number of all the males, from a month old and upward, were six thousand and two hundred.  Verse thirty-five continues, And the chief of the house of the father of the families of Merari was Zuriel the son of Abihail: these shall pitch on the side of the tabernacle northward.  We are given the number in the house of Merari, six thousand two hundred, their captain Zuriel, and their position in relationship to the tabernacle,  which was northward.  Verse thirty-six states, And under the custody and charge of the sons of Merari shall be the boards of the tabernacle, and the bars thereof, and the pillars thereof, and the sockets thereof, and all the vessels thereof, and all that serveth thereto,   The family of Merari was to be responsible for the boards,  pillars, and vessels of the tabernacle.  All the families had to do their respective jobs in order for the tabernacle to move and be set up effectively, just as we as Christians today must work together to ensure that God's work is done effectively.  Verse thirty-seven adds, And the pillars of the court round about, and their sockets, and their pins, and their cords.  This is a continuation of what they were responsible for taking care of.  Verse thirty-eight says, But those that encamp before the tabernacle toward the east, even before the tabernacle of the congregation eastward, shall be Moses, and Aaron and his sons, keeping the charge of the sanctuary for the charge of the children of Israel; and the stranger that cometh nigh shall be put to death.  The children of Moses and Aaron were tto camp before the tabernacle to the east, and any stranger approaching the tabernacle was to be put to death.  We no longer have these restrictions.  Verse thirty-nine adds, All that were numbered of the Levites, which Moses and Aaron numbered at the commandment of the LORD, throughout their families, all the males from a month old and upward, were twenty and two thousand.  There were a total of twenty-two thousand Levites males over the age of one month.

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