children. sons.
three thousand men. These 3,000 were the "men" slain by "the sons of Levi. "The 23,000 of 1 Corinthians 10:8 includes those who died of the "plague" which followed. See verse Exodus 32:35, below.
Related Commentaries of Exodus 32:28
Exodus 32:28
28 And the children of Levi did according to the word of Moses: and there fell of the people that day about three thousand men.