The Dedication of the Levites to the Priests and to Yahweh (Numbers 3:5-13).
In the light of the shortage of priests the promotion of someone to act as assistants to them was inevitable. But it should be noted that the Levites had a limited main purpose. It was that of looking after the Dwellingplace and its contents on their travels. They were divine baggage boys. Such a stress could only have arisen during the wilderness period. It would otherwise have had no purpose. For once Israel were settled in the land and the Dwellingplace was permanently in one place this main task would be redundant.
That this occurred at an early date is especially confirmed by the fact that they were allotted nine tenths of the tithes. This could only have happened when their numbers were considerably in excess of those of the priesthood.
‘And Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying, “Bring the tribe of Levi near, and set them before Aaron the priest, that they may minister to him.” '
The tribe of Levi, Aaron's own tribe, were now called on to supply supplementary Sanctuary service. They were set before Aaron as his Sanctuary servants, to ‘minister to him' in his holy office. That is, they were available to do heavy work such as carrying, doing any work which did not require to be performed by a priest, and acting in general around the Sanctuary (but not within it except when the furniture had been packed) performing non-priestly functions.
“Bring near.” A religious term connected with the Sanctuary denoting the bringing of an offering to Yahweh. Thus the Levites were seen here as a kind of offering. They had replaced the firstborn sons of Israel as Yahweh's servants.
“ And they shall keep his charge, and the charge of the whole congregation, before the tent of meeting, to do the service of the tabernacle, and they shall keep all the furniture of the tent of meeting, and the charge of the children of Israel, to do the service of the tabernacle.”
They were to be looked to both by Aaron and by the congregation of Israel to fulfil their responsibilities towards the Tent of Meeting. One of those responsibilities was to guard the Tent of Meeting (compare Numbers 1:53) and to maintain the furniture of the Tent of Meeting. The guarding would involve all the furniture, for while they could not touch it (when they carried the furniture it was wrapped and borne on staves), they must guard it with their lives. The maintenance was probably only in respect of smaller items which could be brought out for the purpose. We are not told what limitations were put on this at this time.
‘And you shall give the Levites to Aaron and to his sons. They are wholly given to him on the behalf of the children of Israel.”
The Levites were ‘given to Aaron', that is were put entirely at the disposal of Aaron and his sons. For all their duties they looked to them. The lack of mention of wider duties is significant. At this time the major one was to be that of total responsibility for the Dwellingplace when travelling, and of guarding it from intrusion. Later their responsibilities would widen, for example with regard to the overseeing of tithes of corn, wheat and barley. They would also teach the people the general requirements of the Torah as instructed by the priests, especially as it related to such things. But that would only be fully necessary when they were finally in the land.
“ And you shall appoint Aaron and his sons, and they shall keep their priesthood, and the stranger who comes nigh shall be put to death.”
It is, however, made clear that the Levites were not to act as priests. The priesthood was to be retained within the close family of Aaron. They were to ‘keep their priesthood'. Only they could approach the altar, manipulate the blood of offerings and sacrifices, and enter the inner Sanctuary. They were the authoritative teachers of the covenant regulations, the discerners of what was clean and unclean (Leviticus 10:11; Deuteronomy 24:8). Any non-Aaronide who acted as a priest and drew near to the altar or the inner sanctuary for priestly service was to be put to death. How this sentence would be carried out, and by whom, is not described. Later, when priests were more numerous, it would clearly require checks on identification, and on ancestry and antecedents before such an execution took place (see Exodus 32:25-29; Numbers 25:7-12).
‘And Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying, “And I, behold, I have taken the Levites from among the children of Israel instead of all the first-born who open the womb among the children of Israel, and the Levites shall be mine, for all the first-born are mine. On the day that I smote all the first-born in the land of Egypt I hallowed to myself all the first-born in Israel, both man and beast. Mine they shall be. I am Yahweh.” '
The reason for the appointment of the Levites is given. They were to be a substitute for the firstborn sons of Israel whom Yahweh had made holy to Himself at the first Passover (Exodus 13:2). This refers to the ‘bechor', the first-born of the father. Thus in polygamous households there would still only be one firstborn. The ‘opening of the womb' probably signifies the opening of the ‘mother womb' of the family, that is, that of the leading wife, for the ‘first-born' is a title only applied to such (Numbers 1:20; Genesis 27:32; Genesis 35:23; Genesis 36:15; Genesis 38:6; Genesis 43:33; Genesis 49:3, in comparison with all Jacob's sons).
When Yahweh had slain all the first-born in Egypt He had made holy to Himself all the first-born in Israel, both man and beast (Exodus 13:2; Exodus 13:12; Exodus 13:15; Exodus 22:29; Exodus 34:19-20). It was to be their duty to serve Him in the ritual requirements of the cult. In the case of clean beasts this would be by being offered as an offering or sacrifice. In the case of men they could be ‘redeemed' from being ‘offered' by the slaughter of a clean beast in their place (Exodus 13:13; Exodus 13:15), but were then for ever to be available for the service of Yahweh. Those first-born alive at the original Passover were presumably seen as redeemed by the passover lamb, and they thereby became sanctified cult servants. But now the Levites were appointed to take their place.