3:14-39
So the Levites were separated from the other tribes and we now get a bunch of details concerning the Levites. They were to be listed, but from one month old, rather than twenty years old. We then get details of the numbers in the various clans, and the duties they were assigned to. The total number of 22 000 is actually 300 less than the total obtained by adding up the individual clan numbers. The 22 000 could just have been a rounded figure, or the number of Kohathites could have been 8 300, rather than 8 600, and 8 600 is a copying error. Apparently the Hebrew 3 and 6 look very similar. In truth it doesn’t really matter that much.
31:40-51
We now get more details on God taking the Levite firstborn (including the firstborn cattle) instead of the firstborn of all of Israel. The Levites belonged to God. In 1 Cor 6:19,20 it reminds us that we are not our own, but bought at a price. Like the Levites, we belong to God. One Levite firstborn redeemed one non-Levite firstborn. This left 273 non-Levites, so these were bought for 5 shekels. We might think this is a piddling detail of no importance, but what it does show is that the price Christ paid on the cross to redeem us has been paid in full.
No comments:
Post a Comment