“These are the ones counted by Moshe and El‘azar the cohen, who took a census of the people of Israel in the plains of Mo’av by the Yarden across from Yericho. But there was not a man among them who had also been included in the census of Moshe and Aharon the cohen when they enumerated the people of Israel in the Sinai Desert; because Adonai had said of them, “They will surely die in the desert.” So there was not left even one of them, except Kalev the son of Y’funeh and Y’hoshua the son of Nun.“-Numbers 26:63-65
Numbers 26 finishes up with an entirely separate census of the Levites and their clans.
There are two reasons why a separate census is taken for the Levites.
First, HASHEM no longer views them as being a part of Israel.
Second, they would NOT be given any land!
God Himself was to be their portion (I kinda like that thought!).
Instead of being given land, the Levites were given 48 cities scattered throughout the territories of the 12 tribes.
Take a look at the total figure in verse 62:
23,000 males.
Now compare that figure to the total numbers of the other tribes tallied up:
The descendants of Reuben: 43,730
The descendants of Simeon: 22,200
The descendants of Gad: 40,500
The descendants of Judah: 76,400
The descendants of Issachar: 64,300
The descendants of Zebulun: 60, 500
The descendants of Manasseh: 52,700
The descendants of Ephraim: 32,500
The descendants of Benjamin: 45, 600
The descendants of Dan: 64,400
The descendants of Asher: 53,400
The descendants of Naphtali: 45,400
Heck, only the tribe of Simeon at 22,200 is smaller than the total Levites figure of 23,000 males.
Ahh, but let’s not forget that the census done for the 12 tribes was for males from the age of 20 years up to around the age of 50.
However, the census conducted for the Levites was for ALL males one month or older.
So the figure 23,000 is actually quite deceiving.
The total population of the Levites was actually much, much smaller than it seems.
Why did the Levites and the Tribe of Simeon for that matter experience such a drastic decrease in numbers?
Well, recall that these 2nd and 3rd born sons of Jacob were the ones who led the horrible and ungodly raid of revenge upon the helpless male citizens of Shechem about 500 years earlier.
And then recall when Jacob was on his deathbed in Egypt pronouncing blessings upon his sons, this is what he pronounced upon Simeon and Levi.
“Simeon and Levi are brothers—
their swords are weapons of violence.
Let me not enter their council,
let me not join their assembly,
for they have killed men in their anger
and hamstrung oxen as they pleased.
Cursed be their anger, so fierce,
and their fury, so cruel!
I will scatter them in Jacob
and disperse them in Israel.”
-Genesis 49:5-7
What Jacob pronounced upon these two unruly sons of his turned out to be more of a curse than a blessing.
Amazing!
Right here at this very moment, the almost 5 century-old blessing was being realized at the very same time the 6-century old promise that God gave to Abraham concerning his descendants’ inheritance of the land of Canaan was coming about.
Holy jeep string cornstalks!!!
The Lord is indeed faithful!
Okay, let’s close up this chapter.
Numbers 26 actually ends on quite an inspiring note.
We are given the sobering reminder that all that remained of the males who were under 20 when Israel fled Egypt were Joshua and Caleb.
The other 600,000 men and their families ALL perished in the desert for their unfaithfulness and idolatry.
Why were Joshua and Caleb the only two men left standing?
Well, 38 years earlier, when Moses commissioned 12 men to scout out the Promised Land, upon the men’s return, Joshua and Caleb were the only ones who tried their best to persuade the people to hold on to God’s Promises and take the land.
Even though this event occurred 38 years earlier, the Lord remembered the faithfulness of these two men.
Did God pre-distine Joshua and Caleb the only survivors who left Egypt that entered the promise land.
Predistination – The scriptures mentioned that ‘ for those He foreknew etc in Romans 8. Does this not suggests the certainty of salvation for us in advance against the doom for some others on the other hand.
Shalom
I wouldn’t say God predestined that Joshua and Caleb would be the only survivors remaining from the first generation. But He foreknew. We still have our freewill, but HASHEM knowing in advance what we’re going to do, is able to work through and/or around our freewill to accomplish his purposes.