Today we begin Numbers Chapter Three.
For the Complete Jewish Bible, click here.
For the King James Version, click here.
“These are the descendants of Aharon and Moshe as of the day when Adonai spoke with Moshe on Mount Sinai. The names of the sons of Aharon are: Nadav the firstborn, Avihu, El‘azar and Itamar. These were the names of the sons of Aharon the cohen, whom he anointed and ordained as cohanim.“-Numbers 3:1-3
Right off the bat, we are presented with a genealogy that starts off with Moses and Aaron.
However, when we go deeper we find that this is ONLY the genealogy of Aaron.
This is important because only those Levites from Aaron’s clan are eligible to become priests of Israel.
It’s a common misunderstanding that all the Levites were priests.
This is not the case.
The Levites outside of Aaron’s line were to support the priests but they were not priests themselves.
They were to serve as guardians of the Holy Sanctuary and workers who carried and maintained the ritual instruments, stoked the fires for the sacrifices and even led worship by playing music and singing psalms and so on.
However, the one thing the regular Levites did NOT do was officiate over the rituals and ceremonies as priests.
Those duties were reserved for those Levites of Aaron’s line only.
Keep in mind that Aaron’s clan was but one of many clans that made up the tribe of Levi.
What God did was take Aaron’s clan and ELECT, DIVIDE, AND SEPARATE it away from the other clans that comprised Levi.
In terms of HOLINESS, Aaron’s clan was elevated above the other clans within Levi.
Make sure you get this point firmly embedded in your cranium because not only is it key to understanding the social structure of ancient Israel, it is also key to understanding why certain things will unfold the way they do in the Scriptures.
Blood genealogies in the Bible are always VERY important.
Heck, why do you think the line of Messiah is so meticulously laid out for us in the Books of Matthew and Luke?
Here again, we see God’s chief principle of division, separation, and election being put into action.
First, God separated the people of Israel from the gentile world.
Then, He separated the Levites from all of Israel.
Finally, He separates Aaron from the rest of the Levites and gives them a special status.
The biggest spiritual takeaway I’m getting from today’s post is the futility of comparing oneself to others and feeling depressed and down about it because we perceive they are better than us.
Folks, as offensive as it is to our sensibilities, the Bible does NOT promote equality as the world promotes it.
God chooses and elevates certain groups and certain people for special tasks and then gives them the resources and talents to do His Will for the Kingdom.
If you’re feeling inferior because you’re not Jewish, or not married, or not over 6 feet tall or whatever, perish those thoughts because we’ve all (INCLUDING YOU!) been given our specially assigned roles from the Almighty.
The fastest way to deep fulfillment in this life is to accept how the Creator made you and keep on keeping on with the work He has given you.
I’m done!
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