The Book of Numbers

Hebrew Study

Explanation

God tells Aaron that when he lights the lamps, "the seven lamps shall give light over against the candlestick," the light directed forward to shine out into the holy place. "And Aaron did so." The candlestick itself was a marvel, "of beaten gold, unto the shaft thereof, unto the flowers thereof, was beaten work," made "according unto the pattern which the LORD had shewed Moses." One piece of gold, hammered into a tree of light, exactly to the divine design. Its whole purpose was to shine: in a tent with no windows, the menorah was the only light, and Aaron's daily task was to keep it burning bright. The house of God was to be a place of light, and it was the priest's care to see that the light shone.

Gospel Focus

The golden lampstand points first to Christ, the true Light, and then to His people, who are to shine with His light. The seven lamps recall the "seven lamps of fire burning before the throne, which are the seven Spirits of God" (Revelation 4:5), the fullness of the Spirit by whom alone we shine. A lamp gives no light of its own; it shines only as it is lit and filled with oil, and so we shine only as the Spirit of God burns in us. And we are made to give light outward: "let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven" (Matthew 5:16). Consider too the beaten gold. The lamp's beauty came through hammering, one piece shaped by many blows, a picture of a people refined and formed through affliction into one vessel of light. God patiently beats and shapes us to His pattern, that His light may shine through us. Keep the lamp burning, full of the Spirit, and let it shine.

Hebrew Study

Explanation

Before the Levites could serve, they had to be cleansed. God commanded, "cleanse them": sprinkle "water of purifying" upon them, "let them shave all their flesh, and let them wash their clothes." Then, before the whole assembly, the people "put their hands upon the Levites," identifying with them as their representatives, and Aaron "offered the Levites before the LORD for an offering," a living wave offering. The Levites in turn laid their hands on the bullocks offered "to make an atonement for the Levites." Once more God explains: they were taken "instead of the firstborn," "wholly given unto me," to do the service and "to make an atonement for the children of Israel: that there be no plague... when the children of Israel come nigh unto the sanctuary." Cleansed, atoned for, and offered, "the Levites shall be mine," set apart wholly to God.

Gospel Focus

That the Levites were themselves offered to God as a living wave offering is one of the clearest Old Testament pictures of Christian consecration. Paul makes the very same appeal: "present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service" (Romans 12:1). Like the Levites, we are not merely those who bring gifts to God; we ourselves are the gift, our whole lives lifted up and presented to Him. Notice the order: cleansing came before service. They were washed before they were offered, for God's servants must be clean, "be ye clean, that bear the vessels of the LORD" (Isaiah 52:11). We too are cleansed before we serve, "such were some of you: but ye are washed" (1 Corinthians 6:11). And the Levites stood between the people and the sanctuary "that there be no plague," a mediating service that points to Christ, the one Mediator, through whom we may come near to God and not be consumed. Cleansed by His blood and offered as living sacrifices, we belong wholly to God for His service.

Hebrew Study

Explanation

God sets the term of Levite service. They entered "from twenty and five years old and upward" to "wait upon the service of the tabernacle," and at fifty they were to "cease waiting upon the service thereof, and shall serve no more." (The earlier count from thirty likely marked the age of full, heavy duty, with the years from twenty-five as a time of training and lighter help.) But retirement from the heavy labor was not idleness. The older Levites would still "minister with their brethren... to keep the charge," guarding and overseeing the sacred things, though they no longer bore the physical burden. There was a season for the strenuous carrying and a season for the settled keeping, and both were honorable service in the house of God.

Gospel Focus

God's provision for the seasons of service holds wisdom for every life. There is a time for the heavy lifting of active ministry, the years of strength poured out in labor. And there is a later season when the physical burden is laid down but the ministry is not: the older Levites still kept the charge, guarding the holy things and ministering with their brethren. This honors both the young worker in the strength of his years and the seasoned servant whose labor now is presence, prayer, oversight, and wisdom. God does not discard His aging servants; He gives them a different, still-vital charge. The Scripture holds up the fruitful older saint: "they shall still bring forth fruit in old age" (Psalm 92:14). If you are in your years of strength, spend them fully for God. And if the heavy labor is behind you, do not think your service is over; keep the charge, guard the truth, pray, and minister with your brethren. In every season, there is holy work to do.