Numbers 18:1-7—1 Then the LORD said to Aaron: "You and your sons and your father's house with you shall bear the iniquity related to the sanctuary, and you and your sons with you shall bear the iniquity associated with your priesthood. 2 Also bring with you your brethren of the tribe of Levi, the tribe of your father, that they may be joined with you and serve you while you and your sons are with you before the tabernacle of witness. 3 They shall attend to your needs and all the needs of the tabernacle; but they shall not come near the articles of the sanctuary and the altar, lest they die—they and you also. 4 They shall be joined with you and attend to the needs of the tabernacle of meeting, for all the work of the tabernacle; but an outsider shall not come near you. 5 And you shall attend to the duties of the sanctuary and the duties of the altar, that there may be no more wrath on the children of Israel. 6 Behold, I Myself have taken your brethren the Levites from among the children of Israel; they are a gift to you, given by the LORD, to do the work of the tabernacle of meeting. 7 Therefore you and your sons with you shall attend to your priesthood for everything at the altar and behind the veil; and you shall serve. I give your priesthood to you as a gift for service, but the outsider who comes near shall be put to death."
We are still in this section from Numbers 16-18, and wrapping up the damage that was done by Korah, Dathan, Abiram and the other 250 men with them, who challenged God’s way of doing things, and who thought they knew a better way. So basically, the priests had to start all over again in making the Tabernacle and themselves right before God before they could perform their rites in making atonement for the people and their sins. “You and your sons and your father's house with you shall bear the iniquity related to the sanctuary.” How had the Tabernacle been defiled, seeing as how Korah and company would not even draw near it? By the golden censers, which had been held by the rebels. Because these were defiled, and even though they had been melted down, the gold was used as a covering for the altar to remind the people that it is God who makes the rules (Numbers 16:38-40). So they had to be purified, and atonement had to be made for them. Those who did not fear Him did not understand the awesome power and glory and majesty of God. They were even more ignorant than animals. Isaiah 1:3—The ox knows its owner and the donkey its master's crib; but Israel does not know, My people do not consider. Even the ox and donkey know that God is God, but Korah and company had forgotten their God and all the works that He had done for them. And they rebelled against Him, had taken up the consecrated incense censers and because these rebels had touched them, the censers were defiled and atonement had to be made for them. Even the censer used by Aaron, for his was one with the defiled censers, and was now impure.
“And you and your sons with you shall bear the iniquity associated with your priesthood.” Korah was a Levite, and thus was part of the priestly service. Because of his rebellion, all the priestly class were now defiled in the eyes of God, and the entire class had to be made pure because of his sin of defiance against God. The High Priest had to make this atonement, which is another reason God made Aaron’s rod to bud (Numbers 17), to show that he was the one to expiate their sins. He was the High Priest, the only one who could go into the Holy of Holies to make atonement for the priests. “Also bring with you your brethren of the tribe of Levi…They shall attend to your needs and all the needs of the tabernacle.” Besides the work of the High Priest in atoning for sin, there were other duties that had to be performed in the work of atonement. There being other miscellaneous deeds to be done, which if the High Priest performed them would run the risk of becoming defiled, these tasks were left to the Kohathites and Merarites. They would attend all the needs of the tabernacle, for example bringing in the animals for sacrifice, cutting them up and carrying out any offal or any part of the animal which was not to be placed on the altar.
But, God set limits for what these assistants could do and where they could and couldn’t go. “They shall not come near the articles of the sanctuary and the altar, lest they die—they and you also.” Yes, Aaron was in a high position. But with that high position came high responsibilities. He had to make sure that no one, not even another Levite, came near to the Holy of Holies. Because not only would that man die, having transgressed the command of God, but also Aaron, being over the work of the priests. Remember, this was a very delicate time in the people’s relationship with God. They had just had an open rebellion against God, and after the instigators were swallowed up by the earth, the people accused Moses and Aaron of killing Korah and company. Which led to God sending a plague which killed 14,700 people besides the original rebels. So the people, and the priests, had to tread lightly and do all that God said the way He said it should be done. Even Aaron was not immune to God’s wrath, so he made sure that everything was done the right way.
“And you shall attend to the duties of the sanctuary and the duties of the altar, that there may be no more wrath on the children of Israel.” God is love (1st John 4:8). Too many people think that He is only love. They do not like to think that He is a wrathful God. But He is. And Korah’s rebellion incited that wrath, and it still hung over the people. But God can control His wrath. Ever know someone that has an out-of-control temper? One who, once they get wound up, can’t control themselves, and they just go into a berserker rage? That is not God. God knows how to control His anger, and how to save the righteous while punishing the wicked. Matthew 25:31-32—31 “When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the holy angels with Him, then He will sit on the throne of His glory. 32 All the nations will be gathered before Him, and He will separate them one from another, as a shepherd divides his sheep from the goats.” He will take those who fed and clothed the poor and naked and welcome them into His kingdom, and will take those who ignored and oppressed the poor and hungry and cast them away from His presence. So even though His wrath hung over all the people, including the priests, He stayed it so that atonement could be made for the Tabernacle and the priesthood. “But what of the one who believes in Christ and lives a godly life for, say, fifteen or twenty years, and goes back to his old ways?” Jesus spoke of these people first in the parable of the sowers. God will let them grow for however long, and will judge them just as one who never believed. Matthew 15:26-30—“26 But when the grain had sprouted and produced a crop, then the tares also appeared. 27 So the servants of the owner came and said to him, 'Sir, did you not sow good seed in your field? How then does it have tares?' 28 He said to them, 'An enemy has done this.' The servants said to him, 'Do you want us then to go and gather them up?' 29 But he said, 'No, lest while you gather up the tares you also uproot the wheat with them. 30 Let both grow together until the harvest, and at the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, "First gather together the tares and bind them in bundles to burn them, but gather the wheat into my barn.'” These, even the ones who grew for fifteen or twenty years, were ones who were not planted by God. Matthew 15:13—“Every plant which My heavenly Father has not planted will be uprooted.” He will pluck out the ones whom He did not know, but will gather His elect into His barn.
“Behold, I Myself have taken your brethren the Levites from among the children of Israel; they are a gift to you, given by the LORD, to do the work of the tabernacle of meeting.” Here we see another picture of Election—Here, God is electing a certain family to give as a gift to the High Priest, for the ministry of the people to God. We now have a greater High Priest, One who is seated at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens (Hebrews 8:1), to whom the Father gives a people as a gift. And it doesn’t matter what family we descend from. We could be Levites, or Gadites, or Gentiles. Just as God chose the Levites as a gift to the High Priest Aaron, so now God chooses people as a gift to give to the Great High Priest Jesus Christ. This is a somewhat controversial position to hold these days, but I do believe it is correct. For anyone to believe, faith is a gift given to us, it is not something we do on our own (Ephesians 2:8-9). For we were dead in trespasses and sins (Ephesians 2:1), and could do nothing to effect any faith toward God. Why? Because there was nothing inside us that wanted God. So He had to choose some to be saved, and predestined them to believe. And just as the Levites had to be purified to be given to Aaron, so we too need to be purified to be given to our Great High Priest. Which is why Paul says in Romans 8:29—Whom He predestined, these He also called; whom He called, these He also justified; and whom He justified, these He also glorified. He took us out of the muck and mire we were trapped in because of our sin, washed us, gave us a new heart, wrote His Law on our hearts, gave us faith to believe, and gave them to Christ as a gift for what He did on the Cross. And although I believe this to be true, there are some who do not. And that is okay. When we stand before the Bema of Christ, He will not ask us “Do you believe in Election?” He will simply ask us if we believe, and when we say “Yes, I believe!” He will usher us into the Kingdom of God! What a joyous Day that will be!
“I give your priesthood to you as a gift for service, but the outsider who comes near shall be put to death.” If it wasn’t clear enough from what happened to Korah and the other rebels, God lets it be known here, in no uncertain terms, that only the family of the tribe of Levi shall come near to the Tabernacle. Earlier we saw that only certain members of certain families of the tribe of Levi could even touch the tools used in the priestly service, and if any member of a family not specified touched them they—and Aaron—would die. Here we see that if anyone of any tribe got too close to the Tabernacle, God would cut them down as well. Now, here we need to share the words of Peter, regarding our standing in Christ. He is our High Priest, but guess what? We are priests! 1st Peter 2:9—But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light. The Apostle is echoing the words God spoke to the people in Exodus 19:6. We are a gift to Christ, just as the Levites were a gift to Aaron! Imagine that! When your day is not going well, remember that you are a gift to Christ! Nothing could ever be better than that! And why are we called to be Christ’s? That you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light. So that we may show Christ to the world. That we may proclaim the God is God and Christ is Lord. Can you think of any greater calling in life? Being a doctor? Christ is the Great Physician. A lawyer? Christ is or Advocate and Mediator. No matter what profession you can imagine, being called to proclaim the name of Jesus Christ is far better than any!
“But look at
the text! The outsider shall be put to death!” That is why God chose and
purified us! So that He would not give His Son a defiled people, but a holy
people. And nothing can separate us from Christ (Romans 8:1, 38-39). God
the Father has given us to Christ as a gift, and He does not take returns. Once
you are in Christ, you cannot be taken out of Him! “But you can apostatize!
You can fall from grace!” Friend, if God would cast a person away who has
run to Jesus for salvation, then we could not call Him a faithful God. Besides,
if you try to walk away, Jesus will come and bring you back (Matthew
18:12-13). And if a person professes faith, for even a number of years, and
falls away, that person was never given to Christ by the Father. “If a son asks for bread from any father among you, will he
give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will he give him a serpent instead
of a fish?” (Luke 11:11). In this verse, Jesus is telling the
people about God giving good gifts to people. How much more will He give His
son even greater gifts! Will He give His Son a gift that He knows will be
defective? When God saves us, we are no longer outsiders, but rather brothers
and sisters in (and of) Christ. And we can go to the throne of our God at any
time. Hebrews 4:16—Let us therefore come
boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help
in time of need. Paul Kretzmann—
In all hours of trial and affliction, then, when we feel so sorely in need of some comfort that cannot be challenged and doubted, we have this fact to rely upon, that our High Priest has perfected a full and complete reconciliation, and that God no longer is angry with us, but will accept us with all the kindness of a fatherly heart and give to us all that we need for the enjoyment of eternal bliss in His presence. Thus both the assurance of pardon and of divine assistance is ours, and we may go on through life in the cheerfulness of faith, knowing that the rest of the Lord awaits us at the end of the course, when He takes us home.
We need an appointment to see a doctor, or mechanic or plumber. But we can go to God at any time, day or night, no matter where we are, and hold an audience with the great Creator and Lord. The One who is sovereign over all creation will always hear the prayers of His children. What a mighty God we serve!
Numbers 18:8-19 outline what things of the sacrifices belong to the priests, what was to be redeemed, etc. Before we pick up with verse 20, however, I do want to touch on a phrase in Numbers 18:19—“It is a covenant of salt forever before the LORD with you and your descendants with you.” Salt is mentioned frequently in Scripture. In Leviticus 2:13, God tells Moses that when a meat offering is made to Him, it must always contain salt, for salt not only adds flavor, but also preserves. When one is making a ham from a pig, how do they preserve it? By burying it in salt. If you’ve ever had country ham, you know that not only is it very salty, but it is also shelf stable, meaning it can be left out at room temperature for a long time without spoiling. That is because curing with salt removes many of the impurities that can cause the meat to spoil. In Leviticus, the salt was added to the offerings as a way to prevent them from spoiling in the harsh desert heat. But what of the “covenant of salt”? It was a sign that the covenant that God made with the people of Israel could not putrefy and spoil, and would be an everlasting covenant. It is as the covenant that Abijah reminded Jeroboam of in 2nd Chronicles 13:4-5—4 “Hear me, Jeroboam and all Israel: 5 Should you not know that the LORD God of Israel gave the dominion over Israel to David forever, to him and his sons, by a covenant of salt?” This too was an everlasting covenant, one which Jesus continues to fulfill, being the Son of David.
And what is that
salt? What is the salt that was added to Christ’s sacrifice to keep His kingdom
pure? It is we who believe. Jesus says, in Matthew 5:13—“You are the salt of the earth.” We are in Christ,
preserving His kingdom until His return, and keeping ourselves unspotted from
the world (James 1:27). “But what if a Christian falls away from the
faith?” Well, first, a true disciple of Christ cannot fall away from the
faith; a true Christian will be kept by our good and faithful God (Philippians
1:6; Hebrews 10:14). Those who claim to be Christians but are in fact false
converts, Jesus addresses at the end of Matthew 5:13—“But if the salt loses its flavor, how shall it be seasoned?
It is then good for nothing but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot by men.”
That salt is one that was impure from the beginning, and was not good for taste
or preservation. Adam Clarke shared an insight into the saltiness of salt, and
how salt can lose its saltiness, that I have always remembered:
That this is possible in the land of Judea, we have proof from Mr. [Henry] Maundrell, who, describing the Valley of Salt, speaks thus: “Along, on one side of the valley, toward Gibul, there is a small precipice about two men’s lengths, occasioned by the continual taking away of the salt; and, in this, you may see how the veins of it lie. I broke a piece of it, of which that part that was exposed to the rain, sun, and air, though it had the sparks and particles of salt, yet it had perfectly lost its savour: the inner part, which was connected to the rock, retained its savor, as I found by proof.”
“What does this mean?” Simply, that in order for us to retain our saltiness, we must remain close to the Rock that is Christ, to not go wandering near the tents of Korah and Dathan, to stay in the Word and to not stray from the Good Shepherd. Otherwise, we are “good for nothing but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot by men” and we will bring shame upon the Kingdom of God.
The first mention of
salt that is of great importance is in Genesis 19:26, when Lot’s wife is
turned into a pillar of salt for looking back at the demolished cities of Sodom
and Gomorrah. “Why was she turned into a pillar of salt?” Perhaps so
that Jesus would have an object to point the people to, as He did in Luke
17:32—“Remember Lot’s wife”. He is telling
the people to not look back fondly upon their former sinful selves, but to look
forward, with Christ, to the coming Kingdom of God. To put Jesus’s words in
context, Luke 17:31-33—31 “In that day, he who
is on the housetop, and his goods are in the house, let him not come down to
take them away. And likewise the one who is in the field, let him not turn
back. 32 Remember Lot's wife. 33 Whoever seeks to save his life will lose it,
and whoever loses his life will preserve it.” He is talking here of the
times of His return, and those who would rather hang on to the fleeting
pleasures of this life, rather than looking forward to Eternity in the presence
of Almighty God. When there are people telling Him that they will abandon all
to follow Him, He warns them in Luke 9:62—"No
one, having put his hand to the plow, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom
of God." In other words, “Do not mourn for your former days,
when you enjoyed the luxuries of the life, while neglecting God. Once you have
begun following Me, do not yearn for the former days, when you did what you
wanted without your conscience bothering you. Follow Me”. We should all
remember Lot’s wife, and the dire consequences that will overtake us when we
forget Him and look back at the pleasures of our former sins.
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