Levites

“ Israel's forsaking God began with forsaking the Levites, which therefore they are warned against, Deut. xii. 19. It is a sign religion is going to decay when good ministers are neglected and at a loss for a livelihood. But, 2. It seems rather to have been his fault and folly, that he loved to wander, threw himself out where he was, and forfeited the respect of his friends, and, having a roving head, would go to seek his fortune, as we say. We cannot conceive that things had yet come to such a pass among them that a Levite should be poor, unless it was his own fault. ”

“ But concerning the Levites and the Scribes thou sayest right; for they truly have set their hearts upon their work: albeit zeal for the Law will not save Israel. If only the ritual be observed and the services in the Temple maintained, if the feasts be duly kept, they deem all things are well. They would have all men more Levite than themselves. But what answer is that to the young who crave for fortune, favour, and fulness of pleasures like the unbridled heathen? ”

“ Gen. xlix., the dispersion of the Levites among the tribes is characterized as a punishment and a curse. They are to be forever homeless and fugitive. Deuteronomy xxxiii. and elsewhere, it is described as a blessing. The Levites have been scattered as good seed over the land. They are the apostles, commissioned to propagate Jehovah's law.
Passing on to the second book of the Pentateuch, we pause before the account of the Revelation on Mount Sinai, beyond a doubt the most important event of Israel's ancient history. Exodus xxiv. 2, Moses alone is to approach the divine presence. ”

“ That each tribe might have the benefit of the Levites' dwelling among them, to teach them the good knowledge of the Lord; thus that light was diffused through all parts of the country, and none were left to sit in darkness, Deut. xxxiii. 10, They shall teach Jacob thy judgments. Jacob's curse on Levi's anger was, I will scatter them in Israel, Gen. xlix. 7. But that curse was turned into a blessing, and the Levites, by being thus scattered, were put into a capacity of doing so much the more good. It is a great mercy to a country to be replenished in all parts with faithful ministers. ”

“ After the priests in their white robes, with bare feet and uncovered heads, and the Levites at their side according to the king's commandment, had "killed the passover" and "sprinkled the blood from their hands," each Levite having first washed himself in the Temple laver, the part of the animal required for the burnt-offering was laid on the altar flames, and the remainder was cooked by the Levites for the people, either baked, roasted, or boiled. ”

“ If a Levite come out of any of thy cities or any place of Israel, where he is a sojourner, and come with all the lust of his heart unto the place which the LORD hath chosen: he shall there minister in the name of the LORD his God as all his brethren the Levites do which stond there before the LORD. And they shall have like portions to eat, beside that which cometh to him of the patrimony of his elders. When thou art come into the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee, see that thou learn not to do after the abominations of these nations. ”

“ The Levites shall have no inheritance, and yet they shall live very comfortably and plentifully—to teach us that Providence has various ways of supporting those that live in a dependence upon it; the fowls reap not, and yet are fed, the lilies spin not, and yet are clothed, the Levites have no inheritance in Israel, and yet live better than any other tribe. ”

“ They are to wash their garments and purify themselves. 8 Then they will take a young bull and its meal-offering of fine flour mixed with oil, and you will take another young bull for a sin-offering. 9 And you will bring the Levites in front of the Tent of Meeting, and convene the whole assembly of Israelites. 10 Bring the Levites before Yahweh, and the people of Israel will place their hands on the Levites. 11 Then Aaron will present the Levites as a wave-offering in front of Yahweh from the people of Israel, and they will work in the service of Yahweh. ”

“ The wandering Levite from Bethlehem-judah is one, we must believe, of many Levites, who having found no inheritance because the cities allotted to them were as yet unconquered spread themselves over the land seeking a livelihood, ready to fall in with any local customs of religion that offered them position and employment. ”

“ As long as we live we shall need their assistance, till we come to that world where ordinances will be superseded; and therefore as long as we live we must not forsake the Levites. The reason given (v. 12) is because the Levite has no part nor inheritance with you, so that he cannot grow rich by husbandry or trade; let him therefore share with you in the comfort of your riches. They must give the Levites their tithes and offerings, settled on them by the law, because they had no other maintenance. ”

“ Even though, at the former period, the Levites were more zealous in sanctifying themselves for the dedication of the temple, yet there must certainly have been many Levites in Judah, who, like many of the priests, did not immediately purify themselves from their defilement by the worship in the high places, and were only impelled and driven to sanctify themselves for the service of the Lord by the Zeal of the people who had come to Jerusalem to hold the passover. ”

“ The Levites who were brought up from the provinces to Jerusalem were allowed their proper share of the priestly dues, but were not permitted to officiate at the altar.225 It is not probable that a large number of the provincial Levites availed themselves of this grudging provision for their maintenance. In the idolatrous reaction which [pg 431] set in after the death of Josiah the worship of the high places was revived, and the great body of the Levites would naturally be favourable to the re-establishment of the old order of things with which their professional interests were identified. ”

“ The Levites are designated “those teaching all Israel, those holy to the Lord,” in reference to what is commanded them in the succeeding verses. The Keth. מבונים does not elsewhere occur, and must be regarded as a substantive: the teachers; but it is probably only an orthographical error for מבינים (Neh 8:7) , as the Keri demands here also. As to the fact, cf. 2Ch 17:8. The Levites had to teach the people in the law. Josiah said to them, “Set the ark in the house which Solomon did build; not is to you to bear upon the shoulder;” ”

“ They do not close their houses at night, for there is no thief nor any wicked man among them. Thus a little lad might go for days with his flock without fear of robbers, demons or danger of any other kind; they are, indeed, all holy and clean. These Levites busy themselves with the Law and with the commandments, and they still live in the holiness of our master, Moses ”

“ As for the other Levites, the tithes, here called the holy things, were duly set apart for them, out of which they paid the priests their tithe according to the law. Both are said to be sanctified; when what is contributed, either voluntarily or by law, for the support of religion and the maintenance of the ministry, is given with an eye to God and his honour, it is sanctified, and shall be accepted of him accordingly, and it will cause the blessing to rest on the house and all that is in it, Ezek. ”

“ Yet Moses remonstrated in a way that was fitted to move the Levites, and perhaps did touch some of them. They had been honoured by God in having a certain holy office assigned to them. Were they to renounce it in joining a revolt which would make the very priesthood they desired common to all the tribes? From Jehovah Himself the Levites had their commission. It was against Jehovah they were fighting; and how could they speed? They spoke of Aaron and his dignity. But what was Aaron? Only a servant of God and of [Pg 205] the people, a man who personally assumed no great airs. ”

“ At the same time, while we give full credit to this Levite for his action, we must not imagine that either priests or Levites or Jews at that period fully realized all the consequences of their decisions. We find that men at every age take steps blindly, without thoroughly realizing all the results which logically and necessarily flow forth from them. ”

“ The story of the Levites is one of controversy, some maintaining that Levi was the ancestor of the order and others denying that it originally was a tribe at all. The Levites were set apart for the temple service. ”

“ There was a blessing designed for the tribe of Levi; now says Moses, " Consecrate yourselves to the Lord, that you may qualify yourselves to receive the blessing." The Levites were to assist in the offering of sacrifice to God; and now they must begin with the offering of these sacrifices to the honour of divine justice. Those that are to minister about holy things must be not only sincere and serious, but warm and zealous, bold and courageous, for God and godliness. ”

“ Next to the priests, seventeen Levites subscribed this covenant, among whom we find all or most of those who were the mouth of the congregation in prayer, ch. ix. 4, 5. This showed that they themselves were affected with what they had said, and would not bind those burdens on others which they themselves declined to touch. Those that lead in prayer should lead in every other good work. 4. Next to the Levites, forty-four of the chief of the people gave it under their hands for themselves and all the rest, chiefly those whom they had influence upon, that they would keep God's commandments. ”

“ To the other tribes Yahweh had given His land, to them He had given Himself as a heritage; and though doubtless any unspiritual son of Levi must have thought the tangible advantages of a fertile farm more attractive than visionary nearness to God, the spiritual among the Levites must have felt that they had received the really good part, which no hostile invasion, [333] no oppression of the rich, could ever take away. Their ordinary life-work brought them more into contact with sacred things than others. ”

“ It is true that there were some Temple servants subordinate to the Levites—see note on the Nethinim, ix. 2. But the duty of the Levites was to perform the work of the Temple (as is said e.g. in verses 24, 28) , not to act as overseers of the work of others. It is therefore to be inferred that the “work” spoken of here and in verse 5 is not the routine duties of the Temple but the work of its construction. Adding the Levites of verse 4 to the officers, doorkeepers, and musicians of verse 5, we have a total of 38,000 overseers: that the number is incredibly large is no objection in Chronicles. ”

“ From the days of Josiah, it seems to have been customary for the Levites to take the place of the heads of families (Exo 12:6, etc.) in slaughtering the passover lambs for the whole community, both priesthood and laity: for the laity, that no person who was unclean might kill the paschal lamb; for the priests, that their labours might be lightened, the sprinkling of blood and the offering of sacrifices occupying them far into the night (2Ch 35:11, 2Ch 35:14-15) . And this custom was followed at this time also. The priests are called אחיהם, brethren of the Levites, as in 2Ch 29:34 ”