Números 18
Matthew Henry · Citado em PreceptAustin
Números 18
Henry - “The preventing of sin is the preventing of wrath; and the mischief sin has done, should be a warning to us for the future, to watch against it both in ourselves and others.” Related Passages o the wrath of God... Nu 1:53 But the Levites shall camp around the tabernacle of the testimony, so that there will be no wrath on the congregation of the sons of Israel. So the Levites shall keep charge of the tabernacle of the testimony.” Nu 16:46 Moses said to Aaron, “Take your censer and put in it fire from the altar, and lay incense on it; then bring it quickly to the congregation and make atonement for them, for wrath has gone forth from the LORD, the plague has begun!” FSB - Approaching the sacred space of the tabernacle improperly brought judgment (Lev 10:6; Num 16:40). In Lev 10, Aaron’s sons offered incense improperly and were struck dead (Lev 10:6). In Num 16, Korah and the men with him offered incense when challenging the authority of Moses and Aaron. They were also struck dead (Nu 16:40). This statement is likely a reminder of those tragic examples of divine wrath aroused by not following proper procedures related to sacred space. Numbers 18:6 "Behold, I Myself have taken your fellow Levites from among the sons of Israel; they are a gift to you, dedicated to the LORD, to perform the service for the tent of meeting. BGT Numbers 18:6 καὶ ἐγὼ εἴληφα τοὺς ἀδελφοὺς ὑμῶν τοὺς Λευίτας ἐκ μέσου τῶν υἱῶν Ισραηλ δόμα δεδομένον κυρίῳ λειτουργεῖν τὰς λειτουργίας τῆς σκηνῆς τοῦ μαρτυρίου NET Numbers 18:6 I myself have chosen your brothers the Levites from among the Israelites. They are given to you as a gift from the LORD, to perform the duties of the tent of meeting. NLT Numbers 18:6 I myself have chosen your fellow Levites from among the Israelites to be your special assistants. They are a gift to you, dedicated to the LORD for service in the Tabernacle. ESV Numbers 18:6 And behold, I have taken your brothers the Levites from among the people of Israel. They are a gift to you, given to the LORD, to do the service of the tent of meeting. NIV Numbers 18:6 I myself have selected your fellow Levites from among the Israelites as a gift to you, dedicated to the LORD to do the work at the Tent of Meeting. KJV Numbers 18:6 And I, behold, I have taken your brethren the Levites from among the children of Israel: to you they are given as a gift for the LORD, to do the service of the tabernacle of the congregation. YLT Numbers 18:6 'And I, lo, I have taken your brethren the Levites from the midst of the sons of Israel; to you a gift they are given by Jehovah, to do the service of the tent of meeting; LXE Numbers 18:6 And I have taken your brethren the Levites out of the midst of the children of Israel, a present given to the Lord, to minister in the services of the tabernacle of witness. ASV Numbers 18:6 And I, behold, I have taken your brethren the Levites from among the children of Israel: to you they are a gift, given unto Jehovah, to do the service of the tent of meeting. CSB Numbers 18:6 Look, I have selected your fellow Levites from the Israelites as a gift for you, assigned by the LORD to work at the tent of meeting. NKJ Numbers 18:6 "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. NRS Numbers 18:6 It is I who now take your brother Levites from among the Israelites; they are now yours as a gift, dedicated to the LORD, to perform the service of the tent of meeting. I: Ge 6:17 9:9 Ex 14:17 31:6 Isa 48:15 51:12 Eze 34:11,20 I have: Nu 3:12,45 a gift: Nu 3:9 Nu 8:16-19 Numbers 18 Resources - Multiple Sermons and Commentaries Related Passages: Numbers 3:12, 41, 45+ “Now, behold, I have taken the Levites from among the sons of Israel instead of every firstborn, the first issue of the womb among the sons of Israel. So the Levites shall be Mine.(3:41) “You shall take the Levites for Me, I am the LORD, instead of all the firstborn among the sons of Israel, and the cattle of the Levites instead of all the firstborn among the cattle of the sons of Israel.” (3:45) “Take the Levites instead of all the firstborn among the sons of Israel and the cattle of the Levites. And the Levites shall be Mine; I am the LORD. YAHWEH'S GIFT TO THE PRIESTS Behold, I Myself have taken your fellow Levites from among the sons of Israel - This truth is repeated from Nu 3:12, 41, 45 (see passages above), Nu 8:6, 16, 18. The Levites were Yahweh's personal possession, but here He gives them to the Aaronic priests. Bush on fellow Levites (KJV - your brethren the Levites) - The Levites are here called (in KJV) “brethren,” that the priests might not be prompted to despise or disparage them by reason of the lesser duty in which they served. On the contrary, they were required to treat them with kindness and brotherly affection. Though directly assigned to you as servitors and assistants, yet let it not be overlooked that this gift is to redound ultimately to the Lord, to Whom you (Aaronic priests) are yourselves given as ministers. they are a gift to you , dedicated (given) to the LORD, to perform the service for the tent of meeting - Yahweh is speaking to Aaron but the you is plural referring to all the Aaronic priests. Notice in the Related Passages above the Levites were initially the possession of Yahweh. The LORD gives the Levites to the priests to assist them by serving on the perimeter of the sanctuary.
Números 18
Henry - “Not, ‘Ye shall rule;’ it was never intended that they should lord it over God’s heritage, but ‘Ye shall serve God and the congregation.’ Note, The priesthood is a service. ‘If any desire the office of a bishop, he desireth a good work.’ Ministers must remember that they are ministers, that is, servants; of whom it is required that they be humble, diligent, and faithful.” I am giving you the priesthood as a bestowed service - NLT = "I am giving you the priesthood as your special privilege of service" "That is, a service freely given you, and to be regarded as a favor and a privilege, imparting at the same time a corresponding duty and service. The priest’s office, viewed as a “gift,” was a privilege, and as a “service,” a work, according to the language of the apostle, 1 Tim. 3:1, “If a man desire the office of a bishop, he desireth a good work.”" (Bush) Bestowed (04979)(mattanah from mattan = a gift) means something bestowed as a gift and could refer to "compensation or for support (Gen. 25:6; Esth. 9:22; Ezek. 46:16, 17); as offerings, gifts, to the Lord (Ex. 28:38; Lev. 23:38; Num. 18:29; Ps. 68:18). Persons in Israel gave as they were able (Dt. 16:7). The Levites were called the Lord's gift to the priesthood (Num. 18:6, 7). This word has the sense of a bribe in the wisdom literature (Prov. 15:27; Eccl. 7:7). (Baker - Complete Word Study Dictionary – OT). Gilbrant - Used both literally and figuratively in idiomatic expressions, mattānāh is a feminine Hebrew noun which means "gift," "present." It is derived from nathan, "to give." It first occurs in Gen. 25:6. This describes the wisdom Abraham used in dividing his estate among all of his sons, not just to Isaac, his heir. "While he was still living, he gave gifts to the sons of his concubines and sent them away from his son Isaac to the land of the east" (NIV). In a way symbolic of the great High Priest, Jesus Christ, the sons of Aaron were to "bear the guilt of the gifts the Israelites consecrate" (Exo. 28:38). The types of gifts given to the Lord through the ministry of the priests are described in various texts (see Lev. 23:38; Num. 18:29). In a statement directed to Aaron, the Lord said, "I myself have selected your fellow Levites from among the Israelites as a gift to you, dedicated to the Lord to do the work at the Tent of Meeting" (Num. 18:6, NIV). Aaron and his sons were reminded always to thank Him for the service the Levites would render as fellow ministers. In perhaps an even more significant reminder, God said to Aaron, "I am giving you the service of the priesthood as a gift" (v. 8). The holy priesthood was a gift of God; it could not be bought, earned or attained by any human effort. In addition, this was a stern warning to any other tribe of Israel or individual who would aspire to the role of a priest. In several passages, the word mattānāh is understood to mean "a bribe." For example, Prov. 15:27 says, "He that is greedy of gain troubleth his own house; but he that hateth gifts shall live" (cf. Ecc. 7:7). In a passage repeated by the Apostle Paul in Eph. 4:8, the psalmist writes, "When you ascended on high, you led captives in your train; you received gifts from men" (Ps. 68:18, NIV). The NT passage reads, "... you gave gifts to men." In both texts, the ascent of the Messiah, having triumphed over death, hell and the grave, is in view. Both describe the totality of the victory of the Lord. The variation between the Testaments has been explained in a number of ways. Perhaps it may simply be stated as follows: that Jesus, the victorious champion, gave back to his Church that which He had received, namely, the spoils of the defeated foe, i.e., the souls of men. (Complete Biblical Library Hebrew-English Dictionary) Mattanah - 17x in 17v - bestowed(1), bribe(1), bribes(1), gift(3), gifts(10), give(1). Gen. 25:6; Exod. 28:38; Lev. 23:38; Num. 18:6; Num. 18:7; Num. 18:29; Deut. 16:17; 2 Chr. 21:3; Est. 9:22; Ps. 68:18; Prov. 15:27; Eccl. 7:7; Ezek. 20:26; Ezek. 20:31; Ezek. 20:39; Ezek. 46:16; Ezek. 46:17 but the outsider who comes near shall be put to death - This refers to native Israelites who are not of the seed of Aaron as well as aliens. The text does not say they were to put them to death, the implication being that Yahweh would bring about their demise, much like He did with Nadab and Abihu in Lev 10:1-2+. This passage makes it sound like no one could bring an offering to the Tabernacle, but that is clearly not the case. The issue is how did they come to the altar? Did they come with humility, sorrow for sin, etc or did they come with an attitude like the 250 men with censers in Numbers 17? Outsider (stranger) (02114)(zur) is a verb which means to be a stranger. Things described as strange (in this sense the verb seems to be used as an adjective) - fire, gods (Dt 32:16, Ps 44:20), waters (2Ki 19:24 = water in foreign lands), children ("illegitimate" - NAS, "alien" - ESV) Zur frequently refers to a layman (anyone not a priest. Lxx == allogenes = another race, alien, foreign, stranger) could not eat the meat apportioned to the priests (Ex 29:33, KJV = "stranger", cp Ex 30:33 , Lev 22:10, 12, 13, Nu 1:51, 3:10, 3:38, 16:40 all translated by Lxx with allogenes). David Stubbs has some excellent application to us in the New Testament writing "The great responsibility attached to priestly leadership within the people of God is not limited to ancient Israel. The admonition of James concerning leadership within the people of God is similar: “Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers and sisters, for you know that we who teach will be judged with greater strictness” (Jas. 3:1+). The task of priestly leaders to keep out those who would approach the holy things of God unworthily also resonates with Paul’s description of church leaders as “stewards of God’s mysteries” (1 Cor. 4:1). His instructions about church discipline and the Lord’s Supper (1 Cor 11:27–34) highlight that such stewardship involves discernment and discipline within the people of God—for their own good: “Examine yourselves.… For all who eat and drink without discerning the body, eat and drink judgment against themselves. For this reason many of you are weak and ill, and some have died” (11:29–30). " (Brazos Commentary - Numbers) Warren