Week 50, Day 4: Respect
Today’s Reading: Numbers 4:1-49
Some thoughts from today’s reading…
In this chapter we have some more details given about the duties of the three families of the Levites. To serve the person was to be between the age of 30 and 50. What I want to point out is how Aaron and Moses are instructed to go in before the men of Kohath come in to move the articles from inside the tent. Aaron and Moses are to cover everything and insert the poles into those articles that were fashioned with such. Thus none of the Levites would be able to see or touch the items themselves. Verse 15 & 20 tells us that if they were to see the holy objects, even for a moment, they would die. What I gather from this is the respect these articles used in worship were to be regarded with. They were Holy and were not to be treated as common objects, no matter how curious someone might have been to see these. It also emphasizes to me how few people of Israel were able to see these things. Thus I believe this explains well why we have such detail recorded for us about what the tent and the objects looked like. So few would have ever seen these things other than through what was recorded.
Question: The number of Levites counted this time are 8,580. Last time I had asked about why all the males of Levi were numbered. What is the difference between the 22,000 counted in chapter 3 and the number counted here?
Week 50, Day 3: Duty of the Levites
Today’s Reading: Numbers 3:1-51
Some thoughts from today’s reading…
We have not posted for the past few days. I plan to pick up with the passage we last posted about and continue on instead of trying to cover those passages all at once. I appologize for any confusion that may cause to those of you who have been keeping up with the readings.
In Numbers 3 the Lord details the work of the Levites. Each of the three families of Levi had their own assigned duties. Gershon had the duty of taking care of the tent itself. They would have been the ones to move the tent and set it up again after moving during the wilderness. Kohath was to take care of the ark, table, lampstand, altars and utensils. Again they would care for these both during the moving and also concerning their use in the service. The family of Merari was to take care of all the bars, pillars, sockets and other equipment used in the tent construction. Remember how much weight we had talked about the gold, silver, bronze and wood would have weighed. These tasks required great care and effort.
Also, Moses was told to number the sons of Levi. Their were 22,000 sons of Levi, counting all their males one month old and upward.
Question: Why were the Levites now numbered instead of during the census of Israel? What purpose was served by numbering the Levites now?
Week 49, Day 4: Obedient in the Details
Today’s Reading: Numbers 2:1-34
Some thoughts from today’s reading…
One of the themes that resonates throughout the whole Bible is the need to be obedient to the details. In Numbers chapter 2, God gave the children of Israel instructions pertaining to their camping order. Surely they would be able to camp in whatever order they desired. Surely it would not be a big deal for them to decide that they could come up with a better, and more acceptable camping order than what had been revealed to them. Surely God didn’t mean that they had to camp just as He said; perhaps it was just a suggestion! In fact, God demanded that they be obedient right down to this detail. And, we can see that the children of Israel did just as they were commanded to do.
This is the same mentality that God requires of His people today as well. He requires that we heed every command that He has given, that we are obedient to Him. It is not our place to try and decide what must be obeyed, and what are just “suggestions.” We have no right to decide that we can come up with a better way. We cannot decide that we can simply do whatever we want, and think that God must accept it. If we are not obedient, then we are not the children of God, and will not be pleasing to Him. Far too often, Christians think that they are exempt from these biblical principles. If they don’t like the command, then they think they can change it. If they decide something is more important than obedience, then they think God will understand. God requires submission, which leads to obedience.
Question: Is there any situation in which it is acceptable to be disobedient? Does our own desires, or our personal relationships change our obligations to God’s commands?
Week 49, Day 3: Year Two
Today’s Reading: Numbers 1:1-54
Some thoughts from the reading..
The book of Numbers begins with the Lord speaking to Moses at Mount Sinai. It is now the beginning of the second year since Israel came up out of Egypt. The Lord commands a census be taken of all the men of Israel who are twenty years old and older. The Lord names twelve leaders, one from each tribe, to be a part of the census. Israel is numbered to have 603,550 men in it. Keep this number in mind as we follow Israel through their wilderness journey. You have a nation moving through a wilderness. This will not be a small endeavor to get them to their journey’s end. Surely from man’s perspective this would be an impossible thing to do. But as we have already seen, God is providing for and guiding them. Although the numbers are so great, God provides for them all they need to survive in the wilderness and come to their new home.
Question: Why do you think the Levites were exempt from the census? Which tribe now takes their place in the census?
Week 49, Day 2: The Blessings
Today’s Reading: Leviticus 26:1 – 27:34
Some thoughts from the reading..
Chapter 26 records again for us the blessings that God promised to Israel at Mount Sinai if they would be faithful to Him. In yesterday’s reading we were told that in the year before the Sabbath year, the seventh year in which the land was given rest, that God would cause the land to bring forth three times as much. It would be enough to feed them for that 6th year, the 7th year of rest and during the plowing time of the 8th year. I was impressed with this aspect that God would cause the ground to produce 3x as much as normal. And yet that is the kinds of things God promised to Israel if they were faithful. 26:6-9 gives some examples of these types of blessings. No harmful beasts in the land, no sword passing through, 5 men of Israel will put to flight 100 of their enemies men, 100 men of Israel will put to flight 10,000, an so God would be with them causing them to be fruitful and multiply. When Israel entered the land of Canaan we see these kinds of promises fulfilled. They won battles over stronger, more numerous people and yet they did not loose any in battle. Amazing blessings. God would reward them richly for being faithful.
Question: Are the blessings that God promises us more or less than such blessings given to Israel? In what ways are they different?
Week 49, Day 1: Capital Punishment
Today’s Reading: Leviticus 24:1 – 25:55
Some thoughts from the reading..
We will continue to read two chapters a day until we finish this week with Leviticus, then we will go back to one chapter a day for the book of Numbers.
There are several things in these chapters to be able to make comments on. I am going to choose to make a short note regarding a statement made in 24:17-22. In these verse it is stated that anyone who kills a man shall be put to death. Also, any man who injures his neighbor, the same will be done to him. You may not have thought about the justice that is taught in this requirement. First, life is precious and should not be taken. A person who murders another should not be excused because of how they were raised (making excuses for their conduct) nor should a person be able to escape punishment because they are rich or famous. Verse 22 says there will be one standard for you. Everyone will be held to the same standard, no favortism. We have this concept reflected in the concept of “lady justice” being blind folded. It doesn’t matter what you statis is, you get a fair trial and the punishment under the law of Moses was to be the same for all. Second, the punishment was to match the crime. If you punched out your neighbor’s tooth then your tooth was to be knocked out. I think that this form of justice is actually better than what we have today. Today you have someone rape another person and they spend 5 to 7 years sitting in a jailhouse. How can you equate sitting in a jailhouse to such a violent act against a person. An act that they will most likely never fully recover from. So in these statutes we find justice was to be delivered without preference to one over another and that the punishment was supposed to match the crime committed.
Question: Under the Law of Moses, what punishment did God command to be done to the man who kidnapped someone? Why do you thinkt he punishment was to be so severe?
Week 48, Day 5: Days to be observed
Today’s Reading: Leviticus 22:1 – 23:44
Some thoughts from the reading..
Chapter 23 lays out for us the festival days that Israel was to observe. I want to list a summary of what is mentioned in this chapter.
23:5-6 1st month at twilight on 14th day Passover
23:5-6 1st month, 15th day Feast of Unleavened bread – last for seven days
23:10 1st fruits of the harvest
23:15-16 Pentecost, new grain offering
23:24 7th month, 1st day Trumpets blown
23:27 7th month, 10th day Day of atonement
23:34 7th month, 15th day Feast of booth, after crops are gathered in (23:39) – last for seven days
These are the days that were to be observed by Israel.
Question: For Jews today, how can you live outside of Jerusalem and still observe these days according to God’s commands? For those Jews living in Jerusalem, how do they keep these commands without a temple to sacrifice in?
Week 48, Day 4: Priestly requirements
Today’s Reading: Leviticus 20:1 – 21:24
Some thoughts from the reading..
Among the many things mentioned in today’s reading, there is a limitation for who can serve as a priest before the Lord. 21:16-24 tells us that no descendant of Aaron who has a defect may not serve as a priest in the tabernacle. Along with wanting sacrifies that are without defect God required that those who served as priest before Him be without defect. I believe this to be a continuation of the aspect of the best is given to God. Those who did not have any defect in them, those who were without blemish.
Question: Why do you think that it would be important for those who serve as priest be without any blemish? What message do you think would be presented if just anyone served?
Week 48, Day 3: Immorality
Today’s Reading: Leviticus 18:1 – 19:37
Some thoughts from the reading..
Among the many things addressed in these two chapters there is a statement that refers to why the Canaanites were being expelled from the land before Israel. 18:24-25 mentions that all the nations being cast out before Israel had defiled themselves by the immoral practices mentioned earlier in the chapter. Among these practices were having sexual relations with animals. Because of such practices the land has “spewed out its inhabitants” (18:25). Some of the other practices mentioned are having intercourse with a neighbor’s wife, offerinng their children to Molech and also lying with a male as one does with a female. God tells Israel not to defile itself like these people have.
Question: Which of these practices do you hear of people defiling themselves by today? Do you think that God views these practices any differently now?
Week 48, Day 2: Atonement
Today’s Reading: Leviticus 16:1 – 17:16
Some thoughts from the reading..
Once a year the high priest was to go into the holy of holies and make atonement for Israel. Involved in this process is to make atonement for the holy place because of the impurities of Israel (16:16-16). The high priest shall make a sacrifice to atone for himself and his household (16:6, 11) before offering the sin sacrifice on behalf of Israel. After making the sacrifice for himself and for Israel he is to lay hands on the scapegoat (16:10, 21-22). The concept of placing their iniquities on the goat and sending it away is an interesting practice. This process was all to be done in the seventh month, on the tenth day, each year.
Question: Why would the high priest need to offer a separate sacrifice for his own sins before offering a sacrifice for Israel’s sins?