Numbers 8:2-12

2 "Speak to Aaron and say to him, 'When you mount the lamps, the seven lamps will ¹give light in the front of the lampstand.' "

3 Aaron therefore did so; he mounted its lamps at the front of the lampstand, just as the LORD had commanded Moses.

4 ²Now this was the workmanship of the lampstand, hammered work of gold; from its base to its flowers it was hammered work; ³according to the pattern which the LORD had showed Moses, so he made the lampstand.

Cleansing the Levites

5 Again the LORD spoke to Moses, saying,

6 "Take the Levites from among the sons of Israel and ⁴cleanse them.

7 "Thus you shall do to them, for their cleansing: sprinkle purifying ⁵water on them, and let them ⁶use a razor over their whole body and ⁷wash their clothes, and they will be clean.

8 "Then let them take a bull * * with ⁸its grain offering, fine flour mixed with oil; and a second bull you shall take for a sin offering.

9 "So ⁹you shall present the Levites before the tent of meeting. ¹⁰You shall also assemble the whole congregation of the sons of Israel,

10 and present the Levites before the LORD; and the sons of Israel ¹¹shall lay their hands on the Levites.

11 "Aaron then shall present the Levites before the LORD as a ¹²wave offering from the sons of Israel, that they may qualify to perform the service of the LORD.

12 "Now ¹³the Levites shall lay their hands on the heads of the bulls; then offer the one for a sin offering and the other for a burnt offering to the LORD, to make atonement for the Levites.

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Numbers 8:2-12 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO NUMBERS 8

In this chapter orders are given for the lighting the seven lamps of the candlestick, Nu 8:1-4; and for the consecration of the Levites to their office, by a purification of them, Nu 8:5-8; by a separation of them from the children of Israel, and the imposition of their hands on them, and of the hands of the Levites on the offerings offered for them, Nu 8:9-15; and being thus given to the Lord, and claimed as his, instead of the firstborn of Israel, they are given to Aaron and his sons to do service in the tabernacle, Nu 8:16-22; and their age at which they were to enter into service and cease from it is fixed, Nu 8:23-26.

Taken from John Gill's Exposition of the Bible

Cross References 13

1. Exodus 25:37; Leviticus 24:2, 4
2. Exodus 25:31-40
3. Ex 25:9, 31-40; Exodus 26:30; Exodus 37:17-24
4. Isaiah 52:11
5. Num 19:9, 13, 20
6. Leviticus 14:8, 9
7. Numbers 8:21
8. Leviticus 2:1; Numbers 15:8-10
9. Exodus 29:4; Exodus 40:12
10. Leviticus 8:3
11. Leviticus 1:4
12. Leviticus 7:30, 34
13. Exodus 29:10

Footnotes 10

[a]. Lit "raise up"
[b]. Lit "raised up"
[c]. Lit "this their cleansing"
[d]. Lit "water of sin"
[e]. Lit "cause to pass"
[f]. Lit "flesh"
[g]. Or "bull of the herd"
[h]. Or "bull of the herd"
[i]. Lit "wave," and so throughout the ch
[j]. Lit "be able"