Numbers 8

The Seven Lamps

1 Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying,

2 "Speak to Aaron, and say to him: 'When you are setting up the lamps, the seven lamps will give light in front of the face of the lampstand.'"

3 And Aaron did so; he set up the lampstand in front of the face of its lamps, just as Yahweh commanded Moses.

4 And this [is] {how the lampstand was made}, a hammered-work of gold; from its base up to its blossom, it [was] hammered-work according to the pattern that Yahweh showed Moses; so he made the lampstand.

Moses Consecrates the Levites

5 Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying,

6 "Take the Levites from the midst of the {Israelites} and purify them.

7 So you will do to them, to purify them: sprinkle on them waters of purification, and {they will shave their whole body} and wash their garments.

8 And they will take a {young bull} and its grain offering of finely milled flour mixed with oil, and you will take a second {young bull} as a sin offering.

9 You will bring the Levites {before} the tent of assembly, and you will summon the entire community of the {Israelites}.

10 And you will bring the Levites {before Yahweh}, and the {Israelites} will lay their hands on the Levites,

11 and {Aaron will offer} the Levites [as] a wave offering {before Yahweh} from the {Israelites}, and they will do the work of Yahweh.

12 And the Levites will lay their hands on the head of the one bull and offer [it] as a sin offering and the other one as a burnt offering to Yahweh, to make atonement for the Levites.

13 And you will present the Levites {before} Aaron and {before} his sons, and he {will offer} them [as] a wave offering to Yahweh.

14 "And you will separate the Levites from the midst of the {Israelites}, and the Levites will be for me.

15 And after this the Levites will come to serve [at] the tent of assembly, and you will purify them, and you {will offer} them [as] a wave offering.

16 For they [are] given to me exclusively from the midst of the {Israelites}. I have taken them for myself in place of [the] firstborn of every womb, every firstborn from the {Israelites}.

17 For every firstborn among the {Israelites} [is] mine, both humankind and animal. On the day I destroyed every firstborn in the land of Egypt I consecrated them to me,

18 and I have taken the Levites in the place of every firstborn among the {Israelites}.

19 And I have given the Levites; they are given to Aaron and his sons from the midst of the {Israelites} to do the work of the {Israelites} in the tent of the assembly and to make atonement for the {Israelites}, so a plague will not be among the {Israelites} when the {Israelites} come near the sanctuary."

20 And Moses and Aaron and the entire community of the {Israelites} did to the Levites; everything that Yahweh commanded Moses concerning the Levites, the {Israelites} did to them.

21 And the Levites purified themselves, and they washed their garments, and {Aaron offered them} [as] a wave offering {before Yahweh}; and Aaron made atonement for them to purify them.

22 After this the Levites came to do their work in the tent of assembly before Aaron and his sons. Just as Yahweh commanded Moses concerning the Levities, so they did to them.

23 Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying,

24 "This [is] what is for the Levites: {those twenty-five years old} and above will come to help [with the] service in the work of the tent of assembly;

25 and {those fifty years old} will return from the service of the work and will serve no longer.

26 They can attend their brothers in the tent of assembly to keep [their] responsibilities, but they will not do work. This is what you will do concerning the Levities and their responsibilities."

Numbers 8 Commentary

Chapter 8

The lamps of the sanctuary. (1-4) Consecration of the Levites, and their service. (5-26)

Verses 1-4 Aaron himself lighted the lamps, thus representing his Divine Master. The Scripture is a light shining in a dark place, ( 2 Peter. 1:19 ) the tabernacle, which had no window, would have been without the lamps. The work of ministers is to light these lamps, by expounding and applying the word of God. Jesus Christ is the only Light of our dark, sinful world; and by his atonement, by his word and the Holy Spirit, he diffuses light around.

Verses 5-26 Here we have directions for the solemn ordination of the Levites. All Israel must know that they took not this honour to themselves, but were called of God to it; nor was it enough that they were distinguished from others. All who are employed for God, must be dedicated to him, according to the employment. Christians must be baptized, ministers must be ordained; we must first give ourselves unto the Lord, and then our services. The Levites must be cleansed. They must be clean that bear the vessels of the Lord. Moses must sprinkle the water of purifying upon them. This signifies the application of the blood of Christ to our souls by faith, that we may be fit to serve the living God. God declares his acceptance of them. All who expect to share in the privileges of the tabernacle, must resolve to do the service of the tabernacle. As, on the one hand, none of God's creatures are his necessary servants, he needs not the service of any of them; so none are merely honorary servants, to do nothing. All whom God owns, he employs; angels themselves have their services.

Footnotes

• [a]. Literally "the work of the lampstand"
• [b]. Or "flower"
• [c]. Literally "sons/children of Israel"
• [d]. Literally "they will send a razor on all their body"
• [e]. Literally "a bull, a son of cattle"
• [f]. Literally "a bull, a son of cattle"
• [g]. Literally "in the presence of"
• [h]. Literally "sons/children of Israel"
• [i]. Literally "in the presence of Yahweh"
• [j]. Literally "sons/children of Israel"
• [k]. Literally "Aaron will wave"
• [l]. Literally "in the presence of Yahweh"
• [m]. Literally "sons/children of Israel"
• [n]. Literally "in the presence of"
• [o]. Literally "in the presence of"
• [p]. Literally "Aaron will wave"
• [q]. Literally "sons/children of Israel"
• [r]. Literally "Aaron will wave"
• [s]. Literally "sons/children of Israel"
• [t]. Literally "sons/children of Israel"
• [u]. Literally "sons/children of Israel"
• [v]. Literally "sons/children of Israel"
• [w]. Literally "sons/children of Israel"
• [x]. Literally "sons/children of Israel"
• [y]. Literally "sons/children of Israel"
• [z]. Literally "sons/children of Israel"
• [aa]. Literally "sons/children of Israel"
• [ab]. Literally "sons/children of Israel"
• [ac]. Literally "sons/children of Israel"
• [ad]. Literally "Aaron waved them"
• [ae]. Literally "in the presence of Yahweh"
• [af]. Literally "from a son of twenty-five years"
• [ag]. Hebrew "and he will"
• [ah]. Literally "from a son of fifty years"
• [ai]. Hebrew "he will"
• [aj]. Hebrew "he"
• [ak]. Or "assist"
• [al]. Hebrew "he"

Chapter Summary

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.