Numbers 18

AND the LORD said unto Aaron, Thou, and thy sons, and thy fathers house with thee, shall bear the iniquity of the sanctuary (i. e.) Shall suffer the punishment of all the usurpations or pollutions of the Sanctuary or the holy things by the Levites or any of the people, because you have authority and power from me to keep them all within their bounds, and I expect you use it to that end. Thus the people are in good measure secured against their fears expressed Numb. 17. 12, 13. Also they are informed that Aarons high dignity was attended with great burdens, having not only his own but the peoples sins to answer for, and therefore, they had no such reason to envy him, as they might think, if the benefits and encumbrances and dangers were equally considered.: and thou and thy sons with thee, shall bear the iniquity of your priesthood (i. e.) Of all the errours committed by your selves or by you permitted in others in things belonging to your Priesthood..

And thy brethren also of the tribe of Levi, the tribe of thy father, bring thou with thee, that they may be joyned unto thee, and minister unto thee About sacrifices and offerings and other things, according to the rules and limits I have prescribed them. The Levites are said to minister to Aaron here, to the Church, Numb. 16. 9. and to God, Deut. 10. 8. They shall not contend with thee for superiority, as they have done, but they shall be subordinate and servants to thee., but thou and thy sons with thee shall minister Or, both to thee and to thy sons with thee: which translation may seem to be favoured by the following words, before the tabernacle, which was the proper place where the Levites ministred, whereas the Priests did minister to God both before and in the Tabernacle. Besides both the foregoing words and the two following verses do entirely speak of the ministry of the Levites, and the ministry of the Priests is distinctly spoken of ver. 5. before the tabernacle of witness.

And they shall keep thy charge (i. e.) That which thou shalt command them and commit unto them., and the charge of all the tabernacle (i. e.) Of the boards and hangings and utensils of the Tabernacle, to take them down and carry them and set them up again.: only they shall not come nigh the vessels of the sanctuary, and the altar Which therefore were to be covered by the Priests before the Levites might meddle with them., that neither they, nor ye They for presuming to touch them, and you for your negligence in not covering them well, or not looking to them. also die.

And they shall be joyned unto thee, and keep the charge of the tabernacle of the congregation, for all the service of the tabernacle: and a stranger shall not come nigh unto you.

And ye shall keep the charge of the sanctuary (i. e.) Of the holy, and of the most holy, place., and the charge of the altar, that there be no wrath any more upon the children of Israel For coming too near the holy place or for usurping any part of your sacred function, or for any other miscarriage which they may be guilty of through your carelessness or remissness, in which case they shall perish for their errour but their blood will I require at your hands, who should have advised them better or over-ruled them..

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 (i. e.) For the service of the Lord, to assist you therein, in the servile and troublesome parts of it., to do the service of the tabernacle of the congregation.

Therefore thou and thy sons with thee shall keep your priests office for every thing of the altar To wit, of burnt-offering, as appears from the following words., and within the vail This phrase elsewhere signifies the inward or second vail, but here it signifies either the outward vail only, or rather both the vails, the singular number being put for the plural, as when the altar is put for both the altars, as has been noted; and so this phrase comprehends both the holy and the most holy place., and ye shall serve: I have given your priests office unto you, as a service of gift As a gift which I have freely conferred upon you and upon you alone; and therefore let no man henceforth dare either to charge you with arrogance and usurpation in appropriating this to your selves, or to invade your office.: and the stranger that cometh nigh shall be put to death.

And the LORD spake unto Aaron, Rehold, I also nave given thee the charge of mine heave... offerings, of all the hallowed things of the children of Israel, unto thee have I given them Not only the charge of them, but the use of them for thy self and family, in such manner as I have elsewhere expressed. by reason of the anointing To wit, to the Priestly office, i. e. because thou art Priest, and art to devote thy self wholly to my service, which that thou maist perform more diligently and chearfully, I give thee this recompense., and to thy sons by an ordinance for ever.

This shall be thine of the most holy things Such as were to be eaten only by the Priests, and that in the Sanctuary. How these di... fer from the things, see on Levit. 6. 17., reserved from the fire (i. e.) Such sacrifices or such parts of sacrifices as were not burnt in the fire.: every oblation Which may be understood either 1. of the wave-loaves, Levit. 23. 17. and the shewbread, which were most holy things, Lev. 23. 20. and 24..... and which did belong to the Priest, nor was there any such oblation, besides what is here particularly expressed: the peace-offerings were not most holy, and the burnt-offerings were not the Priests. Or. 2. of oblations in general; and so the following particulars are mentioned by way of explication and restriction of that general word, to show what oblations are here meant, and to exclude peace-offerings and burnt-offerings. of theirs, every meat-offering of theirs, and every sin-offering of theirs, and every trespass-offering of theirs, which they shall render unto me By way of compensation for a trespass committed against me, in which case a ram was to be offered, Lev. 6. 2.-6. which was a most holy thing, and may be particularly designed here., shall be most holy for thee, and for thy sons Thou shalt esteem it as a most holy thing, and shalt use it accordingly, in manner following. Or, these are most holy, and therefore shall be for thee and for thy sons, to wit exclusively, none else may eat them..

In the most holy place To wit, in the court of the Priests, where there were places for this use. See Lev. 6. 16, 17, 26. and 7. 6. and 8. 31. and 14. 13. Neh. 13. 5, 9. Ezek. 42. 13. which is called the most holy place, not simply and absolutely, as the place within the vail was, but in respect of the thing he speaks of, because this was the most holy of all the places appointed for eating of holy things, whereof some might be eaten in any clean place in the camp, Lev. 10. 14. or in their own houses. And as the most holy place is sometimes called simply Holy so it is not strange if an holy place be called most holy, especially this place which was near to the altar of burnt-offerings, which is called most holy, and made all that touched it holy, Exod. 20. 3.... And God would have these things eaten by them in an holy place, as in Gods presence, that they might be obliged to the greater caution, and not to abuse Gods good creatures, and especially holy things, to intemperance, and that they might learn to eat this and their other food with thankfulness to God the giver of it, and with respect to his service and glory, which was afterward prescribed to Christians, 1 Cor. 1....... 1. 1 Tim. 4. 3. shalt thou eat it, every male And they only, whereas of peace-offerings the female might eat their share, Deut. 1.... 1.... shall eat it: it shall be holy unto thee.

And this is thine: the heave-offering (i. e.) The right-shoulder, which was the Priests. of their gift To wit, of their peace-offerings, as may appear because here is an enumeration of all that belonged to the Priest in the several oblations, and therefore it is not likely that he would omit the peace-of-ferings, wherein the Priest had a share, and the very share here spoken of and called an heave-offering, which was the right shoulder, Lev. 7. 32. which also might be eaten by the daughters, Lev. 7. 34. and 10. 14. as is here said. See Numb. 6. 17, &c., with all the wave-offerings To wit, the breasts of the peace-offerings, which were waved, Lev. 7. 30, 31, 34. of the children of Israel: I have given them unto thee, and to thy sons, and to thy daughters with thee (i. e.) Who are with thee in thy house, for if they were married to strangers, they might not eat of them, Lev. 22. 12, 13., by a statute for ever: every one that is clean in thy house e shall eat of it. d To wit, as fixed members of thy house, though they be bond-slaves: for strangers and hired servants were excepted, Lev. 22. 10, 11.

All the best Heb. the fat for the best: the fat of wheat is the best of it, Deut. 32. 14. Psal. 81. 16. and 147. 14. of the oil, and all the best of the wine, and of the wheat, the first fruits of them As well those which were offered in the name and behalf of the body of the people at the solemn feasts, Lev. 23, 10. 17. as those which were required of particular persons, Exod. 22. 29. and 23. 19. whereof the precise quantity is not determined but left free to the giver, as an exercise for his piety and charity, only they are enjoyned to give the first and the best of them. which they shall offer unto the LORD, them have I given thee.

And whatsoever is first ripe (i. e.) Not only the first-fruits of the oil and wine and wheat now mentioned, but all other first-fruits of all other grains, and all fruit-trees, &c. in the land, which they shall bring unto the LORD, shall be thine: every one that is clean And none else, because these were first offered to God, and by consequent given to the Priests, but for those which were directly and immediately given to the Priests, the clean and unclean might eat of them. in thine house, shall eat of it.

Every thing devoted Dedicated to God by vow or otherwise, provided it be such a thing as might be eaten or consumed by use: for the vessels or treasures of gold and silver which were devoted or dedicated by Ioshua, David, or others, were not the Priests, but were appropriated to the uses of the Temple. in Israel, shall be thine.

Every thing that openeth the matrix in all flesh, which they bring unto the LORD, whether it be of men Which were offered to God in his Temple, Exod. 13. 12. Luk. 2. 22. and to his service and disposal. or beasts, shall be thine: nevertheless, the first-born of man shalt thou surely redeem, and the firstling of unclean beasts shalt thou redeem.

And those that are to be redeemed To wit, of men only, not of unclean beasts last mentioned, as is manifest from the time and price of redemption here mentioned, both which agree to men, the time, Numb. 18. 16. the price Numb. 3. 46, 47. but neither agree to unclean beasts, which were to be redeemed with a sheep Exod. 13. 13. and that after it was 8 days old., from a month old shalt thou redeem, according to thine estimation This belongs, either 1. to the foregoing clause, to this purpose, that whereas women newly delivered of a child continued in their uncleanness either a longer or a shorter time, according to the quality of the birth as it was male or female, Levit. 12. 4, 5. and the temper of the mother, the Priest was to take that time when he judged the mother to be clean, that so the mother might be purified, and the child redeemed at the same time. Or rather 2. to the following clause, to wit, the price which was to be paid, as appears by comparing this place with Lev. 27. 2, 3. And both there and here it is said to be done according to the Priests estimation, though a certain rule be added to guide his estimation and a certain price set, because the Priest was to apply that general rule to each person, and to put that price upon him., for the money of five shekels, after the shekel of the sanctuary, which is twenty gerahs.

But the firstling of a cow, or the firstling of a sheep, or the firstling of a goat, thou shalt not redeem, they are holy To wit, in a peculiar manner, and higher degree than other beasts, consecrated to an holy use, even to be sacrificed unto God, and not to be redeemed, nor alienated to any other use. Compare Deut. 15. 19.: thou shalt sprinkle their blood upon the altar; and shalt burn their fat for an offering made by fire, for a sweet favour unto the LORD.

And the flesh All the flesh of them, and not only some parts, as in other sacrifices. of them shall be thine: as the wave-breast, and as the right shoulder are thine.

All the heave-offerings of the holy things, which the children of Israel offer unto the LORD, have I given thee, and thy sons, and thy daughters with thee, by a statute for ever: it is a covenant of salt (i. e.) A durable and perpetual covenant, so called here and 2 Chron. 13. 5. either, because salt is a sign of incorruption, as being of singular use to preserve things from corruption: or, because it is confirmed and ratified on their part by salt, which is therefore called the salt of the covenant, for which the Priests were obliged to take care, that it should never be lacking from any meat-offering, Levit. 2. 13. And this promise or priviledge conferred upon the Priests is called a covenant because it is given them conditionally, upon condition of their service, and care about the worship of God, and sacrifices, which were commonly accompanied with meat-offerings, and therefore with salt. for ever, before the LORD, unto thee, and to thy seed with thee.

And the LORD spake unto Aaron, Thou shalt have no inheritance in their land (i. e.) In the land of the children of Israel, mentioned ver. 19. You shall not have a distinct and separate portion of land, as the other tribes shall. The reason of this law was, partly because God would have them wholly devoted to and employed in his service, and therefore free from worldly encumbrances and businesses; partly because God had abundantly provided for them otherwise by tithes and first-fruits and oblations of all sorts; partly because God would have their worldly comfort and happiness depend singly upon him and his service, and so would oblige them to use more zeal and diligence in the advancement of piety, even for their own interest, which was either better or worse as true religion flourished or decayed. See Iudg. 17. 9, 10. and 19. 18. 2 Chron. 13. 9. and 30. 22. and 31. 4. partly that this might be a firm bond of hearty love and affection between the people and their teachers the Levites, who as they performed religious services for the people so they received their subsistence from them; and partly that by this means being dispersed among the several tribes, they might have the better opportunity for teaching and watching over the people, which was their duty, Deut. 33. 10. 2 Chron. 30, 22. Mal. 2. 4, 5, 6, 7., neither shalt thou have any part among them: I am thy part (i. e.) I have appointed thee a liberal maintenance out of my oblations., and thine inheritance among the children of Israel.

And behold, I have given the children of Levi all the tenth For the tithes were all given to the Levites, and out of their tithes the tenth was given to the Priests, here ver. 26, &c. and Neh. 10. 37, 38. in Israel, for an inheritance, for their service which they serve, eve... the service of the tabernacle of the congregation.

Neither must the children of Israel henceforth come nigh the tabernacle of the congregation (i. e.) So nigh as to do any act proper to the Priests or Levites., lest they bear sin, and die.

But the Levites shall do the service of the tabernacle of the congregation, and they shall bear their iniquity (i. e.) The punishment due not only for their own, but also for the peoples, miscarriage, if it be committed through their connivance or negligence. And this was the reason why the Priests withstood their King Uzzia... when he would have burnt incense to the Lord, 2. 26. 17, 18.: it shall be a statute for ever throughout their generations, that among the children of Israel they have no inheritance.

But the tithes of the children of Israel, which they offer as an heave-offering unto the LORD (i. e.) As a rent-charge or an acknowledgment that they have and hold all their lands and the fruits of it from Gods bounty. Note that the word heave-offering, which is for the most part understood of a particular kind of offerings heaved or lifted up to the Lord, is here used for any offering in general, as before, ver. 8., I have given to the Levites to inherit: therefore I have said unto them, Among the children of Israel they shall have no inheritance.

And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,

Thus speak unto the Levites, and say unto them, When ye take of the children of Israel the tithes, which I have given you from them for your inheritance: then ye shall offer up an heave-offering of it for the LORD, even a tenth part of the tithe.

And this your heave-offering shall be reckoned unto you, as though it were the corn of the threshing-floor It shall be accepted of you as much as if you offered it out of your own lands and labours., and as the fulness of the winepress.

Thus ye also shall offer an heave-offering unto the LORD, of all your tithes which ye receive of the children of Israel, and ye shall give thereof the LORDS heave-offering to Aaron the priest And to his children, which were one with him, and were all to have their share herein..

Out of all your gifts Not only out of your tithes, but out of the other gifts which you receive from the people, and out of those fields which shall belong to your cities. ye shall offer To wit, to the Priest. every heave-offering (i. e.) As many gifts so many heave-offerings, you shall reserve a part out of each of them for the Priest. of the LORD, of all the best thereof, even the hallowed part thereof This may describe either 1 the nature and proportion of this offering, and so peradventure he means the tenth part, which was the part or proportion that God hallowed or sanctified to himself as his proper portion, both here and elsewhere: or 2. the reason or ground of this offering, because it is a thing hallowed or appropriated by God to himself and given by him to the Priest, and because the payment of this due does hallow all the rest, so as they may use it with comfort and good conscience, as it follows ver. 31, 32. out of it.

Therefore thou shalt say unto them, When ye have heaved the best thereof from it, then it shall be counted unto the Levites, as the increase of the threshing floor, and as the increase of the wine-press.

And ye shall eat it in every place (i. e.) In every clean place, and not in the holy place only. ye, and your housholds: for it is your reward for your service in the tabernacle of the congregation.

And ye shall bear no sin by reason of it, when ye have heaved from it the best of it Implying, that if they neglected this duty, they sinned in the use of such unhallowed food.: neither shall ye pollute the holy things of the children of Israel As you will do, if you abuse their holy offerings, by reserving that intirely to your selves which they offer to God to be disposed as he has appointed, to wit, part to you, and part to the Priests., lest ye die.