The Levites were a separated people—God’s special possession. They took the place of all the first-born in Israel—of those who were saved from the sword of the destroyer by the blood of the lamb. They were, typically, a dead and risen people, set apart to God, and by Him presented as a gift to Aaron the high-priest, to do the service of the tabernacle.
What a place for the self-willed, fierce, and cruel Levi! What a triumph of grace! What an illustration of the efficacy of the blood of atonement and the water of purification! They were, by nature and by practice, far off from God; but the “blood” of atonement, and the “water” of cleansing, and the “razor” of self-judgment, had done their blessed work, and hence the Levites were in a condition to be presented as a gift to Aaron and to his sons, to be associated with them in the hallowed services of the tabernacle of the congregation.
In all this the Levites were a striking type of God’s people now. These latter have been lifted from the depths of their degradation and ruin as sinners. They are washed in the precious blood of Christ, purified by the application of the Word, and called to the exercise of habitual and rigid self-judgment. Thus are they fitted for that holy service to the which they are called. God has given them to His Son, in order that they may be His workers in this world. “Thine they were, and Thou gavest them Me.” Wondrous thought! To think that such as we could be thus spoken of! To think of our being God’s property and God’s gift to His Son! Well may we say it surpasses all human thought. It is not merely that we are saved from hell; that is true: it is not merely that we are pardoned, justified, and accepted; all this is true: but we are called to the high and holy work of bearing through this world the name, the testimony, the glory, of our Lord Jesus Christ. This is our work as true Levites. As men of war, we are called to fight; as priests, we are privileged to worship; but as Levites, we are responsible to serve, and our service is to carry through this dreary desert scene the Antitype of the tabernacle, and that tabernacle was the figure of Christ. This is our distinct line of service. To this we are called; to this we are set apart.
The reader will, we doubt not, notice, with interest, the fact that it is in this book of Numbers, and here alone, that we are furnished with all the precious and deeply instructive details respecting the Levites. In this we have a fresh illustration of the character of our book. It is from a wilderness stand-point that we get a full and proper view of God’s workers as well as of God’s warriors.
And now, let us examine, for a few moments, the service of the Levites, as detailed in Numbers iii. and iv.—“And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying, ‘Bring the tribe of Levi near, and present them before Aaron the priest, that they may minister unto him. And they shall keep his charge, and the charge of the whole congregation before the tabernacle of the congregation, to do the service of the tabernacle. And they shall keep all the instruments of the tabernacle of the congregation, and the charge of the children of Israel, to do the service of the tabernacle. And thou shalt give the Levites unto Aaron and to his sons: they are wholly given unto him out of the children of Israel.’” (Chap. iii. 5-9.)
The Levites represented the whole congregation of Israel, and acted on their behalf. This appears from the fact that the children of Israel laid their hands on the heads of the Levites, just as the Levites laid their hands on the heads of the sacrifices. (See chap. viii. 10.) The act of imposition expressed identification, so that, according to this, the Levites furnish a distinct view of the people of God in the wilderness. They present them to us as a company of earnest workers, and that, too, be it noted, not as mere desultory laborers, running to and fro, and doing each one what seemed right in his own eyes. Nothing of the sort. If the men of war had their pedigree to show, and their standard to adhere to, so had the Levites their centre to gather around and their work to do. All was as clear, distinct, and defined as God could make it; and moreover, all was under the immediate authority and direction of the high-priest.