Numbers 18:12
Ver. 12. All the best of the oil, and all the best of the wine, and of the wheat,.... Or the "fat" {i} of them; the fat of anything being the best, see De 32:14;the firstfruits of them: the oil, and wine, and wheat:which they shall offer unto the Lord, them have I given thee; this Jarchi calls the great heave offering, the firstfruits of their harvest and vintage, which being offered to the Lord, was given to the priests: the quantity is not fixed, but left to the generosity of the people, and was a free gift; liberal men would give a fortieth part, those of a meaner spirit a fiftieth, and niggardly ones a sixtieth, and less than that was not given See Gill on "Ex 22:29"; compare with this Eze 45:13.{i} blx "pinguedinem", Pagninus, Montanus, &c. Numbers 18:13Ver. 13. [And] whatsoever is first ripe in the land,.... Of any other sort of fruit, figs, pomegranates, apples, plums, pears, &c. besides olives and vines;which they shall bring unto the Lord, shall be thine; which they shall bring in a basket to the tabernacle, where it was, or to the temple, when built: this the priests were to have, see De 26:2;everyone that is clean in thine house shall eat of it;See Gill on "Nu 18:11". Numbers 18:14Ver. 14. Every thing devoted in Israel shall be thine. Fields, houses, cattle, &c. if absolutely devoted to the Lord, they were the priest's; but if devoted to certain uses, they were appropriated to those uses, as the repairs of the temple, &c. see Le 27:1. Numbers 18:15Ver. 15. Every thing that openeth the matrix in all flesh,.... The firstborn of every creature:which they bring unto the Lord; as they were obliged, he claiming it as his own, Ex 13:2;[whether it be] of men or beasts, shall be thine; every firstborn of either, being the Lord's, became the priest's by his gift:nevertheless, the firstborn of man shalt thou surely redeem; that is, take the redemption price for it, which was five shekels, as in Nu 18:16; for the original proprietor was, strictly speaking, the redeemer, and paid the money, and the priest was the receiver, to whom it was paid; see Ex 13:13;and the firstlings of unclean beasts shall thou redeem; with lambs, as an ass, which is put for unclean beasts, is ordered to be redeemed with a lamb, or its neck to be broken, Ex 13:13; the Africans, the shepherds among them, as Herodotus relates {k}, of their firstlings they cut off the ear of the beast and throw it over a house, and then turn its neck back, for they worship only the sun and moon; which seems to be an imitation of this law.{k} Melpomene, sive, l. 4. c. 188. Numbers 18:16Ver. 16. And those that are to be redeemed,.... Which is to be understood not of unclean beasts last mentioned, for they were redeemed with lambs and not with money; and after they were eight days and not a month old, as follows, Ex 13:13; but of the firstborn of men:from a month old shalt thou redeem, according to thine estimation: that is, take the redemption money next mentioned; and though both time and price are fixed, yet said to be according to the estimation of the priest; see Le 27:5;for the money of five shekels; which was about eleven or twelve shillings of our money, and is the price given for the redemption of the firstborn, when the Levites were taken in their stead, Nu 3:47;after the shekel of the sanctuary, which [is] twenty gerahs,See Gill on "Nu 3:47"; of the manner of redeeming the firstborn,See Gill on "Ex 13:15". Numbers 18:17Ver. 17. But the firstling of a cow, or the firstling of a sheep, or the firstling of a goat, thou shalt not redeem,.... That is, shalt not take the redemption price for them, but the creatures themselves; which they, the priests, were to take for their own use:they [are] holy; separated to the Lord, and therefore not to be used in common by men, but were sacred to the Lord, or became the property of his priests; see De 15:19; how they were to be made use of follows:thou shalt sprinkle their blood upon the altar; for they were to be sacrificed, and their blood used as in other sacrifices:and shalt burn their fat [for] an offering made by fire; for a sweet savour unto the Lord; as the fat of other sacrifices was, and particularly of the peace offerings, which were wholly eaten otherwise, Le 7:31. Numbers 18:18Ver. 18. And the flesh of them shall be thine,.... For him and his family to eat of, whether blemished or perfect the Jews say {l}:as the wave breast and as the right shoulder are thine: which were his part of the peace offerings, for him and his sons to eat of, Le 7:34; and the Jews observe {m}, that as the wave breast and heave shoulder of the peace offerings might be eaten in two days and one night, so might those of the firstlings.{l} Maimon. & Bartenora in Misn. Becorot, c. 4. sect. 2. & 5. 2. {m} Maimon. & Bartenora in Misn. Zebachim, c. 5. sect. 8. Numbers 18:19Ver. 19. All the heave offerings of the holy things,.... All before mentioned, and whatsoever comes under that name:which the children of Israel offer unto the Lord; either by his commandment, or of their own freewill;have I given thee, and thy sons, and thy daughters with thee, by a statute for ever: so providing for their maintenance by an irrepealable law as long as their priesthood lasted, even until the Messiah should come:it [is] a covenant of salt for ever before the Lord unto thee, and thy seed with thee: an incorruptible, inviolable, durable covenant, which should last for ever, even until the Gospel dispensation or world to come should take place; and it would remain ever before the Lord in his sight, who would take care it should never be made void, but stand fast with Aaron and his posterity as long as his priesthood endured. Numbers 18:20Ver. 20. And the Lord spake unto Aaron,.... What is said, being what concerned the tribe of Levi, at the head of which Aaron was, even concerning the maintenance of the Levites:thou shalt have no inheritance in their land; in the land of Israel when they come to possess it, as the rest of the tribes had:neither shalt thou have any part among them; any part of the land when it is divided by lot, as it was in the times of Joshua, when taken from the Canaanites; no tract of land was peculiarly assigned to them as were to the other tribes, as fields, nor vineyards; they had cities appointed them, and they had houses and fields devoted to the Lord which fell to them, and others they had by gift or legacy, or by purchase, as had Jeremiah the priest and Barnabas the Levite, Jer 32:9 Ac 4:36; but they had no share in the distribution of the land of Canaan at the time of the division of it among the tribes; no, not even in the spoil of the cities of the land of Canaan, when they were conquered; this Maimonides {n} says they were warned not to take; and a son of Levi that took any part of the spoil was to be beaten; but the spoil of other lands, subdued by the kings of Israel, they might take, as other Israelites did: the reason of all this was, because they had a sufficient provision made for them in another way, and that they might not be entangled in worldly affairs, or spend their time in the culture of fields and vineyards, but wholly give themselves to the service of God in his house:I [am] thy part and thine inheritance among the children of Israel; in things temporal, the offerings, tithes, firstfruits, &c. which were given to the Lord, being bestowed upon them; and in things spiritual, they being employed in the work and service of God, and having a peculiar nearness to him, and communion with him: so all that are made priests unto God, as all believers in Christ are, 1Pe 2:5, have God for their portion and inheritance; God, in his persons and in all his perfections, and under every character, as the God of nature, providence, and grace, is the portion of his people; and a rich, large, and satisfying portion he is, and which is inexhaustible, and will endure for ever; he is their portion in life and at death, in time and to all eternity; see Ps 73:26.{n} Hilchot Shemittah Veyobel, c. 13. sect. 10, 11. Numbers 18:21Ver. 21. And, behold, I have given the children of Levi all the tenth in Israel for an inheritance,.... The tenth part of the produce of the land; of the wheat, barley, oil, and wine; the tenth part of their harvest and vintage; so that though they were the least of the tribes, they had the greatest share of the increase of the land, and that without any labour or expense; the other having but nine parts among them all, and at the charge and labour of manuring, cultivating, &c. and this they were to havefor their service which they serve, even the service of the tabernacle of the congregation; see Nu 18:3. Numbers 18:22Ver. 22. Neither must the children of Israel henceforth come nigh the tabernacle of the congregation,.... To do any part of the priest's office, as to burn incense, as Korah and his company had done; or to do any part of the work of the Levites, by watching in the tabernacle, by taking it down and setting it up, and bearing the vessels of it; otherwise they might come to it, to bring their sacrifices, to pay their vows, and for their purification when necessary, and such like things:lest they bear sin and die; lest sin be charged upon them, and punishment be inflicted, even the punishment of death; for it was death to intrude into the priest's office. Numbers 18:23Ver. 23. But the Levites shall do the service of the tabernacle of the congregation,.... In guarding the tabernacle, that no unclean persons enter into it, or any others take anything out of it, and in assisting the priests in their service, and carrying the vessels of the sanctuary when required:and they shall bear their iniquity: that is, when they fail in the duty of their office, are not careful in their service and work, and business appointed them; if either they did not do their business themselves, or suffered others to do it, or such to come to the tabernacle who should not, they would be blameworthy and suffer for it:[it shall be] a statute for ever throughout your generations, that the children of Israel they have no inheritance; having such a plentiful provision made for them, by a statute as durable as this. Numbers 18:24Ver. 24. But the tithe of the children of Israel,.... The tenth of the produce of their land, as before:which they offer [as] an heave offering unto the Lord: by way of gratitude to him for giving them the land, and for making it so fruitful to them, and as an acknowledgment of his being the sovereign Lord and proprietor of it:I have given to the Levites to inherit; so that the Levites had the tithe not immediately from the Israelites, nor were they dependent on them for them; but they were first given to the Lord, and then by him to the Levites, who held them of him, and not of the Israelites; and were a portion and an inheritance, settled upon them by the Lord himself, which they had as good a right and title unto as the rest of the tribes had to their several inheritances:therefore have I said unto them, among the children, of Israel they shall have no inheritance; as in Nu 18:23. Numbers 18:25Ver. 25. And the Lord spake unto Moses,.... And not unto Aaron, because a tithe out of the tithe was to be given to Aaron, as Aben Ezra observes, and it was not so proper that he should have this order to deliver to the Levites, in which he and his sons were so much concerned, and therefore it was given to Moses to acquaint them of it:saying; as follows. Numbers 18:26Ver. 26. Thus speak unto the Levites, and say unto them,.... Aaron was to tell them what a provision would be made for them on account of their service, but Moses was to inform them what part Aaron was to have out of it:when ye take of the children of Israel the tithes which I have given you from them for your inheritance; which was done at the time of their harvest, and of the ingathering of the fruits of the earth:then ye shall offer up an heave offering of it for the Lord; in token of gratitude for the liberal provision he had made for the maintenance of them:[even] a tenth [part] of the tithe; a tenth part out of the tenth of the produce of the land of Israel. Numbers 18:27Ver. 27. And [this] your heave offering,.... The tithe of the tithe, which though not properly heaved or lifted up, as the heave offerings, strictly so called, were, any more than the tithe itself, Nu 18:24; yet is so called, because separated to the use and service of the Lord, as they were:shall be reckoned unto you, as though [it were] the corn of the threshingfloor, and as the fulness of the winepress; that is, it should be as acceptable to God as if they had fields and vineyards, threshing floors, and wine presses of their own, from whence corn and wine were taken, as the Israelites when they received their tithes from them; and what remained they had as good a right unto, and might make use of as their own, as well as they; see Nu 18:30. Numbers 18:28Ver. 28. Thus you also shall offer an heave offering unto the Lord,.... As the Israelites did when they paid tithes to them, Nu 18:24;of all your tithes which ye receive of the children of Israel; which heave offering was a tenth part of them:and ye shall give thereof the Lord's heave offering to Aaron the priest; that is, the said tenth part of the tithe was to be given not to Aaron only, as the high priest, as some have thought, and so to his successors in the high priesthood; but to him and his sons, even to all the priests in common, the high priest having his share of it; and Josephus {o} is clear for it, that the tithe of the annual fruits was paid to the Levites, and to the priests. Hecataeus, an Heathen writer, who lived in the times of Alexander the great, says {p}, that all the priests of the Jews received the tenth of whatsoever was produced, and ministered things in common, and were 1500 in number.{o} Antiqu. l. 4. c. 4. sect. 3. {p} Apud Joseph. contr. Apion. l. 1. sect. 22. Numbers 18:29Ver. 29. Out of all your gifts ye shall offer every heave offering of the Lord,.... Not only out of their tithes, but out of whatsoever gifts were given by the Israelites to them, and out of the produce of the fields which belonged to their cities, Nu 35:4; the Levites were to take a tenth, and bring it to the Lord as an heave offering; that is, they were to give it to the priests, to testify their gratitude for everything they had, and to sanctify the rest unto them, and confirm their right and title to it, and give them the free use of it:of all the best thereof, [even] the hallowed part thereof, out of it; which was the tenth part, for that Was holy, as Aben Ezra says, and that was to be the best of it, which was always to be given to the Lord. Numbers 18:30Ver. 30. Therefore thou shalt say unto them,.... The Targum of Jonathan is,"thou shalt say to them the priests;''but the words seem manifestly spoken to the Levites:when ye have heaved the best thereof from it; taken out the tenth part of it, and that the best:then it shall be counted unto the Levites as the increase of the threshing floor, and as the increase of the wine press; then what remains shall be reckoned as much their own, and may be as lawfully enjoyed, as the corn of the threshing floor, and the wine of the wine fat, of any Israelite whatever. Numbers 18:31Ver. 31. And ye shall eat it in every place,.... In any of their tents or dwelling houses, not being obliged to eat it in the tabernacle, where the priests, were obliged to eat many of their holy things, and second tithes were only to be eaten at Jerusalem, De 14:22; but the Levites might eat theirs any where, in any place, clean or unclean, according to Jarchi; for, he says, it might be eaten even in a graveyard; but Aben Ezra much better, in a clean place, be that where it would:ye, and your households; they and their wives, their sons and daughters, their servants, whether bought or hired; and they might sell it to strangers, to purchase other necessaries with. The Targum of Jonathan interprets this of the priests; but the Levites only are plainly spoken of:for it [is] your reward for your service in the tabernacle of the congregation; which is said to encourage them in their work, and animate them to it, as well as to clear their right to such a maintenance against all objections; for the labourer is worthy of his reward, as those that labour in the word and doctrine are of theirs, 1Ti 5:17. Numbers 18:32Ver. 32. And ye shall bear no sin by reason of it,.... Shall have no blame laid upon them, or guilt imputed to them, or punishment inflicted on them, on account of their having and enjoying their tithes and gifts:when ye have heaved from it the best of it; took out the tenth, and that the best, and given it to the priests; or otherwise they would be blameworthy, guilty, and liable to punishment:neither shall ye pollute the holy things of the children of Israel; the gifts they have given for holy uses, and so are holy; which would be the case if they ate of them, or enjoyed them, without giving the priests the tenth part of them:lest ye die; for it seems such a neglect was punishable with death.
John Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible.