Numbers 18
Big idea: The people have just asked whether nearness kills everyone. God answers by naming who carries the risk: you and your sons and your fathers' house with you shall bear the iniquity of the sanctuary. The priesthood is described as a gift and a liability at once — the Levites are given to Aaron as a gift, the priesthood itself is given as a gift, and both exist so that there be no more wrath on the children of Israel. Then the economics: since they have no land, they live from the offerings, the first fruits, the devoted things, the redemption of the firstborn, and the tithe. And to Aaron, the sentence that makes the whole arrangement a privilege rather than a deprivation: you shall have no inheritance in their land — I am your portion and your inheritance.
Chapter 18 secures the priests who handle holy things. Chapter 19 provides the remedy for the commonest uncleanness of all — contact with the dead.
18:1–7 — You shall bear the iniquity of the sanctuary
Yahweh says to Aaron: you and your sons and your fathers' house shall bear the iniquity of the sanctuary, and you and your sons shall bear the iniquity of your priesthood. Bring the tribe of Levi near to be joined to you and minister to you, but you and your sons shall be before the Tent of the Testimony. They keep your commands and the duty of the whole tent, but shall not come near the sanctuary vessels or the altar, that they not die — neither they nor you. You shall perform the duty of the sanctuary and of the altar, that there be no more wrath on the children of Israel. I myself have taken your brothers the Levites; they are a gift to you, dedicated to Yahweh. You and your sons shall keep your priesthood for everything of the altar and for that within the veil. I give you the service of the priesthood as a gift — and the stranger who comes near shall be put to death.
1 Yahweh said to Aaron, “You and your sons and your fathers’ house with you shall bear the iniquity of the sanctuary; and you and your sons with you shall bear the iniquity of your priesthood. 2 Bring your brothers also, the tribe of Levi, the tribe of your father, near with you, that they may be joined to you, and minister to you; but you and your sons with you shall be before the Tent of the Testimony. 3 They shall keep your commands and the duty of the whole Tent; only they shall not come near to the vessels of the sanctuary and to the altar, that they not die, neither they nor you. 4 They shall be joined to you and keep the responsibility of the Tent of Meeting, for all the service of the Tent. A stranger shall not come near to you. 5 “You shall perform the duty of the sanctuary and the duty of the altar, that there be no more wrath on the children of Israel. 6 Behold, I myself have taken your brothers the Levites from among the children of Israel. They are a gift to you, dedicated to Yahweh, to do the service of the Tent of Meeting. 7 You and your sons with you shall keep your priesthood for everything of the altar, and for that within the veil. You shall serve. I give you the service of the priesthood as a gift. The stranger who comes near shall be put to death.”
18:8–20 — I am your portion
I have given you the command of my wave offerings, all the holy things of Israel, as a portion forever. Of the most holy things from the fire — every meal offering, sin offering and trespass offering — every male may eat, in holiness. The wave offerings are yours and your sons' and daughters'; everyone clean in your house may eat. All the best of the oil, the vintage and the grain, the first fruits, the first-ripe fruits — yours. Everything devoted in Israel is yours; everything that opens the womb, of man and animal — though the firstborn of man and of unclean animals must be redeemed at five shekels from a month old. But the firstborn of cow, sheep and goat are not redeemed; they are holy, their blood sprinkled and their fat burned, and their meat is yours. All these are a portion forever — it is a covenant of salt forever. Then: you shall have no inheritance in their land, nor any portion among them. I am your portion and your inheritance among the children of Israel.
8 Yahweh spoke to Aaron, “Behold, I myself have given you the command of my wave offerings, even all the holy things of the children of Israel. I have given them to you by reason of the anointing, and to your sons, as a portion forever. 9 This shall be yours of the most holy things from the fire: every offering of theirs, even every meal offering of theirs, and every sin offering of theirs, and every trespass offering of theirs, which they shall give to me, shall be most holy for you and for your sons. 10 You shall eat of it like the most holy things. Every male shall eat of it. It shall be holy to you. 11 “This is yours, too: the wave offering of their gift, even all the wave offerings of the children of Israel. I have given them to you, and to your sons and to your daughters with you, as a portion forever. Everyone who is clean in your house shall eat of it. 12 “I have given to you all the best of the oil, all the best of the vintage, and of the grain, the first fruits of them which they give to Yahweh. 13 The first-ripe fruits of all that is in their land, which they bring to Yahweh, shall be yours. Everyone who is clean in your house shall eat of it. 14 “Everything devoted in Israel shall be yours. 15 Everything that opens the womb, of all flesh which they offer to Yahweh, both of man and animal, shall be yours. Nevertheless, you shall surely redeem the firstborn of man, and you shall redeem the firstborn of unclean animals. 16 You shall redeem those who are to be redeemed of them from a month old, according to your estimation, for five shekels of money, according to the shekel of the sanctuary, which weighs twenty gerahs. 17 “But you shall not redeem the firstborn of a cow, or the firstborn of a sheep, or the firstborn of a goat. They are holy. You shall sprinkle their blood on the altar, and shall burn their fat for an offering made by fire, for a pleasant aroma to Yahweh. 18 Their meat shall be yours, as the wave offering breast and as the right thigh, it shall be yours. 19 All the wave offerings of the holy things which the children of Israel offer to Yahweh, I have given you and your sons and your daughters with you, as a portion forever. It is a covenant of salt forever before Yahweh to you and to your offspring with you.” 20 Yahweh said to Aaron, “You shall have no inheritance in their land, neither shall you have any portion among them. I am your portion and your inheritance among the children of Israel.
18:21–32 — The tithe, and a tithe of the tithe
To the children of Levi I have given all the tithe in Israel for an inheritance, in return for their service. Henceforth Israel shall not come near the Tent of Meeting, lest they bear sin and die; the Levites shall do the service and bear their iniquity — a statute forever, and among Israel they shall have no inheritance. Then the Levites are addressed: when you take the tithe I have given you, offer up a wave offering of it for Yahweh, a tithe of the tithe. It shall be credited to you as though it were grain of the threshing floor. Give Yahweh's wave offering to Aaron the priest, out of all your gifts, of all its best parts. When you heave the best from it, the rest is credited to you as the increase of the threshing floor, and you may eat it anywhere, you and your households, for it is your reward in return for your service — and you shall bear no sin by reason of it, having heaved its best.
21 “To the children of Levi, behold, I have given all the tithe in Israel for an inheritance, in return for their service which they serve, even the service of the Tent of Meeting. 22 Henceforth the children of Israel shall not come near the Tent of Meeting, lest they bear sin, and die. 23 But the Levites shall do the service of the Tent of Meeting, and they shall bear their iniquity. It shall be a statute forever throughout your generations. Among the children of Israel, they shall have no inheritance. 24 For the tithe of the children of Israel, which they offer as a wave offering to Yahweh, I have given to the Levites for an inheritance. Therefore I have said to them, ‘Among the children of Israel they shall have no inheritance.’” 25 Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying, 26 “Moreover you shall speak to the Levites, and tell them, ‘When you take of the children of Israel the tithe which I have given you from them for your inheritance, then you shall offer up a wave offering of it for Yahweh, a tithe of the tithe. 27 Your wave offering shall be credited to you, as though it were the grain of the threshing floor, and as the fullness of the wine press. 28 Thus you also shall offer a wave offering to Yahweh of all your tithes, which you receive of the children of Israel; and of it you shall give Yahweh’s wave offering to Aaron the priest. 29 Out of all your gifts, you shall offer every wave offering to Yahweh, of all its best parts, even the holy part of it.’ 30 “Therefore you shall tell them, ‘When you heave its best from it, then it shall be credited to the Levites as the increase of the threshing floor, and as the increase of the wine press. 31 You may eat it anywhere, you and your households, for it is your reward in return for your service in the Tent of Meeting. 32 You shall bear no sin by reason of it, when you have heaved from it its best. You shall not profane the holy things of the children of Israel, that you not die.’”
Scripture text: World English Bible (public domain).