Numbers 3:7
in Numbers 3They are to perform duties for him and for the whole congregation before the Tent of Meeting, attending to the service of the tabernacle.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And they shall keep his charge, and the charge of the whole congregation before the tent of meeting, to do the service of the tabernacle.
KJV
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.
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This verse in Numbers 3
Commentary
7 notes on this verseOf the congregation - That is, of all the sacrifices and services which are due to the Lord from all the people, because the people might not perform them, in their own persons, therefore they were to be performed by some particular persons in their stead; formerly by the first-born, chap. viii, 16, and now by the Levites.
This site's exposition
And the Lord spake unto Moses
on Numbers 3:5-7
Bring the tribe of Levi near is sacrificial language. Clarke and Jamieson, Fausset and Brown both point out that the verb behind bring near is the word for presenting an offering at the altar, so the tribe is handed over rather than hired, and Numbers 8:11 later has Aaron wave the Levites before the Lord as an offering from the children of Israel. Verse 7 states their work in two directions at once, the charge of Aaron and the charge of the whole congregation, which makes them answerable upward and outward together.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
And they shall keep his charge, and the charge of the whole congregation,....
They were to keep, not only Aaron's charge, but the charge of the whole congregation. Note, It is a great trust that is reposed in ministers, not only for the glory of Christ, but for the good of his church; so that they must not only keep the charge of the great high priest, but must also be faithful to the souls of men, in trust for whom a dispensation is committed to them.
The Nineteenth Century3 voices
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
proposed
Bring the tribe of Levi near--The Hebrew word "bring near" is a sacrificial term, denoting the presentation of an offering to God; and the use of the word, therefore, in connection with the Levites, signifies that they were devoted as an offering to the sanctuary, no longer to be employed in any common offices.
The charge of the whole congregation - They shall work for the whole congregation; and instead of the first-born.
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
proposed
keep his charge - i. e. so assist him that the obligations incumbent on him and on the congregation may be fulfilled.
The words behind it
14 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וְשָׁמְר֣וּ | veshameru | and they will keep | H8104 → | 468 times |
| אֶת־ | ʾet- | <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| מִשְׁמַרְתּ֗וֹ | mishmarto | duty his | H4931 → | 78 times |
| וְאֶת־ | veet | and <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| מִשְׁמֶ֙רֶת֙ | mishmeret | [the] duty of | H4931 → | 78 times |
| כָּל־ | kol- | all | H3605 → | 5413 times |
| הָ֣עֵדָ֔ה | haedah | the congregation | H5712 → | 149 times |
| לִפְנֵ֖י | lifnei | <to> before | H6440 → | 2123 times |
| אֹ֣הֶל | ʾohel | [the] tent of | H168 → | 345 times |
| מוֹעֵ֑ד | moed | meeting | H4150 → | 223 times |
| לַעֲבֹ֖ד | laavod | by serving | H5647 → | 288 times |
| אֶת־ | ʾet- | <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| עֲבֹדַ֥ת | ʾavodat | [the] service of | H5656 → | 145 times |
| הַמִּשְׁכָּֽן׃ | hamishkan | the tabernacle | H4908 → | 139 times |
וְשָׁמְר֣וּand they will keep
veshameruH8104 →468 times
אֶת־<obj.>
ʾet-H853 →10935 times
מִשְׁמַרְתּ֗וֹduty his
mishmartoH4931 →78 times
וְאֶת־and <obj.>
veetH853 →10935 times
מִשְׁמֶ֙רֶת֙[the] duty of
mishmeretH4931 →78 times
כָּל־all
kol-H3605 →5413 times
הָ֣עֵדָ֔הthe congregation
haedahH5712 →149 times
לִפְנֵ֖י<to> before
lifneiH6440 →2123 times
אֹ֣הֶל[the] tent of
ʾohelH168 →345 times
מוֹעֵ֑דmeeting
moedH4150 →223 times
לַעֲבֹ֖דby serving
laavodH5647 →288 times
אֶת־<obj.>
ʾet-H853 →10935 times
עֲבֹדַ֥ת[the] service of
ʾavodatH5656 →145 times
הַמִּשְׁכָּֽן׃the tabernacle
hamishkanH4908 →139 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Numbers 1:50Instead, you are to appoint the Levites over the tabernacle of the Testimony, all its furnishings, and everything in it. They shall carry the tabernacle and all its articles, care for it, and camp…
it leads to
- Exodus 38:21
This is the inventory for the tabernacle, the tabernacle of the Testimony, as recorded at Moses’ command by the Levites under the direction of Ithamar son of Aaron the priest.
- Numbers 4:15
When Aaron and his sons have finished covering the holy objects and all their equipment, as soon as the camp is ready to move, the Kohathites shall come and do the carrying. But they…
- Exodus 31:18
When the LORD had finished speaking with Moses on Mount Sinai, He gave him the two tablets of the Testimony, tablets of stone inscribed by the finger of God.
- Nehemiah 13:10–13
I also learned that because the portions for the Levites had not been given to them, all the Levites and singers responsible for performing the service had gone back to their own fields.
- Exodus 38:21
Through
Numbers 8:15After you have cleansed them and presented them as a wave offering, they may come to serve at the Tent of Meeting.
it leads to
- Numbers 8:11
Aaron is to present the Levites before the LORD as a wave offering from the sons of Israel, so that they may perform the service of the LORD.
- Numbers 8:13
You are to have the Levites stand before Aaron and his sons and then present them before the LORD as a wave offering.
- Numbers 8:11
Through
Numbers 8:11Aaron is to present the Levites before the LORD as a wave offering from the sons of Israel, so that they may perform the service of the LORD.
it leads to
- Leviticus 7:30
With his own hands he is to bring the offerings made by fire to the LORD; he shall bring the fat, together with the breast, and wave the breast as a wave offering before…
- Leviticus 7:30
Through
1 Chronicles 26:20Now their fellow Levites were in charge of the treasuries of the house of God and the treasuries of the dedicated things.
it leads to
- 1 Chronicles 26:22
the sons of Jehieli, Zetham, and his brother Joel. They were in charge of the treasuries of the house of the LORD.
- 1 Chronicles 26:22
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies3
On this verse
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About Numbers
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.