Bible Commentaries
Numbers 1

Verses 1-49

II

INTRODUCTION

Numbers 1-4

We now commence the introduction to the book of Numbers. The first thing is the name. In the Hebrew there are two names. One takes the first word and the other takes the first most important word. In the Septuagint the name is Arithmoi; in the Vulgate, Numeri, both meaning the same as our word Numbers. These names are derived from the numbering recorded in Numbers 1 and the second numbering thirty-eight years later in Numbers 26; the first, prior to the first start on the great march, and the second, at the second start.

Next is the period of time covered by the book of Numbers. We will notice the following points: Numbers 1:1, "Second year, second month, first day." One year and one month after leaving Rameses in Egypt, they leave Sinai. You have another date, viz.: The death of Aaron, Numbers 20:22; Numbers 33:38. Aaron’s death is in the fortieth year, and fifth month, the first day, from the time they left Egypt and thirty-ninth year from the time they left Sinai.

Next, Deuteronomy I, which commences the fortieth year and the eleventh month, making exactly six months after Aaron’s death before Deuteronomy commences. If you add these periods together, they make thirty-eight years and nine months. It takes them a little over a year at Sinai and then nearly thirty-nine years to close up this book. Deuteronomy occupies not over a month, bringing us to the death of Moses forty years from the time they left Egypt. I will give you a brief outline and then a more extended outline of this book. The brief outline consists of only four points:

1. Preparation for the march, extending from Numbers 1:1-10:10. The preparation will include not only the census and some legislation which follows it, but also some other things necessary to the start.

2. The march from Sinai to Kadesh-barnea, close to the border of the Holy Land Numbers 10:11-14 a brief period of time. They had only three stopping places of any length, recorded again in Numbers 33. That chapter gives the entire itinerary, or order of the march, from the day they left Rameses in Egypt to the time they reached the Jordan River.

3. Period of aimless wandering, Numbers 15, 19, the longest part of the book of Moses as to time, including the wanderings and the legislation during that time. It covers more space than any other part.

4. From Kadesh-barnea to the camp opposite Jericho and the events on the plains of Moab Numbers 20-36. In this book are some of the most interesting incidents in the history of the Jewish people, some of the most thrilling themes for the preacher, new laws of a particular kind, especially concerning those about the red heifer, which have a deep significance in the New Testament. In this book you have an account of the sins committed by the people that excluded every grown man from entering the Promised Land with the exception of two, including the special sin of Moses and Aaron.

Now follows the more elaborate analysis:

Sec. I. Preparation for the great march (Numbers 1-4). In these chapters we have the first census, the order in which the tribes shall camp and march, the special numbering of the firstborn and the exchange of the firstborn males of all the people for the tribe of Levi, the special duties that the Levites are to perform and their order of march.

Sec. II. Some legislation (Numbers 5-6), divided into five parts:

(1) The exclusion of the unclean; (2) the law of recompense and of offerings; (3) the trial of jealousy, a strange and horrible thing (I imagine it would scare any woman to death to be put to that test) ; (4) the Nazarite vow; (5) the words that the priest shall use in his benediction, one of the most beautiful benedictions.

Sec. III. Further preparation for the march (Numbers 7:1-10:10), consisting of the following items: Offerings of the princes at the dedication, the voice in the sanctuary, the lamps lighted in the tabernacle, the consecration of the Levites, the second passover and the supplemental passover, the cloud on the tabernacle, and the silver trumpet for governing the march. So the preparation consists of two parts between which comes that special legislation, and so these three sections correspond to the first part of the short outline.

Sec. IV. (Which corresponds to the second in the short outline.) The march from Sinai to Kadesh-barnea, with the following incidents (Numbers 10:11-14:45): The start and the order of the march, the invitation to Hobab, the journey, sin and chastisement at Kibroth, the sedition of Miriam and Aaron and the sending of the spies and the rejection of the people. That ends that probation. They had violated the covenant. They have to make a new start. In answer to the prayer of Moses God gives them another probation, on the condition that every grown man that left Egypt shall perish and that they must wander until that generation has died. The period of that wandering is divided into the three following sections:

Sec. V. Numbers 15 only: Legislation on offerings, firstfruits, trespass offering, the presumptuous sin, with the incident of the sabbath breaker and the law of fringes.

Sec. VI. Numbers 16-17. An account of the rebellion of Korah and his confederates against the Aaronic priesthood, and the memorial that follows.

Sec. VII. Further legislation, charge and emoluments of priest, the law of the red heifer and the pollution of death Numbers 18-19). All of the other sections will come in the fourth item of the short outline.

Sec. VIII. This includes the water of Menbah, the brazen serpent, the last marches and the first victories.

Sec. IX. Numbers 22-24. The coming of Balaam and the prophecies of Balaam.

Sec. X. Gives an account of the events that took place on the plains of Moab on the banks of the Jordan (Numbers 25-27). Those events were as follows. The second census of Israel, with a view to allotment of land, the petition of Zelophehad’s daughters and finally the supersession of Moses by Joshua.

Sec. XI. Further legislation. The annual routine of sacrifices Numbers 28-29. The thirtieth chapter tells us about vows like that last section of Leviticus giving us the exception of vows made by women.

Sec. XII. Further events in the plains of Moab, (Numbers 31-32) extirpation of Midian and the settlement of the tribes east of the Jordan.

Sec. XIII. Numbers 33:1-49. The great itinerary, showing every stopping place of any length from the time they left Egypt to the river Jordan – a remarkable historical document.

Sec. XIV. Numbers 33:50, to the end of the book, Final instruction with a view to the conquest of Canaan, as follows: Clearance of the Holy Land, boundaries of the Holy Land, allotment of the Holy Land, reservation of cities for the Levites, cities of refuge and the law of homicides, law of the marriage of heiresses, which relates back to Zeiophehad’s daughters.

Just here you need to read Trumbull’s Kadesh-Barnea. The central place of the book of Numbers is Kadesh-bamea. This is the great camping place they reached after they left Sinai and just before they made their attempt to enter the Holy Land. There occurred the sin of the people, the rejection of the report of the spies, the condemnation to wander thirty eight years, revolving around Kadesh-barnea. Hence explorers have tried harder to locate Kadesh-barnea than any other one place except Sinai.

The census discussed in the first chapter is dated the second year, second month and first day, after they left Egypt. The second census was with reference to the allotment, for they expected in a few days to get to the Holy Land. Of course when they forfeited their right and all those men died of the first census, they had to take a new census, and that is why the name of the book is plural. The census applies to eleven of the tribes, Levi not included, and takes account of the males from twenty years upwards who are able to go to war. That census amounted to 603,550. They took the census of Levi separately and took it twice. First, every male in the tribe of Levi, from one month old up, amounted to 22,000, which was less than any other tribe had from twenty years old up, showing that the tribe of Levi was by all odds the smallest of the tribes. When they took the next census of Levi, they took it of the men from thirty to fifty, to get the men capable of service around the sanctuary. That census amounted to 8,580 males. It seems to me that if there were 8,580 from thirty to fifty, there ought to have been more than 22,000 from one month up.

The next item is the order of camp. The enclosure around the tabernacle faced the east. The whole tribe of Levi, including Moses and Aaron, would occupy the space around the tabernacle just outside of the enclosure. Then on the east of them were Judah, Issachar, Zebulun, Judah carrying the banner and leading off. On the west, the tribes descended from Rachel: Benjamin, Ephraim and Manasseh, Ephraim carrying the banner. The other six tribes occupied the north and south sides. Whenever the pillar of cloud would stop, the Levites would advance and set up the tabernacle just beneath it. I got my first ideas of real organization from the book of Numbers. Moses was a great general, tactician, and strategist. He had commanded the armies of Egypt and knew that one could not move three millions of people without interminable confusion if there was not organization to the smallest detail. All of these details are set forth in the second chapter so far as the tribes are concerned.

The only other item apart from the numbering of the Levites, which I have already given you, is the special direction to number them so that an exchange could be made. All the males of the firstborn belonged to God. When they took the list of all the firstborn of the eleven tribes, they amounted to 22,273, whereas the males from one month old up in Levi, amounted to 22,000. To make the exchange complete, so as to take the tribe of Levi over instead of the firstborn of all the tribes, a compensation had to be paid for the surplus. Levi lacked 273 of coming up to the measure. That compensation was paid to the children of Levi, five shekels for each one of the 273. That covers the third and fourth chapters.

QUESTIONS

1. Give origin of the name "Numbers."

2. What period of time is covered by the book? (Work out answer from dates given in book.)

3. Give a brief outline of the book.

4. Give a more elaborate analysis of the book.

5. What is the central place of the book of Numbers, and why locate it.

6. Why is the name of the book plural?

7. Why more than one census?

8. Give result of the first census of the twelve secular tribes, comparing it with the second census many years later.

9. Why a separate census of Levi?

10. Why double census of Levi, first, from one month old upward, and second, from thirty years old to fifty?

11. How was the exchange of the firstborn males of Israel for the tribe of Levi made?

12. Describe the order of the entire encampment. (See your Atlas.)

13. What were the duties of the Kohathites, Gershonites, and Merarites, respectively?