SUMMARY
The Levites, unlike the rest of the Israelites, were not to be numbered [yet].
ANALYSIS
The Levites were not to participate in war directly, but instead were to act as a sort of insulating force to protect the Israelites from accidentally trespassing into the realms of God’s special holiness. The Levites were to carry God’s tent while moving, and while settled, to encamp around God’s tent, acting as a physical barrier to the rest of the camp.
This first chapter of Numbers closes by noting the obedience of the Israelites to God’s organizing commandments.
