Numbers 6:22-7:9
“And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, Speak unto Aaron and unto his sons, saying, On this wise ye shall bless the children of Israel, saying unto them, The LORD bless thee, and keep thee: Nu 6:25 The LORD make his face shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee: The LORD lift up his countenance upon thee, and give thee peace. And they shall put my name upon the children of Israel; and I will bless them.” (Numbers 6:22-27)
In Matthew 6, Jesus was teaching the disciples about prayer, and gave them an example or model of what prayer should be like, the so called Lord’s Prayer found in Matthew 6:9-13. “After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen.”
They were not commanded to pray that prayer, but to pray in a similar manner. In directing how to bless Israel, God directs the priests to bless them in this fashion or manner, not to use those specific words. In doing so, they will be giving God the credit and glory for what he does, and he promised to bless them in return. Unfortunately man too often makes this a ritual in which the glory goes to the one performing the ritual for doing it properly instead.
“And it came to pass on the day that Moses had fully set up the tabernacle, and had anointed it, and sanctified it, and all the instruments thereof, both the altar and all the vessels thereof, and had anointed them, and sanctified them; That the princes of Israel, heads of the house of their fathers, who were the princes of the tribes, and were over them that were numbered, offered: And they brought their offering before the LORD, six covered wagons, and twelve oxen; a wagon for two of the princes, and for each one an ox: and they brought them before the tabernacle.” (Numbers 7:1-3)
The wheel had been invented many hundreds of years before, and the leaders recognized the difficulty of transporting the parts of the tabernacle as they would be very heavy and awkward to carry. God laid it on their hearts to have six wagons built for the purpose, with the leaders of each tribe meeting and sharing the responsibilities. Each one donated half the cost of a wagon and one ox to pull it.
“And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, Take it of them, that they may be to do the service of the tabernacle of the congregation; and thou shalt give them unto the Levites, to every man according to his service. And Moses took the wagons and the oxen, and gave them unto the Levites. Two wagons and four oxen he gave unto the sons of Gershon, according to their service: And four wagons and eight oxen he gave unto the sons of Merari, according unto their service, under the hand of Ithamar the son of Aaron the priest.” (Numbers 7:4-8)
Two wagons were given to the Gershonites to haul the coverings of the Tabernacle and the curtains for the courtyard, while four were given to the Sons of Merari to haul the boards, poles, tent pegs and sockets or bases for everything.
“But unto the sons of Kohath he gave none: because the service of the sanctuary belonging unto them was that they should bear upon their shoulders.” (Numbers 7:9)
No wagons were given to the Kohathites because their responsibility required personal service. While technology is great for many things, there are areas which are dependent on personal individualized work. When they used a wagon to transport the Ark in II Samuel 6, Uzzah was killed because the technology used exposed him to an unnecessary danger. As an example, while watching a religious program on television may seem like a great religious and emotional experience, it will not produce the same spiritual effect as personally interacting with Christians at a church and weakening the Christian. Though the messages may seem better, they are limited by a lack of personal interaction.
“And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, Speak unto Aaron and unto his sons, saying, On this wise ye shall bless the children of Israel, saying unto them, The LORD bless thee, and keep thee: Nu 6:25 The LORD make his face shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee: The LORD lift up his countenance upon thee, and give thee peace. And they shall put my name upon the children of Israel; and I will bless them.” (Numbers 6:22-27)
In Matthew 6, Jesus was teaching the disciples about prayer, and gave them an example or model of what prayer should be like, the so called Lord’s Prayer found in Matthew 6:9-13. “After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen.”
They were not commanded to pray that prayer, but to pray in a similar manner. In directing how to bless Israel, God directs the priests to bless them in this fashion or manner, not to use those specific words. In doing so, they will be giving God the credit and glory for what he does, and he promised to bless them in return. Unfortunately man too often makes this a ritual in which the glory goes to the one performing the ritual for doing it properly instead.
“And it came to pass on the day that Moses had fully set up the tabernacle, and had anointed it, and sanctified it, and all the instruments thereof, both the altar and all the vessels thereof, and had anointed them, and sanctified them; That the princes of Israel, heads of the house of their fathers, who were the princes of the tribes, and were over them that were numbered, offered: And they brought their offering before the LORD, six covered wagons, and twelve oxen; a wagon for two of the princes, and for each one an ox: and they brought them before the tabernacle.” (Numbers 7:1-3)
The wheel had been invented many hundreds of years before, and the leaders recognized the difficulty of transporting the parts of the tabernacle as they would be very heavy and awkward to carry. God laid it on their hearts to have six wagons built for the purpose, with the leaders of each tribe meeting and sharing the responsibilities. Each one donated half the cost of a wagon and one ox to pull it.
“And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, Take it of them, that they may be to do the service of the tabernacle of the congregation; and thou shalt give them unto the Levites, to every man according to his service. And Moses took the wagons and the oxen, and gave them unto the Levites. Two wagons and four oxen he gave unto the sons of Gershon, according to their service: And four wagons and eight oxen he gave unto the sons of Merari, according unto their service, under the hand of Ithamar the son of Aaron the priest.” (Numbers 7:4-8)
Two wagons were given to the Gershonites to haul the coverings of the Tabernacle and the curtains for the courtyard, while four were given to the Sons of Merari to haul the boards, poles, tent pegs and sockets or bases for everything.
“But unto the sons of Kohath he gave none: because the service of the sanctuary belonging unto them was that they should bear upon their shoulders.” (Numbers 7:9)
No wagons were given to the Kohathites because their responsibility required personal service. While technology is great for many things, there are areas which are dependent on personal individualized work. When they used a wagon to transport the Ark in II Samuel 6, Uzzah was killed because the technology used exposed him to an unnecessary danger. As an example, while watching a religious program on television may seem like a great religious and emotional experience, it will not produce the same spiritual effect as personally interacting with Christians at a church and weakening the Christian. Though the messages may seem better, they are limited by a lack of personal interaction.
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