Where Are the Levites When Needed?

Where are you, Levites , The Temple Servants?

 Saturday, June 2, 2012 at 4:36pm ·

• After the 70 year captivity of Yahudah / Judah in Babylon, rose Ezra the priestly scribe& some of the children of  Yahudah, to come UP to Yahrushalayim [ Ezra7:1,6,7].
  

  Esdras-Ezra was a Jewish priestly scribe who led about 5,000 Israelite exiles living in Babylon to their home city of Jerusalem in 459 BCE. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

   

•  Ezra prepared his heart to seek the Torah of Yahweh & to DO IT         [ Yah’s  laws & commandments] & TO TEACH to Yahudah !
•  Ezra began to go up on the 1st day of the 1st month,[ at sundown after Rosh Chodesh, of course!]; it was a 5 month journey [v. 8,9].

1. Ezra gathered those from Babylon, Bavel to the river of Ahava/ love, stayed 3 days in tents [or under prayer shawls ?].  BUT Ezra found not one of  the sons of Levites with him!….YET there were 220 Nethinim, servants to the Levites.          [ Ezra 8:15]   [Nethinim, in Hebrew, comes from nathan: gift !]

Ezra 8:15:

“And I gathered them together…”

qabats  (kaw-bats’)

to grasp, i.e. collect — assemble (selves), gather (bring) (together, selves together, up), heap, resort, surely, take up.

“to the river… “

nahar  (naw-hawr’)

a stream (including the sea; expec. the Nile, Euphrates, etc.); figuratively, prosperity — flood, river.

“that runneth… “

bow’  (bo)

to go or come (in a wide variety of applications)

“to Ahava…”

‘Ahava’  (a-hav-aw’)  godly  love, not selfish nor lustful

Ahava, a river of Babylonia — Ahava.

“and there abode we in tents…”

chanah  (khaw-naw’)

to incline; by implication, to decline (of the slanting rays of evening); specifically, to pitch a tent; gen. to encamp (for abode or siege); to bend as in bow to G-D under prayer shawl or talit

“three…”

shalowsh  (shaw-loshe’)

masculine shlowshah {shel-o-shaw’}; or shloshah {shel-o-shaw’}; a primitive number; three; occasionally (ordinal) third, or (multipl.) thrice

“days…”

yowm  (yome)

a day (as the warm hours),

“and I viewed…”

biyn  (bene)

to separate mentally (or distinguish), i.e.(generally) understand

“the people…”

`am  (am)

a people (as a congregated unit); specifically, a tribe (as those of Israel); hence (collectively) troops or attendants; figuratively, a flock — folk, men, nation, people.

“and the priests…”

kohen  (ko-hane’)

literally, one officiating, a priest; also (by courtesy) an acting priest (although a layman) — chief ruler, own, priest, prince, principal officer.

and found

matsa’  (maw-tsaw’)

to come forth to, i.e. appear or exist; transitively, to attain, i.e. find or acquire; figuratively, to occur, meet or be present

“there none of the sons…”

ben  (bane)

a son (as a builder of the family name), in the widest sense (of literal and figurative relationship, including grandson, subject, nation, quality or condition, etc.

“of Levi…”

Leviy  (lay-vee’)

attached; Levi, a son of Jacob — Levi.

2. Levites were to be attached to Yahweh &  do the things of Yahweh! Nethinim [ the given ones ] were to assist the Levites ! Opposite the Water Gate was to be their official residence, symbolic of cleansing or purification!

3. No tax, excise or toll was imposed on any of the kohenim [priests] and Levites, singers, gatekeepers, Nethinim, and servants of this House of Eloah! ~ decree to all the treasurers beyond the River Ahava [Ezra 7:24, 21]

4. So Ezra had to send for men of understanding & gave them a command for Iddo the chief man to bring him servants for the House of Elohim [v.16,17].

5. “Then by the good hand of our Elohim upon us, they brought us a man of understanding, of the sons of Machli sons of Lewi, son of Yisra’el,  and Sherebyah, with his sons and brothers, 18; and Hashabyah and with him Yeshayah of the sons of Merari, his brothers and their son, 20…[v. 18-19]”.  Only 38 Levites appeared compared to the 220 Nethinims already present!

6. Then Ezra could continue the “work” of Yahweh: he proclaimed a fast there at the river of Ahava ” to humble ourselves before our Elohim, to seek from Him the right way for us and our little ones and all our possessions… [v.21]”!

7. Then Ezra separated 12 leaders of the Lewi/ Levite  priests, weighed out to them pure gold & silver & utensils for the House of Elohim and said to them,

You are qodesh/ holy to Yahweh and the objects are qodesh…watch & guard them [v.28-29]”.

“But you are a chosen race, a royal kehunnah [priesthood], a qodesh nation, a people for a possession, that you should proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light [Kepha 1/ 1 Peter 2:9] “!

Be available, present always before Him, ready in season and out, to serve Him, speak His word and do His Will- it is the only Way! Then…you will see miracles and His glory in His temple! Ahmein.

P.S. “Now when these things were done [ burnt offering sacrifices to the Elohim of Yisrael [Ezra 8:35], the leaders came to  me [Ezra] saying,

“The people of Yisrael & the Kohanim [laymen priests officiating] & the Levites [sons of Lewi sons of Aaron] have not separated themselves from the people of the lands & are doing according to their abominations [pagan worship & intermarriage]…so that the kadosh zera [seed] has mingled…even the hand of the leaders & rulers…[9:1-2]”!

“And when I heard this thing, I tore my garment [sign of mourning, repentance] & my mantle [talit or prayer shawl] & plucked off the hair of my head & my beard & sat down astonished [v. 3]”!

• Ezra assembled all “that trembled at the words of the Elohim of Yisrael. At the evening service [the ma’ariv], he fell upon his knees, spread out his hands and prayed [v. 6-15]!
• After  Ezra made prayer [tefillah], confession, weeping & casting himself down,  then did Yisrael assemble before Ezra, cry out, confess, & make an oath to put away their foreign wives [10: 1-44].
• Now they were clean, to serve YHWH!