John Calvin Commentary Numbers 11:16

"And Jehovah said unto Moses, Gather unto me seventy men of the elders of Israel, whom thou knowest to be the elders of the people, and officers over them; and bring them unto the tent of meeting, that they may stand there with thee." — Numbers 11:16 (ASV)

And the Lord said unto Moses, Gather unto me seventy men. God complies with the request of Moses by associating seventy companions with him, by whose care and assistance he might be relieved from some part of his labor. Yet, this was not without some signs of indignation, for by taking from him some portion of His Spirit to distribute among the others, He inflicts upon him that mark of disgrace which he deserved.

I know that some²⁰ regard it differently and think that nothing was taken away from Moses, but that the others were endowed with new grace, such as Moses had been preeminent for possessing alone before. But since the words expressly declare that God will make them partakers of that grace which He will take from Moses himself, I do not at all admit the truth of this subtle exposition.

The passage in Genesis 27:36 is quoted, in which it is said, “Hast thou not reserved a blessing for me?” But when God expressly says, “I will separate²¹ of the Spirit which is upon thee,” there can be no question that a diminution is indicated.

For as long as Moses alone was appointed to rule the people, he was so supplied with the necessary gifts of the Spirit that his ability would not be inferior to the greatness of the labor. God now promises that the others shall be his companions in such a way that He divides His gifts among them all.

I have no doubt, then, that this division includes punishment in it. From this we may gather a useful piece of instruction: namely, that the greater the difficulty God imposes upon anyone, the greater is the liberality with which He treats him, so that he may be sufficient for his charge.

Thus it is in His power to work with equal efficiency by one man as by a hundred or a thousand, for He has no need of a multitude of agents. Instead, as He pleases, He executes His works sometimes without the aid of men, sometimes by their hands.

In sum, God indirectly reproves the gross ingratitude of Moses, by which he depreciated that marvelous grace which had until now shone forth in him. He declares that Moses shall not from now on be so great as he was, regarding the excellency he derived from the Spirit, since he had in a manner thrown away the gifts of the Spirit by refusing to bear the trouble imposed upon him.

Our modesty, indeed, is praiseworthy if, through consciousness of our own weakness, we recoil from arduous charges. However, it is too absurd for us to withdraw ourselves under this pretext from our duty and, despising the calling of God, to shake off the yoke.

The word Spirit is here, as frequently elsewhere, applied to the gifts themselves, as if He had said, “I had deposited with you gifts sufficient for the government of the people; but now, since you refuse, I will distribute his due measure to each of the seventy, so that the grace of the Spirit, which dwelt in you alone, shall be manifestly dispersed among many.”

It is now asked how Moses separated the seventy: whether according to his own judgment only, or by the election of the people. It is generally agreed that six were chosen from each tribe, and thus there were seventy-two, but that for the sake of brevity two were omitted, as among the Romans,²² they spoke of the Centumviri, although they were a hundred and five, for they appointed three for each of the thirty-five tribes.

Since this opinion is probable, I leave it undecided. However, at the same time, I retain the conjecture which I have elsewhere made,²³ namely, that since the race of Abraham had increased in an incredible manner in two hundred and twenty years, lest so astonishing a miracle should ever be forgotten, the seventy were elected in accordance with the number of the fathers who had gone down into Egypt with Jacob.

In fact, this seems to have been with them, as it were, a sacred number, recalling to their memory that little band from which they had derived their origin. For, before the Law was promulgated, Moses was commanded to take seventy men with him to accompany him to the mount and to be eyewitnesses of God’s glory.

Meanwhile, I do not deny that there were two more than the number seventy, but I only point out why God fixed upon this number: namely, to equalize the leaders and heads of the people with the family of Jacob, which was the source of their race and name.

Indeed, from the fact that when Moses went up into Mount Sinai to receive the Tables from the hand of God, he took seventy officers with him, we infer that the number of those who should excel in honor was already fixed at this, although the charge of governing, which is here spoken of, was not yet committed to them.

And it is probable that these same persons who had been appointed leaders were called to this new and unaccustomed office, as the words themselves imply. It is indeed certain that when the Jews returned from the Babylonian captivity, because they were not permitted to appoint a king, they followed the example set here in the establishment of their Sanhedrin. Only this honor was paid to the memory of David and their kings, that from their race they chose their seventy rulers in whom the supreme power was vested.

This form of government continued down to Herod,²⁴ who abolished the whole council by which he had been condemned and destroyed the lives of them all. Still, I think that he was not impelled to commit the massacre only out of vengeance, but also lest the dignity of the royal race should be an obstacle to his tyranny.

It must, however, be observed that although God promises new grace to the seventy men, He would not have them taken indiscriminately from the people in general. Instead, He expressly commands them to be chosen from the order of the elders and heads of the people, being such as were already possessed of authority and had given proofs of their diligence and virtue.

Thus, also, nowadays, when He calls both the pastors of the Church and magistrates to their office, although He furnishes them with new gifts, He still would not have them raised to their honorable stations promiscuously as they may come first. Rather, He chooses with reference to their spiritual endowments, with which He distinguishes and commends those whom He has destined for any exalted office.

In short, He commands the most fitting to be chosen; but after they have been elected, He promises that He will add what is wanting. For this reason, He commands that they should station themselves at the door of the tabernacle, so that He may there display His grace.

Although I think that two other reasons were likewise taken into consideration: namely, that they might know that the office was entrusted to them by God and might always be mindful of the heavenly tribunal before which they must be accountable; and also that they might be held in additional reverence by the very associations of the place, and that the people might submit to them as the ministers of God.

Now, although God does not at present dwell in a visible tabernacle, yet we are reminded by this example that pastors and magistrates are not duly ordained unless they are placed in the presence of God, nor rightly inaugurated in their offices unless when they consecrate themselves to God Himself, and when His majesty, on the other hand, acquires their reverence.

Cyprian²⁵ twists this passage further, but I do not know whether on sufficiently firm grounds, to prove that bishops are not to be elected except with the consent of the whole people.

²⁰ Thus, De Lyra; “It is not to be understood that anything was taken away from Moses and given to the others, but they were illuminated without any- diminution of the grace of Moses; thus, by the light of one candle others are lighted, without any diminution of its own light.” Ainsworth thus traces the gloss of De Lyra to its source: “Neither was Moses’ spirit hereby diminished; for as Sol. Jarchi says, ‘Moses in that hour was like unto the lamp that was left (burning) in the candlestick (in the Sanctuary) from which all the other lamps were lighted, yet the light thereof was not lessened any whit.’” So also St. Augustine, “We understand that God would signify nothing more than that they also would have assistance from the same Spirit of grace, as Moses had; that they also should have as much as God pleased, not that Moses would therefore have less. Quest. in Numbers 18. . Edit. Bened., tom. 3. P. 1, p. 535. 3. P. 1, p. 535. C., indeed, here, seems to have but few followers. The gloss in the Geneva version is; “I will distribute my Spirit among them, as I have done to thee;” and Attersoll says, “It it true he doth sometimes punish in this manner, sometimes by lessening, and sometimes by taking away, what he had formerly bestowed. indeed, here, seems to have but few followers. The gloss in the Geneva version is; “I will distribute my Spirit among them, as I have done to thee;” and Attersoll says, “It it true he doth sometimes punish in this manner, sometimes by lessening, and sometimes by taking away, what he had formerly bestowed. Zechariah 11:17; ; Matthew 25:27. But we do not read or find that he dealt so with Moses, or that he was less fit for government than he was before,” etc.. But we do not read or find that he dealt so with Moses, or that he was less fit for government than he was before,” etc.

²¹ A. V., “I will take;” or “will separate.” — Ainsworth.

²² “Centumviri were judges chosen from the thirty-five tribes, three from each, so that properly there were 105, but they were always named by a round number, Centumviri. were judges chosen from the thirty-five tribes, three from each, so that properly there were 105, but they were always named by a round number, Centumviri. Eestus.” — Adam’s Rom. Antiq..” — Adam’s Rom. Antiq.

²³ See ante, on on Exodus 24:1, , vol. 3, p. 316..

²⁴ Josephus, Antiq., 14:9. Section 4.

²⁵ “Wherefore a people which obeyeth the precepts of the Lord, and feareth God, ought to separate itself from a Prelate who is a sinner, nor mingle itself up with the sacrifices of a sacrilegious priest, especially since it has itself the power either of choosing worthy priests, or rejecting the unworthy. This, too, we see to be derived from divine authority, that a priest should be chosen in presence of the people, in sight of all, and be approved worthy and fit by public sentence and testimony; as in Numbers, the Lord commanded Moses, saying, Take Aaron thy brother, and Eleazar his son, and bring them up into the mount, before all the congregation: and strip Aaron of his garments, and put them upon Eleazar his son, and Aaron shall be gathered unto his people, and shall die there. ((Numbers 20:25, 26.) God commands a priest to be appointed before all the congregation, that is, He instructs and shows us, that the ordinations of priests ought only to be solemnized with the knowledge of the people standing by, that so by their presence either the crimes of the wicked may be detected, or the merits of the good proclaimed, and so the ordination be right and lawful, as having been examined with the suffrage and judgment of all.” — Epistles of S. Cyprian. Oxford Transl. 1844, pp. 211, 212..) God commands a priest to be appointed before all the congregation, that is, He instructs and shows us, that the ordinations of priests ought only to be solemnized with the knowledge of the people standing by, that so by their presence either the crimes of the wicked may be detected, or the merits of the good proclaimed, and so the ordination be right and lawful, as having been examined with the suffrage and judgment of all.” — Epistles of S. Cyprian. Oxford Transl. 1844, pp. 211, 212.