John Calvin Commentary Numbers 18

And thy brethren also. Here he assigns their duties to the Levites, so that they also may minister, but, as it were, under the authority of the priests; namely, that they should be governed by their commands. Thus, the authority was in the hands of the priests, but the Levites assisted them.

For this reason, they are prohibited from approaching the altar or entering the greater sanctuary; in fact, a lower rank is assigned to them, halfway between the priests and the people.

From this, all learned how reverently God’s majesty must be served. For although God had adopted the whole people, it was so far from being lawful for any of the multitude to approach the altar, that the Law even kept the Levites back from there, despite their being God’s special ministers.

Moreover, in this figure, we perceive how necessary is a Mediator for us to reconcile us to God. For if it was not permitted for the holy and chosen seed of Abraham to approach the typical sanctuary, how could we, who were aliens,²⁰⁰ now enter heaven, unless a way of access were opened to us through Christ?

Finally, when He forbids strangers from interfering with holy things, He does not mean only foreigners, but all the people, except the tribe of Levi. For here a distinction is drawn, not between the Church and pagan nations, but between the ministers of the sanctuary and the rest of the people.

And you shall keep the charge. He again exhorts the priests to be diligent in the performance of their office, adding a denunciation of punishment if they failed in zeal and earnestness. Nor does He now threaten them alone, but the whole people; this does not contradict the previous declaration, since the common fault of all by no means lessened theirs.

Indeed, if God punished the innocent people on account of the pollution of the sanctuary, how much heavier a punishment awaited the priests, (antistites), by whose fault the sin was committed, so that they might be justly considered its authors.

Meanwhile, let us learn from this passage how sincerely we ought to conduct ourselves in the service of God, the profanation of which is intolerable to Him.

Moreover, so that the priests might engage in their duties more actively and with greater diligence, He shows that they cannot give way to idleness without base ingratitude, since they reign, in a manner, over the whole tribe of Levi, or, at any rate, they hold supremacy among their brethren. An indirect reproof of their negligence, if they do not faithfully fulfill their duties, is implied when God reminds them that He has generously honored them with the priesthood.

I have appointed your office, as a gift,²⁰¹ i.e., I have gratuitously conferred on you what was otherwise yours by no right. Others read it differently, namely, I have appointed your priesthood as a ministration of gift: but since the meaning amounts to the same thing, and it does not make any difference in essence, we may freely take our choice.

And the Lord spoke to Aaron. He now proceeds to state more fully what he had recently been referring to, namely, the rights of the priests concerning the sacred oblations.

However, we must remember the contrast I mentioned between the priests of the higher order and the Levites. For while the family of Aaron is invested with unique honors, the other families of the tribe of Levi are humbled.

God, then, assigns to the priests alone all the offerings in which there was the greater consecration, called “the holy of holinesses.” ²⁰⁸

An exception will appear later: namely, that the whole offering was to be deposited with the priests as a mark of honor, from which they were to pay a portion to the Levites who were performing their duties in the service of the sanctuary.

He tells them that this privilege is given to them “by reason of the anointing,” so that the priests should not become proud or exalt themselves on this account; for God’s free generosity ought to teach us modesty and humility.

It is by this argument that Paul corrects and represses all vain boasting: “Why do you glory, as if you had not received it?” (1 Corinthians 4:7).

Now, the sons of Aaron had obtained their anointing by no other right than that God had been pleased to choose them for it.

This is also indicated by their privilege being described as “a gift”; but God thus more expressly commends His grace, for He mentions His gift for another reason: that is, so that no one should enter into any dispute or controversy with the priests on this matter.

This shall be thine. He enumerates certain kinds of sacrifices which He desired to come to the share of the priests: namely, all the remainder of the burnt-offerings; secondly, the minha, or meat-offering; thirdly, what was consecrated from the sin and trespass-offerings.

This enumeration continues, although the following clause, “which they shall restore to me,” seems to be added as a restriction. This clause might designate only those sacrifices mentioned elsewhere,²⁰⁹ by which they cleansed themselves from the guilt of theft. Alternatively, one might prefer to read it as if this third element—in which people restored what did not belong to them so that they might be freed from the guilt of theft—was added to the sin and trespass-offerings.

After this, He adds the free gifts, which the children of Israel vowed, and the first-fruits of oil, as well as of wine and grain. This distinction was established so that God might more surely prevent jealousy and ill-will. For if there had been any ambiguity, many disputes would have immediately arisen, and thus the reverence due to sacred things would have been diminished.

At the same time, however, God instructs the priests that only males should eat the burnt-offerings, and only in the sanctuary. This was because there would have been a danger (as we said before) that the dignity of these holy offerings would have been diminished if they had been carried away to private houses and mixed with ordinary foods. Besides, God was unwilling to indulge the priests in sumptuous living; instead, by the very sight of the sanctuary, He encouraged them to be frugal and sober in their meals.

This served as a kind of military discipline to encourage abstinence, requiring them to go away from their wife and family to take their meal. However, whatever was offered as a vow, along with the first-fruits, He allows to be eaten by the women, and in their own houses, provided only that no unclean person should touch what had once been sacred.