Numbers 8:1-26  The Lighting of the Seven Lamps

[Study Aired June 19, 2023]

Num 8:1  And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, 
Num 8:2  Speak unto Aaron, and say unto him, When thou lightest the lamps, the seven lamps shall give light over against the candlestick. 
Num 8:3  And Aaron did so; he lighted the lamps thereof over against the candlestick, as the LORD commanded Moses. 
Num 8:4  And this work of the candlestick was of beaten gold, unto the shaft thereof, unto the flowers thereof, was beaten work: according unto the pattern which the LORD had shewed Moses, so he made the candlestick. 
Num 8:5  And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, 
Num 8:6  Take the Levites from among the children of Israel, and cleanse them. 
Num 8:7  And thus shalt thou do unto them, to cleanse them: Sprinkle water of purifying upon them, and let them shave all their flesh, and let them wash their clothes, and so make themselves clean. 
Num 8:8  Then let them take a young bullock with his meat offering, even fine flour mingled with oil, and another young bullock shalt thou take for a sin offering.
Num 8:9  And thou shalt bring the Levites before the tabernacle of the congregation: and thou shalt gather the whole assembly of the children of Israel together: 
Num 8:10  And thou shalt bring the Levites before the LORD: and the children of Israel shall put their hands upon the Levites: 
Num 8:11  And Aaron shall offer the Levites before the LORD for an offering of the children of Israel, that they may execute the service of the LORD. 
Num 8:12  And the Levites shall lay their hands upon the heads of the bullocks: and thou shalt offer the one for a sin offering, and the other for a burnt offering, unto the LORD, to make an atonement for the Levites. 
Num 8:13  And thou shalt set the Levites before Aaron, and before his sons, and offer them for an offering unto the LORD. 
Num 8:14  Thus shalt thou separate the Levites from among the children of Israel: and the Levites shall be mine. 
Num 8:15  And after that shall the Levites go in to do the service of the tabernacle of the congregation: and thou shalt cleanse them, and offer them for an offering. 
Num 8:16  For they are wholly given unto me from among the children of Israel; instead of such as open every womb, even instead of the firstborn of all the children of Israel, have I taken them unto me. 
Num 8:17  For all the firstborn of the children of Israel are mine, both man and beast: on the day that I smote every firstborn in the land of Egypt I sanctified them for myself. 
Num 8:18  And I have taken the Levites for all the firstborn of the children of Israel.
Num 8:19  And I have given the Levites as a gift to Aaron and to his sons from among the children of Israel, to do the service of the children of Israel in the tabernacle of the congregation, and to make an atonement for the children of Israel: that there be no plague among the children of Israel, when the children of Israel come nigh unto the sanctuary. 
Num 8:20  And Moses, and Aaron, and all the congregation of the children of Israel, did to the Levites according unto all that the LORD commanded Moses concerning the Levites, so did the children of Israel unto them. 
Num 8:21  And the Levites were purified, and they washed their clothes; and Aaron offered them as an offering before the LORD; and Aaron made an atonement for them to cleanse them. 
Num 8:22  And after that went the Levites in to do their service in the tabernacle of the congregation before Aaron, and before his sons: as the LORD had commanded Moses concerning the Levites, so did they unto them. 
Num 8:23  And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, 
Num 8:24  This is it that belongeth unto the Levites: from twenty and five years old and upward they shall go in to wait upon the service of the tabernacle of the congregation: 
Num 8:25  And from the age of fifty years they shall cease waiting upon the service thereof, and shall serve no more: 
Num 8:26  But shall minister with their brethren in the tabernacle of the congregation, to keep the charge, and shall do no service. Thus shalt thou do unto the Levites touching their charge. 

Chapter 8 concerns the lighting of the seven lamps to give light in front of the candlestick, the cleansing of the Levites, the age requirement for service in the tabernacle of the congregation and retirement age of the Levites. 

Num 8:1  And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, 
Num 8:2  Speak unto Aaron, and say unto him, When thou lightest the lamps, the seven lamps shall give light over against the candlestick. 
Num 8:3  And Aaron did so; he lighted the lamps thereof over against the candlestick, as the LORD commanded Moses. 

The seven lamps represent the complete words of the Lord which give light in front of the lampstand or candlestick. According to the word of the Lord, the candlestick or lampstand represents the church.  This means that it is the complete words of the Lord which guide the path of the elect in this world.

Psa 119:105  Nun Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path. 

Rev 1:20  As for the mystery of the seven stars that you saw in my right hand, and the seven golden lampstands, the seven stars are the angels of the seven churches, and the seven lampstands are the seven churches.

As indicated, the candlestick is to give light to the space in front of it in the Holy place in the tabernacle. What is insightful to note is the fact that the light given by the candlestick is not seen outside the Holy place. It is to give light for the priest to perform his duty. In this dispensation, although we are the light of the world, we are not seen that way by many (the world). It is only the elect who see our light and use it to perform their duty – that is, live a life worthy of the Lord. 

In verse 2, it was Aaron the High Priest who lit the seven lamps. Here Aaron signifies the Lord Jesus Christ, our High Priest. Before a lamp is lit, it must be filled with oil. As we know, the oil is a symbol of the Holy Spirit, sent to us by the Lord Jesus Christ to guide us into the truth of His word.  

Exo 27:20  And thou shalt command the children of Israel, that they bring thee pure oil olive beaten for the light, to cause the lamp to burn always. 

Joh 16:13  Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come.

Num 8:4  And this work of the candlestick was of beaten gold, unto the shaft thereof, unto the flowers thereof, was beaten work: according unto the pattern which the LORD had shewed Moses, so he made the candlestick. 

It is very insightful to note that the candlestick was made of beaten gold. This is to let us know that the church is formed by those who are being tried or going through the judgment of their old man. 

Job 23:10  But he knoweth the way that I take: when he hath tried me, I shall come forth as gold.

Paul sums up our being beaten like the work of gold in order to give light as follows:

2Co 4:7  But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us.
2Co 4:8  We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; 
2Co 4:9  persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; 
2Co 4:10  always carrying in the body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our bodies [providing light for the priest to function]. 
2Co 4:11  For we who live are always being given over to death for Jesus’ sake, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh.

As indicated in verse 4, the candlestick is to be built according to the pattern which the Lord showed Moses.  The pattern shown to Moses is Christ. This implies that the church must reflect Christ in everything. 

Num 8:5  And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, 
Num 8:6  Take the Levites from among the children of Israel, and cleanse them. 
Num 8:7  And thus shalt thou do unto them, to cleanse them: Sprinkle water of purifying upon them, and let them shave all their flesh, and let them wash their clothes, and so make themselves clean. 

If we are to serve in the house of the Lord, then we must be cleansed from all kinds of contamination such as false doctrines, worldly ways and traditions and deeds of the flesh. Verse 7 prescribes three ways of cleansing – sprinkling of the water of purification, the shaving of all their flesh, and the washing of clothes with water.  The water of purification is a symbol of the word of the Lord. It is the truth of the word of the Lord that washes our mind of all the false doctrines that have become idols of our hearts, worldly wisdom and the traditions of men.

Eph 5:25  Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, 
Eph 5:26  that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, 
Eph 5:27  so that he might present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish.

In the Bible, the hair on the body is a symbol of our natural strength. Thus, the shaving of all the flesh signifies the cutting off of all our natural strength. This implies that in our service to the Lord, we must not depend on our natural strengths and abilities. 

Jdg 16:17  And he told her all his heart, and said to her, “A razor has never come upon my head, for I have been a Nazirite to God from my mother’s womb. If my head is shaved, then my strength will leave me, and I shall become weak and be like any other man.” 

Clothes are a symbol of righteousness. Dirty or torn clothes therefore refer to unrighteousness, which could be the result of contamination or self-righteousness, which is iniquity.

Lev 15:6  And whoever sits on anything on which the one with the discharge has sat shall wash his clothes and bathe himself in water and be unclean until the evening.

Isa 4:1  And seven women shall take hold of one man in that day, saying, “We will eat our own bread and wear our own clothes, only let us be called by your name; take away our reproach.

Clean clothes (white linen) are the righteousness of the saints which is imputed by the Lord. 

Rev 19:8  And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints.

The washing of our dirty clothes therefore signifies the truth of the word of the Lord which cleanses us of all unrighteousness.

Num 8:8  Then let them take a young bullock with his meat offering, even fine flour mingled with oil, and another young bullock shalt thou take for a sin offering.
Num 8:9  And thou shalt bring the Levites before the tabernacle of the congregation: and thou shalt gather the whole assembly of the children of Israel together: 
Num 8:10  And thou shalt bring the Levites before the LORD: and the children of Israel shall put their hands upon the Levites: 
Num 8:11  And Aaron shall offer the Levites before the LORD for an offering of the children of Israel, that they may execute the service of the LORD. 
Num 8:12  And the Levites shall lay their hands upon the heads of the bullocks: and thou shalt offer the one for a sin offering, and the other for a burnt offering, unto the LORD, to make an atonement for the Levites. 

The foundation for our cleansing is the sacrificial offering of our Lord Jesus Christ, who gave Himself as a meat offering and a sin offering for us. Christ therefore represents the young bullocks and the fine flour mingled with oil. Remember that the fine flour mingled with oil represents His word, and His word is the same as Christ.

Joh 1:1  In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 

The putting of the hands of the children of Israel upon the Levites in verse 10 is to show that they are the same as the Levites and therefore are represented by the Levites in the presence of the Lord. In this regard, we, His elect, are representing the whole world in the presence of the Lord. Our victory will ultimately result in the victory of humanity in the fullness of time.

2Co 2:14  Now thanks be unto God, which always causeth us to triumph in Christ, and maketh manifest the savour of his knowledge by us in every place.

Num 8:13  And thou shalt set the Levites before Aaron, and before his sons, and offer them for an offering unto the LORD. 
Num 8:14  Thus shalt thou separate the Levites from among the children of Israel: and the Levites shall be mine. 
Num 8:15  And after that shall the Levites go in to do the service of the tabernacle of the congregation: and thou shalt cleanse them, and offer them for an offering. 

In verse 13, the Levites were to be offered as an offering to the Lord. As the elect, we are to be offered wholly to Christ for humanity’s sake. Being offered to Christ is offering our bodies as living sacrifices, holy and acceptable to the Lord.

2Co 2:15  For we are unto God a sweet savour of Christ, in them that are saved, and in them that perish: 

Rom 12:1  I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. 

The Levites being separated from among the children of Israel is another way of saying that we should not be conformed to the standards of this world but be renewed in our minds.

Rom 12:2  Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect. 

In another perspective, the Levites represent the elect, and the children of Israel stand for our brothers and sisters in Babylon. In that sense, the Levites being separated from the children of Israel is a type of the command by the Lord to leave Babylon. 

Rev 18:4  And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues.

2Co 6:16  And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. 
2Co 6:17  Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you, 
2Co 6:18  And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty. 

As we are offered to Christ and are separated wholly from the world, we can do the service of the tabernacle of the congregation as shown in verse 15 concerning the Levites.

Num 8:16  For they are wholly given unto me from among the children of Israel; instead of such as open every womb, even instead of the firstborn of all the children of Israel, have I taken them unto me. 
Num 8:17  For all the firstborn of the children of Israel are mine, both man and beast: on the day that I smote every firstborn in the land of Egypt I sanctified them for myself. 
Num 8:18  And I have taken the Levites for all the firstborn of the children of Israel.

As we saw earlier in the Book of Numbers, the Levites were to replace the firstborn of Israel. The reason why they were to replace the firstborn of Israel was that at the time of Passover in Egypt, all the firstborn were condemned. However, it was only the firstborn of Egypt who were slain. As a result of the Passover, all the firstborn of Israel were redeemed or saved or replaced by the Passover lamb, who is Christ our Lord who came to serve. The firstborn therefore lost their position and were to be replaced by the Levites who were called to serve. This means that we, who have been redeemed by the Lord, are called to serve.

Mar 10:42  And Jesus called them to him and said to them, “You know that those who are considered rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. 
Mar 10:43  But it shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, 
Mar 10:44  and whoever would be first among you must be slave of all. 
Mar 10:45  For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” 

The Levites replacing the firstborn of the children of Israel is a foretaste of the fact that the Lord’s election is no longer dependent on a person’s pedigree or his or her birth. Paul made this clear when, through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, he made the statement that it is not one who is born a Jew that counts, but a Jew is a person who worships the Lord in truth and in spirit. 

Rom 2:28  For he is not a Jew, which is one outwardly; neither is that circumcision, which is outward in the flesh: 
Rom 2:29  But he is a Jew, which is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit, and not in the letter; whose praise is not of men, but of God.

Num 8:19  And I have given the Levites as a gift to Aaron and to his sons from among the children of Israel, to do the service of the children of Israel in the tabernacle of the congregation, and to make an atonement for the children of Israel: that there be no plague among the children of Israel, when the children of Israel come nigh unto the sanctuary. 
Num 8:20  And Moses, and Aaron, and all the congregation of the children of Israel, did to the Levites according unto all that the LORD commanded Moses concerning the Levites, so did the children of Israel unto them. 

On a negative note, the Levites represent our brothers and sisters in Babylon who are also of Abraham’s seed. However, they are not counted as the seed of promise and therefore are not to be given any inheritance. This is not because we, the elect, deserve any inheritance. It is through the hardening of their hearts to believe that we are privileged to receive mercy to believe. In the final analysis, this mercy we have received will be extended to the whole of the human race. 

Rom 11:30  For as ye in times past have not believed God, yet have now obtained mercy through their unbelief: 
Rom 11:31  Even so have these also now not believed, that through your mercy they also may obtain mercy. 
Rom 11:32  For God hath concluded them all in unbelief, that he might have mercy upon all.

The Levites are given to the elect as a gift to help them minister to the Lord. They do the initial leg work of using the law of Moses as our schoolmaster to lead us to Christ. After we get to know Christ through faith, we are no longer under their influence or the law of Moses. Today’s Levites represent the Christian religion. They are focused on building and taking care of physical churches (tabernacle of testimony). In other words, they are protecting the legacy of the Christian religion.

Gal 3:24  Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith. 
Gal 3:25  But after that faith is come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster. 

In verse 19, the Levites being given as a gift to Aaron and his sons positively signifies the elect being given wholly to Jesus, our High Priest, to assist Him to subdue all things so that God may be all in all. 

1Co 15:25  For he [Jesus] must reign, till he hath put all enemies under his feet. 
1Co 15:26  The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death. 
1Co 15:27  For he hath put all things under his feet. But when he saith all things are put under him, it is manifest that he is excepted, which did put all things under him. 
1Co 15:28  And when all things shall be subdued unto him, then shall the Son also himself be subject unto him that put all things under him, that God may be all in all.

On a positive note, the Levites symbolized the elect who are given the charge of serving in the tabernacle of the congregation as well as making atonement for the children of Israel so there will be no plagues among the children of Israel, as indicated in verse 19. Atonement is the process by which a person removes obstacles to his reconciliation with God. In the lake of fire age, the elect will help the whole of humanity, represented here as the children of Israel, by making atonement for them. This means that the elect will help the whole of humanity to see what the Lord has done for them and in so doing, remove every obstacle to their reconciliation with God. This is what will make every knee to bow and every tongue to confess that Jesus is Lord!!

Php 2:9  Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name: 
Php 2:10  That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; 
Php 2:11  And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

It is insightful to note that in verse 20, Moses, Aaron and the whole of the congregation of the children of Israel did to the Levites according to all that the Lord commanded Moses. Moses, Aaron and the whole of the congregation of Israel represent all humanity. It is at the end of the lake of fire age that all humanity will obey our Lord Jesus Christ, who is represented here by Moses. 

Num 8:21  And the Levites were purified, and they washed their clothes; and Aaron offered them as an offering before the LORD; and Aaron made an atonement for them to cleanse them. 
Num 8:22  And after that went the Levites in to do their service in the tabernacle of the congregation before Aaron, and before his sons: as the LORD had commanded Moses concerning the Levites, so did they unto them. 

It is when we are purified that we can offer a service pleasing to the Lord in the temple of the Lord. We know that the process of purification involves being judged. Verses 21 and 22 therefore means that we cannot offer pleasing service to the Lord with our bodies as a temple of the Lord unless we have been purified through the seven plagues. The verse below is therefore a rendition of verses 21 and 22.

Rev 15:8  And the temple was filled with smoke from the glory of God, and from his power; and no man was able to enter into the temple, till the seven plagues of the seven angels were fulfilled. 

Num 8:23  And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, 
Num 8:24  This is it that belongeth unto the Levites: from twenty and five years old and upward they shall go in to wait upon the service of the tabernacle of the congregation: 

To be enrolled in the army of the Lord, it is required that one is twenty years old or above. Being part of the army of the Lord does not mean that one has obtained maturity. In the physical, those who have gone through the ranks of the military are well-versed in the strategies of enemies. In a similar vein, it takes some time after being part of the Lord’s army to know the strategies of the enemy. It took a lot of experience for Paul to say the following:

2Co 2:10  To whom ye forgive anything, I forgive also: for if I forgave anything, to whom I forgave it, for your sakes forgave I it in the person of Christ;
2Co 2:11  Lest Satan should get an advantage of us: for we are not ignorant of his devices. 

In verse 24, the required age to wait upon the tabernacle of the congregation is twenty-five. Although we are enrolled into the Lord’s army at the symbolic age of twenty years, it takes a while for us to be effective in performing the services pertaining to the house of God. The symbolic age of twenty-five, which is required for us to work in the house of the Lord, signifies the period when we have come out from tutors and governors at the appointed time of the Lord.

Gal 4:1  Now I say, That the heir, as long as he is a child, differeth nothing from a servant, though he be lord of all; 
Gal 4:2  But is under tutors and governors until the time appointed of the father. 
Gal 4:3  Even so we, when we were children, were in bondage under the elements of the world: 
Gal 4:4  But when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law, 
Gal 4:5  To redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons. 

In the Bible, the number twenty-five signifies the time that we start to reign as kings over our flesh.

2Ch 25:1  Amaziah was twenty and five years old when he began to reign, and he reigned twenty and nine years in Jerusalem. And his mother’s name was Jehoaddan of Jerusalem.

2Ch 27:6  So Jotham became mighty, because he prepared his ways before the LORD his God. 
2Ch 27:7  Now the rest of the acts of Jotham, and all his wars, and his ways, lo, they are written in the book of the kings of Israel and Judah.
2Ch 27:8  He was five and twenty years old when he began to reign, and reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem.

2Ch 29:1  Hezekiah began to reign when he was five and twenty years old, and he reigned nine and twenty years in Jerusalem. And his mother’s name was Abijah, the daughter of Zechariah. 
2Ch 29:2  And he did that which was right in the sight of the LORD, according to all that David his father had done. 

Num 8:25  And from the age of fifty years they shall cease waiting upon the service thereof, and shall serve no more: 
Num 8:26  But shall minister with their brethren in the tabernacle of the congregation, to keep the charge, and shall do no service. Thus shalt thou do unto the Levites touching their charge. 

According to verse 25, at the age of fifty years, the Levites are required to retire from active service in the tabernacle of the Lord. The number fifty symbolizes the liberty we have in Christ when we are set free from sin. Retiring at the age of fifty spiritually implies the period of our lives where we do not depend on our own strength to do the work of the Lord, but rather depend on Christ to do the work for us. In other words, we come to rest completely in Him. 

Joh 8:36  If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.  

Heb 4:9  There remaineth therefore a rest to the people of God. 
Heb 4:10  For he that is entered into his rest, he also hath ceased from his own works, as God did from his. 
Heb 4:11  Let us labour therefore to enter into that rest, lest any man fall after the same example of unbelief. 

May the Lord continue to help us retire from our own works so we can come to rest wholly in Him. Amen!!