Numbers 1: 1 – 54
The Draft
1 Now the LORD spoke to Moses in the Wilderness of Sinai, in the tabernacle of meeting, on the first day of the second month, in the second year after they had come out of the land of Egypt, saying: 2 “Take a census of all the congregation of the children of Israel, by their families, by their fathers’ houses, according to the number of names, every male individually, 3 from twenty years old and above—all who are able to go to war in Israel. You and Aaron shall number them by their armies. 4 And with you there shall be a man from every tribe, each one the head of his father’s house. 5 “These are the names of the men who shall stand with you: from Reuben, Elizur the son of Shedeur; 6 from Simeon, Shelumiel the son of Zurishaddai; 7 from Judah, Nahshon the son of Amminadab; 8 from Issachar, Nethanel the son of Zuar; 9 from Zebulun, Eliab the son of Helon; 10 from the sons of Joseph: from Ephraim, Elishama the son of Ammihud; from Manasseh, Gamaliel the son of Pedahzur; 11 from Benjamin, Abidan the son of Gideoni; 12 from Dan, Ahiezer the son of Ammishaddai; 13 from Asher, Pagiel the son of Ocran; 14 from Gad, Eliasaph the son of Deuel; 15 from Naphtali, Ahira the son of Enan.” 16 These were chosen from the congregation, leaders of their fathers’ tribes, heads of the divisions in Israel. 17 Then Moses and Aaron took these men who had been mentioned by name, 18 and they assembled all the congregation together on the first day of the second month; and they recited their ancestry by families, by their fathers’ houses, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and above, each one individually. 19 As the LORD commanded Moses, so he numbered them in the Wilderness of Sinai. 20 Now the children of Reuben, Israel’s oldest son, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, according to the number of names, every male individually, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: 21 those who were numbered of the tribe of Reuben were forty-six thousand five hundred. 22 From the children of Simeon, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, of those who were numbered, according to the number of names, every male individually, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: 23 those who were numbered of the tribe of Simeon were fifty-nine thousand three hundred. 24 From the children of Gad, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: 25 those who were numbered of the tribe of Gad were forty-five thousand six hundred and fifty. 26 From the children of Judah, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: 27 those who were numbered of the tribe of Judah were seventy-four thousand six hundred. 28 From the children of Issachar, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: 29 those who were numbered of the tribe of Issachar were fifty-four thousand four hundred. 30 From the children of Zebulun, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: 31 those who were numbered of the tribe of Zebulun were fifty-seven thousand four hundred. 32 From the sons of Joseph, the children of Ephraim, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: 33 those who were numbered of the tribe of Ephraim were forty thousand five hundred. 34 From the children of Manasseh, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: 35 those who were numbered of the tribe of Manasseh were thirty-two thousand two hundred. 36 From the children of Benjamin, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: 37 those who were numbered of the tribe of Benjamin were thirty-five thousand four hundred. 38 From the children of Dan, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: 39 those who were numbered of the tribe of Dan were sixty-two thousand seven hundred. 40 From the children of Asher, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: 41 those who were numbered of the tribe of Asher were forty-one thousand five hundred. 42 From the children of Naphtali, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: 43 those who were numbered of the tribe of Naphtali were fifty-three thousand four hundred. 44 These are the ones who were numbered, whom Moses and Aaron numbered, with the leaders of Israel, twelve men, each one representing his father’s house. 45 So all who were numbered of the children of Israel, by their fathers’ houses, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war in Israel— 46 all who were numbered were six hundred and three thousand five hundred and fifty. 47 But the Levites were not numbered among them by their fathers’ tribe; 48 for the LORD had spoken to Moses, saying: 49 “Only the tribe of Levi you shall not number, nor take a census of them among the children of Israel; 50 but you shall appoint the Levites over the tabernacle of the Testimony, over all its furnishings, and over all things that belong to it; they shall carry the tabernacle and all its furnishings; they shall attend to it and camp around the tabernacle. 51 And when the tabernacle is to go forward, the Levites shall take it down; and when the tabernacle is to be set up, the Levites shall set it up. The outsider who comes near shall be put to death. 52 The children of Israel shall pitch their tents, everyone by his own camp, everyone by his own standard, according to their armies; 53 but the Levites shall camp around the tabernacle of the Testimony, that there may be no wrath on the congregation of the children of Israel; and the Levites shall keep charge of the tabernacle of the Testimony.” 54 Thus the children of Israel did; according to all that the LORD commanded Moses, so they did.
I was just watching the National Football League’s draft the other day. The 32 teams are supposed to each get a pick (unless they trade that pick to another team) for seven rounds. Here 224 young men have a chance to receive a significant exciting chance to make a great impact in life. For me I also experienced the draft. I was drafted 21st out of 365 picks. ‘Not bad’ you might be thinking. However my personal experience in the draft was not for a highly lucrative financial contract but was part of my uncle’s professional organization. You see I was drafted by my ‘Uncle Sam’. He thought I would be a valuable player on his team to serve and protect the men, women, and children of the United States of America. I had you going there for moment didn’t I?
The military draft brought the war to the American home front. During the Vietnam War era, between 1964 and 1973, the U.S. military drafted 2.2 million American men out of an eligible pool of 27 million. Although only 25 percent of the military force in the combat zones was draftees, the system of conscription caused many young American men to volunteer for the armed forces in order to have more of a choice of which division in the military they would serve. While many soldiers did support the war, at least initially, to others the draft seemed like a death sentence: being sent to a war and fight for a cause that they did not believe in. Some sought refuge in college or parental deferments; others intentionally failed aptitude tests or otherwise evaded; thousands fled to Canada and a growing number engaged in direct resistance. Antiwar activists viewed the draft as immoral and the only means for the government to continue the war with fresh soldiers. Ironically, as the draft continued to fuel the war effort, it also intensified the antiwar cause. Although the Selective Service’s deferment system meant that men of lower socioeconomic standing were most likely to be sent to the front lines, no one was completely safe from the draft. Almost every American was either eligible to go to war or knew someone who was.
Conscription during the 1960s took place under the legal authority of the peacetime draft, because the United States never formally declared war on North Vietnam. Legal authority for a peacetime draft came from the Selective Training and Service Act of 1940, signed by President Franklin Roosevelt in order to mobilize American civilian-soldiers in anticipation of entry into World War II. During the Korean War, the Selective Service began the policy of granting deferments to college students with an academic ranking in the top half of their class. Between 1954-1964 (the end of the Korean War until the escalation in Vietnam) the “peacetime” draft inducted more than 1.4 million American men, an average of more than 120,000 per year. As part of their Cold War mission, many state universities required ROTC training by male students, although campus protests caused administrators to begin repealing mandatory ROTC in the late 1950s and early 1960s.
President John F. Kennedy, who began the escalation of the American military presence in Vietnam, also defended the peacetime draft and the Selective Service. One year later, the Pentagon acknowledged the usefulness of conscription, because one-third of enlisted soldiers and two-fifths of officers “would not have entered the service if not for the draft as a motivator.” The Selective Service also authorized deferments for men who planned to study for careers labeled as “vital” to national security interests, such as physics and engineering, which exacerbated the racial and socioeconomic inequalities of the Vietnam-era draft. Of the 2.5 million enlisted men who served during Vietnam, 80 percent came from poor or working-class families, and the same ratio only had a high school education. According most of the Americans who fought in Vietnam were powerless, working-class teenagers sent to fight an undeclared war by presidents for whom they were not even eligible to vote.” (like yours truly),
In the beginning of the war, names of all American men in draft-age were collected by the Selective Service System. Every day of the year had a ball with the month and day on it. When the ball came out that was the order of selection. When someone’s name based on his birthday was called, he had to report to his local draft board, which was made up of various community members, so that they could begin to evaluate his draft status. By this manner, local draft boards had an enormous power to decide who had to go and who would stay. Consequently, draft board members were often under pressure from their family, relatives and friends to exempt potential draftees. As I mentioned I was drafted. At the induction center I was lined up with a guy who went to my high school. He was in front of me in line. A sergeant walked up the line and stopped at the guy whom I knew and put his hand on his shoulder. The sergeant called out that from that guy forward all are going to be marines and from me to the end of the line we were going to be Army. The guy I knew then was sent to Paris Island for his training and I was bused to Fort Dix.
In July 1965 President Johnson attempted to explain the need for increased military intervention in Vietnam in a press conference announcing that draft inductions would increase from 17,000 to 35,000 per month.
On December 1, 1969, the first draft lottery since 1942 began, but college deferments were kept intact. Nixon ended the draft in January 1973, but by then the war was almost over. Oh, by the way my professional career enlistment went from ‘68 to ’74.
The first stage towards entry into the land had to be the mobilization of the army of Israel, both of its fighting men, and of its ‘servants of the Tabernacle of Yahweh’. That is what is in mind in the first four chapters.
We now witness in chapter 1 of the book of Numbers that the numbering of an army was always preparatory to action. Thus the numbering here of the men of war was preparation for what lay ahead. They were now to go forward to make war in order to conquer the land and possess it. The resultant total will then be used later in the book in order to demonstrate that, in spite of failure on the part of Israel, the people leave the wilderness after all their troubles as numerous as when they entered it, the old having been replaced with the new. Man’s purposes may fail but God’s never do.
1 Now the LORD spoke to Moses in the Wilderness of Sinai, in the tabernacle of meeting, on the first day of the second month, in the second year after they had come out of the land of Egypt, saying: 2 “Take a census of all the congregation of the children of Israel, by their families, by their fathers’ houses, according to the number of names, every male individually, 3 from twenty years old and above—all who are able to go to war in Israel. You and Aaron shall number them by their armies.
Taking place one month after the Tabernacle had been consecrated the scripture stresses that the people of Israel are setting out from the wilderness of Sinai, where they have spent a year in their dealings with our Great God Yahweh. They had commenced their journey from Egypt in the first month of the first year, and had arrived at the wilderness of Sinai in the third month of the first year (Exodus 19.1). Now in the second month of the second year the army is to be mustered (‘numbered’) ready for going forward.
The command is given to ‘take the sum’ of all men of military age in the twelve tribes (excluding Levi), in ‘the congregation of the children of Israel’, numbering them in their different regiments (‘hosts’). The intention was in order to organize the different sections of the army. This was ‘the Lord’s army’.
This numbering was to be done ‘by their families, by their father’s houses’. Each section would number its men available for action and the numbering would then be accumulated to give the number for the tribe. The numbering was to be of those available to ‘go forth to war’.
4 And with you there shall be a man from every tribe, each one the head of his father’s house.
Twelve men were to be called on to assist Moses, one from each of the twelve tribes, the prince of the particular tribe. Each would be responsible for the ‘numbering’ his tribe.
5 “These are the names of the men who shall stand with you: from Reuben, Elizur the son of Shedeur; 6 from Simeon, Shelumiel the son of Zurishaddai; 7 from Judah, Nahshon the son of Amminadab; 8 from Issachar, Nethanel the son of Zuar; 9 from Zebulun, Eliab the son of Helon; 10 from the sons of Joseph: from Ephraim, Elishama the son of Ammihud; from Manasseh, Gamaliel the son of Pedahzur; 11 from Benjamin, Abidan the son of Gideoni; 12 from Dan, Ahiezer the son of Ammishaddai; 13 from Asher, Pagiel the son of Ocran; 14 from Gad, Eliasaph the son of Deuel; 15 from Naphtali, Ahira the son of Enan.”
Here is what I found each man’s name means;
Elizur signifies ‘My God (El) is a rock.’
Shedeur means ‘Shaddai is my light’,
Shelumiel means ‘God is my friend’.
Zurishaddai means ‘Shaddai is my rock’.
Nahshon probably means ‘serpentlike’ or ‘enchanter’.
Eliab means ‘my God Is Father’.
Ammishaddai means ‘Shaddai is my kinsman’.
Take a look at the names of these men again do you realize that they all have something to do with our Holy Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
16 These were chosen from the congregation, leaders of their fathers’ tribes, heads of the divisions in Israel.
These twelve men were the recognized great leaders of the tribes, ‘the princes of the tribes of their fathers’. They were the titular heads of the fighting men of Israel, who would themselves be seen in terms of their military units, or of their ‘family groupings’.
17 Then Moses and Aaron took these men who had been mentioned by name, 18 and they assembled all the congregation together on the first day of the second month; and they recited their ancestry by families, by their fathers’ houses, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and above, each one individually.
These ‘men who are mentioned by name’ because of their prominence, then returned to their tribes and gathered them on the day in question and each of the male members of the tribe ‘declared their begetting’, that is, their claim to connection with the tribe, clan group by clan group, in their tribes, according to the number of names, for all those of twenty years old and upwards. In other words each tribe mobilized its fighting men, identifying them with the tribe.
19 As the LORD commanded Moses, so he numbered them in the Wilderness of Sinai.
Thus did Moses fulfill Yahweh’s command and mobilize the fighting men of Yahweh ready for moving forward. The numbering of Israel was an act of faith and obedience to Yahweh. It was a declaration that our Holy God Yahweh had a purpose to fulfill through them in possessing the land, which could be to them the hoped for ‘Kingdom of priests’ (Exodus 19.6), the equivalent of the Kingdom of God, if only they would be faithful to Him. The army of Yahweh would move forward with Yahweh Himself among them on His earthly throne, the Ark of the covenant of Yahweh (10.33-36), accompanied by the cloud which would move under His direction and veil His presence (9.15-23). And if they continued faithful He would be among them as the great Deliverer, the One Whose Will nothing could stop.
Unbeknown to the Israelites was the fact that our Holy God was stretching their faith. For we know that all the fighting was controlled by El Shaddai, Almighty God. The Israelites although fearful would have to be ready to fight for God. Their willingness to obey Him was the motivating factor. Remember, the promise of our Lord. One man would chase a thousand.
The same can be true for us although in our case the goal is a heavenly Kingdom. We too are called on to ‘march forward’ and to look to the invisible One on His throne. Like Israel, the battle has already been won by our Master and King Lord Jesus. All we need to do is be obedient and move forward in our walk with Him. The question we must ask ourselves as we read these words is, are we mobilized as true and obedient ‘fighting men of Yahweh’, or are we only simply excess baggage?
20 Now the children of Reuben, Israel’s oldest son, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, according to the number of names, every male individually, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: 21 those who were numbered of the tribe of Reuben were forty-six thousand five hundred.
The ‘numbering’ or ‘assessment’was carried out methodically according to their family census. All in the tribe of Reuben who were of draft age amounted to forty six thousand five hundred ready for war.
22 From the children of Simeon, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, of those who were numbered, according to the number of names, every male individually, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: 23 those who were numbered of the tribe of Simeon were fifty-nine thousand three hundred.
A similar counting took place for the tribe of Simeon, amounting to fifty nine thousand three hundred ready for war.
24 From the children of Gad, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: 25 those who were numbered of the tribe of Gad were forty-five thousand six hundred and fifty.
The tribe of Gad, amounted to forty five thousand six hundred and fifty.
26 From the children of Judah, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: 27 those who were numbered of the tribe of Judah were seventy-four thousand six hundred.
The tribe of Judah, amounted to seventy four thousand six hundred ready for war.
28 From the children of Issachar, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: 29 those who were numbered of the tribe of Issachar were fifty-four thousand four hundred.
The tribe of Issachar, amounted to fifty four thousand four hundred ready for war.
30 From the children of Zebulun, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: 31 those who were numbered of the tribe of Zebulun were fifty-seven thousand four hundred.
The tribe of Zebulun, counted fifty seven thousand four hundred young men available to fight.
32 From the sons of Joseph, the children of Ephraim, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: 33 those who were numbered of the tribe of Ephraim were forty thousand five hundred.
Levi was not to be counted since they all belong to our Holy Yahweh God so a replacement tribe is picked and that is the tribe of Ephraim, the descendent of Joseph. Their count of available fighting men was forty thousand five hundred.
34 From the children of Manasseh, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: 35 those who were numbered of the tribe of Manasseh were thirty-two thousand two hundred.
Joseph’s other son Manasseh count amounted to thirty two thousand two hundred men ready for war.
36 From the children of Benjamin, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: 37 those who were numbered of the tribe of Benjamin were thirty-five thousand four hundred.
The tribe of Benjamin came up with thirty five thousand four hundred young men ready for war.
38 From the children of Dan, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: 39 those who were numbered of the tribe of Dan were sixty-two thousand seven hundred.
For the tribe of Dan the leader gave a count of sixty two thousand seven hundred ready for war.
40 From the children of Asher, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: 41 those who were numbered of the tribe of Asher were forty-one thousand five hundred.
Asher’s contribution for the Israel military was forty one thousand five hundred men.
42 From the children of Naphtali, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: 43 those who were numbered of the tribe of Naphtali were fifty-three thousand four hundred.
Naphtali’s leader reported a total of fifty three thousand four hundred men ready for war.
44 These are the ones who were numbered, whom Moses and Aaron numbered, with the leaders of Israel, twelve men, each one representing his father’s house.
This then was a description of those who were drafted for military duty, by their twelve tribal leaders. The Levites were omitted because they were not liable for military service
45 So all who were numbered of the children of Israel, by their fathers’ houses, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war in Israel— 46 all who were numbered were six hundred and three thousand five hundred and fifty.
All the adult males among the children of Israel, apart from the Levites, were numbered ‘by their fathers’ houses’ in readiness for war totaled six hundred and three thousand five hundred and fifty.
An interesting diagram of the camp of Israel comes out when you put all the tribes together. You see they form a picture of a cross.
47 But the Levites were not numbered among them by their fathers’ tribe;
But the Levites were not numbered among these fighting men. They were descendants of Levi who had been chosen through the calling of Moses and Aaron. It was not theirs to go forth to war. They were responsible for the protection of the Tabernacle of Yahweh and its maintenance and its carriage. They were Yahweh’s ‘aide-de-camps’.
48 for the LORD had spoken to Moses, saying: 49 “Only the tribe of Levi you shall not number, nor take a census of them among the children of Israel;
This was in accordance with the direct command of our God Yahweh. They were not intended to be available for war. They were not to be added among the fighting men. They were set aside to Yahweh.
50 but you shall appoint the Levites over the tabernacle of the Testimony, over all its furnishings, and over all things that belong to it; they shall carry the tabernacle and all its furnishings; they shall attend to it and camp around the tabernacle.
The Levites were to be appointed by divine command to take responsibility for ‘the Tabernacle including all its furnishings. They were to carry it when necessary, generally look after it, and encamp around it to guard it. But the carrying was only allowable once the furniture had been covered by the priests. Only the priests could touch the furniture and cover it. The Levites simply did the carrying. By this its supreme holiness was emphasized. It was ‘God’s stuff’. In the same way the Levites could not enter the Sanctuary while it was functioning.
51 And when the tabernacle is to go forward, the Levites shall take it down; and when the tabernacle is to be set up, the Levites shall set it up. The outsider who comes near shall be put to death.
When the cloud moved from the Tabernacle and the divinely appointed time had come to continue their journey, and ‘the tabernacle set forward’, it was the Levites who were responsible for dismantling the whole structure, and when the cloud stopped to indicate the new campsite chosen by Yahweh, it was the Levites who would again erect the Tabernacle in the place that He chose. No non-Levite must approach for the purpose. Should they do so they must be put to death. The Tabernacle and all its contents were sacred, and no non-Levite must touch them. By this was indicated that while Yahweh dwelt among them they must remember His ‘otherness’ (His non-earthiness and heavenliness) as the invisible and Holy God, present among them but not fully accessible, except once a year on the Day of Atonement through the High Priest, and by prayer at a distance. The task of the Levites was thus a sacred and awesome one, and would be carried out with great reverence, at least initially.
52 The children of Israel shall pitch their tents, everyone by his own camp, everyone by his own standard, according to their armies;
All the Israelites were to pitch their tents in the camps of their tribes, under their tribal standard (or ‘in their tribal ranks’ - the meaning of the word is not certain although its significance is clear), to the north, south, east and west of the Tabernacle, in their military units. They were not to be a ragbag army, but disciplined and organized.
The word translated ‘standard’ may simply indicate ‘tribal ranks, companies’. But any large camp would certainly require some kind of indication as to who were sited where, so it quite likely does indicate tribal standards, and clan banners.
53 but the Levites shall camp around the tabernacle of the Testimony, that there may be no wrath on the congregation of the children of Israel; and the Levites shall keep charge of the tabernacle of the Testimony.”
In order to make it convenient for the Levites to get to their duties serving in the Tabernacle they were to encamp in an inner square around the Tabernacle as its guardians. That was their ‘standard’. And they were to keep the charge of it, preventing men from approaching it lightly without due reason, so that the wrath of Yahweh should not fall on the people with its resulting consequences. This ‘wrath’ signifies His aversion to sin and to all attitudes which treat Him lightly. Against such He must act in judgment.
54 Thus the children of Israel did; according to all that the LORD commanded Moses, so they did.
The importance of this fact is doubly stressed that the children of Israel, fully obedient at this stage, did all that Yahweh commanded Moses.
For us the lesson of Numbers 1 is clear. We are all soldiers of Christ, set apart to His service, and must ever be ready immediately to do His will. We are called to warfare (2 Corinthians 10.4), and must be disciplined. We must respond to our being ‘numbered’ by Him. But in the course of that we must ever remember His holiness and not approach Him lightly. Our approach must be through the blood of Christ, through the new and living way which He has prepared for us through His flesh (Hebrews 10.19-25), a constant acknowledgement of His holiness. It is because many have lost this recognition that faith is often at such a low level.
Others may say that I cannot fight. That is true but there are other services which you can do. You can work in the supply line. You can provide services that benefit those who are in the battle. How about being prayer warriors.
Some are also called to be ‘Levites’, serving in a more intimate capacity, while others still are called to serve the inner sanctuary. All take their place in the place assigned to them by God.
