Numbers 18: 1 – 32
Seek not the limelight
18 Then the LORD said to Aaron: “You and your sons and your father’s house with you shall bear the iniquity related to the sanctuary, and you and your sons with you shall bear the iniquity associated with your priesthood. 2 Also bring with you your brethren of the tribe of Levi, the tribe of your father, that they may be joined with you and serve you while you and your sons are with you before the tabernacle of witness. 3 They shall attend to your needs and all the needs of the tabernacle; but they shall not come near the articles of the sanctuary and the altar, lest they die—they and you also. 4 They shall be joined with you and attend to the needs of the tabernacle of meeting, for all the work of the tabernacle; but an outsider shall not come near you. 5 And you shall attend to the duties of the sanctuary and the duties of the altar, that there may be no more wrath on the children of Israel. 6 Behold, I Myself have taken your brethren the Levites from among the children of Israel; they are a gift to you, given by the LORD, to do the work of the tabernacle of meeting. 7 Therefore you and your sons with you shall attend to your priesthood for everything at the altar and behind the veil; and you shall serve. I give your priesthood to you as a gift for service, but the outsider who comes near shall be put to death.” 8 And the LORD spoke to Aaron: “Here, I Myself have also given you charge of My heave offerings, all the holy gifts of the children of Israel; I have given them as a portion to you and your sons, as an ordinance forever. 9 This shall be yours of the most holy things reserved from the fire: every offering of theirs, every grain offering and every sin offering and every trespass offering which they render to Me, shall be most holy for you and your sons. 10 In a most holy place you shall eat it; every male shall eat it. It shall be holy to you. 11 “This also is yours: the heave offering of their gift, with all the wave offerings of the children of Israel; I have given them to you, and your sons and daughters with you, as an ordinance forever. Everyone who is clean in your house may eat it. 12 “All the best of the oil, all the best of the new wine and the grain, their first fruits which they offer to the LORD, I have given them to you. 13 Whatever first ripe fruit is in their land, which they bring to the LORD, shall be yours. Everyone who is clean in your house may eat it. 14 “Every devoted thing in Israel shall be yours. 15 “Everything that first opens the womb of all flesh, which they bring to the LORD, whether man or beast, shall be yours; nevertheless the firstborn of man you shall surely redeem, and the firstborn of unclean animals you shall redeem. 16 And those redeemed of the devoted things you shall redeem when one month old, according to your valuation, for five shekels of silver, according to the shekel of the sanctuary, which is twenty gerahs. 17 But the firstborn of a cow, the firstborn of a sheep, or the firstborn of a goat you shall not redeem; they are holy. You shall sprinkle their blood on the altar, and burn their fat as an offering made by fire for a sweet aroma to the LORD. 18 And their flesh shall be yours, just as the wave breast and the right thigh are yours. 19 “All the heave offerings of the holy things, which the children of Israel offer to the LORD, I have given to you and your sons and daughters with you as an ordinance forever; it is a covenant of salt forever before the LORD with you and your descendants with you.” 20 Then the LORD said to Aaron: “You shall have no inheritance in their land, nor shall you have any portion among them; I am your portion and your inheritance among the children of Israel. 21 “Behold, I have given the children of Levi all the tithes in Israel as an inheritance in return for the work which they perform, the work of the tabernacle of meeting. 22 Hereafter the children of Israel shall not come near the tabernacle of meeting, lest they bear sin and die. 23 But the Levites shall perform the work of the tabernacle of meeting, and they shall bear their iniquity; it shall be a statute forever, throughout your generations, that among the children of Israel they shall have no inheritance. 24 For the tithes of the children of Israel, which they offer up as a heave offering to the LORD, I have given to the Levites as an inheritance; therefore I have said to them, ‘Among the children of Israel they shall have no inheritance.’ ” 25 Then the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, 26 “Speak thus to the Levites, and say to them: ‘When you take from the children of Israel the tithes which I have given you from them as your inheritance, then you shall offer up a heave offering of it to the LORD, a tenth of the tithe. 27 And your heave offering shall be reckoned to you as though it were the grain of the threshing floor and as the fullness of the winepress. 28 Thus you shall also offer a heave offering to the LORD from all your tithes which you receive from the children of Israel, and you shall give the LORD’s heave offering from it to Aaron the priest. 29 Of all your gifts you shall offer up every heave offering due to the LORD, from all the best of them, the consecrated part of them.’ 30 Therefore you shall say to them: ‘When you have lifted up the best of it, then the rest shall be accounted to the Levites as the produce of the threshing floor and as the produce of the winepress. 31 You may eat it in any place, you and your households, for it is your reward for your work in the tabernacle of meeting. 32 And you shall bear no sin because of it, when you have lifted up the best of it. But you shall not profane the holy gifts of the children of Israel, lest you die.’ ”
Everyone wants to be famous or, at least, that's what the people who want to be famous keep telling us. They desire to be in the limelight.
The origins of “in the limelight,” which refers to being the focus of public attention, are linked to a type of stage lighting that was popular in the 19th century. The “lime” in limelight has nothing to do with the green citrus fruit but rather with a chemical compound, calcium oxide, also known as quicklime. In the early 1820s, English inventor Goldsworthy Gurney, improving on the work of earlier scientists, developed a blowpipe that burned hydrogen and oxygen to create an extremely hot flame. When Gurney heated calcium oxide in the flame it produced an intense white light, dubbed limelight.
In 1837, limelight was used for the first time to illuminate a stage, at London’s Covent Garden. During the second half of the 19th century, theaters regularly utilized this powerful form of light, which could be focused into a beam to spotlight specific actors or an area of the stage, as well as create special effects such as sunlight or moonlight. However, a downside to limelight was that each light needed someone to monitor it and make adjustments to the block of lime as it burned. Additionally, this type of lighting proved to be a fire hazard. In 1879, Thomas Edison demonstrated the first practical electric light bulb and by the end of the 19th century most theaters had switched from limelight to electricity, which was safer and more economical. Nevertheless, this development didn’t signal lights out for “in the limelight,” which remains a common expression for being a celebrity.
A wish for fame belies the existence of a crippling, undiagnosed malady, one rather like malnutrition, except that it's a disease of the self, not the body.
In the book of 1st John chapter 2 verse 16 we learn, “For all that is in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—is not of the Father but is of the world.”
The three handicaps listed helps us understand that in this world we live in develops ‘Somebody’s’ and ‘Nobody’s’. What category do you think most people desire to be in?
Being a Somebody signifies power. High status is used to rationalize the privileges those who have achieved the limelight have arrogated unto themselves. They believe that they are always the center of attention no matter where they go.
Yet if you take the time to actually investigate these superstars they might advise you to avoid the problems that they have to go through as a Somebody. Let me explain a few.
For celebrities every little thing they say or do is recorded somewhere, and every single mistake they make will be listed as news whether fake or real.
Your entire life (past, present, and future) is owned by the public, and they will never, ever let it go. Sometimes, I think about the kind of psychological effects that pressure must have on these people, and I'm suddenly way less envious of the giant pile of money that we see them given.
I like to watch the progression of young men who make the professional status. They hire a sports lawyer to negotiate for them. They are offered so much money that they forget that the lawyer takes about 30 % of the athlete’s money. Even so, what do they immediately do with their new found wealth and popularity? They buy a mansion for themselves and their mom. Then they go out and buy a couple of expensive cars. Lastly they purchase all kinds of clothes and jewelry.
So far everything they do is a success, and our star is in the limelight. His schedule is swamped by interviews, the Paparazzo hounding him for pictures, promotional work, and other projects. We're talking 6 a.m. to 3 a.m.
Every day of the week, every waking second, people are telling him how awesome he is because 1) he's a celebrity, and 2) he is a source of money for everyone who's invested in his talents.
Before long, he starts developing an inflated ego. If he has any tendencies toward narcissism at all (which he has), chances are it'll evolve into full-blown megalomania. Oh, but he keeps it all in check -- he's the nicest guy in the world in public and in commercials. That's the persona he's been trained to expose in public. It's what feeds the machine.
But, celebrity-induced "I'm the hottest star" syndrome is like any other psychological condition -- if it goes unchecked for too long, which it will unless your career comes crashing down or his money well dries up, it's easy to start letting every stupid thought or position he has make its way out for the public to scrutinize. I like the old phase, ‘Blessed is the fool that knows he is a fool, then the one who opens his mouth and removes all doubt.
We can learn from the Gospel of Luke 12:48 this important truth, “From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked”.
The idea of “to whom much is given, much will be required” is that we are held responsible for what we have. If we are blessed with talents, wealth, knowledge, time, and the like, it is expected that we use these well to glorify God and benefit others.
We all need to grasp what our Lord Jesus Christ Is teaching through these words. In every area of our lives, we are familiar with exceptionally gifted people who have been entrusted with amazing gifts. Our Master and King Yeshua taught that much more will be expected of these people on whom God has showered incredible resources. It is a privilege to be able to use our gifts and talents for Him.
When we come to the Lord with an attitude that we do not like His plan for our life, He will never bless us, but when we understand what we have is a privilege, He will bless us abundantly.
God has given us all we need for today. Trust God to provide for you and then you give to others as you have been blessed.
If you remember in our last study Korah and other Levites wanted to be in the limelight. Their scheme did not turn out very well for them and their families. Today, our Precious Holy God Is going to point out the features and benefits of being one of His servants no matter what the job duties spotlight. Also, since all His servants represent Jehovah Elyon, The Lord Most High, if they mess up and sin there will be more severe discipline.
After reviewing this chapter, I guess Aaron or any priest might say, ‘You still think you want my job.’
In this section the vital ministry of the priests and Levites is emphasized. They were to maintain the holiness of the Tabernacle of Yahweh, and see to all necessary means by which atonement was possible for Israel. On them would come the guilt of failure in this regard? The priests were to ‘bear the iniquity of the Sanctuary’ (18.1) and the Levites that of watching over the Tabernacle (18.23).
18 Then the LORD said to Aaron: “You and your sons and your father’s house with you shall bear the iniquity related to the sanctuary, and you and your sons with you shall bear the iniquity associated with your priesthood.
A most solemn charge was given to Aaron on behalf of the sons of Aaron. The special sacredness of this was brought out by the fact that Yahweh spoke directly to Aaron alone, which was unusual. He wanted Aaron to recognize the supreme sacredness of his charge.
He and his sons and his father’s house (the Levites) were to have full responsibility for the carrying out of all the requirements of the Sanctuary. It was the priests who were mainly to maintain the holiness of the inner Sanctuary in the faithful fulfillment of their duties with regard to the preparation and presentation of the showbread, the maintenance, trimming and lighting of the lamp stand, and the offering of the holy, uniquely prescribed incense on the altar of incense, ensuring especially that nothing ‘foreign’ or un-prescribed could interfere. They had the privilege of approaching nearest to the throne of Yahweh, but thereby they bore the heavier judgment.
The Levites also would be responsible to protect the Sanctuary, and they were to watch over it and carry out its ancillary functions, including the bearing of it on the march. To this extent too they ‘bore the iniquity of the Sanctuary’ for any failure in that regard. It was a sacred responsibility.
2 Also bring with you your brethren of the tribe of Levi, the tribe of your father, that they may be joined with you and serve you while you and your sons are with you before the tabernacle of witness.
The priests were to have the assistance of the remainder of the Levites, who would ‘minister to them’ by looking after the maintenance and heavy duties with regard to the holy things, but only in a very secondary capacity.
3 They shall attend to your needs and all the needs of the tabernacle; but they shall not come near the articles of the sanctuary and the altar, lest they die—they and you also.
The Levites would be expected to ‘keep the charge’ of the priests, that is, receive and obey the instructions of the priests. They were especially to have responsibilities for the erecting and dismantling of the Tabernacle once the holy things had been fully covered by the priests (4.5-15), and of guarding the Sanctuary from the approach of un-authorized persons (1.53). But to come near the vessels of the sanctuary, including its furniture and all their appurtenances, or to approach the altar while it was uncovered and in active service was forbidden them. To fail in this regard would be fatal. It would result in death. And if it was due to failure on behalf of the priests, they too would die.
4 They shall be joined with you and attend to the needs of the tabernacle of meeting, for all the work of the tabernacle; but an outsider shall not come near you.
The Levites would also have responsibility for the maintenance of the Tent, and to perform any ancillary duties outside those which were wholly the responsibility of the priests. They were general helpmeets.
5 And you shall attend to the duties of the sanctuary and the duties of the altar, that there may be no more wrath on the children of Israel.
The charge of the inner Sanctuary and of the altar was the priests alone. They alone could enter the inner Sanctuary; they alone could minister at the altar and have charge of all its affairs. This would avoid ‘wrath’ and judgment falling on Israel as it had in the case of Korah, Dathan and Abiram (17).
6 Behold, I Myself have taken your brethren the Levites from among the children of Israel; they are a gift to you, given by the LORD, to do the work of the tabernacle of meeting.
The Levites belonged to Yahweh, having replaced the firstborn of the children of Israel (Exodus 13.2), and the Levites were now Yahweh’s gift to the priests to perform all the laborious and heavy tasks peripheral to the actual work, which included the carrying of all the holy things while on the march and, later, the gathering and controlling of the tithes and giving guidance concerning God’s Instruction (the Torah).
7 Therefore you and your sons with you shall attend to your priesthood for everything at the altar and behind the veil; and you shall serve. I give your priesthood to you as a gift for service, but the outsider who comes near shall be put to death.”
So Aaron and his sons were to protect and guard the priesthood in respect of everything appertaining to the altar, and for everything within the veil. Thus they were responsible for all use of the altar, the activities within the inner Sanctuary, and all service with regard to the Holy of Holies, (the Holiest of All, the Most Holy Place), where none could enter except the High Priest once a year on the Day of Atonement.
Theirs was to be a continual service, day by day, Sabbath by Sabbath, new moon by new moon, year by year. Their whole lives were to be dedicated to Yahweh’s service. This was God’s gift to them, and none other could participate. Any un-authorized person who sought to interfere was to be put to death.
For us all this holy work is carried on by our great High Priest, Jesus Christ, Who Is for us both High Priest and offering. It is through His work for us and through faith in Him that we are made acceptable to God. The careful emphasis on the work of the priests and its dangers demonstrates how important and particular His work was. And to us then is given a priesthood for the offering of praise and thanksgiving (Hebrews 13.15), and for service on His behalf in purity of life and witness (Romans 12.1-2).
As a reward for their faithful service the priests were given as an inheritance certain holy things, the most holy being for their own consumption, and the less holy being for all their families.
The most holy things included portions of the grain offerings, the sin offerings and the guilt offerings. These could be eaten only by males of the family of Aaron within the precincts of the Tent of meeting. The holy things, which could be eaten by their whole families if they were ‘clean’, included the contribution offerings (heave offerings), the first fruits and portions of peace offerings, which could be eaten in a clean place.
8 And the LORD spoke to Aaron: “Here, I Myself have also given you charge of My heave offerings, all the holy gifts of the children of Israel; I have given them as a portion to you and your sons, as an ordinance forever.
To Aaron and his sons were given charge of all ‘contribution offerings’ or ‘heave-offerings’. In view of the fact that not all that comes under this name could be ‘heaved’ (moved up and down) before Yahweh. They were offerings made to Yahweh and brought before Him at the door of the Tent of meeting. They were thus ‘hallowed things’, set apart to Yahweh.
9 This shall be yours of the most holy things reserved from the fire: every offering of theirs, every grain offering and every sin offering and every trespass offering which they render to Me, shall be most holy for you and your sons.
The most holy things were reserved for the male priests. These included the portions of the grain, purification for sin and guilt offerings not offered by fire on the altar. The point here is that they ate them as the representatives of Yahweh, ‘standing in’ for Yahweh. Yahweh needed no earthly food, but it had to be offered to Him nonetheless in gratitude and worship, and as a means for the purification of sin. And it was then openly consumed by the priests who ate it in His name. None other could eat of it.
10 In a most holy place you shall eat it; every male shall eat it. It shall be holy to you.
This privilege was tightly restricted. These offerings were ‘most holy’. They were uniquely the preserve of Yahweh Himself. Only the male priests could eat them on Yahweh’s behalf. They were special. The point was that they were so holy to Yahweh that only He through His priests could participate in them.
11 “This also is yours: the heave offering of their gift, with all the wave offerings of the children of Israel; I have given them to you, and your sons and daughters with you, as an ordinance forever. Everyone who is clean in your house may eat it.
But all contribution offerings could be eaten by all in the priestly families who were ritually clean. And included with these were the wave offerings which were the portion of the priests from offerings and sacrifices, and included the breast of each animal sacrificed, apart from whole burnt offerings which were totally consumed on the altar.
12 “All the best of the oil, all the best of the new wine and the grain, their first fruits which they offer to the LORD, I have given them to you.
The priests were also to receive the choicest of the first fruits, of the oil, the vintage and the grain. The first fruits of all produce were to be given to Yahweh, and were available to the priests.
13 Whatever first ripe fruit is in their land, which they bring to the LORD, shall be yours. Everyone who is clean in your house may eat it.
These first fruits, the first-ripe fruits, were available to all in the priestly families. All in their households who were ritually clean could eat of them. They were holy but not most holy.
14 “Every devoted thing in Israel shall be yours.
Furthermore anything that was ‘devoted’ to Yahweh under an oath was the priests. Many would seek to reveal their devotion to God by offering some of their wealth under oath, or offering themselves so that they had to be ‘redeemed’. All this, including the redemption price, belonged to the priests.
15 “Everything that first opens the womb of all flesh, which they bring to the LORD, whether man or beast, shall be yours; nevertheless the firstborn of man you shall surely redeem, and the firstborn of unclean animals you shall redeem.
From the time of leaving Egypt every male that opened the womb belonged to Yahweh, whether of man or domestic beast. If it was a clean animal it had to be offered as a sacrifice. If it was an unclean animal such as an donkey it must either be redeemed or its neck was to be broken. If it was a man child, the man child had to be redeemed.
16 And those redeemed of the devoted things you shall redeem when one month old, according to your valuation, for five shekels of silver, according to the shekel of the sanctuary, which is twenty gerahs.
The cost of redeeming a male child was to be five shekels. That was lower than the price of a male slave, and probably represented the slave price of a male child.
17 But the firstborn of a cow, the firstborn of a sheep, or the firstborn of a goat you shall not redeem; they are holy. You shall sprinkle their blood on the altar, and burn their fat as an offering made by fire for a sweet aroma to the LORD.
If it was ox, sheep or goat it had to be offered as a sacrifice, and its blood sprinkled on the altar. Its fat was to be burned, as the fat of any offering always was, as a pleasing odor to Yahweh. There could be no redemption.
18 And their flesh shall be yours, just as the wave breast and the right thigh are yours.
The flesh of the offering of the firstling then belonged to the priest, along with the wave-breast and the contribution-thigh which always went to the priests unless the offering was a whole burnt offering.
19 “All the heave offerings of the holy things, which the children of Israel offer to the LORD, I have given to you and your sons and daughters with you as an ordinance forever; it is a covenant of salt forever before the LORD with you and your descendants with you.”
So all contribution offerings which were of holy things, and therefore ‘most holy’, were to be given to the priests as a portion forever. This was a covenant of salt before Yahweh, that is a covenant which would be preserved and could not weaken or decay. It was forever.
20 Then the LORD said to Aaron: “You shall have no inheritance in their land, nor shall you have any portion among them; I am your portion and your inheritance among the children of Israel.
And this would be the priests’ lot because they would have no inheritance in the land. They would have no portion in the land. Yahweh would be their inheritance and their portion.
This teaches us that those who would serve Christ fully should have no portion in this life. If they prosper they should look on all in which they prosper as God’s and only to be used under His commandment. They should receive their food as God provides, and utilize all that they have to further His work and purposes. When a supposed man of God accumulates wealth for himself and lives a wealthy lifestyle he thereby debars himself from true service for God.
We are now informed of the fact that the tithe, one tenth of all produce whether of domestic animals, grain, olive oil, or vintage, was to belong to Yahweh and be given to the Levites. During the period in the wilderness this would all be necessary in order to ensure that the Levites had a reasonable supply of food.
21 “Behold, I have given the children of Levi all the tithes in Israel as an inheritance in return for the work which they perform, the work of the tabernacle of meeting.
This is the first specific reference to the fact that the tithe should be given to the Levites. Leviticus 27.30-33 regulates the tithing but does not name its recipient. Tithing was an ancient custom in the Ancient Near East and we only have to turn to Genesis 14 to see it in operation. There Abraham had to pay a tithe to the King of Salem as feudal dues, or possibly as a kind of rental for the use of land for grazing, and as fealty while dwelling on his land. In return he received use of the land and provisioning after the battle which had just been fought. But Yahweh was Israel’s Overlord and in Israel that tithes was due to Yahweh. It was His and at His disposal. Here He declared that it should then go to the Levites as His servants, as their inheritance from Him.
22 Hereafter the children of Israel shall not come near the tabernacle of meeting, lest they bear sin and die.
And because the Levites now served the Tabernacle of Yahweh, where He met with His people, instead of the firstborn sons of Israel, no children of Israel could come near the Tent of meeting in order to serve there lest they come under judgment (bear sin) and die. They could, of course, approach the court of the Tent with their offerings, but they came as approved suppliants and not as those who had a right of entry.
23 But the Levites shall perform the work of the tabernacle of meeting, and they shall bear their iniquity; it shall be a statute forever, throughout your generations, that among the children of Israel they shall have no inheritance.
For now it was the Levites who were to do the service of the Tent of meeting, guarding the approach and entry, assisting the people when they brought their offerings, erecting, dismantling and carrying it on its travels, supervising the collection of the tithes and ensuring that the priests received their portion.
‘They shall bear their iniquity.’ Their work carried with it certain dangers. If it was carried out carelessly or without due regard to the sanctity of what they carried they might well find themselves in peril. It was because they had to be well enough experienced not to make foolish or blasphemous errors that they could not bear the Tabernacle and its furniture and accessories until they were thirty. We can understand why five years training connected with it was necessary before they actually physically participated.
24 For the tithes of the children of Israel, which they offer up as a heave offering to the LORD, I have given to the Levites as an inheritance; therefore I have said to them, ‘Among the children of Israel they shall have no inheritance.’ ”
And that is why the tithe, which was a ‘contribution offering’ to Yahweh, was then given to the Levites. It was their inheritance from Yahweh. And that is why it was doubly stressed that they had no inheritance among the people. Yahweh was their inheritance.
25 Then the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, 26 “Speak thus to the Levites, and say to them: ‘When you take from the children of Israel the tithes which I have given you from them as your inheritance, then you shall offer up a heave offering of it to the LORD, a tenth of the tithe.
On receiving the tithes from the people the Levites were to offer one tenth of the tithe to Yahweh for the priests, as their contribution to the ministry of the priests. It would be a tithe of the tithe.
27 And your heave offering shall be reckoned to you as though it were the grain of the threshing floor and as the fullness of the winepress.
And as the Levites would not have much to offer that they grew themselves, this tithe to the priests would count as though it came from the grain of their threshing-floor and from the fullness of their winepresses, being their contribution to the ministry of the priests.
28 Thus you shall also offer a heave offering to the LORD from all your tithes which you receive from the children of Israel, and you shall give the LORD’s heave offering from it to Aaron the priest.
In that way the Levites would be making a contribution offering to Yahweh of tithes, in the same way as the other tribes made a contribution offering to Yahweh of tithes. They would make it out of their own tithe inheritance that they received from Yahweh.
29 Of all your gifts you shall offer up every heave offering due to the LORD, from all the best of them, the consecrated part of them.’
Out of all the gifts that they received they were to make their contribution offering to Yahweh, and for this purpose they were to choose the choicest and the best. That was to form the ‘hallowed part’which was made holy to Yahweh and set apart for the priests.
30 Therefore you shall say to them: ‘When you have lifted up the best of it, then the rest shall be accounted to the Levites as the produce of the threshing floor and as the produce of the winepress.
And that is why Moses could tell the Levites that when they did give the best to Yahweh from their tithes it would be treated as though they had grown it themselves, as though they had grown the grain and threshed it, as though they had grown the grapes and pressed them.
31 You may eat it in any place, you and your households, for it is your reward for your work in the tabernacle of meeting
But the remainder of the tithe they could eat ‘in every place’. That did not have to be brought before Yahweh nor eaten in the precincts of the Tent of meeting. It would need to be in a clean place, but it could be in any of their tents, and later their towns. It was their reward for their service in the Tent of meeting.
. 32 And you shall bear no sin because of it, when you have lifted up the best of it. But you shall not profane the holy gifts of the children of Israel, lest you die.’ ”
Thus once they had given to the priests the tithe of the tithe, as their contribution offering to Yahweh, they would be free from blame for their use of the remainder of them. By partaking of them and utilizing them as they wished they would not be profaning them. This provision was very necessary. Otherwise it could have been argued that as the Levites’ share of the tithe was ‘given to Yahweh’ it had to be treated as ‘most holy’ and therefore not to be eaten outside the Sanctuary precincts
