Well, how many of us find excitement in reading about censuses? This morning, there are three of them: the census of the Levites, the firstborn of Israel, and the working Levites with their tasks. A number stood out to me in the middle of all this counting: 273!
“Take the Levites as substitutes for the firstborn sons of the people of Israel. And take the livestock of the Levites as substitutes for the firstborn livestock of the people of Israel. The Levites belong to me; I am the Lord. There are 273 more firstborn sons of Israel than there are Levites. To redeem these extra firstborn sons, collect five pieces of silver for each of them (each piece weighing the same as the sanctuary shekel, which equals twenty gerahs). (Numbers 3:45–47, NLT)
In Israel, firstborn sons and livestock, regardless of tribe, belong to the Lord. In this census, however, God allows a substitution. But there’s a problem! There are 273 more firstborn sons of Israel than there are Levites to substitute for them! So, to redeem these extra 273, a price must be paid. In the middle of a bunch of numbers, redemption comes alive!
This reminds me of what the Apostle Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 6.
…You do not belong to yourself, for God bought you with a high price… (1 Corinthians 6:19–20, NLT)
What is this high price? It certainly isn’t silver weighed according to the sanctuary shekel, as we see in Numbers! Notice what the Apostle Peter writes…
For you know that God paid a ransom to save you from the empty life you inherited from your ancestors. And it was not paid with mere gold or silver, which lose their value. It was the precious blood of Christ, the sinless, spotless Lamb of God. God chose him as your ransom… (1 Peter 1:18–20, NLT)
Amazing, isn’t it? God was not willing that the extra 273 people be left unredeemed! God is unwilling that you and I should be left without redemption, either! Let us rejoice that God paid the high price for us through His Son Jesus! Let us rejoice that God substituted His Son to die in our place on the cross! Let us rejoice in God, our redeeming Savior! What a Savior, what an extraordinary God!
Today’s reading: Numbers 3-4 | Tomorrow’s reading: Numbers 5-6