seekeroftruth
Well-Known Member
1 Chronicles 23:24 These were the descendants of Levi by their families—the heads of families as they were registered under their names and counted individually, that is, the workers twenty years old or more who served in the temple of the Lord. 25 For David had said, “Since the Lord, the God of Israel, has granted rest to his people and has come to dwell in Jerusalem forever, 26 the Levites no longer need to carry the tabernacle or any of the articles used in its service.” 27 According to the last instructions of David, the Levites were counted from those twenty years old or more.
28 The duty of the Levites was to help Aaron’s descendants in the service of the temple of the Lord: to be in charge of the courtyards, the side rooms, the purification of all sacred things and the performance of other duties at the house of God. 29 They were in charge of the bread set out on the table, the special flour for the grain offerings, the thin loaves made without yeast, the baking and the mixing, and all measurements of quantity and size. 30 They were also to stand every morning to thank and praise the Lord. They were to do the same in the evening 31 and whenever burnt offerings were presented to the Lord on the Sabbaths, at the New Moon feasts and at the appointed festivals. They were to serve before the Lord regularly in the proper number and in the way prescribed for them.
32 And so the Levites carried out their responsibilities for the tent of meeting, for the Holy Place and, under their relatives the descendants of Aaron, for the service of the temple of the Lord.
28 The duty of the Levites was to help Aaron’s descendants in the service of the temple of the Lord: to be in charge of the courtyards, the side rooms, the purification of all sacred things and the performance of other duties at the house of God. 29 They were in charge of the bread set out on the table, the special flour for the grain offerings, the thin loaves made without yeast, the baking and the mixing, and all measurements of quantity and size. 30 They were also to stand every morning to thank and praise the Lord. They were to do the same in the evening 31 and whenever burnt offerings were presented to the Lord on the Sabbaths, at the New Moon feasts and at the appointed festivals. They were to serve before the Lord regularly in the proper number and in the way prescribed for them.
32 And so the Levites carried out their responsibilities for the tent of meeting, for the Holy Place and, under their relatives the descendants of Aaron, for the service of the temple of the Lord.
So... there's a lot to unpack according to the easy English site.
The count was actually of those men who were 20 years old and older. Men were old enough to work in the temple when they were 30 years old (verse 3). The LORD said this to Moses when he counted the Levites (Numbers 4:3).
Moses lowered the age for the work of the LORD’s tent to 25. But the Levites did not work after the age of 50 (Numbers 8:24-25). Originally, David decided that the Levites would start to work in the temple at 30 years old. The work in the temple would not be as heavy as the work for the tent. The Levites had to carry the tent and all that was in it, including the altar and the ark. Both of these would now remain in the temple at Jerusalem. But for some reason, David now lowered the age for the count to 20.
The task of the Levites was to help the priests. They had to take care of the temple and of all that was in it. They had to make sure that all things were clean and ready for use.
The Levites had to bake 12 loaves of bread for each Sabbath day. The priests placed these loaves in two rows of 6 on the special table in the holy place. The loaves remained there until the next Sabbath day. Then the priests would eat these loaves in the holy place (Leviticus 24:5-9).
Each morning and each evening, the Levites praised the LORD with music and prayers. They did this at the time of the regular sacrifices (Exodus 29:38-39). Also, they did this at the time of sacrifices on the special days.
The priests made extra sacrifices at other times. These were on the Sabbath days, at the start of the month and other special days (Numbers 28:9 to Numbers 29:39). At each of these events, the Levites praised the LORD when the priests made the sacrifices.
The special days were annual events. Some of them lasted for just one day. But other ones lasted for several days. The main special days each year were:
Moses lowered the age for the work of the LORD’s tent to 25. But the Levites did not work after the age of 50 (Numbers 8:24-25). Originally, David decided that the Levites would start to work in the temple at 30 years old. The work in the temple would not be as heavy as the work for the tent. The Levites had to carry the tent and all that was in it, including the altar and the ark. Both of these would now remain in the temple at Jerusalem. But for some reason, David now lowered the age for the count to 20.
The task of the Levites was to help the priests. They had to take care of the temple and of all that was in it. They had to make sure that all things were clean and ready for use.
The Levites had to bake 12 loaves of bread for each Sabbath day. The priests placed these loaves in two rows of 6 on the special table in the holy place. The loaves remained there until the next Sabbath day. Then the priests would eat these loaves in the holy place (Leviticus 24:5-9).
Each morning and each evening, the Levites praised the LORD with music and prayers. They did this at the time of the regular sacrifices (Exodus 29:38-39). Also, they did this at the time of sacrifices on the special days.
The priests made extra sacrifices at other times. These were on the Sabbath days, at the start of the month and other special days (Numbers 28:9 to Numbers 29:39). At each of these events, the Levites praised the LORD when the priests made the sacrifices.
The special days were annual events. Some of them lasted for just one day. But other ones lasted for several days. The main special days each year were:
- The day called Passover, and the week afterwards when people ate flat bread. Each year the *Jews remember how God brought them out of Egypt. Passover is the special time when they remember this. (Passover is usually at the same time as Easter.)
- The day called Pentecost, which is a special day 50 days after Passover.
- The day to sound the trumpets.
- The day when the people remember that God forgives sin.
- The week when the people lived in tents.
So.. the schedule and the job descriptions for the Levites at the Temple were set for the completion of the construction. Until then... they'll do their jobs in the tent.
