Where we live now…..

So now we move on to the arrangement of the tribal camps. God had a view about where each clan should camp around the the central clan of the Levites and the Tent of Meeting. God commanded that the people should live in family groups. He appointed a leader for each tribe. He repeats the number of men over 20 in each tribe’s division.

The tribe of Issachar will camp next to them. The leader of the people of Issachar is Nethanel son of Zuar. His division numbers 54,400.  Numbers 2:5

Name of tribe. Geographical position. Appointed leader. Number of men in division.

That’s it. That is all that this chapter contains. As in the previous chapter, the Israelites did exactly what God commanded –

So the Israelites did everything the Lord commanded Moses; that is the way they encamped under their standards, and that is the way they set out, each of them with their clan and family.  Numbers 2:34

I guess it saved a lot of unnecessary arguments.

The name of the tribe – ever been in a pub quiz team and nearly come to blows over choosing the name of the team?

The geographical position – this reminds me of arriving at the top of the field at Greenbelt this year and surveying the area for the perfect pitch (that was not already taken). Of course, it did not exist. And whilst everyone tried hard to remain very nice and Christian, some tempers did become frayed as exhaustion and panic began to take over.

The appointed leader – in any group where a leader is not appointed, there will always be some jostling for position. That’s why group exercises at interviews reveal so much and are so keenly observed.

The number of men in the division – there was a clear expectation that all eligible men would fulfil their duty when the time came. No ifs and buts. No room for excuses.

Nowadays we can’t imagine living like this. We think nothing of travelling the country for our jobs any more. Take my family for example. I grew up in Ipswich. My parents moved to Nottingham when I was 18; my sister to Newcastle and my brother to Woking. When I moved up to Newcastle, my sister soon moved to Edinburgh and is now in Lancaster (she assures me this was not to get away from me and I believe her!). Andy’s family are all in the Manchester area. And now it starts with the next generation. I have a niece in Antwerp and a nephew in Berlin. My son Luke is settling in Warwick with his fiance who grew up in the same community here in Lobley Hill as us.

I envy families who live near each other. I have three friends who are sisters who live in this community – and so does their dad. They grew up here and settled here. And it is lovely to observe the relaxed sense of interdependence that they and their children all share with each other. There is less need for a welfare state in communities where extended families care for each other. The Welfare State came in in the forties in part because of economic migration. In this community, grandparents love to care for their grandchildren. Couples I know have every Friday night to themselves as the kids sleep over at Nanna’s. Young mums manage to work because their parents take responsibility for the childcare. Couples like us have family they can turn to in an emergency.

We made our choices, I know that. But all I’m saying is that life is very different with family around. Or so I imagine. (and of course, nowadays, there is a trend for children to be living at home for far longer – the average age is 27! – for financial reasons and that brings its own issues…..)

Let’s now move on to the Levites. God had appointed Aaron and his four sons as priests, set apart from the people, the only ones able to enter the Holy of Holies. Two of those sons had been put to death for disobeying God and so more hands were needed to help with the work. In Chapter 3, God explains his reasons for setting the tribe of Levi aside.

“I have taken the Levites from among the Israelites in place of the first male offspring of every Israelite woman. The Levites are mine, for all the firstborn are mine. When I struck down all the firstborn in Egypt, I set apart for myself every firstborn in Israel, whether human or animal. They are to be mine. I am the Lord.”   Numbers 3;11-13

Instead of taking the firstborn male of every Israelite woman of every tribe to work directly for God, he designates a whole tribe – the Levites – to be his instead. Now Levi had three sons – Gershon, Kohath and Merari. Each son and their clans had specific responsibilities. The Gershonite clans were responsible for the care of the tabernacle and the tent and everything relating to their use. The Kohathite clans were responsible for the ark and the articles of the sanctuary used for ministering. The Merarites were responsible for the frames, posts, bases, tentpegs and ropes.

Great idea. Give everyone a designated role and it saves all kinds of confusion. Make sure everyone knows what they are responsible for and there can be no arguments. I should try that in my house. I should have tried it in my house years ago.

So the number of Levites is 22,000. And the number of firstborn Israelites is 22,273. So to redeem the remaining 273, 5 shekels of redemption money are to be collected for each one.

It is done. Everything is as it should be.

We’ll leave it there for today.