Then the tabernacle was taken down, and the Gershonites and the Merarites set out, transporting it. Then the tabernacle was taken downThe "tabernacle" in Hebrew is "מִשְׁכָּן" (mishkan), meaning "dwelling place." It was the portable earthly dwelling place of God among the Israelites. The act of taking it down signifies a transition, a readiness to move as God directs. This reflects the transient nature of life and the need for obedience and readiness to follow God's leading. Historically, the tabernacle was central to Israelite worship and community, symbolizing God's presence and covenant with His people. and the Gershonites and the Merarites set out
The "Gershonites" and "Merarites" were two of the Levitical families tasked with specific duties related to the tabernacle. The Gershonites, descendants of Gershon, were responsible for the care of the tabernacle's curtains, coverings, and hangings. The Merarites, descendants of Merari, handled the frames, bars, pillars, and bases. This division of labor highlights the importance of community and the body of Christ, where each member has a unique role. It also underscores the order and organization within God's plans, as each family had a specific, God-ordained responsibility. transporting the tabernacle
The act of "transporting" the tabernacle was not merely a physical task but a spiritual duty. It involved careful attention to detail and reverence for the sacred. The Hebrew root for "transporting" is "נָשָׂא" (nasa), meaning to lift, carry, or bear. This reflects the honor and burden of carrying God's presence. In a broader spiritual sense, it reminds believers of the call to carry the presence of God within them, to be bearers of His light and truth in the world. The historical context of this journey through the wilderness serves as a metaphor for the Christian journey, where believers are called to move forward in faith, trusting in God's guidance and provision. Persons / Places / Events 1. The TabernacleThe portable dwelling place for the presence of God among the Israelites during their journey through the wilderness. It symbolizes God's presence and guidance. 2. The GershonitesA Levitical family responsible for carrying the curtains, coverings, and hangings of the Tabernacle. Their role was crucial in maintaining the sacred space. 3. The MeraritesAnother Levitical family tasked with transporting the frames, bars, pillars, and bases of the Tabernacle. They ensured the structural integrity of the Tabernacle during the journey. 4. The Wilderness JourneyThe context of this passage is the Israelites' journey from Mount Sinai to the Promised Land, a time of testing, learning, and reliance on God. 5. The Camp of IsraelThe organized community of the Israelites, moving in a specific order as directed by God, reflecting order and obedience. Teaching Points The Importance of Order and ObedienceThe structured movement of the Israelites, including the specific roles of the Gershonites and Merarites, underscores the importance of order and obedience in our spiritual journey. The Role of Service in WorshipThe Gershonites and Merarites exemplify how service and seemingly mundane tasks are integral to worship and maintaining God's presence among His people. God's Presence in TransitionAs the Tabernacle was taken down and moved, it symbolizes God's presence with us during times of transition and change, reminding us of His constant guidance. Community and CooperationThe successful transport of the Tabernacle required cooperation among different groups, teaching us the value of community and working together in the body of Christ. Faithfulness in Assigned RolesEach group had a specific role, and their faithfulness in these roles contributed to the greater purpose. This encourages us to be faithful in our God-given responsibilities. Bible Study Questions 1. How does the role of the Gershonites and Merarites in transporting the Tabernacle reflect the importance of service in our own faith communities? 2. In what ways can we ensure that we are obedient to God's order and direction in our personal lives and church communities? 3. How can the concept of God's presence during the Israelites' journey through the wilderness encourage us during times of transition in our own lives? 4. What lessons can we learn from the cooperation required among the Israelites in moving the Tabernacle that can be applied to our interactions within the church? 5. How can we identify and remain faithful to the roles God has assigned us, and how do these roles contribute to the larger mission of the church? Connections to Other Scriptures Exodus 25-31These chapters provide detailed instructions for the construction of the Tabernacle, highlighting its significance and the meticulous care required in its handling. 1 Chronicles 6This passage lists the genealogies and duties of the Levites, including the Gershonites and Merarites, emphasizing their ongoing role in Israel's worship practices. Hebrews 9This New Testament passage discusses the Tabernacle as a foreshadowing of Christ's work, drawing a parallel between the earthly sanctuary and the heavenly one. People Aaron, Abidan, Ahiezer, Ahira, Ammihud, Amminadab, Ammishaddai, Asher, Benjamin, Dan, Deuel, Eliab, Eliasaph, Elishama, Elizur, Enan, Gad, Gamaliel, Gershon, Gershonites, Gideoni, Helon, Hobab, Issachar, Kohathites, Manasseh, Merari, Merarites, Moses, Nahshon, Naphtali, Nethaneel, Ocran, Pagiel, Pedahzur, Raguel, Reuben, Reuel, Shedeur, Shelumiel, Simeon, Zebulun, Zuar, ZurishaddaiPlaces Paran, SinaiTopics Bare, Bearing, Bore, Carried, Carrying, Forward, Gershon, Gershonites, Journeyed, Merari, Merar'i, Merarites, Moved, Moving, Responsible, Sons, TabernacleDictionary of Bible Themes Numbers 10:14 5223 banner Numbers 10:11-14 7266 tribes of Israel Library November 17. "The Ark of the Covenant of the Lord Went Before Them" (Num. x. 33).
"The ark of the covenant of the Lord went before them" (Num. x. 33). God does give us impressions but not that we should act on them as impressions. If the impression be from God, He will Himself give sufficient evidence to establish it beyond the possibility of a doubt. How beautifully we read, in the story of Jeremiah, of the impression that came to him respecting the purchase of the field of Anathoth, but Jeremiah did not act upon this impression until after the following day, when his uncle's …
Rev. A. B. Simpson—Days of Heaven Upon Earth Hobab
'And Moses said unto Hobab ... Come thou with us, and we will do thee good: for the Lord hath spoken good concerning Israel.'--NUM. x. 29. There is some doubt with regard to the identity of this Hobab. Probably he was a man of about the same age as Moses, his brother- in-law, and a son of Jethro, a wily Kenite, a Bedouin Arab. Moses begs him to join himself to his motley company, and to be to him in the wilderness 'instead of eyes.' What did Moses want a man for, when he had the cloud? What do we …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture The Hallowing of Work and of Rest
'And it came to pass, when the ark set forward, that Moses said, Rise up, Lord, and let Thine enemies be scattered; and let them that hate Thee flee before Thee. 36. And when it rested, he said, Return, O Lord, unto the many thousands of Israel.'--Num. x. 35, 36. The picture suggested by this text is a very striking and vivid one. We see the bustle of the morning's breaking up of the encampment of Israel. The pillar of cloud, which had lain diffused and motionless over the Tabernacle, gathers itself …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture The Publication of the Gospel
The Lord gave the word: great was the company of those that published it [or of the preachers] P erhaps no one Psalm has given greater exercise to the skill and patience of commentators and critics, than the sixty-eighth. I suppose the difficulties do not properly belong to the Psalm, but arise from our ignorance of various circumstances to which the Psalmist alludes; which probably were, at that time, generally known and understood. The first verse is the same with the stated form of benediction …
John Newton—Messiah Vol. 2 Letter Lv. Replies to Questions of Januarius.
Or Book II. of Replies to Questions of Januarius. (a.d. 400.) Chap. I. 1. Having read the letter in which you have put me in mind of my obligation to give answers to the remainder of those questions which you submitted to me a long time ago, I cannot bear to defer any longer the gratification of that desire for instruction which it gives me so much pleasure and comfort to see in you; and although encompassed by an accumulation of engagements, I have given the first place to the work of supplying …
St. Augustine—The Confessions and Letters of St How the Humble and the Haughty are to be Admonished.
(Admonition 18.) Differently to be admonished are the humble and the haughty. To the former it is to be insinuated how true is that excellence which they hold in hoping for it; to the latter it is to be intimated how that temporal glory is as nothing which even when embracing it they hold not. Let the humble hear how eternal are the things that they long for, how transitory the things which they despise; let the haughty hear how transitory are the things they court, how eternal the things they …
Leo the Great—Writings of Leo the Great The Second Coming of Christ.
^A Matt. XXIV. 29-51; ^B Mark XIII. 24-37; ^C Luke XXI. 25-36. ^b 24 But in those days, ^a immediately after the { ^b that} ^a tribulation of those days. [Since the coming of Christ did not follow close upon the destruction of Jerusalem, the word "immediately" used by Matthew is somewhat puzzling. There are, however, three ways in which it may be explained: 1. That Jesus reckons the time after his own divine, and not after our human, fashion. Viewing the word in this light, the passage at II. Pet. …
J. W. McGarvey—The Four-Fold Gospel The Country of Jericho, and the Situation of the City.
Here we will borrow Josephus' pencil, "Jericho is seated in a plain, yet a certain barren mountain hangs over it, narrow, indeed, but long; for it runs out northward to the country of Scythopolis,--and southward, to the country of Sodom, and the utmost coast of the Asphaltites." Of this mountain mention is made, Joshua 2:22, where the two spies, sent by Joshua, and received by Rahab, are said to "conceal themselves." "Opposite against this, lies a mountain on the other side Jordan, beginning from …
John Lightfoot—From the Talmud and Hebraica And thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, too little to be among the thousands of Judah
"And thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, too little to be among the thousands of Judah, out of thee shall come forth unto Me (one) [Pg 480] to be Ruler in Israel; and His goings forth are the times of old, the days of eternity." The close connection of this verse with what immediately precedes (Caspari is wrong in considering iv. 9-14 as an episode) is evident, not only from the [Hebrew: v] copulative, and from the analogy of the near relation of the announcement of salvation to the prophecy of disaster …
Ernst Wilhelm Hengstenberg—Christology of the Old Testament Numbers
Like the last part of Exodus, and the whole of Leviticus, the first part of Numbers, i.-x. 28--so called,[1] rather inappropriately, from the census in i., iii., (iv.), xxvi.--is unmistakably priestly in its interests and language. Beginning with a census of the men of war (i.) and the order of the camp (ii.), it devotes specific attention to the Levites, their numbers and duties (iii., iv.). Then follow laws for the exclusion of the unclean, v. 1-4, for determining the manner and amount of restitution …
John Edgar McFadyen—Introduction to the Old Testament Links Numbers 10:17 NIVNumbers 10:17 NLTNumbers 10:17 ESVNumbers 10:17 NASBNumbers 10:17 KJV
Numbers 10:17 Commentaries
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