Numbers 8:1-9:14
Dear RTB’ers,
All priests were Levites, but not all Levites were priests. At Mt. Sinai and for many years afterward the priesthood was limited to Aaron and his descendants. [That had changed by the time that Jesus lived.] Scripture consistently distinguishes between Levites and priests. Recall Jesus’s parable of the Good Samaritan. He first had a priest passing by, then a Levite, then a Samaritan. (Luke 10:25-37) My Study Bible adds a good deal to the distinction between Levites and priests, in comparing the cleansing of the Levites to the ordination of the priests: “The priests were made holy, the Levites clean; the priests were anointed and washed, the Levites sprinkled; the priests were given new garments; the Levites washed theirs; blood was applied to the priests, it was waved over the Levites.” Now, if we go back to Numbers 4 we can see that Aaron and his sons, the priests, had specific duties with respect to the “most holy things” – specifically, packing them away. The Levites then were charged with carrying or carting them, but not handling them. Very distinct duties!
Blessings!