SEV Biblia, Chapter 3:43
Y todos los primogénitos varones, conforme a la cuenta de los nombres, de un mes arriba, conforme a su cuenta fueron veintidós mil doscientos setenta y tres.
Clarke's Bible Commentary - Numbers 3:43
Verse 43. All the first-born males-were twenty and two thousand two hundred and threescore and thirteen.] Thus we find there were 273 first-born beyond the number of the Levites. These are ordered, ver. 46, to be redeemed; and the redemption price is to be five shekels each, ver. 47, about 15s. And this money, amounting to 1, 365 shekels, equal to ú204 15s. English, he took of the first-born of Israel, verse 50. But how was this collected among 22, 273 persons? Rabbi Solomon Jarchi says, "to prevent contention, Moses took 22, 000 slips of parchment, and wrote on each a son of Levi, and 273 others, on which he wrote five shekels; then he mixed them in a basket, and each man took out one; those who drew the slips on which five shekels were written, paid the money; the others went free." This is a most stupid and silly tale, for such a mode of settlement never could have been resorted to by an intelligent people. It would have been much more simple to have paid it out of a general fund; and it is very likely that in this way the expense was defrayed. This species of redeeming of men is referred to by St. Peter, 1 Pet. i. 18, 19: "Ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation, received by tradition from your fathers; but with the precious (timiw aimati, valuable) blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot," &c. And it is not the first-born only which are thus redeemed, for he, by the grace of God, tasted death for EVERY man; Heb. ii. 9. Reader, give glory to God that such a ransom has been paid for thy soul, and see that, redeemed from thy vain conversation, thy empty, fruitless, and graceless observances, on which thou hast built thy hopes of salvation, thou walk in newness of life, giving thy whole soul with thankfulness unto the Father who hath translated thee from darkness, and placed thee in the kingdom of his beloved Son. To Him be glory and dominion for ever and ever! Amen.
John Gill's Bible Commentary
Ver. 43. And all the firstborn males , etc.] For such only were ordered to be numbered, and not firstborn females: by the number of names ; which were particularly taken: from a month old and upward ; for before that time they were not sanctified to the Lord, nor subject to the redemption price: of those that were numbered of them [were] twenty and two thousand two hundred and threescore and thirteen ; 22,273 men; so that there were two hundred seventy three more than the Levites, ( Numbers 3:39).
Matthew Henry Commentary
Verses 40-51 - The number of the first-born, and that of the Levites, came near to each other. Known unto God are all his works beforehand; there is a exact proportion between them, and so it will appear, when they ar compared together. The small number of first-born, over and above the number of the Levites, were to be redeemed, and the redemption-mone given to Aaron. The church is called the church of the first-born which is redeemed, not as they were, with silver and gold; but, being devoted by sin to the justice of God, is ransomed with the preciou blood of the Son of God. All men are the Lord's by creation, and all true christians are his by redemption. Each should know his own pos and duty; nor can any service required by such a Master be rightl accounted mean or hard __________________________________________________________________
Original Hebrew
ויהי 1961 כל 3605 בכור 1060 זכר 2145 במספר 4557 שׁמת 8034 מבן 1121 חדשׁ 2320 ומעלה 4605 לפקדיהם 6485 שׁנים 8147 ועשׂרים 6242 אלף 505 שׁלשׁה 7969 ושׁבעים 7657 ומאתים׃ 3967
