Tribe of Levites Counted

This is a search of Numbers 3:1-43:

Members of the tribe of Levi were in charge of the service of the tabernacle for Aaron, the priest, and the entire congregation of Israel (Numbers 3:6,7). God set the Levites apart from the other children of Israel and claimed them for Himself; therefore, Moses was commanded to take a count of all male Levites who were one month and older (Numbers 3:12,15). When the count was complete, there was a rounded figure of twenty-two thousand (Numbers 3:39).

The sons of Levi were Gershon, Kohath and Merari (Numbers 3:17). Their families, according to the house of their fathers, were situated around the tabernacle on the west, south and north sides (Numbers 3:15,23,29,35). Moses and Aaron along with Aaron's sons, Eleazar and Ithamar, camped on the east side (Numbers 3:4,38). Each family of the Levites had specific areas of responsibility in their tabernacle service (Numbers 3:25, 26, 28, 31, 36, 37).

In addition to the count of the Levites, God commanded Moses to count all firstborn males of the children of Israel who were one month and older (Numbers 3:40). In this count, there were twenty-two thousand two hundred seventy-three.