A Tithe of Geography Text: Numbers 35:1-5
Introduction: God's Holy Geometry
We come this morning to a passage that, on the surface, might seem like a dry piece of administrative legislation. We read of cubits and pasture lands, of city planning and zoning laws. It feels a bit like sitting in on a county commissioner's meeting. And this is precisely where we must be on our guard, lest we treat the Word of God like a merely human book and miss the profound theology that undergirds every jot and tittle. Our God is the God who measured the universe with the span of His hand. He is a God of meticulous order, and His instructions for the layout of cities are no less revelatory of His character than His instructions for the layout of the Tabernacle.
This command comes at a pivotal moment. The generation that came out of Egypt has perished in the wilderness for their unbelief. A new generation stands on the plains of Moab, on the very threshold of the Promised Land. They are about to go in and possess their inheritance, a land flowing with milk and honey. But before the first tribe can stake its claim, before the first property line is drawn for Judah or Ephraim, God intervenes with a command that establishes a fundamental principle for a godly society. He commands them to make provision for the Levites. Before you build your own house, you must first set aside a place for God's ministers. This is the principle of firstfruits. This is the tithe, applied not just to livestock and grain, but to geography itself.
What we have here is a blueprint for a nation whose life is to be centered on the worship of Yahweh. The modern secularist wants to put religion in a box, to confine it to one hour on a Sunday morning, to keep it out of the public square. God's plan is the exact opposite. He takes His ministers, the Levites, and He doesn't put them on a reservation off in some corner of the land. No, He sprinkles them throughout the entire nation. He embeds the ministry of the Word and the law into the very fabric of the national life. You could not live in Israel without having a Levitical city nearby, a constant, physical reminder of the presence and the claims of God. This is not about the separation of church and state; this is about the thorough integration of the covenant into the life of the state.
The Text
Now Yahweh spoke to Moses in the plains of Moab by the Jordan opposite Jericho, saying, "Command the sons of Israel that they give to the Levites from the inheritance of their possession cities to live in; and you shall give to the Levites pasture lands around the cities. And the cities shall be theirs to live in; and their pasture lands shall be for their cattle and for their herds and for all their beasts. And the pasture lands of the cities which you shall give to the Levites shall extend from the wall of the city outward one thousand cubits around. You shall also measure outside the city on the east side two thousand cubits, and on the south side two thousand cubits, and on the west side two thousand cubits, and on the north side two thousand cubits, with the city in the center. This shall become theirs as pasture lands for the cities."
(Numbers 35:1-5 LSB)
A Gift From a Gift (vv. 1-2)
The instruction begins with its source and its timing.
"Now Yahweh spoke to Moses in the plains of Moab by the Jordan opposite Jericho, saying, 'Command the sons of Israel that they give to the Levites from the inheritance of their possession cities to live in...'" (Numbers 35:1-2)
The location is significant. They are on the doorstep of their inheritance, looking across the Jordan at the land God had promised. This is a command for conquest and settlement. And the very first principle of godly settlement is to honor God with the first portion. The land itself is a gift from God. It is "the inheritance of their possession." They did not earn it; they are receiving it by grace. And the first thing God requires is that they take from this gift He is giving them, and give a portion of it back for the maintenance of His ministry.
This establishes a pattern of stewardship that runs through all of Scripture. We do not own anything absolutely. We are managers of God's property. And the first claim on any of it belongs to the owner. This is why the tithe is not a tip we give God if we feel He's done a good job. It is the acknowledgement that the first ten percent already belongs to Him. Here, Israel is commanded to tithe their real estate.
Remember that the tribe of Levi was unique. They were not to receive a tribal territory like the other tribes. God told Aaron, "You shall have no inheritance in their land... I am your portion and your inheritance among the sons of Israel" (Numbers 18:20). Their inheritance was not soil, but God Himself. Their provision was to come from the tithes of the people, so that they could be free from the labor of farming and ranching to devote themselves entirely to the ministry of the Tabernacle, and later, to teaching the law of God throughout the land. But this did not mean they were to be homeless. They were not to be wandering mendicants. God commands that they be given cities to live in. They are to have roots, homes, and stability within the communities they serve.
Provision for the Ministry (v. 3)
God's concern is practical and holistic. He doesn't just provide a building; He provides for a livelihood.
"And the cities shall be theirs to live in; and their pasture lands shall be for their cattle and for their herds and for all their beasts." (Numbers 35:3 LSB)
The ministry is not an ethereal, Gnostic enterprise. Ministers are men with wives and children. They have households to manage. They have material needs. The New Testament carries this principle forward without missing a beat. The Lord commanded that those who proclaim the gospel should get their living by the gospel (1 Cor. 9:14). An elder who rules well is to be considered worthy of double honor, especially those who work hard at preaching and teaching (1 Tim. 5:17). A church that starves its pastor is a disobedient church.
Notice the language here: "for their cattle and for their herds and for all their beasts." This is not a picture of bare subsistence. It is a picture of flourishing. The Levites were to have livestock, which represented wealth, food, and productivity. This provision was not meant to make them fabulously wealthy, but it was meant to make them secure, so that the anxieties of daily provision would not distract them from their primary calling. The pasture lands were the economic engine that supported the ministry centered in the city. This is a divine mandate for the full and honorable support of the ministry.
The Divine Order (vv. 4-5)
Now we come to the cubits and the measurements, the part that makes our modern eyes glaze over. But this is the holy geometry of a godly society.
"And the pasture lands of the cities which you shall give to the Levites shall extend from the wall of the city outward one thousand cubits around. You shall also measure outside the city on the east side two thousand cubits... with the city in the center." (Genesis 35:4-5 LSB)
There is some debate about how the 1,000 cubits and the 2,000 cubits relate, but the principle is crystal clear. The boundaries are to be precise. God is a God of order, not of confusion. This is not a vague suggestion to "be nice to the Levites." It is a specific, measurable, and legally defined command. This protects the Levites from being short-changed by the other tribes. It establishes clear property rights, which are essential for a just society. When God gives a command, He is not fuzzy about it.
The most important phrase here is the last one: "with the city in the center." This is a beautiful architectural and theological picture. At the heart of this designated land is the city, the place of community, of homes, of family life, of teaching. Radiating out from that center are the pasture lands, the economic support structure. The life of the community is central, and the economic activity serves that life.
Our fallen world constantly inverts this. We put the career in the center, and the family is made to serve it. We put the economy in the center, and the community is made to serve it. We put our appetites in the center, and our lives are ordered around feeding them. God's design is the opposite. At the center is the covenant community, living together under His law. Everything else is subordinate to that, arranged for its support and flourishing. The home is the center, not the factory. The church is the center, not the marketplace.
New Covenant Application
So how do we apply this today? The Levitical priesthood has been fulfilled in Christ, and now all believers are a royal priesthood. The sacrificial system is obsolete. But the principles embedded in this text are timeless.
First, the principle of firstfruits remains. We are to honor the Lord with our wealth, and with the first of all our produce (Prov. 3:9). This means that the support of the church and her ministry is not an afterthought, something we do with our leftovers. It is the first bill we pay. This is an act of faith, acknowledging that everything we have is a gift from God, and we honor Him by giving back the first portion.
Second, the principle of strategic placement remains. The Levites were distributed throughout Israel to teach the law and provide access to the things of God. The church today is not to retreat into a holy ghetto. We are to be salt and light, distributed throughout the world. Christians should be starting businesses, running for school boards, having families, and planting churches in every town and city. We are to be like the Levitical cities, centers of truth, order, and grace embedded in the broader culture, influencing it for the good.
Finally, the principle of the center remains. We must order our lives, our families, and our resources with the covenant community at the center. Our work, our recreation, our finances, our time, all of it must be seen as the "pasture lands" that support the central task of worshipping God and building up the household of faith. Is your home a center of worship? Is your budget arranged to support the ministry of the Word first? Is your schedule built around the Lord's Day and the fellowship of the saints? Or are these things pushed to the margins, forced to fight for the scraps left over by your career and your hobbies?
God commanded Israel to consecrate a portion of their very geography to Him. He wanted the entire map of the Promised Land to preach a sermon about His centrality. May we, in the New Covenant, learn this lesson. May we structure our lives, our homes, and our communities according to this divine geometry, with Christ and His church right where they belong: squarely in the center.