CHAPTER 17 Apr. 3 
God Confirms His Choice of Aaron
Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying, 2Speak to the children of Israel, and take of them rods, one for each father’s house, of all their princes according to their fathers’ families, twelve rods. Write every man’s name on his rod. 3You shall write Aaron’s name on the rod of Levi; for there shall be one rod for each head of their fathers’ families. 4You shall lay them up in the Tent of Meeting before the testimony, where I meet with you. 5It shall happen, that the rod of the man whom I shall choose shall bud; and I will make to cease from Me the murmurings of the children of Israel, which they murmur against you. 6Moses spoke to the children of Israel; and all their princes gave him rods, for each prince one, according to their fathers’ families, even twelve rods; and the rod of Aaron was among their rods. 7Moses laid up the rods before Yahweh in the tent of the testimony. 8It happened on the next day that Moses went into the tent of the testimony, and behold, the rod of Aaron for the house of Levi was budded, and put forth buds, and produced blossoms, and bore ripe almonds. 9Moses brought out all the rods from before Yahweh to all the children of Israel: and they looked, and took every man his rod. 10Yahweh said to Moses, Put back the rod of Aaron before the testimony, to be kept for a token against the children of rebellion; that you may make an end of their murmurings against me, that they not die. 11Moses did so. As Yahweh commanded him, so he did. 12The children of Israel spoke to Moses, saying, Behold, we perish! We are undone! We are all undone! 13Everyone who comes near, who comes near to the tabernacle of Yahweh, dies! Will we all perish?

Commentary

17:5 Their murmuring against Moses was a murmuring against God; our attitude to our brethren is our attitude to God.
17:8 The language of budding, blossoming and bearing fruit is used in Is. 27:6 about allIsrael. The initial hearers of Isaiah’s words would have thought back to how Aaron’s rod budded, blossomed and bore fruit as a sign that God had chosen that family and not all Israel. However, Is. 27:6 makes it clear that God’s ideal intention was that all Israel would be a nation of priests (Ex. 19:6). This came to fulfilment in essence with the end of the Levitical priesthood and the establishment of all those in Christ as a new priesthood (1 Pet. 2:5).