Ithamar the Accountant: Faithfulness in the Details

Today’s Passage – Exodus 36 – 38 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – Click here to view the passage from Blue Letter Bible)

(Second Milers also read – Luke 19 – 20; Proverbs 1; Psalms 6 – 10

Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – Psalm 89:1

Read the 0201 Evening and Morning devotion for today, by the late Charles Haddon Spurgeon.

Read a previous post from the passage – “Too Much?”

“21 This is the sum of the tabernacle, even of the tabernacle of testimony, as it was counted, according to the commandment of Moses, for the service of the Levites, by the hand of Ithamar, son to Aaron the priest. 22 And Bezaleel the son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah, made all that the LORD commanded Moses. 23 And with him was Aholiab, son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan, an engraver, and a cunning workman, and an embroiderer in blue, and in purple, and in scarlet, and fine linen.” (Exodus 38:21-23)

The Details of the Tabernacle

In this morning’s reading from Exodus 36 – 38, we see a detailed account of the construction of the Tabernacle including all the furniture items as well as the hangings that were used to make up the walls. It is very interesting that God gives us very precise details of the dimensions and descriptions of every aspect of the Tabernacle (See Graphic Below).

The Duties of Ithamar

My thought this morning is about Ithamar, one of the four sons of Aaron. Ithamar was responsible for overseeing the Merarites and the Gershonites, which were two of the families of the Levites that served as ministers for the Tabernacle. The Gershonites were responsible for setting up, dismantling, and transporting all the “hangings and coverings” of the Tabernacle (Num 4:21 – 28). The Merarites were responsible for setting up, dismantling, and transporting all the “boards, bars, pillars, and sockets” (Num 4:29 – 33). There was another family, the Kohathites, who were responsible for the transportation of all the furniture items, but the Kohathites were not directly under the supervision of Ithamar. 

A second duty of Ithamar that we see from our reading passage today in Exodus 38 is that he was responsible for accounting for all the gold and silver that went into the Tabernacle. He had to work closely with the builders, Bezaleel and Aholiab, to make sure that they had everything they needed to complete the project. We learned from chapter 36 that they had collected far more materials than were necessary for the project through the freewill offerings of the congregation. The people were actually told to stop giving. According to most estimates, the amount of gold that went into the Tabernacle was over a ton (approximately $156 Million today), along with approximately four tons of silver (approximately $9 – $10 Million today), and two and one-half tons of brass. This was likely bronze, which is an alloy made up of mostly copper plus tin – approximately $30 Thousand today. [Note: These are spot values for pure metals; actual worth would be higher with craftsmanship, and prices fluctuate daily—check current markets for the latest!]

Thoughts from the Passage

There are two thoughts that I would like to point out from this passage:

• The task of accounting is something that we do not normally associate with the office of the priest. Yet here we clearly see that Ithamar was given this responsibility. Sometimes ministers will have to do all kinds of duties that are outside of their main job description in order for God’s service to function properly. Paul called the elders from Ephesus “overseers” (Acts 20:28). Today, there are deacons that assist churches in both ministry and administratively (Acts 6). Romans 12 speaks of people who are specifically equipped to rule (“he that rulers” προΐστημι – proistēmi), which means to superintend, guard over, or protect. 
• The priest office was very much a family affair. Moses and Aaron were brothers, and the main priests in the Tabernacle were Aaron’s sons. I once had a man tell me that he left a church because the pastor had hired his son as an assistant. He claimed that it was “nepotism” and that someone outside of the family should have been hired. However, there is no biblical admonition against hiring family members, and here in Exodus it was actually God’s plan for this family to serve together.

How does seeing God’s detailed accounting in the Tabernacle challenge your own stewardship of time, talents, and treasures today?