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| Nubian priest in service of the Anu at a Sethite Mound. Abraham's father was called Tera, meaning priest |
Alice C. Linsley
The term "Levite" refers to a descendant of Levi, the third son of Jacob and Leah, and to the "tribe"of Levi. These were in the service of the sanctuary, in various orders and temple guilds. In the books of Leviticus and Numbers, Aaron and his descendants are portrayed as the sacrificing priests, and the remainder of the Levites performed other necessary duties.
The picture of Israel's priesthood springing de novo from Aaron is a false one. Aaron's father was a priest as was Aaron's brother Moses and his half-brother Korah. They were heirs to an ancient received priestly tradition among the Hebrew. The term "Hebrew" comes from the ancient Akkadian word "Abru" which means priest. In Akkadian, "abrutu" refers to the Hebrew ruler-priest caste. The Levites were their descendants.
This is the general conception of the Levites, but it does take into consideration the question of their antecedents. Practices associated with the Levites - priestly ritual, circumcision, animal sacrifice, and the Holy Name YHWY - existed among Abraham's Horite Hebrew ancestors.
Numbers 3 clarifies the socio-religious context of the Levites. Here four clans are identified: Amram, Izhara, Hebron and Uzziel. Amram and Uzziel are the sons of Kohath (Ex. 6) Amram's cousin wife was Izhara and her firstborn son was Korah. Korah was the half-brother of Moses and Aaron. All were of the Horite Hebrew priest caste. Their context is Nilotic, but they are linked to the Horite Hebrew of Edom in that Hebron was part of ancient Edom in Abraham's time.
The name Uzziel is a variant of the name Uz, a Horite Hebrew clan mentioned in Genesis 36. Uz was a grandson of Seir the Horite ruler of Edom.
The Levites and Leviticus
The "book of the Levites" (Leviticus) comes from the Greek Leuitikon biblion. The term "Leuitikon" refers to the Levites. Note that the root "leu" appears in the name Leummim (Gen. 25:3). A possible connection between the Levites and the Leummim is suggested, and should be investigated.
This is the general conception of the Levites, but it does take into consideration the question of their antecedents. Practices associated with the Levites - priestly ritual, circumcision, animal sacrifice, and the Holy Name YHWY - existed among Abraham's Horite Hebrew ancestors.
Numbers 3 clarifies the socio-religious context of the Levites. Here four clans are identified: Amram, Izhara, Hebron and Uzziel. Amram and Uzziel are the sons of Kohath (Ex. 6) Amram's cousin wife was Izhara and her firstborn son was Korah. Korah was the half-brother of Moses and Aaron. All were of the Horite Hebrew priest caste. Their context is Nilotic, but they are linked to the Horite Hebrew of Edom in that Hebron was part of ancient Edom in Abraham's time.
The name Uzziel is a variant of the name Uz, a Horite Hebrew clan mentioned in Genesis 36. Uz was a grandson of Seir the Horite ruler of Edom.
The Levites and Leviticus
The "book of the Levites" (Leviticus) comes from the Greek Leuitikon biblion. The term "Leuitikon" refers to the Levites. Note that the root "leu" appears in the name Leummim (Gen. 25:3). A possible connection between the Levites and the Leummim is suggested, and should be investigated.
Before the time of Moses, some of Abraham's descendants were priests among the Afro-Arabian Dedanites. Genesis 10:7 tell us that Dedan the Elder was a grandson of Kush by his son Ramah. Ramah was Nimrod's brother. Ramah is Samuel's home, and his father Elkanah was a Horite Hebrew. Ramah settled in the region to the southeast of Dedan while Nimrod built a kingdom in the Tigris-Euphrates River Valley.
During the time of the Judges there is virtually no mention of the Levites. According to accounts in Samuel and Kings, they served as priests under David and Solomon, as did David's sons (II Sam. 8:18). Accounts in Samuel, Kings and the Chronicles make it clear that the Levites were not the only men to exercise priestly functions.
David's sons are called "priests" in II Samuel. David's hometown of Bethlehem was a Horite Hebrew shrine where the ark once rested. It is specifically associated with the Horite Hebrew in I Chronicles 4:4 which names Hur (Hor) as the "father of Bethlehem."
In my view, the assertion by later writers that God appointed the Levites exclusively to exercise priestly function represents an attempt to distance Israel's history from the history of their Horite Hebrew ancestors, a caste of royal priests who believed in God Father (Re/Ani) and God Son (Horus/Enki).
The Levites as Warriors
The Levites came to have a bloody heritage. According to Exodus 32, they were rewarded with priestly rights for killing thousands of their kinsmen. According to Genesis 49, they are accursed and punished for their treacherous attack on Shechem. It appears that the clan of Levi was adept at killing and trained in warfare.
Levi's descendants intermarried with other Hebrew clans and were dispersed throughout the ancient shrine cities where they offered sacrifices. After the 7th century B.C. they are closely associated with the royal court of Jerusalem and the centralization of sacrifice at the Temple. Clearly, the Levites are portrayed quite differently depending on the period and the social context of the writer.
Source critics attribute the diverse portrayals to different sources D (Deuteronomist), J (Jahwist) and P (Priestly). Here are the reasons given by each source for the priestly prerogative being assigned to the Levites:
D = investiture as priests is commanded by YHWY
J = priestly duties are assigned as a result of Levites killing their own people (Ex. 32:26-29)
P = Installation of Levites as priests part of the instructions given at Sinai and they are set apart as redemption for the first born (Lev. 3: 11-13)
Related reading: Samuel's Horite Family; The Afro-Arabian Dedanites; Moses' Wives and Brothers; The Nubian Context of YHWY; The Nile-Japan Ainu Connection; Etymology of the Word Horite; The Royal Priest Lines of Matthew; Destruction of the Temple: Rabbinic Interpretations; Why Women Were Never Priests
