Levi (Son of Jacob)

Biblical Account

Levi was the third son of Jacob and Leah. At his birth Leah said, "Now this time will my husband be joined unto me," and named him Levi (Genesis 29:34). The name resembles in sound a Hebrew word meaning "to join" or "to be attached."

The one episode in which Levi's own actions are specifically recorded is the incident at Shechem (Genesis 34). After their sister Dinah was defiled by Shechem, Levi and his brother Simeon induced the men of Shechem to be circumcised. On the third day, while the men were still in pain, the two brothers attacked the city and killed every male (Genesis 34:25). Jacob rebuked his two sons, saying that their deed would bring retaliation from the surrounding peoples (Genesis 34:30). They replied, "Should he deal with our sister as with an harlot?" (Genesis 34:31).

Levi went down to Egypt with his sons Gershon, Kohath, and Merari (Genesis 46:11). Before his death, Jacob rebuked the violent anger of Simeon and Levi and declared, "I will divide them in Jacob, and scatter them in Israel" (Genesis 49:5-7). Levi lived to the age of 137 (Exodus 6:16).

Significance Within Scripture

Moses, Aaron, and Miriam were descendants of Levi (Exodus 6:16-20). During the golden calf incident, the sons of Levi sided with Moses (Exodus 32:26-29). The tribe of Levi was later given to God in place of the firstborn of Israel (Numbers 3:12) and became the Levites who served at the tabernacle. Among them, the descendants of Aaron held the office of priest.

The tribe of Levi received no land as an inheritance (a portion passed down from generation to generation). Instead, the Levites were supported by the tithe (Numbers 18:21-24) and were given forty-eight cities scattered among the other tribes (Numbers 35:7). These cities included the cities of refuge. In his blessing, Moses entrusted the tribe of Levi with the Urim and Thummim and with the task of teaching the law (Deuteronomy 33:8-11). Malachi speaks of God's "covenant ... with Levi" (Malachi 2:4-5).

In the New Testament, the Epistle to the Hebrews states that Levi, while still in the loins of Abraham, paid tithes to Melchizedek (Hebrews 7:9-10). On this basis Hebrews argues that the priesthood of Jesus after the order of Melchizedek is greater than the Levitical priesthood. In Revelation 7:7, the tribe of Levi is included among those who are sealed. The tax collector "Levi the son of Alphaeus" in Mark 2:14 is Matthew, a different person from Levi the son of Jacob.

Interpretation and Debate

Many interpreters hold that the "scattering" pronounced as a rebuke in Genesis 49 was fulfilled when the tribe of Levi came to live dispersed in cities throughout Israel. Some further explain that this scattering was ultimately transformed into honorable service. This, however, is an interpretation drawn from reading the texts together; Genesis itself does not say so directly.

Assessments of the Shechem incident vary. Some interpreters, following Jacob's rebuke, regard it as excessive violence, while others give weight to the brothers' protest that they were defending their sister's honor. Jewish pseudepigrapha (ancient writings not included in the canon), such as the Book of Jubilees and the Testament of Levi, extol the incident as an expression of Levi's zeal and add accounts in which Levi receives the priesthood directly. These traditions are not found in the biblical text. Critical scholars hold various views on whether the tribe of Levi was a priestly group from the beginning.