Current day Levites and a possible third Temple

Earlier this morning, I received via email David Cloud's 'Friday Church News Notes', which included the following entry:

>>LEVITES TUNE UP FOR THE THIRD TEMPLE (Friday Church News Notes, May 3, 2024, www.wayoflife.org fbns@wayoflife.org, 866-295-4143) - “Levites Tune up for the Third Temple” is the title of a report in Israel365News for May 3, 2024. Following is an excerpt: “On Thursday, the third intermediary day of Passover, Levites gathered in Jerusalem to reenact their musical role in the Temple. A group of about two dozen Levites gathered in the Old City to practice their singing while wearing garments designed for use by the Temple musicians in the Third Temple. ... The Gaon of Vilna (an 18th-century Torah sage) said that the Temple music would be the last secret to be revealed before the Messiah.” We know from Bible prophecy that the Third Temple will be built, and it will be occupied by the Antichrist, who will declare himself to be God and demand the worship of the entire world (2 Thessalonians 2:3-9; Revelation 13:4-8, 16-17). His entrance into the temple will mark the beginning of the great tribulation (Matthew 24:15-22). The preparations for the Third Temple is a major sign of the times. The hour is very, very late, and if the redeemed saints are going to serve Christ, we must do it now and not allow ourselves to be sidetracked to lesser things.>>[Link]

I knew that descendents of the tribe of Levi have survived to our day, but did not know that some of them were actually engaged in priestly duties. The following is from the Israel365News site mentioned by David Cloud:

Traditionally, Temple musicians were selected from the tribe of Levi. The Zohar explains that the Levites were selected to sing in the Temple because the name Levi means to accompany, and their music would cause others to come close to God. In the days that the Temples stood in Jerusalem, the Levites sang on the 15 steps— corresponding to the 15 Songs of Ascent in Psalms 15 —that led from the Ezrat Nashim (“Court of Women”) to the Ezrat Yisrael(“Court of Israelites”). The Mishna states that there were never less than 12 Levites standing on the platform, but their number could be increased indefinitely. While ordinarily, no minor was permitted to enter the Azarah (“Courtyard”) to take part in the service, the young Levites were permitted to join in the singing to “add sweetness to the sound” but were not permitted to stand on the same platform with the adult Levites (Talmud Erchin 2:6).

In the Bible, the tribe of Levi included Moses and Aaron. Kohanim (priests) are descendants of Aaron and his descendants became a subset of the tribe of Levi. The other members of the tribe were chosen by God to forfeit their portions of land in Israel and to serve in the Temple. The Levites performed various functions in the Temple including guarding and serving all the musical needs.

Jewish communities are scrupulous about perpetuating the status of the Levites, which is passed from father to son. Only Jewish men whose fathers were Levites are considered eligible. Comprising about 4% of the total Jewish population, they are recognized for conspicuous honors in religious services and their status as Levites is inscribed on their gravestones. [Link]

Levite priests, a third temple in Jerusalem, and the Antichrist  ???

Food for thought…

 

Grace and peace,

David