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Parashat HaShavuaפרשת במדברAliyah 6 — ששי

פרשת במדבר — ששי (Aliyah 6)

Parashat Bemidbar | Numbers 3:40–3:51 | Aliyah 6 of 7

קלאוד על הפרשה

The sixth aliyah (3:40-51) executes the substitution of the Levi’im for the Israelite firstborn with mathematical precision. Hashem commands Moshe: pekod kol bechor zachar li-Vnei Yisrael mi-ben chodesh va-ma’lah — count every firstborn male of the Children of Israel from one month old and up. The count yields 22,273 firstborn. The Levi’im, counted in the previous aliyah, total 22,000. There is a shortfall of 273. This sets up one of the Torah’s most concrete arithmetic exchanges.

The substitution-formula is then laid out explicitly: ve-lakachta et ha-Levi’im li tachat kol bechor bi-Vnei Yisrael ve-et behemat ha-Levi’im tachat kol bechor be-vehemat Bnei Yisrael — take the Levi’im for Me in place of every firstborn among the Children of Israel, and the cattle of the Levi’im in place of every firstborn among the cattle of the Children of Israel. The exchange is one-for-one, person for person and animal for animal. Where there is a numerical mismatch (the 273 extra firstborn for whom no Levite is available), each must pay chamesh shekalim la-gulgolet — five shekels per head, in the shekel ha-kodesh (sacred shekel of 20 gerot). The money is given to Aharon and his sons. Rashi cites a Talmudic discussion (Bechorot 5a) on which 273 were chosen for redemption: every firstborn drew a lot — ben Levi (a Levite has taken your place) or chamesh shekalim (you owe redemption money) — so the burden fell randomly and without arbitrary preference.

The total redemption-money therefore reaches 1,365 shekels of silver (273 × 5), given to Aharon and his sons. The Sforno emphasizes the practical lesson: the Torah does not allow even small numerical mismatches to be glossed over. Every firstborn must either be substituted by a specific Levite or must pay his exact redemption. The aliyah closes with Moshe taking et kessef ha-pidyom me’et ha-odefim al peduyei ha-Levi’im — the redemption-money from those who were in excess of (lit. ‘beyond’) the Levi’im — and giving it to Aharon. The framing is striking: the firstborn who pay are described not as deficient but as excess — there is a Levite-substitute for most of you; the remaining 273 are ‘extras’ whose redemption money is itself an act of sanctification. The aliyah completes the elegant theological architecture that began in the previous chapter’s closing verses: Hashem owns every firstborn since the night of Egypt; that ownership is now formally transferred onto the Levi’im, with the residual numerical gap resolved by silver.

Numbers 3:40–3:51 · במדבר ג:מ–ג:נא

פסוק ג:מ · 3:40

Hebrew:

וַיֹּ֨אמֶר יְהֹוָ֜ה אֶל־מֹשֶׁ֗ה פְּקֹ֨ד כׇּל־בְּכֹ֤ר זָכָר֙ לִבְנֵ֣י יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל מִבֶּן־חֹ֖דֶשׁ וָמָ֑עְלָה וְשָׂ֕א אֵ֖ת מִסְפַּ֥ר שְׁמֹתָֽם׃

English:

יהוה said to Moses: Record every first-born male of the Israelite people from the age of one month up, and make a list of their names;

Hashem commands Moshe to count every Israelite firstborn male from one month old and up — the same threshold used for counting the Levi'im in the previous aliyah. Rashi explains the one-month cutoff: only at that age has the child passed the window of possible non-viability (sefek nefalim), so the count includes only secure lives. The list is by name (mispar shemotam), establishing each firstborn as an individual subject to the upcoming substitution-or-redemption mechanism.
רש״יRashi
פקד כל בכר זכר מבן חדש ומעלה. מִשֶּׁיָּצָא מִכְּלַל סְפֵק נְפָלִים:
פקד כל בכר זכר … מבן חדש ומעלה NUMBER ALL THE FIRSTBORN OF THE MALES [OF THE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL] FROM A MONTH OLD AND UPWARDS — as soon as he (the firstborn) has passed the age when it might possibly prove non-viable (Numbers Rabbah 4:3; cf. Rashi on v. 15).
אבן עזראIbn Ezra
פקוד כל בכור זכר. הנה זכר שם התאר:
NUMBER ALL THE FIRST-BORN MALES. Note that males is an adjective.81Males (zakhor) qualifies first-born.

פסוק ג:מא · 3:41

Hebrew:

וְלָקַחְתָּ֨ אֶת־הַלְוִיִּ֥ם לִי֙ אֲנִ֣י יְהֹוָ֔ה תַּ֥חַת כׇּל־בְּכֹ֖ר בִּבְנֵ֣י יִשְׂרָאֵ֑ל וְאֵת֙ בֶּהֱמַ֣ת הַלְוִיִּ֔ם תַּ֣חַת כׇּל־בְּכ֔וֹר בְּבֶהֱמַ֖ת בְּנֵ֥י יִשְׂרָאֵֽל׃

English:

and take the Levites for Me, יהוה, in place of every male first-born among the Israelite people, and the cattle of the Levites in place of every male first-born among the cattle of the Israelites.

The substitution-principle is formally stated: take the Levi'im for Me in place of every Israelite firstborn, and the Levite cattle in place of the Israelite firstborn cattle. Ibn Ezra notes that the cattle-substitution is structured so the Levi'im incur no loss — they retain the animals that effected the redemption. Or HaChaim clarifies that the cattle here refers specifically to firstling donkeys (pitrei chamorim) which require redemption, since clean firstborn animals must be offered as sacrifices rather than redeemed.
אבן עזראIbn Ezra
ואת בהמת הלוים. שלא יפסידו הלוים ובכור כל בהמה גם הוא לשם:
AND THE CATTLE OF THE LEVITES.82The cattle of the Levites which redeemed the first-born cattle of the Israelites remained with the Levites. Thus the Levites did not lose. So that the Levites do not lose. The firstlings among the cattle are also for the Lord.83The first part of our verse indicates that all human first-born belong to the Lord. It does not say the same with regard to the first-born of the cattle. Hence I.E.'s comment.
אור החייםOr HaChaim
ואת בהמת הלוים וגו'. פירוש הבהמות שהם חייבים בפדיון שהם פטרי חמורים שאמר הכתוב (שמות י״ג:י״ג) ופטר חמור תפדה בשה, ודוקא פטר חמור אבל בכורות הטהורות לא, כי התמימין אינם בני פדיון, ובעלי מומין משנעשו בני מומין רגע אחד ברשות [הבעלים], (הבכור) זכה בו והרי הוא אצלו כחולין ומה מקום לפדיון:
ואת בהמת הלוים, and the animals of the Levites, etc. The Torah speaks of those animals which the firstborn owned and which had been subject to redemption such as the firstborn donkeys. The Torah (Exodus 13,13) legislated that the firstborn pure animals had to be offered as a sacrifice whereas the firstborn donkey (being an unclean animal unfit for the altar) had to be redeemed. Firstborn animals of the pure species which for some reason did not qualify for the altar became the property of their owners and lost any status of sanctity they had had prior to becoming disqualified. We could have assumed therefore that the law of redeeming them did not apply when the swap between the Levites and the firstborn Israelites was made. Hence the Torah had to go on record that firstborn donkeys owned by the firstborn being exchanged for a Levite had to be redeemed.

פסוק ג:מב · 3:42

Hebrew:

וַיִּפְקֹ֣ד מֹשֶׁ֔ה כַּאֲשֶׁ֛ר צִוָּ֥ה יְהֹוָ֖ה אֹת֑וֹ אֶֽת־כׇּל־בְּכ֖וֹר בִּבְנֵ֥י יִשְׂרָאֵֽל׃

English:

So Moses recorded all the male first-born among the Israelites, as יהוה had commanded him.

פסוק ג:מג · 3:43

Hebrew:

וַיְהִי֩ כׇל־בְּכ֨וֹר זָכָ֜ר בְּמִסְפַּ֥ר שֵׁמֹ֛ת מִבֶּן־חֹ֥דֶשׁ וָמַ֖עְלָה לִפְקֻדֵיהֶ֑ם שְׁנַ֤יִם וְעֶשְׂרִים֙ אֶ֔לֶף שְׁלֹשָׁ֥ה וְשִׁבְעִ֖ים וּמָאתָֽיִם׃ {פ}

English:

All the first-born males as listed by name, recorded from the age of one month up, came to 22,273.

פסוק ג:מד · 3:44

Hebrew:

וַיְדַבֵּ֥ר יְהֹוָ֖ה אֶל־מֹשֶׁ֥ה לֵּאמֹֽר׃

English:

יהוה spoke to Moses, saying:

פסוק ג:מה · 3:45

Hebrew:

קַ֣ח אֶת־הַלְוִיִּ֗ם תַּ֤חַת כׇּל־בְּכוֹר֙ בִּבְנֵ֣י יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל וְאֶת־בֶּהֱמַ֥ת הַלְוִיִּ֖ם תַּ֣חַת בְּהֶמְתָּ֑ם וְהָיוּ־לִ֥י הַלְוִיִּ֖ם אֲנִ֥י יְהֹוָֽה׃

English:

Take the Levites in place of all the male first-born among the Israelite people, and the cattle of the Levites in place of their cattle; and the Levites shall be Mine, יהוה’s.

Hashem repeats the substitution command, emphasizing 've-hayu li ha-Levi'im ani Hashem' — the Levi'im shall be Mine. Rashi explains a striking asymmetry: the Levi'im's lambs redeemed only the firstling donkeys of the Israelites (not the clean firstborn animals, which are sacrificed), and a single Levite lamb could redeem multiple firstling donkeys — which is why the Torah tallies the human surplus but never tallies any animal surplus. Or HaChaim reads 'ani Hashem' as a guarantee of permanence: even when the firstborn are eventually restored to Temple service (per Yalkut Shimoni), the Levi'im will not be demoted from their belonging-to-Hashem.
רש״יRashi
ואת בהמת הלוים וגו'. לֹא פָדוּ בְהֵמוֹת הַלְוִיִּם אֶת בְּכוֹרֵי בְהֵמָה טְהוֹרָה שֶׁל יִשְׂרָאֵל אֶלָּא אֶת פִּטְרֵי חֲמוֹרֵיהֶם, וְשֶׂה אֶחָד שֶׁל בֶּן לֵוִי פָּטַר כַּמָּה פִטְרֵי חֲמוֹרִים שֶׁל יִשְׂרָאֵל. תֵּדַע, שֶׁהֲרֵי מָנָה הָעוֹדְפִים בָּאָדָם וְלֹא מָנָה הָעוֹדְפִים בַּבְּהֵמָה (שם ד'):
ואת בהמת הלוים וגו׳ AND [THOU SHALT TAKE] THE BEASTS OF THE LEVITES [INSTEAD OF ALL THE FIRSTBORN AMONG THE BEASTS OF THE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL] — The beasts of the Levites did not redeem the firstborn of the clean beasts belonging to the Israelites, but only the first offsprings of their asses (cf. Bekhorot 4a). One lamb of the Levites (it must be remembered that for the redemption of פטר חמור a lamb is prescribed; cf. Exodus 13:13) could, however, release several first offsprings of asses belonging to Israelites. You may know that this is so, for it (Scripture) mentions the number of firstborn Israelites in excess of the number of Levites in the case of human beings, but mentions no number of firstborn animals belonging to the Israelites as being in excess over the lambs of the Levites, [although there were undoubtedly many more firstborn asses of the Israelites than ordinary lambs of the Levites] (cf. Bekhorot 4b).
אבן עזראIbn Ezra
קח את הלוים. פעם אחרת כאילו אמר כאשר תקח את הלוים יהיו העודפים פדיום ונסמכה מלת פדויי אל המספר וכמוהו רבים יש מכחישים אמרו מזה נלמוד כי פדיון כל בכור חמשה שקלים ואינו ראיה כי זאת מצוה בפני עצמה והאמת דברי קבלה:
TAKE THE LEVITES. A second time.84In other words, Scripture repeats itself, for it has already told us in verse 41 that God told Moses to take the Levites. It is as if it stated, when you take the Levites, then those who are over and above will be redeemed.85In other words, take the Levites should be interpreted, when you take the Levites. Furthermore, when you take the Levites is connected to verse 46. The word peduye (redemption of) is connected to the number.86Our text reads, peduye ha-sheloshah. Now a word is usually not in the construct with a number. We thus say, shene chakahamim (two wise men), not chakhme shenaim (wise men of two) (Filwarg). Hence I.E.'s comment. There are many other such instances. The disputers say87Hebrew, yesh makhhishim (there are those who dispute). This is a term usually applied to Karaites. However, in view of the fact that what the alleged disputers say is not in contradiction to tradition, it is hard to understand why I.E. refers to them as disputers. Indeed, Motot suggests changing the reading to yesh mefareshim (some interpret), and Vat. Ebr. 38 reads, Some say. Meijler suggest that the disputers also brought proof from this that (contrary to halakha) the first-born of Levites require redemption, for the first-born of the Levites did not exempt the first-born of Israel for all time. that here we learn that the redemption price of every first-born is five shekels. However, there is no proof here,88That the redemption money for a first-born is five shekalim for all time. for this commandment stands by itself.89Our text deals with a specific case; one cannot derive a law for all times from it. The truth is in keeping with tradition.90That the redemption money is five shekalim. However, we do not derive it from our chapter.
אור החייםOr HaChaim
והיו לי הלוים אני ה'. הכונה במאמר אני ה', לומר שהגם שאמרו רבותינו ז"ל (ילקוט שס"ד) עתידה עבודה שתחזור לבכורות, לא ירדו הלוים מהיות לה', והוא אומרו והיו לי אני ה' כשם ששמי לעולם ועד כמו כן יהיו לי הלוים:
והיו לי הלוים אני השם, "and the Levites will belong to Me I am the Lord." The reason the Torah added the words "I am the Lord," is to tell us that although according to Yalkut Shimoni 364 there will come a time when the firstborn will once again be performing the priestly functions in the Holy Temple, the Levites will not therefore be demoted and cease to belong to G'd. [I have not foumd a reference in the Yalkut to the firstborn being reinstated as priests in the future. Ed.] The very expression והיו לי indicates that just as G'd's name is eternal so is the appointment of the Levites to their task.

פסוק ג:מו · 3:46

Hebrew:

וְאֵת֙ פְּדוּיֵ֣י הַשְּׁלֹשָׁ֔ה וְהַשִּׁבְעִ֖ים וְהַמָּאתָ֑יִם הָעֹֽדְפִים֙ עַל־הַלְוִיִּ֔ם מִבְּכ֖וֹר בְּנֵ֥י יִשְׂרָאֵֽל׃

English:

And as the redemption price of the 273 Israelite male first-born over and above the number of the Levites,

The 273 firstborn who are 'odefim al ha-Levi'im' — in excess of the Levite substitutes — must now be redeemed. Rashi underscores the arithmetic: 22,273 firstborn minus 22,000 Levi'im leaves precisely 273 for whom no Levite-substitute is available. He notes a striking parallel from midrash: the 5-shekel (= 20 silver pieces) redemption price echoes the 20 pieces of silver for which Yosef — Rachel's firstborn — was sold.
רש״יRashi
ואת פדויי השלשה וגו'. וְאֶת הַבְּכוֹרוֹת הַצְּרִיכִין לְהִפָּדוֹת בָּהֶם, אֵלּוּ שְׁלֹשָׁה וְשִׁבְעִים וּמָאתַיִם הָעֹדְפִים בָּהֶם יְתֵרִים עַל הַלְוִיִּם, מֵהֶם תִּקַּח חמשת שקלים לגלגלת; כָּךְ הָיְתָה מְכִירָתוֹ שֶׁל יוֹסֵף, עֶשְׂרִים כֶּסֶף, שֶׁהָיָה בְּכוֹרָהּ שֶׁל רָחֵל (ב"ר פ"ד):
ואת פדויי השלשה וגו׳ AND AS FOR THOSE THAT ARE TO BE REDEEMED [OF THE TWO HUNDRED THREESCORE AND THIRTEEN etc.]… [THOU SHALT TAKE…] — This means, "and as for those firstborn who are yet to be redeemed among them (the Israelites), viz., the 273 who were in excess among them, being more than the 22,000 Levites, of them thou shalt take חמשת שקלים לגלגלת FIVE SHEKELS BY THE POLL, such, viz., twenty pieces of silver, was the selling price of Joseph who was Rachel's firstborn. (Jerusalem Talmud Shekalim 2:4; Genesis Rabbah 84:18).

פסוק ג:מז · 3:47

Hebrew:

וְלָקַחְתָּ֗ חֲמֵ֧שֶׁת חֲמֵ֛שֶׁת שְׁקָלִ֖ים לַגֻּלְגֹּ֑לֶת בְּשֶׁ֤קֶל הַקֹּ֙דֶשׁ֙ תִּקָּ֔ח עֶשְׂרִ֥ים גֵּרָ֖ה הַשָּֽׁקֶל׃

English:

take five shekels per head—take this by the sanctuary weight, twenty gerahs to the shekel—

Five shekels per head, calibrated in the shekel ha-kodesh (sacred shekel of 20 gerot) — establishing the permanent halakhic standard for pidyon ha-ben. Or HaChaim parses the verse meticulously: the conjunctive vav of 've-lakachta' signals that the redemption money comes from the firstborn themselves (not from the Levi'im, who paid only for the animal-substitution); the doubled 'tikach' adds a third independent imperative requiring the sacred-shekel valuation; and every detail — the amount, the source, the standard — is intrinsic to the validity of the redemption.
אור החייםOr HaChaim
ולקחת חמשת וגו'. צריך לדעת למה אמר ולקחת בוא"ו כיון שמאמר זה הוא גזרת מאמר ואת פדויי השלשה וגו', ואולי כי בזה העיר כוונת כתוב הקודם לזה ואת פדויי השלשה וגו' שגזרתו הוא מבכור בני ישראל פירוש שיקח פדיון בכורות העודפים על הלוים מאת הבכורות ולא מהלוים, שתעלה על דעתך לומר שכדרך שפדו בבהמת הלוים בהמתם כמו כן יפדו הנותרים מהם וקל וחומר הוא, תלמוד לומר מבכור בני ישראל פירוש יהיה הפדיון, וכן אמר במעשה ויקח משה וגו' מאת בכור בני ישראל לקח את הכסף, והוסיף לומר מצוה שניה שיהיה הפדיון ה' שקלים, והוא אומרו ולקחת בתוספת וא"ו, וחזר לומר תקח, שיקח השקל בשקל הקודש שהוא כפול, ושדבר זה מעכב בפדיון:
ולקחת חמשת חמשת שקלים, "You shall take 5 shekels apiece, etc." Why did the Torah commence this verse with the conjunctive letter ו before the word לקחת seeing it is part and parcel of the legislation commencing in verse 46 about the redemption of the extra 273 firstborn for whom no equivalent Levites could be found? Perhaps the letter ו alludes to the fact that the money redeeming these 273 people was to come out of the pockets of the firstborn and not out of the pockets of the Levites. You could have reasoned that the process of redemption would be parallel to the redemption of the animals of the Levites when the money for the redemption had to be paid by the Levites. It would have been logical to conclude that the Levites had to pay. To disabuse us of such thinking the Torah had to write מבכור בני ישראל, "from the firstborn of the Israelites" (at the end of verse 46). The Torah spells this out when it came to the actual carrying out of these instructions in verse 50. The Torah describes Moses as taking the redemption money from the firstborn, not from the Levites. In our verse the additional information is the amount of the redemption money per person, i.e. 5 shekels each. The letter ו means that we are dealing with a second commandment. The Torah repeats the word תקח to tell us there is a third commandment i.e. that the five shekels are "holy shekels" worth 20 geyrah each. Every detail mentioned here was an essential part of the procedure.

פסוק ג:מח · 3:48

Hebrew:

וְנָתַתָּ֣ה הַכֶּ֔סֶף לְאַהֲרֹ֖ן וּלְבָנָ֑יו פְּדוּיֵ֕י הָעֹדְפִ֖ים בָּהֶֽם׃

English:

and give the money to Aaron and his sons as the redemption price for those who are in excess.

פסוק ג:מט · 3:49

Hebrew:

וַיִּקַּ֣ח מֹשֶׁ֔ה אֵ֖ת כֶּ֣סֶף הַפִּדְי֑וֹם מֵאֵת֙ הָעֹ֣דְפִ֔ים עַ֖ל פְּדוּיֵ֥י הַלְוִיִּֽם׃

English:

So Moses took the redemption money from those over and above the ones redeemed by the Levites;

Moshe executes the command: he takes the redemption money 'from those in excess of those redeemed by the Levi'im.' Rashi parses 'peduyei ha-Levi'im' precisely — it refers to the Israelite firstborn whom the Levi'im redeemed with their own persons (not with money), so the 273 'odefim' are above and beyond those for whom a personal Levite-substitute existed. Ibn Ezra notes a minor philological detail: 'pidyom' is spelled with a final mem instead of the expected nun, comparable to 'Gershon.'
רש״יRashi
העדפים על פדויי הלוים. עַל אוֹתָן שֶׁפָּדוּ הַלְוִיִּם בְּגוּפָן:
העדפים על פדויי הלוים THE OVERPLUS THAT WERE MORE THAN THOSE REDEEMED BY THE LEVITES means, that were more than those whom the Levites redeemed by their own person.
אבן עזראIbn Ezra
הפדיום. במ"ם תחת נו"ן כמו גרשון:
REDEMPTION. Pidyom (redemption) is spelled with a mem in place of a nun.91For the Hebrew word for redemption is pidyon. Compare, Gershon.92Here a nun has been substituted for a mem. See I.E. on verse 17.

פסוק ג:נ · 3:50

Hebrew:

מֵאֵ֗ת בְּכ֛וֹר בְּנֵ֥י יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל לָקַ֣ח אֶת־הַכָּ֑סֶף חֲמִשָּׁ֨ה וְשִׁשִּׁ֜ים וּשְׁלֹ֥שׁ מֵא֛וֹת וָאֶ֖לֶף בְּשֶׁ֥קֶל הַקֹּֽדֶשׁ׃

English:

he took the money from the male first-born of the Israelites, 1,365 sanctuary shekels.

The total comes to 1,365 shekels (= 273 x 5), counted in the shekel ha-kodesh. Rashi presents the celebrated solution to a practical dilemma: how could Moshe decide which 273 firstborn would owe money when any given firstborn could claim 'I was one of those redeemed by a Levite'? Moshe prepared 22,000 slips inscribed 'ben Levi' and 273 slips inscribed 'chamesh shekalim,' mixed them in an urn, and had every firstborn draw — the burden was assigned by goral (divine lot), removing all suspicion of arbitrariness or favoritism (Sanhedrin 17a, Bechorot 5a).
רש״יRashi
חמשה וששים ושלש מאות ואלף. כָּךְ סְכוּם הַחֶשְׁבּוֹן: חֲמֵשֶׁת שְׁקָלִים לַגֻּלְגֹּלֶת — לְמָאתַיִם בְּכוֹרוֹת אֶלֶף שֶׁקֶל, לְשִׁבְעִים בְּכוֹרוֹת שְׁלֹשׁ מֵאוֹת וַחֲמִשִּׁים שֶׁקֶל, וְשָׁלֹשׁ בְּכוֹרוֹת חֲמִשָּׁה עָשָׂר שֶׁקֶל; אָמַר, כֵּיצַד אֶעֱשֶׂה? בְּכוֹר שֶׁאֹמַר לוֹ תֵּן חֲמֵשֶׁת שְׁקָלִים, יֹאמַר לִי "אֲנִי מִפְּדוּיֵי הַלְוִיִּם". מֶה עָשָׂה? הֵבִיא שְׁנַיִם וְעֶשְׂרִים אֶלֶף פְּתָקִין וְכָתַב עֲלֵיהֶם "בֶּן לֵוִי" וּמָאתַיִם וְשִׁבְעִים וּשְׁלֹשָׁה פְּתָקִין כָּתַב עֲלֵיהֶן "חֲמֵשֶׁת שְׁקָלִים", בְּלָלָן וּנְתָנָן בַּקַּלְפִּי, אָמַר לָהֶם, בּוֹאוּ וּטְלוּ פִתְקֵיכֶם לְפִי הַגּוֹרָל (סנהדרין י"ז):
חמשה וששים ושלש מאות ואלף A THOUSAND THREE HUNDRED AND THREESCORE AND FIVE — This is the total sum: five shekels per head for two hundred firstborn if one thousand shekels; for seventy firstborn is three hundred and fifty shekels, and three firstborn give fifteen shekels, — thus altogether 1,365. — He, (Moses) said, "How shall I proceed? Any firstborn to whom I will say, "Give five shekels' will answer me, 'I am one of those redeemed by the Levites'!" What, then, did he do? He brought 22,000 tablets and inscribed them with the words "A son of Levi", and 273 tablets, and wrote upon them the words "Five shekels". These he mixed up, putting them into an urn. He said to them, "Come and draw your tablets and decide the matter by lot" (Sanhedrin 17a).

פסוק ג:נא · 3:51

Hebrew:

וַיִּתֵּ֨ן מֹשֶׁ֜ה אֶת־כֶּ֧סֶף הַפְּדֻיִ֛ם לְאַהֲרֹ֥ן וּלְבָנָ֖יו עַל־פִּ֣י יְהֹוָ֑ה כַּאֲשֶׁ֛ר צִוָּ֥ה יְהֹוָ֖ה אֶת־מֹשֶֽׁה׃ {פ}

English:

And Moses gave the redemption money to Aaron and his sons at יהוה’s bidding, as יהוה had commanded Moses.

The aliyah closes with Moshe delivering the redemption-silver to Aharon and his sons 'al pi Hashem, ka'asher tzivah Hashem et Moshe' — at Hashem's bidding, as commanded. Or HaChaim asks why the verse twice emphasizes that Moshe acted by divine command: since the funds benefitted Aharon (Moshe's own brother) and his nephews, the doubled clause excludes any suspicion that Moshe took pleasure in enriching his family. He executed the transfer purely as fulfillment of Hashem's word, sealing the entire firstborn-Levi substitution with pristine obedience.
אור החייםOr HaChaim
ויתן משה וגו' כאשר צוה ה' וגו'. קשה אחר שאמר הכתוב על פי ה' מה מקום לומר כאשר צוה ה' וגו'. ונראה כי לצד שיש במעשה זה הטבה לאהרן אחיו ובניו, ויש מקום לומר כי היה למשה נחת רוח להטיב לאחיו, לזה בא הכתוב ושלל בחינת מחשבה זו ממשה שלא חשב במעשה זה רצון הנתינה לאחיו אלא לקיים מאמר ה' היה לו החפץ במעשהו:
ויתן משה את כסף הפדויים, Moses gave the redemption money, etc. Seeing that the verse commences by telling us that Moses had given the redemption money to Aaron and his sons at the command of G'd, why does the Torah repeat: "as G'd had commanded Moses?" Perhaps the reason is that seeing Aaron and his sons had a direct financial benefit from this מצוה we could have assumed that Moses enjoyed the fact that he could bestow this benefit on his brother and nephews. The Torah tells us that Moses had no such considerations and that he performed G'd's instructions solely because he was commanded to do so.

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