33 Of Merar'i were the family of the Mahlites and the family of the Mushites: these are the families of Merar'i. 34 Their number according to the number of all the males from a month old and upward was six thousand two hundred. 35 And the head of the fathers' house of the families of Merar'i was Zu'riel the son of Ab'ihail; they were to encamp on the north side of the tabernacle. 36 And the appointed charge of the sons of Merar'i was to be the frames of the tabernacle, the bars, the pillars, the bases, and all their accessories; all the service pertaining to these; 37 also the pillars of the court round about, with their bases and pegs and cords.
Matthew Henry's Commentary on Numbers 3:33-37
Commentary on Numbers 3:14-39
(Read Numbers 3:14-39)
The Levites were in three classes, according to the sons of Levi; Gershon, Kohath, and Merari; and these were subdivided into families. The posterity of Moses were not at all honoured or privileged, but stood upon the level with other Levites; thus it was plain, that Moses did not seek the advancement of his own family, or to secure any honours to it. The tribe of Levi was by much the least of all the tribes. God's chosen are but a little flock in comparison with the world.