וַיִּפְקֹ֥ד אֹתָ֛ם מֹשֶׁ֖ה עַל־פִּ֣י יְהוָ֑ה כַּאֲשֶׁ֖ר צֻוָּֽה׃
Lalu Musa mencatat mereka sesuai dengan firman Yang Mahakekal, seperti yang diperintahkan kepadanya.
Rabbeinu Bahya
A kabbalistic approach: The words זאת אשר ללוים are to be understood in the same vein as Psalms 118,23 מאת ה' היתה זאת, “This (covenant) emanated from Hashem.” We know this from Genesis 17,10: זאת בריתי, “This is My covenant.” In connection with the tribe of Levi the Torah writes ובריתך ינצורו, “they have observed Your covenant meticulously” (Deut. 33, 9). When the Levites were counted the Torah wrote the words על פי ה' (Numbers 3,16), an expression we do not find in connection with the census of the other tribes. The idea is that the מדה, the particular attribute applicable to the Levites is that they are the transmitters of the פי ה', the word of G’d, the Torah.