“Take a census of the whole Israelite
community by their clans and families, listing every man by name, one by one.
You and Aaron are to count according to their divisions all the men in Israel
who are twenty years old or more and able to serve in the army.” Numbers
1:2-3
God asked
that the Israelite community be counted, specifically those men twenty years
old and older who could serve in the army.
It was part of the draft into the military. They realized they had a potential force of
603,550. The Levites were not counted
and not expected to fight.
This also
helped the Israelites realize their strength in numbers, which included, most
of all, having God on their side.