The first numbering had taken place in the wilderness of Sinai (1:1-2). The renumbering took place in the plains of Moab by the Jordan at Jericho (26:3, 63). This indicates that the place of the renumbering was at the entrance to the good land.
The first numbering was for the formation of the army (1:3). The renumbering was for the inheriting of the land (the enjoyment of Christ). The renumbering had the fighting and the distribution of the land as its goal (26:53). The aim was to gain the good land and distribute it so that all the people could share it and enjoy it.
The purpose of the first numbering was absolutely for the formation of the army to follow Jehovah, to journey with Him, and to fight for His kingdom. We may say that the first numbering was for the way to reach the goal. The second numbering, however, was for the goal of entering into the good land. This, of course, still required fighting. In our Christian life there is always the need to fight. In order to fight, we need to watch, pray, and be one with the Lord all the time.
"Take the sum of all the assembly of the sons of Israel, from twenty years old and above, by their fathers' houses, all in Israel who are able to go forth to war" (26:2). Here we see that the people were numbered according to the fathers' houses. In order to be numbered, one could not be adopted but had to be born into the house of his father.
The father's house is a matter of life and of the fellowship of life. To be a member of a certain house is to have the life of that house with its fellowship. Those who are in the same family have the life of that family; they also participate in the fellowship of that family, which is a fellowship of life.
The matters of the life of God's house and the fellowship of this life are revealed in the writings of John. In the Gospel of John we see the life of God's house, and in John's epistles we have the fellowship of the children of God in the Father's house.
In order to be numbered, the children of Israel were required to be in the fellowship of the life of their fathers' house. The renumbering, therefore, was not a superficial thing but something intrinsic. It was based on life and on the fellowship of life.
The renumbering was also according to age (maturity). An Israelite who was under the age of twenty could not be numbered. From this we see that in order to be numbered one had to grow in life to maturity. The standard was strict and required not only life and the fellowship of life but also the maturity in life.
Furthermore, the renumbering required the recognition by the authorities. Here we have the matter of divine authority, in particular, deputy authority. We cannot deny the fact that among God's people there is such a thing as deputy authority, that is, the authority of God delegated to His representatives. We find such deputy authority both in the Old Testament and in the New Testament. Concerning the renumbering of the people in Numbers 26, the deputy authorities were to recognize the things that were done according to God's regulations.