Numbers 1-13

New Life Version

Israel Is Numbered by Families

1 The Lord spoke to Moses in the Sinai desert, in the meeting tent on the first day of the second month, in the second year after they had come out of the land of Egypt. The Lord said, ² “Number all the people of Israel, by their families, by those of their fathers’ houses. Write down the names of every male, head by head, ³ twenty years old and older. You and Aaron number by their armies whoever in Israel is able to go out to war. ⁴ A man from each family should be with you to help you. Each one should be the head of his father’s house. ⁵ These are the names of the men who will help you: Shedeur’s son Elizur from Reuben, ⁶ Zurishaddai’s son Shelumiel from Simeon, ⁷ Amminadab’s son Nahshon from Judah, ⁸ Zuar’s son Nethanel from Issachar, ⁹ and Helon’s son Eliab from Zebulun. ¹⁰ From the sons of Joseph there will be Ammihud’s son Elishama from Ephraim, and Pedahzur’s son Gamaliel from Manasseh. ¹¹ There will be Gideoni’s son Abidan from Benjamin, ¹² Ammishaddai’s son Ahiezer from Dan, ¹³ Ochran’s son Pagiel from Asher, ¹⁴ Deuel’s son Eliasaph from Gad, ¹⁵ and Enan’s son Ahira from Naphtali.” ¹⁶ These were the ones chosen from the people. They were the leaders of their fathers’ families, the heads of thousands in Israel.

¹⁷ Moses and Aaron took these men who had been chosen by name. ¹⁸ And they gathered all the people together on the first day of the second month. The people gave their names by families, by their fathers’ houses, by the number of names from twenty years old and older, head by head. ¹⁹ They did just as the Lord had told Moses. So he numbered them in the desert of Sinai.

²⁰ The sons of Reuben, Israel’s first-born, were numbered by their families, by their fathers’ houses, by the number of names. Every male twenty years old and older was numbered, whoever was able to go out to war. ²¹ The number of the family of Reuben was 46,500.

²² The sons of Simeon were numbered by their families, by their fathers’ houses, by the number of names. Every male twenty years old and older was numbered, whoever was able to go out to war. ²³ The number of the family of Simeon was 59,300.

²⁴ The sons of Gad were numbered by their families, by their fathers’ houses, by the number of names. Every male twenty years old and older was numbered, whoever was able to go out to war. ²⁵ The number of the family of Gad was 45,650.

²⁶ The sons of Judah were numbered by their families, by their fathers’ houses, by the number of names. Every male twenty years old and older was numbered, whoever was able to go out to war. ²⁷ The number of the family of Judah was 74,600.

²⁸ The sons of Issachar were numbered by their families, by their fathers’ houses, by the number of names. Every male twenty years old and older was numbered, whoever was able to go out to war. ²⁹ The number of the family of Issachar was 54,400.

³⁰ The sons of Zebulun were numbered by their families, by their fathers’ houses, by the number of names. Every male twenty years old and older was numbered, whoever was able to go out to war. ³¹ The number of the family of Zebulun was 57,400.

³² The sons of Joseph, the sons of Ephraim, were numbered by their families, by their fathers’ houses, by the number of names. Every male twenty years old and older was numbered, whoever was able to go out to war. ³³ The number of the family of Ephraim was 40,500.

³⁴ The sons of Manasseh were numbered by their families, by their fathers’ houses, by the number of names. Every male twenty years old and older was numbered, whoever was able to go out to war. ³⁵ The number of the family of Manasseh was 32,200.

³⁶ The sons of Benjamin were numbered by their families, by their fathers’ houses, by the number of names. Every male twenty years old and older was numbered, whoever was able to go out to war. ³⁷ The number of the family of Benjamin was 35,400.

³⁸ The sons of Dan were numbered by their families, by their fathers’ houses, by the number of names. Every male twenty years old and older was numbered, whoever was able to go out to war. ³⁹ The number of the family of Dan was 62,700.

⁴⁰ The sons of Asher were numbered by their families, by their fathers’ houses, by the number of names. Every male twenty years old and older was numbered, whoever was able to go out to war. ⁴¹ The number of the family of Asher was 41,500.

⁴² The sons of Naphtali were numbered by their families, by their fathers’ houses, by the number of names. Every male twenty years old and older was numbered, whoever was able to go out to war. ⁴³ The number of the family of Naphtali was 53,400.

⁴⁴ These were numbered by Moses and Aaron, and the leaders of Israel, twelve men, each chosen from his father’s house. ⁴⁵ All the men of Israel were numbered by their fathers’ houses, twenty years old and older, whoever in Israel was able to go out to war. ⁴⁶ The number of all the men was 603,550. ⁴⁷ But the Levites by their fathers’ family were not numbered with them. ⁴⁸ For the Lord had told Moses, ⁴⁹ “Only the family of Levi should not be numbered. Do not add their number among the sons of Israel. ⁵⁰ But have the Levites take care of the meeting tent of the Law, and all that is in it, and all that belongs to it. They will carry the meeting tent and all that goes in it. They will take care of it, and set up their tents around it. ⁵¹ When the meeting tent is to be moved, the Levites will take it down. When the meeting tent is brought to a place to stay, the Levites will set it up. If anyone else comes near, he must be put to death. ⁵² The people of Israel will set up their tents by their own groups and armies, each man by his own flag. ⁵³ But the Levites will set up their tents around the meeting tent of the Law. Then no anger will come upon the people of Israel. The Levites must take care of the meeting tent of the Law.” ⁵⁴ So the people of Israel did this. They did everything the Lord had told Moses.

The Family Groups in Camp

2 The Lord said to Moses and Aaron, ² “The people of Israel will set up their tents, each by his own flag and beside that of their fathers’. They will set up their tents to face the meeting tent on every side. ³ Those who stay in their tents on the east side toward the sunrise will have the flag of Judah by their armies. The leader of the people of Judah is Nahshon the son of Amminadab. ⁴ The number of all his army is 74,600. ⁵ The family of Issachar will set up their tents next to Judah. The leader of the people of Issachar is Nethanel the son of Zuar. ⁶ The number of his army is 54,400. ⁷ The family of Zebulun will be next. The leader of the people of Zebulun is Eliab the son of Helon. ⁸ The number of his army is 57,400. ⁹ The whole number among the tents of Judah is 186,400, by their armies. They will be first to move on.

¹⁰ “On the south side will be the tents of Reuben by their armies with their flags. The leader of the people of Reuben is Elizur the son of Shedeur. ¹¹ The number of his army is 46,500. ¹² The family of Simeon will set up their tents next to him. The leader of the people of Simeon is Shelumiel the son of Zurishaddai. ¹³ The number of his army is 59,300. ¹⁴ The family of Gad will be next. The leader of the people of Gad is Eliasaph the son of Deuel. ¹⁵ The number of his army is 45,650. ¹⁶ The whole number among the tents of Reuben is 151,450 by their armies. They will be second to move on.

¹⁷ “Then the meeting tent will go out with the Levites among the people. In the same way that they set up their tents, so they will leave to move on, every man in his place, by his flags.

¹⁸ “On the west side will be the flag of the tents of Ephraim by their armies. The leader of the people of Ephraim is Elishama the son of Ammihud. ¹⁹ The number of his army is 40,500. ²⁰ The family of Manasseh will be next to him. The leader of the people of Manasseh is Gamaliel the son of Pedahzur. ²¹ The number of his army is 32,200. ²² The family of Benjamin will be next. The leader of the people of Benjamin is Abidan the son of Gideoni. ²³ The number of his army is 35,400. ²⁴ The whole number among the tents of Ephraim is 108,100, by their armies. They will be third to move on.

²⁵ “On the north side will be the flag of the tents of Dan by their armies. The leader of the people of Dan is Ahiezer the son of Ammishaddai. ²⁶ The number of his army is 62,700. ²⁷ The family of Asher will set up their tents next to him. The leader of the people of Asher is Pagiel the son of Ochran. ²⁸ The number of his army is 41,500. ²⁹ The family of Naphtali will be next. The leader of the people of Naphtali is Ahira the son of Enan. ³⁰ The number of his army is 53,400. ³¹ The whole number among the tents of Dan is 157,600. They will be last to move on with their flags.”

³² These are the numbers of the men of Israel by their fathers’ houses. The whole number among all the tents, by their armies, was 603,550. ³³ But the Levites were not numbered with the people of Israel, just as the Lord had told Moses. ³⁴ So the people of Israel did all that the Lord had told Moses. They set up their tents by their flags. And they left to move on in the same way, every one by his family and by his father’s house.

The Sons of Aaron

3 These are the people of Aaron and Moses at the time when the Lord spoke with Moses on Mount Sinai. ² The names of the sons of Aaron are Nadab the first-born, Abihu, Eleazar and Ithamar. ³ These are the names of the sons of Aaron, the chosen religious leaders. Aaron set them apart to work as religious leaders. ⁴ But Nadab and Abihu died before the Lord when they made a fire that was not holy to the Lord in the Desert of Sinai. And they had no children. So Eleazar and Ithamar worked as religious leaders during the life-time of their father Aaron.

The Levites Serve in the Meeting Tent

⁵ Then the Lord said to Moses, ⁶ “Bring the family of Levi near. Set them in front of Aaron the religious leader so they may serve him. ⁷ They will do the duties for him and for all the people in front of the meeting tent. They will do the work around the meeting tent, ⁸ and will keep all the things that belong to the meeting tent. They will take care of the duties for the people of Israel as they work around the meeting tent. ⁹ You will give the Levites to Aaron and his sons. They are all given to him from among the people of Israel. ¹⁰ Set apart Aaron and his sons to do the work of religious leaders. But if anyone comes near who is not a religious leader, he must be put to death.”

¹¹ The Lord said to Moses, ¹² “See, I have taken the Levites from among the people of Israel instead of every first-born among the people of Israel. The Levites will be Mine. ¹³ For all the first-born are Mine. On the day that I killed all the first-born in the land of Egypt, I set apart for My own all the first-born in Israel, both man and animal. They will be Mine. I am the Lord.”

The Levites Are Numbered

¹⁴ Then the Lord said to Moses in the Desert of Sinai, ¹⁵ “Number the sons of Levi by their fathers’ houses and by their families. Number every male a month old and older.” ¹⁶ So Moses numbered them just as he had been told by the word of the Lord. ¹⁷ The names of the sons of Levi are Gershon, Kohath and Merari. ¹⁸ The names of the sons of Gershon by their families are Libni and Shimei. ¹⁹ The sons of Kohath by their families are Amram, Izhar, Hebron and Uzziel. ²⁰ The sons of Merari by their families are Mahli and Mushi. These are the families of the Levites by their fathers’ houses.

²¹ Of Gershon were the families of the Libnites and the Shimeites. These were the families of the Gershonites. ²² The number of their men, every male a month old and older, was 7,500. ²³ The families of the Gershonites were to set up their tents behind the meeting tent on the west side. ²⁴ The leader of the fathers’ houses of the Gershonites was Eliasaph the son of Lael. ²⁵ The sons of Gershon were to take care of the meeting tent, its covering, and the curtain for the door of the meeting tent. ²⁶ And they were to take care of the curtains for the door of the open space, and all curtains around the meeting tent and the altar and their ropes. They did all the work having to do with them.

²⁷ Of Kohath were the families of the Amramites, the Izharites, the Hebronites and the Uzzielites. These were the families of the Kohathites. ²⁸ The number of every male a month old and older was 8,600. They did the duties of the holy place. ²⁹ The families of the sons of Kohath were to set up their tents on the south side of the meeting tent. ³⁰ The leader of the fathers’ houses of the Kohathite families was Elizaphan the son of Uzziel. ³¹ They took care of the special box with the Law, and the table, the lamp-stand, the altars, the things used in the holy place, and the curtain. They did all the work having to do with them. ³² Eleazar, the son of Aaron the religious leader, was the head of the leaders of Levi. He watched over those who did the duties of the holy place.

³³ Of Merari were the families of the Mahlites and the Mushites. These were the families of Merari. ³⁴ The number of their men, every male a month old and older, was 6,200. ³⁵ The leader of the fathers’ houses of the families of Merari was Zuriel the son of Abihail. They were to set up their tents on the north side of the meeting tent. ³⁶ The duties given to the sons of Merari were to take care of the parts made of wood of the meeting tent, its cross pieces, its pillars, its bases, and all the pieces that had to do with them. They took care of all these things, ³⁷ and of the pillars around the open space and their bases and their nails and their ropes.

³⁸ Moses and Aaron and his sons were to set up their tents on the east side in front of the meeting tent, toward the sunrise. They did the duties of the meeting tent, whatever had to be done for the people of Israel. But the one who came near who was not a religious leader was to be put to death. ³⁹ The number of all the Levite men a month old and older, whom Moses and Aaron numbered by their families as the Lord told them, was 22,000.

Levites Take the Place of First-Born Sons

⁴⁰ The Lord said to Moses, “Number every first-born male of the sons of Israel a month old and older. Write down their names. ⁴¹ Take the Levites for Me, instead of all the first-born among the sons of Israel. I am the Lord. And take the cattle of the Levites instead of all the first-born among the cattle of the people of Israel.” ⁴² So Moses numbered all the first-born among the sons of Israel, just as the Lord had told him. ⁴³ The number of names of all the first-born males a month old and older was 22,273.

⁴⁴ Then the Lord said to Moses, ⁴⁵ “Take the Levites instead of all the first-born sons of Israel, and the cattle of the Levites. The number of the Levites will be Mine. I am the Lord. ⁴⁶ There are 273 first-born of the sons of Israel, who are more in number than the Levites. You must pay the price for each of them. ⁴⁷ Take five pieces of silver for each, by the weight of silver agreed upon for the meeting tent. ⁴⁸ Give the money, the price of those who are more in number than the Levites, to Aaron and his sons.” ⁴⁹ So Moses took the money to pay for those who were more in number than the Levites. ⁵⁰ He took the money from the first-born sons of Israel, by the weight agreed upon for the meeting tent. He took 1,365 pieces of silver. ⁵¹ Then Moses gave the money to Aaron and his sons, just as the Lord had told Moses by His Word.

The Work of the Sons of Kohath

4 The Lord said to Moses and Aaron, ² “Number the sons of Kohath from among the sons of Levi. Number them by their families, by the fathers’ houses, ³ from thirty years old and older, even to fifty years old. Number all who are able to do the work in the meeting tent. ⁴ This is the work of the sons of Kohath in the meeting tent to do with the most holy things. ⁵ When the people leave to move on, Aaron and his sons will go in and take down the curtain in front of the special box with the Law inside. And they will cover the special box with it. ⁶ Then they will lay a covering of badgers’ skins on it, and spread a pure blue cloth over that. And they will put in the long pieces of wood to carry it. ⁷ They will spread a blue cloth over the table of the bread before the Lord. They will put on it the plates, the dishes for special perfume, the pots, and the jars for the drink gift. And the bread will be on it always. ⁸ They will spread a red cloth over them, and cover that with badgers’ skins. And they will put in its long pieces of wood to carry it. ⁹ They will take a blue cloth and cover the lamp-stand for the light, with its lamps, its objects to put out the light, its dishes and all its pots of oil used for the light. ¹⁰ They will put the lamp-stand and all its objects in a covering of badgers’ skins. Then they will put it on the long pieces of wood used to carry it. ¹¹ They will spread a blue cloth over the altar of gold, and cover it with badgers’ skins. And they will put in the long pieces of wood to carry it. ¹² They will take all the things used for the work done in the meeting tent. They will put them in a blue cloth and cover them with a covering of badgers’ skins. And they will put them on the long pieces of wood to carry them. ¹³ Then they will take away the ashes from the altar, and spread a purple cloth over it. ¹⁴ They will put on it all the things used for the work done on the altar: the fire-holders, meat-hooks, objects for picking up the ashes, and the pots. Then they will spread a covering of badgers’ skins over it, and put in the long pieces of wood for carrying it. ¹⁵ Aaron and his sons will finish covering the holy objects and all the things of the meeting tent, as the people move on. After that the sons of Kohath will come to carry them. In this way they will not touch the holy objects and die. These are the things in the meeting tent which the sons of Kohath are to carry. ¹⁶ Eleazar the son of Aaron the religious leader will take care of the oil for the light, the special perfume, the grain gift which is always given, and the oil for holy use. He will watch over all the meeting tent and all that is in it, the holy place and its objects.”

¹⁷ Then the Lord said to Moses and Aaron, ¹⁸ “Do not let the family group of the Kohathites be destroyed from among the Levites. ¹⁹ But do this to them so they may live and not die when they come near the most holy objects. Aaron and his sons must go in and give each of them their work and what they are to carry. ²⁰ But they must not go in to see the holy objects even for a short time, or they will die.”

The Work of the Sons of Gershon

²¹ The Lord said to Moses, ²² “Number the sons of Gershon also, by their fathers’ houses, by their families. ²³ Number those who are thirty years old and older, to fifty years old, all who go in to do the work in the meeting tent. ²⁴ These are the duties of the families of the Gershonites, in working and in carrying. ²⁵ They will carry the curtains of the meeting tent and the meeting tent with its covering and the covering of badgers’ skins that is over it. They will carry the curtain for the door of the meeting tent, ²⁶ the curtains of the open space, and the curtain for the gate of the open space which is around the meeting tent and the altar. And they will carry the ropes for the curtains, and all the things used for their work. They will do whatever needs to be done with them. ²⁷ All the work of the sons of the Gershonites will be what Aaron and his sons tell them to do. They will tell them what they are to carry and what work they are to do. You will tell them what things they have a duty to carry. ²⁸ This is the work to be done by the families of the sons of the Gershonites in the meeting tent. Ithamar the son of Aaron the religious leader will watch over their duties.

The Work of the Sons of Merari

²⁹ “As for the sons of Merari, number them by their families and by their fathers’ houses. ³⁰ Number those who are thirty years old and older, to fifty years old, everyone who goes in to do the work of the meeting tent. ³¹ This is what they are to carry for their work in the meeting tent: the wood pieces of the meeting tent, its cross pieces, pillars and its bases. ³² And they are to carry the pillars which are around the open space and their bases and their nails and ropes, with all the things used for their work. You will tell each man by name what he is to carry. ³³ This is the work of the families of the sons of Merari, all their work in the meeting tent. Ithamar the son of Aaron the religious leader will watch over their duties.”

The Levites Are Numbered

³⁴ So Moses and Aaron and the leaders of the people numbered the sons of the Kohathites by their families and by their fathers’ houses. ³⁵ They numbered those who were thirty years old and older, to fifty years old, everyone who went in to do the work in the meeting tent. ³⁶ And their number by families was 2,750. ³⁷ These are the numbered men of the Kohathite families, everyone who worked in the meeting tent. Moses and Aaron numbered them as the Lord told them to do through Moses.

³⁸ The sons of Gershon were numbered, by their families and their fathers’ houses, ³⁹ from thirty years old to fifty years old. Everyone who went in to do the work in the meeting tent was numbered. ⁴⁰ And the number of their men by their families and by their fathers’ houses was 2,630. ⁴¹ These are the numbered men of the families of the sons of Gershon, all who were working in the meeting tent. Moses and Aaron numbered them as the Lord told them to do.

⁴² The men of the families of the sons of Merari were numbered, by their families and their fathers’ houses, ⁴³ from thirty years old to fifty years old. Everyone who went in to do the work in the meeting tent was numbered. ⁴⁴ And the number of their men by their families was 3,200. ⁴⁵ These are the numbered men of the families of the sons of Merari. Moses and Aaron numbered them as the Lord told them to do through Moses.

⁴⁶ Moses and Aaron and the leaders of Israel numbered all the men of the Levites by their families and their fathers’ houses, ⁴⁷ from thirty years old to fifty years old. Everyone who could go in to do the work and the carrying of the meeting tent was numbered. ⁴⁸ And the number of their men was 8,580. ⁴⁹ They were each given their work and load to carry, as the Lord told them to do through Moses. So these were his numbered men, just as the Lord had told Moses.

People with a Bad Skin Disease

5 The Lord said to Moses, ² “Tell the people of Israel to send away from the tents every person with a bad skin disease, every one with a flow that is unclean, and every one who is unclean because of a dead person. ³ Send away both male and female. Send them away from the tents so they will not make the place sinful where I live among them.” ⁴ The people of Israel did so. They sent them away from the tents. The people of Israel did just as the Lord had said to Moses.

Paying Back for Wrongs Done

⁵ Then the Lord said to Moses, ⁶ “Say to the people of Israel, ‘When a man or woman sins the way that man sins by not acting in faith toward the Lord, and that person is guilty, ⁷ then he must tell about the sins he has done. He must pay in full for his wrong-doing, and add one-fifth part to it, and give it to the one he has sinned against. ⁸ But if the man has no brother to whom pay for the wrong can be made, then it must go to the Lord for the religious leader. He must also give a ram to pay for his sins. And his sins will be forgiven. ⁹ Every gift of all the holy things of the Israelites which they bring to the religious leader will become his. ¹⁰ So every man’s holy gifts will be his. Whatever any man gives to the religious leader will be his.’”

Wives Who Are Not Faithful

¹¹ The Lord said to Moses, ¹² “Say to the people of Israel, ‘If a man’s wife turns away and is not faithful to him, ¹³ and another man has sex with her and it is hidden from her husband’s eyes, even if it is hidden, she will be unclean. And even if no one speaks against her, because she has not been caught in the act, ¹⁴ but a spirit of jealousy comes over her husband, he will be jealous of his wife when she has made herself unclean. Or if he becomes jealous of his wife when she has done nothing to make herself unclean, ¹⁵ then the man must bring his wife to the religious leader. He must bring one-tenth part of a basket of barley as the gift needed for her. He must not pour oil on it. He must not put special perfume on it. For it is a grain gift of jealousy. It is a grain gift to make the sin remembered.

¹⁶ ‘Then the religious leader will bring her near and have her stand before the Lord. ¹⁷ The religious leader will take holy water in a clay pot. He will take some of the dust on the floor of the meeting tent and put it into the water. ¹⁸ Then the religious leader will have the woman stand before the Lord and let the hair of the woman’s head hang loose. He will put the grain gift of remembering into her hands. It is the grain gift of jealousy. In the religious leader’s hand will be the bitter water that can bring a curse to the woman. ¹⁹ Then the religious leader will have her make a promise. He will say to the woman, “If no man has lain with you and if you have not turned away into sin, while under the power of your husband, this bitter water that brings punishment will not hurt you. ²⁰ If you have turned away, while under the power of your husband, and have made yourself unclean by having another man who is not your husband,” ²¹ then the religious leader will have the woman make a promise so she will be punished if she has sinned. He will say to the woman, “May the Lord make you a curse among your people. May the Lord make your leg waste away and your stomach grow bigger. ²² This water that brings a curse will go into your stomach and make it grow bigger and your leg to waste away.” And the woman will say, “Let it be so. Let it be so.”

²³ ‘Then the religious leader will write these curses in a book. And he will wash them off into the bitter water. ²⁴ He will make the woman drink the bitter water that brings a curse. The water that brings a curse will go into her and give her pain. ²⁵ The religious leader will take the grain gift of jealousy from the woman’s hand. He will wave the grain gift before the Lord and bring it to the altar. ²⁶ The religious leader will fill his hand with the grain gift, as the part to be remembered. And he will burn it on the altar. Then he will make the woman drink the water. ²⁷ If she has not been faithful to her husband, the water that brings a curse will go into her and give her pain. Her stomach will get larger and her leg will become as dead. A curse will come upon the woman among her people. ²⁸ But if the woman has not sinned and is clean, she will be free and able to have children.

²⁹ ‘This is the law of jealousy. If a wife who is under the power of her husband turns away and makes herself unclean, ³⁰ and a spirit of jealousy comes upon a man, making him jealous of his wife, then he must make the woman stand before the Lord. And the religious leader will do to her all the rules of this Law. ³¹ The husband will be free from guilt. But the woman will carry her guilt.’”

Rules for the Nazirites

6 Then the Lord said to Moses, ² “Say to the people of Israel, ‘A man or woman may make a special promise, the promise of a Nazirite, to set himself apart to the Lord. ³ Then he must keep away from wine and strong drink. He will drink no sour wine, made from wine or strong drink. He will not drink any grape drink. And he will not eat new or dried grapes. ⁴ All the days he is set apart, he must not eat anything made from the grape-field, not even the seeds or the skins.

⁵ ‘No hair of his head will be cut, all the days of his promise to be set apart. He must be holy until the time is finished for which he set himself apart to the Lord. He will let the hair on his head grow long.

⁶ ‘All the days he is set apart to the Lord, he must not go near a dead person. ⁷ He must not allow himself to be made unclean when his father, mother, brother or sister die. For he has made a promise to be set apart to God. ⁸ He is holy to the Lord all the days he is set apart.

⁹ ‘But if a man dies next to him, making his hair unclean which had been set apart to the Lord, then he must cut all the hair from his head on the day he is made clean. He will cut it off on the seventh day. ¹⁰ On the eighth day he must bring two turtle-doves or two young pigeons to the religious leader, to the door of the meeting tent. ¹¹ The religious leader will give one for a sin gift and the other for a burnt gift. He will pay for his sin because of the dead person. And he will make his head holy that same day. ¹² He will set apart to the Lord his days as a Nazirite. And he will bring a year old male lamb for a guilt gift. But the past days will be a loss, because he had become unclean during the time he was set apart.

¹³ ‘This is the Law of the Nazirite when the time he is set apart is finished. He must bring the gift to the door of the meeting tent. ¹⁴ He will give his gift to the Lord. It will be a perfect male lamb a year old for a burnt gift, one perfect female lamb a year old for a sin gift, and one perfect ram for a peace gift. ¹⁵ And he will give a basket of bread made of fine flour mixed with oil, made without yeast. He will give hard bread spread with oil and made without yeast. With them he will give their grain gift and drink gifts. ¹⁶ Then the religious leader will give all these to the Lord and his sin gift and his burnt gift. ¹⁷ He will also give the ram for peace gifts to the Lord, together with the basket of bread made without yeast. Then the religious leader will give its grain gift and drink gift. ¹⁸ Then at the door of the meeting tent the Nazirite will cut off the hair that has been set apart for holy use. He is to take the hair and put it in the fire under the peace gifts. ¹⁹ The religious leader will take the shoulder of the ram when it has been boiled and a loaf of bread and a piece of hard bread, both made without yeast and put them in the hands of the Nazirite. This is done after he has cut off the hair that has been set apart. ²⁰ The religious leader will wave them for a wave gift before the Lord. They are holy and belong to the religious leader, together with the breast given as a wave gift and the thigh given by lifting it up. After that the Nazirite may drink wine.’

²¹ “This is the Law of the Nazirite who makes a promise to give to the Lord what he promised as a Nazirite, and whatever else he is able to give. He must do what he has promised by the Law of being set apart as a Nazirite.”

Religious Leaders Bring Good to the People

²² Then the Lord said to Moses, ²³ “Say to Aaron and his sons, ‘This is the way you should bring good to the people of Israel. Say to them, ²⁴ “May the Lord bring good to you and keep you. ²⁵ May the Lord make His face shine upon you, and be kind to you. ²⁶ May the Lord show favor toward you, and give you peace.”’ ²⁷ So they will put My name upon the people of Israel, and I will bring good to them.”

Gifts Given on the Altar by the Leaders

7 Moses finished putting up the meeting tent. On that day he put oil on it and made it holy, with the things inside, the altar and all its objects. He put oil on them and made them holy. ² Then the leaders of Israel, the heads of their fathers’ houses, brought their gifts. They were the leaders of the families, the heads of those who were numbered. ³ As gifts to the Lord they brought six covered wagons and twelve bulls, a wagon for every two of the leaders and a bull for each one. Then they gave them in front of the meeting tent. ⁴ The Lord said to Moses, ⁵ “Receive these things from them, that they may be used in the work of the meeting tent. Give them to the Levites, to each man for the work he does.” ⁶ So Moses took the wagons and the bulls, and gave them to the Levites. ⁷ He gave two wagons and four bulls to the sons of Gershon, for the work they were doing. ⁸ He gave four wagons and eight bulls to the sons of Merari, for the work they were doing under the leading of Ithamar the son of Aaron the religious leader. ⁹ But Moses did not give any to the sons of Kohath. They had the duty of taking care of the holy objects which had to be carried on their shoulders. ¹⁰ The leaders gave gifts to set apart the altar on the day the oil was poured on it. They gave their gifts in front of the altar. ¹¹ Then the Lord said to Moses, “Let one leader each day give the gifts to set apart the altar.”

¹² The one who gave his gift on the first day was Nahshon the son of Amminadab, of the family of Judah. ¹³ His gift was one silver dish that weighed as much as 130 pieces of silver, and one silver dish that weighed as much as seventy pieces of silver. They were weighed by the weight of silver agreed upon for the meeting tent. Both of them were full of fine flour mixed with oil for a grain gift. ¹⁴ And he gave one gold dish weighing as much as ten pieces of silver, full of special perfume. ¹⁵ He gave one bull, one ram, and one male lamb one year old, for a burnt gift in worship. ¹⁶ He gave one male goat for a sin gift. ¹⁷ For the peace gifts he gave two bulls, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs one year old. This was the gift given by Nahshon the son of Amminadab.

¹⁸ On the second day Nethanel the son of Zuar, leader of Issachar, gave a gift in worship. ¹⁹ He gave for his gift one silver dish that weighed as much as 130 pieces of silver, and one silver dish weighing as much as seventy pieces of silver. They were weighed by the weight of silver agreed upon for the meeting tent. Both of them were full of fine flour mixed with oil for a grain gift. ²⁰ And he gave one gold dish weighing as much as ten pieces of silver, full of special perfume. ²¹ He gave one bull, one ram, and one male lamb one year old, for a burnt gift. ²² He gave one male goat for a sin gift. ²³ For the peace gifts he gave two bulls, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs one year old. This was the gift of Nethanel the son of Zuar.

²⁴ On the third day it was Eliab the son of Helon, leader of the sons of Zebulun. ²⁵ His gift was one silver dish that weighed as much as 130 pieces of silver, and one silver dish weighing as much as seventy pieces of silver. They were weighed by the weight of silver agreed upon for the meeting tent. Both of them were full of fine flour mixed with oil for a grain gift. ²⁶ And he gave one gold dish weighing as much as ten pieces of silver, full of special perfume. ²⁷ He gave one young bull, one ram, and one male lamb one year old, for a burnt gift. ²⁸ He gave one male goat for a sin gift. ²⁹ For the peace gifts he gave two bulls, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs one year old. This was the gift of Eliab the son of Helon.

³⁰ On the fourth day it was Elizur the son of Shedeur, leader of the sons of Reuben. ³¹ His gift was one silver dish that weighed as much as 130 pieces of silver, and one silver dish weighing as much as seventy pieces of silver. They were weighed by the weight of silver agreed upon for the meeting tent. Both of them were full of fine flour mixed with oil for a grain gift. ³² And he gave one gold dish weighing as much as ten pieces of silver, full of special perfume. ³³ He gave one bull, one ram, and one male lamb one year old, for a burnt gift. ³⁴ He gave one male goat for a sin gift. ³⁵ For the peace gifts he gave two bulls, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs one year old. This was the gift of Elizur the son of Shedeur.

³⁶ On the fifth day it was Shelumiel the son of Zurishaddai, the leader of the sons of Simeon. ³⁷ His gift was one silver dish that weighed as much as 130 pieces of silver, and one silver dish weighing as much as seventy pieces of silver. They were weighed by the weight of silver agreed upon for the meeting tent. Both of them were full of fine flour mixed with oil for a grain gift. ³⁸ And he gave one gold dish weighing as much as ten pieces of silver, full of special perfume. ³⁹ He gave one bull, one ram, and one male lamb one year old, for a burnt gift. ⁴⁰ He gave one male goat for a sin gift. ⁴¹ For the peace gifts he gave two bulls, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs one year old. This was the gift of Shelumiel the son of Zurishaddai.

⁴² On the sixth day it was Eliasaph the son of Deuel, the leader of the sons of Gad. ⁴³ His gift was one silver dish that weighed as much as 130 pieces of silver, and one silver dish weighing as much as seventy pieces of silver. They were weighed by the weight of silver agreed upon for the meeting tent. Both of them were full of fine flour mixed with oil for a grain gift. ⁴⁴ And he gave one gold dish weighing as much as ten pieces of silver, full of special perfume. ⁴⁵ He gave one bull, one ram, and one male lamb one year old, for a burnt gift. ⁴⁶ He gave one male goat for a sin gift. ⁴⁷ For the peace gifts he gave two bulls, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs one year old. This was the gift of Eliasaph the son of Deuel.

⁴⁸ On the seventh day it was Elishama the son of Ammihud, the leader of the sons of Ephraim. ⁴⁹ His gift was one silver dish that weighed as much as 130 pieces of silver, and one silver dish weighing as much as seventy pieces of silver. They were weighed by the weight of silver agreed upon for the meeting tent. Both of them were full of fine flour mixed with oil for a grain gift. ⁵⁰ And he gave one gold dish weighing as much as ten pieces of silver, full of special perfume. ⁵¹ He gave one bull, one ram, and one male lamb one year old, for a burnt gift. ⁵² He gave one male goat for a sin gift. ⁵³ For the peace gifts he gave two bulls, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs one year old. This was the gift of Elishama the son of Ammihud.

⁵⁴ On the eighth day it was Gamaliel the son of Pedahzur, the leader of the sons of Manasseh. ⁵⁵ His gift was one silver dish that weighed as much as 130 pieces of silver, and one silver dish weighing as much as seventy pieces of silver. They were weighed by the weight of silver agreed upon for the meeting tent. Both of them were full of fine flour mixed with oil for a grain gift. ⁵⁶ And he gave one gold dish weighing as much as ten pieces of silver, full of special perfume. ⁵⁷ He gave one bull, one ram, and one male lamb one year old, for a burnt gift. ⁵⁸ He gave one male goat for a sin gift. ⁵⁹ For the peace gifts he gave two bulls, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs one year old. This was the gift of Gamaliel the son of Pedahzur.

⁶⁰ On the ninth day it was Abidan the son of Gideoni, the leader of the sons of Benjamin. ⁶¹ His gift was one silver dish that weighed as much as 130 pieces of silver, and one silver dish weighing as much as seventy pieces of silver. They were weighed by the weight of silver agreed upon for the meeting tent. Both of them were full of fine flour mixed with oil for a grain gift. ⁶² And he gave one gold dish weighing as much as ten pieces of silver, full of special perfume. ⁶³ He gave one bull, one ram, and one male lamb one year old, for a burnt gift. ⁶⁴ He gave one male goat for a sin gift. ⁶⁵ For the peace gifts he gave two bulls, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs one year old. This was the gift of Abidan the son of Gideoni.

⁶⁶ On the tenth day it was Ahiezer the son of Ammishaddai, the leader of the sons of Dan. ⁶⁷ His gift was one silver dish that weighed as much as 130 pieces of silver, and one silver dish weighing as much as seventy pieces of silver. They were weighed by the weight of silver agreed upon for the meeting tent. Both of them were full of fine flour mixed with oil for a grain gift. ⁶⁸ And he gave one gold dish weighing as much as ten pieces of silver, full of special perfume. ⁶⁹ He gave one bull, one ram, and one male lamb one year old, for a burnt gift. ⁷⁰ He gave one male goat for a sin gift. ⁷¹ For the peace gifts he gave two bulls, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs one year old. This was the gift of Ahiezer the son of Ammishaddai.

⁷² On the eleventh day it was Pagiel the son of Ochran, the leader of the sons of Asher. ⁷³ His gift was one silver dish that weighed as much as 130 pieces of silver, and one silver dish weighing as much as seventy pieces of silver. They were weighed by the weight of silver agreed upon for the meeting tent. Both of them were full of fine flour mixed with oil for a grain gift. ⁷⁴ And he gave one gold dish weighing as much as ten pieces of silver, full of special perfume. ⁷⁵ He gave one bull, one ram, and one male lamb one year old, for a burnt gift. ⁷⁶ He gave one male goat for a sin gift. ⁷⁷ For the peace gifts he gave two bulls, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs one year old. This was the gift of Pagiel the son of Ochran.

⁷⁸ On the twelfth day it was Ahira the son of Enan, the leader of the sons of Naphtali. ⁷⁹ His gift was one silver dish that weighed as much as 130 pieces of silver, and one silver dish weighing as much as seventy pieces of silver. They were weighed by the weight of silver agreed upon for the meeting tent. Both of them were full of fine flour mixed with oil for a grain gift. ⁸⁰ And he gave one gold dish weighing as much as ten pieces of silver, full of special perfume. ⁸¹ He gave one bull, one ram, and one male lamb one year old, for a burnt gift. ⁸² He gave one male goat for a sin gift. ⁸³ For the peace gifts he gave two bulls, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs one year old. This was the gift of Ahira the son of Enan. ⁸⁴ This was the gift to set apart the altar on the day the oil was poured on it. The leaders of Israel gave twelve silver dishes, twelve deep dishes made of silver, and twelve gold dishes. ⁸⁵ Each silver dish weighed as much as 130 pieces of silver. Each deep dish weighed as much as seventy pieces of silver. All the silver of the dishes weighed as much as 2,400 pieces of silver. They were weighed by the weight of silver agreed upon for the meeting tent. ⁸⁶ The twelve gold dishes full of special perfume each weighed as much as ten pieces of silver. They were weighed by the weight of silver agreed upon for the meeting tent. All the gold of the dishes weighed as much as 120 pieces of silver. ⁸⁷ All the animals given for the burnt gift were twelve bulls, twelve rams, and twelve male lambs one year old with their grain gifts. Twelve male goats were given for a sin gift. ⁸⁸ All the animals given for the peace gifts were twenty-four bulls, sixty rams, sixty male goats, and sixty male lambs one year old. This was the gift to set apart the altar after the oil was poured on it.

⁸⁹ Moses went into the meeting tent to speak with the Lord. And he heard the voice speaking to him from above the mercy-seat that was on the special box with the Law, between the two cherubim. So the Lord spoke to him.

Setting Up the Lamps

8 The Lord said to Moses, ² “Say to Aaron, ‘When you put the seven lamps on the lamp-stand, they should give light in front of the lamp-stand.’” ³ And Aaron did so. He put the lamps so they would give light in front of the lamp-stand, as the Lord had told Moses. ⁴ Now this is the way the lamp-stand was made. It was made of beaten gold from the base to its flowers. He made the lamp-stand the way the Lord had shown Moses.

The Levites Are Set Apart

⁵ Then the Lord said to Moses, ⁶ “Take the Levites from among the people of Israel, and make them clean. ⁷ To make them clean, put holy water on them that takes away sin. Let them cut all the hair from their body, and wash their clothes, and they shall be clean. ⁸ Then let them take a young bull and its grain gift of fine flour mixed with oil. Take another young bull for a sin gift. ⁹ Bring the Levites in front of the meeting tent and gather together all the people of Israel also. ¹⁰ Bring the Levites before the Lord and the people of Israel will lay their hands on the Levites. ¹¹ Aaron will give the Levites to the Lord as a wave gift from the people of Israel so they will be able to do the work of the Lord. ¹² The Levites will lay their hands on the heads of the bulls. They will give one for a sin gift and the other for a burnt gift to the Lord, to pay for the sins of the Levites. ¹³ Then have the Levites stand in front of Aaron and his sons, to give them as a wave gift to the Lord.

¹⁴ “So you will divide the Levites from the people of Israel. And the Levites will be Mine. ¹⁵ After that the Levites may go in to work in the meeting tent. But you must make them clean and give them as a wave gift. ¹⁶ For they are all given to Me from among the people of Israel. I have taken them for Myself instead of every first child to be born, the first-born of all the people of Israel. ¹⁷ For every first-born among the people of Israel is Mine, both of man and animal. I set them apart for Myself on the day that I killed all the first-born in the land of Egypt. ¹⁸ But I have taken the Levites instead of every first-born among the people of Israel. ¹⁹ And I have given the Levites as a gift to Aaron and his sons from among the people of Israel. They will do the work of the people of Israel at the meeting tent. By this they take away the sins of the people of Israel. So no trouble will come upon the people of Israel if they come near the meeting tent.”

²⁰ Moses and Aaron and all the people of Israel did this to the Levites. The people of Israel did to them all the things the Lord had told Moses about the Levites. ²¹ The Levites made themselves pure, putting away their sin. And they washed their clothes. Aaron gave them as a wave gift before the Lord. He did what had to be done to pay for their sin so they would be clean. ²² After that the Levites went in to do their work in the meeting tent in front of Aaron and his sons. So they did to the Levites just what the Lord had told Moses to do.

²³ The Lord said to Moses, ²⁴ “This is the rule for the Levites. Those who are twenty-five years old and older will go in to do the work of the meeting tent. ²⁵ But when they are fifty years old they will stop these duties and not work any more. ²⁶ They may help their brothers in the meeting tent to do what needs to be done but they themselves must not do the work. These are the rules for the Levites when giving them their duties.”

The Passover

9 The Lord spoke to Moses in the Sinai desert, in the first month of the second year after they had come out of the land of Egypt. The Lord said, ² “Let the people of Israel keep the Passover at the time given for it. ³ Keep it at its given time, in the evening of the fourteenth day of this month. Keep it by obeying all its Laws.” ⁴ So Moses told the people of Israel to keep the Passover. ⁵ And they kept the Passover in the evening of the fourteenth day of the first month, in the Sinai desert. The people of Israel did all that the Lord had told Moses. ⁶ But there were some men who were unclean because they had touched a dead person. So they could not keep the Passover on that day. They came to Moses and Aaron that day ⁷ and said to Moses, “We are unclean because we touched a dead person. But why are we kept from giving the Lord’s gift at its given time among the people of Israel?” ⁸ Moses said to them, “Wait, and I will listen to what the Lord will tell me to do with you.”

⁹ Then the Lord said to Moses, ¹⁰ “Say to the people of Israel, ‘If anyone of you or your children touch a dead person and become unclean, or if you are traveling far away, even so, he may still keep the Passover to the Lord. ¹¹ They will keep it in the evening of the fourteenth day of the second month. They will eat it with bread without yeast and with bitter tasting plants. ¹² They must not leave any of it until morning. And they must not break a bone of the lamb. They must obey all of the Law of the Passover. ¹³ But if a man is clean and is not away traveling, yet does not keep the Passover, he must be cut off from his people. For he did not give the Lord’s gift at the time he was to do so. That man will be guilty of his sin. ¹⁴ If a stranger staying with you wants to keep the Passover to the Lord and obey the Law of the Passover, he may do so. You will have one law, both for the stranger and for the one who was born in the land.’”

The Cloud of Fire

¹⁵ On the day that the meeting tent was set up, the cloud covered the meeting tent, the tent of the law. In the evening it was over the meeting tent. It looked like fire until morning. ¹⁶ It was like this always. The cloud would cover it during the day. What looked like fire would cover it during the night. ¹⁷ When the cloud was lifted from over the meeting tent, the people of Israel would move on. Where the cloud rested, there the people of Israel would set up their tents. ¹⁸ The people of Israel would move on as the Lord told them. And they would set up their tents as the Lord told them. They stayed in one place as long as the cloud rested over the meeting tent. ¹⁹ Even when the cloud rested over the meeting tent for many days, the people of Israel would obey the Lord and not leave. ²⁰ Sometimes the cloud stayed a few days over the meeting tent. But they obeyed the Lord and stayed in that place. Then they would leave when the Lord told them. ²¹ Sometimes the cloud stayed from evening until morning. When the cloud lifted in the morning, they would leave. If the cloud stayed during the day and the night, when it was lifted, they would leave that place. ²² Even when the cloud stayed over the meeting tent for two days, or a month, or a year the people of Israel would stay in that place and not leave. They would leave when it was lifted. ²³ They set up their tents as the Lord told them. And they moved on as the Lord told them. They obeyed what the Lord had told them to do through Moses.

The Silver Horns

10 The Lord said to Moses, ² “Make two silver horns of beaten silver. Use them for calling the people together and for having the people move on. ³ When both horns sound, all the people will gather in front of you at the door of the meeting tent. ⁴ If only one horn sounds, then the leaders, the heads of the families of Israel, will gather in front of you. ⁵ When you blow the horn to tell of danger, the people whose tents are on the east side will leave. ⁶ When you blow the horn to tell of danger a second time, the people whose tents are on the south side will leave. A horn telling of danger will be blown when they are to move on. ⁷ But when the people are to be gathered together, you will blow the horn without the sound of danger. ⁸ Aaron’s sons, the religious leaders, will blow the horns. This will be a Law for all your people forever. ⁹ When you go to war in your land against those who fight you, then sound the horns to tell of war. That way you will be remembered before the Lord your God, and be saved from those who hate you. ¹⁰ On the days you are glad and at the time of your special suppers and on the first days of your months, blow the horns. Blow the horns over your burnt gifts and over your peace gifts. Then you will be remembered before your God. I am the Lord your God.”

The Children of Israel Leave Sinai

¹¹ On the twentieth day of the second month in the second year, the cloud was lifted from over the meeting tent of the Law. ¹² The people of Israel moved on from the Desert of Sinai. Then the cloud came down and rested in the desert of Paran. ¹³ So they moved for the first time as the Lord had told them through Moses. ¹⁴ The flag of the people of Judah left first, by their armies. Amminadab’s son Nahshon was the head of their army. ¹⁵ Zuar’s son Nethanel was the head of the men of Issachar. ¹⁶ And Helon’s son Eliab was the head of the men of Zebulun.

¹⁷ When the meeting tent was taken down, the sons of Gershon and Merari left carrying it. ¹⁸ Next the flag of the people of Reuben left, by their armies. Shedeur’s son Elizur was the head over this army. ¹⁹ Zurishaddai’s son Shelumiel was the head of the men of Simeon. ²⁰ Deuel’s son Eliasaph was the head of the men of Gad. ²¹ Then the Kohathites left, carrying the holy objects. The meeting tent was set up before they came to the next place. ²² Next the flag of the people of Ephraim left, by their armies. Ammihud’s son Elishama was the head over this army. ²³ Pedahzur’s son Gamaliel was the head of the men of Manasseh. ²⁴ Gideoni’s son Abidan was the head of the men of Benjamin.

²⁵ Then the flag of the people of Dan left, by their armies. They followed behind all the people of Israel, to watch for danger. Ammishaddai’s son Ahiezer was the head over this army. ²⁶ Ochran’s son Pagiel was the head of the men of Asher. ²⁷ And Enan’s son Ahira was the head of the men of Naphtali. ²⁸ This was how the people of Israel moved on by their armies.

²⁹ Then Moses said to Hobab the son of Reuel the Midianite, Moses’ father-in-law, “We are going to the place the Lord said He will give to us. Come with us and we will do you good. For the Lord has promised good to Israel.” ³⁰ But Hobab said to him, “I will not come. I will go to my own land and family.” ³¹ Moses said, “I beg you, do not leave us. For you know where we should stay in the desert. You will be like eyes for us. ³² If you go with us, we will do for you whatever good the Lord does for us.”

³³ So they traveled for three days from the mountain of the Lord with the special box with the Law of the Lord in front of them looking for a place for them to rest. ³⁴ The cloud of the Lord was over them during the day, when they moved on.

³⁵ When the special box of the Lord moved on, Moses said, “Rise up, O Lord! Let those who hate You be divided. Let those who hate You run away before You.” ³⁶ And when it rested, he said, “Return, O Lord, to the many thousands of Israel.”

The Children of Israel Complain

11 Now the people complained about their troubles in the hearing of the Lord. When the Lord heard it, His anger burned. The fire of the Lord burned among them, and destroyed some around the outer parts of the tents. ² Then the people cried to Moses and he prayed to the Lord, and the fire went out. ³ So the name of that place was called Taberah, because the fire of the Lord burned among them.

⁴ The mixed group of people among them had strong desires. The people of Israel cried again and said, “Who will give us meat to eat? ⁵ We remember all the fish we could eat free in Egypt, and all the fruit and vegetables and spices. ⁶ But now our strength is gone. There is nothing at all to look at except this bread from heaven.” ⁷ Now the bread from heaven was like coriander seed, and it looked like bdellium. ⁸ The people would go and gather it and beat it between stones. They boiled it in a pot or made bread with it. It tasted like bread made with oil. ⁹ When the grass became wet around the tents at night, the bread from heaven would fall.

¹⁰ Moses heard all the people crying in every family, each man at the door of his tent. The Lord became very angry with them and Moses was not pleased. ¹¹ So Moses said to the Lord, “Why have You been so hard on Your servant? Why have I not found favor in Your eyes, that You have laid the troubles of all these people on me? ¹² Did I give birth to all these people? Did I bring them out, that You should say to me, ‘Carry them close to your heart as a nurse carries a nursing baby, to the land You promised their fathers’? ¹³ Where am I to get meat to give to all these people? They cry in front of me, saying, ‘Give us meat so we may eat!’ ¹⁴ I am not able to carry all these people alone. The load is too heavy for me. ¹⁵ So if You are going to act this way toward me, I beg You to kill me now, if I have found favor in Your eyes. Do not let me see how bad off I am.”

The Seventy Leaders

¹⁶ The Lord said to Moses, “Gather for Me seventy men from the leaders of Israel, whom you know to be the leaders of the people, the men who rule over them. Bring them to the meeting tent and let them stand there with you. ¹⁷ Then I will come down and speak with you there. I will take of the Spirit Who is upon you, and will put Him upon them. Then they will carry the troubles of the people with you so you will not carry them all alone. ¹⁸ Say to the people, ‘Make yourselves holy for tomorrow, and you will eat meat. The Lord heard you when you cried and said, “If only someone would give us meat to eat! For it was well with us in Egypt.” So the Lord will give you meat and you will eat. ¹⁹ You will not eat it for only one day, or two days, or five days, or ten days, or twenty days. ²⁰ But you will eat it a whole month, until it comes out of your nose and you hate it, because you have turned away from the Lord Who is among you. You have cried before Him, saying, “Why did we ever leave Egypt?”’” ²¹ But Moses said, “The people whom I am among are 600,000 on foot. And You have said, ‘I will give them meat so they may eat for a whole month.’ ²² Will enough flocks and cattle be killed to feed them? Or will enough fish be gathered from the sea to feed them?” ²³ The Lord said to Moses, “Is there an end to the Lord’s power? Now you will see if My Word will come true for you or not.”

²⁴ So Moses went out and told the people the words of the Lord. And he gathered seventy men from the leaders of the people, and had them stand around the meeting tent. ²⁵ Then the Lord came down in the cloud and spoke to him. He took of the Spirit Who was upon him and put Him upon the seventy leaders. When the Spirit rested upon them, they spoke the word of the Lord. But they did not do it again.

²⁶ But two men had stayed among the tents. Their names were Eldad and Medad, and the Spirit rested upon them. They were among those who had been chosen, but had not gone out to the meeting tent. So they spoke the word of the Lord among the tents. ²⁷ A young man ran and told Moses, “Eldad and Medad are speaking the word of the Lord among the tents.” ²⁸ Then Joshua the son of Nun, the helper of Moses since he was young, said, “Moses, my lord, do not let them.” ²⁹ But Moses said to him, “Are you jealous for my good? If only all the Lord’s people would speak for God, that the Lord would put His Spirit upon them!” ³⁰ Then Moses and the leaders of Israel returned to the tents.

The Lord Sends Quails

³¹ Now a wind went out from the Lord. It brought quail from the sea, and let them fall beside the place where the tents were set up. They fell all around the tents, about as far on each side as it takes to travel in a day. They lay on the ground as deep as two cubits. ³² The people worked all day and all night and all the next day gathering the quail. He who gathered the least gathered enough to fill 110 baskets. And they spread them out for themselves all around the tents. ³³ While the meat was still between their teeth and not yet eaten, the Lord became angry with the people. The Lord sent a bad sickness upon the people. ³⁴ So the name of that place was called Kibroth-hattaavah. Because there they buried the people who had wanted meat to eat. ³⁵ The people left Kibroth-hattaavah and went to Hazeroth. And they stayed at Hazeroth.

Miriam and Aaron Spoke against Moses

12 Miriam and Aaron spoke against Moses because of his Cushite wife, for he had married a Cushite woman. ² They said, “Is it true that the Lord has spoken only through Moses? Has He not spoken through us also?” And the Lord heard it. ³ Now Moses was a man with no pride, more so than any man on the earth. ⁴ At once the Lord said to Moses and Aaron and Miriam, “You three come out to the meeting tent.” So the three of them came out. ⁵ Then the Lord came down in a cloud and stood at the door of the meeting tent, and called Aaron and Miriam. When both of them had come near, ⁶ the Lord said, “Now listen to Me. If there is a man who speaks for God among you, I the Lord will make Myself known to him in a special dream. I will speak with him in a dream. ⁷ Not so, with My servant Moses. He is faithful in all My house. ⁸ With him I speak face to face in ways he understands, and not in ways he does not understand. And he sees what the Lord is like. Why then were you not afraid to speak against My servant Moses?”

⁹ The Lord was angry with them, and He left. ¹⁰ When the cloud lifted from over the meeting tent, Miriam had a very bad skin disease. She was as white as snow. Aaron turned toward Miriam and saw that she had a bad skin disease. ¹¹ Then Aaron said to Moses, “O, my lord, I beg you. Do not punish us because we have been foolish and have sinned. ¹² Let her not be like one who is dead, whose flesh is half eaten away when he is born!”‘ ¹³ And Moses cried to the Lord, saying, “O God, heal her, I pray!” ¹⁴ But the Lord said to Moses, “If her father had only spit in her face, would she not carry her shame for seven days? Let her be shut up for seven days away from the tents. After that, she may be brought in again.” ¹⁵ So Miriam was shut up away from the tents for seven days. And the people did not travel on until Miriam was brought in again.

¹⁶ The people moved from Hazeroth after that. And they set up their tents in the desert of Paran.

Men Sent to Spy out the Land

13 The Lord said to Moses, ² “Send men to spy out the land of Canaan which I am going to give to the people of Israel. Send a man from each of their fathers’ families, every one a leader among them.” ³ So Moses sent them from the desert of Paran, as the Lord had told him. All of the men were heads of the people of Israel. ⁴ These were their names. There was Shammua the son of Zaccur from the family of Reuben, ⁵ Shaphat the son of Hori from the family of Simeon, ⁶ Caleb the son of Jephunneh from the family of Judah, ⁷ and Igal the son of Joseph from the family of Issachar. ⁸ There was Hoshea the son of Nun from the family of Ephraim, ⁹ Palti the son of Raphu from the family of Benjamin, ¹⁰ Gaddiel the son of Sodi from the family of Zebulun, ¹¹ and Gaddi the son of Susi from the family of Joseph, from the family of Manasseh. ¹² There was Ammiel the son of Gemalli from the family of Dan, ¹³ Sethur the son of Michael from the family of Asher, ¹⁴ Nahbi the son of Vophsi from the family of Naphtali, ¹⁵ and Geuel the son of Machi from the family of Gad. ¹⁶ These are the names of the men whom Moses sent to spy out the land. But Moses called Hoshea the son of Nun, Joshua.

¹⁷ Moses sent them to spy out the land of Canaan. He said to them, “Go up there into the Negev. Then go up into the hill country. ¹⁸ See what the land is like. See if the people who live in it are strong or weak, and if they are few or many. ¹⁹ Find out if the land they live in is good or bad. See if the cities they live in are open or if they have walls. ²⁰ Find out if the land is rich or poor, and if there are trees in it or not. Then try to get some of the fruit of the land.” Now this was the gathering time of the first grown grapes.

²¹ So they went up and spied out the land from the Desert of Zin as far as Rehob, at Lebo-hamath. ²² When they had gone up into the Negev, they came to Hebron. Anak’s sons Ahiman, Sheshai and Talmai were there. (Hebron was built seven years before Zoan in Egypt.)

²³ Then they came to the valley of Eshcol. They cut down a branch from there with some grapes on it. And they carried it on a long piece of wood between two men, with some pomegranates and figs. ²⁴ That place was called the valley of Eshcol, because of much fruit the men of Israel cut down from there.

²⁵ They returned from looking over the land after forty days. ²⁶ And they came to Moses and Aaron and to all the people of Israel in the desert of Paran, at Kadesh. They brought news to them and to all the people, and showed them the fruit of the land. ²⁷ They told Moses, “We went to the land where you sent us. It does flow with milk and honey. This is its fruit. ²⁸ But the people who live in the land are strong. The cities have walls and are very large. And we saw the children of Anak there. ²⁹ Amalek is living in the land of the Negev. The Hittites and Jebusites and Amorites are living in the hill country. And the Canaanites are living by the sea and by the side of the Jordan.”