²⁷ And if one person sin unwittingly, then he shall offer a she-goat a year old for a sin-offering. ²⁸ And the priest shall make atonement for the soul that erreth, when he sinneth unwittingly, before Jehovah, to make atonement for him; and he shall be forgiven. ²⁹ Ye shall have one law for him that doeth aught unwittingly, for him that is home-born among the children of Israel, and for the stranger that sojourneth among them. ³⁰ But the soul that doeth aught with a high hand, whether he be home-born or a sojourner, the same blasphemeth Jehovah; and that soul shall be cut off from among his people. ³¹ Because he hath despised the word of Jehovah, and hath broken his commandment, that soul shall utterly be cut off; his iniquity shall be upon him.

³² And while the children of Israel were in the wilderness, they found a man gathering sticks upon the sabbath day. ³³ And they that found him gathering sticks brought him unto Moses and Aaron, and unto all the congregation. ³⁴ And they put him in ward, because it had not been declared what should be done to him. ³⁵ And Jehovah said unto Moses, The man shall surely be put to death: all the congregation shall stone him with stones without the camp. ³⁶ And all the congregation brought him without the camp, and stoned him to death with stones; as Jehovah commanded Moses.

³⁷ And Jehovah spake unto Moses, saying, ³⁸ Speak unto the children of Israel, and bid them that they make them ^[a]fringes in the borders of their garments throughout their generations, and that they put upon the fringe of each border a cord of blue: ³⁹ and it shall be unto you for a fringe, that ye may look upon it, and remember all the commandments of Jehovah, and do them; and that ye ^[b]follow not after your own heart and your own eyes, after which ye use to play the harlot; ⁴⁰ that ye may remember and do all my commandments, and be holy unto your God. ⁴¹ I am Jehovah your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, to be your God: I am Jehovah your God.

16 Now Korah, the son of Izhar, the son of Kohath, the son of Levi, with Dathan and Abiram, the sons of Eliab, and On, the son of Peleth, sons of Reuben, took men: ² and they rose up before Moses, with certain of the children of Israel, two hundred and fifty princes of the congregation, called to the assembly, men of renown; ³ and they assembled themselves together against Moses and against Aaron, and said unto them, ^[c]Ye take too much upon you, seeing all the congregation are holy, every one of them, and Jehovah is among them: wherefore then lift ye up yourselves above the assembly of Jehovah?

⁴ And when Moses heard it, he fell upon his face: ⁵ and he spake unto Korah and unto all his company, saying, In the morning Jehovah will show who are his, and who is holy, and ^[d]will cause him to come near unto him: even him whom he shall choose will he cause to come near unto him. ⁶ This do: take you censers, Korah, and all his company; ⁷ and put fire in them, and put incense upon them before Jehovah to-morrow: and it shall be that the man whom Jehovah doth choose, he shall be holy: ye take too much upon you, ye sons of Levi. ⁸ And Moses said unto Korah, Hear now, ye sons of Levi: ⁹ seemeth it but a small thing unto you, that the God of Israel hath separated you from the congregation of Israel, to bring you near to himself, to do the service of the tabernacle of Jehovah, and to stand before the congregation to minister unto them; ¹⁰ and that he hath brought thee near, and all thy brethren the sons of Levi with thee? and seek ye the priesthood also? ¹¹ Therefore thou and all thy company are gathered together against Jehovah: and Aaron, what is he that ye murmur against him?

¹² And Moses sent to call Dathan and Abiram, the sons of Eliab; and they said, We will not come up: ¹³ is it a small thing that thou hast brought us up out of a land flowing with milk and honey, to kill us in the wilderness, but thou must needs make thyself also a prince over us? ¹⁴ Moreover thou hast not brought us into a land flowing with milk and honey, nor given us inheritance of fields and vineyards: wilt thou ^[e]put out the eyes of these men? we will not come up.

¹⁵ And Moses was very wroth, and said unto Jehovah, Respect not thou their offering: I have not taken one ass from them, neither have I hurt one of them. ¹⁶ And Moses said unto Korah, Be thou and all thy company before Jehovah, thou, and they, and Aaron, to-morrow: ¹⁷ and take ye every man his censer, and put incense upon them, and bring ye before Jehovah every man his censer, two hundred and fifty censers; thou also, and Aaron, each his censer. ¹⁸ And they took every man his censer, and put fire in them, and laid incense thereon, and stood at the door of the tent of meeting with Moses and Aaron. ¹⁹ And Korah assembled all the congregation against them unto the door of the tent of meeting: and the glory of Jehovah appeared unto all the congregation.

²⁰ And Jehovah spake unto Moses and unto Aaron, saying, ²¹ Separate yourselves from among this congregation, that I may consume them in a moment. ²² And they fell upon their faces, and said, O God, the God of the spirits of all flesh, shall one man sin, and wilt thou be wroth with all the congregation? ²³ And Jehovah spake unto Moses, saying, ²⁴ Speak unto the congregation, saying, Get you up from about the tabernacle of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram.

²⁵ And Moses rose up and went unto Dathan and Abiram; and the elders of Israel followed him. ²⁶ And he spake unto the congregation, saying, Depart, I pray you, from the tents of these wicked men, and touch nothing of theirs, lest ye be consumed in all their sins. ²⁷ So they gat them up from the tabernacle of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram, on every side: and Dathan and Abiram came out, and stood at the door of their tents, and their wives, and their sons, and their little ones. ²⁸ And Moses said, Hereby ye shall know that Jehovah hath sent me to do all these works; for I have not done them of mine own mind. ²⁹ If these men die the common death of all men, or if they be visited after the visitation of all men; then Jehovah hath not sent me. ³⁰ But if Jehovah ^[f]make a new thing, and the ground open its mouth, and swallow them up, with all that appertain unto them, and they go down alive into Sheol; then ye shall understand that these men have despised Jehovah.

³¹ And it came to pass, as he made an end of speaking all these words, that the ground clave asunder that was under them; ³² and the earth opened its mouth, and swallowed them up, and their households, and all the men that appertained unto Korah, and all their goods. ³³ So they, and all that appertained to them, went down alive into Sheol: and the earth closed upon them, and they perished from among the assembly. ³⁴ And all Israel that were round about them fled at the cry of them; for they said, Lest the earth swallow us up. ³⁵ And fire came forth from Jehovah, and devoured the two hundred and fifty men that offered the incense.

³⁶ And Jehovah spake unto Moses, saying, ³⁷ Speak unto Eleazar the son of Aaron the priest, that he take up the censers out of the burning, and scatter thou the fire yonder; for they are holy, ³⁸ even the censers of ^[g]these sinners against their own ^[h]lives; and let them be made beaten plates for a covering of the altar: for they offered them before Jehovah; therefore they are holy; and they shall be a sign unto the children of Israel. ³⁹ And Eleazar the priest took the brazen censers, which they that were burnt had offered; and they beat them out for a covering of the altar, ⁴⁰ to be a memorial unto the children of Israel, to the end that no stranger, that is not of the seed of Aaron, come near to burn incense before Jehovah; that he be not as Korah, and as his company: as Jehovah spake unto him by Moses.

⁴¹ But on the morrow all the congregation of the children of Israel murmured against Moses and against Aaron, saying, Ye have killed the people of Jehovah. ⁴² And it came to pass, when the congregation was assembled against Moses and against Aaron, that they looked toward the tent of meeting: and, behold, the cloud covered it, and the glory of Jehovah appeared. ⁴³ And Moses and Aaron came to the front of the tent of meeting. ⁴⁴ And Jehovah spake unto Moses, saying, ⁴⁵ Get you up from among this congregation, that I may consume them in a moment. And they fell upon their faces. ⁴⁶ And Moses said unto Aaron, Take thy censer, and put fire therein from off the altar, and lay incense thereon, and carry it quickly unto the congregation, and make atonement for them: for there is wrath gone out from Jehovah; the plague is begun. ⁴⁷ And Aaron took as Moses spake, and ran into the midst of the assembly; and, behold, the plague was begun among the people: and he put on the incense, and made atonement for the people. ⁴⁸ And he stood between the dead and the living; and the plague was stayed. ⁴⁹ Now they that died by the plague were fourteen thousand and seven hundred, besides them that died about the matter of Korah. ⁵⁰ And Aaron returned unto Moses unto the door of the tent of meeting: and the plague was stayed.

17 And Jehovah spake unto Moses, saying, ² Speak unto the children of Israel, and take of them rods, one for each fathers’ house, of all their princes according to their fathers’ houses, twelve rods: write thou every man’s name upon his rod. ³ And thou shalt write Aaron’s name upon the rod of Levi; for there shall be one rod for each head of their fathers’ houses. ⁴ And thou shalt lay them up in the tent of meeting before the testimony, where I meet with you. ⁵ And it shall come to pass, that the rod of the man whom I shall choose shall bud: and I will make to cease from me the murmurings of the children of Israel, which they murmur against you. ⁶ And Moses spake unto the children of Israel; and all their princes gave him rods, for each prince one, according to their fathers’ houses, even twelve rods: and the rod of Aaron was among their rods. ⁷ And Moses laid up the rods before Jehovah in the tent of the testimony.

⁸ And it came to pass on the morrow, that Moses went into the tent of the testimony; and, behold, the rod of Aaron for the house of Levi was budded, and put forth buds, and produced blossoms, and bare ripe almonds. ⁹ And Moses brought out all the rods from before Jehovah unto all the children of Israel: and they looked, and took every man his rod. ¹⁰ And Jehovah said unto Moses, Put back the rod of Aaron before the testimony, to be kept for a token against the children of rebellion; that thou mayest make an end of their murmurings against me, that they die not. ¹¹ Thus did Moses: as Jehovah commanded him, so did he.

¹² And the children of Israel spake unto Moses, saying, Behold, we perish, we are undone, we are all undone.