17 And the Lord said to Moses,

² Speak to the Israelites and get from them rods or staves, one for each father’s house, from all their leaders according to their father’s houses, twelve rods. Write every man’s name on his rod.

³ And you shall write Aaron’s name on the rod of Levi [his great-grandfather]. For there shall be one rod for the head of each father’s house.

⁴ You shall lay them up in the Tent of Meeting before [the ark of] the Testimony, where I meet with you.

⁵ And the rod of the man whom I choose shall bud, and I will make to cease from Me the murmurings of the Israelites, which they murmur against you.

⁶ And Moses spoke to the Israelites, and every one of their leaders gave him a rod or staff, one for each leader according to their fathers’ houses, twelve rods, and the rod of Aaron was among their rods.

⁷ And Moses deposited the rods before the Lord in the Tent of the Testimony.

⁸ And the next day Moses went into the Tent of the Testimony, and behold, the rod of Aaron for the house of Levi had sprouted and brought forth buds and produced blossoms and yielded [ripe] almonds.

⁹ Moses brought out all the rods from before the Lord to all the Israelites; and they looked, and each man took his rod.

¹⁰ And the Lord told Moses, Put Aaron’s rod back before the Testimony [in the ark], to be kept as a [warning] sign for the rebels; and you shall make an end of their murmurings against Me, lest they die.

¹¹ And Moses did so; as the Lord commanded him, so he did.

¹² The Israelites said to Moses, Behold, we perish, we are undone, all undone!

¹³ Everyone who comes near, who comes near the tabernacle of the Lord, dies or shall die! Are we all to perish?