At that time (A)the Lord [a]separated the tribe of Levi (B)to bear the ark of the covenant of the Lord, (C)to stand before the Lord to minister to Him and (D)to bless in His name, to this day.

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Footnotes

  1. Deuteronomy 10:8 set apart

At that time the Lord set apart the tribe of Levi(A) to carry the ark of the covenant(B) of the Lord, to stand before the Lord to minister(C) and to pronounce blessings(D) in his name, as they still do today.(E)

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Then the priests, the sons of Levi, shall come near, for (A)the Lord your God has chosen them to minister to Him and to bless in the name of the Lord; (B)by their word every controversy and every [a]assault shall be settled.

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Footnotes

  1. Deuteronomy 21:5 Lit. stroke

The Levitical priests shall step forward, for the Lord your God has chosen them to minister and to pronounce blessings(A) in the name of the Lord and to decide all cases of dispute and assault.(B)

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For (A)the Lord your God has chosen him out of all your tribes (B)to stand to minister in the name of the Lord, him and his sons forever.

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for the Lord your God has chosen them(A) and their descendants out of all your tribes to stand and minister(B) in the Lord’s name always.(C)

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15 And when Aaron and his sons have finished covering the sanctuary and all the furnishings of the sanctuary, when the camp is set to go, then (A)the sons of Kohath shall come to carry them; (B)but they shall not touch any holy thing, lest they die.

(C)These are the things in the tabernacle of meeting which the sons of Kohath are to carry.

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15 “After Aaron and his sons have finished covering the holy furnishings and all the holy articles, and when the camp is ready to move,(A) only then are the Kohathites(B) to come and do the carrying.(C) But they must not touch the holy things(D) or they will die.(E) The Kohathites are to carry those things that are in the tent of meeting.

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Is it (A)a small thing to you that the God of Israel has (B)separated you from the congregation of Israel, to bring you near to Himself, to do the work of the tabernacle of the Lord, and to stand before the congregation to serve them; 10 and that He has brought you near to Himself, you and all your brethren, the sons of Levi, with you? And are you seeking the priesthood also?

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Isn’t it enough(A) for you that the God of Israel has separated you from the rest of the Israelite community and brought you near himself to do the work at the Lord’s tabernacle and to stand before the community and minister to them?(B) 10 He has brought you and all your fellow Levites near himself, but now you are trying to get the priesthood too.(C)

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23 “Speak to Aaron and his sons, saying, ‘This is the way you shall bless the children of Israel. Say to them:

24 “The Lord (A)bless you and (B)keep you;
25 The Lord (C)make His face shine upon you,
And (D)be gracious to you;
26 (E)The Lord [a]lift up His countenance upon you,
And (F)give you peace.” ’

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Footnotes

  1. Numbers 6:26 Look upon you with favor

23 “Tell Aaron and his sons, ‘This is how you are to bless(A) the Israelites. Say to them:

24 “‘“The Lord bless you(B)
    and keep you;(C)
25 the Lord make his face shine on you(D)
    and be gracious to you;(E)
26 the Lord turn his face(F) toward you
    and give you peace.(G)”’

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(A)“Bring the tribe of Levi near, and present them before Aaron the priest, that they may serve him.

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“Bring the tribe of Levi(A) and present them to Aaron the priest to assist him.(B)

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16 (A)You did not choose Me, but I chose you and (B)appointed you that you should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should remain, that whatever you ask the Father (C)in My name He may give you.

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16 You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you(A) so that you might go and bear fruit(B)—fruit that will last—and so that whatever you ask in my name the Father will give you.(C)

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The Lord Reassures Jeremiah

19 Therefore thus says the Lord:

(A)“If you return,
Then I will bring you back;
You shall (B)stand before Me;
If you (C)take out the precious from the vile,
You shall be as My mouth.
Let them return to you,
But you must not return to them.

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19 Therefore this is what the Lord says:

“If you repent, I will restore you
    that you may serve(A) me;
if you utter worthy, not worthless, words,
    you will be my spokesman.(B)
Let this people turn to you,
    but you must not turn to them.

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27 Then the priests, the Levites, arose and (A)blessed the people, and their voice was heard; and their prayer came up to (B)His holy dwelling place, to heaven.

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27 The priests and the Levites stood to bless(A) the people, and God heard them, for their prayer reached heaven, his holy dwelling place.

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26 And so it was, when God helped the Levites who bore the ark of the covenant of the Lord, that they offered seven bulls and seven rams.

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26 Because God had helped the Levites who were carrying the ark of the covenant of the Lord, seven bulls and seven rams(A) were sacrificed.

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12 He said to them, “You are the heads of the fathers’ houses of the Levites; [a]sanctify yourselves, you and your brethren, that you may bring up the ark of the Lord God of Israel to the place I have prepared for it. 13 For (A)because you did not do it the first time, (B)the Lord our God broke out against us, because we did not consult Him [b]about the proper order.”

14 So the priests and the Levites [c]sanctified themselves to bring up the ark of the Lord God of Israel. 15 And the children of the Levites bore the ark of God on their shoulders, by its poles, as (C)Moses had commanded according to the word of the Lord.

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Footnotes

  1. 1 Chronicles 15:12 consecrate
  2. 1 Chronicles 15:13 regarding the ordinance
  3. 1 Chronicles 15:14 consecrated

12 He said to them, “You are the heads of the Levitical families; you and your fellow Levites are to consecrate(A) yourselves and bring up the ark of the Lord, the God of Israel, to the place I have prepared for it. 13 It was because you, the Levites,(B) did not bring it up the first time that the Lord our God broke out in anger against us.(C) We did not inquire of him about how to do it in the prescribed way.(D) 14 So the priests and Levites consecrated themselves in order to bring up the ark of the Lord, the God of Israel. 15 And the Levites carried the ark of God with the poles on their shoulders, as Moses had commanded(E) in accordance with the word of the Lord.(F)

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Duties of Priests and Levites

18 Then the Lord said to Aaron: (A)“You and your sons and your father’s house with you shall (B)bear the [a]iniquity related to the sanctuary, and you and your sons with you shall bear the iniquity associated with your priesthood. Also bring with you your brethren of the (C)tribe of Levi, the tribe of your father, that they may be (D)joined with you and serve you while you and your sons are with you before the tabernacle of [b]witness. They shall attend to your [c]needs and (E)all the needs of the tabernacle; (F)but they shall not come near the articles of the sanctuary and the altar, (G)lest they die—they and you also. They shall be joined with you and attend to the needs of the tabernacle of meeting, for all the work of the tabernacle; (H)but an outsider shall not come near you. And you shall attend to (I)the duties of the sanctuary and the duties of the altar, (J)that there may be no more wrath on the children of Israel. Behold, I Myself have (K)taken your brethren the Levites from among the children of Israel; (L)they are a gift to you, given by the Lord, to do the work of the tabernacle of meeting. Therefore (M)you and your sons with you shall attend to your priesthood for everything at the altar and (N)behind the veil; and you shall serve. I give your priesthood to you as a (O)gift for service, but the outsider who comes near shall be put to death.”

Offerings for Support of the Priests

And the Lord spoke to Aaron: “Here, (P)I Myself have also given you [d]charge of My heave offerings, all the holy gifts of the children of Israel; I have given them (Q)as a portion to you and your sons, as an ordinance forever. This shall be yours of the most holy things reserved from the fire: every offering of theirs, every (R)grain offering and every (S)sin offering and every (T)trespass offering which they render to Me, shall be most holy for you and your sons. 10 (U)In a most holy place you shall eat it; every male shall eat it. It shall be holy to you.

11 “This also is yours: (V)the heave offering of their gift, with all the wave offerings of the children of Israel; I have given them to you, and your sons and daughters with you, as an ordinance forever. (W)Everyone who is [e]clean in your house may eat it.

12 (X)“All the [f]best of the oil, all the best of the new wine and the grain, (Y)their firstfruits which they offer to the Lord, I have given them to you. 13 Whatever first ripe fruit is in their land, (Z)which they bring to the Lord, shall be yours. Everyone who is clean in your house may eat it.

14 (AA)“Every [g]devoted thing in Israel shall be yours.

15 “Everything that first opens (AB)the womb of all flesh, which they bring to the Lord, whether man or beast, shall be yours; nevertheless (AC)the firstborn of man you shall surely redeem, and the firstborn of unclean animals you shall redeem. 16 And those redeemed of the devoted things you shall redeem when one month old, (AD)according to your valuation, for five shekels of silver, according to the shekel of the sanctuary, which is (AE)twenty gerahs. 17 (AF)But the firstborn of a cow, the firstborn of a sheep, or the firstborn of a goat you shall not redeem; they are holy. (AG)You shall sprinkle their blood on the altar, and burn their fat as an offering made by fire for a sweet aroma to the Lord. 18 And their flesh shall be yours, just as the (AH)wave[h] breast and the right thigh are yours.

19 “All the heave offerings of the holy things, which the children of Israel offer to the Lord, I have given to you and your sons and daughters with you as an ordinance forever; (AI)it is a covenant of salt forever before the Lord with you and your descendants with you.”

20 Then the Lord said to Aaron: “You shall have (AJ)no inheritance in their land, nor shall you have any portion among them; (AK)I am your portion and your inheritance among the children of Israel.

Tithes for Support of the Levites

21 “Behold, (AL)I have given the children of Levi all the tithes in Israel as [i]an inheritance in return for the work which they perform, (AM)the work of the tabernacle of meeting. 22 (AN)Hereafter the children of Israel shall not come near the tabernacle of meeting, (AO)lest they bear sin and die. 23 But the Levites shall perform the work of the tabernacle of meeting, and they shall bear their iniquity; it shall be a statute forever, throughout your generations, that among the children of Israel they shall have no inheritance. 24 For the tithes of the children of Israel, which they offer up as a heave offering to the Lord, I have given to the Levites [j]as an inheritance; therefore I have said to them, ‘Among the children of Israel they shall have no inheritance.’ ”

The Tithe of the Levites

25 Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 26 “Speak thus to the Levites, and say to them: ‘When you take from the children of Israel the tithes which I have given you from them as your inheritance, then you shall offer up a heave offering of it to the Lord, (AP)a tenth of the tithe. 27 And your heave offering shall be reckoned to you as though it were the grain of the (AQ)threshing floor and as the fullness of the winepress. 28 Thus you shall also offer a heave offering to the Lord from all your tithes which you receive from the children of Israel, and you shall give the Lord’s heave offering from it to Aaron the priest. 29 Of all your gifts you shall offer up every heave offering due to the Lord, from all the [k]best of them, the consecrated part of them.’ 30 Therefore you shall say to them: ‘When you have lifted up the best of it, then the rest shall be accounted to the Levites as the produce of the threshing floor and as the produce of the winepress. 31 You may eat it in any place, you and your households, for it is (AR)your [l]reward for your work in the tabernacle of meeting. 32 And you shall (AS)bear no sin because of it, when you have lifted up the best of it. But you shall not (AT)profane the holy gifts of the children of Israel, lest you die.’ ”

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Footnotes

  1. Numbers 18:1 guilt
  2. Numbers 18:2 testimony
  3. Numbers 18:3 service
  4. Numbers 18:8 custody
  5. Numbers 18:11 purified
  6. Numbers 18:12 Lit. fat
  7. Numbers 18:14 consecrated
  8. Numbers 18:18 breast of the wave offering
  9. Numbers 18:21 a possession
  10. Numbers 18:24 for a possession
  11. Numbers 18:29 Lit. fat
  12. Numbers 18:31 wages

Duties of Priests and Levites

18 The Lord said to Aaron, “You, your sons and your family are to bear the responsibility for offenses connected with the sanctuary,(A) and you and your sons alone are to bear the responsibility for offenses connected with the priesthood. Bring your fellow Levites from your ancestral tribe to join you and assist you when you and your sons minister(B) before the tent of the covenant law. They are to be responsible to you(C) and are to perform all the duties of the tent,(D) but they must not go near the furnishings of the sanctuary or the altar. Otherwise both they and you will die.(E) They are to join you and be responsible for the care of the tent of meeting—all the work at the tent—and no one else may come near where you are.(F)

“You are to be responsible for the care of the sanctuary and the altar,(G) so that my wrath will not fall on the Israelites again. I myself have selected your fellow Levites from among the Israelites as a gift to you,(H) dedicated to the Lord to do the work at the tent of meeting.(I) But only you and your sons may serve as priests in connection with everything at the altar and inside the curtain.(J) I am giving you the service of the priesthood as a gift.(K) Anyone else who comes near the sanctuary is to be put to death.(L)

Offerings for Priests and Levites

Then the Lord said to Aaron, “I myself have put you in charge of the offerings presented to me; all the holy offerings the Israelites give me I give to you and your sons as your portion,(M) your perpetual share.(N) You are to have the part of the most holy offerings(O) that is kept from the fire. From all the gifts they bring me as most holy offerings, whether grain(P) or sin[a](Q) or guilt offerings,(R) that part belongs to you and your sons. 10 Eat it as something most holy; every male shall eat it.(S) You must regard it as holy.(T)

11 “This also is yours: whatever is set aside from the gifts of all the wave offerings(U) of the Israelites. I give this to you and your sons and daughters as your perpetual share.(V) Everyone in your household who is ceremonially clean(W) may eat it.

12 “I give you all the finest olive oil and all the finest new wine and grain(X) they give the Lord(Y) as the firstfruits of their harvest.(Z) 13 All the land’s firstfruits that they bring to the Lord will be yours.(AA) Everyone in your household who is ceremonially clean may eat it.(AB)

14 “Everything in Israel that is devoted[b] to the Lord(AC) is yours. 15 The first offspring of every womb, both human and animal, that is offered to the Lord is yours.(AD) But you must redeem(AE) every firstborn(AF) son and every firstborn male of unclean animals.(AG) 16 When they are a month old,(AH) you must redeem them at the redemption price set at five shekels[c](AI) of silver, according to the sanctuary shekel,(AJ) which weighs twenty gerahs.(AK)

17 “But you must not redeem the firstborn of a cow, a sheep or a goat; they are holy.(AL) Splash their blood(AM) against the altar and burn their fat(AN) as a food offering, an aroma pleasing to the Lord.(AO) 18 Their meat is to be yours, just as the breast of the wave offering(AP) and the right thigh are yours.(AQ) 19 Whatever is set aside from the holy(AR) offerings the Israelites present to the Lord I give to you and your sons and daughters as your perpetual share. It is an everlasting covenant of salt(AS) before the Lord for both you and your offspring.”

20 The Lord said to Aaron, “You will have no inheritance in their land, nor will you have any share among them;(AT) I am your share and your inheritance(AU) among the Israelites.

21 “I give to the Levites all the tithes(AV) in Israel as their inheritance(AW) in return for the work they do while serving at the tent of meeting.(AX) 22 From now on the Israelites must not go near the tent of meeting, or they will bear the consequences of their sin and will die.(AY) 23 It is the Levites who are to do the work at the tent of meeting and bear the responsibility for any offenses they commit against it. This is a lasting ordinance(AZ) for the generations to come.(BA) They will receive no inheritance(BB) among the Israelites.(BC) 24 Instead, I give to the Levites as their inheritance the tithes that the Israelites present as an offering to the Lord.(BD) That is why I said concerning them: ‘They will have no inheritance among the Israelites.’”

25 The Lord said to Moses, 26 “Speak to the Levites and say to them: ‘When you receive from the Israelites the tithe I give you(BE) as your inheritance, you must present a tenth of that tithe as the Lord’s offering.(BF) 27 Your offering will be reckoned(BG) to you as grain from the threshing floor(BH) or juice from the winepress.(BI) 28 In this way you also will present an offering to the Lord from all the tithes(BJ) you receive from the Israelites. From these tithes you must give the Lord’s portion to Aaron the priest. 29 You must present as the Lord’s portion the best and holiest part of everything given to you.’

30 “Say to the Levites: ‘When you present the best part, it will be reckoned to you as the product of the threshing floor or the winepress.(BK) 31 You and your households may eat the rest of it anywhere, for it is your wages for your work at the tent of meeting.(BL) 32 By presenting the best part(BM) of it you will not be guilty in this matter;(BN) then you will not defile the holy offerings(BO) of the Israelites, and you will not die.’”

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Footnotes

  1. Numbers 18:9 Or purification
  2. Numbers 18:14 The Hebrew term refers to the irrevocable giving over of things or persons to the Lord.
  3. Numbers 18:16 That is, about 2 ounces or about 58 grams