² “Consecrate every firstborn male^(A) to me, the firstborn from every womb among the Israelites, both man and domestic animal; it is mine.”

¹² you are to present to the Lord every firstborn male of the womb. All firstborn offspring of the livestock you own that are males will be the Lord’s.

¹⁵ When Pharaoh stubbornly refused to let us go, the Lord killed every firstborn male in the land of Egypt, both the firstborn of humans and the firstborn of livestock. That is why I sacrifice to the Lord all the firstborn of the womb that are males, but I redeem all the firstborn of my sons.’

²⁶ And Moses stood at the camp’s entrance and said, “Whoever is for the Lord, come to me.” And all the Levites gathered around him. ²⁷ He told them, “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says, ‘Every man fasten his sword to his side; go back and forth through the camp from entrance to entrance, and each of you kill his brother, his friend, and his neighbor.’”^{(A) 28} The Levites did as Moses commanded, and about three thousand men fell dead that day among the people. ²⁹ Afterward Moses said, “Today you have been dedicated^[a] to the Lord, since each man went against his son and his brother. Therefore you have brought a blessing on yourselves today.”^(B)

⁶ “Bring the tribe of Levi near and present them to the priest Aaron to assist him.