The Ark of the Covenant

^10 (A)“They shall make an ark of acacia wood. Two cubits^[a] and a half shall be its length, a cubit and a half its breadth, and a cubit and a half its height. ¹¹ You shall overlay it with ^(B)pure gold, inside and outside shall you overlay it, and you shall make on it a molding of gold around it. ¹² You shall cast four rings of gold for it and put them on its ^(C)four feet, two rings on the one side of it, and two rings on the other side of it. ¹³ You shall make poles of acacia wood and overlay them with gold. ¹⁴ And you shall put the poles into the rings on the sides of the ark to carry the ark by them. ¹⁵ The ^(D)poles shall remain in the rings of the ark; they shall not be taken from it. ^16 (E)And you shall put into the ark the ^(F)testimony that I shall give you.

^17 (G)“You shall make a mercy seat^[b] of pure gold. Two cubits and a half shall be its length, and a cubit and a half its breadth. ¹⁸ And you shall make two cherubim of gold; of ^(H)hammered work shall you make them, on the two ends of the mercy seat. ¹⁹ Make one cherub on the one end, and one cherub on the other end. ^(I)Of one piece with the mercy seat shall you make the cherubim on its two ends. ^20 (J)The cherubim shall spread out their wings above, overshadowing the mercy seat with their wings, their faces one to another; toward the mercy seat shall the faces of the cherubim be. ²¹ And you shall put the mercy seat on the top of the ark, and in the ark you shall put the testimony that I shall give you. ^22 (K)There I will meet with you, and from above the mercy seat, from ^(L)between the two cherubim that are on the ark of the testimony, I will speak with you about all that I will give you in commandment for the people of Israel.

The Ten Commandments

20 ^(A)And ^(B)God spoke all these words, saying,

^2 (C)“I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery.

^3 (D)“You shall have no other gods before^[a] me.

^4 (E)“You shall not make for yourself a carved image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. ^5 (F)You shall not bow down to them or serve them, for I the Lord your God am ^(G)a jealous God, ^(H)visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and the fourth generation of those who hate me, ⁶ but showing steadfast love to thousands^[b] of those who love me and keep my commandments.

^7 (I)“You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain, for the Lord will not hold him guiltless who takes his name in vain.

³⁶ “Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?” ³⁷ And he said to him, ^(A)“You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. ³⁸ This is the great and first commandment. ³⁹ And ^(B)a second is like it: ^(C)You shall love your neighbor as yourself. ^40 (D)On these two commandments depend ^(E)all the Law and the Prophets.”

¹¹ And the Lord said to Moses, ¹² “I ^(A)have heard the grumbling of the people of Israel. Say to them, ‘At ^(B)twilight you shall eat meat, and ^(C)in the morning you shall be filled with bread. Then you shall know that I am the Lord your God.’”

¹³ In the evening ^(D)quail came up and covered the camp, and in the morning ^(E)dew lay around the camp. ¹⁴ And when the dew had gone up, there was on the face of the wilderness a fine, flake-like thing, fine as frost on the ground. ¹⁵ When the people of Israel saw it, they said to one another, ^(F)“What is it?”^[a] For they ^(G)did not know what it was. And Moses said to them, ^(H)“It is the bread that the Lord has given you to eat. ¹⁶ This is what the Lord has commanded: ‘Gather of it, each one of you, as much as he can eat. You shall each take an ^(I)omer,^[b] according to the number of the persons that each of you has in his tent.’” ¹⁷ And the people of Israel did so. They gathered, some more, some less. ¹⁸ But when they measured it with an omer, ^(J)whoever gathered much had nothing left over, and whoever gathered little had no lack. Each of them gathered as much as he could eat. ¹⁹ And Moses said to them, “Let no one leave any of it over till the morning.” ²⁰ But they did not listen to Moses. Some left part of it till the morning, and ^(K)it bred worms and stank. And Moses was angry with them. ²¹ Morning by morning they gathered it, each as much as he could eat; but when the sun grew hot, it melted.

²² On ^(L)the sixth day they gathered twice as much bread, two omers each. And when all the leaders of the congregation came and told Moses, ²³ he said to them, “This is what the Lord has commanded: ‘Tomorrow is a day of ^(M)solemn rest, a holy Sabbath to the Lord; bake what you will bake and boil what you will boil, and all that is left over lay aside to be kept till the morning.’” ²⁴ So they laid it aside till the morning, as Moses commanded them, and ^(N)it did not stink, and there were no worms in it. ²⁵ Moses said, “Eat it today, for ^(O)today is a Sabbath to the Lord; today you will not find it in the field. ²⁶ Six days you shall gather it, but on the seventh day, which is a Sabbath, there will be none.”

²⁷ On the seventh day some of the people went out to gather, but they found none. ²⁸ And the Lord said to Moses, ^(P)“How long will you refuse to keep my commandments and my laws? ²⁹ See! The Lord has given you the Sabbath; therefore on the sixth day he gives you bread for two days. Remain each of you in his place; let no one go out of his place on the seventh day.” ³⁰ So the people ^(Q)rested on the seventh day.

³¹ Now the house of Israel called its name ^(R)manna. It was ^(S)like coriander seed, white, and the taste of it was like wafers made with honey.

The People Complain

11 And ^(A)the people complained in the hearing of the Lord about their misfortunes, and when the Lord heard it, ^(B)his anger was kindled, and ^(C)the fire of the Lord burned among them and consumed some outlying parts of the camp. ² Then ^(D)the people cried out to Moses, ^(E)and Moses prayed to the Lord, and the fire died down. ³ So the name of that place was called ^(F)Taberah,^[a] because the fire of the Lord burned among them.

⁴ Now the ^(G)rabble that was among them had a strong craving. And the people of Israel also ^(H)wept again and said, ^(I)“Oh that we had meat to eat! ^5 (J)We remember the fish we ate in Egypt that cost nothing, the cucumbers, the melons, the leeks, the onions, and the garlic. ⁶ But now our strength is dried up, and there is nothing at all but this manna to look at.”

⁷ Now ^(K)the manna was like coriander seed, and its appearance like that of bdellium. ^8 (L)The people went about and gathered it and ground it in handmills or beat it in mortars and boiled it in pots and made cakes of it. ^(M)And the taste of it was like the taste of cakes baked with oil. ^9 (N)When the dew fell upon the camp in the night, the manna fell with it.

³⁰ So they said to him, ^(A)“Then what sign do you do, that we may see and believe you? What work do you perform? ^31 (B)Our fathers ate the manna in the wilderness; as it is written, ^(C)‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’” ³² Jesus then said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, it was not Moses who gave you the bread from heaven, but my Father gives you the true bread from heaven. ³³ For the bread of God is ^(D)he who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.” ³⁴ They said to him, ^(E)“Sir, give us this bread always.”

³⁵ Jesus said to them, ^(F)“I am the bread of life; ^(G)whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst. ³⁶ But I said to you that you have seen me and yet do not believe. ^37 (H)All that ^(I)the Father gives me will come to me, and ^(J)whoever comes to me I will never cast out. ³⁸ For ^(K)I have come down from heaven, not to do ^(L)my own will but ^(M)the will of him ^(N)who sent me.

^7 (A)He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. ^(B)To the one who conquers I will grant to eat of ^(C)the tree of life, which is in ^(D)the paradise of God.’

Korah's Rebellion

16 Now ^(A)Korah the son of Izhar, son of Kohath, son of Levi, and ^(B)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 a number of the people of Israel, 250 chiefs of the congregation, chosen from the assembly, well-known men. ^3 (C)They assembled themselves together against Moses and against Aaron and said to them, ^(D)“You have gone too far! For ^(E)all in the congregation are holy, every one of them, and the Lord is among them. Why then do you exalt yourselves above the assembly of the Lord?” ⁴ When Moses heard it, ^(F)he fell on his face, ⁵ and he said to Korah and all his company, “In the morning the Lord will show ^(G)who is his,^[a] and who is ^(H)holy, and will bring him near to him. The one ^(I)whom he chooses he will ^(J)bring near to him. ⁶ Do this: take ^(K)censers, Korah and all his company; ⁷ put fire in them and put incense on them before the Lord tomorrow, and the man whom the Lord chooses shall be the holy one. ^(L)You have gone too far, sons of Levi!” ⁸ And Moses said to Korah, “Hear now, you sons of Levi: ⁹ is it ^(M)too small a thing for you that the God of Israel has ^(N)separated you from the congregation of Israel, to bring you near to himself, to do service in the tabernacle of the Lord and to stand before the congregation to minister to them, ¹⁰ and that he has brought you near him, and all your brothers the sons of Levi with you? And would you seek the priesthood also? ¹¹ Therefore it is against the Lord that you and all your company have gathered together. What is ^(O)Aaron that you grumble 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 ^(P)a small thing that you have brought us up out of ^(Q)a land flowing with milk and honey, to kill us in the wilderness, that you must also ^(R)make yourself a prince over us? ¹⁴ Moreover, you have not brought us into a land flowing with milk and honey, nor given us inheritance of fields and vineyards. Will you put out the eyes of these men? We will not come up.” ¹⁵ And Moses was very angry and said to the Lord, ^(S)“Do not respect their offering. ^(T)I have not taken one donkey from them, and I have not harmed one of them.”

¹⁶ And Moses said to Korah, “Be present, you and all your company, ^(U)before the Lord, you and they, and Aaron, tomorrow. ¹⁷ And ^(V)let every one of you take his censer and put incense on it, and every one of you bring before the Lord his censer, ^(W)250 censers; you also, and Aaron, each his censer.” ¹⁸ So every man took his censer and put fire in them and laid incense on them and stood at the entrance of the tent of meeting with Moses and Aaron. ¹⁹ Then Korah assembled all the congregation against them at the entrance of the tent of meeting. ^(X)And the glory of the Lord appeared to all the congregation.

²⁰ And the Lord spoke to Moses and to Aaron, saying, ^21 (Y)“Separate yourselves from among this congregation, that I may consume them ^(Z)in a moment.” ²² And they ^(AA)fell on their faces and said, “O God, ^(AB)the God of the spirits of all flesh, ^(AC)shall one man sin, and will you be angry with all the congregation?” ²³ And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, ²⁴ “Say to the congregation, Get away from the dwelling of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram.”

²⁵ Then Moses rose and went to Dathan and Abiram, and the elders of Israel followed him. ²⁶ And he spoke to the congregation, saying, ^(AD)“Depart, please, from the tents of these wicked men, and touch nothing of theirs, lest you be swept away with all their sins.” ²⁷ So they got away from the dwelling of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram. And Dathan and Abiram came out and stood ^(AE)at the door of their tents, together with their wives, their sons, and their little ones. ²⁸ And Moses said, “Hereby you shall know that the Lord has sent me to do all these works, and that it has not been ^(AF)of my own accord. ²⁹ If these men die as all men die, or if they are visited by the fate of all mankind, ^(AG)then the Lord has not sent me. ³⁰ But if the Lord creates something new, and ^(AH)the ground opens its mouth and swallows them up with all that belongs to them, and they ^(AI)go down alive into Sheol, then you shall know that these men have despised the Lord.”

^31 (AJ)And as soon as he had finished speaking all these words, the ground under them split apart. ³² And the earth opened its mouth and swallowed them up, with their households and ^(AK)all the people who belonged to Korah and all their goods. ³³ So they and all that belonged to them went down alive into Sheol, and the earth closed over them, and ^(AL)they perished from the midst of the assembly. ³⁴ And all Israel who were around them fled at their cry, for they said, “Lest the earth swallow us up!” ³⁵ And ^(AM)fire came out from the Lord and consumed ^(AN)the 250 men offering the incense.

^36 [b] Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, ³⁷ “Tell Eleazar the son of Aaron the priest to take up the censers out of the blaze. Then scatter the fire far and wide, for they have become holy. ³⁸ As for the censers of ^(AO)these men who have sinned at the cost of their lives, let them be made into hammered plates as a covering for the altar, for they offered them before the Lord, and they became holy. ^(AP)Thus they shall be a sign to the people of Israel.” ³⁹ So Eleazar the priest took the bronze censers, which those who were burned had offered, and they were hammered out as a covering for the altar, ⁴⁰ to be a reminder to the people of Israel, so ^(AQ)that no outsider, who is not of the descendants of Aaron, should draw near to burn incense before the Lord, lest he become like Korah and his company—as the Lord said to him through Moses.

⁴¹ But on the next day all the congregation of the people of Israel ^(AR)grumbled against Moses and against Aaron, saying, “You have killed the people of the Lord.” ⁴² And when the congregation had assembled against Moses and against Aaron, they turned toward the tent of meeting. And behold, ^(AS)the cloud covered it, and ^(AT)the glory of the Lord appeared. ⁴³ And Moses and Aaron came to the front of the tent of meeting, ⁴⁴ and the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, ^45 (AU)“Get away from the midst of this congregation, that I may consume them in a moment.” ^(AV)And they fell on their faces. ⁴⁶ And Moses said to Aaron, “Take your censer, and put fire on it from off the altar and lay incense on it and carry it quickly to the congregation and make atonement for them, for ^(AW)wrath has gone out from the Lord; the plague has begun.” ⁴⁷ So Aaron took it as Moses said and ran into the midst of the assembly. And behold, the plague had already 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 ^(AX)the plague was stopped. ⁴⁹ Now those who died in the plague were 14,700, ^(AY)besides those who died in the affair of Korah. ⁵⁰ And Aaron returned to Moses at the entrance of the tent of meeting, when the plague was stopped.