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The Sanctuary’s Lamp and Bread

24 Then[a] Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying, “Command the Israelites[b] that[c] they should bring pure olive oil from beaten olives for the light to present[d] a lamp continually. Aaron shall arrange for it outside[e] the curtain of the testimony in the tent of assembly from evening until morning before[f] Yahweh continually; it shall be a lasting statute[g] throughout your generations. On the pure golden[h] lampstand he shall arrange for the lamps before[i] Yahweh continually.

“And you shall take finely milled flour, and you shall bake with it twelve ring-shaped bread cakes: each one shall be two-tenths of an ephah. And you shall place them in two rows, six to the row, on the pure gold[j] table before[k] Yahweh. And you shall put pure frankincense on each[l] row so that[m] it shall be for the bread as a memorial offering, an offering made by fire for Yahweh. On every Sabbath[n] he shall arrange it in rows before[o] Yahweh continually; they are from the Israelites[p] as an everlasting[q] covenant. And it shall be for Aaron and for his sons, and they shall eat it in a holy place, because it is a most holy thing[r] for him from Yahweh’s offerings made by fire—a lasting rule.”[s]

Punishment for Blasphemy

10 And an Israelite woman’s son, and he was an Egyptian man’s son, went out in the midst of the Israelites;[t] and the Israelite woman’s son and an[u] Israelite man fought in the camp. 11 Then[v] the Israelite woman’s son blasphemed the name, and he cursed, so[w] they brought him to Moses—and the name of his mother was Shelomith the daughter of Dibri, of the tribe of Dan. 12 Then[x] they put him in custody so that[y] the matter might be made clear to them in accordance with the mouth of Yahweh.

13 Then[z] Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying, 14 “Bring the curser outside the camp,[aa] and all the hearers shall place their hands on his head, and the whole community shall stone him. 15 And you shall speak to the Israelites,[ab] saying, ‘Any man[ac] when he curses his God shall bear[ad] his sin. 16 And he who blasphemes Yahweh’s name certainly shall be put to death; the whole community certainly shall stone him. As the alien, so the native shall be put to death at blaspheming his name.

17 “‘And when a man kills any human being, he certainly shall be put to death. 18 And he who kills[ae] a domestic animal must repay for it life in place of life. 19 And when a man causes[af] a physical defect in his fellow citizen according to[ag] what he has done, so it shall be done to him: 20 fracture in place of fracture, eye in place of eye, tooth in place of tooth—according to[ah] the physical defect he causes[ai] to the person, likewise it shall be caused[aj] to him. 21 And a killer of a domestic animal must repay for it, and a killer of a human shall be put to death. 22 You must have[ak] one norm; as for the alien, so[al] it must be for the native, because I am Yahweh your God.’”

23 Thus[am] Moses spoke to the Israelites,[an] and they brought the curser outside the camp,[ao] and they stoned him with stones, and the Israelites[ap] did just as Yahweh had commanded Moses.

Footnotes

  1. Leviticus 24:1 Or “And”
  2. Leviticus 24:2 Literally “sons/children of Israel”
  3. Leviticus 24:2 Or “and”
  4. Leviticus 24:2 Literally “to cause raising up”; or “set up” (HALOT 830 s.v. 4.d)
  5. Leviticus 24:3 Literally “from the outside of to”
  6. Leviticus 24:3 Literally “to the faces of”
  7. Leviticus 24:3 Literally “a statute of eternity” or “a statute of long duration”
  8. Leviticus 24:4 Supplied by context and the description of the lampstand in Exod 25:31
  9. Leviticus 24:4 Literally “to the faces of”
  10. Leviticus 24:6 Supplied by context and the description of the table in Exod 25:24
  11. Leviticus 24:6 Literally “to the faces of”
  12. Leviticus 24:7 Hebrew “the”
  13. Leviticus 24:7 Or “and”
  14. Leviticus 24:8 Literally “On the day of the Sabbath on the day of the Sabbath”
  15. Leviticus 24:8 Literally “to the faces of”
  16. Leviticus 24:8 Literally “sons/children of Israel”
  17. Leviticus 24:8 Or “eternal” or “enduring” or “perpetual”
  18. Leviticus 24:9 Literally “a holy thing of holy things”
  19. Leviticus 24:9 Literally “rule of eternity” or “rule of long duration”
  20. Leviticus 24:10 Literally “sons/children of Israel”
  21. Leviticus 24:10 Hebrew “the”
  22. Leviticus 24:11 Or “And”
  23. Leviticus 24:11 Or “and”
  24. Leviticus 24:12 Or “And”
  25. Leviticus 24:12 Literally “to”
  26. Leviticus 24:13 Or “And”
  27. Leviticus 24:14 Literally “to from an outside place of the camp”
  28. Leviticus 24:15 Literally “sons/children of Israel”
  29. Leviticus 24:15 Literally “A man a man”
  30. Leviticus 24:15 Or “and he shall bear”
  31. Leviticus 24:18 Literally “he who kills the soul of” or “he who kills the life of”
  32. Leviticus 24:19 Literally “gives”
  33. Leviticus 24:19 Literally “as that”
  34. Leviticus 24:20 Literally “as that”
  35. Leviticus 24:20 Literally “gives”
  36. Leviticus 24:20 Literally “given”
  37. Leviticus 24:22 Literally “it shall be for you”
  38. Leviticus 24:22 Hebrew “as”
  39. Leviticus 24:23 Or “And”
  40. Leviticus 24:23 Literally “sons/children of Israel”
  41. Leviticus 24:23 Literally “to from an outside place of the camp”
  42. Leviticus 24:23 Literally “sons/children of Israel”

The sanctuary’s lamp and bread

24 The Lord said to Moses: Command the Israelites to bring pure, pressed olive oil to you for the lamp, to keep a light burning constantly. Aaron will tend the lamp, which will be inside the meeting tent but outside the inner curtain of the covenant document, from evening until morning before the Lord. This is a permanent rule throughout your future generations. Aaron must continually tend the lights on the pure lampstand[a] before the Lord.

You will take choice flour and bake twelve loaves of flatbread, two-tenths of an ephah[b] for each loaf. You must place them in two stacks, six in a stack, on the pure table[c] before the Lord. Put pure frankincense on each stack, as a token portion for the bread; it is a food gift for the Lord. Aaron will always set it out before the Lord, Sabbath after Sabbath, on behalf of[d] the Israelites, as a permanent covenant. It will belong to Aaron and his sons. They must eat it in a holy place because it is the most holy part of their share of the Lord’s food gifts, a permanent portion.

Assault and blasphemy

10 The son of an Israelite mother and an Egyptian father came out among the Israelites. A fight broke out between this half-Israelite[e] and another Israelite man in the camp, 11 during which the half-Israelite blasphemed the Lord’s name and cursed. So he was brought to Moses. (His mother’s name was Shelomith, Dibri’s daughter from the tribe of Dan.) 12 He was put under guard until they could determine the Lord’s verdict.

13 Then the Lord said to Moses: 14 Take the one who cursed outside the camp. All who heard him will press their hands on his head. Then the whole community will stone him. 15 Tell the Israelites: Anyone who curses God will be liable to punishment. 16 And anyone who blasphemes the Lord’s name must be executed. The whole community will stone that person. Immigrant and citizen alike: whenever someone blasphemes the Lord’s name, that person will be executed.

17 If anyone kills another person, they must be executed. 18 Someone who kills an animal may make amends for it: a life for a life. 19 If someone injures a fellow citizen, they will suffer the same injury they inflicted: 20 broken bone for broken bone, an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth. The same injury the person inflicted on the other will be inflicted on them. 21 Someone who kills an animal must make amends for it, but whoever kills a human being must be executed. 22 There is but one law on this matter for you, immigrant or citizen alike, because I am the Lord your God.

23 Moses told this to the Israelites. So they took the one who had cursed outside the camp and stoned him. The Israelites did just as the Lord commanded Moses.

Footnotes

  1. Leviticus 24:4 Perhaps pure gold lampstand
  2. Leviticus 24:5 Approximately four quarts dry
  3. Leviticus 24:6 Perhaps pure gold table
  4. Leviticus 24:8 Or from or as a gift of; Heb uncertain
  5. Leviticus 24:10 Or Israelite woman’s son; also in 24:11