⁴⁷ But ^(A)the Levites were not numbered among them by their fathers’ tribe;

³³ But ^(A)the Levites were not numbered among the children of Israel, just as the Lord commanded Moses.

The Sons of Aaron^(A)

3 Now these are the ^(B)records^[a] of Aaron and Moses when the Lord spoke with Moses on Mount Sinai. ² And these are the names of the sons of Aaron: Nadab, the ^(C)firstborn, and ^(D)Abihu, Eleazar, and Ithamar. ³ These are the names of the sons of Aaron, ^(E)the anointed priests, ^[b]whom he consecrated to minister as priests. ^4 (F)Nadab and Abihu had died before the Lord when they offered profane fire before the Lord in the Wilderness of Sinai; and they had no children. So Eleazar and Ithamar ministered as priests in the presence of Aaron their father.

The Levites Serve in the Tabernacle

⁵ And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: ^6 (G)“Bring the tribe of Levi near, and present them before Aaron the priest, that they may serve him. ⁷ And they shall attend to his needs and the needs of the whole congregation before the tabernacle of meeting, to do ^(H)the work of the tabernacle. ⁸ Also they shall attend to all the furnishings of the tabernacle of meeting, and to the needs of the children of Israel, to do the work of the tabernacle. ⁹ And ^(I)you shall give the Levites to Aaron and his sons; they are given entirely to ^[c]him from among the children of Israel. ¹⁰ So you shall appoint Aaron and his sons, ^(J)and they shall attend to their priesthood; ^(K)but the outsider who comes near shall be put to death.”

¹¹ Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: ¹² “Now behold, ^(L)I Myself have taken the Levites from among the children of Israel instead of every firstborn who opens the womb among the children of Israel. Therefore the Levites shall be ^(M)Mine, ¹³ because ^(N)all the firstborn are Mine. ^(O)On the day that I struck all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, I sanctified to Myself all the firstborn in Israel, both man and beast. They shall be Mine: I am the Lord.”

Census of the Levites Commanded^(P)

¹⁴ Then the Lord spoke to Moses in the Wilderness of Sinai, saying: ¹⁵ “Number the children of Levi by their fathers’ houses, by their families; you shall number ^(Q)every male from a month old and above.”

¹⁶ So Moses numbered them according to the ^[d]word of the Lord, as he was commanded. ^17 (R)These were the sons of Levi by their names: Gershon, Kohath, and Merari. ¹⁸ And these are the names of the sons of ^(S)Gershon by their families: ^(T)Libni and Shimei. ¹⁹ And the sons of ^(U)Kohath by their families: ^(V)Amram, Izehar, Hebron, and Uzziel. ^20 (W)And the sons of Merari by their families: Mahli and Mushi. These are the families of the Levites by their fathers’ houses.

²¹ From Gershon came the family of the Libnites and the family of the Shimites; these were the families of the Gershonites. ²² Those who were numbered, according to the number of all the males from a month old and above—of those who were numbered there were seven thousand five hundred. ^23 (X)The families of the Gershonites were to camp behind the tabernacle westward. ²⁴ And the leader of the father’s house of the Gershonites was Eliasaph the son of Lael. ^25 (Y)The duties of the children of Gershon in the tabernacle of meeting included ^(Z)the tabernacle, ^(AA)the tent with ^(AB)its covering, ^(AC)the screen for the door of the tabernacle of meeting, ^26 (AD)the screen for the door of the court, ^(AE)the hangings of the court which are around the tabernacle and the altar, and ^(AF)their cords, according to all the work relating to them.

^27 (AG)From Kohath came the family of the Amramites, the family of the Izharites, the family of the Hebronites, and the family of the Uzzielites; these were the families of the Kohathites. ²⁸ According to the number of all the males, from a month old and above, there were eight thousand ^[e]six hundred ^[f]keeping charge of the sanctuary. ^29 (AH)The families of the children of Kohath were to camp on the south side of the tabernacle. ³⁰ And the leader of the fathers’ house of the families of the Kohathites was Elizaphan the son of ^(AI)Uzziel. ^31 (AJ)Their duty included ^(AK)the ark, ^(AL)the table, ^(AM)the lampstand, ^(AN)the altars, the utensils of the sanctuary with which they ministered, ^(AO)the screen, and all the work relating to them.

³² And Eleazar the son of Aaron the priest was to be chief over the leaders of the Levites, with oversight of those who kept charge of the sanctuary.

³³ From Merari came the family of the Mahlites and the family of the Mushites; these were the families of Merari. ³⁴ And those who were numbered, according to the number of all the males from a month old and above, were six thousand two hundred. ³⁵ The leader of the fathers’ house of the families of Merari was Zuriel the son of Abihail. ^(AP)These were to camp on the north side of the tabernacle. ³⁶ And ^(AQ)the appointed duty of the children of Merari included the boards of the tabernacle, its bars, its pillars, its sockets, its utensils, all the work relating to them, ³⁷ and the pillars of the court all around, with their sockets, their pegs, and their cords.

^38 (AR)Moreover those who were to camp before the tabernacle on the east, before the tabernacle of meeting, were Moses, Aaron, and his sons, ^(AS)keeping charge of the sanctuary, ^(AT)to meet the needs of the children of Israel; but ^(AU)the outsider who came near was to be put to death. ^39 (AV)All who were numbered of the Levites, whom Moses and Aaron numbered at the commandment of the Lord, by their families, all the males from a month old and above, were twenty-two thousand.

Levites Dedicated Instead of the Firstborn

⁴⁰ Then the Lord said to Moses: ^(AW)“Number^[g] all the firstborn males of the children of Israel from a month old and above, and take the number of their names. ^41 (AX)And you shall take the Levites for Me—I am the Lord—instead of all the firstborn among the children of Israel, and the livestock of the Levites instead of all the firstborn among the livestock of the children of Israel.” ⁴² So Moses numbered all the firstborn among the children of Israel, as the Lord commanded him. ⁴³ And all the firstborn males, according to the number of names from a month old and above, of those who were numbered of them, were twenty-two thousand two hundred and seventy-three.

⁴⁴ Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: ^45 (AY)“Take the Levites instead of all the firstborn among the children of Israel, and the livestock of the Levites instead of their livestock. The Levites shall be Mine: I am the Lord. ⁴⁶ And for ^(AZ)the redemption of the two hundred and seventy-three of the firstborn of the children of Israel, ^(BA)who are more than the number of the Levites, ⁴⁷ you shall take ^(BB)five shekels for each one ^(BC)individually; you shall take them in the currency of the shekel of the sanctuary, ^(BD)the shekel of twenty gerahs. ⁴⁸ And you shall give the money, with which the excess number of them is redeemed, to Aaron and his sons.”

⁴⁹ So Moses took the redemption money from those who were over and above those who were redeemed by the Levites. ⁵⁰ From the firstborn of the children of Israel he took the money, ^(BE)one thousand three hundred and sixty-five shekels, according to the shekel of the sanctuary. ⁵¹ And Moses ^(BF)gave their redemption money to Aaron and his sons, according to the word of the Lord, as the Lord commanded Moses.

Duties of the Sons of Kohath

4 Then the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying: ² “Take a census of the sons of ^(BG)Kohath from among the children of Levi, by their families, by their fathers’ house, ^3 (BH)from thirty years old and above, even to fifty years old, all who enter the service to do the work in the tabernacle of meeting.

^4 (BI)“This is the service of the sons of Kohath in the tabernacle of meeting, relating to ^(BJ)the most holy things: ⁵ When the camp prepares to journey, Aaron and his sons shall come, and they shall take down ^(BK)the covering veil and cover the ^(BL)ark of the Testimony with it. ⁶ Then they shall put on it a covering of badger skins, and spread over that a cloth entirely of ^(BM)blue; and they shall insert ^(BN)its poles.

⁷ “On the ^(BO)table of showbread they shall spread a blue cloth, and put on it the dishes, the pans, the bowls, and the ^[h]pitchers for pouring; and the ^(BP)showbread^[i] shall be on it. ⁸ They shall spread over them a scarlet cloth, and cover the same with a covering of badger skins; and they shall insert its poles. ⁹ And they shall take a blue cloth and cover the ^(BQ)lampstand of the light, ^(BR)with its lamps, its wick-trimmers, its trays, and all its oil vessels, with which they service it. ¹⁰ Then they shall put it with all its utensils in a covering of badger skins, and put it on a carrying beam.

¹¹ “Over ^(BS)the golden altar they shall spread a blue cloth, and cover it with a covering of badger skins; and they shall insert its poles. ¹² Then they shall take all the ^(BT)utensils of service with which they minister in the sanctuary, put them in a blue cloth, cover them with a covering of badger skins, and put them on a carrying beam. ¹³ Also they shall take away the ashes from the altar, and spread a purple cloth over it. ¹⁴ They shall put on it all its implements with which they minister there—the firepans, the forks, the shovels, the ^[j]basins, and all the utensils of the altar—and they shall spread on it a covering of badger skins, and insert its poles. 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 ^(BU)the sons of Kohath shall come to carry them; ^(BV)but they shall not touch any holy thing, lest they die.

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

¹⁶ “The appointed duty of Eleazar the son of Aaron the priest is ^(BX)the oil for the light, the ^(BY)sweet incense, ^(BZ)the daily grain offering, the ^(CA)anointing oil, the oversight of all the tabernacle, of all that is in it, with the sanctuary and its furnishings.”

¹⁷ Then the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying: ¹⁸ “Do not cut off the tribe of the families of the Kohathites from among the Levites; ¹⁹ but do this in regard to them, that they may live and not die when they approach ^(CB)the most holy things: Aaron and his sons shall go in and ^[k]appoint each of them to his service and his task. ^20 (CC)But they shall not go in to watch while the holy things are being covered, lest they die.”

Duties of the Sons of Gershon

²¹ Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: ²² “Also take a census of the sons of ^(CD)Gershon, by their fathers’ house, by their families. ^23 (CE)From thirty years old and above, even to fifty years old, you shall number them, all who enter to perform the service, to do the work in the tabernacle of meeting. ²⁴ This is the ^(CF)service of the families of the Gershonites, in serving and carrying: ^25 (CG)They shall carry the ^(CH)curtains of the tabernacle and the tabernacle of meeting with its covering, the covering of ^(CI)badger skins that is on it, the screen for the door of the tabernacle of meeting, ²⁶ the screen for the door of the gate of the court, the hangings of the court which are around the tabernacle and altar, and their cords, all the furnishings for their service and all that is made for these things: so shall they serve.

²⁷ “Aaron and his sons shall ^[l]assign all the service of the sons of the Gershonites, all their tasks and all their service. And you shall ^[m]appoint to them all their tasks as their duty. ²⁸ This is the service of the families of the sons of Gershon in the tabernacle of meeting. And their duties shall be ^(CJ)under the ^[n]authority of Ithamar the son of Aaron the priest.

Duties of the Sons of Merari

²⁹ “As for the sons of ^(CK)Merari, you shall number them by their families and by their fathers’ house. ^30 (CL)From thirty years old and above, even to fifty years old, you shall number them, everyone who enters the service to do the work of the tabernacle of meeting. ³¹ And ^(CM)this is ^(CN)what they must carry as all their service for the tabernacle of meeting: ^(CO)the boards of the tabernacle, its bars, its pillars, its sockets, ³² and the pillars around the court with their sockets, pegs, and cords, with all their furnishings and all their service; and you shall ^(CP)assign to each man by name the items he must carry. ³³ This is the service of the families of the sons of Merari, as all their service for the tabernacle of meeting, under the ^[o]authority of Ithamar the son of Aaron the priest.”

Census of the Levites

^34 (CQ)And Moses, Aaron, and the leaders of the congregation numbered the sons of the Kohathites by their families and by their fathers’ house, ³⁵ from thirty ^(CR)years old and above, even to fifty years old, everyone who entered the service for work in the tabernacle of meeting; ³⁶ and those who were numbered by their families were two thousand seven hundred and fifty. ³⁷ These were the ones who were numbered of the families of the Kohathites, all who might serve in the tabernacle of meeting, whom Moses and Aaron numbered according to the commandment of the Lord by the hand of Moses.

³⁸ And those who were numbered of the sons of Gershon, by their families and by their fathers’ house, ³⁹ from thirty years old and above, even to fifty years old, everyone who entered the service for work in the tabernacle of meeting— ⁴⁰ those who were numbered by their families, by their fathers’ house, were two thousand six hundred and thirty. ^41 (CS)These are the ones who were numbered of the families of the sons of Gershon, of all who might serve in the tabernacle of meeting, whom Moses and Aaron numbered according to the commandment of the Lord.

⁴² Those of the families of the sons of Merari who were numbered, by their families, by their fathers’ ^[p]house, ⁴³ from thirty years old and above, even to fifty years old, everyone who entered the service for work in the tabernacle of meeting— ⁴⁴ those who were numbered by their families were three thousand two hundred. ⁴⁵ These are the ones who were numbered of the families of the sons of Merari, whom Moses and Aaron numbered ^(CT)according to the word of the Lord by the hand of Moses.

⁴⁶ All who were ^(CU)numbered of the Levites, whom Moses, Aaron, and the leaders of Israel numbered, by their families and by their fathers’ houses, ^47 (CV)from thirty years old and above, even to fifty years old, everyone who came to do the work of service and the work of bearing burdens in the tabernacle of meeting— ⁴⁸ those who were numbered were eight thousand five hundred and eighty.

⁴⁹ According to the commandment of the Lord they were numbered by the hand of Moses, ^(CW)each according to his service and according to his task; thus were they numbered by him, ^(CX)as the Lord commanded Moses.

^6 (A)But he did not count Levi and Benjamin among them, for the king’s ^[a]word was abominable to Joab.

The Family of Levi^(A)

6 The sons of Levi were ^(B)Gershon,^[a] Kohath, and Merari. ² The sons of Kohath were Amram, ^(C)Izhar, Hebron, and Uzziel. ³ The children of Amram were Aaron, Moses, and Miriam. And the sons of Aaron were ^(D)Nadab, Abihu, Eleazar, and Ithamar. ⁴ Eleazar begot Phinehas, and Phinehas begot Abishua; ⁵ Abishua begot Bukki, and Bukki begot Uzzi; ⁶ Uzzi begot Zerahiah, and Zerahiah begot Meraioth; ⁷ Meraioth begot Amariah, and Amariah begot Ahitub; ^8 (E)Ahitub begot ^(F)Zadok, and Zadok begot Ahimaaz; ⁹ Ahimaaz begot Azariah, and Azariah begot Johanan; ¹⁰ Johanan begot Azariah (it was he ^(G)who ministered as priest in the ^(H)temple^[b] that Solomon built in Jerusalem); ^11 (I)Azariah begot ^(J)Amariah, and Amariah begot Ahitub; ¹² Ahitub begot Zadok, and Zadok begot ^[c]Shallum; ¹³ Shallum begot Hilkiah, and Hilkiah begot Azariah; ¹⁴ Azariah begot ^(K)Seraiah, and Seraiah begot Jehozadak. ¹⁵ Jehozadak went into captivity ^(L)when the Lord carried Judah and Jerusalem into captivity by the hand of Nebuchadnezzar.

¹⁶ The sons of Levi were ^(M)Gershon,^[d] Kohath, and Merari. ¹⁷ These are the names of the sons of Gershon: Libni and Shimei. ¹⁸ The sons of Kohath were Amram, Izhar, Hebron, and Uzziel. ¹⁹ The sons of Merari were Mahli and Mushi. Now these are the families of the Levites according to their fathers: ²⁰ Of Gershon were Libni his son, Jahath his son, ^(N)Zimmah his son, ^21 [e]Joah his son, ^[f]Iddo his son, Zerah his son, and ^[g]Jeatherai his son. ²² The sons of Kohath were ^[h]Amminadab his son, ^(O)Korah his son, Assir his son, ²³ Elkanah his son, Ebiasaph his son, Assir his son, ²⁴ Tahath his son, Uriel his son, Uzziah his son, and Shaul his son. ²⁵ The sons of Elkanah were ^(P)Amasai and Ahimoth. ²⁶ As for Elkanah, the sons of Elkanah were ^[i]Zophai his son, ^[j]Nahath his son, ^27 [k]Eliab his son, Jeroham his son, and Elkanah his son. ²⁸ The sons of Samuel were ^[l]Joel the firstborn, and Abijah ^[m]the second. ²⁹ The sons of Merari were Mahli, Libni his son, Shimei his son, Uzzah his son, ³⁰ Shimea his son, Haggiah his son, and Asaiah his son.

Musicians in the House of the Lord

³¹ Now these are ^(Q)the men whom David appointed over the service of song in the house of the Lord, after the ^(R)ark came to rest. ³² They were ministering with music before the dwelling place of the tabernacle of meeting, until Solomon had built the house of the Lord in Jerusalem, and they served in their office according to their order.

³³ And these are the ones who ^[n]ministered with their sons: Of the sons of the ^(S)Kohathites were Heman the singer, the son of Joel, the son of Samuel, ³⁴ the son of Elkanah, the son of Jeroham, the son of ^[o]Eliel, the son of ^[p]Toah, ³⁵ the son of Zuph, the son of Elkanah, the son of Mahath, the son of Amasai, ³⁶ the son of Elkanah, the son of Joel, the son of Azariah, the son of Zephaniah, ³⁷ the son of Tahath, the son of Assir, the son of ^(T)Ebiasaph, the son of Korah, ³⁸ the son of Izhar, the son of Kohath, the son of Levi, the son of Israel. ³⁹ And his brother ^(U)Asaph, who stood at his right hand, was Asaph the son of Berachiah, the son of Shimea, ⁴⁰ the son of Michael, the son of Baaseiah, the son of Malchijah, ⁴¹ the son of ^(V)Ethni, the son of Zerah, the son of Adaiah, ⁴² the son of Ethan, the son of Zimmah, the son of Shimei, ⁴³ the son of Jahath, the son of Gershon, the son of Levi.

⁴⁴ Their brethren, the sons of Merari, on the left hand, were ^[q]Ethan the son of ^[r]Kishi, the son of Abdi, the son of Malluch, ⁴⁵ the son of Hashabiah, the son of Amaziah, the son of Hilkiah, ⁴⁶ the son of Amzi, the son of Bani, the son of Shamer, ⁴⁷ the son of Mahli, the son of Mushi, the son of Merari, the son of Levi.

⁴⁸ And their brethren, the Levites, were appointed to every ^(W)kind of service of the tabernacle of the house of God.

The Family of Aaron

^49 (X)But Aaron and his sons offered sacrifices ^(Y)on the altar of burnt offering and ^(Z)on the altar of incense, for all the work of the Most Holy Place, and to make atonement for Israel, according to all that Moses the servant of God had commanded. ⁵⁰ Now these are the ^(AA)sons of Aaron: Eleazar his son, Phinehas his son, Abishua his son, ⁵¹ Bukki his son, Uzzi his son, Zerahiah his son, ⁵² Meraioth his son, Amariah his son, Ahitub his son, ⁵³ Zadok his son, and Ahimaaz his son.

Dwelling Places of the Levites^(AB)

^54 (AC)Now these are their dwelling places throughout their settlements in their territory, for they were given by lot to the sons of Aaron, of the family of the Kohathites: ^55 (AD)They gave them Hebron in the land of Judah, with its surrounding ^[s]common-lands. ^56 (AE)But the fields of the city and its villages they gave to Caleb the son of Jephunneh. ⁵⁷ And ^(AF)to the sons of Aaron they gave one of the cities of refuge, Hebron; also Libnah with its common-lands, Jattir, Eshtemoa with its common-lands, ^58 [t]Hilen with its common-lands, Debir with its common-lands, ^59 [u]Ashan with its common-lands, and Beth Shemesh with its common-lands. ⁶⁰ And from the tribe of Benjamin: Geba with its common-lands, ^[v]Alemeth with its common-lands, and Anathoth with its common-lands. All their cities among their families were thirteen.

^61 (AG)To the rest of the family of the tribe of the Kohathites they gave ^(AH)by lot ten cities from half the tribe of Manasseh. ⁶² And to the sons of Gershon, throughout their families, they gave thirteen cities from the tribe of Issachar, from the tribe of Asher, from the tribe of Naphtali, and from the tribe of Manasseh in Bashan. ⁶³ To the sons of Merari, throughout their families, they gave ^(AI)twelve cities from the tribe of Reuben, from the tribe of Gad, and from the tribe of Zebulun. ⁶⁴ So the children of Israel gave these cities with their ^[w]common-lands to the Levites. ⁶⁵ And they gave by lot from the tribe of the children of Judah, from the tribe of the children of Simeon, and from the tribe of the children of Benjamin these cities which are called by their names.

⁶⁶ Now ^(AJ)some of the families of the sons of Kohath were given cities as their territory from the tribe of Ephraim. ^67 (AK)And they gave them one of the cities of refuge, Shechem with its common-lands, in the mountains of Ephraim, also Gezer with its common-lands, ^68 (AL)Jokmeam with its common-lands, Beth Horon with its common-lands, ⁶⁹ Aijalon with its common-lands, and Gath Rimmon with its common-lands. ⁷⁰ And from the half-tribe of Manasseh: Aner with its common-lands and Bileam with its common-lands, for the rest of the family of the sons of Kohath.

⁷¹ From the family of the half-tribe of Manasseh the sons of Gershon were given Golan in Bashan with its common-lands and ^[x]Ashtaroth with its common-lands. ⁷² And from the tribe of Issachar: ^[y]Kedesh with its common-lands, Daberath with its common-lands, ⁷³ Ramoth with its common-lands, and Anem with its common-lands. ⁷⁴ And from the tribe of Asher: Mashal with its common-lands, Abdon with its common-lands, ⁷⁵ Hukok with its common-lands, and Rehob with its common-lands. ⁷⁶ And from the tribe of Naphtali: Kedesh in Galilee with its common-lands, Hammon with its common-lands, and Kirjathaim with its common-lands.

⁷⁷ From the tribe of Zebulun the rest of the children of Merari were given ^[z]Rimmon with its common-lands and Tabor with its common-lands. ⁷⁸ And on the other side of the Jordan, across from Jericho, on the east side of the Jordan, they were given from the tribe of Reuben: Bezer in the wilderness with its common-lands, Jahzah with its common-lands, ⁷⁹ Kedemoth with its common-lands, and Mephaath with its common-lands. ⁸⁰ And from the tribe of Gad: Ramoth in Gilead with its common-lands, Mahanaim with its common-lands, ⁸¹ Heshbon with its common-lands, and Jazer with its common-lands.

^57 (A)And these are those who were numbered of the Levites according to their families: of Gershon, the family of the Gershonites; of Kohath, the family of the Kohathites; of Merari, the family of the Merarites. ⁵⁸ These are the families of the Levites: the family of the Libnites, the family of the Hebronites, the family of the Mahlites, the family of the Mushites, and the family of the Korathites. And Kohath begot Amram. ⁵⁹ The name of Amram’s wife was ^(B)Jochebed the daughter of Levi, who was born to Levi in Egypt; and to Amram she bore Aaron and Moses and their sister Miriam. ^60 (C)To Aaron were born Nadab and Abihu, Eleazar and Ithamar. ⁶¹ And ^(D)Nadab and Abihu died when they offered profane fire before the Lord.

^62 (E)Now those who were numbered of them were twenty-three thousand, every male from a month old and above; ^(F)for they were not numbered among the other children of Israel, because there was ^(G)no inheritance given to them among the children of Israel.

Arrangement of the Lamps^(A)

8 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: ² “Speak to Aaron, and say to him, ‘When you ^(B)arrange the lamps, the seven ^(C)lamps shall give light in front of the lampstand.’ ” ³ And Aaron did so; he arranged the lamps to face toward the front of the lampstand, as the Lord commanded Moses. ^4 (D)Now this workmanship of the lampstand was hammered gold; from its shaft to its flowers it was ^(E)hammered work. ^(F)According to the pattern which the Lord had shown Moses, so he made the lampstand.

Cleansing and Dedication of the Levites

⁵ Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: ⁶ “Take the Levites from among the children of Israel and cleanse them ceremonially. ⁷ Thus you shall do to them to cleanse them: Sprinkle ^(G)water of purification on them, and ^(H)let^[a] them shave all their body, and let them wash their clothes, and so make themselves clean. ⁸ Then let them take a young bull with ^(I)its grain offering of fine flour mixed with oil, and you shall take another young bull as a sin offering. ^9 (J)And you shall bring the Levites before the tabernacle of meeting, ^(K)and you shall gather together the whole congregation of the children of Israel. ¹⁰ So you shall bring the Levites before the Lord, and the children of Israel ^(L)shall lay their hands on the Levites; ¹¹ and Aaron shall ^[b]offer the Levites before the Lord like a ^(M)wave offering from the children of Israel, that they may perform the work of the Lord. ^12 (N)Then the Levites shall lay their hands on the heads of the young bulls, and you shall offer one as a sin offering and the other as a burnt offering to the Lord, to make atonement for the Levites.

¹³ “And you shall stand the Levites before Aaron and his sons, and then offer them like a wave offering to the Lord. ¹⁴ Thus you shall ^(O)separate the Levites from among the children of Israel, and the Levites shall be ^(P)Mine. ¹⁵ After that the Levites shall go in to service the tabernacle of meeting. So you shall cleanse them and ^(Q)offer them like a wave offering. ¹⁶ For they are ^(R)wholly given to Me from among the children of Israel; I have taken them for Myself ^(S)instead of all who open the womb, the firstborn of all the children of Israel. ^17 (T)For all the firstborn among the children of Israel are Mine, both man and beast; on the day that I struck all the firstborn in the land of Egypt I ^[c]sanctified them to Myself. ¹⁸ I have taken the Levites instead of all the firstborn of the children of Israel. ¹⁹ And ^(U)I have given the Levites as a gift to Aaron and his sons from among the children of Israel, to do the work for the children of Israel in the tabernacle of meeting, and to make atonement for the children of Israel, ^(V)that there be no plague among the children of Israel when the children of Israel come near the sanctuary.”

²⁰ Thus Moses and Aaron and all the congregation of the children of Israel did to the Levites; according to all that the Lord commanded Moses concerning the Levites, so the children of Israel did to them. ^21 (W)And the Levites purified themselves and washed their clothes; then Aaron presented them like a wave offering before the Lord, and Aaron made atonement for them to cleanse them. ^22 (X)After that the Levites went in to do their work in the tabernacle of meeting before Aaron and his sons; ^(Y)as the Lord commanded Moses concerning the Levites, so they did to them.

²³ Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, ²⁴ “This is what pertains to the Levites: ^(Z)From twenty-five years old and above one may enter to perform service in the work of the tabernacle of meeting; ²⁵ and at the age of fifty years they must cease performing this work, and shall work no more. ²⁶ They may minister with their brethren in the tabernacle of meeting, ^(AA)to attend to needs, but they themselves shall do no work. Thus you shall do to the Levites regarding their duties.”