⁴¹ But you shall take the Levites for me—I am the Lord—as substitutes for all the firstborn among the Israelites and the livestock of the Levites as substitutes for all the firstborn among the livestock of the Israelites.”^(A)

¹² “I hereby take the Levites from among the Israelites as substitutes for all the firstborn that open the womb among the Israelites. The Levites shall be mine,^(A)

⁴⁵ “Take the Levites as substitutes for all the firstborn among the Israelites and the livestock of the Levites as substitutes for their livestock, and the Levites shall be mine. I am the Lord.^(A)

—this was attested at the right time.^(A)

²⁸ just as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve and to give his life a ransom for many.”^(A)

¹⁵ The first issue of the womb of all creatures, human and animal, that is offered to the Lord shall be yours, but the firstborn of human beings you shall redeem, and the firstborn of unclean animals you shall redeem.^(A)

¹⁶ For they are unreservedly given to me from among the Israelites; I have taken them for myself, in place of all that open the womb, the firstborn of all the Israelites.^(A)

²⁶ then Moses stood in the gate of the camp and said, “Who is on the Lord’s side? Come to me!” And all the sons of Levi gathered around him. ²⁷ He said to them, “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: Put your sword on your side, each of you! Go back and forth from gate to gate throughout the camp, and each of you kill your brother, your friend, and your neighbor.”^{(A) 28} The sons of Levi did as Moses commanded, and about three thousand of the people fell on that day. ²⁹ Moses said, “Today you have been ordained for the service of the Lord, each one at the cost of a son or a brother, and so have brought a blessing on yourselves this day.”

⁵ He sent young men of the Israelites, who offered burnt offerings and sacrificed oxen as offerings of well-being to the Lord. ⁶ Moses took half of the blood and put it in basins, and half of the blood he dashed against the altar.^(A)