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The First Census of Israel

The Lord spoke to Moses in the wilderness of Sinai, in the tent of meeting, on the first day of the second month, in the second year after they had come out of the land of Egypt, saying, “Take a census of all the congregation of the people of Israel, by families, by fathers’ houses, according to the number of names, every male, head by head; from twenty years old and upward, all in Israel who are able to go forth to war, you and Aaron shall number them, company by company. And there shall be with you a man from each tribe, each man being the head of the house of his fathers. And these are the names of the men who shall attend you. From Reuben, Eli′zur the son of Shed′eur; from Simeon, Shelu′mi-el the son of Zurishad′dai; from Judah, Nahshon the son of Ammin′adab; from Is′sachar, Nethan′el the son of Zu′ar; from Zeb′ulun, Eli′ab the son of Helon; 10 from the sons of Joseph, from E′phraim, Elish′ama the son of Ammi′hud, and from Manas′seh, Gama′liel the son of Pedah′zur; 11 from Benjamin, Abi′dan the son of Gideo′ni; 12 from Dan, Ahi-e′zer the son of Ammishad′dai; 13 from Asher, Pa′giel the son of Ochran; 14 from Gad, Eli′asaph the son of Deu′el; 15 from Naph′tali, Ahi′ra the son of Enan.” 16 These were the ones chosen from the congregation, the leaders of their ancestral tribes, the heads of the clans of Israel.

17 Moses and Aaron took these men who have been named, 18 and on the first day of the second month, they assembled the whole congregation together, who registered themselves by families, by fathers’ houses, according to the number of names from twenty years old and upward, head by head, 19 as the Lord commanded Moses. So he numbered them in the wilderness of Sinai.

20 The people of Reuben, Israel’s first-born, their generations, by their families, by their fathers’ houses, according to the number of names, head by head, every male from twenty years old and upward, all who were able to go forth to war: 21 the number of the tribe of Reuben was forty-six thousand five hundred.

22 Of the people of Simeon, their generations, by their families, by their fathers’ houses, those of them that were numbered, according to the number of names, head by head, every male from twenty years old and upward, all who were able to go forth to war: 23 the number of the tribe of Simeon was fifty-nine thousand three hundred.

24 Of the people of Gad, their generations, by their families, by their fathers’ houses, according to the number of the names, from twenty years old and upward, all who were able to go forth to war: 25 the number of the tribe of Gad was forty-five thousand six hundred and fifty.

26 Of the people of Judah, their generations, by their families, by their fathers’ houses, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and upward, every man able to go forth to war: 27 the number of the tribe of Judah was seventy-four thousand six hundred.

28 Of the people of Is′sachar, their generations, by their families, by their fathers’ houses, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and upward, every man able to go forth to war: 29 the number of the tribe of Is′sachar was fifty-four thousand four hundred.

30 Of the people of Zeb′ulun, their generations, by their families, by their fathers’ houses, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and upward, every man able to go forth to war: 31 the number of the tribe of Zeb′ulun was fifty-seven thousand four hundred.

32 Of the people of Joseph, namely, of the people of E′phraim, their generations, by their families, by their fathers’ houses, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and upward, every man able to go forth to war: 33 the number of the tribe of E′phraim was forty thousand five hundred.

34 Of the people of Manas′seh, their generations, by their families, by their fathers’ houses, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and upward, every man able to go forth to war: 35 the number of the tribe of Manas′seh was thirty-two thousand two hundred.

36 Of the people of Benjamin, their generations, by their families, by their fathers’ houses, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and upward, every man able to go forth to war: 37 the number of the tribe of Benjamin was thirty-five thousand four hundred.

38 Of the people of Dan, their generations, by their families, by their fathers’ houses, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and upward, every man able to go forth to war: 39 the number of the tribe of Dan was sixty-two thousand seven hundred.

40 Of the people of Asher, their generations, by their families, by their fathers’ houses, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and upward, every man able to go forth to war: 41 the number of the tribe of Asher was forty-one thousand five hundred.

42 Of the people of Naph′tali, their generations, by their families, by their fathers’ houses, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and upward, every man able to go forth to war: 43 the number of the tribe of Naph′tali was fifty-three thousand four hundred.

44 These are those who were numbered, whom Moses and Aaron numbered with the help of the leaders of Israel, twelve men, each representing his fathers’ house. 45 So the whole number of the people of Israel, by their fathers’ houses, from twenty years old and upward, every man able to go forth to war in Israel— 46 their whole number was six hundred and three thousand five hundred and fifty.

47 But the Levites were not numbered by their ancestral tribe along with them. 48 For the Lord said to Moses, 49 “Only the tribe of Levi you shall not number, and you shall not take a census of them among the people of Israel; 50 but appoint the Levites over the tabernacle of the testimony, and over all its furnishings, and over all that belongs to it; they are to carry the tabernacle and all its furnishings, and they shall tend it, and shall encamp around the tabernacle. 51 When the tabernacle is to set out, the Levites shall take it down; and when the tabernacle is to be pitched, the Levites shall set it up. And if any one else comes near, he shall be put to death. 52 The people of Israel shall pitch their tents by their companies, every man by his own camp and every man by his own standard; 53 but the Levites shall encamp around the tabernacle of the testimony, that there may be no wrath upon the congregation of the people of Israel; and the Levites shall keep charge of the tabernacle of the testimony.” 54 Thus did the people of Israel; they did according to all that the Lord commanded Moses.

The Order of Encampment and Marching

The Lord said to Moses and Aaron, “The people of Israel shall encamp each by his own standard, with the ensigns of their fathers’ houses; they shall encamp facing the tent of meeting on every side. Those to encamp on the east side toward the sunrise shall be of the standard of the camp of Judah by their companies, the leader of the people of Judah being Nahshon the son of Ammin′adab, his host as numbered being seventy-four thousand six hundred. Those to encamp next to him shall be the tribe of Is′sachar, the leader of the people of Is′sachar being Nethan′el the son of Zu′ar, his host as numbered being fifty-four thousand four hundred. Then the tribe of Zeb′ulun, the leader of the people of Zeb′ulun being Eli′ab the son of Helon, his host as numbered being fifty-seven thousand four hundred. The whole number of the camp of Judah, by their companies, is a hundred and eighty-six thousand four hundred. They shall set out first on the march.

10 “On the south side shall be the standard of the camp of Reuben by their companies, the leader of the people of Reuben being Eli′zur the son of Shed′eur, 11 his host as numbered being forty-six thousand five hundred. 12 And those to encamp next to him shall be the tribe of Simeon, the leader of the people of Simeon being Shelu′mi-el the son of Zurishad′dai, 13 his host as numbered being fifty-nine thousand three hundred. 14 Then the tribe of Gad, the leader of the people of Gad being Eli′asaph the son of Reu′el, 15 his host as numbered being forty-five thousand six hundred and fifty. 16 The whole number of the camp of Reuben, by their companies, is a hundred and fifty-one thousand four hundred and fifty. They shall set out second.

17 “Then the tent of meeting shall set out, with the camp of the Levites in the midst of the camps; as they encamp, so shall they set out, each in position, standard by standard.

18 “On the west side shall be the standard of the camp of E′phraim by their companies, the leader of the people of E′phraim being Elish′ama the son of Ammi′hud, 19 his host as numbered being forty thousand five hundred. 20 And next to him shall be the tribe of Manas′seh, the leader of the people of Manas′seh being Gama′liel the son of Pedah′zur, 21 his host as numbered being thirty-two thousand two hundred. 22 Then the tribe of Benjamin, the leader of the people of Benjamin being Abi′dan the son of Gideo′ni, 23 his host as numbered being thirty-five thousand four hundred. 24 The whole number of the camp of E′phraim, by their companies, is a hundred and eight thousand one hundred. They shall set out third on the march.

25 “On the north side shall be the standard of the camp of Dan by their companies, the leader of the people of Dan being Ahi-e′zer the son of Ammishad′dai, 26 his host as numbered being sixty-two thousand seven hundred. 27 And those to encamp next to him shall be the tribe of Asher, the leader of the people of Asher being Pa′giel the son of Ochran, 28 his host as numbered being forty-one thousand five hundred. 29 Then the tribe of Naph′tali, the leader of the people of Naph′tali being Ahi′ra the son of Enan, 30 his host as numbered being fifty-three thousand four hundred. 31 The whole number of the camp of Dan is a hundred and fifty-seven thousand six hundred. They shall set out last, standard by standard.”

32 These are the people of Israel as numbered by their fathers’ houses; all in the camps who were numbered by their companies were six hundred and three thousand five hundred and fifty. 33 But the Levites were not numbered among the people of Israel, as the Lord commanded Moses.

34 Thus did the people of Israel. According to all that the Lord commanded Moses, so they encamped by their standards, and so they set out, every one in his family, according to his fathers’ house.

The Sons of Aaron

These are the generations of Aaron and Moses at the time when the Lord spoke with Moses on Mount Sinai. These are the names of the sons of Aaron: Nadab the first-born, and Abi′hu, Elea′zar, and Ith′amar; these are the names of the sons of Aaron, the anointed priests, whom he ordained to minister in the priest’s office. But Nadab and Abi′hu died before the Lord when they offered unholy fire before the Lord in the wilderness of Sinai; and they had no children. So Elea′zar and Ith′amar served as priests in the lifetime of Aaron their father.

The Duties of the Levites

And the Lord said to Moses, “Bring the tribe of Levi near, and set them before Aaron the priest, that they may minister to him. They shall perform duties for him and for the whole congregation before the tent of meeting, as they minister at the tabernacle; they shall have charge of all the furnishings of the tent of meeting, and attend to the duties for the people of Israel as they minister at the tabernacle. And you shall give the Levites to Aaron and his sons; they are wholly given to him from among the people of Israel. 10 And you shall appoint Aaron and his sons, and they shall attend to their priesthood; but if any one else comes near, he shall be put to death.”

11 And the Lord said to Moses, 12 “Behold, I have taken the Levites from among the people of Israel instead of every first-born that opens the womb among the people of Israel. The Levites shall be mine, 13 for all the first-born are mine; on the day that I slew all the first-born in the land of Egypt, I consecrated for my own all the first-born in Israel, both of man and of beast; they shall be mine: I am the Lord.”

A Census of the Levites

14 And the Lord said to Moses in the wilderness of Sinai, 15 “Number the sons of Levi, by fathers’ houses and by families; every male from a month old and upward you shall number.” 16 So Moses numbered them according to the word of the Lord, as he was commanded. 17 And these were the sons of Levi by their names: Gershon and Kohath and Merar′i. 18 And these are the names of the sons of Gershon by their families: Libni and Shim′e-i. 19 And the sons of Kohath by their families: Amram, Izhar, Hebron, and Uz′ziel. 20 And the sons of Merar′i by their families: Mahli and Mushi. These are the families of the Levites, by their fathers’ houses.

21 Of Gershon were the family of the Libnites and the family of the Shim′e-ites; these were the families of the Gershonites. 22 Their number according to the number of all the males from a month old and upward was[a] seven thousand five hundred. 23 The families of the Gershonites were to encamp behind the tabernacle on the west, 24 with Eli′asaph, the son of La′el as head of the fathers’ house of the Gershonites. 25 And the charge of the sons of Gershon in the tent of meeting was to be the tabernacle, the tent with its covering, the screen for the door of the tent of meeting, 26 the hangings of the court, the screen for the door of the court which is around the tabernacle and the altar, and its cords; all the service pertaining to these.

27 Of Kohath were the family of the Amramites, and the family of the Izhar′ites, and the family of the He′bronites, and the family of the Uz′zielites; these are the families of the Ko′hathites. 28 According to the number of all the males, from a month old and upward, there were eight thousand six hundred, attending to the duties of the sanctuary. 29 The families of the sons of Kohath were to encamp on the south side of the tabernacle, 30 with Eli-za′phan the son of Uz′ziel as head of the fathers’ house of the families of the Ko′hathites. 31 And their charge was to be the ark, the table, the lampstand, the altars, the vessels of the sanctuary with which the priests minister, and the screen; all the service pertaining to these. 32 And Elea′zar the son of Aaron the priest was to be chief over the leaders of the Levites, and to have oversight of those who had charge of the sanctuary.

33 Of Merar′i were the family of the Mahlites and the family of the Mushites: these are the families of Merar′i. 34 Their number according to the number of all the males from a month old and upward was six thousand two hundred. 35 And the head of the fathers’ house of the families of Merar′i was Zu′riel the son of Abiha′il; they were to encamp on the north side of the tabernacle. 36 And the appointed charge of the sons of Merar′i was to be the frames of the tabernacle, the bars, the pillars, the bases, and all their accessories; all the service pertaining to these; 37 also the pillars of the court round about, with their bases and pegs and cords.

38 And those to encamp before the tabernacle on the east, before the tent of meeting toward the sunrise, were Moses and Aaron and his sons, having charge of the rites within the sanctuary, whatever had to be done for the people of Israel; and any one else who came near was to be put to death. 39 All who were numbered of the Levites, whom Moses and Aaron numbered at the commandment of the Lord, by families, all the males from a month old and upward, were twenty-two thousand.

The Redemption of the Firstborn

40 And the Lord said to Moses, “Number all the first-born males of the people of Israel, from a month old and upward, taking their number by names. 41 And you shall take the Levites for me—I am the Lord—instead of all the first-born among the people of Israel, and the cattle of the Levites instead of all the firstlings among the cattle of the people of Israel.” 42 So Moses numbered all the first-born among the people of Israel, as the Lord commanded him. 43 And all the first-born males, according to the number of names, from a month old and upward as numbered were twenty-two thousand two hundred and seventy-three.

44 And the Lord said to Moses, 45 “Take the Levites instead of all the first-born among the people of Israel, and the cattle of the Levites instead of their cattle; and the Levites shall be mine: I am the Lord. 46 And for the redemption of the two hundred and seventy-three of the first-born of the people of Israel, over and above the number of the male Levites, 47 you shall take five shekels apiece; reckoning by the shekel of the sanctuary, the shekel of twenty gerahs, you shall take them, 48 and give the money by 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 redeemed by the Levites; 50 from the first-born of the people of Israel he took the money, one thousand three hundred and sixty-five shekels, reckoned by the shekel of the sanctuary; 51 and Moses gave the redemption money to Aaron and his sons, according to the word of the Lord, as the Lord commanded Moses.

The Kohathites

The Lord said to Moses and Aaron, “Take a census of the sons of Kohath from among the sons of Levi, by their families and their fathers’ houses, from thirty years old up to fifty years old, all who can enter the service, to do the work in the tent of meeting. This is the service of the sons of Kohath in the tent of meeting: the most holy things. When the camp is to set out, Aaron and his sons shall go in and take down the veil of the screen, and cover the ark of the testimony with it; then they shall put on it a covering of goatskin, and spread over that a cloth all of blue, and shall put in its poles. And over the table of the bread of the Presence they shall spread a cloth of blue, and put upon it the plates, the dishes for incense, the bowls, and the flagons for the drink offering; the continual bread also shall be on it; then they shall spread over them a cloth of scarlet, and cover the same with a covering of goatskin, and shall put in its poles. And they shall take a cloth of blue, and cover the lampstand for the light, with its lamps, its snuffers, its trays, and all the vessels for oil with which it is supplied: 10 and they shall put it with all its utensils in a covering of goatskin and put it upon the carrying frame. 11 And over the golden altar they shall spread a cloth of blue, and cover it with a covering of goatskin, and shall put in its poles; 12 and they shall take all the vessels of the service which are used in the sanctuary, and put them in a cloth of blue, and cover them with a covering of goatskin, and put them on the carrying frame. 13 And they shall take away the ashes from the altar, and spread a purple cloth over it; 14 and they shall put on it all the utensils of the altar, which are used for the service there, the firepans, the forks, the shovels, and the basins, all the utensils of the altar; and they shall spread upon it a covering of goatskin, and shall put in its poles. 15 And when Aaron and his sons have finished covering the sanctuary and all the furnishings of the sanctuary, as the camp sets out, after that the sons of Kohath shall come to carry these, but they must not touch the holy things, lest they die. These are the things of the tent of meeting which the sons of Kohath are to carry.

16 “And Elea′zar the son of Aaron the priest shall have charge of the oil for the light, the fragrant incense, the continual cereal offering, and the anointing oil, with the oversight of all the tabernacle and all that is in it, of the sanctuary and its vessels.”

17 The Lord said to Moses and Aaron, 18 “Let not the tribe of the families of the Ko′hathites be destroyed from among the Levites; 19 but deal thus with them, that they may live and not die when they come near to the most holy things: Aaron and his sons shall go in and appoint them each to his task and to his burden, 20 but they shall not go in to look upon the holy things even for a moment, lest they die.”

The Gershonites and Merarites

21 The Lord said to Moses, 22 “Take a census of the sons of Gershon also, by their families and their fathers’ houses; 23 from thirty years old up to fifty years old, you shall number them, all who can enter for service, to do the work in the tent of meeting. 24 This is the service of the families of the Gershonites, in serving and bearing burdens: 25 they shall carry the curtains of the tabernacle, and the tent of meeting with its covering, and the covering of goatskin that is on top of it, and the screen for the door of the tent of meeting, 26 and the hangings of the court, and the screen for the entrance of the gate of the court which is around the tabernacle and the altar, and their cords, and all the equipment for their service; and they shall do all that needs to be done with regard to them. 27 All the service of the sons of the Gershonites shall be at the command of Aaron and his sons, in all that they are to carry, and in all that they have to do; and you shall assign to their charge all that they are to carry. 28 This is the service of the families of the sons of the Gershonites in the tent of meeting, and their work is to be under the oversight of Ith′amar the son of Aaron the priest.

29 “As for the sons of Merar′i, you shall number them by their families and their fathers’ houses; 30 from thirty years old up to fifty years old, you shall number them, every one that can enter the service, to do the work of the tent of meeting. 31 And this is what they are charged to carry, as the whole of their service in the tent of meeting: the frames of the tabernacle, with its bars, pillars, and bases, 32 and the pillars of the court round about with their bases, pegs, and cords, with all their equipment and all their accessories; and you shall assign by name the objects which they are required to carry. 33 This is the service of the families of the sons of Merar′i, the whole of their service in the tent of meeting, under the hand of Ith′amar the son of Aaron the priest.”

Census of the Levites

34 And Moses and Aaron and the leaders of the congregation numbered the sons of the Ko′hathites, by their families and their fathers’ houses, 35 from thirty years old up to fifty years old, every one that could enter the service, for work in the tent of meeting; 36 and their number by families was two thousand seven hundred and fifty. 37 This was the number of the families of the Ko′hathites, all who served in the tent of meeting, whom Moses and Aaron numbered according to the commandment of the Lord by Moses.

38 The number of the sons of Gershon, by their families and their fathers’ houses, 39 from thirty years old up to fifty years old, every one that could enter the service for work in the tent of meeting— 40 their number by their families and their fathers’ houses was two thousand six hundred and thirty. 41 This was the number of the families of the sons of Gershon, all who served in the tent of meeting, whom Moses and Aaron numbered according to the commandment of the Lord.

42 The number of the families of the sons of Merar′i, by their families and their fathers’ houses, 43 from thirty years old up to fifty years old, every one that could enter the service, for work in the tent of meeting— 44 their number by families was three thousand two hundred. 45 These are those who were numbered of the families of the sons of Merar′i, whom Moses and Aaron numbered according to the commandment of the Lord by Moses.

46 All those who were numbered of the Levites, whom Moses and Aaron and the leaders of Israel numbered, by their families and their fathers’ houses, 47 from thirty years old up to fifty years old, every one that could enter to do the work of service and the work of bearing burdens in the tent of meeting, 48 those who were numbered of them were eight thousand five hundred and eighty. 49 According to the commandment of the Lord through Moses they were appointed, each to his task of serving or carrying; thus they were numbered by him, as the Lord commanded Moses.

Unclean Persons

The Lord said to Moses, “Command the people of Israel that they put out of the camp every leper, and every one having a discharge, and every one that is unclean through contact with the dead; you shall put out both male and female, putting them outside the camp, that they may not defile their camp, in the midst of which I dwell.” And the people of Israel did so, and drove them outside the camp; as the Lord said to Moses, so the people of Israel did.

Confession and Restitution

And the Lord said to Moses, “Say to the people of Israel, When a man or woman commits any of the sins that men commit by breaking faith with the Lord, and that person is guilty, he shall confess his sin which he has committed; and he shall make full restitution for his wrong, adding a fifth to it, and giving it to him to whom he did the wrong. But if the man has no kinsman to whom restitution may be made for the wrong, the restitution for wrong shall go to the Lord for the priest, in addition to the ram of atonement with which atonement is made for him. And every offering, all the holy things of the people of Israel, which they bring to the priest, shall be his; 10 and every man’s holy things shall be his; whatever any man gives to the priest shall be his.”

Concerning an Unfaithful Wife

11 And the Lord said to Moses, 12 “Say to the people of Israel, If any man’s wife goes astray and acts unfaithfully against him, 13 if a man lies with her carnally, and it is hidden from the eyes of her husband, and she is undetected though she has defiled herself, and there is no witness against her, since she was not taken in the act; 14 and if the spirit of jealousy comes upon him, and he is jealous of his wife who has defiled herself; or if the spirit of jealousy comes upon him, and he is jealous of his wife, though she has not defiled herself; 15 then the man shall bring his wife to the priest, and bring the offering required of her, a tenth of an ephah of barley meal; he shall pour no oil upon it and put no frankincense on it, for it is a cereal offering of jealousy, a cereal offering of remembrance, bringing iniquity to remembrance.

16 “And the priest shall bring her near, and set her before the Lord; 17 and the priest shall take holy water in an earthen vessel, and take some of the dust that is on the floor of the tabernacle and put it into the water. 18 And the priest shall set the woman before the Lord, and unbind the hair of the woman’s head, and place in her hands the cereal offering of remembrance, which is the cereal offering of jealousy. And in his hand the priest shall have the water of bitterness that brings the curse. 19 Then the priest shall make her take an oath, saying, ‘If no man has lain with you, and if you have not turned aside to uncleanness, while you were under your husband’s authority, be free from this water of bitterness that brings the curse. 20 But if you have gone astray, though you are under your husband’s authority, and if you have defiled yourself, and some man other than your husband has lain with you, 21 then’ (let the priest make the woman take the oath of the curse, and say to the woman) ‘the Lord make you an execration and an oath among your people, when the Lord makes your thigh fall away and your body swell; 22 may this water that brings the curse pass into your bowels and make your body swell and your thigh fall away.’ And the woman shall say, ‘Amen, Amen.’

23 “Then the priest shall write these curses in a book, and wash them off into the water of bitterness; 24 and he shall make the woman drink the water of bitterness that brings the curse, and the water that brings the curse shall enter into her and cause bitter pain. 25 And the priest shall take the cereal offering of jealousy out of the woman’s hand, and shall wave the cereal offering before the Lord and bring it to the altar; 26 and the priest shall take a handful of the cereal offering, as its memorial portion, and burn it upon the altar, and afterward shall make the woman drink the water. 27 And when he has made her drink the water, then, if she has defiled herself and has acted unfaithfully against her husband, the water that brings the curse shall enter into her and cause bitter pain, and her body shall swell, and her thigh shall fall away, and the woman shall become an execration among her people. 28 But if the woman has not defiled herself and is clean, then she shall be free and shall conceive children.

29 “This is the law in cases of jealousy, when a wife, though under her husband’s authority, goes astray and defiles herself, 30 or when the spirit of jealousy comes upon a man and he is jealous of his wife; then he shall set the woman before the Lord, and the priest shall execute upon her all this law. 31 The man shall be free from iniquity, but the woman shall bear her iniquity.”

The Nazirites

And the Lord said to Moses, “Say to the people of Israel, When either a man or a woman makes a special vow, the vow of a Nazirite,[b] to separate himself to the Lord, he shall separate himself from wine and strong drink; he shall drink no vinegar made from wine or strong drink, and shall not drink any juice of grapes or eat grapes, fresh or dried. All the days of his separation[c] he shall eat nothing that is produced by the grapevine, not even the seeds or the skins.

“All the days of his vow of separation no razor shall come upon his head; until the time is completed for which he separates himself to the Lord, he shall be holy; he shall let the locks of hair of his head grow long.

“All the days that he separates himself to the Lord he shall not go near a dead body. Neither for his father nor for his mother, nor for brother or sister, if they die, shall he make himself unclean; because his separation to God is upon his head. All the days of his separation he is holy to the Lord.

“And if any man dies very suddenly beside him, and he defiles his consecrated head, then he shall shave his head on the day of his cleansing; on the seventh day he shall shave it. 10 On the eighth day he shall bring two turtledoves or two young pigeons to the priest to the door of the tent of meeting, 11 and the priest shall offer one for a sin offering and the other for a burnt offering, and make atonement for him, because he sinned by reason of the dead body. And he shall consecrate his head that same day, 12 and separate himself to the Lord for the days of his separation, and bring a male lamb a year old for a guilt offering; but the former time shall be void, because his separation was defiled.

13 “And this is the law for the Nazirite, when the time of his separation has been completed: he shall be brought to the door of the tent of meeting, 14 and he shall offer his gift to the Lord, one male lamb a year old without blemish for a burnt offering, and one ewe lamb a year old without blemish as a sin offering, and one ram without blemish as a peace offering, 15 and a basket of unleavened bread, cakes of fine flour mixed with oil, and unleavened wafers spread with oil, and their cereal offering and their drink offerings. 16 And the priest shall present them before the Lord and offer his sin offering and his burnt offering, 17 and he shall offer the ram as a sacrifice of peace offering to the Lord, with the basket of unleavened bread; the priest shall offer also its cereal offering and its drink offering. 18 And the Nazirite shall shave his consecrated head at the door of the tent of meeting, and shall take the hair from his consecrated head and put it on the fire which is under the sacrifice of the peace offering. 19 And the priest shall take the shoulder of the ram, when it is boiled, and one unleavened cake out of the basket, and one unleavened wafer, and shall put them upon the hands of the Nazirite, after he has shaven the hair of his consecration, 20 and the priest shall wave them for a wave offering before the Lord; they are a holy portion for the priest, together with the breast that is waved and the thigh that is offered; and after that the Nazirite may drink wine.

21 “This is the law for the Nazirite who takes a vow. His offering to the Lord shall be according to his vow as a Nazirite, apart from what else he can afford; in accordance with the vow which he takes, so shall he do according to the law for his separation as a Nazirite.”

The Priestly Benediction

22 The Lord said to Moses, 23 “Say to Aaron and his sons, Thus you shall bless the people of Israel: you shall say to them,

24 The Lord bless you and keep you:
25 The Lord make his face to shine upon you, and be gracious to you:
26 The Lord lift up his countenance upon you, and give you peace.

27 “So shall they put my name upon the people of Israel, and I will bless them.”

Offerings of the Leaders

On the day when Moses had finished setting up the tabernacle, and had anointed and consecrated it with all its furnishings, and had anointed and consecrated the altar with all its utensils, the leaders of Israel, heads of their fathers’ houses, the leaders of the tribes, who were over those who were numbered, offered and brought their offerings before the Lord, six covered wagons and twelve oxen, a wagon for every two of the leaders, and for each one an ox; they offered them before the tabernacle. Then the Lord said to Moses, “Accept these from them, that they may be used in doing the service of the tent of meeting, and give them to the Levites, to each man according to his service.” So Moses took the wagons and the oxen, and gave them to the Levites. Two wagons and four oxen he gave to the sons of Gershon, according to their service; and four wagons and eight oxen he gave to the sons of Merar′i, according to their service, under the direction of Ith′amar the son of Aaron the priest. But to the sons of Kohath he gave none, because they were charged with the care of the holy things which had to be carried on the shoulder. 10 And the leaders offered offerings for the dedication of the altar on the day it was anointed; and the leaders offered their offering before the altar. 11 And the Lord said to Moses, “They shall offer their offerings, one leader each day, for the dedication of the altar.”

12 He who offered his offering the first day was Nahshon the son of Ammin′adab, of the tribe of Judah; 13 and his offering was one silver plate whose weight was a hundred and thirty shekels, one silver basin of seventy shekels, according to the shekel of the sanctuary, both of them full of fine flour mixed with oil for a cereal offering; 14 one golden dish of ten shekels, full of incense; 15 one young bull, one ram, one male lamb a year old, for a burnt offering; 16 one male goat for a sin offering; 17 and for the sacrifice of peace offerings, two oxen, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs a year old. This was the offering of Nahshon the son of Ammin′adab.

18 On the second day Nethan′el the son of Zu′ar, the leader of Is′sachar, made an offering; 19 he offered for his offering one silver plate, whose weight was a hundred and thirty shekels, one silver basin of seventy shekels, according to the shekel of the sanctuary, both of them full of fine flour mixed with oil for a cereal offering; 20 one golden dish of ten shekels, full of incense; 21 one young bull, one ram, one male lamb a year old, for a burnt offering; 22 one male goat for a sin offering; 23 and for the sacrifice of peace offerings, two oxen, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs a year old. This was the offering of Nethan′el the son of Zu′ar.

24 On the third day Eli′ab the son of Helon, the leader of the men of Zeb′ulun: 25 his offering was one silver plate, whose weight was a hundred and thirty shekels, one silver basin of seventy shekels, according to the shekel of the sanctuary, both of them full of fine flour mixed with oil for a cereal offering; 26 one golden dish of ten shekels, full of incense; 27 one young bull, one ram, one male lamb a year old, for a burnt offering; 28 one male goat for a sin offering; 29 and for the sacrifice of peace offerings, two oxen, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs a year old. This was the offering of Eli′ab the son of Helon.

30 On the fourth day Eli′zur the son of Shed′eur, the leader of the men of Reuben: 31 his offering was one silver plate whose weight was a hundred and thirty shekels, one silver basin of seventy shekels, according to the shekel of the sanctuary, both of them full of fine flour mixed with oil for a cereal offering; 32 one golden dish of ten shekels, full of incense; 33 one young bull, one ram, one male lamb a year old, for a burnt offering; 34 one male goat for a sin offering; 35 and for the sacrifice of peace offerings, two oxen, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs a year old. This was the offering of Eli′zur the son of Shed′eur.

36 On the fifth day Shelu′mi-el the son of Zurishad′dai, the leader of the men of Simeon: 37 his offering was one silver plate, whose weight was a hundred and thirty shekels, one silver basin of seventy shekels, according to the shekel of the sanctuary, both of them full of fine flour mixed with oil for a cereal offering; 38 one golden dish of ten shekels, full of incense; 39 one young bull, one ram, one male lamb a year old, for a burnt offering; 40 one male goat for a sin offering; 41 and for the sacrifice of peace offerings, two oxen, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs a year old. This was the offering of Shelu′mi-el the son of Zurishad′dai.

42 On the sixth day Eli′asaph the son of Deu′el, the leader of the men of Gad: 43 his offering was one silver plate, whose weight was a hundred and thirty shekels, one silver basin of seventy shekels, according to the shekel of the sanctuary, both of them full of fine flour mixed with oil for a cereal offering; 44 one golden dish of ten shekels, full of incense; 45 one young bull, one ram, one male lamb a year old, for a burnt offering; 46 one male goat for a sin offering; 47 and for the sacrifice of peace offerings, two oxen, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs a year old. This was the offering of Eli′asaph the son of Deu′el.

48 On the seventh day Elish′ama the son of Ammi′hud, the leader of the men of E′phraim: 49 his offering was one silver plate, whose weight was a hundred and thirty shekels, one silver basin of seventy shekels, according to the shekel of the sanctuary, both of them full of fine flour mixed with oil for a cereal offering; 50 one golden dish of ten shekels, full of incense; 51 one young bull, one ram, one male lamb a year old, for a burnt offering; 52 one male goat for a sin offering; 53 and for the sacrifice of peace offerings, two oxen, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs a year old. This was the offering of Elish′ama the son of Ammi′hud.

54 On the eighth day Gama′liel the son of Pedah′zur, the leader of the men of Manas′seh: 55 his offering was one silver plate, whose weight was a hundred and thirty shekels, one silver basin of seventy shekels, according to the shekel of the sanctuary, both of them full of fine flour mixed with oil for a cereal offering; 56 one golden dish of ten shekels, full of incense; 57 one young bull, one ram, one male lamb a year old, for a burnt offering; 58 one male goat for a sin offering; 59 and for the sacrifice of peace offerings, two oxen, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs a year old. This was the offering of Gama′liel the son of Pedah′zur.

60 On the ninth day Abi′dan the son of Gideo′ni, the leader of the men of Benjamin: 61 his offering was one silver plate, whose weight was a hundred and thirty shekels, one silver basin of seventy shekels, according to the shekel of the sanctuary, both of them full of fine flour mixed with oil for a cereal offering; 62 one golden dish of ten shekels, full of incense; 63 one young bull, one ram, one male lamb a year old, for a burnt offering; 64 one male goat for a sin offering; 65 and for the sacrifice of peace offerings, two oxen, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs a year old. This was the offering of Abi′dan the son of Gideo′ni.

66 On the tenth day Ahi-e′zer the son of Ammishad′dai, the leader of the men of Dan: 67 his offering was one silver plate, whose weight was a hundred and thirty shekels, one silver basin of seventy shekels, according to the shekel of the sanctuary, both of them full of fine flour mixed with oil for a cereal offering; 68 one golden dish of ten shekels, full of incense; 69 one young bull, one ram, one male lamb a year old, for a burnt offering; 70 one male goat for a sin offering; 71 and for the sacrifice of peace offerings, two oxen, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs a year old. This was the offering of Ahi-e′zer the son of Ammishad′dai.

72 On the eleventh day Pa′giel the son of Ochran, the leader of the men of Asher: 73 his offering was one silver plate, whose weight was a hundred and thirty shekels, one silver basin of seventy shekels, according to the shekel of the sanctuary, both of them full of fine flour mixed with oil for a cereal offering; 74 one golden dish of ten shekels, full of incense; 75 one young bull, one ram, one male lamb a year old, for a burnt offering; 76 one male goat for a sin offering; 77 and for the sacrifice of peace offerings, two oxen, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs a year old. This was the offering of Pa′giel the son of Ochran.

78 On the twelfth day Ahi′ra the son of Enan, the leader of the men of Naph′tali: 79 his offering was one silver plate, whose weight was a hundred and thirty shekels, one silver basin of seventy shekels, according to the shekel of the sanctuary, both of them full of fine flour mixed with oil for a cereal offering; 80 one golden dish of ten shekels, full of incense; 81 one young bull, one ram, one male lamb a year old, for a burnt offering; 82 one male goat for a sin offering; 83 and for the sacrifice of peace offerings, two oxen, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs a year old. This was the offering of Ahi′ra the son of Enan.

84 This was the dedication offering for the altar, on the day when it was anointed, from the leaders of Israel: twelve silver plates, twelve silver basins, twelve golden dishes, 85 each silver plate weighing a hundred and thirty shekels and each basin seventy, all the silver of the vessels two thousand four hundred shekels according to the shekel of the sanctuary, 86 the twelve golden dishes, full of incense, weighing ten shekels apiece according to the shekel of the sanctuary, all the gold of the dishes being a hundred and twenty shekels; 87 all the cattle for the burnt offering twelve bulls, twelve rams, twelve male lambs a year old, with their cereal offering; and twelve male goats for a sin offering; 88 and all the cattle for the sacrifice of peace offerings twenty-four bulls, the rams sixty, the male goats sixty, the male lambs a year old sixty. This was the dedication offering for the altar, after it was anointed.

89 And when Moses went into the tent of meeting to speak with the Lord, he heard the voice speaking to him from above the mercy seat that was upon the ark of the testimony, from between the two cherubim; and it spoke to him.

The Seven Lamps

Now the Lord said to Moses, “Say to Aaron, When you set up the lamps, the seven lamps shall give light in front of the lampstand.” And Aaron did so; he set up its lamps to give light in front of the lampstand, as the Lord commanded Moses. And this was the workmanship of the lampstand, hammered work of gold; from its base to its flowers, it was hammered work; according to the pattern which the Lord had shown Moses, so he made the lampstand.

Consecration and Service of the Levites

And the Lord said to Moses, “Take the Levites from among the people of Israel, and cleanse them. And thus you shall do to them, to cleanse them: sprinkle the water of expiation upon them, and let them go with a razor over all their body, and wash their clothes and cleanse themselves. Then let them take a young bull and its cereal offering of fine flour mixed with oil, and you shall take another young bull for a sin offering. And you shall present the Levites before the tent of meeting, and assemble the whole congregation of the people of Israel. 10 When you present the Levites before the Lord, the people of Israel shall lay their hands upon the Levites, 11 and Aaron shall offer the Levites before the Lord as a wave offering from the people of Israel, that it may be theirs to do the service of the Lord. 12 Then the Levites shall lay their hands upon the heads of the bulls; and you shall offer the one for a sin offering and the other for a burnt offering to the Lord, to make atonement for the Levites. 13 And you shall cause the Levites to attend Aaron and his sons, and shall offer them as a wave offering to the Lord.

14 “Thus you shall separate the Levites from among the people of Israel, and the Levites shall be mine. 15 And after that the Levites shall go in to do service at the tent of meeting, when you have cleansed them and offered them as a wave offering. 16 For they are wholly given to me from among the people of Israel; instead of all that open the womb, the first-born of all the people of Israel, I have taken them for myself. 17 For all the first-born among the people of Israel are mine, both of man and of beast; on the day that I slew all the first-born in the land of Egypt I consecrated them for myself, 18 and I have taken the Levites instead of all the first-born among the people of Israel. 19 And I have given the Levites as a gift to Aaron and his sons from among the people of Israel, to do the service for the people of Israel at the tent of meeting, and to make atonement for the people of Israel, that there may be no plague among the people of Israel in case the people of Israel should come near the sanctuary.”

20 Thus did Moses and Aaron and all the congregation of the people of Israel to the Levites; according to all that the Lord commanded Moses concerning the Levites, the people of Israel did to them. 21 And the Levites purified themselves from sin, and washed their clothes; and Aaron offered them as a wave offering before the Lord, and Aaron made atonement for them to cleanse them. 22 And after that the Levites went in to do their service in the tent of meeting in attendance upon Aaron and his sons; as the Lord had commanded Moses concerning the Levites, so they did to them.

23 And the Lord said to Moses, 24 “This is what pertains to the Levites: from twenty-five years old and upward they shall go in to perform the work in the service of the tent of meeting; 25 and from the age of fifty years they shall withdraw from the work of the service and serve no more, 26 but minister to their brethren in the tent of meeting, to keep the charge, and they shall do no service. Thus shall you do to the Levites in assigning their duties.”

The Passover at Sinai

And the Lord spoke to Moses in the wilderness of Sinai, in the first month of the second year after they had come out of the land of Egypt, saying, “Let the people of Israel keep the passover at its appointed time. On the fourteenth day of this month, in the evening, you shall keep it at its appointed time; according to all its statutes and all its ordinances you shall keep it.” So Moses told the people of Israel that they should keep the passover. And they kept the passover in the first month, on the fourteenth day of the month, in the evening, in the wilderness of Sinai; according to all that the Lord commanded Moses, so the people of Israel did. And there were certain men who were unclean through touching the dead body of a man, so that they could not keep the passover on that day; and they came before Moses and Aaron on that day; and those men said to him, “We are unclean through touching the dead body of a man; why are we kept from offering the Lord’s offering at its appointed time among the people of Israel?” And Moses said to them, “Wait, that I may hear what the Lord will command concerning you.”

The Lord said to Moses, 10 “Say to the people of Israel, If any man of you or of your descendants is unclean through touching a dead body, or is afar off on a journey, he shall still keep the passover to the Lord. 11 In the second month on the fourteenth day in the evening they shall keep it; they shall eat it with unleavened bread and bitter herbs. 12 They shall leave none of it until the morning, nor break a bone of it; according to all the statute for the passover they shall keep it. 13 But the man who is clean and is not on a journey, yet refrains from keeping the passover, that person shall be cut off from his people, because he did not offer the Lord’s offering at its appointed time; that man shall bear his sin. 14 And if a stranger sojourns among you, and will keep the passover to the Lord, according to the statute of the passover and according to its ordinance, so shall he do; you shall have one statute, both for the sojourner and for the native.”

The Cloud and the Fire

15 On the day that the tabernacle was set up, the cloud covered the tabernacle, the tent of the testimony; and at evening it was over the tabernacle like the appearance of fire until morning. 16 So it was continually; the cloud covered it by day[d] and the appearance of fire by night. 17 And whenever the cloud was taken up from over the tent, after that the people of Israel set out; and in the place where the cloud settled down, there the people of Israel encamped. 18 At the command of the Lord the people of Israel set out, and at the command of the Lord they encamped; as long as the cloud rested over the tabernacle, they remained in camp. 19 Even when the cloud continued over the tabernacle many days, the people of Israel kept the charge of the Lord, and did not set out. 20 Sometimes the cloud was a few days over the tabernacle, and according to the command of the Lord they remained in camp; then according to the command of the Lord they set out. 21 And sometimes the cloud remained from evening until morning; and when the cloud was taken up in the morning, they set out, or if it continued for a day and a night, when the cloud was taken up they set out. 22 Whether it was two days, or a month, or a longer time, that the cloud continued over the tabernacle, abiding there, the people of Israel remained in camp and did not set out; but when it was taken up they set out. 23 At the command of the Lord they encamped, and at the command of the Lord they set out; they kept the charge of the Lord, at the command of the Lord by Moses.

The Silver Trumpets

10 The Lord said to Moses, “Make two silver trumpets; of hammered work you shall make them; and you shall use them for summoning the congregation, and for breaking camp. And when both are blown, all the congregation shall gather themselves to you at the entrance of the tent of meeting. But if they blow only one, then the leaders, the heads of the tribes of Israel, shall gather themselves to you. When you blow an alarm, the camps that are on the east side shall set out. And when you blow an alarm the second time, the camps that are on the south side shall set out. An alarm is to be blown whenever they are to set out. But when the assembly is to be gathered together, you shall blow, but you shall not sound an alarm. And the sons of Aaron, the priests, shall blow the trumpets. The trumpets shall be to you for a perpetual statute throughout your generations. And when you go to war in your land against the adversary who oppresses you, then you shall sound an alarm with the trumpets, that you may be remembered before the Lord your God, and you shall be saved from your enemies. 10 On the day of your gladness also, and at your appointed feasts, and at the beginnings of your months, you shall blow the trumpets over your burnt offerings and over the sacrifices of your peace offerings; they shall serve you for remembrance before your God: I am the Lord your God.”

Departure from Sinai

11 In the second year, in the second month, on the twentieth day of the month, the cloud was taken up from over the tabernacle of the testimony, 12 and the people of Israel set out by stages from the wilderness of Sinai; and the cloud settled down in the wilderness of Paran. 13 They set out for the first time at the command of the Lord by Moses. 14 The standard of the camp of the men of Judah set out first by their companies; and over their host was Nahshon the son of Ammin′adab. 15 And over the host of the tribe of the men of Is′sachar was Nethan′el the son of Zu′ar. 16 And over the host of the tribe of the men of Zeb′ulun was Eli′ab the son of Helon.

17 And when the tabernacle was taken down, the sons of Gershon and the sons of Merar′i, who carried the tabernacle, set out. 18 And the standard of the camp of Reuben set out by their companies; and over their host was Eli′zur the son of Shed′eur. 19 And over the host of the tribe of the men of Simeon was Shelu′mi-el the son of Zurishad′dai. 20 And over the host of the tribe of the men of Gad was Eli′asaph the son of Deu′el.

21 Then the Ko′hathites set out, carrying the holy things, and the tabernacle was set up before their arrival. 22 And the standard of the camp of the men of E′phraim set out by their companies; and over their host was Elish′ama the son of Ammi′hud. 23 And over the host of the tribe of the men of Manas′seh was Gama′liel the son of Pedah′zur. 24 And over the host of the tribe of the men of Benjamin was Abi′dan the son of Gideo′ni.

25 Then the standard of the camp of the men of Dan, acting as the rear guard of all the camps, set out by their companies; and over their host was Ahi-e′zer the son of Ammishad′dai. 26 And over the host of the tribe of the men of Asher was Pa′giel the son of Ochran. 27 And over the host of the tribe of the men of Naph′tali was Ahi′ra the son of Enan. 28 This was the order of march of the people of Israel according to their hosts, when they set out.

29 And Moses said to Hobab the son of Reu′el the Mid′ianite, Moses’ father-in-law, “We are setting out for the place of which the Lord said, ‘I will give it to you’; come with us, and we will do you good; for the Lord has promised good to Israel.” 30 But he said to him, “I will not go; I will depart to my own land and to my kindred.” 31 And he said, “Do not leave us, I pray you, for you know how we are to encamp in the wilderness, and you will serve as eyes for us. 32 And if you go with us, whatever good the Lord will do to us, the same will we do to you.”

33 So they set out from the mount of the Lord three days’ journey; and the ark of the covenant of the Lord went before them three days’ journey, to seek out a resting place for them. 34 And the cloud of the Lord was over them by day, whenever they set out from the camp.

35 And whenever the ark set out, Moses said, “Arise, O Lord, and let thy enemies be scattered; and let them that hate thee flee before thee.” 36 And when it rested, he said, “Return, O Lord, to the ten thousand thousands of Israel.”

Complaining in the Desert

11 And the people complained in the hearing of the Lord about their misfortunes; and when the Lord heard it, his anger was kindled, and the fire of the Lord burned among them, and consumed some outlying parts of the camp. Then the people cried to Moses; and Moses prayed to the Lord, and the fire abated. So the name of that place was called Tab′erah,[e] because the fire of the Lord burned among them.

Now the rabble that was among them had a strong craving; and the people of Israel also wept again, and said, “O that we had meat to eat! We remember the fish we ate in Egypt for nothing, the cucumbers, the melons, the leeks, the onions, and the garlic; but now our strength is dried up, and there is nothing at all but this manna to look at.”

Now the manna was like coriander seed, and its appearance like that of bdellium. The people went about and gathered it, and ground it in mills or beat it in mortars, and boiled it in pots, and made cakes of it; and the taste of it was like the taste of cakes baked with oil. When the dew fell upon the camp in the night, the manna fell with it.

10 Moses heard the people weeping throughout their families, every man at the door of his tent; and the anger of the Lord blazed hotly, and Moses was displeased. 11 Moses said to the Lord, “Why hast thou dealt ill with thy servant? And why have I not found favor in thy sight, that thou dost lay the burden of all this people upon me? 12 Did I conceive all this people? Did I bring them forth, that thou shouldst say to me, ‘Carry them in your bosom, as a nurse carries the sucking child,’ to the land which thou didst swear to give their fathers? 13 Where am I to get meat to give to all this people? For they weep before me and say, ‘Give us meat, that we may eat.’ 14 I am not able to carry all this people alone, the burden is too heavy for me. 15 If thou wilt deal thus with me, kill me at once, if I find favor in thy sight, that I may not see my wretchedness.”

The Seventy Elders

16 And the Lord said to Moses, “Gather for me seventy men of the elders of Israel, whom you know to be the elders of the people and officers over them; and bring them to the tent of meeting, and let them take their stand there with you. 17 And I will come down and talk with you there; and I will take some of the spirit which is upon you and put it upon them; and they shall bear the burden of the people with you, that you may not bear it yourself alone. 18 And say to the people, ‘Consecrate yourselves for tomorrow, and you shall eat meat; for you have wept in the hearing of the Lord, saying, “Who will give us meat to eat? For it was well with us in Egypt.” Therefore the Lord will give you meat, and you shall eat. 19 You shall not eat one day, or two days, or five days, or ten days, or twenty days, 20 but a whole month, until it comes out at your nostrils and becomes loathsome to you, because you have rejected the Lord who is among you, and have wept before him, saying, “Why did we come forth out of Egypt?”’” 21 But Moses said, “The people among whom I am number six hundred thousand on foot; and thou hast said, ‘I will give them meat, that they may eat a whole month!’ 22 Shall flocks and herds be slaughtered for them, to suffice them? Or shall all the fish of the sea be gathered together for them, to suffice them?” 23 And the Lord said to Moses, “Is the Lord’s hand shortened? Now you shall see whether my word will come true for you or not.”

24 So Moses went out and told the people the words of the Lord; and he gathered seventy men of the elders of the people, and placed them round about the tent. 25 Then the Lord came down in the cloud and spoke to him, and took some of the spirit that was upon him and put it upon the seventy elders; and when the spirit rested upon them, they prophesied. But they did so no more.

26 Now two men remained in the camp, one named Eldad, and the other named Medad, and the spirit rested upon them; they were among those registered, but they had not gone out to the tent, and so they prophesied in the camp. 27 And a young man ran and told Moses, “Eldad and Medad are prophesying in the camp.” 28 And Joshua the son of Nun, the minister of Moses, one of his chosen men, said, “My lord Moses, forbid them.” 29 But Moses said to him, “Are you jealous for my sake? Would that all the Lord’s people were prophets, that the Lord would put his spirit upon them!” 30 And Moses and the elders of Israel returned to the camp.[f]

The Quails

31 And there went forth a wind from the Lord, and it brought quails from the sea, and let them fall beside the camp, about a day’s journey on this side and a day’s journey on the other side, round about the camp, and about two cubits above the face of the earth. 32 And the people rose all that day, and all night, and all the next day, and gathered the quails; he who gathered least gathered ten homers; and they spread them out for themselves all around the camp. 33 While the meat was yet between their teeth, before it was consumed, the anger of the Lord was kindled against the people, and the Lord smote the people with a very great plague. 34 Therefore the name of that place was called Kib′roth-hatta′avah,[g] because there they buried the people who had the craving. 35 From Kib′roth-hatta′avah the people journeyed to Haze′roth; and they remained at Haze′roth.

Aaron and Miriam Jealous of Moses

12 Miriam and Aaron spoke against Moses because of the Cushite woman whom he had married, for he had married a Cushite woman; and they said, “Has the Lord indeed spoken only through Moses? Has he not spoken through us also?” And the Lord heard it. Now the man Moses was very meek, more than all men that were on the face of the earth. And suddenly the Lord said to Moses and to Aaron and Miriam, “Come out, you three, to the tent of meeting.” And the three of them came out. And the Lord came down in a pillar of cloud, and stood at the door of the tent, and called Aaron and Miriam; and they both came forward. And he said, “Hear my words: If there is a prophet among you, I the Lord make myself known to him in a vision, I speak with him in a dream. Not so with my servant Moses; he is entrusted with all my house. With him I speak mouth to mouth, clearly, and not in dark speech; and he beholds the form of the Lord. Why then were you not afraid to speak against my servant Moses?”

And the anger of the Lord was kindled against them, and he departed; 10 and when the cloud removed from over the tent, behold, Miriam was leprous, as white as snow. And Aaron turned towards Miriam, and behold, she was leprous. 11 And Aaron said to Moses, “Oh, my lord, do not[h] punish us because we have done foolishly and have sinned. 12 Let her not be as one dead, of whom the flesh is half consumed when he comes out of his mother’s womb.” 13 And Moses cried to the Lord, “Heal her, O God, I beseech thee.” 14 But the Lord said to Moses, “If her father had but spit in her face, should she not be shamed seven days? Let her be shut up outside the camp seven days, and after that she may be brought in again.” 15 So Miriam was shut up outside the camp seven days; and the people did not set out on the march till Miriam was brought in again. 16 After that the people set out from Haze′roth, and encamped in the wilderness of Paran.

Spies Sent into Canaan

13 The Lord said to Moses, “Send men to spy out the land of Canaan, which I give to the people of Israel; from each tribe of their fathers shall you send a man, every one a leader among them.” So Moses sent them from the wilderness of Paran, according to the command of the Lord, all of them men who were heads of the people of Israel. And these were their names: From the tribe of Reuben, Sham′mu-a the son of Zaccur; from the tribe of Simeon, Shaphat the son of Hori; from the tribe of Judah, Caleb the son of Jephun′neh; from the tribe of Is′sachar, Igal the son of Joseph; from the tribe of E′phraim, Hoshe′a the son of Nun; from the tribe of Benjamin, Palti the son of Raphu; 10 from the tribe of Zeb′ulun, Gad′diel the son of Sodi; 11 from the tribe of Joseph (that is from the tribe of Manas′seh), Gaddi the son of Susi; 12 from the tribe of Dan, Am′miel the son of Gemal′li; 13 from the tribe of Asher, Sethur the son of Michael; 14 from the tribe of Naph′tali, Nahbi the son of Vophsi; 15 from the tribe of Gad, Geu′el the son of Machi. 16 These were the names of the men whom Moses sent to spy out the land. And Moses called Hoshe′a the son of Nun Joshua.

17 Moses sent them to spy out the land of Canaan, and said to them, “Go up into the Negeb yonder, and go up into the hill country, 18 and see what the land is, and whether the people who dwell in it are strong or weak, whether they are few or many, 19 and whether the land that they dwell in is good or bad, and whether the cities that they dwell in are camps or strongholds, 20 and whether the land is rich or poor, and whether there is wood in it or not. Be of good courage, and bring some of the fruit of the land.” Now the time was the season of the first ripe grapes.

21 So they went up and spied out the land from the wilderness of Zin to Rehob, near the entrance of Hamath. 22 They went up into the Negeb, and came to Hebron; and Ahi′man, Sheshai, and Talmai, the descendants of Anak, were there. (Hebron was built seven years before Zo′an in Egypt.) 23 And they came to the Valley of Eshcol, and cut down from there a branch with a single cluster of grapes, and they carried it on a pole between two of them; they brought also some pomegranates and figs. 24 That place was called the Valley of Eshcol,[i] because of the cluster which the men of Israel cut down from there.

The Report of the Spies

25 At the end of forty days they returned from spying out the land. 26 And they came to Moses and Aaron and to all the congregation of the people of Israel in the wilderness of Paran, at Kadesh; they brought back word to them and to all the congregation, and showed them the fruit of the land. 27 And they told him, “We came to the land to which you sent us; it flows with milk and honey, and this is its fruit. 28 Yet the people who dwell in the land are strong, and the cities are fortified and very large; and besides, we saw the descendants of Anak there. 29 The Amal′ekites dwell in the land of the Negeb; the Hittites, the Jeb′usites, and the Amorites dwell in the hill country; and the Canaanites dwell by the sea, and along the Jordan.”

Footnotes

  1. Numbers 3:22 Heb their number was
  2. Numbers 6:2 That is one separated or one consecrated
  3. Numbers 6:4 Or Naziriteship
  4. Numbers 9:16 Gk Syr Vg: Heb lacks by day
  5. Numbers 11:3 That is Burning
  6. 11.16-30 The account of the election of the seventy elders emphasizes the charismatic or prophetic basis of authority in the community.
  7. Numbers 11:34 That is Graves of craving
  8. Numbers 12:11 Heb lay not sin upon us
  9. Numbers 13:24 That is Cluster

The First Census of Israel(A)

Now the Lord spoke to Moses (B)in the Wilderness of Sinai, (C)in the tabernacle of meeting, on the (D)first day of the second month, in the second year after they had come out of the land of Egypt, saying: (E)“Take a census of all the congregation of the children of Israel, by their families, by their fathers’ houses, according to the number of names, every male (F)individually, from (G)twenty years old and above—all who are able to go to war in Israel. You and Aaron shall number them by their armies. And with you there shall be a man from every tribe, each one the head of his father’s house.

“These are the names of the men who shall stand with you: from Reuben, Elizur the son of Shedeur; from Simeon, Shelumiel the son of Zurishaddai; from Judah, Nahshon the son of Amminadab; from Issachar, Nethanel the son of Zuar; from Zebulun, Eliab the son of Helon; 10 from the sons of Joseph: from Ephraim, Elishama the son of Ammihud; from Manasseh, Gamaliel the son of Pedahzur; 11 from Benjamin, Abidan the son of Gideoni; 12 from Dan, Ahiezer the son of Ammishaddai; 13 from Asher, Pagiel the son of Ocran; 14 from Gad, Eliasaph the son of (H)Deuel;[a] 15 from Naphtali, Ahira the son of Enan.” 16 (I)These were (J)chosen[b] from the congregation, leaders of their fathers’ tribes, (K)heads of the divisions in Israel.

17 Then Moses and Aaron took these men who had been [c]mentioned (L)by name, 18 and they assembled all the congregation together on the first day of the second month; and they recited their (M)ancestry by families, by their fathers’ houses, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and above, each one individually. 19 As the Lord commanded Moses, so he numbered them in the Wilderness of Sinai.

20 Now the (N)children of Reuben, Israel’s oldest son, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, according to the number of names, every male individually, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: 21 those who were numbered of the tribe of Reuben were forty-six thousand five hundred.

22 From the (O)children of Simeon, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, of those who were numbered, according to the number of names, every male individually, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: 23 those who were numbered of the tribe of Simeon were fifty-nine thousand three hundred.

24 From the (P)children of Gad, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: 25 those who were numbered of the tribe of Gad were forty-five thousand six hundred and fifty.

26 From the (Q)children of Judah, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: 27 those who were numbered of the tribe of Judah were (R)seventy-four thousand six hundred.

28 From the (S)children of Issachar, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: 29 those who were numbered of the tribe of Issachar were fifty-four thousand four hundred.

30 From the (T)children of Zebulun, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: 31 those who were numbered of the tribe of Zebulun were fifty-seven thousand four hundred.

32 From the sons of Joseph, the (U)children of Ephraim, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: 33 those who were numbered of the tribe of Ephraim were forty thousand five hundred.

34 From the (V)children of Manasseh, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: 35 those who were numbered of the tribe of Manasseh were thirty-two thousand two hundred.

36 From the (W)children of Benjamin, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: 37 those who were numbered of the tribe of Benjamin were thirty-five thousand four hundred.

38 From the (X)children of Dan, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: 39 those who were numbered of the tribe of Dan were sixty-two thousand seven hundred.

40 From the (Y)children of Asher, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: 41 those who were numbered of the tribe of Asher were forty-one thousand five hundred.

42 From the children of Naphtali, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: 43 those who were numbered of the tribe of Naphtali were fifty-three thousand four hundred.

44 (Z)These are the ones who were numbered, whom Moses and Aaron numbered, with the leaders of Israel, twelve men, each one representing his father’s house. 45 So all who were numbered of the children of Israel, by their fathers’ houses, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war in Israel— 46 all who were numbered were (AA)six hundred and three thousand five hundred and fifty.

47 But (AB)the Levites were not numbered among them by their fathers’ tribe; 48 for the Lord had spoken to Moses, saying: 49 (AC)“Only the tribe of Levi you shall not number, nor take a census of them among the children of Israel; 50 (AD)but you shall appoint the Levites over the tabernacle of the Testimony, over all its furnishings, and over all things that belong to it; they shall carry the tabernacle and all its furnishings; they shall attend to it (AE)and camp around the tabernacle. 51 (AF)And when the tabernacle is to go forward, the Levites shall take it down; and when the tabernacle is to be set up, the Levites shall set it (AG)up. (AH)The outsider who comes near shall be put to death. 52 The children of Israel shall pitch their tents, (AI)everyone by his own camp, everyone by his own standard, according to their armies; 53 (AJ)but the Levites shall camp around the tabernacle of the Testimony, that there may be no (AK)wrath on the congregation of the children of Israel; and the Levites shall (AL)keep[d] charge of the tabernacle of the Testimony.”

54 Thus the children of Israel did; according to all that the Lord commanded Moses, so they did.

The Tribes and Leaders by Armies

And the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying: (AM)“Everyone of the children of Israel shall camp by his own [e]standard, beside the emblems of his father’s house; they shall camp (AN)some distance from the tabernacle of meeting. On the (AO)east side, toward the rising of the sun, those of the standard of the forces with Judah shall camp according to their armies; and (AP)Nahshon the son of Amminadab shall be the leader of the children of Judah.” And his army was numbered at seventy-four thousand six hundred.

“Those who camp next to him shall be the tribe of Issachar, and Nethanel the son of Zuar shall be the leader of the children of Issachar.” And his army was numbered at fifty-four thousand four hundred.

“Then comes the tribe of Zebulun, and Eliab the son of Helon shall be the leader of the children of Zebulun.” And his army was numbered at fifty-seven thousand four hundred. “All who were numbered according to their armies of the forces with Judah, one hundred and eighty-six thousand four hundred—(AQ)these shall [f]break camp first.

10 “On the (AR)south side shall be the standard of the forces with Reuben according to their armies, and the leader of the children of Reuben shall be Elizur the son of Shedeur.” 11 And his army was numbered at forty-six thousand five hundred.

12 “Those who camp next to him shall be the tribe of Simeon, and the leader of the children of Simeon shall be Shelumiel the son of Zurishaddai.” 13 And his army was numbered at fifty-nine thousand three hundred.

14 “Then comes the tribe of Gad, and the leader of the children of Gad shall be Eliasaph the son of [g]Reuel.” 15 And his army was numbered at forty-five thousand six hundred and fifty. 16 “All who were numbered according to their armies of the forces with Reuben, one hundred and fifty-one thousand four hundred and fifty—(AS)they shall [h]be the second to break camp.

17 (AT)“And the tabernacle of meeting shall move out with the [i]camp of the Levites (AU)in the middle of the [j]camps; as they camp, so they shall move out, everyone in his place, by their [k]standards.

18 “On the west side shall be the standard of the forces with Ephraim according to their armies, and the leader of the children of Ephraim shall be Elishama the son of Ammihud.” 19 And his army was numbered at forty thousand five hundred.

20 “Next to him comes the tribe of Manasseh, and the leader of the children of Manasseh shall be Gamaliel the son of Pedahzur.” 21 And his army was numbered at thirty-two thousand two hundred.

22 “Then comes the tribe of Benjamin, and the leader of the children of Benjamin shall be Abidan the son of Gideoni.” 23 And his army was numbered at thirty-five thousand four hundred. 24 “All who were numbered according to their armies of the forces with Ephraim, one hundred and eight thousand one hundred—(AV)they shall [l]be the third to break camp.

25 “The [m]standard of the forces with Dan shall be on the north side according to their armies, and the leader of the children of Dan shall be Ahiezer the son of Ammishaddai.” 26 And his army was numbered at sixty-two thousand seven hundred.

27 “Those who camp next to him shall be the tribe of Asher, and the leader of the children of Asher shall be Pagiel the son of Ocran.” 28 And his army was numbered at forty-one thousand five hundred.

29 “Then comes the tribe of Naphtali, and the leader of the children of Naphtali shall be Ahira the son of Enan.” 30 And his army was numbered at fifty-three thousand four hundred. 31 “All who were numbered of the forces with Dan, one hundred and fifty-seven thousand six hundred—(AW)they shall [n]break camp last, with their [o]standards.”

32 These are the ones who were numbered of the children of Israel by their fathers’ houses. (AX)All who were numbered according to their armies of the forces were six hundred and three thousand five hundred and fifty. 33 But (AY)the Levites were not numbered among the children of Israel, just as the Lord commanded Moses.

34 Thus the children of Israel (AZ)did according to all that the Lord commanded Moses; (BA)so they camped by their [p]standards and so they broke camp, each one by his family, according to their fathers’ houses.

The Sons of Aaron(BB)

Now these are the (BC)records[q] of Aaron and Moses when the Lord spoke with Moses on Mount Sinai. And these are the names of the sons of Aaron: Nadab, the (BD)firstborn, and (BE)Abihu, Eleazar, and Ithamar. These are the names of the sons of Aaron, (BF)the anointed priests, [r]whom he consecrated to minister as priests. (BG)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

And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: (BH)“Bring the tribe of Levi near, and present them before Aaron the priest, that they may serve him. And they shall attend to his needs and the needs of the whole congregation before the tabernacle of meeting, to do (BI)the work of the tabernacle. 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. And (BJ)you shall give the Levites to Aaron and his sons; they are given entirely to [s]him from among the children of Israel. 10 So you shall appoint Aaron and his sons, (BK)and they shall attend to their priesthood; (BL)but the outsider who comes near shall be put to death.”

11 Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: 12 “Now behold, (BM)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 (BN)Mine, 13 because (BO)all the firstborn are Mine. (BP)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(BQ)

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 (BR)every male from a month old and above.”

16 So Moses numbered them according to the [t]word of the Lord, as he was commanded. 17 (BS)These were the sons of Levi by their names: Gershon, Kohath, and Merari. 18 And these are the names of the sons of (BT)Gershon by their families: (BU)Libni and Shimei. 19 And the sons of (BV)Kohath by their families: (BW)Amram, Izehar, Hebron, and Uzziel. 20 (BX)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 (BY)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 (BZ)The duties of the children of Gershon in the tabernacle of meeting included (CA)the tabernacle, (CB)the tent with (CC)its covering, (CD)the screen for the door of the tabernacle of meeting, 26 (CE)the screen for the door of the court, (CF)the hangings of the court which are around the tabernacle and the altar, and (CG)their cords, according to all the work relating to them.

27 (CH)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 [u]six hundred [v]keeping charge of the sanctuary. 29 (CI)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 (CJ)Uzziel. 31 (CK)Their duty included (CL)the ark, (CM)the table, (CN)the lampstand, (CO)the altars, the utensils of the sanctuary with which they ministered, (CP)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. (CQ)These were to camp on the north side of the tabernacle. 36 And (CR)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 (CS)Moreover those who were to camp before the tabernacle on the east, before the tabernacle of meeting, were Moses, Aaron, and his sons, (CT)keeping charge of the sanctuary, (CU)to meet the needs of the children of Israel; but (CV)the outsider who came near was to be put to death. 39 (CW)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: (CX)“Number[w] all the firstborn males of the children of Israel from a month old and above, and take the number of their names. 41 (CY)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 (CZ)“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 (DA)the redemption of the two hundred and seventy-three of the firstborn of the children of Israel, (DB)who are more than the number of the Levites, 47 you shall take (DC)five shekels for each one (DD)individually; you shall take them in the currency of the shekel of the sanctuary, (DE)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, (DF)one thousand three hundred and sixty-five shekels, according to the shekel of the sanctuary. 51 And Moses (DG)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

Then the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying: “Take a census of the sons of (DH)Kohath from among the children of Levi, by their families, by their fathers’ house, (DI)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.

(DJ)“This is the service of the sons of Kohath in the tabernacle of meeting, relating to (DK)the most holy things: When the camp prepares to journey, Aaron and his sons shall come, and they shall take down (DL)the covering veil and cover the (DM)ark of the Testimony with it. Then they shall put on it a covering of badger skins, and spread over that a cloth entirely of (DN)blue; and they shall insert (DO)its poles.

“On the (DP)table of showbread they shall spread a blue cloth, and put on it the dishes, the pans, the bowls, and the [x]pitchers for pouring; and the (DQ)showbread[y] shall be on it. They shall spread over them a scarlet cloth, and cover the same with a covering of badger skins; and they shall insert its poles. And they shall take a blue cloth and cover the (DR)lampstand of the light, (DS)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 (DT)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 (DU)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 [z]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 (DV)the sons of Kohath shall come to carry them; (DW)but they shall not touch any holy thing, lest they die.

(DX)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 (DY)the oil for the light, the (DZ)sweet incense, (EA)the daily grain offering, the (EB)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 (EC)the most holy things: Aaron and his sons shall go in and [aa]appoint each of them to his service and his task. 20 (ED)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 (EE)Gershon, by their fathers’ house, by their families. 23 (EF)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 (EG)service of the families of the Gershonites, in serving and carrying: 25 (EH)They shall carry the (EI)curtains of the tabernacle and the tabernacle of meeting with its covering, the covering of (EJ)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 [ab]assign all the service of the sons of the Gershonites, all their tasks and all their service. And you shall [ac]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 (EK)under the [ad]authority of Ithamar the son of Aaron the priest.

Duties of the Sons of Merari

29 As for the sons of (EL)Merari, you shall number them by their families and by their fathers’ house. 30 (EM)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 (EN)this is (EO)what they must carry as all their service for the tabernacle of meeting: (EP)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 (EQ)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 [ae]authority of Ithamar the son of Aaron the priest.”

Census of the Levites

34 (ER)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 (ES)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 (ET)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’ [af]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 (EU)according to the word of the Lord by the hand of Moses.

46 All who were (EV)numbered of the Levites, whom Moses, Aaron, and the leaders of Israel numbered, by their families and by their fathers’ houses, 47 (EW)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, (EX)each according to his service and according to his task; thus were they numbered by him, (EY)as the Lord commanded Moses.

Ceremonially Unclean Persons Isolated(EZ)

And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: “Command the children of Israel that they put out of the camp every (FA)leper, everyone who has a (FB)discharge, and whoever becomes (FC)defiled [ag]by a corpse. You shall put out both male and female; you shall put them outside the camp, that they may not defile their camps (FD)in the midst of which I dwell.” And the children of Israel did so, and put them outside the camp; as the Lord spoke to Moses, so the children of Israel did.

Confession and Restitution(FE)

Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “Speak to the children of Israel: (FF)‘When a man or woman commits any sin that men commit in unfaithfulness against the Lord, and that person is guilty, (FG)then he shall confess the sin which he has committed. He shall make restitution for his trespass (FH)in full, plus one-fifth of it, and give it to the one he has wronged. But if the man has no [ah]relative to whom restitution may be made for the wrong, the restitution for the wrong must go to the Lord for the priest, in addition to (FI)the ram of the atonement with which atonement is made for him. Every (FJ)offering[ai] of all the holy things of the children of Israel, which they bring to the priest, shall be (FK)his. 10 And every man’s [aj]holy things shall be his; whatever any man gives the priest shall be (FL)his.’ ”

Concerning Unfaithful Wives

11 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 12 “Speak to the children of Israel, and say to them: ‘If any man’s wife goes astray and behaves unfaithfully toward him, 13 and a man (FM)lies with her carnally, and it is hidden from the eyes of her husband, and it is concealed that she has defiled herself, and there was no witness against her, nor was she (FN)caught— 14 if the spirit of jealousy comes upon him and he becomes (FO)jealous of his wife, who has defiled herself; or if the spirit of jealousy comes upon him and he becomes jealous of his wife, although she has not defiled herself— 15 then the man shall bring his wife to the priest. He shall (FP)bring the offering required for her, one-tenth of an ephah of barley meal; he shall pour no oil on it and put no frankincense on it, because it is a grain offering of jealousy, an offering for remembering, for (FQ)bringing iniquity to remembrance.

16 ‘And the priest shall bring her near, and set her before the Lord. 17 The priest shall take holy water in an earthen vessel, and take some of the dust that is on the floor of the tabernacle and put it into the water. 18 Then the priest shall stand the woman before the (FR)Lord, uncover the woman’s head, and put the offering for remembering in her hands, which is the grain offering of jealousy. And the priest shall have in his hand the bitter water that brings a curse. 19 And the priest shall put her under oath, and say to the woman, “If no man has lain with you, and if you have not gone astray to uncleanness while under your husband’s authority, be free from this bitter water that brings a curse. 20 But if you have gone astray while under your husband’s authority, and if you have defiled yourself and some man other than your husband has lain with you”— 21 then the priest shall (FS)put the woman under the oath of the curse, and he shall say to the woman—(FT)“the Lord make you a curse and an oath among your people, when the Lord makes your thigh [ak]rot and your belly swell; 22 and may this water that causes the curse (FU)go into your stomach, and make your belly swell and your thigh rot.”

(FV)Then the woman shall say, “Amen, so be it.”

23 ‘Then the priest shall write these curses in a book, and he shall scrape them off into the bitter water. 24 And he shall make the woman drink the bitter water that brings a curse, and the water that brings the curse shall enter her to become bitter. 25 (FW)Then the priest shall take the grain offering of jealousy from the woman’s hand, shall (FX)wave the offering before the Lord, and bring it to the altar; 26 and the priest shall take a handful of the offering, (FY)as its memorial portion, burn it on the altar, and afterward make the woman drink the water. 27 When he has made her drink the water, then it shall be, if she has defiled herself and behaved unfaithfully toward her husband, that the water that brings a (FZ)curse will enter her and become bitter, and her belly will swell, her thigh will rot, and the woman (GA)will become a curse among her people. 28 But if the woman has not defiled herself, and is clean, then she shall be free and may conceive children.

29 ‘This is the law of jealousy, when a wife, while under her husband’s authority, (GB)goes astray and defiles herself, 30 or when the spirit of jealousy comes upon a man, and he becomes jealous of his wife; then he shall stand the woman before the Lord, and the priest shall execute all this law upon her. 31 Then the man shall be free from [al]iniquity, but that woman (GC)shall bear her [am]guilt.’ ”

The Law of the Nazirite

Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “Speak to the children of Israel, and say to them: ‘When either a man or woman [an]consecrates an offering to take the vow of a Nazirite, (GD)to separate himself to the Lord, (GE)he shall separate himself from wine and similar drink; he shall drink neither vinegar made from wine nor vinegar made from similar drink; neither shall he drink any grape juice, nor eat fresh grapes or raisins. All the days of his [ao]separation he shall eat nothing that is produced by the grapevine, from seed to skin.

‘All the days of the vow of his separation no (GF)razor shall come upon his head; until the days are fulfilled for which he separated himself to the Lord, he shall be holy. Then he shall let the locks of the hair of his head grow. All the days that he separates himself to the Lord (GG)he shall not go near a dead body. (GH)He shall not [ap]make himself unclean even for his father or his mother, for his brother or his sister, when they die, because his separation to God is on his head. (GI)All the days of his separation he shall be holy to the Lord.

‘And if anyone dies very suddenly beside him, and he defiles his consecrated head, then he shall (GJ)shave his head on the day of his cleansing; on the seventh day he shall shave it. 10 Then (GK)on the eighth day he shall bring two turtledoves or two young pigeons to the priest, to the door of the tabernacle of meeting; 11 and the priest shall offer one as a sin offering and the other as a burnt offering, and make atonement for him, because he sinned in regard to the corpse; and he shall sanctify his head that same day. 12 He shall consecrate to the Lord the days of his separation, and bring a male lamb in its first year (GL)as a trespass offering; but the former days shall be [aq]lost, because his separation was defiled.

13 ‘Now this is the law of the Nazirite: (GM)When the days of his separation are fulfilled, he shall be brought to the door of the tabernacle of meeting. 14 And he shall present his offering to the Lord: one male lamb in its first year without blemish as a burnt offering, one ewe lamb in its first year without blemish (GN)as a sin offering, one ram without blemish (GO)as a peace offering, 15 a basket of unleavened bread, (GP)cakes of fine flour mixed with oil, unleavened wafers (GQ)anointed with oil, and their grain offering with their (GR)drink offerings.

16 ‘Then the priest shall bring them before the Lord and offer his sin offering and his burnt offering; 17 and he shall offer the ram as a sacrifice of a peace offering to the Lord, with the basket of unleavened bread; the priest shall also offer its grain offering and its drink offering. 18 (GS)Then the Nazirite shall shave his consecrated head at the door of the tabernacle of meeting, and shall take the hair from his consecrated head and put it on the fire which is under the sacrifice of the peace offering.

19 ‘And the priest shall take the (GT)boiled shoulder of the ram, one (GU)unleavened cake from the basket, and one unleavened wafer, and (GV)put them upon the hands of the Nazirite after he has shaved his consecrated hair, 20 and the priest shall wave them as a wave offering before the Lord; (GW)they are holy for the priest, together with the breast of the wave offering and the thigh of the heave offering. After that the Nazirite may drink wine.’

21 “This is the law of the Nazirite who vows to the Lord the offering for his separation, and besides that, whatever else his hand is able to provide; according to the vow which he takes, so he must do according to the law of his separation.”

The Priestly Blessing

22 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: 23 “Speak to Aaron and his sons, saying, ‘This is the way you shall bless the children of Israel. Say to them:

24 “The Lord (GX)bless you and (GY)keep you;
25 The Lord (GZ)make His face shine upon you,
And (HA)be gracious to you;
26 (HB)The Lord [ar]lift up His countenance upon you,
And (HC)give you peace.” ’

27 (HD)“So they shall [as]put My name on the children of Israel, and (HE)I will bless them.”

Offerings of the Leaders

Now it came to pass, when Moses had finished (HF)setting up the tabernacle, that he (HG)anointed it and consecrated it and all its furnishings, and the altar and all its utensils; so he anointed them and consecrated them. Then (HH)the leaders of Israel, the heads of their fathers’ houses, who were the leaders of the tribes [at]and over those who were numbered, made an offering. And they brought their offering before the Lord, six covered carts and twelve oxen, a cart for every two of the leaders, and for each one an ox; and they presented them before the tabernacle.

Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “Accept these from them, that they may be used in doing the work of the tabernacle of meeting; and you shall give them to the Levites, to every man according to his service.” So Moses took the carts and the oxen, and gave them to the Levites. Two carts and four oxen (HI)he gave to the sons of Gershon, according to their service; (HJ)and four carts and eight oxen he gave to the sons of Merari, according to their service, under the [au]authority of Ithamar the son of Aaron the priest. But to the sons of Kohath he gave none, because theirs was (HK)the service of the holy things, (HL)which they carried on their shoulders.

10 Now the leaders offered (HM)the dedication offering for the altar when it was anointed; so the leaders offered their offering before the altar. 11 For the Lord said to Moses, “They shall offer their offering, one leader each day, for the dedication of the altar.”

12 And the one who offered his offering on the first day was (HN)Nahshon the son of Amminadab, from the tribe of Judah. 13 His offering was one silver platter, the weight of which was one hundred and thirty shekels, and one silver bowl of seventy shekels, according to (HO)the shekel of the sanctuary, both of them full of fine flour mixed with oil as a (HP)grain offering; 14 one gold pan of ten shekels, full of (HQ)incense; 15 (HR)one young bull, one ram, and one male lamb (HS)in its first year, as a burnt offering; 16 one kid of the goats as a (HT)sin offering; 17 and for (HU)the sacrifice of peace offerings: two oxen, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs in their first year. This was the offering of Nahshon the son of Amminadab.

18 On the second day Nethanel the son of Zuar, leader of Issachar, presented an offering. 19 For his offering he offered one silver platter, the weight of which was one hundred and thirty shekels, and one silver bowl of seventy shekels, according to the shekel of the sanctuary, both of them full of fine flour mixed with oil as a grain offering; 20 one gold pan of ten shekels, full of incense; 21 one young bull, one ram, and one male lamb in its first year, as a burnt offering; 22 one kid of the goats as a sin offering; 23 and as the sacrifice of peace offerings: two oxen, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs in their first year. This was the offering of Nethanel the son of Zuar.

24 On the third day Eliab the son of Helon, leader of the children of Zebulun, presented an offering. 25 His offering was one silver platter, the weight of which was one hundred and thirty shekels, and one silver bowl of seventy shekels, according to the shekel of the sanctuary, both of them full of fine flour mixed with oil as a grain offering; 26 one gold pan of ten shekels, full of incense; 27 one young bull, one ram, and one male lamb in its first year, as a burnt offering; 28 one kid of the goats as a sin offering; 29 and for the sacrifice of peace offerings: two oxen, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs in their first year. This was the offering of Eliab the son of Helon.

30 On the fourth day (HV)Elizur the son of Shedeur, leader of the children of Reuben, presented an offering. 31 His offering was one silver platter, the weight of which was one hundred and thirty shekels, and one silver bowl of seventy shekels, according to the shekel of the sanctuary, both of them full of fine flour mixed with oil as a grain offering; 32 one gold pan of ten shekels, full of incense; 33 one young bull, one ram, and one male lamb in its first year, as a burnt offering; 34 one kid of the goats as a sin offering; 35 and as the sacrifice of peace offerings: two oxen, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs in their first year. This was the offering of Elizur the son of Shedeur.

36 On the fifth day (HW)Shelumiel the son of Zurishaddai, leader of the children of Simeon, presented an offering. 37 His offering was one silver platter, the weight of which was one hundred and thirty shekels, and one silver bowl of seventy shekels, according to the shekel of the sanctuary, both of them full of fine flour mixed with oil as a grain offering; 38 one gold pan of ten shekels, full of incense; 39 one young bull, one ram, and one male lamb in its first year, as a burnt offering; 40 one kid of the goats as a sin offering; 41 and as the sacrifice of peace offerings: two oxen, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs in their first year. This was the offering of Shelumiel the son of Zurishaddai.

42 On the sixth day (HX)Eliasaph the son of [av]Deuel, leader of the children of Gad, presented an offering. 43 His offering was one silver platter, the weight of which was one hundred and thirty shekels, and one silver bowl of seventy shekels, according to the shekel of the sanctuary, both of them full of fine flour mixed with oil as a grain offering; 44 one gold pan of ten shekels, full of incense; 45 one young bull, one ram, and one male lamb in its first year, as (HY)a burnt offering; 46 one kid of the goats as a sin offering; 47 and as the sacrifice of peace offerings: two oxen, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs in their first year. This was the offering of Eliasaph the son of Deuel.

48 On the seventh day (HZ)Elishama the son of Ammihud, leader of the children of Ephraim, presented an offering. 49 His offering was one silver platter, the weight of which was one hundred and thirty shekels, and one silver bowl of seventy shekels, according to the shekel of the sanctuary, both of them full of fine flour mixed with oil as a grain offering; 50 one gold pan of ten shekels, full of incense; 51 one young bull, one ram, and one male lamb in its first year, as a burnt offering; 52 one kid of the goats as a sin offering; 53 and as the sacrifice of peace offerings: two oxen, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs in their first year. This was the offering of Elishama the son of Ammihud.

54 On the eighth day (IA)Gamaliel the son of Pedahzur, leader of the children of Manasseh, presented an offering. 55 His offering was one silver platter, the weight of which was one hundred and thirty shekels, and one silver bowl of seventy shekels, according to the shekel of the sanctuary, both of them full of fine flour mixed with oil as a grain offering; 56 one gold pan of ten shekels, full of incense; 57 one young bull, one ram, and one male lamb in its first year, as a burnt offering; 58 one kid of the goats as a sin offering; 59 and as the sacrifice of peace offerings: two oxen, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs in their first year. This was the offering of Gamaliel the son of Pedahzur.

60 On the ninth day (IB)Abidan the son of Gideoni, leader of the children of Benjamin, presented an offering. 61 His offering was one silver platter, the weight of which was one hundred and thirty shekels, and one silver bowl of seventy shekels, according to the shekel of the sanctuary, both of them full of fine flour mixed with oil as a grain offering; 62 one gold pan of ten shekels, full of incense; 63 one young bull, one ram, and one male lamb in its first year, as a burnt offering; 64 one kid of the goats as a sin offering; 65 and as the sacrifice of peace offerings: two oxen, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs in their first year. This was the offering of Abidan the son of Gideoni.

66 On the tenth day (IC)Ahiezer the son of Ammishaddai, leader of the children of Dan, presented an offering. 67 His offering was one silver platter, the weight of which was one hundred and thirty shekels, and one silver bowl of seventy shekels, according to the shekel of the sanctuary, both of them full of fine flour mixed with oil as a grain offering; 68 one gold pan of ten shekels, full of incense; 69 one young bull, one ram, and one male lamb in its first year, as a burnt offering; 70 one kid of the goats as a sin offering; 71 and as the sacrifice of peace offerings: two oxen, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs in their first year. This was the offering of Ahiezer the son of Ammishaddai.

72 On the eleventh day (ID)Pagiel the son of Ocran, leader of the children of Asher, presented an offering. 73 His offering was one silver platter, the weight of which was one hundred and thirty shekels, and one silver bowl of seventy shekels, according to the shekel of the sanctuary, both of them full of fine flour mixed with oil as a grain offering; 74 one gold pan of ten shekels, full of incense; 75 one young bull, one ram, and one male lamb in its first year, as a burnt offering; 76 one kid of the goats as a sin offering; 77 and as the sacrifice of peace offerings: two oxen, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs in their first year. This was the offering of Pagiel the son of Ocran.

78 On the twelfth day (IE)Ahira the son of Enan, leader of the children of Naphtali, presented an offering. 79 His offering was one silver platter, the weight of which was one hundred and thirty shekels, and one silver bowl of seventy shekels, according to the shekel of the sanctuary, both of them full of fine flour mixed with oil as a grain offering; 80 one gold pan of ten shekels, full of incense; 81 one young bull, one ram, and one male lamb in its first year, as a burnt offering; 82 one kid of the goats as a sin offering; 83 and as the sacrifice of peace offerings: two oxen, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs in their first year. This was the offering of Ahira the son of Enan.

84 This was (IF)the dedication offering for the altar from the leaders of Israel, when it was anointed: twelve silver platters, twelve silver bowls, and twelve gold pans. 85 Each silver platter weighed one hundred and thirty shekels and each bowl seventy shekels. All the silver of the vessels weighed two thousand four hundred shekels, according to the shekel of the sanctuary. 86 The twelve gold pans full of incense weighed ten shekels apiece, according to the shekel of the sanctuary; all the gold of the pans weighed one hundred and twenty shekels. 87 All the oxen for the burnt offering were twelve young bulls, the rams twelve, the male lambs in their first year twelve, with their grain offering, and the kids of the goats as a sin offering twelve. 88 And all the oxen for the sacrifice of peace offerings were twenty-four bulls, the rams sixty, the male goats sixty, and the lambs in their first year sixty. This was the dedication offering for the altar after it was (IG)anointed.

89 Now when Moses went into the tabernacle of meeting (IH)to speak with Him, he heard (II)the voice of One speaking to him from above the mercy seat that was on the ark of the Testimony, from (IJ)between the two cherubim; thus He spoke to him.

Arrangement of the Lamps(IK)

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

Cleansing and Dedication of the Levites

Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: “Take the Levites from among the children of Israel and cleanse them ceremonially. Thus you shall do to them to cleanse them: Sprinkle (IQ)water of purification on them, and (IR)let[aw] them shave all their body, and let them wash their clothes, and so make themselves clean. Then let them take a young bull with (IS)its grain offering of fine flour mixed with oil, and you shall take another young bull as a sin offering. (IT)And you shall bring the Levites before the tabernacle of meeting, (IU)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 (IV)shall lay their hands on the Levites; 11 and Aaron shall [ax]offer the Levites before the Lord like a (IW)wave offering from the children of Israel, that they may perform the work of the Lord. 12 (IX)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 (IY)separate the Levites from among the children of Israel, and the Levites shall be (IZ)Mine. 15 After that the Levites shall go in to service the tabernacle of meeting. So you shall cleanse them and (JA)offer them like a wave offering. 16 For they are (JB)wholly given to Me from among the children of Israel; I have taken them for Myself (JC)instead of all who open the womb, the firstborn of all the children of Israel. 17 (JD)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 [ay]sanctified them to Myself. 18 I have taken the Levites instead of all the firstborn of the children of Israel. 19 And (JE)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, (JF)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 (JG)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 (JH)After that the Levites went in to do their work in the tabernacle of meeting before Aaron and his sons; (JI)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: (JJ)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, (JK)to attend to needs, but they themselves shall do no work. Thus you shall do to the Levites regarding their duties.”

The Second Passover(JL)

Now the Lord spoke to Moses in the Wilderness of Sinai, in the first month of the second year after they had come out of the land of Egypt, saying: “Let the children of Israel keep (JM)the Passover at its appointed (JN)time. On the fourteenth day of this month, [az]at twilight, you shall [ba]keep it at its appointed time. According to all its [bb]rites and ceremonies you shall keep it.” So Moses told the children of Israel that they should keep the Passover. And (JO)they kept the Passover on the fourteenth day of the first month, at twilight, in the Wilderness of Sinai; according to all that the Lord commanded Moses, so the children of Israel did.

Now there were certain men who were (JP)defiled by a human corpse, so that they could not keep the Passover on that day; (JQ)and they came before Moses and Aaron that day. And those men said to him, “We became defiled by a human corpse. Why are we kept from presenting the offering of the Lord at its appointed time among the children of Israel?”

And Moses said to them, “Stand still, that (JR)I may hear what the Lord will command concerning you.”

Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 10 “Speak to the children of Israel, saying: ‘If anyone of you or your [bc]posterity is unclean because of a corpse, or is far away on a journey, he may still keep the Lord’s Passover. 11 On (JS)the fourteenth day of the second month, at twilight, they may keep it. They shall (JT)eat it with unleavened bread and bitter herbs. 12 (JU)They shall leave none of it until morning, (JV)nor break one of its bones. (JW)According to all the [bd]ordinances of the Passover they shall keep it. 13 But the man who is clean and is not on a journey, and ceases to keep the Passover, that same person (JX)shall be cut off from among his people, because he (JY)did not bring the offering of the Lord at its appointed time; that man shall (JZ)bear his sin.

14 ‘And if a stranger [be]dwells among you, and would keep the Lord’s Passover, he must do so according to the rite of the Passover and according to its ceremony; (KA)you shall have one [bf]ordinance, both for the stranger and the native of the land.’ ”

The Cloud and the Fire(KB)

15 Now (KC)on the day that the tabernacle was raised up, the cloud (KD)covered the tabernacle, the tent of the Testimony; (KE)from evening until morning it was above the tabernacle like the appearance of fire. 16 So it was always: the cloud covered it by day, and the appearance of fire by night. 17 Whenever the cloud (KF)was [bg]taken up from above the tabernacle, after that the children of Israel would journey; and in the place where the cloud settled, there the children of Israel would pitch their tents. 18 At the [bh]command of the Lord the children of Israel would journey, and at the command of the Lord they would camp; (KG)as long as the cloud stayed above the tabernacle they remained encamped. 19 Even when the cloud continued long, many days above the tabernacle, the children of Israel (KH)kept the charge of the Lord and did not journey. 20 So it was, when the cloud was above the tabernacle a few days: according to the command of the Lord they would remain encamped, and according to the command of the Lord they would journey. 21 So it was, when the cloud remained only from evening until morning: when the cloud was taken up in the morning, then they would journey; whether by day or by night, whenever the cloud was taken up, they would journey. 22 Whether it was two days, a month, or a year that the cloud remained above the tabernacle, the children of Israel (KI)would remain encamped and not journey; but when it was taken up, they would journey. 23 At the command of the Lord they remained encamped, and at the command of the Lord they journeyed; they (KJ)kept the charge of the Lord, at the command of the Lord by the hand of Moses.

Two Silver Trumpets

10 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: “Make two silver trumpets for yourself; you shall make them of hammered work; you shall use them for (KK)calling the congregation and for directing the movement of the camps. When (KL)they blow both of them, all the congregation shall gather before you at the door of the tabernacle of meeting. But if they blow only one, then the leaders, the (KM)heads of the divisions of Israel, shall gather to you. When you sound the (KN)advance, (KO)the camps that lie on the east side shall then begin their journey. When you sound the advance the second time, then the camps that lie (KP)on the south side shall begin their journey; they shall sound the call for them to begin their journeys. And when the assembly is to be gathered together, (KQ)you shall blow, but not (KR)sound the advance. (KS)The sons of Aaron, the priests, shall blow the trumpets; and these shall be to you as an [bi]ordinance forever throughout your generations.

(KT)“When you go to war in your land against the enemy who (KU)oppresses you, then you shall sound an alarm with the trumpets, and you will be (KV)remembered before the Lord your God, and you will be saved from your enemies. 10 Also (KW)in the day of your gladness, in your appointed feasts, and at the beginning of your months, you shall blow the trumpets over your burnt offerings and over the sacrifices of your peace offerings; and they shall be (KX)a memorial for you before your God: I am the Lord your God.”

Departure from Sinai

11 Now it came to pass on the twentieth day of the second month, in the second year, that the cloud (KY)was taken up from above the tabernacle of the Testimony. 12 And the children of Israel set out from the (KZ)Wilderness of Sinai on (LA)their journeys; then the cloud settled down in the (LB)Wilderness of Paran. 13 So they started out for the first time (LC)according to the command of the Lord by the hand of Moses.

14 The [bj]standard of the camp of the children of Judah (LD)set out first according to their armies; over their army was (LE)Nahshon the son of Amminadab. 15 Over the army of the tribe of the children of Issachar was Nethanel the son of Zuar. 16 And over the army of the tribe of the children of Zebulun was Eliab the son of Helon.

17 Then (LF)the tabernacle was taken down; and the sons of Gershon and the sons of Merari set out, (LG)carrying the tabernacle.

18 And (LH)the standard of the camp of Reuben set out according to their armies; over their army was Elizur the son of Shedeur. 19 Over the army of the tribe of the children of Simeon was Shelumiel the son of Zurishaddai. 20 And over the army of the tribe of the children of Gad was Eliasaph the son of Deuel.

21 Then the Kohathites set out, carrying the (LI)holy things. (The tabernacle would be [bk]prepared for their arrival.)

22 And (LJ)the standard of the camp of the children of Ephraim set out according to their armies; over their army was Elishama the son of Ammihud. 23 Over the army of the tribe of the children of Manasseh was Gamaliel the son of Pedahzur. 24 And over the army of the tribe of the children of Benjamin was Abidan the son of Gideoni.

25 Then (LK)the standard of the camp of the children of Dan (the rear guard of all the camps) set out according to their armies; over their army was Ahiezer the son of Ammishaddai. 26 Over the army of the tribe of the children of Asher was Pagiel the son of Ocran. 27 And over the army of the tribe of the children of Naphtali was Ahira the son of Enan.

28 (LL)Thus was the order of march of the children of Israel, according to their armies, when they began their journey.

29 Now Moses said to (LM)Hobab the son of (LN)Reuel[bl] the Midianite, Moses’ father-in-law, “We are setting out for the place of which the Lord said, (LO)‘I will give it to you.’ Come with us, and (LP)we will treat you well; for (LQ)the Lord has promised good things to Israel.”

30 And he said to him, “I will not go, but I will depart to my own land and to my relatives.”

31 So Moses said, “Please do not leave, inasmuch as you know how we are to camp in the wilderness, and you can [bm]be our (LR)eyes. 32 And it shall be, if you go with us—indeed it shall be—that (LS)whatever good the Lord will do to us, the same we will do to you.”

33 So they departed from (LT)the mountain of the Lord on a journey of three days; and the ark of the covenant of the Lord (LU)went before them for the three days’ journey, to search out a resting place for them. 34 And (LV)the cloud of the Lord was above them by day when they went out from the camp.

35 So it was, whenever the ark set out, that Moses said:

(LW)“Rise up, O Lord!
Let Your enemies be scattered,
And let those who hate You flee before You.”

36 And when it rested, he said:

“Return, O Lord,
To the many thousands of Israel.”

The People Complain

11 Now (LX)when the people complained, it displeased the Lord; (LY)for the Lord heard it, and His anger was aroused. So the (LZ)fire of the Lord burned among them, and consumed some in the outskirts of the camp. Then the people (MA)cried out to Moses, and when Moses (MB)prayed to the Lord, the fire was [bn]quenched. So he called the name of the place [bo]Taberah, because the fire of the Lord had burned among them.

Now the (MC)mixed multitude who were among them [bp]yielded to (MD)intense craving; so the children of Israel also wept again and said: (ME)“Who will give us meat to eat? (MF)We remember the fish which we ate freely in Egypt, the cucumbers, the melons, the leeks, the onions, and the garlic; but now (MG)our whole being is dried up; there is nothing at all except this manna before our eyes!”

Now (MH)the manna was like coriander seed, and its color like the color of bdellium. The people went about and gathered it, ground it on millstones or beat it in the mortar, cooked it in pans, and made cakes of it; and (MI)its taste was like the taste of pastry prepared with oil. And (MJ)when the dew fell on the camp in the night, the manna fell on it.

10 Then Moses heard the people weeping throughout their families, everyone at the door of his tent; and (MK)the anger of the Lord was greatly aroused; Moses also was displeased. 11 (ML)So Moses said to the Lord, “Why have You afflicted Your servant? And why have I not found favor in Your sight, that You have laid the [bq]burden of all these people on me? 12 Did I conceive all these people? Did I beget them, that You should say to me, (MM)‘Carry them in your bosom, as a (MN)guardian carries a nursing child,’ to the land which You (MO)swore[br] to their fathers? 13 (MP)Where am I to get meat to give to all these people? For they weep all over me, saying, ‘Give us meat, that we may eat.’ 14 (MQ)I am not able to bear all these people alone, because the burden is too heavy for me. 15 If You treat me like this, please kill me here and now—if I have found favor in Your sight—and (MR)do not let me see my wretchedness!”

The Seventy Elders

16 So the Lord said to Moses: “Gather to Me (MS)seventy men of the elders of Israel, whom you know to be the elders of the people and (MT)officers over them; bring them to the tabernacle of meeting, that they may stand there with you. 17 Then I will come down and talk with you there. (MU)I will take of the Spirit that is upon you and will put the same upon them; and they shall bear the burden of the people with you, that you may not bear it yourself alone. 18 Then you shall say to the people, [bs]‘Consecrate yourselves for tomorrow, and you shall eat meat; for you have wept (MV)in the hearing of the Lord, saying, “Who will give us meat to eat? For it was well with us in Egypt.” Therefore the Lord will give you meat, and you shall eat. 19 You shall eat, not one day, nor two days, nor five days, nor ten days, nor twenty days, 20 (MW)but for a whole month, until it comes out of your nostrils and becomes loathsome to you, because you have (MX)despised the Lord who is among you, and have wept before Him, saying, (MY)“Why did we ever come up out of Egypt?” ’ ”

21 And Moses said, (MZ)“The people whom I am among are six hundred thousand men on foot; yet You have said, ‘I will give them meat, that they may eat for a whole month.’ 22 (NA)Shall flocks and herds be slaughtered for them, to provide enough for them? Or shall all the fish of the sea be gathered together for them, to provide enough for them?”

23 And the Lord said to Moses, (NB)“Has[bt] the Lord’s arm been shortened? Now you shall see whether (NC)what I say will happen to you or not.”

24 So Moses went out and told the people the words of the Lord, and he (ND)gathered the seventy men of the elders of the people and placed them around the tabernacle. 25 Then the Lord came down in the cloud, and spoke to him, and took of the Spirit that was upon him, and placed the same upon the seventy elders; and it happened, (NE)when the Spirit rested upon them, that (NF)they prophesied, [bu]although they never did so again.

26 But two men had remained in the camp: the name of one was Eldad, and the name of the other Medad. And the Spirit rested upon them. Now they were among those listed, but who (NG)had not gone out to the tabernacle; yet they prophesied in the camp. 27 And a young man ran and told Moses, and said, “Eldad and Medad are prophesying in the camp.”

28 So Joshua the son of Nun, Moses’ assistant, one of his choice men, answered and said, “Moses my lord, (NH)forbid them!”

29 Then Moses said to him, “Are you [bv]zealous for my sake? (NI)Oh, that all the Lord’s people were prophets and that the Lord would put His Spirit upon them!” 30 And Moses returned to the camp, he and the elders of Israel.

The Lord Sends Quail

31 Now a (NJ)wind went out from the Lord, and it brought quail from the sea and left them fluttering near the camp, about a day’s journey on this side and about a day’s journey on the other side, all around the camp, and about two cubits above the surface of the ground. 32 And the people stayed up all that day, all night, and all the next day, and gathered the quail (he who gathered least gathered ten (NK)homers); and they spread them out for themselves all around the camp. 33 But while the (NL)meat was still between their teeth, before it was chewed, the wrath of the Lord was aroused against the people, and the Lord struck the people with a very great plague. 34 So he called the name of that place [bw]Kibroth Hattaavah, because there they buried the people who had yielded to craving.

35 (NM)From Kibroth Hattaavah the people moved to Hazeroth, and camped at Hazeroth.

Dissension of Aaron and Miriam

12 Then (NN)Miriam and Aaron [bx]spoke (NO)against Moses because of the [by]Ethiopian woman whom he had married; for (NP)he had married an Ethiopian woman. So they said, “Has the Lord indeed spoken only through (NQ)Moses? (NR)Has He not spoken through us also?” And the Lord (NS)heard it. (Now the man Moses was very humble, more than all men who were on the face of the earth.)

(NT)Suddenly the Lord said to Moses, Aaron, and Miriam, “Come out, you three, to the tabernacle of meeting!” So the three came out. (NU)Then the Lord came down in the pillar of cloud and stood in the door of the tabernacle, and called Aaron and Miriam. And they both went forward. Then He said,

“Hear now My words:
If there is a prophet among you,
I, the Lord, make Myself known to him (NV)in a vision;
I speak to him (NW)in a dream.
Not so with (NX)My servant Moses;
(NY)He is faithful in all (NZ)My house.
I speak with him (OA)face to face,
Even (OB)plainly,[bz] and not in [ca]dark sayings;
And he sees (OC)the form of the Lord.
Why then (OD)were you not afraid
To speak against My servant Moses?”

So the anger of the Lord was aroused against them, and He departed. 10 And when the cloud departed from above the tabernacle, (OE)suddenly Miriam became (OF)leprous, as white as snow. Then Aaron turned toward Miriam, and there she was, a leper. 11 So Aaron said to Moses, “Oh, my lord! Please (OG)do not lay [cb]this sin on us, in which we have done foolishly and in which we have sinned. 12 Please (OH)do not let her be as one dead, whose flesh is half consumed when he comes out of his mother’s womb!”

13 So Moses cried out to the Lord, saying, “Please (OI)heal her, O God, I pray!”

14 Then the Lord said to Moses, “If her father had but (OJ)spit in her face, would she not be shamed seven days? Let her be (OK)shut[cc] out of the camp seven days, and afterward she may be received again. 15 (OL)So Miriam was shut out of the camp seven days, and the people did not journey till Miriam was brought in again. 16 And afterward the people moved from (OM)Hazeroth and camped in the Wilderness of Paran.

Spies Sent into Canaan(ON)

13 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, (OO)“Send men to spy out the land of Canaan, which I am giving to the children of Israel; from each tribe of their fathers you shall send a man, every one a leader among them.”

So Moses sent them (OP)from the Wilderness of Paran according to the command of the Lord, all of them men who were heads of the children of Israel. Now these were their names: from the tribe of Reuben, Shammua the son of Zaccur; from the tribe of Simeon, Shaphat the son of Hori; (OQ)from the tribe of Judah, (OR)Caleb the son of Jephunneh; from the tribe of Issachar, Igal the son of Joseph; from the tribe of Ephraim, [cd]Hoshea the son of Nun; from the tribe of Benjamin, Palti the son of Raphu; 10 from the tribe of Zebulun, Gaddiel the son of Sodi; 11 from the tribe of Joseph, that is, from the tribe of Manasseh, Gaddi the son of Susi; 12 from the tribe of Dan, Ammiel the son of Gemalli; 13 from the tribe of Asher, Sethur the son of Michael; 14 from the tribe of Naphtali, Nahbi the son of Vophsi; 15 from the tribe of Gad, Geuel the son of Machi.

16 These are the names of the men whom Moses sent to [ce]spy out the land. And Moses called (OS)Hoshea[cf] the son of Nun, Joshua.

17 Then Moses sent them to spy out the land of Canaan, and said to them, “Go up this way into the South, and go up to (OT)the mountains, 18 and see what the land is like: whether the people who dwell in it are strong or weak, few or many; 19 whether the land they dwell in is good or bad; whether the cities they inhabit are like camps or strongholds; 20 whether the land is [cg]rich or poor; and whether there are forests there or not. (OU)Be of good courage. And bring some of the fruit of the land.” Now the time was the season of the first ripe grapes.

21 So they went up and spied out the land (OV)from the Wilderness of Zin as far as (OW)Rehob, near the entrance of (OX)Hamath. 22 And they went up through the South and came to (OY)Hebron; Ahiman, Sheshai, and Talmai, the descendants of (OZ)Anak, were there. (Now Hebron was built seven years before Zoan in Egypt.) 23 (PA)Then they came to the [ch]Valley of Eshcol, and there cut down a branch with one cluster of grapes; they carried it between two of them on a pole. They also brought some of the pomegranates and figs. 24 The place was called the Valley of [ci]Eshcol, because of the cluster which the men of Israel cut down there. 25 And they returned from spying out the land after forty days.

26 Now they departed and came back to Moses and Aaron and all the congregation of the children of Israel in the Wilderness of Paran, at (PB)Kadesh; they brought back word to them and to all the congregation, and showed them the fruit of the land. 27 Then they told him, and said: “We went to the land where you sent us. It truly [cj]flows with (PC)milk and honey, (PD)and this is its fruit. 28 Nevertheless the (PE)people who dwell in the land are strong; the cities are fortified and very large; moreover we saw the descendants of (PF)Anak there. 29 (PG)The Amalekites dwell in the land of the South; the Hittites, the Jebusites, and the Amorites dwell in the mountains; and the Canaanites dwell by the sea and along the banks of the Jordan.”

30 Then (PH)Caleb quieted the people before Moses, and said, “Let us go up at once and take possession, for we are well able to overcome it.”

31 (PI)But the men who had gone up with him said, “We are not able to go up against the people, for they are stronger than we.” 32 And they (PJ)gave the children of Israel a bad report of the land which they had spied out, saying, “The land through which we have gone as spies is a land that devours its inhabitants, and (PK)all the people whom we saw in it are men of great stature. 33 There we saw the [ck]giants ((PL)the descendants of Anak came from the giants); and we were (PM)like[cl] grasshoppers in our own sight, and so we were (PN)in their sight.”

Footnotes

  1. Numbers 1:14 Reuel, Num. 2:14
  2. Numbers 1:16 called
  3. Numbers 1:17 designated
  4. Numbers 1:53 have in their care
  5. Numbers 2:2 banner
  6. Numbers 2:9 Lit. set forth
  7. Numbers 2:14 Deuel, Num. 1:14; 7:42
  8. Numbers 2:16 Lit. set forth second
  9. Numbers 2:17 company
  10. Numbers 2:17 whole company
  11. Numbers 2:17 banners
  12. Numbers 2:24 Lit. set forth third
  13. Numbers 2:25 banner
  14. Numbers 2:31 Lit. set forth last
  15. Numbers 2:31 banners
  16. Numbers 2:34 banners
  17. Numbers 3:1 Lit. generations
  18. Numbers 3:3 Lit. whose hands he filled
  19. Numbers 3:9 Sam., LXX Me
  20. Numbers 3:16 Lit. mouth
  21. Numbers 3:28 Some LXX mss. three
  22. Numbers 3:28 taking care of
  23. Numbers 3:40 Take a census of
  24. Numbers 4:7 jars for the drink offering
  25. Numbers 4:7 Lit. continual bread
  26. Numbers 4:14 bowls
  27. Numbers 4:19 assign
  28. Numbers 4:27 command
  29. Numbers 4:27 assign
  30. Numbers 4:28 Lit. hand
  31. Numbers 4:33 Lit. hand
  32. Numbers 4:42 household
  33. Numbers 5:2 by contact with
  34. Numbers 5:8 redeemer, Heb. goel
  35. Numbers 5:9 heave offering
  36. Numbers 5:10 consecrated
  37. Numbers 5:21 Lit. fall away
  38. Numbers 5:31 guilt
  39. Numbers 5:31 iniquity
  40. Numbers 6:2 Or makes a difficult vow
  41. Numbers 6:4 Separation as a Nazirite
  42. Numbers 6:7 By touching a dead body
  43. Numbers 6:12 void
  44. Numbers 6:26 Look upon you with favor
  45. Numbers 6:27 invoke
  46. Numbers 7:2 Lit. who stood over
  47. Numbers 7:8 Lit. hand
  48. Numbers 7:42 Reuel, Num. 2:14
  49. Numbers 8:7 Heb. let them cause a razor to pass over
  50. Numbers 8:11 present
  51. Numbers 8:17 set them apart
  52. Numbers 9:3 Lit. between the evenings
  53. Numbers 9:3 observe
  54. Numbers 9:3 statutes
  55. Numbers 9:10 descendants
  56. Numbers 9:12 statutes
  57. Numbers 9:14 As a resident alien
  58. Numbers 9:14 statute
  59. Numbers 9:17 lifted up
  60. Numbers 9:18 Lit. mouth
  61. Numbers 10:8 statute
  62. Numbers 10:14 banner
  63. Numbers 10:21 Prepared by the Gershonites and the Merarites
  64. Numbers 10:29 Jethro, Ex. 3:1; LXX Raguel
  65. Numbers 10:31 Act as our guide
  66. Numbers 11:2 extinguished
  67. Numbers 11:3 Lit. Burning
  68. Numbers 11:4 Lit. lusted intensely
  69. Numbers 11:11 responsibility
  70. Numbers 11:12 solemnly promised
  71. Numbers 11:18 Set yourselves apart
  72. Numbers 11:23 Is the Lord’s power limited?
  73. Numbers 11:25 Tg., Vg. and they did not cease
  74. Numbers 11:29 jealous
  75. Numbers 11:34 Lit. Graves of Craving
  76. Numbers 12:1 criticized
  77. Numbers 12:1 Cushite
  78. Numbers 12:8 appearing
  79. Numbers 12:8 riddles
  80. Numbers 12:11 the penalty for this
  81. Numbers 12:14 exiled
  82. Numbers 13:8 LXX, Vg. Oshea
  83. Numbers 13:16 secretly search
  84. Numbers 13:16 LXX, Vg. Oshea
  85. Numbers 13:20 fertile or barren
  86. Numbers 13:23 Wadi
  87. Numbers 13:24 Lit. Cluster
  88. Numbers 13:27 Has an abundance of food
  89. Numbers 13:33 Heb. nephilim
  90. Numbers 13:33 As mere insects
'Numbers 1-28' not found for the version: Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition.

The First Census of Israel(A)

Now the Lord spoke to Moses (B)in the Wilderness of Sinai, (C)in the tabernacle of meeting, on the (D)first day of the second month, in the second year after they had come out of the land of Egypt, saying: (E)“Take a census of all the congregation of the children of Israel, by their families, by their fathers’ houses, according to the number of names, every male (F)individually, from (G)twenty years old and above—all who are able to go to war in Israel. You and Aaron shall number them by their armies. And with you there shall be a man from every tribe, each one the head of his father’s house.

“These are the names of the men who shall stand with you: from Reuben, Elizur the son of Shedeur; from Simeon, Shelumiel the son of Zurishaddai; from Judah, Nahshon the son of Amminadab; from Issachar, Nethanel the son of Zuar; from Zebulun, Eliab the son of Helon; 10 from the sons of Joseph: from Ephraim, Elishama the son of Ammihud; from Manasseh, Gamaliel the son of Pedahzur; 11 from Benjamin, Abidan the son of Gideoni; 12 from Dan, Ahiezer the son of Ammishaddai; 13 from Asher, Pagiel the son of Ocran; 14 from Gad, Eliasaph the son of (H)Deuel;[a] 15 from Naphtali, Ahira the son of Enan.” 16 (I)These were (J)chosen[b] from the congregation, leaders of their fathers’ tribes, (K)heads of the divisions in Israel.

17 Then Moses and Aaron took these men who had been [c]mentioned (L)by name, 18 and they assembled all the congregation together on the first day of the second month; and they recited their (M)ancestry by families, by their fathers’ houses, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and above, each one individually. 19 As the Lord commanded Moses, so he numbered them in the Wilderness of Sinai.

20 Now the (N)children of Reuben, Israel’s oldest son, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, according to the number of names, every male individually, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: 21 those who were numbered of the tribe of Reuben were forty-six thousand five hundred.

22 From the (O)children of Simeon, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, of those who were numbered, according to the number of names, every male individually, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: 23 those who were numbered of the tribe of Simeon were fifty-nine thousand three hundred.

24 From the (P)children of Gad, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: 25 those who were numbered of the tribe of Gad were forty-five thousand six hundred and fifty.

26 From the (Q)children of Judah, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: 27 those who were numbered of the tribe of Judah were (R)seventy-four thousand six hundred.

28 From the (S)children of Issachar, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: 29 those who were numbered of the tribe of Issachar were fifty-four thousand four hundred.

30 From the (T)children of Zebulun, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: 31 those who were numbered of the tribe of Zebulun were fifty-seven thousand four hundred.

32 From the sons of Joseph, the (U)children of Ephraim, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: 33 those who were numbered of the tribe of Ephraim were forty thousand five hundred.

34 From the (V)children of Manasseh, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: 35 those who were numbered of the tribe of Manasseh were thirty-two thousand two hundred.

36 From the (W)children of Benjamin, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: 37 those who were numbered of the tribe of Benjamin were thirty-five thousand four hundred.

38 From the (X)children of Dan, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: 39 those who were numbered of the tribe of Dan were sixty-two thousand seven hundred.

40 From the (Y)children of Asher, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: 41 those who were numbered of the tribe of Asher were forty-one thousand five hundred.

42 From the children of Naphtali, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: 43 those who were numbered of the tribe of Naphtali were fifty-three thousand four hundred.

44 (Z)These are the ones who were numbered, whom Moses and Aaron numbered, with the leaders of Israel, twelve men, each one representing his father’s house. 45 So all who were numbered of the children of Israel, by their fathers’ houses, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war in Israel— 46 all who were numbered were (AA)six hundred and three thousand five hundred and fifty.

47 But (AB)the Levites were not numbered among them by their fathers’ tribe; 48 for the Lord had spoken to Moses, saying: 49 (AC)“Only the tribe of Levi you shall not number, nor take a census of them among the children of Israel; 50 (AD)but you shall appoint the Levites over the tabernacle of the Testimony, over all its furnishings, and over all things that belong to it; they shall carry the tabernacle and all its furnishings; they shall attend to it (AE)and camp around the tabernacle. 51 (AF)And when the tabernacle is to go forward, the Levites shall take it down; and when the tabernacle is to be set up, the Levites shall set it (AG)up. (AH)The outsider who comes near shall be put to death. 52 The children of Israel shall pitch their tents, (AI)everyone by his own camp, everyone by his own standard, according to their armies; 53 (AJ)but the Levites shall camp around the tabernacle of the Testimony, that there may be no (AK)wrath on the congregation of the children of Israel; and the Levites shall (AL)keep[d] charge of the tabernacle of the Testimony.”

54 Thus the children of Israel did; according to all that the Lord commanded Moses, so they did.

The Tribes and Leaders by Armies

And the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying: (AM)“Everyone of the children of Israel shall camp by his own [e]standard, beside the emblems of his father’s house; they shall camp (AN)some distance from the tabernacle of meeting. On the (AO)east side, toward the rising of the sun, those of the standard of the forces with Judah shall camp according to their armies; and (AP)Nahshon the son of Amminadab shall be the leader of the children of Judah.” And his army was numbered at seventy-four thousand six hundred.

“Those who camp next to him shall be the tribe of Issachar, and Nethanel the son of Zuar shall be the leader of the children of Issachar.” And his army was numbered at fifty-four thousand four hundred.

“Then comes the tribe of Zebulun, and Eliab the son of Helon shall be the leader of the children of Zebulun.” And his army was numbered at fifty-seven thousand four hundred. “All who were numbered according to their armies of the forces with Judah, one hundred and eighty-six thousand four hundred—(AQ)these shall [f]break camp first.

10 “On the (AR)south side shall be the standard of the forces with Reuben according to their armies, and the leader of the children of Reuben shall be Elizur the son of Shedeur.” 11 And his army was numbered at forty-six thousand five hundred.

12 “Those who camp next to him shall be the tribe of Simeon, and the leader of the children of Simeon shall be Shelumiel the son of Zurishaddai.” 13 And his army was numbered at fifty-nine thousand three hundred.

14 “Then comes the tribe of Gad, and the leader of the children of Gad shall be Eliasaph the son of [g]Reuel.” 15 And his army was numbered at forty-five thousand six hundred and fifty. 16 “All who were numbered according to their armies of the forces with Reuben, one hundred and fifty-one thousand four hundred and fifty—(AS)they shall [h]be the second to break camp.

17 (AT)“And the tabernacle of meeting shall move out with the [i]camp of the Levites (AU)in the middle of the [j]camps; as they camp, so they shall move out, everyone in his place, by their [k]standards.

18 “On the west side shall be the standard of the forces with Ephraim according to their armies, and the leader of the children of Ephraim shall be Elishama the son of Ammihud.” 19 And his army was numbered at forty thousand five hundred.

20 “Next to him comes the tribe of Manasseh, and the leader of the children of Manasseh shall be Gamaliel the son of Pedahzur.” 21 And his army was numbered at thirty-two thousand two hundred.

22 “Then comes the tribe of Benjamin, and the leader of the children of Benjamin shall be Abidan the son of Gideoni.” 23 And his army was numbered at thirty-five thousand four hundred. 24 “All who were numbered according to their armies of the forces with Ephraim, one hundred and eight thousand one hundred—(AV)they shall [l]be the third to break camp.

25 “The [m]standard of the forces with Dan shall be on the north side according to their armies, and the leader of the children of Dan shall be Ahiezer the son of Ammishaddai.” 26 And his army was numbered at sixty-two thousand seven hundred.

27 “Those who camp next to him shall be the tribe of Asher, and the leader of the children of Asher shall be Pagiel the son of Ocran.” 28 And his army was numbered at forty-one thousand five hundred.

29 “Then comes the tribe of Naphtali, and the leader of the children of Naphtali shall be Ahira the son of Enan.” 30 And his army was numbered at fifty-three thousand four hundred. 31 “All who were numbered of the forces with Dan, one hundred and fifty-seven thousand six hundred—(AW)they shall [n]break camp last, with their [o]standards.”

32 These are the ones who were numbered of the children of Israel by their fathers’ houses. (AX)All who were numbered according to their armies of the forces were six hundred and three thousand five hundred and fifty. 33 But (AY)the Levites were not numbered among the children of Israel, just as the Lord commanded Moses.

34 Thus the children of Israel (AZ)did according to all that the Lord commanded Moses; (BA)so they camped by their [p]standards and so they broke camp, each one by his family, according to their fathers’ houses.

The Sons of Aaron(BB)

Now these are the (BC)records[q] of Aaron and Moses when the Lord spoke with Moses on Mount Sinai. And these are the names of the sons of Aaron: Nadab, the (BD)firstborn, and (BE)Abihu, Eleazar, and Ithamar. These are the names of the sons of Aaron, (BF)the anointed priests, [r]whom he consecrated to minister as priests. (BG)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

And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: (BH)“Bring the tribe of Levi near, and present them before Aaron the priest, that they may serve him. And they shall attend to his needs and the needs of the whole congregation before the tabernacle of meeting, to do (BI)the work of the tabernacle. 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. And (BJ)you shall give the Levites to Aaron and his sons; they are given entirely to [s]him from among the children of Israel. 10 So you shall appoint Aaron and his sons, (BK)and they shall attend to their priesthood; (BL)but the outsider who comes near shall be put to death.”

11 Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: 12 “Now behold, (BM)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 (BN)Mine, 13 because (BO)all the firstborn are Mine. (BP)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(BQ)

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 (BR)every male from a month old and above.”

16 So Moses numbered them according to the [t]word of the Lord, as he was commanded. 17 (BS)These were the sons of Levi by their names: Gershon, Kohath, and Merari. 18 And these are the names of the sons of (BT)Gershon by their families: (BU)Libni and Shimei. 19 And the sons of (BV)Kohath by their families: (BW)Amram, Izehar, Hebron, and Uzziel. 20 (BX)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 (BY)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 (BZ)The duties of the children of Gershon in the tabernacle of meeting included (CA)the tabernacle, (CB)the tent with (CC)its covering, (CD)the screen for the door of the tabernacle of meeting, 26 (CE)the screen for the door of the court, (CF)the hangings of the court which are around the tabernacle and the altar, and (CG)their cords, according to all the work relating to them.

27 (CH)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 [u]six hundred [v]keeping charge of the sanctuary. 29 (CI)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 (CJ)Uzziel. 31 (CK)Their duty included (CL)the ark, (CM)the table, (CN)the lampstand, (CO)the altars, the utensils of the sanctuary with which they ministered, (CP)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. (CQ)These were to camp on the north side of the tabernacle. 36 And (CR)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 (CS)Moreover those who were to camp before the tabernacle on the east, before the tabernacle of meeting, were Moses, Aaron, and his sons, (CT)keeping charge of the sanctuary, (CU)to meet the needs of the children of Israel; but (CV)the outsider who came near was to be put to death. 39 (CW)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: (CX)“Number[w] all the firstborn males of the children of Israel from a month old and above, and take the number of their names. 41 (CY)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 (CZ)“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 (DA)the redemption of the two hundred and seventy-three of the firstborn of the children of Israel, (DB)who are more than the number of the Levites, 47 you shall take (DC)five shekels for each one (DD)individually; you shall take them in the currency of the shekel of the sanctuary, (DE)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, (DF)one thousand three hundred and sixty-five shekels, according to the shekel of the sanctuary. 51 And Moses (DG)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

Then the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying: “Take a census of the sons of (DH)Kohath from among the children of Levi, by their families, by their fathers’ house, (DI)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.

(DJ)“This is the service of the sons of Kohath in the tabernacle of meeting, relating to (DK)the most holy things: When the camp prepares to journey, Aaron and his sons shall come, and they shall take down (DL)the covering veil and cover the (DM)ark of the Testimony with it. Then they shall put on it a covering of badger skins, and spread over that a cloth entirely of (DN)blue; and they shall insert (DO)its poles.

“On the (DP)table of showbread they shall spread a blue cloth, and put on it the dishes, the pans, the bowls, and the [x]pitchers for pouring; and the (DQ)showbread[y] shall be on it. They shall spread over them a scarlet cloth, and cover the same with a covering of badger skins; and they shall insert its poles. And they shall take a blue cloth and cover the (DR)lampstand of the light, (DS)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 (DT)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 (DU)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 [z]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 (DV)the sons of Kohath shall come to carry them; (DW)but they shall not touch any holy thing, lest they die.

(DX)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 (DY)the oil for the light, the (DZ)sweet incense, (EA)the daily grain offering, the (EB)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 (EC)the most holy things: Aaron and his sons shall go in and [aa]appoint each of them to his service and his task. 20 (ED)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 (EE)Gershon, by their fathers’ house, by their families. 23 (EF)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 (EG)service of the families of the Gershonites, in serving and carrying: 25 (EH)They shall carry the (EI)curtains of the tabernacle and the tabernacle of meeting with its covering, the covering of (EJ)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 [ab]assign all the service of the sons of the Gershonites, all their tasks and all their service. And you shall [ac]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 (EK)under the [ad]authority of Ithamar the son of Aaron the priest.

Duties of the Sons of Merari

29 As for the sons of (EL)Merari, you shall number them by their families and by their fathers’ house. 30 (EM)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 (EN)this is (EO)what they must carry as all their service for the tabernacle of meeting: (EP)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 (EQ)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 [ae]authority of Ithamar the son of Aaron the priest.”

Census of the Levites

34 (ER)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 (ES)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 (ET)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’ [af]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 (EU)according to the word of the Lord by the hand of Moses.

46 All who were (EV)numbered of the Levites, whom Moses, Aaron, and the leaders of Israel numbered, by their families and by their fathers’ houses, 47 (EW)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, (EX)each according to his service and according to his task; thus were they numbered by him, (EY)as the Lord commanded Moses.

Ceremonially Unclean Persons Isolated(EZ)

And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: “Command the children of Israel that they put out of the camp every (FA)leper, everyone who has a (FB)discharge, and whoever becomes (FC)defiled [ag]by a corpse. You shall put out both male and female; you shall put them outside the camp, that they may not defile their camps (FD)in the midst of which I dwell.” And the children of Israel did so, and put them outside the camp; as the Lord spoke to Moses, so the children of Israel did.

Confession and Restitution(FE)

Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “Speak to the children of Israel: (FF)‘When a man or woman commits any sin that men commit in unfaithfulness against the Lord, and that person is guilty, (FG)then he shall confess the sin which he has committed. He shall make restitution for his trespass (FH)in full, plus one-fifth of it, and give it to the one he has wronged. But if the man has no [ah]relative to whom restitution may be made for the wrong, the restitution for the wrong must go to the Lord for the priest, in addition to (FI)the ram of the atonement with which atonement is made for him. Every (FJ)offering[ai] of all the holy things of the children of Israel, which they bring to the priest, shall be (FK)his. 10 And every man’s [aj]holy things shall be his; whatever any man gives the priest shall be (FL)his.’ ”

Concerning Unfaithful Wives

11 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 12 “Speak to the children of Israel, and say to them: ‘If any man’s wife goes astray and behaves unfaithfully toward him, 13 and a man (FM)lies with her carnally, and it is hidden from the eyes of her husband, and it is concealed that she has defiled herself, and there was no witness against her, nor was she (FN)caught— 14 if the spirit of jealousy comes upon him and he becomes (FO)jealous of his wife, who has defiled herself; or if the spirit of jealousy comes upon him and he becomes jealous of his wife, although she has not defiled herself— 15 then the man shall bring his wife to the priest. He shall (FP)bring the offering required for her, one-tenth of an ephah of barley meal; he shall pour no oil on it and put no frankincense on it, because it is a grain offering of jealousy, an offering for remembering, for (FQ)bringing iniquity to remembrance.

16 ‘And the priest shall bring her near, and set her before the Lord. 17 The priest shall take holy water in an earthen vessel, and take some of the dust that is on the floor of the tabernacle and put it into the water. 18 Then the priest shall stand the woman before the (FR)Lord, uncover the woman’s head, and put the offering for remembering in her hands, which is the grain offering of jealousy. And the priest shall have in his hand the bitter water that brings a curse. 19 And the priest shall put her under oath, and say to the woman, “If no man has lain with you, and if you have not gone astray to uncleanness while under your husband’s authority, be free from this bitter water that brings a curse. 20 But if you have gone astray while under your husband’s authority, and if you have defiled yourself and some man other than your husband has lain with you”— 21 then the priest shall (FS)put the woman under the oath of the curse, and he shall say to the woman—(FT)“the Lord make you a curse and an oath among your people, when the Lord makes your thigh [ak]rot and your belly swell; 22 and may this water that causes the curse (FU)go into your stomach, and make your belly swell and your thigh rot.”

(FV)Then the woman shall say, “Amen, so be it.”

23 ‘Then the priest shall write these curses in a book, and he shall scrape them off into the bitter water. 24 And he shall make the woman drink the bitter water that brings a curse, and the water that brings the curse shall enter her to become bitter. 25 (FW)Then the priest shall take the grain offering of jealousy from the woman’s hand, shall (FX)wave the offering before the Lord, and bring it to the altar; 26 and the priest shall take a handful of the offering, (FY)as its memorial portion, burn it on the altar, and afterward make the woman drink the water. 27 When he has made her drink the water, then it shall be, if she has defiled herself and behaved unfaithfully toward her husband, that the water that brings a (FZ)curse will enter her and become bitter, and her belly will swell, her thigh will rot, and the woman (GA)will become a curse among her people. 28 But if the woman has not defiled herself, and is clean, then she shall be free and may conceive children.

29 ‘This is the law of jealousy, when a wife, while under her husband’s authority, (GB)goes astray and defiles herself, 30 or when the spirit of jealousy comes upon a man, and he becomes jealous of his wife; then he shall stand the woman before the Lord, and the priest shall execute all this law upon her. 31 Then the man shall be free from [al]iniquity, but that woman (GC)shall bear her [am]guilt.’ ”

The Law of the Nazirite

Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “Speak to the children of Israel, and say to them: ‘When either a man or woman [an]consecrates an offering to take the vow of a Nazirite, (GD)to separate himself to the Lord, (GE)he shall separate himself from wine and similar drink; he shall drink neither vinegar made from wine nor vinegar made from similar drink; neither shall he drink any grape juice, nor eat fresh grapes or raisins. All the days of his [ao]separation he shall eat nothing that is produced by the grapevine, from seed to skin.

‘All the days of the vow of his separation no (GF)razor shall come upon his head; until the days are fulfilled for which he separated himself to the Lord, he shall be holy. Then he shall let the locks of the hair of his head grow. All the days that he separates himself to the Lord (GG)he shall not go near a dead body. (GH)He shall not [ap]make himself unclean even for his father or his mother, for his brother or his sister, when they die, because his separation to God is on his head. (GI)All the days of his separation he shall be holy to the Lord.

‘And if anyone dies very suddenly beside him, and he defiles his consecrated head, then he shall (GJ)shave his head on the day of his cleansing; on the seventh day he shall shave it. 10 Then (GK)on the eighth day he shall bring two turtledoves or two young pigeons to the priest, to the door of the tabernacle of meeting; 11 and the priest shall offer one as a sin offering and the other as a burnt offering, and make atonement for him, because he sinned in regard to the corpse; and he shall sanctify his head that same day. 12 He shall consecrate to the Lord the days of his separation, and bring a male lamb in its first year (GL)as a trespass offering; but the former days shall be [aq]lost, because his separation was defiled.

13 ‘Now this is the law of the Nazirite: (GM)When the days of his separation are fulfilled, he shall be brought to the door of the tabernacle of meeting. 14 And he shall present his offering to the Lord: one male lamb in its first year without blemish as a burnt offering, one ewe lamb in its first year without blemish (GN)as a sin offering, one ram without blemish (GO)as a peace offering, 15 a basket of unleavened bread, (GP)cakes of fine flour mixed with oil, unleavened wafers (GQ)anointed with oil, and their grain offering with their (GR)drink offerings.

16 ‘Then the priest shall bring them before the Lord and offer his sin offering and his burnt offering; 17 and he shall offer the ram as a sacrifice of a peace offering to the Lord, with the basket of unleavened bread; the priest shall also offer its grain offering and its drink offering. 18 (GS)Then the Nazirite shall shave his consecrated head at the door of the tabernacle of meeting, and shall take the hair from his consecrated head and put it on the fire which is under the sacrifice of the peace offering.

19 ‘And the priest shall take the (GT)boiled shoulder of the ram, one (GU)unleavened cake from the basket, and one unleavened wafer, and (GV)put them upon the hands of the Nazirite after he has shaved his consecrated hair, 20 and the priest shall wave them as a wave offering before the Lord; (GW)they are holy for the priest, together with the breast of the wave offering and the thigh of the heave offering. After that the Nazirite may drink wine.’

21 “This is the law of the Nazirite who vows to the Lord the offering for his separation, and besides that, whatever else his hand is able to provide; according to the vow which he takes, so he must do according to the law of his separation.”

The Priestly Blessing

22 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: 23 “Speak to Aaron and his sons, saying, ‘This is the way you shall bless the children of Israel. Say to them:

24 “The Lord (GX)bless you and (GY)keep you;
25 The Lord (GZ)make His face shine upon you,
And (HA)be gracious to you;
26 (HB)The Lord [ar]lift up His countenance upon you,
And (HC)give you peace.” ’

27 (HD)“So they shall [as]put My name on the children of Israel, and (HE)I will bless them.”

Offerings of the Leaders

Now it came to pass, when Moses had finished (HF)setting up the tabernacle, that he (HG)anointed it and consecrated it and all its furnishings, and the altar and all its utensils; so he anointed them and consecrated them. Then (HH)the leaders of Israel, the heads of their fathers’ houses, who were the leaders of the tribes [at]and over those who were numbered, made an offering. And they brought their offering before the Lord, six covered carts and twelve oxen, a cart for every two of the leaders, and for each one an ox; and they presented them before the tabernacle.

Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “Accept these from them, that they may be used in doing the work of the tabernacle of meeting; and you shall give them to the Levites, to every man according to his service.” So Moses took the carts and the oxen, and gave them to the Levites. Two carts and four oxen (HI)he gave to the sons of Gershon, according to their service; (HJ)and four carts and eight oxen he gave to the sons of Merari, according to their service, under the [au]authority of Ithamar the son of Aaron the priest. But to the sons of Kohath he gave none, because theirs was (HK)the service of the holy things, (HL)which they carried on their shoulders.

10 Now the leaders offered (HM)the dedication offering for the altar when it was anointed; so the leaders offered their offering before the altar. 11 For the Lord said to Moses, “They shall offer their offering, one leader each day, for the dedication of the altar.”

12 And the one who offered his offering on the first day was (HN)Nahshon the son of Amminadab, from the tribe of Judah. 13 His offering was one silver platter, the weight of which was one hundred and thirty shekels, and one silver bowl of seventy shekels, according to (HO)the shekel of the sanctuary, both of them full of fine flour mixed with oil as a (HP)grain offering; 14 one gold pan of ten shekels, full of (HQ)incense; 15 (HR)one young bull, one ram, and one male lamb (HS)in its first year, as a burnt offering; 16 one kid of the goats as a (HT)sin offering; 17 and for (HU)the sacrifice of peace offerings: two oxen, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs in their first year. This was the offering of Nahshon the son of Amminadab.

18 On the second day Nethanel the son of Zuar, leader of Issachar, presented an offering. 19 For his offering he offered one silver platter, the weight of which was one hundred and thirty shekels, and one silver bowl of seventy shekels, according to the shekel of the sanctuary, both of them full of fine flour mixed with oil as a grain offering; 20 one gold pan of ten shekels, full of incense; 21 one young bull, one ram, and one male lamb in its first year, as a burnt offering; 22 one kid of the goats as a sin offering; 23 and as the sacrifice of peace offerings: two oxen, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs in their first year. This was the offering of Nethanel the son of Zuar.

24 On the third day Eliab the son of Helon, leader of the children of Zebulun, presented an offering. 25 His offering was one silver platter, the weight of which was one hundred and thirty shekels, and one silver bowl of seventy shekels, according to the shekel of the sanctuary, both of them full of fine flour mixed with oil as a grain offering; 26 one gold pan of ten shekels, full of incense; 27 one young bull, one ram, and one male lamb in its first year, as a burnt offering; 28 one kid of the goats as a sin offering; 29 and for the sacrifice of peace offerings: two oxen, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs in their first year. This was the offering of Eliab the son of Helon.

30 On the fourth day (HV)Elizur the son of Shedeur, leader of the children of Reuben, presented an offering. 31 His offering was one silver platter, the weight of which was one hundred and thirty shekels, and one silver bowl of seventy shekels, according to the shekel of the sanctuary, both of them full of fine flour mixed with oil as a grain offering; 32 one gold pan of ten shekels, full of incense; 33 one young bull, one ram, and one male lamb in its first year, as a burnt offering; 34 one kid of the goats as a sin offering; 35 and as the sacrifice of peace offerings: two oxen, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs in their first year. This was the offering of Elizur the son of Shedeur.

36 On the fifth day (HW)Shelumiel the son of Zurishaddai, leader of the children of Simeon, presented an offering. 37 His offering was one silver platter, the weight of which was one hundred and thirty shekels, and one silver bowl of seventy shekels, according to the shekel of the sanctuary, both of them full of fine flour mixed with oil as a grain offering; 38 one gold pan of ten shekels, full of incense; 39 one young bull, one ram, and one male lamb in its first year, as a burnt offering; 40 one kid of the goats as a sin offering; 41 and as the sacrifice of peace offerings: two oxen, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs in their first year. This was the offering of Shelumiel the son of Zurishaddai.

42 On the sixth day (HX)Eliasaph the son of [av]Deuel, leader of the children of Gad, presented an offering. 43 His offering was one silver platter, the weight of which was one hundred and thirty shekels, and one silver bowl of seventy shekels, according to the shekel of the sanctuary, both of them full of fine flour mixed with oil as a grain offering; 44 one gold pan of ten shekels, full of incense; 45 one young bull, one ram, and one male lamb in its first year, as (HY)a burnt offering; 46 one kid of the goats as a sin offering; 47 and as the sacrifice of peace offerings: two oxen, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs in their first year. This was the offering of Eliasaph the son of Deuel.

48 On the seventh day (HZ)Elishama the son of Ammihud, leader of the children of Ephraim, presented an offering. 49 His offering was one silver platter, the weight of which was one hundred and thirty shekels, and one silver bowl of seventy shekels, according to the shekel of the sanctuary, both of them full of fine flour mixed with oil as a grain offering; 50 one gold pan of ten shekels, full of incense; 51 one young bull, one ram, and one male lamb in its first year, as a burnt offering; 52 one kid of the goats as a sin offering; 53 and as the sacrifice of peace offerings: two oxen, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs in their first year. This was the offering of Elishama the son of Ammihud.

54 On the eighth day (IA)Gamaliel the son of Pedahzur, leader of the children of Manasseh, presented an offering. 55 His offering was one silver platter, the weight of which was one hundred and thirty shekels, and one silver bowl of seventy shekels, according to the shekel of the sanctuary, both of them full of fine flour mixed with oil as a grain offering; 56 one gold pan of ten shekels, full of incense; 57 one young bull, one ram, and one male lamb in its first year, as a burnt offering; 58 one kid of the goats as a sin offering; 59 and as the sacrifice of peace offerings: two oxen, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs in their first year. This was the offering of Gamaliel the son of Pedahzur.

60 On the ninth day (IB)Abidan the son of Gideoni, leader of the children of Benjamin, presented an offering. 61 His offering was one silver platter, the weight of which was one hundred and thirty shekels, and one silver bowl of seventy shekels, according to the shekel of the sanctuary, both of them full of fine flour mixed with oil as a grain offering; 62 one gold pan of ten shekels, full of incense; 63 one young bull, one ram, and one male lamb in its first year, as a burnt offering; 64 one kid of the goats as a sin offering; 65 and as the sacrifice of peace offerings: two oxen, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs in their first year. This was the offering of Abidan the son of Gideoni.

66 On the tenth day (IC)Ahiezer the son of Ammishaddai, leader of the children of Dan, presented an offering. 67 His offering was one silver platter, the weight of which was one hundred and thirty shekels, and one silver bowl of seventy shekels, according to the shekel of the sanctuary, both of them full of fine flour mixed with oil as a grain offering; 68 one gold pan of ten shekels, full of incense; 69 one young bull, one ram, and one male lamb in its first year, as a burnt offering; 70 one kid of the goats as a sin offering; 71 and as the sacrifice of peace offerings: two oxen, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs in their first year. This was the offering of Ahiezer the son of Ammishaddai.

72 On the eleventh day (ID)Pagiel the son of Ocran, leader of the children of Asher, presented an offering. 73 His offering was one silver platter, the weight of which was one hundred and thirty shekels, and one silver bowl of seventy shekels, according to the shekel of the sanctuary, both of them full of fine flour mixed with oil as a grain offering; 74 one gold pan of ten shekels, full of incense; 75 one young bull, one ram, and one male lamb in its first year, as a burnt offering; 76 one kid of the goats as a sin offering; 77 and as the sacrifice of peace offerings: two oxen, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs in their first year. This was the offering of Pagiel the son of Ocran.

78 On the twelfth day (IE)Ahira the son of Enan, leader of the children of Naphtali, presented an offering. 79 His offering was one silver platter, the weight of which was one hundred and thirty shekels, and one silver bowl of seventy shekels, according to the shekel of the sanctuary, both of them full of fine flour mixed with oil as a grain offering; 80 one gold pan of ten shekels, full of incense; 81 one young bull, one ram, and one male lamb in its first year, as a burnt offering; 82 one kid of the goats as a sin offering; 83 and as the sacrifice of peace offerings: two oxen, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs in their first year. This was the offering of Ahira the son of Enan.

84 This was (IF)the dedication offering for the altar from the leaders of Israel, when it was anointed: twelve silver platters, twelve silver bowls, and twelve gold pans. 85 Each silver platter weighed one hundred and thirty shekels and each bowl seventy shekels. All the silver of the vessels weighed two thousand four hundred shekels, according to the shekel of the sanctuary. 86 The twelve gold pans full of incense weighed ten shekels apiece, according to the shekel of the sanctuary; all the gold of the pans weighed one hundred and twenty shekels. 87 All the oxen for the burnt offering were twelve young bulls, the rams twelve, the male lambs in their first year twelve, with their grain offering, and the kids of the goats as a sin offering twelve. 88 And all the oxen for the sacrifice of peace offerings were twenty-four bulls, the rams sixty, the male goats sixty, and the lambs in their first year sixty. This was the dedication offering for the altar after it was (IG)anointed.

89 Now when Moses went into the tabernacle of meeting (IH)to speak with Him, he heard (II)the voice of One speaking to him from above the mercy seat that was on the ark of the Testimony, from (IJ)between the two cherubim; thus He spoke to him.

Arrangement of the Lamps(IK)

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

Cleansing and Dedication of the Levites

Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: “Take the Levites from among the children of Israel and cleanse them ceremonially. Thus you shall do to them to cleanse them: Sprinkle (IQ)water of purification on them, and (IR)let[aw] them shave all their body, and let them wash their clothes, and so make themselves clean. Then let them take a young bull with (IS)its grain offering of fine flour mixed with oil, and you shall take another young bull as a sin offering. (IT)And you shall bring the Levites before the tabernacle of meeting, (IU)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 (IV)shall lay their hands on the Levites; 11 and Aaron shall [ax]offer the Levites before the Lord like a (IW)wave offering from the children of Israel, that they may perform the work of the Lord. 12 (IX)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 (IY)separate the Levites from among the children of Israel, and the Levites shall be (IZ)Mine. 15 After that the Levites shall go in to service the tabernacle of meeting. So you shall cleanse them and (JA)offer them like a wave offering. 16 For they are (JB)wholly given to Me from among the children of Israel; I have taken them for Myself (JC)instead of all who open the womb, the firstborn of all the children of Israel. 17 (JD)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 [ay]sanctified them to Myself. 18 I have taken the Levites instead of all the firstborn of the children of Israel. 19 And (JE)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, (JF)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 (JG)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 (JH)After that the Levites went in to do their work in the tabernacle of meeting before Aaron and his sons; (JI)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: (JJ)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, (JK)to attend to needs, but they themselves shall do no work. Thus you shall do to the Levites regarding their duties.”

The Second Passover(JL)

Now the Lord spoke to Moses in the Wilderness of Sinai, in the first month of the second year after they had come out of the land of Egypt, saying: “Let the children of Israel keep (JM)the Passover at its appointed (JN)time. On the fourteenth day of this month, [az]at twilight, you shall [ba]keep it at its appointed time. According to all its [bb]rites and ceremonies you shall keep it.” So Moses told the children of Israel that they should keep the Passover. And (JO)they kept the Passover on the fourteenth day of the first month, at twilight, in the Wilderness of Sinai; according to all that the Lord commanded Moses, so the children of Israel did.

Now there were certain men who were (JP)defiled by a human corpse, so that they could not keep the Passover on that day; (JQ)and they came before Moses and Aaron that day. And those men said to him, “We became defiled by a human corpse. Why are we kept from presenting the offering of the Lord at its appointed time among the children of Israel?”

And Moses said to them, “Stand still, that (JR)I may hear what the Lord will command concerning you.”

Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 10 “Speak to the children of Israel, saying: ‘If anyone of you or your [bc]posterity is unclean because of a corpse, or is far away on a journey, he may still keep the Lord’s Passover. 11 On (JS)the fourteenth day of the second month, at twilight, they may keep it. They shall (JT)eat it with unleavened bread and bitter herbs. 12 (JU)They shall leave none of it until morning, (JV)nor break one of its bones. (JW)According to all the [bd]ordinances of the Passover they shall keep it. 13 But the man who is clean and is not on a journey, and ceases to keep the Passover, that same person (JX)shall be cut off from among his people, because he (JY)did not bring the offering of the Lord at its appointed time; that man shall (JZ)bear his sin.

14 ‘And if a stranger [be]dwells among you, and would keep the Lord’s Passover, he must do so according to the rite of the Passover and according to its ceremony; (KA)you shall have one [bf]ordinance, both for the stranger and the native of the land.’ ”

The Cloud and the Fire(KB)

15 Now (KC)on the day that the tabernacle was raised up, the cloud (KD)covered the tabernacle, the tent of the Testimony; (KE)from evening until morning it was above the tabernacle like the appearance of fire. 16 So it was always: the cloud covered it by day, and the appearance of fire by night. 17 Whenever the cloud (KF)was [bg]taken up from above the tabernacle, after that the children of Israel would journey; and in the place where the cloud settled, there the children of Israel would pitch their tents. 18 At the [bh]command of the Lord the children of Israel would journey, and at the command of the Lord they would camp; (KG)as long as the cloud stayed above the tabernacle they remained encamped. 19 Even when the cloud continued long, many days above the tabernacle, the children of Israel (KH)kept the charge of the Lord and did not journey. 20 So it was, when the cloud was above the tabernacle a few days: according to the command of the Lord they would remain encamped, and according to the command of the Lord they would journey. 21 So it was, when the cloud remained only from evening until morning: when the cloud was taken up in the morning, then they would journey; whether by day or by night, whenever the cloud was taken up, they would journey. 22 Whether it was two days, a month, or a year that the cloud remained above the tabernacle, the children of Israel (KI)would remain encamped and not journey; but when it was taken up, they would journey. 23 At the command of the Lord they remained encamped, and at the command of the Lord they journeyed; they (KJ)kept the charge of the Lord, at the command of the Lord by the hand of Moses.

Two Silver Trumpets

10 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: “Make two silver trumpets for yourself; you shall make them of hammered work; you shall use them for (KK)calling the congregation and for directing the movement of the camps. When (KL)they blow both of them, all the congregation shall gather before you at the door of the tabernacle of meeting. But if they blow only one, then the leaders, the (KM)heads of the divisions of Israel, shall gather to you. When you sound the (KN)advance, (KO)the camps that lie on the east side shall then begin their journey. When you sound the advance the second time, then the camps that lie (KP)on the south side shall begin their journey; they shall sound the call for them to begin their journeys. And when the assembly is to be gathered together, (KQ)you shall blow, but not (KR)sound the advance. (KS)The sons of Aaron, the priests, shall blow the trumpets; and these shall be to you as an [bi]ordinance forever throughout your generations.

(KT)“When you go to war in your land against the enemy who (KU)oppresses you, then you shall sound an alarm with the trumpets, and you will be (KV)remembered before the Lord your God, and you will be saved from your enemies. 10 Also (KW)in the day of your gladness, in your appointed feasts, and at the beginning of your months, you shall blow the trumpets over your burnt offerings and over the sacrifices of your peace offerings; and they shall be (KX)a memorial for you before your God: I am the Lord your God.”

Departure from Sinai

11 Now it came to pass on the twentieth day of the second month, in the second year, that the cloud (KY)was taken up from above the tabernacle of the Testimony. 12 And the children of Israel set out from the (KZ)Wilderness of Sinai on (LA)their journeys; then the cloud settled down in the (LB)Wilderness of Paran. 13 So they started out for the first time (LC)according to the command of the Lord by the hand of Moses.

14 The [bj]standard of the camp of the children of Judah (LD)set out first according to their armies; over their army was (LE)Nahshon the son of Amminadab. 15 Over the army of the tribe of the children of Issachar was Nethanel the son of Zuar. 16 And over the army of the tribe of the children of Zebulun was Eliab the son of Helon.

17 Then (LF)the tabernacle was taken down; and the sons of Gershon and the sons of Merari set out, (LG)carrying the tabernacle.

18 And (LH)the standard of the camp of Reuben set out according to their armies; over their army was Elizur the son of Shedeur. 19 Over the army of the tribe of the children of Simeon was Shelumiel the son of Zurishaddai. 20 And over the army of the tribe of the children of Gad was Eliasaph the son of Deuel.

21 Then the Kohathites set out, carrying the (LI)holy things. (The tabernacle would be [bk]prepared for their arrival.)

22 And (LJ)the standard of the camp of the children of Ephraim set out according to their armies; over their army was Elishama the son of Ammihud. 23 Over the army of the tribe of the children of Manasseh was Gamaliel the son of Pedahzur. 24 And over the army of the tribe of the children of Benjamin was Abidan the son of Gideoni.

25 Then (LK)the standard of the camp of the children of Dan (the rear guard of all the camps) set out according to their armies; over their army was Ahiezer the son of Ammishaddai. 26 Over the army of the tribe of the children of Asher was Pagiel the son of Ocran. 27 And over the army of the tribe of the children of Naphtali was Ahira the son of Enan.

28 (LL)Thus was the order of march of the children of Israel, according to their armies, when they began their journey.

29 Now Moses said to (LM)Hobab the son of (LN)Reuel[bl] the Midianite, Moses’ father-in-law, “We are setting out for the place of which the Lord said, (LO)‘I will give it to you.’ Come with us, and (LP)we will treat you well; for (LQ)the Lord has promised good things to Israel.”

30 And he said to him, “I will not go, but I will depart to my own land and to my relatives.”

31 So Moses said, “Please do not leave, inasmuch as you know how we are to camp in the wilderness, and you can [bm]be our (LR)eyes. 32 And it shall be, if you go with us—indeed it shall be—that (LS)whatever good the Lord will do to us, the same we will do to you.”

33 So they departed from (LT)the mountain of the Lord on a journey of three days; and the ark of the covenant of the Lord (LU)went before them for the three days’ journey, to search out a resting place for them. 34 And (LV)the cloud of the Lord was above them by day when they went out from the camp.

35 So it was, whenever the ark set out, that Moses said:

(LW)“Rise up, O Lord!
Let Your enemies be scattered,
And let those who hate You flee before You.”

36 And when it rested, he said:

“Return, O Lord,
To the many thousands of Israel.”

The People Complain

11 Now (LX)when the people complained, it displeased the Lord; (LY)for the Lord heard it, and His anger was aroused. So the (LZ)fire of the Lord burned among them, and consumed some in the outskirts of the camp. Then the people (MA)cried out to Moses, and when Moses (MB)prayed to the Lord, the fire was [bn]quenched. So he called the name of the place [bo]Taberah, because the fire of the Lord had burned among them.

Now the (MC)mixed multitude who were among them [bp]yielded to (MD)intense craving; so the children of Israel also wept again and said: (ME)“Who will give us meat to eat? (MF)We remember the fish which we ate freely in Egypt, the cucumbers, the melons, the leeks, the onions, and the garlic; but now (MG)our whole being is dried up; there is nothing at all except this manna before our eyes!”

Now (MH)the manna was like coriander seed, and its color like the color of bdellium. The people went about and gathered it, ground it on millstones or beat it in the mortar, cooked it in pans, and made cakes of it; and (MI)its taste was like the taste of pastry prepared with oil. And (MJ)when the dew fell on the camp in the night, the manna fell on it.

10 Then Moses heard the people weeping throughout their families, everyone at the door of his tent; and (MK)the anger of the Lord was greatly aroused; Moses also was displeased. 11 (ML)So Moses said to the Lord, “Why have You afflicted Your servant? And why have I not found favor in Your sight, that You have laid the [bq]burden of all these people on me? 12 Did I conceive all these people? Did I beget them, that You should say to me, (MM)‘Carry them in your bosom, as a (MN)guardian carries a nursing child,’ to the land which You (MO)swore[br] to their fathers? 13 (MP)Where am I to get meat to give to all these people? For they weep all over me, saying, ‘Give us meat, that we may eat.’ 14 (MQ)I am not able to bear all these people alone, because the burden is too heavy for me. 15 If You treat me like this, please kill me here and now—if I have found favor in Your sight—and (MR)do not let me see my wretchedness!”

The Seventy Elders

16 So the Lord said to Moses: “Gather to Me (MS)seventy men of the elders of Israel, whom you know to be the elders of the people and (MT)officers over them; bring them to the tabernacle of meeting, that they may stand there with you. 17 Then I will come down and talk with you there. (MU)I will take of the Spirit that is upon you and will put the same upon them; and they shall bear the burden of the people with you, that you may not bear it yourself alone. 18 Then you shall say to the people, [bs]‘Consecrate yourselves for tomorrow, and you shall eat meat; for you have wept (MV)in the hearing of the Lord, saying, “Who will give us meat to eat? For it was well with us in Egypt.” Therefore the Lord will give you meat, and you shall eat. 19 You shall eat, not one day, nor two days, nor five days, nor ten days, nor twenty days, 20 (MW)but for a whole month, until it comes out of your nostrils and becomes loathsome to you, because you have (MX)despised the Lord who is among you, and have wept before Him, saying, (MY)“Why did we ever come up out of Egypt?” ’ ”

21 And Moses said, (MZ)“The people whom I am among are six hundred thousand men on foot; yet You have said, ‘I will give them meat, that they may eat for a whole month.’ 22 (NA)Shall flocks and herds be slaughtered for them, to provide enough for them? Or shall all the fish of the sea be gathered together for them, to provide enough for them?”

23 And the Lord said to Moses, (NB)“Has[bt] the Lord’s arm been shortened? Now you shall see whether (NC)what I say will happen to you or not.”

24 So Moses went out and told the people the words of the Lord, and he (ND)gathered the seventy men of the elders of the people and placed them around the tabernacle. 25 Then the Lord came down in the cloud, and spoke to him, and took of the Spirit that was upon him, and placed the same upon the seventy elders; and it happened, (NE)when the Spirit rested upon them, that (NF)they prophesied, [bu]although they never did so again.

26 But two men had remained in the camp: the name of one was Eldad, and the name of the other Medad. And the Spirit rested upon them. Now they were among those listed, but who (NG)had not gone out to the tabernacle; yet they prophesied in the camp. 27 And a young man ran and told Moses, and said, “Eldad and Medad are prophesying in the camp.”

28 So Joshua the son of Nun, Moses’ assistant, one of his choice men, answered and said, “Moses my lord, (NH)forbid them!”

29 Then Moses said to him, “Are you [bv]zealous for my sake? (NI)Oh, that all the Lord’s people were prophets and that the Lord would put His Spirit upon them!” 30 And Moses returned to the camp, he and the elders of Israel.

The Lord Sends Quail

31 Now a (NJ)wind went out from the Lord, and it brought quail from the sea and left them fluttering near the camp, about a day’s journey on this side and about a day’s journey on the other side, all around the camp, and about two cubits above the surface of the ground. 32 And the people stayed up all that day, all night, and all the next day, and gathered the quail (he who gathered least gathered ten (NK)homers); and they spread them out for themselves all around the camp. 33 But while the (NL)meat was still between their teeth, before it was chewed, the wrath of the Lord was aroused against the people, and the Lord struck the people with a very great plague. 34 So he called the name of that place [bw]Kibroth Hattaavah, because there they buried the people who had yielded to craving.

35 (NM)From Kibroth Hattaavah the people moved to Hazeroth, and camped at Hazeroth.

Dissension of Aaron and Miriam

12 Then (NN)Miriam and Aaron [bx]spoke (NO)against Moses because of the [by]Ethiopian woman whom he had married; for (NP)he had married an Ethiopian woman. So they said, “Has the Lord indeed spoken only through (NQ)Moses? (NR)Has He not spoken through us also?” And the Lord (NS)heard it. (Now the man Moses was very humble, more than all men who were on the face of the earth.)

(NT)Suddenly the Lord said to Moses, Aaron, and Miriam, “Come out, you three, to the tabernacle of meeting!” So the three came out. (NU)Then the Lord came down in the pillar of cloud and stood in the door of the tabernacle, and called Aaron and Miriam. And they both went forward. Then He said,

“Hear now My words:
If there is a prophet among you,
I, the Lord, make Myself known to him (NV)in a vision;
I speak to him (NW)in a dream.
Not so with (NX)My servant Moses;
(NY)He is faithful in all (NZ)My house.
I speak with him (OA)face to face,
Even (OB)plainly,[bz] and not in [ca]dark sayings;
And he sees (OC)the form of the Lord.
Why then (OD)were you not afraid
To speak against My servant Moses?”

So the anger of the Lord was aroused against them, and He departed. 10 And when the cloud departed from above the tabernacle, (OE)suddenly Miriam became (OF)leprous, as white as snow. Then Aaron turned toward Miriam, and there she was, a leper. 11 So Aaron said to Moses, “Oh, my lord! Please (OG)do not lay [cb]this sin on us, in which we have done foolishly and in which we have sinned. 12 Please (OH)do not let her be as one dead, whose flesh is half consumed when he comes out of his mother’s womb!”

13 So Moses cried out to the Lord, saying, “Please (OI)heal her, O God, I pray!”

14 Then the Lord said to Moses, “If her father had but (OJ)spit in her face, would she not be shamed seven days? Let her be (OK)shut[cc] out of the camp seven days, and afterward she may be received again. 15 (OL)So Miriam was shut out of the camp seven days, and the people did not journey till Miriam was brought in again. 16 And afterward the people moved from (OM)Hazeroth and camped in the Wilderness of Paran.

Spies Sent into Canaan(ON)

13 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, (OO)“Send men to spy out the land of Canaan, which I am giving to the children of Israel; from each tribe of their fathers you shall send a man, every one a leader among them.”

So Moses sent them (OP)from the Wilderness of Paran according to the command of the Lord, all of them men who were heads of the children of Israel. Now these were their names: from the tribe of Reuben, Shammua the son of Zaccur; from the tribe of Simeon, Shaphat the son of Hori; (OQ)from the tribe of Judah, (OR)Caleb the son of Jephunneh; from the tribe of Issachar, Igal the son of Joseph; from the tribe of Ephraim, [cd]Hoshea the son of Nun; from the tribe of Benjamin, Palti the son of Raphu; 10 from the tribe of Zebulun, Gaddiel the son of Sodi; 11 from the tribe of Joseph, that is, from the tribe of Manasseh, Gaddi the son of Susi; 12 from the tribe of Dan, Ammiel the son of Gemalli; 13 from the tribe of Asher, Sethur the son of Michael; 14 from the tribe of Naphtali, Nahbi the son of Vophsi; 15 from the tribe of Gad, Geuel the son of Machi.

16 These are the names of the men whom Moses sent to [ce]spy out the land. And Moses called (OS)Hoshea[cf] the son of Nun, Joshua.

17 Then Moses sent them to spy out the land of Canaan, and said to them, “Go up this way into the South, and go up to (OT)the mountains, 18 and see what the land is like: whether the people who dwell in it are strong or weak, few or many; 19 whether the land they dwell in is good or bad; whether the cities they inhabit are like camps or strongholds; 20 whether the land is [cg]rich or poor; and whether there are forests there or not. (OU)Be of good courage. And bring some of the fruit of the land.” Now the time was the season of the first ripe grapes.

21 So they went up and spied out the land (OV)from the Wilderness of Zin as far as (OW)Rehob, near the entrance of (OX)Hamath. 22 And they went up through the South and came to (OY)Hebron; Ahiman, Sheshai, and Talmai, the descendants of (OZ)Anak, were there. (Now Hebron was built seven years before Zoan in Egypt.) 23 (PA)Then they came to the [ch]Valley of Eshcol, and there cut down a branch with one cluster of grapes; they carried it between two of them on a pole. They also brought some of the pomegranates and figs. 24 The place was called the Valley of [ci]Eshcol, because of the cluster which the men of Israel cut down there. 25 And they returned from spying out the land after forty days.

Footnotes

  1. Numbers 1:14 Reuel, Num. 2:14
  2. Numbers 1:16 called
  3. Numbers 1:17 designated
  4. Numbers 1:53 have in their care
  5. Numbers 2:2 banner
  6. Numbers 2:9 Lit. set forth
  7. Numbers 2:14 Deuel, Num. 1:14; 7:42
  8. Numbers 2:16 Lit. set forth second
  9. Numbers 2:17 company
  10. Numbers 2:17 whole company
  11. Numbers 2:17 banners
  12. Numbers 2:24 Lit. set forth third
  13. Numbers 2:25 banner
  14. Numbers 2:31 Lit. set forth last
  15. Numbers 2:31 banners
  16. Numbers 2:34 banners
  17. Numbers 3:1 Lit. generations
  18. Numbers 3:3 Lit. whose hands he filled
  19. Numbers 3:9 Sam., LXX Me
  20. Numbers 3:16 Lit. mouth
  21. Numbers 3:28 Some LXX mss. three
  22. Numbers 3:28 taking care of
  23. Numbers 3:40 Take a census of
  24. Numbers 4:7 jars for the drink offering
  25. Numbers 4:7 Lit. continual bread
  26. Numbers 4:14 bowls
  27. Numbers 4:19 assign
  28. Numbers 4:27 command
  29. Numbers 4:27 assign
  30. Numbers 4:28 Lit. hand
  31. Numbers 4:33 Lit. hand
  32. Numbers 4:42 household
  33. Numbers 5:2 by contact with
  34. Numbers 5:8 redeemer, Heb. goel
  35. Numbers 5:9 heave offering
  36. Numbers 5:10 consecrated
  37. Numbers 5:21 Lit. fall away
  38. Numbers 5:31 guilt
  39. Numbers 5:31 iniquity
  40. Numbers 6:2 Or makes a difficult vow
  41. Numbers 6:4 Separation as a Nazirite
  42. Numbers 6:7 By touching a dead body
  43. Numbers 6:12 void
  44. Numbers 6:26 Look upon you with favor
  45. Numbers 6:27 invoke
  46. Numbers 7:2 Lit. who stood over
  47. Numbers 7:8 Lit. hand
  48. Numbers 7:42 Reuel, Num. 2:14
  49. Numbers 8:7 Heb. let them cause a razor to pass over
  50. Numbers 8:11 present
  51. Numbers 8:17 set them apart
  52. Numbers 9:3 Lit. between the evenings
  53. Numbers 9:3 observe
  54. Numbers 9:3 statutes
  55. Numbers 9:10 descendants
  56. Numbers 9:12 statutes
  57. Numbers 9:14 As a resident alien
  58. Numbers 9:14 statute
  59. Numbers 9:17 lifted up
  60. Numbers 9:18 Lit. mouth
  61. Numbers 10:8 statute
  62. Numbers 10:14 banner
  63. Numbers 10:21 Prepared by the Gershonites and the Merarites
  64. Numbers 10:29 Jethro, Ex. 3:1; LXX Raguel
  65. Numbers 10:31 Act as our guide
  66. Numbers 11:2 extinguished
  67. Numbers 11:3 Lit. Burning
  68. Numbers 11:4 Lit. lusted intensely
  69. Numbers 11:11 responsibility
  70. Numbers 11:12 solemnly promised
  71. Numbers 11:18 Set yourselves apart
  72. Numbers 11:23 Is the Lord’s power limited?
  73. Numbers 11:25 Tg., Vg. and they did not cease
  74. Numbers 11:29 jealous
  75. Numbers 11:34 Lit. Graves of Craving
  76. Numbers 12:1 criticized
  77. Numbers 12:1 Cushite
  78. Numbers 12:8 appearing
  79. Numbers 12:8 riddles
  80. Numbers 12:11 the penalty for this
  81. Numbers 12:14 exiled
  82. Numbers 13:8 LXX, Vg. Oshea
  83. Numbers 13:16 secretly search
  84. Numbers 13:16 LXX, Vg. Oshea
  85. Numbers 13:20 fertile or barren
  86. Numbers 13:23 Wadi
  87. Numbers 13:24 Lit. Cluster