Numbers 13-21

New King James Version

Spies Sent into Canaan^(A)

13 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, ^2 (B)“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.”

³ So Moses sent them ^(C)from the Wilderness of Paran according to the command of the Lord, all of them men who were heads of the children of Israel. ⁴ Now these were their names: from the tribe of Reuben, Shammua the son of Zaccur; ⁵ from the tribe of Simeon, Shaphat the son of Hori; ^6 (D)from the tribe of Judah, ^(E)Caleb the son of Jephunneh; ⁷ from the tribe of Issachar, Igal the son of Joseph; ⁸ from the tribe of Ephraim, ^[a]Hoshea the son of Nun; ⁹ 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 ^[b]spy out the land. And Moses called ^(F)Hoshea^[c] 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 ^(G)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 ^[d]rich or poor; and whether there are forests there or not. ^(H)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 ^(I)from the Wilderness of Zin as far as ^(J)Rehob, near the entrance of ^(K)Hamath. ²² And they went up through the South and came to ^(L)Hebron; Ahiman, Sheshai, and Talmai, the descendants of ^(M)Anak, were there. (Now Hebron was built seven years before Zoan in Egypt.) ^23 (N)Then they came to the ^[e]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 ^[f]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 ^(O)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 ^[g]flows with ^(P)milk and honey, ^(Q)and this is its fruit. ²⁸ Nevertheless the ^(R)people who dwell in the land are strong; the cities are fortified and very large; moreover we saw the descendants of ^(S)Anak there. ^29 (T)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 ^(U)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 (V)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 ^(W)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 ^(X)all the people whom we saw in it are men of great stature. ³³ There we saw the ^[h]giants (^(Y)the descendants of Anak came from the giants); and we were ^(Z)like^[i] grasshoppers in our own sight, and so we were ^(AA)in their sight.”

Israel Refuses to Enter Canaan

14 So all the congregation lifted up their voices and cried, and the people ^(AB)wept that night. ^2 (AC)And all the children of Israel complained against Moses and Aaron, and the whole congregation said to them, “If only we had died in the land of Egypt! Or if only we had died in this wilderness! ³ Why has the Lord brought us to this land to ^[j]fall by the sword, that our wives and ^(AD)children should become victims? Would it not be better for us to return to Egypt?” ⁴ So they said to one another, ^(AE)“Let us select a leader and ^(AF)return to Egypt.”

⁵ Then Moses and Aaron ^[k]fell on their faces before all the assembly of the congregation of the children of Israel.

⁶ But Joshua the son of Nun and Caleb the son of Jephunneh, who were among those who had spied out the land, tore their clothes; ⁷ and they spoke to all the congregation of the children of Israel, saying: ^(AG)“The land we passed through to spy out is an exceedingly good land. ⁸ If the Lord ^(AH)delights in us, then He will bring us into this land and give it to us, ^(AI)‘a land which flows with milk and honey.’ ⁹ Only ^(AJ)do not rebel against the Lord, ^(AK)nor fear the people of the land, for ^(AL)they^[l] are our bread; their protection has departed from them, ^(AM)and the Lord is with us. Do not fear them.”

^10 (AN)And all the congregation said to stone them with stones. Now ^(AO)the glory of the Lord appeared in the tabernacle of meeting before all the children of Israel.

Moses Intercedes for the People

¹¹ Then the Lord said to Moses: “How long will these people ^(AP)reject^[m] Me? And how long will they not ^(AQ)believe Me, with all the ^[n]signs which I have performed among them? ¹² I will strike them with the pestilence and disinherit them, and I will ^(AR)make of you a nation greater and mightier than they.”

¹³ And ^(AS)Moses said to the Lord: ^(AT)“Then the Egyptians will hear it, for by Your might You brought these people up from among them, ¹⁴ and they will tell it to the inhabitants of this land. They have ^(AU)heard that You, Lord, are among these people; that You, Lord, are seen face to face and Your cloud stands above them, and You go before them in a pillar of cloud by day and in a pillar of fire by night. ¹⁵ Now if You kill these people as one man, then the nations which have heard of Your fame will speak, saying, ¹⁶ ‘Because the Lord was not ^(AV)able to bring this people to the land which He swore to give them, therefore He killed them in the wilderness.’ ¹⁷ And now, I pray, let the power of my Lord be great, just as You have spoken, saying, ^18 (AW)‘The Lord is longsuffering and abundant in mercy, forgiving iniquity and transgression; but He by no means clears the guilty, ^(AX)visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and fourth generation.’ ^19 (AY)Pardon the iniquity of this people, I pray, ^(AZ)according to the greatness of Your mercy, just ^(BA)as You have forgiven this people, from Egypt even until now.”

²⁰ Then the Lord said: “I have pardoned, ^(BB)according to your word; ²¹ but truly, as I live, ^(BC)all the earth shall be filled with the glory of the Lord— ^22 (BD)because all these men who have seen My glory and the signs which I did in Egypt and in the wilderness, and have put Me to the test now ^(BE)these ten times, and have not heeded My voice, ²³ they certainly shall not ^(BF)see the land of which I ^[o]swore to their fathers, nor shall any of those who rejected Me see it. ²⁴ But My servant ^(BG)Caleb, because he has a different spirit in him and ^(BH)has followed Me fully, I will bring into the land where he went, and his descendants shall inherit it. ²⁵ Now the Amalekites and the Canaanites dwell in the valley; tomorrow turn and ^(BI)move out into the wilderness by the Way of the Red Sea.”

Death Sentence on the Rebels

²⁶ And the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying, ^27 (BJ)“How long shall I bear with this evil congregation who complain against Me? ^(BK)I have heard the complaints which the children of Israel make against Me. ²⁸ Say to them, ^(BL)‘As I live,’ says the Lord, ‘just as you have spoken in My hearing, so I will do to you: ²⁹ The carcasses of you who have complained against Me shall fall in this wilderness, ^(BM)all of you who were numbered, according to your entire number, from twenty years old and above. ^30 (BN)Except for Caleb the son of Jephunneh and Joshua the son of Nun, you shall by no means enter the land which I ^[p]swore I would make you dwell in. ^31 (BO)But your little ones, whom you said would be victims, I will bring in, and they shall ^[q]know the land which ^(BP)you have despised. ³² But as for you, ^(BQ)your^[r] carcasses shall fall in this wilderness. ³³ And your sons shall ^(BR)be ^[s]shepherds in the wilderness ^(BS)forty years, and ^(BT)bear the brunt of your infidelity, until your carcasses are consumed in the wilderness. ^34 (BU)According to the number of the days in which you spied out the land, ^(BV)forty days, for each day you shall bear your ^[t]guilt one year, namely forty years, ^(BW)and you shall know My ^[u]rejection. ^35 (BX)I the Lord have spoken this. I will surely do so to all ^(BY)this evil congregation who are gathered together against Me. In this wilderness they shall be consumed, and there they shall die.’ ”

³⁶ Now the men whom Moses sent to spy out the land, who returned and made all the congregation complain against him by bringing a bad report of the land, ³⁷ those very men who brought the evil report about the land, ^(BZ)died by the plague before the Lord. ^38 (CA)But Joshua the son of Nun and Caleb the son of Jephunneh remained alive, of the men who went to spy out the land.

A Futile Invasion Attempt^(CB)

³⁹ Then Moses told these words to all the children of Israel, ^(CC)and the people mourned greatly. ⁴⁰ And they rose early in the morning and went up to the top of the mountain, saying, ^(CD)“Here we are, and we will go up to the place which the Lord has promised, for we have sinned!”

⁴¹ And Moses said, “Now why do you ^[v]transgress the command of the Lord? For this will not succeed. ^42 (CE)Do not go up, lest you be defeated by your enemies, for the Lord is not among you. ⁴³ For the Amalekites and the Canaanites are there before you, and you shall fall by the sword; ^(CF)because you have turned away from the Lord, the Lord will not be with you.”

^44 (CG)But they presumed to go up to the mountaintop. Nevertheless, neither the ark of the covenant of the Lord nor Moses departed from the camp. ⁴⁵ Then the Amalekites and the Canaanites who dwelt in that mountain came down and attacked them, and drove them back as far as ^(CH)Hormah.

Laws of Grain and Drink Offerings

15 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, ^2 (CI)“Speak to the children of Israel, and say to them: ‘When you have come into the land you are to inhabit, which I am giving to you, ³ and you ^(CJ)make an offering by fire to the Lord, a burnt offering or a sacrifice, ^(CK)to fulfill a vow or as a freewill offering or ^(CL)in your appointed feasts, to make a ^(CM)sweet^[w] aroma to the Lord, from the herd or the flock, ⁴ then ^(CN)he who presents his offering to the Lord shall bring ^(CO)a grain offering of one-tenth of an ephah of fine flour mixed ^(CP)with one-fourth of a hin of oil; ^5 (CQ)and one-fourth of a hin of wine as a drink offering you shall prepare with the burnt offering or the sacrifice, for each ^(CR)lamb. ^6 (CS)Or for a ram you shall prepare as a grain offering two-tenths of an ephah of fine flour mixed with one-third of a hin of oil; ⁷ and as a drink offering you shall offer one-third of a hin of wine as a sweet aroma to the Lord. ⁸ And when you prepare a young bull as a burnt offering, or as a sacrifice to fulfill a vow, or as a ^(CT)peace offering to the Lord, ⁹ then shall be offered ^(CU)with the young bull a grain offering of three-tenths of an ephah of fine flour mixed with half a hin of oil; ¹⁰ and you shall bring as the drink offering half a hin of wine as an offering made by fire, a sweet aroma to the Lord.

^11 (CV)‘Thus it shall be done for each young bull, for each ram, or for each lamb or young goat. ¹² According to the number that you prepare, so you shall do with everyone according to their number. ¹³ All who are native-born shall do these things in this manner, in presenting an offering made by fire, a sweet aroma to the Lord. ¹⁴ And if a stranger ^[x]dwells with you, or whoever is among you throughout your generations, and would present an offering made by fire, a sweet aroma to the Lord, just as you do, so shall he do. ^15 (CW)One ^[y]ordinance shall be for you of the assembly and for the stranger who dwells with you, an ordinance forever throughout your generations; as you are, so shall the stranger be before the Lord. ¹⁶ One law and one custom shall be for you and for the stranger who dwells with you.’ ”

¹⁷ Again the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, ^18 (CX)“Speak to the children of Israel, and say to them: ‘When you come into the land to which I bring you, ¹⁹ then it will be, when you eat of ^(CY)the bread of the land, that you shall offer up a heave offering to the Lord. ^20 (CZ)You shall offer up a cake of the first of your ground meal as a heave offering; as ^(DA)a heave offering of the threshing floor, so shall you offer it up. ²¹ Of the first of your ground meal you shall give to the Lord a heave offering throughout your generations.

Laws Concerning Unintentional Sin

^22 (DB)‘If you sin unintentionally, and do not observe all these commandments which the Lord has spoken to Moses— ²³ all that the Lord has commanded you by the hand of Moses, from the day the Lord gave commandment and onward throughout your generations— ²⁴ then it will be, ^(DC)if it is unintentionally committed, ^[z]without the knowledge of the congregation, that the whole congregation shall offer one young bull as a burnt offering, as a sweet aroma to the Lord, ^(DD)with its grain offering and its drink offering, according to the ordinance, and ^(DE)one kid of the goats as a sin offering. ^25 (DF)So the priest shall make atonement for the whole congregation of the children of Israel, and it shall be forgiven them, for it was unintentional; they shall bring their offering, an offering made by fire to the Lord, and their sin offering before the Lord, for their unintended sin. ²⁶ It shall be forgiven the whole congregation of the children of Israel and the stranger who dwells among them, because all the people did it unintentionally.

²⁷ ‘And ^(DG)if a person sins unintentionally, then he shall bring a female goat in its first year as a sin offering. ^28 (DH)So the priest shall make atonement for the person who sins unintentionally, when he sins unintentionally before the Lord, to make atonement for him; and it shall be forgiven him. ^29 (DI)You shall have one law for him who sins unintentionally, for him who is native-born among the children of Israel and for the stranger who dwells among them.

Law Concerning Presumptuous Sin

^30 (DJ)‘But the person who does anything ^[aa]presumptuously, whether he is native-born or a stranger, that one ^[ab]brings reproach on the Lord, and he shall be ^[ac]cut off from among his people. ³¹ Because he has ^(DK)despised the word of the Lord, and has broken His commandment, that person shall be completely cut off; his ^[ad]guilt shall be upon him.’ ”

Penalty for Violating the Sabbath^(DL)

³² Now while the children of Israel were in the wilderness, ^(DM)they found a man gathering sticks on the Sabbath day. ³³ And those who found him gathering sticks brought him to Moses and Aaron, and to all the congregation. ³⁴ They put him ^(DN)under guard, because it had not been explained what should be done to him.

³⁵ Then the Lord said to Moses, ^(DO)“The man must surely be put to death; all the congregation shall ^(DP)stone him with stones outside the camp.” ³⁶ So, as the Lord commanded Moses, all the congregation brought him outside the camp and stoned him with stones, and he died.

Tassels on Garments

³⁷ Again the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, ³⁸ “Speak to the children of Israel: Tell ^(DQ)them to make tassels on the corners of their garments throughout their generations, and to put a blue thread in the tassels of the corners. ³⁹ And you shall have the tassel, that you may look upon it and ^(DR)remember all the commandments of the Lord and do them, and that you ^(DS)may not ^(DT)follow the harlotry to which your own heart and your own eyes are inclined, ⁴⁰ and that you may remember and do all My commandments, and be ^(DU)holy for your God. ⁴¹ I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, to be your God: I am the Lord your God.”

Rebellion Against Moses and Aaron

16 Now ^(DV)Korah the son of Izhar, the son of Kohath, the son of Levi, with ^(DW)Dathan and Abiram the sons of Eliab, and On the son of Peleth, sons of Reuben, took men; ² and they rose up before Moses with some of the children of Israel, two hundred and fifty leaders of the congregation, ^(DX)representatives of the congregation, men of renown. ^3 (DY)They gathered together against Moses and Aaron, and said to them, “You ^[ae]take too much upon yourselves, for ^(DZ)all the congregation is holy, every one of them, ^(EA)and the Lord is among them. Why then do you exalt yourselves above the assembly of the Lord?”

⁴ So when Moses heard it, he ^(EB)fell on his face; ⁵ and he spoke to Korah and all his company, saying, “Tomorrow morning the Lord will show who is ^(EC)His and who is ^(ED)holy,^[af] and will cause him to come near to Him. That one whom He chooses He will cause to ^(EE)come near to Him. ⁶ Do this: Take censers, Korah and all your company; ⁷ put fire in them and put incense in them before the Lord tomorrow, and it shall be that the man whom the Lord chooses is the holy one. You take too much upon yourselves, you sons of Levi!”

⁸ Then Moses said to Korah, “Hear now, you sons of Levi: ⁹ Is it ^(EF)a small thing to you that the God of Israel has ^(EG)separated you from the congregation of Israel, to bring you near to Himself, to do the work of the tabernacle of the Lord, and to stand before the congregation to serve them; ¹⁰ and that He has brought you near to Himself, you and all your brethren, the sons of Levi, with you? And are you seeking the priesthood also? ¹¹ Therefore you and all your company are gathered together against the Lord. ^(EH)And what is Aaron that you complain against him?”

¹² And Moses sent to call Dathan and Abiram the sons of Eliab, but they said, “We will not come up! ¹³ Is it a small thing that you have brought us up out of ^(EI)a land flowing with milk and honey, to kill us in the wilderness, that you should ^(EJ)keep acting like a prince over us? ¹⁴ Moreover ^(EK)you have not brought us into ^(EL)a land flowing with milk and honey, nor given us inheritance of fields and vineyards. Will you put out the eyes of these men? We will not come up!”

¹⁵ Then Moses was very angry, and said to the Lord, ^(EM)“Do not ^[ag]respect their offering. ^(EN)I have not taken one donkey from them, nor have I hurt one of them.”

¹⁶ And Moses said to Korah, “Tomorrow, you and all your company be present ^(EO)before the Lord—you and they, as well as Aaron. ¹⁷ Let each take his censer and put incense in it, and each of you bring his censer before the Lord, two hundred and fifty censers; both you and Aaron, each with his censer.” ¹⁸ So every man took his censer, put fire in it, laid incense on it, and stood at the door of the tabernacle of meeting with Moses and Aaron. ¹⁹ And Korah gathered all the congregation against them at the door of the tabernacle of meeting. Then ^(EP)the glory of the Lord appeared to all the congregation.

²⁰ And the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying, ^21 (EQ)“Separate yourselves from among this congregation, that I may ^(ER)consume them in a moment.”

²² Then they ^(ES)fell^[ah] on their faces, and said, “O God, ^(ET)the God of the spirits of all flesh, shall one man sin, and You be angry with all the ^(EU)congregation?”

²³ So the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, ²⁴ “Speak to the congregation, saying, ‘Get away from the tents of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram.’ ”

²⁵ Then Moses rose and went to Dathan and Abiram, and the elders of Israel followed him. ²⁶ And he spoke to the congregation, saying, ^(EV)“Depart now from the tents of these wicked men! Touch nothing of theirs, lest you be consumed in all their sins.” ²⁷ So they got away from around the tents of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram; and Dathan and Abiram came out and stood at the door of their tents, with their wives, their sons, and their little ^(EW)children.

²⁸ And Moses said: ^(EX)“By this you shall know that the Lord has sent me to do all these works, for I have not done them ^(EY)of my own will. ²⁹ If these men die naturally like all men, or if they are ^(EZ)visited by the common fate of all men, then the Lord has not sent me. ³⁰ But if the Lord creates ^(FA)a new thing, and the earth opens its mouth and swallows them up with all that belongs to them, and they ^(FB)go down alive into the pit, then you will understand that these men have rejected the Lord.”

^31 (FC)Now it came to pass, as he finished speaking all these words, that the ground split apart under them, ³² and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed them up, with their households and ^(FD)all the men with Korah, with all their goods. ³³ So they and all those with them went down alive into the pit; the earth closed over them, and they perished from among the assembly. ³⁴ Then all Israel who were around them fled at their cry, for they said, “Lest the earth swallow us up also!”

³⁵ And ^(FE)a fire came out from the Lord and consumed the two hundred and fifty men who were offering incense.

³⁶ Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: ³⁷ “Tell Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, to pick up the censers out of the blaze, for ^(FF)they are holy, and scatter the fire some distance away. ³⁸ The censers of ^(FG)these men who sinned ^[ai]against their own souls, let them be made into hammered plates as a covering for the altar. Because they presented them before the Lord, therefore they are holy; ^(FH)and they shall be a sign to the children of Israel.” ³⁹ So Eleazar the priest took the bronze censers, which those who were burned up had presented, and they were hammered out as a covering on the altar, ⁴⁰ to be a ^[aj]memorial to the children of Israel ^(FI)that no outsider, who is not a descendant of Aaron, should come near to offer incense before the Lord, that he might not become like Korah and his companions, just as the Lord had said to him through Moses.

Complaints of the People

⁴¹ On the next day ^(FJ)all the congregation of the children of Israel complained against Moses and Aaron, saying, “You have killed the people of the Lord.” ⁴² Now it happened, when the congregation had gathered against Moses and Aaron, that they turned toward the tabernacle of meeting; and suddenly ^(FK)the cloud covered it, and the glory of the Lord appeared. ⁴³ Then Moses and Aaron came before the tabernacle of meeting.

⁴⁴ And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, ⁴⁵ “Get away from among this congregation, that I may consume them in a moment.”

And they fell on their faces.

⁴⁶ So Moses said to Aaron, “Take a censer and put fire in it from the altar, put incense on it, and take it quickly to the congregation and make ^[ak]atonement for them; ^(FL)for wrath has gone out from the Lord. The plague has begun.” ⁴⁷ Then Aaron took it as Moses commanded, and ran into the midst of the assembly; and already the plague had begun among the people. So he put in the incense and made atonement for the people. ⁴⁸ And he stood between the dead and the living; so ^(FM)the plague was stopped. ⁴⁹ Now those who died in the plague were fourteen thousand seven hundred, besides those who died in the Korah incident. ⁵⁰ So Aaron returned to Moses at the door of the tabernacle of meeting, for the plague had stopped.

The Budding of Aaron’s Rod

17 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: ² “Speak to the children of Israel, and get from them a rod from each father’s house, all their leaders according to their fathers’ houses—twelve rods. Write each man’s name on his rod. ³ And you shall write Aaron’s name on the rod of Levi. For there shall be one rod for the head of each father’s house. ⁴ Then you shall place them in the tabernacle of meeting before ^(FN)the Testimony, ^(FO)where I meet with you. ⁵ And it shall be that the rod of the man ^(FP)whom I choose will blossom; thus I will rid Myself of the complaints of the children of Israel, ^(FQ)which they make against you.”

⁶ So Moses spoke to the children of Israel, and each of their leaders gave him a rod apiece, for each leader according to their fathers’ houses, twelve rods; and the rod of Aaron was among their rods. ⁷ And Moses placed the rods before the Lord in ^(FR)the tabernacle of witness.

⁸ Now it came to pass on the next day that Moses went into the tabernacle of witness, and behold, the ^(FS)rod of Aaron, of the house of Levi, had sprouted and put forth buds, had produced blossoms and yielded ripe almonds. ⁹ Then Moses brought out all the rods from before the Lord to all the children of Israel; and they looked, and each man took his rod.

¹⁰ And the Lord said to Moses, “Bring ^(FT)Aaron’s rod back before the Testimony, to be kept ^(FU)as a sign against the rebels, ^(FV)that you may put their complaints away from Me, lest they die.” ¹¹ Thus did Moses; just as the Lord had commanded him, so he did.

¹² So the children of Israel spoke to Moses, saying, “Surely we die, we perish, we all perish! ^13 (FW)Whoever even comes near the tabernacle of the Lord must die. Shall we all utterly die?”

Duties of Priests and Levites

18 Then the Lord said to Aaron: ^(FX)“You and your sons and your father’s house with you shall ^(FY)bear the ^[al]iniquity related to the sanctuary, and you and your sons with you shall bear the iniquity associated with your priesthood. ² Also bring with you your brethren of the ^(FZ)tribe of Levi, the tribe of your father, that they may be ^(GA)joined with you and serve you while you and your sons are with you before the tabernacle of ^[am]witness. ³ They shall attend to your ^[an]needs and ^(GB)all the needs of the tabernacle; ^(GC)but they shall not come near the articles of the sanctuary and the altar, ^(GD)lest they die—they and you also. ⁴ They shall be joined with you and attend to the needs of the tabernacle of meeting, for all the work of the tabernacle; ^(GE)but an outsider shall not come near you. ⁵ And you shall attend to ^(GF)the duties of the sanctuary and the duties of the altar, ^(GG)that there may be no more wrath on the children of Israel. ⁶ Behold, I Myself have ^(GH)taken your brethren the Levites from among the children of Israel; ^(GI)they are a gift to you, given by the Lord, to do the work of the tabernacle of meeting. ⁷ Therefore ^(GJ)you and your sons with you shall attend to your priesthood for everything at the altar and ^(GK)behind the veil; and you shall serve. I give your priesthood to you as a ^(GL)gift for service, but the outsider who comes near shall be put to death.”

Offerings for Support of the Priests

⁸ And the Lord spoke to Aaron: “Here, ^(GM)I Myself have also given you ^[ao]charge of My heave offerings, all the holy gifts of the children of Israel; I have given them ^(GN)as a portion to you and your sons, as an ordinance forever. ⁹ This shall be yours of the most holy things reserved from the fire: every offering of theirs, every ^(GO)grain offering and every ^(GP)sin offering and every ^(GQ)trespass offering which they render to Me, shall be most holy for you and your sons. ^10 (GR)In a most holy place you shall eat it; every male shall eat it. It shall be holy to you.

¹¹ “This also is yours: ^(GS)the heave offering of their gift, with all the wave offerings of the children of Israel; I have given them to you, and your sons and daughters with you, as an ordinance forever. ^(GT)Everyone who is ^[ap]clean in your house may eat it.

^12 (GU)“All the ^[aq]best of the oil, all the best of the new wine and the grain, ^(GV)their firstfruits which they offer to the Lord, I have given them to you. ¹³ Whatever first ripe fruit is in their land, ^(GW)which they bring to the Lord, shall be yours. Everyone who is clean in your house may eat it.

^14 (GX)“Every ^[ar]devoted thing in Israel shall be yours.

¹⁵ “Everything that first opens ^(GY)the womb of all flesh, which they bring to the Lord, whether man or beast, shall be yours; nevertheless ^(GZ)the firstborn of man you shall surely redeem, and the firstborn of unclean animals you shall redeem. ¹⁶ And those redeemed of the devoted things you shall redeem when one month old, ^(HA)according to your valuation, for five shekels of silver, according to the shekel of the sanctuary, which is ^(HB)twenty gerahs. ^17 (HC)But the firstborn of a cow, the firstborn of a sheep, or the firstborn of a goat you shall not redeem; they are holy. ^(HD)You shall sprinkle their blood on the altar, and burn their fat as an offering made by fire for a sweet aroma to the Lord. ¹⁸ And their flesh shall be yours, just as the ^(HE)wave^[as] breast and the right thigh are yours.

¹⁹ “All the heave offerings of the holy things, which the children of Israel offer to the Lord, I have given to you and your sons and daughters with you as an ordinance forever; ^(HF)it is a covenant of salt forever before the Lord with you and your descendants with you.”

²⁰ Then the Lord said to Aaron: “You shall have ^(HG)no inheritance in their land, nor shall you have any portion among them; ^(HH)I am your portion and your inheritance among the children of Israel.

Tithes for Support of the Levites

²¹ “Behold, ^(HI)I have given the children of Levi all the tithes in Israel as ^[at]an inheritance in return for the work which they perform, ^(HJ)the work of the tabernacle of meeting. ^22 (HK)Hereafter the children of Israel shall not come near the tabernacle of meeting, ^(HL)lest they bear sin and die. ²³ But the Levites shall perform the work of the tabernacle of meeting, and they shall bear their iniquity; it shall be a statute forever, throughout your generations, that among the children of Israel they shall have no inheritance. ²⁴ For the tithes of the children of Israel, which they offer up as a heave offering to the Lord, I have given to the Levites ^[au]as an inheritance; therefore I have said to them, ‘Among the children of Israel they shall have no inheritance.’ ”

The Tithe of the Levites

²⁵ Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, ²⁶ “Speak thus to the Levites, and say to them: ‘When you take from the children of Israel the tithes which I have given you from them as your inheritance, then you shall offer up a heave offering of it to the Lord, ^(HM)a tenth of the tithe. ²⁷ And your heave offering shall be reckoned to you as though it were the grain of the ^(HN)threshing floor and as the fullness of the winepress. ²⁸ Thus you shall also offer a heave offering to the Lord from all your tithes which you receive from the children of Israel, and you shall give the Lord’s heave offering from it to Aaron the priest. ²⁹ Of all your gifts you shall offer up every heave offering due to the Lord, from all the ^[av]best of them, the consecrated part of them.’ ³⁰ Therefore you shall say to them: ‘When you have lifted up the best of it, then the rest shall be accounted to the Levites as the produce of the threshing floor and as the produce of the winepress. ³¹ You may eat it in any place, you and your households, for it is ^(HO)your ^[aw]reward for your work in the tabernacle of meeting. ³² And you shall ^(HP)bear no sin because of it, when you have lifted up the best of it. But you shall not ^(HQ)profane the holy gifts of the children of Israel, lest you die.’ ”

Laws of Purification

19 Now the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying, ² “This is the ^[ax]ordinance of the law which the Lord has commanded, saying: ‘Speak to the children of Israel, that they bring you a red heifer without ^[ay]blemish, in which there is no ^(HR)defect ^(HS)and on which a yoke has never come. ³ You shall give it to Eleazar the priest, that he may take it ^(HT)outside the camp, and it shall be slaughtered before him; ⁴ and Eleazar the priest shall take some of its blood with his finger, and ^(HU)sprinkle some of its blood seven times directly in front of the tabernacle of meeting. ⁵ Then the heifer shall be burned in his sight: ^(HV)its hide, its flesh, its blood, and its offal shall be burned. ⁶ And the priest shall take ^(HW)cedar wood and ^(HX)hyssop and scarlet, and cast them into the midst of the fire burning the heifer. ^7 (HY)Then the priest shall wash his clothes, he shall bathe in water, and afterward he shall come into the camp; the priest shall be unclean until evening. ⁸ And the one who burns it shall wash his clothes in water, bathe in water, and shall be unclean until evening. ⁹ Then a man who is clean shall gather up ^(HZ)the ashes of the heifer, and store them outside the camp in a clean place; and they shall be kept for the congregation of the children of Israel ^(IA)for the water of ^[az]purification; it is for purifying from sin. ¹⁰ And the one who gathers the ashes of the heifer shall wash his clothes, and be unclean until evening. It shall be a statute forever to the children of Israel and to the stranger who dwells among them.

^11 (IB)‘He who touches the dead ^[ba]body of anyone shall be unclean seven days. ^12 (IC)He shall purify himself with the water on the third day and on the seventh day; then he will be clean. But if he does not purify himself on the third day and on the seventh day, he will not be clean. ¹³ Whoever touches the body of anyone who has died, and ^(ID)does not purify himself, ^(IE)defiles the tabernacle of the Lord. That person shall be cut off from Israel. He shall be unclean, because ^(IF)the water of purification was not sprinkled on him; ^(IG)his uncleanness is still on him.

¹⁴ ‘This is the law when a man dies in a tent: All who come into the tent and all who are in the tent shall be unclean seven days; ¹⁵ and every ^(IH)open vessel, which has no cover fastened on it, is unclean. ^16 (II)Whoever in the open field touches one who is slain by a sword or who has died, or a bone of a man, or a grave, shall be unclean seven days.

¹⁷ ‘And for an unclean person they shall take some of the ^(IJ)ashes of the heifer burnt for purification from sin, and ^[bb]running water shall be put on them in a vessel. ¹⁸ A clean person shall take ^(IK)hyssop and dip it in the water, sprinkle it on the tent, on all the vessels, on the persons who were there, or on the one who touched a bone, the slain, the dead, or a grave. ¹⁹ The clean person shall sprinkle the unclean on the third day and on the seventh day; ^(IL)and on the seventh day he shall purify himself, wash his clothes, and bathe in water; and at evening he shall be clean.

²⁰ ‘But the man who is unclean and does not purify himself, that person shall be cut off from among the assembly, because he has ^(IM)defiled the sanctuary of the Lord. The water of purification has not been sprinkled on him; he is unclean. ²¹ It shall be a perpetual statute for them. He who sprinkles the water of purification shall wash his clothes; and he who touches the water of purification shall be unclean until evening. ^22 (IN)Whatever the unclean person touches shall be unclean; and ^(IO)the person who touches it shall be unclean until evening.’ ”

Moses’ Error at Kadesh^(IP)

20 Then^(IQ) the children of Israel, the whole congregation, came into the Wilderness of Zin in the first month, and the people stayed in ^(IR)Kadesh; and ^(IS)Miriam died there and was buried there.

^2 (IT)Now there was no water for the congregation; ^(IU)so they gathered together against Moses and Aaron. ³ And the people ^(IV)contended with Moses and spoke, saying: “If only we had died ^(IW)when our brethren died before the Lord! ^4 (IX)Why have you brought up the assembly of the Lord into this wilderness, that we and our animals should die here? ⁵ And why have you made us come up out of Egypt, to bring us to this evil place? It is not a place of grain or figs or vines or pomegranates; nor is there any water to drink.” ⁶ So Moses and Aaron went from the presence of the assembly to the door of the tabernacle of meeting, and ^(IY)they ^[bc]fell on their faces. And ^(IZ)the glory of the Lord appeared to them.

⁷ Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, ^8 (JA)“Take the rod; you and your brother Aaron gather the congregation together. Speak to the rock before their eyes, and it will yield its water; thus ^(JB)you shall bring water for them out of the rock, and give drink to the congregation and their animals.” ⁹ So Moses took the rod ^(JC)from before the Lord as He commanded him.

¹⁰ And Moses and Aaron gathered the assembly together before the rock; and he said to them, ^(JD)“Hear now, you rebels! Must we bring water for you out of this rock?” ¹¹ Then Moses lifted his hand and struck the rock twice with his rod; ^(JE)and water came out abundantly, and the congregation and their animals drank.

¹² Then the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, “Because ^(JF)you did not believe Me, to ^(JG)hallow Me in the eyes of the children of Israel, therefore you shall not bring this assembly into the land which I have given them.”

^13 (JH)This was the water of ^[bd]Meribah, because the children of Israel contended with the Lord, and He was hallowed among them.

Passage Through Edom Refused

^14 (JI)Now Moses sent messengers from Kadesh to the king of ^(JJ)Edom. ^(JK)“Thus says your brother Israel: ‘You know all the hardship that has befallen us, ^15 (JL)how our fathers went down to Egypt, ^(JM)and we dwelt in Egypt a long time, ^(JN)and the Egyptians ^[be]afflicted us and our fathers. ^16 (JO)When we cried out to the Lord, He heard our voice and ^(JP)sent the Angel and brought us up out of Egypt; now here we are in Kadesh, a city on the edge of your border. ¹⁷ Please ^(JQ)let us pass through your country. We will not pass through fields or vineyards, nor will we drink water from wells; we will go along the King’s Highway; we will not turn aside to the right hand or to the left until we have passed through your territory.’ ”

¹⁸ Then ^(JR)Edom said to him, “You shall not pass through my land, lest I come out against you with the sword.”

¹⁹ So the children of Israel said to him, “We will go by the Highway, and if I or my livestock drink any of your water, ^(JS)then I will pay for it; let me only pass through on foot, nothing more.”

²⁰ Then he said, ^(JT)“You shall not pass through.” So Edom came out against them with many men and with a strong hand. ²¹ Thus Edom ^(JU)refused to give Israel passage through his territory; so Israel ^(JV)turned away from him.

Death of Aaron

²² Now the children of Israel, the whole congregation, journeyed from ^(JW)Kadesh ^(JX)and came to Mount Hor. ²³ And the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron in Mount Hor by the border of the land of Edom, saying: ²⁴ “Aaron shall ^[bf]be ^(JY)gathered to his people, for he shall not enter the land which I have given to the children of Israel, because you rebelled against My word at the water of Meribah. ^25 (JZ)Take Aaron and Eleazar his son, and bring them up to Mount Hor; ²⁶ and strip Aaron of his garments and put them on Eleazar his son; for Aaron shall be gathered to his people and die there.” ²⁷ So Moses did just as the Lord commanded, and they went up to Mount Hor in the sight of all the congregation. ^28 (KA)Moses stripped Aaron of his garments and put them on Eleazar his son; and ^(KB)Aaron died there on the top of the mountain. Then Moses and Eleazar came down from the mountain. ²⁹ Now when all the congregation saw that Aaron was dead, all the house of Israel mourned for Aaron ^(KC)thirty days.

Canaanites Defeated at Hormah

21 The ^(KD)king of Arad, the Canaanite, who dwelt in the South, heard that Israel was coming on the road to Atharim. Then he fought against Israel and took some of them prisoners. ^2 (KE)So Israel made a vow to the Lord, and said, “If You will indeed deliver this people into my hand, then ^(KF)I will utterly destroy their cities.” ³ And the Lord listened to the voice of Israel and delivered up the Canaanites, and they utterly destroyed them and their cities. So the name of that place was called ^[bg]Hormah.

The Bronze Serpent

⁴ Then they journeyed from Mount Hor by the Way of the Red Sea, to ^(KG)go around the land of Edom; and the soul of the people became very ^[bh]discouraged on the way. ⁵ And the people ^(KH)spoke against God and against Moses: “Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? For there is no food and no water, and our soul ^[bi]loathes this worthless bread.” ⁶ So ^(KI)the Lord sent ^(KJ)fiery serpents among the people, and they bit the people; and many of the people of Israel died.

^7 (KK)Therefore the people came to Moses, and said, “We have ^(KL)sinned, for we have spoken against the Lord and against you; ^(KM)pray to the Lord that He take away the serpents from us.” So Moses prayed for the people.

⁸ Then the Lord said to Moses, ^(KN)“Make a ^(KO)fiery serpent, and set it on a pole; and it shall be that everyone who is bitten, when he looks at it, shall live.” ⁹ So ^(KP)Moses made a bronze serpent, and put it on a pole; and so it was, if a serpent had bitten anyone, when he looked at the bronze serpent, he lived.

From Mount Hor to Moab

¹⁰ Now the children of Israel moved on and ^(KQ)camped in Oboth. ¹¹ And they journeyed from Oboth and camped at ^[bj]Ije Abarim, in the wilderness which is east of Moab, toward the sunrise. ^12 (KR)From there they moved and camped in the Valley of Zered. ¹³ From there they moved and camped on the other side of the Arnon, which is in the wilderness that extends from the border of the Amorites; for ^(KS)the Arnon is the border of Moab, between Moab and the Amorites. ¹⁴ Therefore it is said in the Book of the Wars of the Lord:

¹⁶ From there they went ^(KU)to Beer, which is the well where the Lord said to Moses, “Gather the people together, and I will give them water.” ^17 (KV)Then Israel sang this song:

And from the wilderness they went to Mattanah, ¹⁹ from Mattanah to Nahaliel, from Nahaliel to Bamoth, ²⁰ and from Bamoth, in the valley that is in the ^[bl]country of Moab, to the top of Pisgah which looks ^(KX)down on the ^[bm]wasteland.

King Sihon Defeated^(KY)

²¹ Then ^(KZ)Israel sent messengers to Sihon king of the Amorites, saying, ^22 (LA)“Let me pass through your land. We will not turn aside into fields or vineyards; we will not drink water from wells. We will go by the King’s Highway until we have passed through your territory.” ^23 (LB)But Sihon would not allow Israel to pass through his territory. So Sihon gathered all his people together and ^[bn]went out against Israel in the wilderness, ^(LC)and he came to Jahaz and fought against Israel. ²⁴ Then ^(LD)Israel defeated him with the edge of the sword, and took possession of his land from the Arnon to the Jabbok, as far as the people of Ammon; for the border of the people of Ammon was fortified. ²⁵ So Israel took all these cities, and Israel ^(LE)dwelt in all the cities of the Amorites, in Heshbon and in all its villages. ²⁶ For Heshbon was the city of Sihon king of the Amorites, who had fought against the former king of Moab, and had taken all his land from his hand as far as the Arnon. ²⁷ Therefore those who speak in ^[bo]proverbs say:

³¹ Thus Israel dwelt in the land of the Amorites. ³² Then Moses sent to ^[bp]spy out ^(LO)Jazer; and they took its villages and drove out the Amorites who were there.

King Og Defeated^(LP)

^33 (LQ)And they turned and went up by the way to ^(LR)Bashan. So Og king of Bashan went out against them, he and all his people, to battle ^(LS)at Edrei. ³⁴ Then the Lord said to Moses, ^(LT)“Do not fear him, for I have ^[bq]delivered him into your hand, with all his people and his land; and ^(LU)you shall do to him as you did to Sihon king of the Amorites, who dwelt at Heshbon.” ^35 (LV)So they defeated him, his sons, and all his people, until there was no survivor left him; and they took possession of his land.