Numbers 8
New Living Translation
Preparing the Lamps
8 The Lord said to Moses, 2 “Give Aaron the following instructions: When you set up the seven lamps in the lampstand, place them so their light shines forward in front of the lampstand.” 3 So Aaron did this. He set up the seven lamps so they reflected their light forward, just as the Lord had commanded Moses. 4 The entire lampstand, from its base to its decorative blossoms, was made of beaten gold. It was built according to the exact design the Lord had shown Moses.
The Levites Dedicated
5 Then the Lord said to Moses, 6 “Now set the Levites apart from the rest of the people of Israel and make them ceremonially clean. 7 Do this by sprinkling them with the water of purification, and have them shave their entire body and wash their clothing. Then they will be ceremonially clean. 8 Have them bring a young bull and a grain offering of choice flour moistened with olive oil, along with a second young bull for a sin offering. 9 Then assemble the whole community of Israel, and present the Levites at the entrance of the Tabernacle.[a] 10 When you present the Levites before the Lord, the people of Israel must lay their hands on them. 11 Raising his hands, Aaron must then present the Levites to the Lord as a special offering from the people of Israel, thus dedicating them to the Lord’s service.
12 “Next the Levites will lay their hands on the heads of the young bulls. Present one as a sin offering and the other as a burnt offering to the Lord, to purify the Levites and make them right with the Lord.[b] 13 Then have the Levites stand in front of Aaron and his sons, and raise your hands and present them as a special offering to the Lord. 14 In this way, you will set the Levites apart from the rest of the people of Israel, and the Levites will belong to me. 15 After this, they may go into the Tabernacle to do their work, because you have purified them and presented them as a special offering.
16 “Of all the people of Israel, the Levites are reserved for me. I have claimed them for myself in place of all the firstborn sons of the Israelites; I have taken the Levites as their substitutes. 17 For all the firstborn males among the people of Israel are mine, both of people and of animals. I set them apart for myself on the day I struck down all the firstborn sons of the Egyptians. 18 Yes, I have claimed the Levites in place of all the firstborn sons of Israel. 19 And of all the Israelites, I have assigned the Levites to Aaron and his sons. They will serve in the Tabernacle on behalf of the Israelites and make sacrifices to purify[c] the people so no plague will strike them when they approach the sanctuary.”
20 So Moses, Aaron, and the whole community of Israel dedicated the Levites, carefully following all the Lord’s instructions to Moses. 21 The Levites purified themselves from sin and washed their clothes, and Aaron lifted them up and presented them to the Lord as a special offering. He then offered a sacrifice to purify them and make them right with the Lord.[d] 22 After that the Levites went into the Tabernacle to perform their duties, assisting Aaron and his sons. So they carried out all the commands that the Lord gave Moses concerning the Levites.
23 The Lord also instructed Moses, 24 “This is the rule the Levites must follow: They must begin serving in the Tabernacle at the age of twenty-five, 25 and they must retire at the age of fifty. 26 After retirement they may assist their fellow Levites by serving as guards at the Tabernacle, but they may not officiate in the service. This is how you must assign duties to the Levites.”
Numbers 8
Evangelical Heritage Version
The Light for the Dwelling
8 The Lord spoke to Moses: 2 “Speak to Aaron and tell him, ‘When you set up the lamps, the seven lamps are to give light in front of the lampstand.’”
3 So that is what Aaron did. He set up the lamps to light the area in front of the lampstand, just as the Lord commanded Moses. 4 This was how the lampstand was made: It was a work of hammered gold. From its base to its blossoms, it was one hammered piece. So the lampstand was made according to the pattern that the Lord had shown Moses.
The Purification of the Levites
5 The Lord told Moses 6 to take the Levites from among the Israelites and to do the following to make them ceremonially clean:
7 This is what you are to do to them to make them ceremonially clean: Sprinkle the water of purification[a] on them. Have them shave their entire body with a razor, wash their clothes, and purify themselves. 8 Then they are to take a young bull from the herd with its grain offering of fine flour mixed with oil. You are to take another young bull from the herd for a sin offering. 9 You are to present the Levites in front of the Tent of Meeting. You are to assemble the entire Israelite community. 10 You are to present the Levites before the Lord. The Israelites will place their hands on the Levites. 11 Then Aaron will offer the Levites before the Lord as a wave offering on behalf of the Israelites. They are to do the work of the Lord.
12 The Levites are to place their hands on the heads of the young bulls. You then will offer the one young bull as a sin offering and the other young bull as a whole burnt offering to the Lord to make atonement for the Levites. 13 You will have the Levites stand in front of Aaron and his sons, and you will offer them as a wave offering to the Lord. 14 In this way you are to set apart the Levites from the other Israelites, and the Levites will be mine.
15 After you have purified them and offered them as a wave offering, the Levites will go to work at the Tent of Meeting, 16 because only they are given to me as servants from among the Israelites. In place of every firstborn from the womb, the firstborn of every Israelite, I have taken the Levites for myself. 17 For all the firstborn among the Israelites are mine, both human and animal. On the day that I struck all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, I set the firstborn of the Israelites apart for myself. 18 But I have taken the Levites in place of every firstborn among the Israelites. 19 From among the Israelites I have given only the Levites to Aaron and his sons to do the work of the people of Israel at the Tent of Meeting and to make atonement for the people of Israel so that there will not be any plague among the Israelites when the Israelites approach the sanctuary.
20 Moses, Aaron, and the entire community of the people of Israel did for the Levites just as they had been told. The Israelites did for them everything that the Lord commanded Moses in regard to the Levites. 21 The Levites purified themselves and washed their clothing. Aaron offered them as a wave offering before the Lord and made atonement for them to purify them. 22 After that, the Levites went to do their work at the Tent of Meeting in the presence of Aaron and his sons. Just as the Lord had commanded Moses about the Levites, that is exactly what they did for them.
23 The Lord spoke to Moses: 24 “This applies to the Levites: From twenty-five years of age and up, they are to serve in the work at the Tent of Meeting. 25 But when they are fifty years old, they are to retire from the service and no longer work. 26 They may assist their brothers at the Tent of Meeting in performing their duties, but they are not to do the work. This is exactly what you are to do in regard to the Levites and their duties.”
Footnotes
- Numbers 8:7 Or cleansing
Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
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The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage Version®, EHV®, © 2019 Wartburg Project, Inc. All rights reserved.