Bible in 90 Days

²⁷ If the people still turn away from God, he will be even more angry. They will not turn away from their sin. ²⁸ So he will turn away from them. He will punish them seven times more again. ²⁹ They will be so hungry that they will eat their own children. ³⁰ The Lord will destroy the places where they worship false gods. He will destroy their very bad incense altars. He will put their dead bodies round their idols. He will hate them. ³¹ He will destroy the cities. He will destroy the places for wrong worship. Nobody will burn incense to give the Lord pleasure. ³² God will destroy the land. He will cause the enemies who live in your land to hate it. ³³ God will push you out. He will send your people away to other countries. He will destroy your cities. And he will make your land a desert. ³⁴ The land will have a Sabbath rest while there are no people in it. ³⁵ All the time that it is empty, the land will have rest. It will have the Sabbath rest that it did not have. It did not have it when you lived in it.

³⁶ Some of Israel's people will remain in other countries. They will be frightened. A leaf that is blowing in the wind will cause them to run away. It will be like when an enemy is running after them. They will fall even if no enemy is running after them. ³⁷ They will fall over each other when nobody is running after them. They will not be strong enough to fight their enemies. ³⁸ They will die in the countries where they are living. Those countries will cause their deaths. ³⁹ Those who remain here will die because of their sins. They will die because their ancestors did not obey God.

⁴⁰ Your sons and your grandsons must tell me, the Lord, that they are sorry. They must be sorry because they did not obey my rules. They must be sorry that they turned away from me. ⁴¹ They must remember that they made me angry. They caused me to turn away from them. I am the Lord, and I sent them into their enemies' country. They will be sorry until I have punished them enough. ⁴² Then I will remember my covenant with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. I will remember that I gave their land to them. ⁴³ Before this, the land will be empty and it will have a rest. My people will pay for the bad things that they did. ⁴⁴ But I, the Lord, will not kill all of them. The people will be living in their enemies' country. Then I will remember them. I will not leave them alone. I will remember my covenant with them. I am the Lord, their God. ⁴⁵ I will remember my covenant with their ancestors that I brought out of Egypt. The people of other nations saw me do this. I am the Lord.’

⁴⁶ These are the rules that the Lord gave to Moses on Sinai mountain. They are his covenant with Israel's people.^[a]

Rules about gifts to the Lord

27 The Lord said to Moses, ² ‘Speak to Israel's people. Tell them this. A person might give another person to the Lord for a special promise. ³ They can make that person free. But they must give the right amount of money to God. For a man between 20 years and 60 years old, they must give 50 pieces of silver. ⁴ For a woman, they must give 30 pieces of silver. ⁵ For a male between five years and 20 years old, they must give to God 20 pieces of silver. For a female, they must give ten pieces of silver. ⁶ For a boy between one month and five years old, they must give five pieces of silver. For a girl of the same age, God must have three pieces of silver. ⁷ If a man is older than 60 years, they must give 15 pieces of silver. For a woman, they must give ten pieces of silver. ⁸ A person might say this special promise to God. But he might be too poor to pay the money. He must bring the person to the priest. The priest will tell the person how much money to pay. The priest will know how much money the man can give.

⁹ If the promise is to give an animal to God the animal becomes holy to the Lord. ¹⁰ The person must not change a good animal for a bad animal. He must not change a bad animal for a good animal. If the person does change one animal for another, both the animals become holy. ¹¹ The animal might be an animal that you must not eat. And you can not give it to the Lord. If it is, the person must bring it to the priest. ¹² The priest will decide if the animal is good or bad. ¹³ The person might want to buy the animal back. He must pay the price of the animal and one fifth more.

¹⁴ A person might give his house to the Lord. The priest will decide if the house is good or bad. The priest will decide the price of the house. ¹⁵ The person might want to buy the house back. He must pay the price of the house and one fifth more. Then it will again belong to him.

¹⁶ A person might give part of his land to the Lord. The person will decide the price by how much seed the land needs. The price will be 50 pieces of silver for a homer (220 litres) of seed. ¹⁷ If a person gives his land in a Jubilee year, the price is the same. ¹⁸ A person might give his land after the Jubilee year. The priest will count the number of years before the next Jubilee. The price will be less. ¹⁹ A person might want to buy the land back. He must pay the price of the land and one fifth more. ²⁰ He may not buy it back before the year of Jubilee. Then the field becomes holy. But the man may have sold the land to another person. If he has, he cannot get it back. ²¹ In the Jubilee year the land will become holy. Then it will belong to the priests.

²² A person might buy some land from another family. He might give that land to the Lord. ²³ The priest will count how many years there are until the Jubilee year. The person must pay the money on that day. The money is holy to the Lord. ²⁴ In the Jubilee year, the land returns to the family from whom he bought it. ²⁵ The priest must decide the price of the land. He must use the correct measures.

²⁶ The first baby that an animal has is holy. It belongs to the Lord. A person cannot give it as a special gift to the Lord. ²⁷ The animal might be an unclean animal (an animal that they must not eat). The person can pay the price of the animal and one fifth more to get it back. If the person does not buy it back, the priest will sell it.

²⁸ A man might give to the Lord something that the man has. Everything that a man gives like that is holy. It might be a person, an animal or land. The priest must not sell it. A man cannot take it back. Everything that someone gives to the Lord is most holy.

²⁹ God might decide that a person must die. If he does, nobody can buy the person back. The person must die.

³⁰ One tenth of everything that comes from the land is holy to the Lord. It may be grain or fruit. It belongs to the Lord. ³¹ If a person buys back any of his gift, he must pay the price and one fifth more. ³² Out of every ten animals, one animal is holy. It belongs to the Lord. ³³ A person must not change a good animal for a bad animal. A person must not change a bad animal for a good animal. If he does that, both animals are holy. They belong to God. A person cannot buy them back.’

³⁴ These are the rules that the Lord gave to Moses on Sinai mountain. They are the rules for Israel's people.

Moses counts the people

1 The Israelites were in the Sinai desert. It was the first day of the second month of the second year after they left Egypt. Moses was in the Tent of Meeting.^[b]

The Lord said to Moses, ² ‘Put the people into clans and families and count them.^[c] Make a list. Write the name of each man on the list. ³ You and Aaron must record the names of all the men in each group who can fight in the army. Record the names of men who are 20 years old or older. ⁴ A man from each tribe must help you. Each of them will be the leader of his family.

⁵ These are the men from each tribe who must help you:

¹⁵ Naphtali: Ahira, the son of Enan.’

¹⁶ These were the men that they chose from among the people. They were leaders of their clans. Each of them worked on behalf of the tribe of their ancestor. ¹⁷ Moses and Aaron told these leaders to come. ¹⁸ On the first day of the second month, they said that all the Israelite people must come together. The people were in clans and in families. They made a list of all the men who were 20 years old or older. ¹⁹ They did the things that the Lord had told Moses to do. So Moses recorded the names there in the Sinai desert.

^20-43 They recorded the names of all the men who were 20 years old or older. Those men could fight in the army. They recorded the names of the men in each clan and family. Reuben was the firstborn son of Israel, so they recorded his tribe first. These were the numbers of the men from each tribe:

⁴⁴ Moses and Aaron counted the numbers of the men in each tribe. The 12 leaders of the Israelites helped them to do it. That was one man from each tribe. ⁴⁵ They recorded the names of all the men in each family. All the men who were 20 years old or older were on the list. Those men could fight in the army. ⁴⁶ The number of all the men was 603,550.

The tribe of Levi

⁴⁷ But Moses and Aaron did not count the descendants of Levi among the other tribes. ⁴⁸ The Lord had said to Moses, ⁴⁹ ‘You must not count the tribe of Levi. You must not put the Levites on the list with the other Israelites. ⁵⁰ The Levites' work will be in the special Tent of Meeting. They must take care of the Tent and everything that is in it. They must carry it everywhere. Their work is with all those things. They must put their own tents round the special Tent. ⁵¹ When the people move to another place, the Levites must pack the Tent. When the people arrive at a new place, the Levites must put the Tent up again. If any other person, not a Levite, comes near to the special Tent, they must die.

⁵² All the other Israelites must put up their tents in groups. Each man must live among his own group. Each group must put up its own flag. ⁵³ But the Levites must put up their tents around the Tent of Meeting. They must take care of it. Then I, the Lord, will not be angry with the people.’

⁵⁴ The Israelites did everything that the Lord had told Moses to do.

Where the tribes put up their tents

2 The Lord said to Moses and Aaron, ² ‘The Israelites must put up their tents on each side of the Tent of Meeting. They must not be very near to it but they must be all around it. They must live together in their tribes. Each person must be with his own tribe. Each tribe must have its own flag.^[d]

³ The people in Judah's tribe must be on the east side of the Tent. They must have their flag with them, and they must put up their tents in groups. The leader of the tribe of Judah is Nahshon, the son of Amminadab. ⁴ There will be 74,600 soldiers in his army.

⁵ The tribe of Issachar will put up their tents on one side of Judah's camp. The leader of the tribe of Issachar is Nethanel, the son of Zuar. ⁶ There will be 54,400 soldiers in his army.

⁷ The tribe of Zebulun will be on the other side of Judah's camp. The leader of the tribe of Zebulun is Eliab, the son of Helon. ⁸ There will be 57,400 soldiers in his army.

⁹ So there will be 186,400 soldiers in the three groups on Judah's side of the camp. When the people travel, these tribes will march first.

¹⁰ The tribe of Reuben must be on the south side of the Tent. They must have their flag with them, and they must put up their tents in groups. The leader of the tribe of Reuben is Elizur, the son of Shedeur. ¹¹ There will be 46,500 soldiers in his army.

¹² The tribe of Simeon will put up their tents on one side of Reuben's camp. The leader of the tribe of Simeon is Shelumiel, the son of Zurishaddai. ¹³ There will be 59,300 soldiers in his army.

¹⁴ The tribe of Gad will be on the other side of Reuben's camp. The leader of the tribe of Gad is Eliasaph, the son of Deuel. ¹⁵ There will be 45,650 soldiers in his army.

¹⁶ So there will be 151,450 soldiers in the three groups on Reuben's side of the camp. When the people travel, they will march second.

¹⁷ The Levites must march next. The Levites must carry the Tent of Meeting. They must march between the first two groups of tribes and the last two groups of tribes. Each man must be in his own place. They must march with their flag.

¹⁸ The tribe of Ephraim must be on the west side of the Tent. They must have their flag with them and they must live in groups. The leader of the tribe of Ephraim is Elishama, the son of Ammihud. ¹⁹ There will be 40,500 soldiers in his army.

²⁰ The tribe of Manasseh will be on one side of Ephraim's camp. The leader of the tribe of Manasseh is Gamaliel, the son of Pedahzur. ²¹ There will be 32,200 soldiers in his army.

²² The tribe of Benjamin will be on the other side of Ephraim's camp. The leader of the tribe of Benjamin is Abidan, the son of Gideoni. ²³ There will be 35,400 soldiers in his army.

²⁴ So there will be 108,100 soldiers in the three groups on Ephraim's side of the camp. When the people travel, they will march third.

²⁵ The tribe of Dan must be on the north side of the Tent. They must have their flag with them and they must live in groups. The leader of the tribe of Dan is Ahiezer, the son of Ammishaddai. ²⁶ There will be 62,700 soldiers in his army.

²⁷ The tribe of Asher will put up their tents on one side of Dan's camp. The leader of the tribe of Asher is Pagiel, the son of Ocran. ²⁸ There will be 41,500 soldiers in his army.

²⁹ The tribe of Naphtali will be on the other side of Dan's camp. The leader of the tribe of Naphtali is Ahira, the son of Enan. ³⁰ There will be 53,400 soldiers in his army.

³¹ So there will be 157,600 soldiers in the three groups on Dan's side of the camp. They will march last with their flag.’

³² In that way, Moses and his helpers counted all the Israelite men who were able to fight. They counted them in groups, clan by clan. There were 603,550 soldiers. ³³ They did not count the Levites among the other Israelites. That was what the Lord had told Moses.

³⁴ The Israelites did everything that the Lord had told Moses. They put up their tents in groups, as the Lord wanted. Each tribe put up its tents under its own flag. When they started to travel, each man walked with his own clan and his own family.

The Levites

3 This is the list of the family of Aaron and Moses. This was at the time when the Lord spoke to Moses on Sinai mountain.

² The names of the sons of Aaron were Nadab, Abihu, Eleazar and Ithamar. Nadab was the firstborn son. ³ Aaron anointed them, and he gave authority to them to work as priests. ⁴ But Nadab and Abihu fell down and died in front of the Lord. That happened when they offered strange fire to the Lord in the Sinai desert.^[e] They had no children. So only Eleazar and Ithamar worked as priests while their father Aaron was alive.

The Levites help the priests

⁵ Then the Lord said to Moses, ⁶ ‘Bring the tribe of Levi to Aaron the priest. They must help him. ⁷ They must serve him and all the Israelites. They must work at the Tent of Meeting and take care of it. ⁸ They must work on behalf of the Israelites. They must take care of the things that are in the Tent of Meeting. That is how they will serve God. ⁹ Give the Levites to Aaron and to his descendants. They will be the Israelites who help him. They do not have to do anything else. ¹⁰ But you must make a list of Aaron and his descendants. They will be the priests. If any other person comes near to the special Tent, they must die.’

¹¹ The Lord also said to Moses, ¹² ‘I will not take the firstborn son of every woman in Israel to belong to me. I will take the Levites instead of them. ¹³ I killed all the firstborn sons of the Egyptians. But I kept the firstborn sons of every person and animal among the Israelites for myself. They belong to me. I am the Lord!’

The Levite families

¹⁴ The Lord said to Moses in the Sinai desert, ¹⁵ ‘Put the Levites into clans and families and count them. Make a list of every male who is a month old or older.’ ¹⁶ Moses obeyed the Lord. So Moses recorded them as the Lord said.

¹⁷ The names of the sons of Levi were Gershon, Kohath and Merari.

¹⁸ Gershon had two sons. Their names were Libni and Shimei.

¹⁹ Kohath's sons were called Amram, Izhar, Hebron and Uzziel.

²⁰ Merari's sons were called Mahli and Mushi.

Those were the sons and grandsons of Levi. They became the leaders of the clans of Levi's tribe.

Gershon's clan

²¹ There were two families in Gershon's clan. They were the families of Libni and Shimei. ²² There were 7,500 males who were one month or older in their list. ²³ Gershon's clan had to put up their tents on the west side of the special Tent. ²⁴ The leader of the clan of Gershon was Eliasaph the son of Lael.

²⁵ Gershon's clan had to take care of the Tent of Meeting, with the cloth that covered it, and the curtain at its door. ²⁶ There was a yard round the outside of the tabernacle and the altar. Gershon's family took care of the curtains that hung round the yard, with their ropes. They also took care of the curtain at the entrance to the yard. They took care of all those kinds of things.

Kohath's clan

²⁷ There were four families in Kohath's clan. They were the families of Amram, Izhar, Hebron and Uzziel. ²⁸ There were 8,600 males who were one month old or older in this clan. They had to take care of the things inside the special Tent. ²⁹ Kohath's clan had to put up their tents on the south side of the tabernacle. ³⁰ The leader of Kohath's descendants was Elizaphan the son of Uzziel.

³¹ Kohath's family had to take care of the Covenant Box, the table and the lampstands. They had to take care of the altars and the tools that the priests used in the special Tent. They also took care of the curtain in front of the Most Holy Place in the Tent. They did all the work with those things.

³² Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, was the most important leader of the Levites. He ruled over those people who took care of God's special Tent.

Merari's clan

³³ There were two families in Merari's clan. They were the families of Mahli and Mushi. ³⁴ There were 6,200 males in that list. They were one month old or older when Moses counted them. ³⁵ The leader of Merari's clan was Zuriel, the son of Abihail. They had to put up their tents on the north side of the special tabernacle.

³⁶ Merari's family had to take care of all the wood parts of the tabernacle. They took care of the heavy things that stood on the ground to hold the poles. ³⁷ They also took care of the poles that held the cloth round the yard, their ropes and other things that held the Tent in its place.

³⁸ Moses, Aaron and Aaron's sons had to put up their tents in front of the tabernacle, on the east side. They were the only people who could go into the Holy Place in the Tent. Any other person who went near it had to die.

³⁹ So Moses and Aaron obeyed the Lord. They counted the Levites by their clans. There were 22,000 males who were one month old or older.

The firstborn sons belong to the Lord

⁴⁰ The Lord said to Moses, ‘Record all the firstborn sons of the Israelites. Record every male who is one month old or older. Make a list of their names. ⁴¹ The Israelites' firstborn sons belong to me. I am the Lord. But I will accept all the males among the Levites instead. The Israelites' firstborn animals also belong to me. But I will accept the animals of the Levites instead.’

⁴² So Moses counted all the firstborn males among the Israelites as the Lord had said. ⁴³ He counted 22,273 firstborn males who were one month old or older. He made a list of their names.

⁴⁴ Then the Lord said to Moses, ⁴⁵ ‘Do not take the firstborn males among the people to belong to me. Accept the Levites instead. Do not use the firstborn animals of the people. Accept the animals of the Levites instead. The Levites will belong to me. I am the Lord. ⁴⁶ There are 273 more firstborn males of the people than there are Levites. So the people must pay for the extra firstborn sons. ⁴⁷ You must accept five shekels for each extra firstborn male. The shekel must have the same weight as the shekel that the Levites use in God's tabernacle. There are 20 gerahs in one shekel. ⁴⁸ Give that money to Aaron and his sons.’

⁴⁹ So Moses took the money to buy back the extra 273 firstborn sons. That was because the number of firstborn sons was more than the number of Levites. ⁵⁰ He took 1,365 shekels from them. The shekels had the same weight as the shekel that the Levites used in God's tabernacle. ⁵¹ Moses did what the Lord had told him to do. He gave the money to Aaron and his sons.

Kohath's clan

4 The Lord said to Moses and Aaron, ² ‘Write a list of the people in Kohath's clan in their families. That list must be separate from the list of the other Levites. ³ Record the men who can work in the Tent of Meeting. Record them if they are between 30 and 50 years old.

⁴ These men must take care of everything that is most holy in the Tent of Meeting. ⁵ When the people are ready to move, Aaron and his sons must go into the Tent of Meeting. They must take down the curtain that is in front of the Covenant Box. They must cover the Covenant Box with the curtain. ⁶ Then they must cover the curtain with good leather. On the top of that, they must put a blue cloth. Then, they must put the poles through the rings, so that they can carry the Covenant Box.

⁷ They must put a blue cloth over the table for the special bread. The bread must remain on the table. They must put on the cloth the plates, bowls and dishes. They must also put on it the jars for the wine that they offer to me. ⁸ Then they must cover all those things with a red cloth. On the top of the red cloth, they must put good leather. Then they must fix the poles to the table, so that they can carry it.

⁹ They must cover the lampstand and its tools with a blue cloth. They must also cover the jars for the oil with the blue cloth. ¹⁰ Then they must cover all this with good leather. They must carry it on a board.

¹¹ They must cover the gold altar with a blue cloth. They must cover the blue cloth with good leather. Then they must fix the poles to the altar, so that they can carry it. ¹² They must cover all the tools from God's Holy Tent with a blue cloth. They must cover the blue cloth with good leather. They must carry all this on a board.

¹³ They must remove the ashes from the bronze altar. They must cover the bronze altar with a purple cloth. ¹⁴ They must put all the tools on top of it. That includes the plates for the fire, the forks for the meat, the spades and the bowls. They must cover all that with good leather. Then they must put the poles through the rings on the altar, so that they can carry it.

¹⁵ When the camp is ready to move, the men from Kohath's clan must be ready to carry all those things. But they must wait until Aaron and his sons have covered God's Holy Tent and all its holy things. The men from Kohath's clan must not touch the holy things. They will die if they touch the holy things. These are the jobs of Kohath's clan. They must carry the things from the Tent of Meeting when the Israelites travel.

¹⁶ Eleazar, who is the son of Aaron the priest, must keep the oil for the light. He must keep the incense and the grain offering. He must keep the special oil. The special oil is a mark on everything that God chooses. Eleazar must take care of the whole Tent of Meeting. He must work with God's Holy Tent and with everything in it.’

¹⁷ Then the Lord said to Moses and Aaron, ¹⁸ ‘You must not cause the end of Kohath's clan from among the Levites. ¹⁹ Do not let the men in that clan die. That will happen if they come near to the most holy things. You must do this: Aaron and his sons must go into the Tent of Meeting. They will tell each man the work that he must do. And they must tell each man the things that he must carry. ²⁰ But the men from Kohath's clan must not look at anything that is holy, even for a moment. If they do look at those things, they will die.’

Gershon's clan

²¹ Then the Lord said to Moses, ²² ‘Also write a list of the people in Gershon's clan in their families. ²³ Record the men who can work in the Tent of Meeting. Record them if they are between 30 and 50 years old.

²⁴ The work of the men in Gershon's clan is to carry everything. ²⁵ The men from that clan must carry the curtains of God's Tent. And they must carry the Tent of Meeting with the thing that covers it. And they must carry the good leather that covers all that. And they must carry the curtain for the place where people go into the Tent of Meeting. ²⁶ They must carry the curtains of the yard that is round God's Tent. Also, they must carry the curtain and ropes for the place where people go into the yard. That is the yard that is round God's Tent and the altar. The men from Gershon's clan must carry all the tools that belong with those curtains. They must do everything that all those things need. ²⁷ The men in Gershon's clan must do everything that Aaron and his sons ask them to do. Aaron and his sons must tell them the things that they should carry. And they must tell them everything that they should do. ²⁸ That is the work for the Tent of Meeting that the descendants of Gershon must do. Ithamar, the son of Aaron the priest, will tell them the things that they must do.’

Merari's clan

²⁹ Also God said to Moses, ‘Write a list of the people in Merari's clan in their families. ³⁰ Record the men who can work in the Tent of Meeting. Record them if they are between 30 and 50 years old. ³¹ This is the work of the men in Merari's clan. They must carry the wood parts that hold the Tent of Meeting, and its poles. They must carry its pillars and its bases. ³² And they must carry the pillars, bases, pegs and ropes for the yard that is round God's Tent. And the men in Merari's clan must keep all the tools that belong with those things safe. Each man in Merari's clan must take care of something. Tell each man which things he must carry. ³³ That is the work of the descendants of Merari in the Tent of Meeting. Ithamar, the son of Aaron the priest, will tell them the things that they must do.’

The numbers in the Levite clans

³⁴ So Moses, Aaron and the people's leaders recorded the names of Kohath's descendants in their clans and in their families. ³⁵ They recorded the men who could work in the Tent of Meeting. They recorded them if they were between 30 and 50 years old. ³⁶ They recorded them in clans. There were 2,750 men. ³⁷ Moses and Aaron recorded the descendants of Kohath who worked at the Tent of Meeting. The Lord had told Moses that they must do that.

³⁸ Moses and Aaron also recorded the names of Gershon's descendants in their clans and in their families. ³⁹ They recorded the men who could work in the Tent of Meeting. They recorded them if they were between 30 and 50 years old. ⁴⁰ They recorded them in clans and families. There were 2,630 men. ⁴¹ Moses and Aaron recorded the descendants of Gershon who worked at the Tent of Meeting. The Lord had told Moses that they must do that.

⁴² Moses and Aaron also recorded the names of Merari's descendants in their clans and in their families. ⁴³ They counted all the men who worked in the Tent of Meeting. They counted them if they were between 30 and 50 years old. ⁴⁴ They recorded them in clans. There were 3,200 men. ⁴⁵ Moses and Aaron recorded the descendants of Merari who worked at the Tent of Meeting. The Lord had told Moses that they must do that.

⁴⁶ Moses, Aaron and the people's leaders recorded the names of the Levites in their clans and in their families. ⁴⁷ They counted all the men who worked in the Tent of Meeting. And they counted all the men who carried any of its things. They counted them if they were between 30 and 50 years old. ⁴⁸ There were 8,580 Levites in the list. ⁴⁹ They told each man the things that he must do. Or they told him what he must carry. Moses recorded all their names. The Lord had told him that he must do that.

Unclean people

5 The Lord said to Moses, ² ‘Speak to the Israelites. They must send any person with a disease of the skin away from the camp. Or somebody may have a disease that causes pus to come out of his body. Any person like that is not clean. Anyone who has touched a dead person is also not clean. Send those people out of the camp too. ³ Do this with both men and women. Send them out of the camp. They must not make the camp unclean, because that is where I live among the people.’

⁴ The Israelites did what the Lord had said to Moses. They sent those people outside the camp.

What to pay when you do a wrong thing

⁵ The Lord said to Moses, ⁶ ‘Tell these rules to the Israelites: A person might do a wrong thing against another person. If they do, then they have turned against the Lord. ⁷ That person must agree that they have sinned. They must pay the right amount to the other person. They must also pay them one fifth extra. ⁸ But the other person may have died. If they have no relative who can accept the money, the money must go to the Lord. The person who did a wrong thing must give the money and a male sheep to the priest. The sheep is a special gift to the Lord to make everything right. Then I will forgive that person. ⁹ All the special gifts from the Israelites to God are for the priest. ¹⁰ The priest will keep all the special gifts.’

Husbands and wives

¹¹ The Lord said to Moses:

¹² ‘Speak to the Israelites. Tell them to follow these rules. A woman may do wrong things against her husband. ¹³ She might have had sex with another man. The husband might not know about this. His wife might have kept it secret. Nobody came in while it was happening. So there is nobody to say that it happened. ¹⁴ But the man may think that it happened. He will be angry. But she may not have made herself unclean in that way. ¹⁵ The man must take his wife to the priest. He must bring one kilogram of barley flour with him. This is a grain offering to discover if his wife really did do those things. So he must not put oil or incense on the grain offering. That is an offering because the man does not trust his wife.

¹⁶ Then the priest will bring the woman to stand in front of the Lord. ¹⁷ He must pour some holy water into a bowl that someone has made from clay.^[f] He must take some dust from the floor of God's Tent. And he must put the dust into the water. ¹⁸ Then the priest must bring the woman in front of the Lord. The priest must make the woman's hair free. He must put into her hands the grain offering. That is the offering because the man does not trust his wife. The priest must hold the bowl that contains the bitter water. The bitter water brings a curse. ¹⁹ Then the woman must agree to the strong promise that the priest tells her to say.

The priest must say to her, “This water brings a curse. If no other man has had sex with you, it will not hurt you. ²⁰ But if another man has had sex with you, ²¹ may the Lord bring the curse on you. The bitter water will cause your female parts to become smaller. Your stomach will become very big. ²² That will happen when you drink the bitter water.”

The woman must say, “That should happen. I agree!”

²³ The priest must write the curses on special paper. Then he must wash the words off the paper into the bitter water. ²⁴ He must tell the woman that she must drink the bitter water. This water that brings a curse will go into her body. It may cause her to be very ill. ²⁵ But first, the priest must take the grain offering from her hands. That is the offering because the man does not trust his wife. The priest must lift it up in front of the Lord. Then he must bring it to the altar. ²⁶ He must burn a small part of it as a sacrifice. After that, the woman must drink the bitter water. ²⁷ If the woman has had sex with another man, the water will cause her to have very bad pain. Her female parts will become smaller. Her stomach will become very big. And people will curse her. ²⁸ But, if she did not do those wrong things, the water will not hurt her. She will be able to have babies.

^29-30 Perhaps a man is jealous because his wife has had sex with another man. Or he may only think that his wife has had sex with another man. This is what the law says that the priest must do: The man must bring her in front of the Lord. ³¹ If the woman did not do those wrong things, you must not punish her husband. But if the woman did do those wrong things, you must punish her.’

People who make special promises to the Lord

6 The Lord said to Moses, ² ‘Tell the Israelites this: “A man or a woman may want to make a special promise to the Lord. That will make him or her separate from other people, as a Nazirite.^{[g] 3} They must not drink wine. They must not drink any alcohol or vinegar. They must not drink the juice of grapes, or eat grapes or raisins. ⁴ They must not eat the seeds of grapes for all the time that they are Nazirites. They must not even eat the skins of grapes.

⁵ A person must not cut his hair during the time that he is a Nazirite. He must be different all the time that he is separate for the Lord. He must let the hair on his head grow long. ⁶ He must not go near a dead body while he is separate for the Lord. ⁷ His hair shows that he is separate for God. So he must not go near a dead body. He must not go near it even if the dead person is his father, mother, brother or sister. ⁸ During the time that the person is a Nazirite, they are holy because they belong to the Lord.

⁹ The Nazirite may be near to a person when that person dies suddenly. Then his head becomes unclean. He must remove all the hair from his head seven days after the person dies. Then he will be clean. ¹⁰ On day 8, he must bring two doves or two young pigeons to the door of the Tent of Meeting. He must give them to the priest. ¹¹ The priest must sacrifice one bird as a sin offering and the other bird as a burnt offering. The priest must do that because the Nazirite sinned. He went too near to a dead body. That will make the Nazirite's head clean again on that same day. ¹² He must begin his time as a Nazirite again, with a new promise to the Lord. He cannot include the days before he became unclean. He must bring a male lamb that is one year old. That is a guilt offering.

¹³ He is a Nazirite for a certain time. When that time finishes, the people must bring him to the door of the Tent of Meeting. ¹⁴ He must offer to the Lord three animals that have nothing wrong with them. He must offer a young male sheep that is one year old. That is a burnt offering. He must offer a young female sheep that is one year old. That is a sin offering. He must offer a male sheep. That is a friendship offering. ¹⁵ And he must bring a basket of bread that people have made without yeast. He must bring cakes that people have made with the best flour and oil. Also, he must bring thin biscuits with oil on them. But they must not have yeast in them either. He must bring the proper grain offerings and drink offerings with them.

¹⁶ The priest must offer those things to the Lord. And he must sacrifice the sin offering and the burnt offering. ¹⁷ Then the priest must sacrifice the male sheep as a friendship offering to the Lord. He must offer the basket of bread. He must give the grain offering and the drink offering with it.

¹⁸ Then the Nazirite must stand at the place where people go into the Tent of Meeting. He must remove all the hair from his head. He must put his hair into the same fire where the priest has cooked the friendship offering.

¹⁹ When the male sheep is cooked, the priest must take its shoulder. Also, he must take one cake and one thin biscuit from the basket. The cake and the biscuit must not have yeast in them. The priest must put these things into the hands of the Nazirite who has removed the hair from his head. ²⁰ The Nazirite must give those things back to the priest. The priest must lift them up to the Lord as a special gift. They are a special gift for the priest. Also, the priest can eat the front part of the sheep and its back leg. After that, the Nazirite can drink wine.”

²¹ Those are the rules about Nazirites. Also, the Nazirite may give anything else that he can give. And he must bring any other gift that he promised to the Lord.’

The priests' blessing

²² The Lord said to Moses, ²³ ‘Tell Aaron and his sons to use these words when they ask me to bless the Israelites.

²⁴ They must say:

²⁷ Aaron and his sons must use my name to bless the Israelites. If they do that, I will certainly bless them.’

Offerings for the special tent

7 When Moses had put up God's Tent, he poured special oil on it. He also poured it on the things in the tent, the altar and all the tools. This showed that all these things were special for God to use. ² Then the 12 leaders of Israel's tribes came to God's Tent. They brought gifts. These men were the leaders who had helped to count the people. ³ They brought their gifts to the Lord. They brought six carts, one cart for every two leaders. They brought 12 oxen. That was one ox for each leader. They brought it all to God's Tent.

⁴ The Lord said to Moses, ⁵ ‘Accept these gifts from the leaders. Give them to the Levites. All the Levites can use them for their work at the Tent of Meeting.’

⁶ So Moses took the carts and the oxen and he gave them to the Levites. ⁷ He gave two carts and four oxen to the descendants of Gershon. ⁸ He gave four carts and eight oxen to the descendants of Merari for their work. Ithamar was the son of Aaron. He had to tell the descendants of Merari the work that they should do. ⁹ But the descendants of Kohath had to carry everything that was special on their shoulders. So Moses did not give any carts or oxen to the descendants of Kohath.

¹⁰ When Moses poured special oil on the altar, the leaders also brought gifts. They offered their gifts to God in front of the altar. ¹¹ The Lord said to Moses: ‘One leader must bring a gift to the altar every day. That is how they will make the altar special for me.’ ¹² On the first day, Nahshon, the son of Amminadab from the tribe of Judah brought his gift. ¹³ He brought a plate and a bowl that someone had made from silver. The plate weighed 130 shekels. The bowl weighed 70 shekels. They had weighed the silver by the shekel of God's Holy Tent. Both of those were full of good flour that he had mixed with oil. They were for a grain offering. ¹⁴ He brought one small dish that someone had made from gold. It weighed ten shekels and it was full of incense. ¹⁵ He brought one young bull, one male sheep and one male lamb that was less than one year old. Those animals were for a burnt offering. ¹⁶ He brought one male goat for a sin offering. ¹⁷ He also brought two oxen, five male sheep, five male goats, and five male lambs that were less than one year old. Those animals were for the friendship offerings. That was the gift of Nahshon, the son of Amminadab.

¹⁸ On day 2, Nethanel, the son of Zuar, from the tribe of Issachar brought his gift. ¹⁹ He brought a plate and a bowl that someone had made from silver. The plate weighed 130 shekels. The bowl weighed 70 shekels. They had weighed the silver by the shekel of God's Holy Tent. Both of those were full of good flour that he had mixed with oil. They were for a grain offering. ²⁰ He brought one small dish that someone had made from gold. It weighed ten shekels and it was full of incense. ²¹ He brought one young bull, one male sheep and one male lamb that was less than one year old. Those animals were for a burnt offering. ²² He brought one male goat for a sin offering. ²³ He also brought two oxen, five male sheep, five male goats, and five male lambs that were less than one year old. Those animals were for the friendship offerings. That was the gift of Nethanel, the son of Zuar.

²⁴ On day 3, Eliab, the son of Helon, from the tribe of Zebulun brought his gift. ²⁵ He brought a plate and a bowl that someone had made from silver. The plate weighed 130 shekels. The bowl weighed 70 shekels. They had weighed the silver by the shekel of God's Holy Tent. Both of those were full of good flour that he had mixed with oil. They were for a grain offering. ²⁶ He brought one small dish that someone had made from gold. It weighed ten shekels and it was full of incense. ²⁷ He brought one young bull, one male sheep and one male lamb that was less than one year old. Those animals were for a burnt offering. ²⁸ He brought one male goat for a sin offering. ²⁹ He also brought two oxen, five male sheep, five male goats, and five male lambs that were less than one year old. Those animals were for the friendship offerings. That was the gift of Eliab, the son of Helon.

³⁰ On day 4, Elizur, the son of Shedeur, from the tribe of Reuben brought his gift. ³¹ He brought a plate and a bowl that someone had made from silver. The plate weighed 130 shekels. The bowl weighed 70 shekels. They had weighed the silver by the shekel of God's Holy Tent. Both of those were full of good flour that he had mixed with oil. They were for a grain offering. ³² He brought one small dish that someone had made from gold. It weighed ten shekels and it was full of incense. ³³ He brought one young bull, one male sheep and one male lamb that was less than one year old. Those animals were for a burnt offering. ³⁴ He brought one male goat for a sin offering. ³⁵ He also brought two oxen, five male sheep, five male goats, and five male lambs that were less than one year old. Those animals were for the friendship offerings. That was the gift of Elizur, the son of Shedeur.

³⁶ On day 5, Shelumiel, the son of Zurishaddai, from the tribe of Simeon brought his gift. ³⁷ He brought a plate and a bowl that someone had made from silver. The plate weighed 130 shekels. The bowl weighed 70 shekels. They had weighed the silver by the shekel of God's Holy Tent. Both of those were full of good flour that he had mixed with oil. They were for a grain offering. ³⁸ He brought one small dish that someone had made from gold. It weighed ten shekels and it was full of incense. ³⁹ He brought one young bull, one male sheep and one male lamb that was less than one year old. Those animals were for a burnt offering. ⁴⁰ He brought one male goat for a sin offering. ⁴¹ He also brought two oxen, five male sheep, five male goats, and five male lambs that were less than one year old. Those animals were for the friendship offerings. That was the gift of Shelumiel, the son of Zurishaddai.

⁴² On day 6, Eliasaph, the son of Deuel, from the tribe of Gad brought his gift. ⁴³ He brought a plate and a bowl that someone had made from silver. The plate weighed 130 shekels. The bowl weighed 70 shekels. They had weighed the silver by the shekel of God's Holy Tent. Both of those were full of good flour that he had mixed with oil. They were for a grain offering. ⁴⁴ He brought one small dish that someone had made from gold. It weighed ten shekels and it was full of incense. ⁴⁵ He brought one young bull, one male sheep and one male lamb that was less than one year old. Those animals were for a burnt offering. ⁴⁶ He brought one male goat for a sin offering. ⁴⁷ He also brought two oxen, five male sheep, five male goats, and five male lambs that were less than one year old. Those animals were for the friendship offerings. That was the gift of Eliasaph, the son of Deuel.

⁴⁸ On day 7, Elishama, the son of Ammihud, from the tribe of Ephraim brought his gift. ⁴⁹ He brought a plate and a bowl that someone had made from silver. The plate weighed 130 shekels. The bowl weighed 70 shekels. They had weighed the silver by the shekel of God's Holy Tent. Both of those were full of good flour that he had mixed with oil. They were for a grain offering. ⁵⁰ He brought one small dish that someone had made from gold. It weighed ten shekels and it was full of incense. ⁵¹ He brought one young bull, one male sheep and one male lamb that was less than one year old. Those animals were for a burnt offering. ⁵² He brought one male goat for a sin offering. ⁵³ He also brought two oxen, five male sheep, five male goats, and five male lambs that were less than one year old. Those animals were for the friendship offerings. That was the gift of Elishama, the son of Ammihud.

⁵⁴ On day 8, Gamaliel, the son of Pedahzur, from the tribe of Manasseh brought his gift. ⁵⁵ He brought a plate and a bowl that someone had made from silver. The plate weighed 130 shekels. The bowl weighed 70 shekels. They had weighed the silver by the shekel of God's Holy Tent. Both of those were full of good flour that he had mixed with oil. They were for a grain offering. ⁵⁶ He brought one small dish that someone had made from gold. It weighed ten shekels and it was full of incense. ⁵⁷ He brought one young bull, one male sheep and one male lamb that was less than one year old. Those animals were for a burnt offering. ⁵⁸ He brought one male goat for a sin offering. ⁵⁹ He also brought two oxen, five male sheep, five male goats, and five male lambs that were less than one year old. Those animals were for the friendship offerings. That was the gift of Gamaliel, the son of Pedahzur.

⁶⁰ On day 9, Abidan, the son of Gideoni, from the tribe of Benjamin brought his gift. ⁶¹ He brought a plate and a bowl that someone had made from silver. The plate weighed 130 shekels. The bowl weighed 70 shekels. They had weighed the silver by the shekel of God's Holy Tent. Both of those were full of good flour that he had mixed with oil. They were for a grain offering. ⁶² He brought one small dish that someone had made from gold. It weighed ten shekels and it was full of incense. ⁶³ He brought one young bull, one male sheep and one male lamb that was less than one year old. Those animals were for a burnt offering. ⁶⁴ He brought one male goat for a sin offering. ⁶⁵ He also brought two oxen, five male sheep, five male goats, and five male lambs that were less than one year old. Those animals were for the friendship offerings. That was the gift of Abidan, the son of Gideoni.

⁶⁶ On day 10, Ahiezer, the son of Ammishaddai, from the tribe of Dan brought his gift. ⁶⁷ He brought a plate and a bowl that someone had made from silver. The plate weighed 130 shekels. The bowl weighed 70 shekels. They had weighed the silver by the shekel of God's Holy Tent. Both of those were full of good flour that he had mixed with oil. They were for a grain offering. ⁶⁸ He brought one small dish that someone had made from gold. It weighed ten shekels and it was full of incense. ⁶⁹ He brought one young bull, one male sheep and one male lamb that was less than one year old. Those animals were for a burnt offering. ⁷⁰ He brought one male goat for a sin offering. ⁷¹ He also brought two oxen, five male sheep, five male goats, and five male lambs that were less than one year old. Those animals were for the friendship offerings. That was the gift of Ahiezer, the son of Ammishaddai.

⁷² On day 11, Pagiel, the son of Ocran, from the tribe of Asher brought his gift. ⁷³ He brought a plate and a bowl that someone had made from silver. The plate weighed 130 shekels. The bowl weighed 70 shekels. They had weighed the silver by the shekel of God's Holy Tent. Both of those were full of good flour that he had mixed with oil. They were for a grain offering. ⁷⁴ He brought one small dish that someone had made from gold. It weighed ten shekels and it was full of incense. ⁷⁵ He brought one young bull, one male sheep and one male lamb that was less than one year old. Those animals were for a burnt offering. ⁷⁶ He brought one male goat for a sin offering. ⁷⁷ He also brought two oxen, five male sheep, five male goats, and five male lambs that were less than one year old. Those animals were for the friendship offerings. That was the gift of Pagiel, the son of Ocran.

⁷⁸ On day 12, Ahira, the son of Enan, from the tribe of Naphtali brought his gift. ⁷⁹ He brought a plate and a bowl that someone had made from silver. The plate weighed 130 shekels. The bowl weighed 70 shekels. They had weighed the silver by the shekel of God's Holy Tent. Both of those were full of good flour that he had mixed with oil. They were for a grain offering. ⁸⁰ He brought one small dish that someone had made from gold. It weighed ten shekels and it was full of incense. ⁸¹ He brought one young bull, one male sheep and one male lamb that was less than one year old. Those animals were for a burnt offering. ⁸² He brought one male goat for a sin offering. ⁸³ He also brought two oxen, five male sheep, five male goats, and five male lambs that were less than one year old. Those animals were for the friendship offerings. That was the gift of Ahira, the son of Enan.

⁸⁴ The leaders of Israel brought these gifts to the altar when Moses poured special oil on it. They brought all the gifts in the list below. They brought 12 plates and 12 bowls that people had made from silver. ⁸⁵ Each plate weighed 130 shekels and each bowl weighed 70 shekels. All the silver weighed 2,400 shekels. That was the shekel of God's Holy Tent. ⁸⁶ They brought 12 small dishes that people had made from gold. Each small dish weighed ten shekels. They were each full of incense. All the gold weighed 120 shekels. ⁸⁷ All the animals for the burnt offering were 12 young bulls, 12 male sheep and 12 male lambs that were one year old. They also brought the proper grain offerings with those animals. And they brought 12 male goats for a sin offering. ⁸⁸ There were also another 24 oxen, 60 male sheep, 60 male goats and 60 male lambs. The male lambs were one year old. Those animals were for the friendship offering. That was the offering when they made the altar special for God. That was after Moses had poured special oil on it.

⁸⁹ When Moses went into the Tent of Meeting, to speak with the Lord, the Lord did speak to him. And Moses heard the Lord. The sound came from above the lid which was on the top of the Covenant Box. On the lid, there were images of two cherubs. The sound came from between the cherubs. That was how the Lord spoke to Moses.

The special lampstand

8 Then the Lord said to Moses, ² ‘Speak to Aaron and say to him, “When you put the lamps on the lampstand, the seven lamps must give light in front of the lampstand.” ’

³ So Aaron did that. He put its lamps at the front of the lampstand, as the Lord had said to Moses. ⁴ A worker had made the lampstand from one piece of gold that he had made flat with a hammer. From its base to the flowers at the top, he had made it in that way. It was completely like the lampstand that the Lord had shown to Moses.^[h]

The Levites must be ready to serve God

⁵ Again the Lord spoke to Moses and he said, ⁶ ‘Take the Levites from among the Israelites and make them clean. ⁷ You will make them clean like this: Put on them the special water that makes people clean. They must remove all the hair from their whole body, and they must wash their clothes. Then they will be clean. ⁸ Then they must take a bull with the proper grain offering and oil. And you must take another bull for a sin offering. ⁹ Then you must bring the Levites in front of the Tent of Meeting. You must also bring all the Israelites there. ¹⁰ You must bring the Levites in front of the Lord. Then the Israelites must put their hands on the Levites' heads. ¹¹ Aaron must give the Levites to the Lord as a special offering from the Israelites. Then they will be ready to do the Lord's work.

¹² Then the Levites must put their hands on the heads of the bulls. Then offer one bull for a sin offering and the other one for a burnt offering to the Lord.^[i] That will make peace with the Lord for the Levites sin. ¹³ And you must cause the Levites to stand in front of Aaron and his sons. So they will be a special gift to the Lord. ¹⁴ That is how you will make the Levites separate from the other Israelites. And then the Levites will be mine.