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The Seven Lamps
8 Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 2 “Speak to Aaron and say to him, ‘When you [a]mount the lamps, the seven lamps will (A)provide light in the front of the lampstand.’” 3 Therefore Aaron did so; he [b]mounted its lamps at the front of the lampstand, just as the Lord had commanded Moses. 4 (B)Now this was the workmanship of the lampstand, hammered work of gold; from its base to its flower ornamentation it was hammered work; (C)according to the [c]pattern which the Lord had shown Moses, so he made the lampstand.
Cleansing the Levites
5 Again the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 6 “Take the Levites from among the sons of Israel and (D)cleanse them. 7 This is what you shall do to them, for their cleansing: sprinkle [d]purifying (E)water on them, and have them [e](F)use a razor over their whole [f]body, and they shall (G)wash their clothes and cleanse themselves. 8 Then have them take a [g]bull with (H)its grain offering, fine flour mixed with oil; and you shall take a second [h]bull as a sin offering. 9 So (I)you shall present the Levites in front of the tent of meeting. (J)You shall also assemble the whole congregation of the sons of Israel, 10 and present the Levites before the Lord; and the sons of Israel (K)shall lay their hands on the Levites. 11 Aaron then shall [i]present the Levites before the Lord as a (L)wave offering from the sons of Israel, so that they may [j]qualify to perform the service of the Lord. 12 Now (M)the Levites shall lay their hands on the heads of the bulls; then you are to offer the one as a sin offering and the other as a burnt offering to the Lord, to make atonement for the Levites. 13 And you shall have the Levites stand before Aaron and his sons so as to present them as a wave offering to the Lord.
14 “So you shall single out the Levites from among the sons of Israel, and (N)the Levites shall be Mine. 15 Then after that the Levites may go in to serve the tent of meeting. But you shall cleanse them and (O)present them as a wave offering; 16 for they are (P)exclusively given to Me from among the sons of Israel. I have taken them for Myself (Q)instead of the firstborn of every womb, the firstborn of all the sons of Israel. 17 For (R)every firstborn among the sons of Israel is Mine, among the people and among the animals; on the day that I fatally struck all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, I sanctified them for Myself. 18 But I have taken the Levites instead of every firstborn among the sons of Israel. 19 And (S)I have given the Levites as [k]a gift to Aaron and to his sons from among the sons of Israel, to perform the service of the sons of Israel at the tent of meeting and to make atonement on behalf of the sons of Israel, so that there will be no (T)affliction among the sons of Israel due to [l]their approaching the sanctuary.”
20 So this is what Moses, Aaron, and all the congregation of the sons of Israel did to the Levites; according to everything that the Lord had commanded Moses regarding the Levites, so the sons of Israel did to them. 21 (U)The Levites, too, purified themselves from sin and washed their clothes; and Aaron presented them as a wave offering before the Lord. Aaron also made atonement for them to cleanse them. 22 Then after that the Levites went in to perform their service in the tent of meeting before Aaron and his sons; just as the Lord had commanded Moses concerning the Levites, so they did to them.
Retirement for the Levites
23 Now the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 24 “This is what applies to the Levites: from (V)twenty-five years old and upward [m]they shall enter to perform service in the work of the tent of meeting. 25 But at the age of fifty years they shall [n]retire from service in the work and not work anymore. 26 They may, however, [o]assist their brothers in the tent of meeting, (W)to fulfill an obligation, but they themselves shall do no work. In this way you shall deal with the Levites in their obligations.”
The Passover
9 Now the Lord spoke to Moses in the wilderness of Sinai, in (X)the first month of the second year after they had come out of the land of Egypt, saying, 2 “Now the sons of Israel are to [p]celebrate the Passover at (Y)its appointed time. 3 On the fourteenth day of this month, [q]at twilight, you shall celebrate it at its appointed time; you shall celebrate it in accordance with all its statutes and all its ordinances.” 4 So Moses [r]told the sons of Israel to celebrate the Passover. 5 And (Z)they celebrated the Passover in the first month, on the fourteenth day of the month, at twilight, in the wilderness of Sinai; (AA)in accordance with everything that the Lord had commanded Moses, so the sons of Israel did. 6 But there were some men who were (AB)unclean because of contact with a [s]dead person, so that they could not celebrate Passover on that day; and (AC)they came before Moses and Aaron on that day. 7 Those men said to him, “Though we are unclean because of a [t]dead person, why are we kept from presenting the offering of the Lord at its appointed time among the sons of Israel?” 8 Moses then said to them, “[u](AD)Wait, and I will listen to what the Lord will command concerning you.”
9 Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 10 “Speak to the sons of Israel, saying, ‘If any one of you or of your generations becomes unclean because of a dead [v]person, or is on a distant journey, he may, however, celebrate the Passover to the Lord. 11 In the second month on the (AE)fourteenth day at twilight, they shall celebrate it; they (AF)shall eat it with unleavened bread and bitter herbs. 12 They (AG)shall not leave any of it until morning, (AH)nor break a bone of it; they shall celebrate it in accordance with the whole statute of the Passover. 13 (AI)But the person who is clean and is not on a journey, yet refrains from celebrating the Passover, that [w]person shall then be cut off from his people, because he did not present the offering of the Lord at its appointed time. That person (AJ)will bear the responsibility for his sin. 14 And (AK)if a stranger resides among you and [x]celebrates the Passover to the Lord, according to the statute of the Passover and its ordinance, so he shall celebrate it; you shall have [y]the (AL)same statute, both for the stranger and for the native of the land.’”
The Cloud on the Tabernacle
15 Now on (AM)the day that the tabernacle was erected, (AN)the cloud covered the tabernacle, the (AO)tent of the testimony, and (AP)in the evening it was like the appearance of fire over the tabernacle until morning. 16 That is how it was continuously; (AQ)the cloud would cover it by day, and the appearance of fire by night. 17 (AR)Whenever the cloud was lifted from over the tent, afterward the sons of Israel would set out; and in the place where the cloud settled down, there the sons of Israel would camp. 18 At the [z]command of the Lord the sons of Israel would set out, and at the [aa]command of the Lord they would camp; (AS)as long as the cloud settled over the tabernacle, they remained camped. 19 Even when the cloud lingered over the tabernacle for many days, [ab]the sons of Israel would comply with the Lord’s ordinance and not set out. 20 If [ac]sometimes the cloud remained a few days over the tabernacle, (AT)in accordance with the [ad]command of the Lord they remained camped. Then in accordance with the [ae]command of the Lord they set out. 21 If [af]sometimes the cloud [ag]remained from evening until morning, when the cloud was lifted in the morning they would set out; or if it remained in the daytime and at night, whenever the cloud was lifted, they would set out. 22 Whether it was two days, a month, or a year that the cloud lingered over the tabernacle, staying above it, the sons of Israel remained camped and did not set out; but (AU)when it was lifted, they did set out. 23 (AV)At the [ah]command of the Lord they camped, and at the [ai]command of the Lord they set out; they did what the Lord required, in accordance with the [aj]command of the Lord through Moses.
14 “Now (A)when you see the (B)abomination of desolation standing where it should not be—[a]let the [b]reader understand—then those who are in Judea must flee to the mountains. 15 [c](C)Whoever is on the [d]housetop must not go down, nor go in to get anything out of his house. 16 And [e]whoever is in the field must not turn back to get his cloak. 17 But woe to those women who are pregnant, and to those who are nursing babies in those days! 18 Moreover, pray that it will not happen in winter. 19 For those days will be such a time of tribulation as has not occurred (D)since the beginning of the creation which God created until now, and never will again. 20 And if the Lord had not shortened those days, no [f]life would have been saved; but for the sake of the [g]elect, whom He chose, He shortened the days. 21 And then if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the [h]Christ’; or, ‘Look, there He is’; do not believe it; 22 for false christs and (E)false prophets will arise, and will provide (F)signs and (G)wonders, in order to mislead, if possible, the elect. 23 But beware; I have told you everything in advance.
The Return of Christ
24 “But in those days, after that tribulation, (H)the sun will be darkened and the moon will not give its light, 25 (I)and the stars will be falling from heaven, and the powers that are in the heavens will be shaken. 26 And then they will see (J)the Son of Man (K)coming in clouds with great power and glory. 27 And then He will send forth the angels, and (L)will gather together His [i]elect from the four winds, (M)from the end of the earth to the end of heaven.
28 “Now learn the parable from the fig tree: as soon as its branch has become tender and sprouts its leaves, you know that summer is near. 29 So you too, when you see these things happening, [j]recognize that [k]He is near, right at the [l]door. 30 Truly I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all these things take place. 31 Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will not pass away. 32 (N)But about that day or hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but the Father alone.
33 “Watch out, (O)stay alert; for you do not know when the appointed time is. 34 (P)It is like a man away on a journey, who upon leaving his house and [m]putting his slaves in charge, assigning to each one his task, also commanded the doorkeeper to stay alert. 35 Therefore, (Q)stay alert—for you do not know when the [n]master of the house is coming, whether in the evening, at midnight, or (R)when the rooster crows, or (S)in the morning— 36 so that he does not come suddenly and find you (T)asleep. 37 What I say to you I say to all: ‘(U)Stay alert!’”
God, the Judge of the Righteous and the Wicked.
A Psalm of [a]Asaph.
50 (A)The Mighty One, God, the Lord, has spoken
And summoned the earth, (B)from [b]the rising of the sun to its setting.
2 Out of Zion, (C)the perfection of beauty,
God (D)has shone.
3 May our God (E)come and not keep silent;
(F)Fire devours before Him,
And a storm is violently (G)raging around Him.
4 He (H)summons the heavens above,
And the earth, to judge His people:
5 “Gather My (I)godly ones to Me,
Those who have made a (J)covenant with Me by (K)sacrifice.”
6 And the (L)heavens declare His righteousness,
For (M)God Himself is judge. Selah
7 “(N)Hear, My people, and I will speak;
Israel, I will testify [c]against you;
I am God, (O)your God.
8 I do (P)not rebuke you for your sacrifices,
And your burnt offerings are continually before Me.
9 I will not take a (Q)bull from your house,
Nor male goats from your folds.
10 For (R)every animal of the forest is Mine,
The cattle on a thousand hills.
11 I know every (S)bird of the mountains,
And everything that moves in the field is [d]Mine.
12 If I were hungry I would not tell you,
For the (T)world is Mine, and [e]everything it contains.
13 Shall I eat the flesh of [f](U)bulls
Or drink the blood of male goats?
14 Offer God (V)a sacrifice of thanksgiving
And (W)pay your vows to the Most High;
15 (X)Call upon Me on the day of trouble;
I will (Y)rescue you, and you will (Z)honor Me.”
16 But to the wicked God says,
“What right do you have to tell of My statutes
And to take (AA)My covenant in your mouth?
17 For you yourself (AB)hate discipline,
And you (AC)throw My words behind you.
18 When you see a thief, you (AD)become friends with him,
And [g]you (AE)associate with adulterers.
19 You [h](AF)let your mouth loose in evil,
And your (AG)tongue harnesses deceit.
20 You sit and (AH)speak against your brother;
You slander your own mother’s son.
21 These things you have done and (AI)I kept silent;
You thought that I was just like you;
I will (AJ)rebuke you and present the case before your eyes.
New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.