Old/New Testament
7 Moses anointed and sanctified each part of the Tabernacle, including the altar and its utensils, on the day he finished setting it up. 2 Then the leaders of Israel—the chiefs of the tribes, the men who had organized the census—brought their offerings. 3 They brought six covered wagons, each drawn by two oxen—a wagon for every two leaders and an ox for each one; and they presented them to the Lord in front of the Tabernacle.
4-5 “Accept their gifts,” the Lord told Moses, “and use these wagons for the work of the Tabernacle. Give them to the Levites for whatever needs they may have.”
6 So Moses presented the wagons and the oxen to the Levites. 7 Two wagons and four oxen were given to the Gershon division for their use, 8 and four wagons and eight oxen were given to the Merari division, which was under the leadership of Ithamar, Aaron’s son. 9 None of the wagons or teams was given to the Kohath division, for they were required to carry their portion of the Tabernacle upon their shoulders.
10 The leaders also presented dedication gifts on the day the altar was anointed, placing them before the altar. 11 The Lord said to Moses, “Let each of them bring his gift on a different day for the dedication of the altar.”
12 So Nahshon, the son of Amminadab of the tribe of Judah, brought his gift the first day. 13 It consisted of a silver platter weighing three pounds and a silver bowl of about two pounds, both filled with grain offerings of fine flour mixed with oil. 14 He also brought a tiny[a] gold box of incense which weighed only about four ounces. 15 He brought a young bull, a ram, and a male yearling lamb as burnt offerings; 16 a male goat for a sin offering; 17 and for the peace offerings two oxen, five rams, five male goats, and five male yearling lambs.
18-23 The next day Nethanel, the son of Zuar, chief of the tribe of Issachar, brought his gifts and offerings. They were exactly the same as Nahshon had presented on the previous day.[b]
24-29 On the third day Eliab, the son of Helon, chief of the tribe of Zebulun, came with his offerings—the same as those presented on the previous days.
30-35 On the fourth day the gifts were presented by Elizur, son of Shedeur, chief of the tribe of Reuben; his gifts and offerings were the same as those given on the previous days.
36-41 On the fifth day came Shelumiel, the son of Zurishaddai, chief of the tribe of Simeon, with the same gifts.
42-47 The next day it was Eliasaph’s turn, son of Deuel, chief of the tribe of Gad. He, too, offered the same gifts and sacrifices.
48-53 On the seventh day, Elishama, the son of Ammihud, chief of the tribe of Ephraim, brought his gifts, the same as those presented on the previous days.
54-59 Gamaliel, son of Pedahzur, prince of the tribe of Manasseh, came the eighth day with the same offerings.
60-65 On the ninth day it was Abidan the son of Gideoni, chief of the tribe of Benjamin, with his gifts, the same as those offered by the others.
66-71 Ahiezer, the son of Ammishaddai, brought his gifts on the tenth day. He was the chief of the tribe of Dan and his offerings were the same as those on the previous days.
72-77 Pagiel, son of Ochran, chief of the tribe of Asher, brought his gifts on the eleventh day—the same gifts and offerings as the others.
78-83 On the twelfth day came Ahira, son of Enan, chief of the tribe of Naphtali, with his offerings; they were identical to those brought by the others.
84-86 So, beginning the day the altar was anointed, it was dedicated by these gifts from the chiefs of the tribes of Israel. Their combined offerings were as follows:
12 silver platters (each weighing about three pounds);
12 silver bowls (each weighing about two pounds); (so the total weight of the silver was about sixty pounds);
12 gold trays (the trays weighing about four ounces apiece); (so the total weight of gold was about three pounds).
87 For the burnt offerings they brought:
12 bulls, 12 rams,
12 yearling male goats (with the grain offerings that accompanied them).
For sin offerings they brought:
12 male goats.
88 For the peace offerings they brought:
24 young bulls,
60 rams, 60 male goats,
60 male lambs one year old.
89 When Moses went into the Tabernacle to speak with God, he heard the Voice speaking to him from above the place of mercy over the Ark, between the statues of the two Guardian Angels.
8 The Lord said to Moses, 2 “Tell Aaron that when he lights the seven lamps in the lampstand, he is to set them so that they will throw their light forward.”
3 So Aaron did this. 4 The lampstand, including the floral decorations on the base and branches, was made entirely of beaten gold. It was constructed according to the exact design the Lord had shown Moses.
5-6 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Now set apart the Levites from the other people of Israel. 7 Do this by sprinkling water of purification upon them, then having them shave their entire bodies and wash their clothing and themselves. 8 Have them bring a young bull and a grain offering of fine flour mingled with oil, along with another young bull for a sin offering. 9 Then bring the Levites to the door of the Tabernacle as all the people watch. 10 There the leaders[c] of the tribes shall lay their hands upon them, 11 and Aaron, with a gesture of offering, shall present them to the Lord as a gift from the entire nation of Israel. The Levites will represent all the people in serving the Lord.
12 “Next, the Levite leaders shall lay their hands upon the heads of the young bulls and offer them before the Lord; one for a sin offering and the other for a burnt offering, to make atonement for the Levites. 13 Then the Levites are to be presented to Aaron and his sons, just as any other gift to the Lord is given to the priests! 14 In this way you will dedicate the Levites from among the rest of the people of Israel, and the Levites shall be mine. 15 After you have sanctified them and presented them in this way, they shall go in and out of the Tabernacle to do their work.
16 “They are mine from among all the people of Israel, and I have accepted them in place of all the firstborn children of the Israelites: I have taken the Levites as their substitutes. 17 For all the firstborn among the people of Israel are mine, both men and animals; I claimed them for myself the night I killed all the firstborn Egyptians. 18 Yes, I have accepted the Levites in place of all the eldest sons of Israel. 19 And I will give the Levites as a gift to Aaron and his sons. The Levites will carry out the sacred duties required of the people of Israel in the Tabernacle, and will offer the people’s sacrifices, making atonement for them. There will be no plague among the Israelites—as there would be if the ordinary people entered the Tabernacle.”
20 So Moses and Aaron and all the people of Israel dedicated the Levites, carefully following Jehovah’s instructions to Moses. 21 The Levites purified themselves and washed their clothes, and Aaron presented them to the Lord in a gesture of offering. He then performed the rite of atonement over them to purify them. 22 After that they went into the Tabernacle as assistants to Aaron and his sons; everything was done just as the Lord had commanded Moses.
23-24 The Lord also instructed Moses, “The Levites are to begin serving in the Tabernacle at the age of twenty-five, and are to retire at the age of fifty. 25-26 After retirement they can assist with various light duties in the Tabernacle, but will have no regular responsibilities.”
21 Then he asked them, “When someone lights a lamp, does he put a box over it to shut out the light? Of course not! The light couldn’t be seen or used. A lamp is placed on a stand to shine and be useful.
22 “All that is now hidden will someday come to light. 23 If you have ears, listen! 24 And be sure to put into practice what you hear. The more you do this, the more you will understand what I tell you. 25 To him who has shall be given; from him who has not shall be taken away even what he has.
26 “Here is another story illustrating what the Kingdom of God is like:
“A farmer sowed his field 27 and went away, and as the days went by, the seeds grew and grew without his help. 28 For the soil made the seeds grow. First a leaf blade pushed through, and later the heads of wheat formed, and finally the grain ripened, 29 and then the farmer came at once with his sickle and harvested it.”
30 Jesus asked, “How can I describe the Kingdom of God? What story shall I use to illustrate it? 31-32 It is like a tiny mustard seed! Though this is one of the smallest of seeds, yet it grows to become one of the largest of plants, with long branches where birds can build their nests and be sheltered.”
33 He used many such illustrations to teach the people as much as they were ready to understand.[a] 34 In fact, he taught only by illustrations in his public teaching, but afterwards, when he was alone with his disciples, he would explain his meaning to them.
35 As evening fell, Jesus said to his disciples, “Let’s cross to the other side of the lake.” 36 So they took him just as he was and started out, leaving the crowds behind (though other boats followed). 37 But soon a terrible storm arose. High waves began to break into the boat until it was nearly full of water and about to sink. 38 Jesus was asleep at the back of the boat with his head on a cushion. Frantically they wakened him, shouting, “Teacher, don’t you even care that we are all about to drown?”
39 Then he rebuked the wind and said to the sea, “Quiet down!” And the wind fell, and there was a great calm!
40 And he asked them, “Why were you so fearful? Don’t you even yet have confidence in me?”
41 And they were filled with awe and said among themselves, “Who is this man, that even the winds and seas obey him?”
The Living Bible copyright © 1971 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.