Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
111 [a] Praise the Lord!
I thank the Lord with all my heart
in the assembly of his good people.
2 The Lord does wonderful things,
more than anyone could ask for.[b]
3 The things he does are great and glorious!
There is no end to his goodness.
4 He does amazing things so that we will remember
that the Lord is kind and merciful.
5 He gives food to his followers.
He remembers his agreement forever.
6 He has shown his people how powerful he is
by giving them the land of other nations.
7 Everything he does is good and fair.
All his commands can be trusted.
8 His commands will continue forever.
They must be done with truth and honesty.
9 He rescued his people and made his agreement with them forever.
His name is awesome and holy.
10 Wisdom begins with fear and respect for the Lord.
Those who obey him are very wise.
Praises will be sung to him forever.
The Levite Families
34 Moses, Aaron, and the leaders of the Israelites counted the Kohathites. They counted them by families and family groups. 35 They counted all the men from 30 to 50 years old who were able to serve. These men were given special work to do for the Meeting Tent.
36 There were 2750 men in the Kohath family group who were qualified to do this work. 37 So these men from the Kohath family group were given their special work to do for the Meeting Tent. Moses and Aaron did this the way the Lord had told Moses to do.
38 Also, the Gershonite family group was counted. 39 All the men from 30 to 50 years old who qualified to serve were counted. These men were given their special work to do for the Meeting Tent. 40 There were 2630 men in the families of the Gershon family group who were qualified. 41 So these men from the Gershon family group were given their special work to do for the Meeting Tent. Moses and Aaron did this the way the Lord had told Moses to do.
42 Also, the men in the families and family groups of the Merari family were counted. 43 All the men from 30 to 50 years old who qualified to serve were counted. These men were given their special work to do for the Meeting Tent. 44 There were 3200 men in the families of the Merari family group who were qualified. 45 So these men from the Merari family group were given their special work. Moses and Aaron did this the way the Lord told Moses to do.
46 So Moses, Aaron, and the leaders of the Israelites counted all the people in Levi’s family group. They had counted each family and each family group. 47 All the men between the ages of 30 and 50 who qualified to serve were counted. These men were given a special work to do for the Meeting Tent. They did the work of carrying the Meeting Tent when they traveled. 48 The total number was 8580. 49 Each man was counted just as the Lord commanded Moses. Each man was given his own work and told what he must carry just as the Lord had said.
Rules About Cleanliness
5 The Lord said to Moses, 2 “Tell the people to send away from the camp anyone who is unclean, that is, anyone who has a serious skin disease[a] or discharge and anyone who has touched a dead body. 3 Whether they are a man or a woman, send them away so that the camp where I am living among you will not be made unclean.”
4 So the Israelites obeyed God’s command. They sent those people outside the camp. They did what the Lord had told Moses.
A Loyal Soldier of Christ Jesus
2 Timothy, you are a son to me. Be strong in the grace that we have because we belong to Christ Jesus. 2 What you have heard me teach publicly you should teach to others. Share these teachings with people you can trust. Then they will be able to teach others these same things. 3 As a good soldier of Christ Jesus, accept your share of the troubles we have. 4 A soldier wants to please his commanding officer, so he does not spend any time on activities that are not a part of his duty. 5 Athletes in a race must obey all the rules to win. 6 The farmer who works hard deserves the first part of the harvest. 7 Think about what I am saying. The Lord will help you understand it all.
Copyright © 2006 by Bible League International