Numbers 8

1 Then the LORD said to Moses,

Yahweh said to Moses/me,

2 “Speak to Aaron and tell him: ‘When you set up the seven lamps, they are to light the area in front of the lampstand.’”

“Tell Aaron to put the seven lamps on the lampstand and place them in such a way that they shine toward the front of the lampstand.”

3 And Aaron did so; he set up the lamps facing toward the front of the lampstand, just as the LORD had commanded Moses.

So [Moses/I told him what Yahweh said], and he did that.

4 This is how the lampstand was constructed: it was made of hammered gold from its base to its blossoms, fashioned according to the pattern the LORD had shown Moses.

The lampstand had been made from gold that had been hammered [from one large lump of gold], from its base to the decorations at the top [that resembled] flowers. The lampstand was made exactly like Yahweh had told Moses/me that it should be made.

5 Again the LORD spoke to Moses, saying,

Yahweh also said to Moses/me,

6 “Take the Levites from among the Israelites and make them ceremonially clean.

“You must cause the descendants of Levi to be acceptable to me by setting them apart from the other Israeli people.

7 This is what you must do to cleanse them: Sprinkle them with the water of purification. Have them shave their whole bodies and wash their clothes, and so purify themselves.

Do that by sprinkling them with water [which will symbolize] their being freed/cleansed from [the guilt of] their sins. Then they must shave [off all the hair on] their bodies and wash their clothes.

8 Then have them take a young bull with its grain offering of fine flour mixed with oil, and you are to take a second young bull for a sin offering.

Then they must bring to the Sacred Tent one bull and some grain mixed with [olive] oil. [Those things will be burned] as sacrifices. They must also bring another bull [that will enable me to forgive them] for the sins they have committed.

9 Bring the Levites before the Tent of Meeting and assemble the whole congregation of Israel.

Then you must summon all the Israeli people to come together in front of the Sacred Tent, to [gather around] the descendants of Levi.

10 You are to present the Levites before the LORD and have the Israelites lay their hands upon them.

Then the Israeli people must lay their hands on the descendants of Levi.

11 Aaron is to present the Levites before the LORD as a wave offering from the sons of Israel, so that they may perform the service of the LORD.

Aaron must then present them to me to be a gift from the Israeli people, in order that they can work for me [at the Sacred Tent].

12 And the Levites are to lay their hands on the heads of the bulls, and offer to the LORD one as a sin offering and the other as a burnt offering, to make atonement for the Levites.

“After that, the descendants of Levi must place their hands on the heads of the two bulls. Then the bulls will be [killed and] burned on the altar. One will be an offering to enable me [to forgive them for] sins they have committed, and the other will be completely burned [to please me].

13 You are to have the Levites stand before Aaron and his sons and then present them before the LORD as a wave offering.

The descendants of Levi must stand [at the altar] in front of Aaron and his sons, and you must then dedicate to me the descendants of Levi.

14 In this way you shall separate the Levites from the rest of the Israelites, and the Levites will belong to Me.

This ritual will show that the descendants of Levi are set apart from the other Israelis and that they belong to me.

15 After you have cleansed them and presented them as a wave offering, they may come to serve at the Tent of Meeting.

“After the descendants of Levi have been made acceptable to me, and presented to me like a special offering, they may start to work at the Sacred Tent.

16 For the Levites have been wholly given to Me from among the sons of Israel. I have taken them for Myself in place of all who come first from the womb, the firstborn of all the sons of Israel.

They will belong to me. They will work for me as substitutes for the firstborn males of all the Israelis, [who also belong to me].

17 For every firstborn male in Israel is Mine, both man and beast. I set them apart for Myself on the day I struck down all the firstborn in the land of Egypt.

All the firstborn males in Israel, both the people and the animals, are mine. When I caused all the firstborn sons of the people of Egypt to die, [I (spared/did not kill) the firstborn males of the Israelis]. I set them apart to belong to me. I said that the firstborn males of all their domestic animals would also belong to me.

18 But I have taken the Levites in place of all the firstborn among the sons of Israel.

But now I have chosen the descendants of Levi to take the places of the firstborn males of other Israelis.

19 And I have given the Levites as a gift to Aaron and his sons from among the Israelites, to perform the service for the Israelites at the Tent of Meeting and to make atonement on their behalf, so that no plague will come against the Israelites when they approach the sanctuary.”

I have appointed the descendants of Levi to help Aaron and his sons at the Sacred Tent, as Aaron and his sons offer the sacrifices so that the Israeli people’s sins will be forgiven, and to prevent the Israelis from coming close to the tent with the result that a plague would cause many of them to become sick and die.”

20 So Moses, Aaron, and the whole congregation of Israel did with the Levites everything that the LORD had commanded Moses they should do.

Aaron and Moses/I and the other Israelis helped the descendants of Levi to do everything that Yahweh had commanded.

21 The Levites purified themselves and washed their clothes, and Aaron presented them as a wave offering before the LORD. Aaron also made atonement for them to cleanse them.

The descendants of Levi [sprinkled themselves with water to symbolize that] they had been freed/cleansed from [the guilt of] their sins, and they washed their clothes. Then Aaron brought them to [the altar to] present them to Yahweh, and he offered sacrifices to cleanse them from [the guilt of] their sins and cause them to become acceptable to Yahweh.

22 After that, the Levites came to perform their service at the Tent of Meeting in the presence of Aaron and his sons. Thus they did with the Levites just as the LORD had commanded Moses.

After that, the descendants of Levi started to work at the Sacred Tent to assist Aaron and his sons. They did that just as Yahweh had commanded Moses/me.

23 And the LORD said to Moses,

Yahweh also said this to Moses/me:

24 “This applies to the Levites: Men twenty-five years of age or older shall enter to perform the service in the work at the Tent of Meeting.

“The descendants of Levi who are between 25 and 50 years old will work at the Sacred Tent.

25 But at the age of fifty, they must retire from performing the work and no longer serve.

But after they become 50 years old, they must (retire/not do that work any more).

26 After that, they may assist their brothers in fulfilling their duties at the Tent of Meeting, but they themselves are not to do the work. This is how you are to assign responsibilities to the Levites.”

They may help the other descendants of Levi to do their work at the Sacred Tent, but they must not do the work themselves. That is what you must tell them about the work they will do.”