Numbers 3

1 Now these are the generations of Aaron and Moses, in the day when the word of the Lord came to Moses on Mount Sinai.

And these [are] the generations of Aaron and Moses, in the day of YHWH’s speaking with Moses in Mount Sinai.

2 These are the names of the sons of Aaron: Nadab the oldest, and Abihu, Eleazar, and Ithamar.

And these [are] the names of the sons of Aaron: the firstborn Nadab, and Abihu, Eleazar, and Ithamar;

3 These are the names of the sons of Aaron, the priests, on whom the holy oil was put, who were marked out as priests.

these [are] the names of the sons of Aaron, the anointed priests, whose hand he has consecrated for acting as priest.

4 And Nadab and Abihu were put to death before the Lord when they made an offering of strange fire before the Lord, in the waste land of Sinai, and they had no children: and Eleazar and Ithamar did the work of priests before Aaron their father.

And Nadab dies—Abihu also—before YHWH, in their bringing strange fire near before YHWH, in the wilderness of Sinai, and they did not have sons; and Eleazar—Ithamar also—acts as priest in the presence of their father Aaron.

5 And the Lord said to Moses,

And YHWH speaks to Moses, saying,

6 Make the tribe of Levi come near, and put them before Aaron the priest, to be his helpers,

“Bring the tribe of Levi near, and you have caused it to stand before Aaron the priest, and they have served him,

7 In order that they may be responsible to him and to all Israel for the care of the Tent of meeting, and to do the work of the House;

and kept his charge, and the charge of all the congregation before the Tent of Meeting, to do the service of the Dwelling Place;

8 And they will have the care of all the vessels of the Tent of meeting, and will do for the children of Israel all the necessary work of the House.

and they have kept all the vessels of the Tent of Meeting, and the charge of the sons of Israel, to do the service of the Dwelling Place;

9 Give the Levites to Aaron and his sons; so that they may be his without question from among the children of Israel.

and you have given the Levites to Aaron and to his sons; they are surely given to him out of the sons of Israel.

10 And give orders that Aaron and his sons are to keep their place as priests; any strange person who comes near is to be put to death.

And you appoint Aaron and his sons, and they have kept their priesthood, and the stranger who comes near is put to death.”

11 And the Lord said to Moses,

And YHWH speaks to Moses, saying,

12 See, I have taken the Levites out of the children of Israel to be mine in place of the first sons of the children of Israel;

“And I, behold, have taken the Levites from the midst of the sons of Israel instead of every firstborn opening a womb among the sons of Israel, and the Levites have been Mine;

13 For all the first sons are mine; on the day when I put to death all the first sons in the land of Egypt, I took for myself every first male birth of man and beast. They are mine; I am the Lord.

for every firstborn [is] Mine, in the day of My striking every firstborn in the land of Egypt I have sanctified to Myself every firstborn in Israel, from man to beast; they are Mine; I [am] YHWH.”

14 And the Lord said to Moses in the waste land of Sinai,

And YHWH speaks to Moses in the wilderness of Sinai, saying,

15 Let all the children of Levi be numbered by their families and their fathers' houses; let every male of a month old and over be numbered.

“Number the sons of Levi by the house of their fathers, by their families; every male from a son of a month and upward—you number them.”

16 So Moses did as the Lord said, numbering them as he had been ordered.

And Moses numbers them according to the command of YHWH, as he has been commanded.

17 These were the sons of Levi by name: Gershon and Kohath and Merari.

And these are the sons of Levi by their names: Gershon, and Kohath, and Merari.

18 And these are the names of the sons of Gershon, by their families: Libni and Shimei.

And these [are] the names of the sons of Gershon by their families: Libni and Shimei.

19 And the sons of Kohath, by their families: Amram and Izhar and Hebron and Uzziel.

And the sons of Kohath by their families: Amram, and Izhar, Hebron, and Uzziel.

20 And the sons of Merari by their families: Mahli and Mushi. These are the families of the Levites in the order of their fathers' houses.

And the sons of Merari by their families: Mahli and Mushi; these are the families of the Levites, by the house of their fathers.

21 From Gershon come the Libnites and the Shimeites; these are the families of the Gershonites.

Of Gershon—the family of the Libnite and the family of the Shimite; these are the families of the Gershonite.

22 Those who were numbered of them, the males from one month old and over, were seven thousand, five hundred.

Their numbered ones, in number, every male from a son of a month and upward, their numbered ones [are] seven thousand and five hundred.

23 The tents of the Gershonites are to be placed at the back of the House, to the west.

The families of the Gershonite encamp westward behind the Dwelling Place.

24 The chief of the Gershonites is Eliasaph, the son of Lael.

And the prince of a father’s house for the Gershonite [is] Eliasaph son of Lael.

25 In the Tent of meeting, the Gershonites are to have the care of the House, and the Tent with its cover, and the veil for the door of the Tent of meeting,

And the charge of the sons of Gershon in the Tent of Meeting [is] the Dwelling Place, and the tent, its covering, and the veil at the opening of the Tent of Meeting,

26 And the hangings for the open space round the House and the altar, and the curtain for its doorway, and all the cords needed for its use.

and the hangings of the court, and the veil at the opening of the court, which [is] by the Dwelling Place and by the altar all around, and its cords, to all its service.

27 From Kohath come the Amramites and the Izharites and the Hebronites and the Uzzielites; these are the families of the Kohathites.

And of Kohath—the family of the Amramite, and the family of the Izharite, and the family of the Hebronite, and the family of the Uzzielite; these are families of the Kohathite.

28 Those who were numbered of them, the males from one month old and over, were eight thousand, six hundred, who were responsible for the care of the holy place.

In number, all the males, from a son of a month and upward, [are] eight thousand and six hundred, keeping the charge of the holy place.

29 The tents of the Kohathites are to be placed on the south side of the House.

The families of the sons of Kohath encamp southward by the side of the Dwelling Place.

30 Their chief is Elizaphan, the son of Uzziel.

And the prince of a father’s house for the families of the Kohathite [is] Elizaphan son of Uzziel.

31 In their care are the ark, and the table, and the lights, and the altars, and all the vessels used in the holy place, and the veil, and all they are used for.

And their charge [is] the Ark, and the table, and the lampstand, and the altars, and the vessels of the holy place with which they serve, and the veil, and all its service.

32 Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, will be head over all the Levites and overseer of those responsible for the care of the holy place.

And Eleazar son of Aaron the priest [is] the prince of the princes of the Levites, [with] the oversight of the keepers of the charge of the holy place.

33 From Merari come the Mahlites and the Mushites; these are the families of Merari.

Of Merari—the family of the Mahlite and the family of the Mushite; these [are] the families of Merari.

34 Those who were numbered of them, the males of a month old and over, were six thousand, two hundred.

And their numbered ones, in number, all the males from a son of a month and upward, [are] six thousand and two hundred.

35 The chief of the families of Merari was Zuriel, the son of Abihail: their tents are to be placed on the north side of the House.

And the prince of a father’s house for the families of Merari [is] Zuriel son of Abihail; they encamp northward by the side of the Dwelling Place.

36 And in their care are to be all the boards of the Tent, with their rods and pillars and bases, and all the instruments, and all they are used for,

And the oversight [and] charge of the sons of Merari [are] the boards of the Dwelling Place, and its bars, and its pillars, and its sockets, and all its vessels, and all its service,

37 And the pillars of the open space round it, with their bases and nails and cords.

and the pillars of the court all around, and their sockets, and their pins, and their cords.

38 And those whose tents are to be placed on the east side of the House in front of the Tent of meeting, looking to the dawn, are Moses and Aaron and his sons, who will do the work of the holy place for the children of Israel; and any strange person who comes near will be put to death.

And those encamping before the Dwelling Place eastward, before the Tent of Meeting, at the east, [are] Moses and Aaron, and his sons, keeping the charge of the sanctuary for the charge of the sons of Israel, and the stranger who comes near is put to death.

39 All the Levites numbered by Moses and Aaron at the order of the Lord, all the males of one month old and over numbered in the order of their families, were twenty-two thousand.

All those numbered of the Levites whom Moses numbered—Aaron also—by the command of YHWH, by their families, every male from a son of a month and upward, [are] twenty-two thousand.

40 And the Lord said to Moses, Let all the first male children be numbered, and take the number of their names.

And YHWH says to Moses, “Number every firstborn male of the sons of Israel from a son of a month and upward, and take up the number of their names;

41 And give to me the Levites (I am the Lord) in place of the first sons of the children of Israel; and the cattle of the Levites in place of the first births among the cattle of the children of Israel.

and you have taken the Levites for Me (I [am] YHWH), instead of every firstborn among the sons of Israel, and the livestock of the Levites instead of every firstling among the livestock of the sons of Israel.”

42 So Moses had all the first sons among the children of Israel numbered, as the Lord said to him.

And Moses numbers, as YHWH has commanded him, all the firstborn among the sons of Israel.

43 Every first son from a month old and over was numbered by name, and the number came to twenty-two thousand, two hundred and seventy-three.

And every firstborn male, by the number of names, from a son of a month and upward, of their numbered ones, are twenty-two thousand two hundred and seventy-three.

44 And the Lord said to Moses,

And YHWH speaks to Moses, saying,

45 Take the Levites in place of all the first sons of the children of Israel, and the cattle of the Levites in place of their cattle; the Levites are to be mine; I am the Lord.

“Take the Levites instead of every firstborn among the sons of Israel, and the livestock of the Levites instead of their livestock; and the Levites have been Mine; I [am] YHWH.

46 And the price you have to give for the two hundred and seventy-three first sons of the children of Israel which are in addition to the number of the Levites,

And [from] those ransomed of the two hundred and seventy-three of the firstborn of the sons of Israel, who are more than the Levites,

47 Will be five shekels for every one, by the scale of the holy place (the shekel is twenty gerahs);

you have even taken five shekels apiece by the counted head—you take by the shekel of the holy place; the shekel [is] twenty gerahs;

48 And this money, the price of those over the number of the Levites, is to be given to Aaron and his sons.

and you have given the money to Aaron and to his sons, whereby those over and above are ransomed.”

49 So Moses took the money, the price of those whose place had not been taken by the Levites;

And Moses takes the ransom money from those over and above those ransomed by the Levites;

50 From the first sons of Israel he took it, a thousand, three hundred and sixty-five shekels, by the scale of the holy place;

he has taken the money from the firstborn of the sons of Israel—one thousand and three hundred and sixty-five, by the shekel of the holy place;

51 And he gave the money to Aaron and his sons, as the Lord had said.

and Moses gives the money of those ransomed to Aaron and to his sons, according to the command of YHWH, as YHWH has commanded Moses.