< Numbers 8 >
1 And Jehovah spoke to Moses saying,
And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying,
2 Speak unto Aaron, and say unto him, When thou lightest the lamps, the seven lamps shall give light over against the candlestick.
Speak to Aaron, and you shall say to him, Whenever you shall set the lamps in order, the seven lamps shall give light opposite the candlestick.
3 And Aaron did so; he lighted the lamps thereof over against the candlestick, as Jehovah had commanded Moses.
And Aaron did so: on one side opposite the candlestick he lighted its lamps, as the Lord appointed Moses.
4 And this was the work of the candlestick: [it was] of beaten gold; from its base to its flowers was it beaten work; according to the form which Jehovah had shewn Moses, so had he made the candlestick.
And this [is] the construction of the candlestick: [it is] solid, golden—its stem, and its lilies—all solid: according to the pattern which the Lord showed Moses, so he made the candlestick.
5 And Jehovah spoke to Moses, saying,
And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying,
6 Take the Levites from among the children of Israel, and cleanse them.
Take the Levites out of the midst of the children of Israel, and you shall purify them.
7 And thus shalt thou do unto them, to cleanse them: sprinkle upon them water of purification from sin; and they shall pass the razor over all their flesh, and shall wash their garments, and make themselves clean.
And thus shall you perform their purification: you shall sprinkle them with water of purification, and a razor shall come upon the whole of their body, and they shall wash their garments, and shall be clean.
8 And they shall take a young bullock and its oblation of fine flour mingled with oil; and another young bullock shalt thou take for a sin-offering.
And they shall take one calf of the herd, and its meat-offering, fine flour mingled with oil: and you shall take a calf of a year old of the herd for a sin-offering.
9 And thou shalt bring the Levites before the tent of meeting; and thou shalt gather together the whole assembly of the children of Israel.
And you shall bring the Levites before the tabernacle of witness; and you shall assemble all the congregation of the sons of Israel.
10 And thou shalt bring the Levites before Jehovah; and the children of Israel shall put their hands upon the Levites.
And you shall bring the Levites before the Lord; and the sons of Israel shall lay their hands upon the Levites.
11 And Aaron shall offer the Levites as a wave-offering before Jehovah from the children of Israel, and they shall perform the service of Jehovah.
And Aaron shall separate the Levites for a gift before the Lord from the children of Israel: and they shall be prepared to perform the works of the Lord.
12 And the Levites shall lay their hands upon the heads of the bullocks, and thou shalt offer the one for a sin-offering, and the other for a burnt-offering, to Jehovah, to make atonement for the Levites.
And the Levites shall lay their hands on the heads of the calves; and you shall offer one for a sin-offering, and the other for a whole burnt offering to the Lord, to make atonement for them.
13 And thou shalt set the Levites before Aaron, and before his sons, and offer them as a wave-offering to Jehovah.
And you shall set the Levites before the Lord, and before Aaron, and before his sons; and you shall give them as a gift before the Lord.
14 And thou shalt separate the Levites from among the children of Israel, that the Levites may be mine.
And you shall separate the Levites from the midst of the sons of Israel, and they shall be mine.
15 And afterwards shall the Levites come in to do the service of the tent of meeting. And thou shalt cleanse them, and offer them as a wave-offering.
And afterwards the Levites shall go in to perform the works of the tabernacle of witness; and you shall purify them, and present them before the Lord.
16 For they are wholly given unto me from among the children of Israel; instead of every one that breaketh open the womb, instead of every firstborn among the children of Israel, have I taken them unto me.
For these are given to me for a present out of the midst of the children of Israel: I have taken them to myself instead of all the firstborn of the sons of Israel that open every womb.
17 For all the firstborn among the children of Israel are mine, both of man and beast; on the day that I smote every firstborn in the land of Egypt, I hallowed them to myself.
For every firstborn among the children of Israel [is] mine, whether of man or beast: in the day in which I struck every firstborn in the land of Egypt, I sanctified them to myself.
18 And I have taken the Levites instead of all the firstborn among the children of Israel.
And I took the Levites in the place of every firstborn among the children of Israel.
19 And I have given the Levites as a gift to Aaron and to his sons, from among the children of Israel, to perform the service of the children of Israel in the tent of meeting, and to make atonement for the children of Israel; that there be no plague among the children of Israel, when the children of Israel draw near to the sanctuary.
And I gave the Levites presented as a gift to Aaron and his sons out of the midst of the children of Israel, to do the service of the children of Israel in the tabernacle of witness, and to make atonement for the children of Israel: thus there shall be none among the sons of Israel to draw near to the holy things.
20 And Moses and Aaron, and all the assembly of the children of Israel, did to the Levites according to all that Jehovah had commanded Moses concerning the Levites: so did the children of Israel to them.
And Moses and Aaron, and all the congregation of the children of Israel, did to the Levites as the Lord commanded Moses concerning the Levites, so the sons of Israel did to them.
21 And the Levites purified themselves from sin, and they washed their garments; and Aaron offered them as a wave-offering before Jehovah; and Aaron made atonement for them to cleanse them.
So the Levites purified themselves and washed their garments; and Aaron presented them as a gift before the Lord, and Aaron made atonement for them to purify them.
22 And afterwards the Levites came in to perform their service in the tent of meeting before Aaron, and before his sons; as Jehovah had commanded Moses concerning the Levites, so did they to them.
And afterwards the Levites went in to minister in their service in the tabernacle of witness before Aaron, and before his sons; as the Lord appointed Moses concerning the Levites, so they did to them.
23 And Jehovah spoke to Moses, saying,
And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying,
24 This is that which concerneth the Levites: from twenty-five years old and upward shall he come to labour in the work of the service of the tent of meeting.
This is the [ordinance] for the Levites; From five and twenty years old and upward, they shall go in to minister in the tabernacle of witness.
25 And from fifty years old he shall retire from the labour of the service, and shall serve no more;
And from fifty years old [the Levites] shall cease from the ministry, and shall not work any longer.
26 but he shall minister with his brethren in the tent of meeting, and keep the charge, but he shall not serve [in] the service. Thus shalt thou do unto the Levites with regard to their charges.
And his brother shall serve in the tabernacle of witness to keep charges, but he shall not do works: so shall you do to the Levites in their charges.