Numbers 8
1 The Lord told Moses,
And the LORD spoke to Moses, saying,
2 “Tell Aaron, ‘When you place the seven lamps on the lampstand, make sure they shine towards the front.’”
Speak to Aaron and say to him, When you light the lamps, the seven lamps shall give light over against the candlestick.
3 So that's what Aaron did. He placed the lamps facing towards the front of the lampstand, as the Lord had ordered Moses.
And Aaron did so; he lighted the lamps thereof over against the candlestick, as the LORD commanded Moses.
4 The lampstand was made of hammered gold from its base to the flower decorations on the top, in accordance with the design that the Lord had shown Moses.
And this work of the candlestick was of beaten gold, to the shaft thereof, to the flowers thereof, was beaten work: according to the pattern which the LORD had showed Moses, so he made the candlestick.
5 The Lord told Moses,
And the LORD spoke to Moses, saying,
6 “Separate the Levites from the other Israelites and purify them.
Take the Levites from among the children of Israel, and cleanse them.
7 This is how you will purify them. Sprinkle on them the water of purification. They are to shave off all the hair from their bodies and wash their clothes so they will be clean.
And thus shall you do to them, to cleanse them: Sprinkle water of purifying on them, and let them shave all their flesh, and let them wash their clothes, and so make themselves clean.
8 Have them bring a young bull with its grain offering of the best flour mixed with olive oil, and you are to bring a second young bull as a sin offering.
Then let them take a young bullock with his meat offering, even fine flour mingled with oil, and another young bullock shall you take for a sin offering.
9 Take the Levites and have them stand in front of the Tent of Meeting and have all the Israelites gather there.
And you shall bring the Levites before the tabernacle of the congregation: and you shall gather the whole assembly of the children of Israel together:
10 When you bring the Levites to the Lord the Israelites are to place their hands upon them.
And you shall bring the Levites before the LORD: and the children of Israel shall put their hands on the Levites:
11 Aaron shall present the Levites to the Lord as a wave offering from the Israelites so that they can do the Lord's work.
And Aaron shall offer the Levites before the LORD for an offering of the children of Israel, that they may execute the service of the LORD.
12 The Levites are to place their hands on the heads of the bulls. One is to be sacrificed as a sin offering to the Lord, and the other as a burnt offering to set the Levites right with the Lord.
And the Levites shall lay their hands on the heads of the bullocks: and you shall offer the one for a sin offering, and the other for a burnt offering, to the LORD, to make an atonement for the Levites.
13 Have the Levites stand in front of Aaron and his sons and present them to the Lord as a wave offering.
And you shall set the Levites before Aaron, and before his sons, and offer them for an offering to the LORD.
14 This is how you are to separate the Levites from the rest of the Israelites, and the Levites will belong to me.
Thus shall you separate the Levites from among the children of Israel: and the Levites shall be mine.
15 They can come and serve at the Tent of Meeting once you've purified them and presented them as a wave offering.
And after that shall the Levites go in to do the service of the tabernacle of the congregation: and you shall cleanse them, and offer them for an offering.
16 The Levites have been completely given over to me by the Israelites. I have accepted them as mine in place of all the firstborn sons of the Israelites.
For they are wholly given to me from among the children of Israel; instead of such as open every womb, even instead of the firstborn of all the children of Israel, have I taken them to me.
17 Every firstborn male in Israel belongs to me, both human and animal. I reserved them for myself at the time when I killed all the firstborn in Egypt.
For all the firstborn of the children of Israel are mine, both man and beast: on the day that I smote every firstborn in the land of Egypt I sanctified them for myself.
18 I have taken the Levites in place of all the firstborn sons of the Israelites.
And I have taken the Levites for all the firstborn of the children of Israel.
19 Of all the Israelites, the Levites are a gift from me to Aaron and his sons to serve the Israelites at the Tent of Meeting, and on their behalf to set them right, so that nothing bad will happen to them when they come to the sanctuary.”
And I have given the Levites as a gift to Aaron and to his sons from among the children of Israel, to do the service of the children of Israel in the tabernacle of the congregation, and to make an atonement for the children of Israel: that there be no plague among the children of Israel, when the children of Israel come near to the sanctuary.
20 Moses, Aaron, and all the Israelites did everything that the Lord had ordered Moses that they should do regarding the Levites.
And Moses, and Aaron, and all the congregation of the children of Israel, did to the Levites according to all that the LORD commanded Moses concerning the Levites, so did the children of Israel to them.
21 The Levites purified themselves and washed their clothes. Then Aaron presented them as a wave offering to the Lord. Aaron also presented the sacrifice to make them right with the Lord so they would be clean.
And the Levites were purified, and they washed their clothes; and Aaron offered them as an offering before the LORD; and Aaron made an atonement for them to cleanse them.
22 Afterwards the Levites came to perform their service at the Tent of Meeting under the direction of Aaron and his sons. They followed all the instructions regarding the Levites that the Lord had given to Moses.
And after that went the Levites in to do their service in the tabernacle of the congregation before Aaron, and before his sons: as the LORD had commanded Moses concerning the Levites, so did they to them.
23 The Lord told Moses,
And the LORD spoke to Moses, saying,
24 “This rule applies to the Levites. Those twenty-five or older shall serve at the Tent of Meeting.
This is it that belongs to the Levites: from twenty and five years old and upward they shall go in to wait on the service of the tabernacle of the congregation:
25 However, once they reach the age of fifty they need to retire from the work and won't serve any longer.
And from the age of fifty years they shall cease waiting on the service thereof, and shall serve no more:
26 They can still help their fellow Levites in their assignments, but they are not to do the actual work themselves. These are the arrangements in the case of the Levites.”
But shall minister with their brothers in the tabernacle of the congregation, to keep the charge, and shall do no service. Thus shall you do to the Levites touching their charge.
