Numbers 3

1 Now, these, were the pedigrees of Aaron and Moses, —in the day when Yahweh spake with Moses in Mount Sinai.

2 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 that were anointed, —who were installed to minister as priests.

4 But Nadab and Abihu died before Yahweh when they brought near strange fire before Yahweh in the desert of Sinai, and sons, had they none, —so then Eleazar and Ithamar ministered as priests, in the presence of Aaron their father.

5 Then spake Yahweh unto Moses, saying—

6 Bring near the tribe of Levi, and thou shalt cause it to stand before Aaron the priest, —so shall they wait upon him;

7 so shall they keep his charge, and the charge of all the assembly, before the tent of meeting, —to do the laborious work of the habitation;

8 so shall they have charge of all the furniture of the tent of meeting, even the charge of the sons of Israel, —to do the laborious work of the habitation.

9 Thus shalt thou give the Levites unto Aaron and unto his sons, —given, given, they are unto him, from among the sons of Israel;

10 but unto Aaron, and unto his sons, shalt thou give oversight, so shall they keep charge of their priesthood, —and, the stranger who cometh near, shall be put to death.

11 Then spake Yahweh unto Moses, saying—

12 I, therefore, lo! I have taken the Levites out of the midst of the sons of Israel, instead of every firstborn that a mother beareth, from among the sons of Israel, —so shall the Levites be mine;

13 for, mine, is every firstborn, in the day when I smote every firstborn in the land of Egypt, I hallowed unto myself every firstborn in Israel, both of man and of beast, —mine, did they become, and belong unto me, Yahweh.

14 Then spake Yahweh unto Moses, in the desert of Sinai, saying: —

15 Number thou the sons of Levi, by their ancestral houses, by their families, —every male, from one month old and upwards, shalt thou number them.

16 So then Moses numbered them according to the bidding of Yahweh, —as he was commanded.

17 And these were the sons of Levi, by their names, —Gershon, and Kohath, and Merari.

18 And these, 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, Hebron and Uzziel.

20 And the sons of Merari by their families, Mahli and Mushi. These, are they—the families of the Levites by their ancestral houses.

21 To, Gershon, belonged the family of the Libnites, and the family of the Shimeites, —these, are they—the families of the Gershonites.

22 They who were numbered of them in the counting of every male, from one month old, and upwards, —they who were num-bered of them, were seven thousand and five hundred.

23 the families of the Gershonites, to the rear of the habitation, were to encamp, westward.

24 And, the prince of the ancestral house of the Gershonites, was Eliasaph son of Lael.

25 And, the charge, of the sons of Gershon, was over the tent of meeting, the habitation, and the tent, —the covering thereof, and the screen for the entrance of the tent of meeting;

26 and the hangings of the court, and the screen for the entrance of the court which was near the habitation and near the altar, round about, —and the cords thereof, as to all the laborious work thereof.

27 And to Kohath, belonged the family of the Amramites and the family of the Izharites, and the family of the Hebronites, and the family of the Uzzielites, —these, are they—the families of the Kohathites.

28 In, the counting of every male, from one month old and upwards, there were eight thousand and six hundred, to keep the charge of the sanctuary.

29 The, families of the sons of Kohath, were to encamp, —on the side of the habitation, south-ward.

30 And the prince of the ancestral house of the families of the Kohathites, was Elizaphan, son of Uzziel.

31 And their charge, was—the ark and the table and the lampstand and the altars, and the utensils of the sanctuary wherewith they were to minister, —and the screen, as to all the laborious work thereof.

32 And the prince of the princes of the Levites, was Eleazar, son of Aaron the priest, —to have the oversight of them that were to keep the charge of the sanctuary.

33 To Merari, belonged the family of the Mahlites, and the family of the Mushites, —these, are they—the families of Merari.

34 And they who were numbered of them in the counting of every male, from one month old and upwards, were six thousand, and two hundred.

35 And the prince of the ancestral house of the families of Merari, was Zuriel son of Abihail, —on the side of the habitation, were they to encamp northward.

36 And the oversight of the charge of the sons of Merari, was—the boards of the habitation, and the bars thereof and the pillars thereof and the sockets thereof, —and all the furniture thereof, as to all the laborious work thereof;

37 also the pillars of the court round about and their sockets, —and their pins and their cords.

38 But, they who were to encamp before the habitation eastwards before the tent of meeting, towards sunrise, were Moses and Aaron and his sons. to keep the charge of the sanctuary, as the charge of the sons of Israel and, the stranger that came near, was to be put to death.

39 All they who were numbered of the Levites whom Moses [and Aaron] numbered at the bidding of Yahweh by their families, —every male, from one month old and upwards, were two-and-twenty thousand.

40 And Yahweh said unto Moses: Number thou every firstborn male belonging to the sons of Israel, from one month old and upwards, —and reckon up the number of their names;

41 then shalt thou take the Levites for me, me Yahweh, instead of every firstborn among the sons of Israel, —also the cattle of the Levites, instead of every firstling among the cattle of the sons of Israel.

42 So then Moses numbered, as Yahweh commanded him, —every firstborn among the sons of Israel.

43 And it was so—that all the firstborn of the males in the counting of names from one month old and upwards of such as were numbered of them, —were two-and-twenty thousand, two hundred and seventy-three.

44 Then spake Yahweh unto Moses, saying: —

45 Take the Levites, instead of all the firstborn among the sons of Israel, and the cattle of the Levites, instead of their cattle, —so shall the Levites belong unto me, me Yahweh;

46 and as the ransom of the two hundred and seventy-three, —who are more than the Levites, of the firstborn of the sons of Israel,

47 thou shalt take five shekels apiece by the poll, —by the shekel of the sanctuary, shalt thou take it, twenty gerahs to the shekel;

48 and shalt give the silver to Aaron and to his sons, —as the ransom of them that are in excess over them.

49 So Moses took the redemption silver from them who were in excess over them who were redeemed by the Levites:

50 from the firstborn of the sons of Israel, took he the silver, —a thousand three hundred and sixty-five shekels, by the shekel of the sanctuary,

51 And Moses gave the redemption silver to Aaron and to his sons at the bidding of Yahweh, —As Yahweh commanded Moses.