Numbers 18

1 Yahweh said to Aaron, “You, your sons, and your ancestor's clan will be responsible for all sins committed against the sanctuary. But only you and your sons with you will be responsible for all sins committed by anyone in the priesthood.

And Jehovah said to Aaron, Thou and thy sons and thy fathers' house with thee shall bear the iniquity of the sanctuary, and thou and thy sons with thee shall bear the iniquity of your priesthood.

2 As for your fellow members of the tribe of Levi, your ancestors' tribe, you must bring them with you so they may join you and help you when you and your sons serve in front of the tent of the covenant decrees.

And thy brothers also, the tribe of Levi, the tribe of thy father, bring thou near with thee, that they may be joined to thee, and minister to thee, but thou and thy sons with thee shall be before the tent of the testimony.

3 They must serve you and the whole tent. However, they must not come near to anything in the holy place or connected with the altar, or they and also you will die.

And they shall keep thy charge, and the charge of all the tent. Only they shall not come near to the vessels of the sanctuary and to the altar, that they not die, neither they, nor ye.

4 They must join you and take care of the tent of meeting, for all the work connected with the tent. A foreigner must not come near you.

And they shall be joined to thee, and keep the charge of the tent of meeting, for all the service of the tent, and a stranger shall not come near to you.

5 You must take responsibility for the holy place and for the altar so that my anger does not come on the people of Israel again.

And ye shall keep the charge of the sanctuary, and the charge of the altar, that there be no more wrath upon the sons of Israel.

6 Look, I myself have chosen your fellow members of the Levites from among the descendants of Israel. They are a gift to you, given to me to do the work connected to the tent of meeting.

And I, behold, I have taken your brothers the Levites from among the sons of Israel. They are a gift to you, given to Jehovah, to do the service of the tent of meeting.

7 But only you and your sons may exercise the priesthood regarding everything connected with the altar and everything inside the curtain. You yourselves must fulfill those responsibilities. I am giving you the priesthood as a gift. Any foreigner who approaches must be put to death.”

And thou and thy sons with thee shall keep your priesthood for everything of the altar, and for that within the veil, and ye shall serve. I give you the priesthood as a service of gift. And the stranger who comes near shall be put to death.

8 Then Yahweh said to Aaron, “Look, I have given you the duty of handling the offerings raised up to me, and all the holy offerings that the people of Israel give to me. I have given these offerings to you and your sons as your ongoing share.

And Jehovah spoke to Aaron, And I, behold, I have given thee the charge of my heave offerings, even all the hallowed things of the sons of Israel. I have given them to thee by reason of the anointing, and to thy sons, as a portion forever.

9 This will belong to you from the most holy things that is kept from the fire. From every offering of theirs—every grain offering, every sin offering, and every guilt offering—they are set apart to you and to your sons.

This shall be thine of the most holy things, reserved from the fire: every oblation of theirs, even every meal offering of theirs, and every sin offering of theirs, and every trespass offering of theirs, which they shall render to me, shall be most holy for thee and for thy sons.

10 These offerings are very holy; every male must eat it, for they are holy to you.

As the most holy things thou shall eat of it; every male shall eat of it. It shall be holy to thee.

11 These are the offerings that will belong to you, set apart out of all their gifts of the wave offerings of the people of Israel. I have given them to you, your sons, and your daughters, as your portion forever. Everyone who is ceremonially clean in your family may eat any of these offerings.

And this is thine: the heave offering of their gift, even all the wave offerings of the sons of Israel. I have given them to thee, and to thy sons and to thy daughters with thee, as a portion forever. Everyone who is clean in thy house shall eat of it.

12 All the best of the oil, all the best of the new wine and grain, the firstfruits that the people give to me—all these things I have given to you.

All the best of the oil, and all the best of the vintage, and of the grain, the first-fruits of them which they give to Jehovah, I have given them to thee.

13 The first ripe produce of all that is in their land, which they bring to me, will be yours. Everyone who is clean in your family may eat these things.

The first-ripe fruits of all that is in their land, which they bring to Jehovah, shall be thine. Everyone who is clean in thy house shall eat of it.

14 Every devoted thing in Israel will be yours.

Everything devoted in Israel shall be thine.

15 Everything that opens the womb, all the firstborn which the people offer to Yahweh, both of man and animal, will be yours. Nevertheless, the people must certainly buy back every firstborn son, and they must buy back the firstborn male of unclean animals.

Everything that opens the womb, of all flesh which they offer to Jehovah, both of man and beast shall be thine. Nevertheless the firstborn of man thou shall surely redeem, and the firstling of unclean beasts thou shall redeem.

16 Those that are to be bought back by the people must be bought back after becoming one month old. Then the people may buy them back, for the price of five shekels, by the standard weight of the sanctuary shekel, which equals twenty gerahs.

And those that are to be redeemed of them from a month old shall thou redeem, according to thine estimation, for the money of five shekels, according to the shekel of the sanctuary (the same is twenty gerahs).

17 But the firstborn of a cow, or the firstborn of a sheep, or the firstborn of a goat—you must not buy back these animals; they are set apart to me. You must sprinkle their blood on the altar and burn their fat as an offering made by fire, an aroma pleasing to Yahweh.

But the firstling of an ox, or the firstling of a sheep, or the firstling of a goat, thou shall not redeem. They are holy. Thou shall sprinkle their blood upon the altar, and shall burn their fat for an offering made by fire, for a sweet savor to Jehovah.

18 Their meat will be yours. Like the raised breast and the right thigh, their meat will be yours.

And the flesh of them shall be thine. As the wave-breast and as the right thigh, it shall be thine.

19 All the holy offerings that the people of Israel present to Yahweh, I have given to you, and to your sons and to your daughters with you, as a continual share. It is an everlasting covenant of salt, a binding covenant forever, before Yahweh for both you and your descendants with you.”

All the heave offerings of the holy things, which the sons of Israel offer to Jehovah, I have given thee, and thy sons and thy daughters with thee, as a portion forever. It is a covenant of salt forever before Jehovah to thee and to thy seed with thee.

20 Yahweh said to Aaron, “You will have no inheritance in the people's land, nor will you have any share of property among the people. I am your share and inheritance among the people of Israel.

And Jehovah said to Aaron, Thou shall have no inheritance in their land, neither shall thou have any portion among them. I am thy portion and thine inheritance among the sons of Israel.

21 To the descendants of Levi, look, I have given all the tithes in Israel as their inheritance in return for the service that they provide in working at the tent of meeting.

And to the sons of Levi, behold, I have given all the tithe in Israel for an inheritance, in return for their service which they serve, even the service of the tent of meeting.

22 From now on the people of Israel must not come near the tent of meeting, or they will be responsible for this sin and die.

And henceforth the sons of Israel shall not come near the tent of meeting, lest they bear sin, and die.

23 The Levites must do the work connected to the tent of meeting. They will be responsible for any sin regarding it. This will be a permanent law throughout your people's generations. Among the people of Israel they must have no inheritance.

But the Levites shall do the service of the tent of meeting, and they shall bear their iniquity. It shall be a statute forever throughout your generations. And among the sons of Israel they shall have no inheritance.

24 For the tithes of the people of Israel, which they offer as a contribution to me—it is these that I have given to the Levites as their inheritance. That is why I said to them, 'They must have no inheritance among the people of Israel.'”

For the tithe of the sons of Israel, which they offer as a heave offering to Jehovah, I have given to the Levites for an inheritance. Therefore I have said to them, Among the sons of Israel they shall have no inheritance.

25 Yahweh spoke to Moses and said,

And Jehovah spoke to Moses, saying,

26 “You must speak to the Levites and say to them, 'When you receive from the people of Israel the tenth that I have given to you from them for your inheritance, you will present a contribution from it to Yahweh, a tenth of the tithe.

Moreover thou shall speak to the Levites, and say to them, When ye take from the sons of Israel the tithe which I have given you from them for your inheritance, then ye shall offer up a heave offering of it for Jehovah, a tithe of the tithe.

27 Your contribution must be considered by you as if it were a tenth of the grain from the threshing floor or of the production from the winepress.

And your heave offering shall be reckoned to you, as though it were the grain of the threshing-floor, and as the fullness of the winepress.

28 So you also must make a contribution to Yahweh from all the tithes that you receive from the people of Israel. From them you must give his contribution to Aaron the priest.

Thus ye also shall offer a heave offering to Jehovah of all your tithes, which ye receive of the sons of Israel. And from it ye shall give Jehovah's heave offering to Aaron the priest.

29 Out of all the gifts you receive, you must make every contribution to Yahweh. You must do this from all the best and the holiest things that have been given to you.'

Out of all your gifts ye shall offer every heave offering of Jehovah, of all the best of it, even the hallowed part of it out of it.

30 Therefore you must say to them, 'When you present the best of it, then it must be credited to the Levites as the product from the threshing floor and the winepress.

Therefore thou shall say to them, When ye heave the best of it from it, then it shall be reckoned to the Levites as the increase of the threshing-floor, and as the increase of the wine-press.

31 You may eat the rest of your gifts in any place, you and your families, because it is your pay in return for your work in the tent of meeting.

And ye shall eat it in every place, ye and your households, for it is your reward in return for your service in the tent of meeting.

32 You will not incur any guilt by eating and drinking it, if you have presented to Yahweh the best of what you have received. But you must not profane the holy offerings of the people of Israel, or you will die.'”

And ye shall bear no sin by reason of it, when ye have heaved from it the best of it. And ye shall not profane the holy things of the sons of Israel, that ye not die.