< Numbers 8 >

1 And the Lord spoke unto Moses, saying,
And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
2 Speak unto Aaron, and say unto him, When thou lightest the lamps, then shall the seven lamps give light toward the body of the candlestick.
Speak to Aaron, and thou shalt say to him: When thou shalt place the seven lamps, let the candlestick be set up on the south side. Give orders therefore that the lamps look over against the north, towards the table of the leaves of proposition, over against that part shall they give light, towards which the candlestick looketh.
3 And Aaron did so; toward the body of the candlestick did he light its lamps; as the Lord had commanded Moses.
And Aaron did so, and he put the lamps upon the candlestick, as the Lord had commanded Moses.
4 And this was the workmanship of the candlestick: It was of beaten gold, from the shaft thereof, unto the flowers thereof, it was beaten work; according unto the pattern which the Lord had shown Moses, so made he the candlestick.
Now this was the work of the candlestick, it was of beaten gold, both the shaft in the middle, and all that came out of both sides of the branches: according to the pattern which the Lord had shewn to Moses, so he made the candlestick.
5 And the Lord spoke unto Moses, saying,
And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
6 Take the Levites from the midst of the children of Israel, and cleanse them.
Take the Levites out of the midst of the children of Israel, and thou shalt purify them,
7 And thus shalt thou do unto them, to cleanse them: Sprinkle upon them water of purification, after they have let the razor pass over all their flesh, and then let them wash their clothes, and so shall they be clean.
According to this rite: Let them be sprinkled with the water of purification, and let them shave all the hairs of their flesh. And when they shall have washed their garments, and are cleansed,
8 And they shall take a young bullock with his meat-offering, fine flour mingled with oil; and another young bullock shalt thou take for a sin-offering.
They shall take an ox of the herd, and for the offering thereof fine flour tempered with oil: and thou shalt take another ox of the herd for a sin offering:
9 And thou shalt bring near the Levites before the tabernacle of the congregation: and thou shalt assemble together the whole congregation of the children of Israel.
And thou shalt bring the Levites before the tabernacle of the covenant, calling together all the multitude of the children of Israel:
10 And when thou hast brought near the Levites before the Lord, then shall the children of Israel lay their hands upon the Levites:
And when the Levites are before the Lord, the children of Israel shall put their hands upon them:
11 And Aaron shall make with the Levites a waving before the Lord from the children of Israel, that they may be ready to execute the service of the Lord.
And Aaron shall offer the Levites, as a gift in the sight of the Lord from the children of Israel, that they may serve in his ministry.
12 And the Levites shall lay their hands upon the heads of the bullocks: and thou shalt prepare the one as a sin-offering, and the other as a burnt-offering, unto the Lord, to make an atonement for the Levites.
The Levites also shall put their hands upon the heads of the oxen, of which thou shalt sacrifice one for sin, and the other for a holocaust to the Lord, to pray for them.
13 And thou shalt place the Levites before Aaron and before his sons, and make with them a waving before the Lord.
And thou shalt set the Levites in the sight of Aaron and of his sons, and shalt consecrate them being offered to the Lord,
14 Thus shalt thou separate the Levites from the midst of the children of Israel: and the Levites shall be mine.
And shalt separate them from the midst of the children of Israel, to be mine.
15 And after that shall the Levites go in to do the service of the tabernacle of the congregation: after thou shalt have cleansed them, and made with them a waving.
And afterwards they shall enter into the tabernacle of the covenant, to serve me. And thus shalt thou purify and consecrate them for an oblation of the Lord: for as a gift they were given me by the children of Israel.
16 For they are wholly given unto me from the midst of the children of Israel: instead of every one that openeth the womb, of every first-born of the children of Israel, have I taken them unto me.
I have taken them instead of the firstborn that open every womb in Israel,
17 For mine are all the first-born of the children of Israel, both of man and beast: on the day that I smote every first-born in the land of Egypt did I sanctify them unto myself.
For all the firstborn of the children of Israel, both of men and of beasts, are mine. From the day that I slew every firstborn in the land of Egypt, have I sanctified them to myself:
18 And I have taken the Levites, instead of all the first-born among the children of Israel.
And I have taken the Levites for all the firstborn of the children of Israel:
19 And I have given the Levites as a gift to Aaron and to his sons from the midst of 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 nigh unto the sanctuary.
And have delivered them for a gift to Aaron and his sons out of the midst of the people, to serve me for Israel in the tabernacle of the covenant, and to pray for them, lest there should be a plague among the people, if they should presume to approach unto my sanctuary.
20 And so did Moses, and Aaron, and all the congregation of the children of Israel, to the Levites: according unto all that the Lord had commanded Moses concerning the Levites, so did the children of Israel unto them.
And Moses and Aaron and all the multitude of the children of Israel did with the Levites all that the Lord had commanded Moses:
21 And the Levites purified themselves, and they washed their clothes; and Aaron made with them a waving before the Lord: and Aaron made an atonement for them to cleanse them.
And they were purified, and washed their garments. And Aaron lifted them up in the sight of the Lard, and prayed for them,
22 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 unto them.
That being purified they might go into the tabernacle of the covenant to do their services before Aaron and his sons. As the Lord had commanded Moses touching the Levites, so was it done.
23 And the Lord spoke unto Moses, saying,
And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
24 This shall be the rule for the Levites: From twenty and five years old and upward shall he go into the ranks to do the service of the tabernacle of the congregation;
This is the law of the Levites: From twenty-five years old and upwards, they shall go in to minister in the tabernacle of the covenant.
25 And from the age of fifty years shall he go out of the ranks of the service, and he shall serve no more;
And when they shall have accomplished the fiftieth year of their age, they shall cease to serve:
26 But he shall wait on his brethren in the tabernacle of the congregation, to keep the charge, but the service shall he not perform; thus shalt thou do unto the Levites in the discharge of their office.
And they shall be the ministers of their brethren in the tabernacle of the covenant, to keep the things that are committed to their care, but not to do the works. Thus shalt thou order the Levites touching their charge.

< Numbers 8 >