Liber Numeri 18

1 Dixitque Dominus ad Aaron: Tu, et filii tui, et domus patris tui tecum portabitis iniquitatem Sanctuarii: et tu et filii tui simul sustinebitis peccata sacerdotii vestri.

And the LORD said to Aaron, Thou and thy sons and thy father’s 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 Sed et fratres tuos de tribu Levi, et sceptrum patris tui sume tecum, præstoque sint, et ministrent tibi: tu autem et filii tui ministrabitis in tabernaculo testimonii.

And thy brethren also of the tribe of Levi, the tribe of thy father, bring thou with thee, that they may be joined to thee, and minister to thee: but thou and thy sons with thee shall minister before the tabernacle of witness.

3 Excubabuntque Levitæ ad præcepta tua, et ad cuncta opera tabernaculi: ita dumtaxat, ut ad vasa Sanctuarii et ad altare non accedant, ne et illi moriantur, et vos pereatis simul.

And they shall keep thy charge, and the charge of all the tabernacle: only they shall not come near the vessels of the sanctuary and the altar, that neither they, nor ye also, die.

4 Sint autem tecum, et excubent in custodiis tabernaculi, et in omnibus cæremoniis eius. Alienigena non miscebitur vobis.

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

5 Excubate in custodia Sanctuarii, et in ministerio altaris: ne oriatur indignatio super filios Israel.

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

6 Ego dedi vobis fratres vestros Levitas de medio filiorum Israel, et tradidi donum Domino, ut serviant in ministeriis tabernaculi eius.

And I, behold, I have taken your brethren the Levites from among the children of Israel: to you they are given as a gift for the LORD, to do the service of the tabernacle of the congregation.

7 Tu autem et filii tui custodite sacerdotium vestrum: et omnia quæ ad cultum altaris pertinent, et intra velum sunt, per sacerdotes administrabuntur. Si quis externus accesserit, occidetur.

Therefore thou and thy sons with thee shall keep your priest’s office for every thing of the altar, and within the veil; and ye shall serve: I have given your priest’s office to you as a service of gift: and the stranger that cometh near shall be put to death.

8 Locutusque est Dominus ad Aaron: Ecce dedi tibi custodiam primitiarum mearum. Omnia quæ sanctificantur a filiis Israel, tradidi tibi et filiis tuis pro officio sacerdotali legitima sempiterna.

And the LORD spoke to Aaron, Behold, I also have given thee the charge of my heave offerings of all the hallowed things of the children of Israel; to thee have I given them by reason of the anointing, and to thy sons, by an ordinance for ever.

9 Hæc ergo accipies de his, quæ sanctificantur et oblata sunt Domino. Omnis oblatio, et sacrificium, et quidquid pro peccato atque delicto redditur mihi, et cedit in Sancta sanctorum, tuum erit, et filiorum tuorum.

This shall be thine of the most holy things, reserved from the fire: every oblation of theirs, every meat 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 In Sanctuario comedes illud: mares tantum edent ex eo, quia consecratum est tibi.

In the most holy place shalt thou eat it; every male shall eat it: it shall be holy to thee.

11 Primitias autem, quas voverint et obtulerint filii Israel, tibi dedi, et filiis tuis, ac filiabus tuis iure perpetuo. Qui mundus est in domo tua, vescetur eis.

And this is thine; the heave offering of their gift, with all the wave offerings of the children of Israel: I have given them to thee, and to thy sons and to thy daughters with thee, by a statute for ever: every one that is clean in thy house shall eat of it.

12 Omnem medullam olei, et vini, ac frumenti, quidquid offerunt primitiarum Domino, tibi dedi.

All the best of the oil, and all the best of the wine, and of the wheat, the firstfruits of them which they shall offer to the LORD, them have I given to thee.

13 Universa frugum initia, quas gignit humus, et Domino deportantur, cedent in usus tuos: qui mundus est in domo tua, vescetur eis.

And whatever is first ripe in the land, which they shall bring to the LORD, shall be thine; every one that is clean in thy house shall eat of it.

14 Omne quod ex voto reddiderint filii Israel, tuum erit.

Every thing devoted in Israel shall be thine.

15 Quidquid primum erumpit e vulva cunctæ carnis, quam offerunt Domino, sive ex hominibus, sive de pecoribus fuerit, tui iuris erit: ita dumtaxat, ut pro hominis primogenito pretium accipias, et omne animal quod immundum est, redimi facias,

Every thing that openeth the womb in all flesh, which they bring to the LORD, whether of men or beasts, shall be thine: nevertheless the firstborn of man shalt thou surely redeem, and the firstling of unclean beasts shalt thou redeem.

16 cuius redemptio erit post unum mensem, siclis argenti quinque, pondere Sanctuarii. Siclus viginti obolos habet.

And those that are to be redeemed from a month old shalt thou redeem, according to thy estimation, for the money of five shekels, after the shekel of the sanctuary, which is twenty gerahs.

17 Primogenitum autem bovis et ovis et capræ non facies redimi, quia sanctificata sunt Domino. Sanguinem tantum eorum fundes super altare, et adipes adolebis in suavissimum odorem Domino.

But the firstling of a cow, or the firstling of a sheep, or the firstling of a goat, thou shalt not redeem; they are holy: thou shalt sprinkle their blood upon the altar, and shalt burn their fat for an offering made by fire, for a sweet savour to the LORD.

18 Carnes vero in usum tuum cedent, sicut pectusculum consecratum, et armus dexter, tua erunt.

And the flesh of them shall be thine, as the wave breast and as the right shoulder are thine.

19 Omnes primitias Sanctuarii, quas offerunt filii Israel Domino, tibi dedi et filiis, ac filiabus tuis iure perpetuo. Pactum salis est sempiternum coram Domino, tibi ac filiis tuis.

All the heave offerings of the holy things, which the children of Israel offer to the LORD, have I given to thee, and to thy sons and thy daughters with thee, by a statute for ever: it is a covenant of salt for ever before the LORD to thee and to thy seed with thee.

20 Dixitque Dominus ad Aaron: In terra eorum nihil possidebitis, nec habebitis partem inter eos: ego pars et hereditas tua in medio filiorum Israel.

And the LORD spoke to Aaron, Thou shalt have no inheritance in their land, neither shalt thou have any part among them: I am thy part and thy inheritance among the children of Israel.

21 Filiis autem Levi dedi omnes decimas Israelis in possessionem pro ministerio quo serviunt mihi in tabernaculo fœderis:

And, behold, I have given the children of Levi all the tenth in Israel for an inheritance, for their service which they serve, even the service of the tabernacle of the congregation.

22 ut non accedant ultra filii Israel ad tabernaculum, nec committant peccatum mortiferum:

Neither must the children of Israel henceforth come near the tabernacle of the congregation, lest they bear sin, and die.

23 solis filiis Levi mihi in tabernaculo servientibus, et portantibus peccata populi. Legitimum sempiternum erit in generationibus vestris. Nihil aliud possidebunt,

But the Levites shall do the service of the tabernacle of the congregation, and they shall bear their iniquity: it shall be a statute for ever throughout your generations, that among the children of Israel they have no inheritance.

24 decimarum oblatione contenti, quas in usus eorum et necessaria separavi.

But the tithes of the children of Israel, which they offer as an heave offering to the LORD, I have given to the Levites to inherit: therefore I have said to them, Among the children of Israel they shall have no inheritance.

25 Locutusque est Dominus ad Moysen, dicens:

And the LORD spoke to Moses, saying,

26 Præcipe Levitis, atque denuncia: Cum acceperitis a filiis Israel decimas, quas dedi vobis, primitias earum offerte Domino, id est, decimam partem decimæ,

Thus speak to the Levites, and say to them, When ye take of the children of Israel the tithes which I have given you from them for your inheritance, then ye shall offer up an heave offering of it for the LORD, even a tenth part of the tithe.

27 ut reputetur vobis in oblationem primitivorum, tam de areis quam de torcularibus:

And this your heave offering shall be reckoned to you, as though it were the grain of the threshingfloor, and as the fulness of the winepress.

28 et universis quorum accipitis primitias, offerte Domino, et date Aaron sacerdoti.

Thus ye also shall offer an heave offering to the LORD of all your tithes, which ye receive of the children of Israel; and ye shall give of them the LORD’S heave offering to Aaron the priest.

29 Omnia quæ offeretis ex decimis, et in donaria Domini separabitis, optima et electa erunt.

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

30 Dicesque ad eos: Si præclara et meliora quæque obtuleritis ex decimis, reputabitur vobis quasi de area et torculari dederitis primitias:

Therefore thou shalt say to them, When ye have offered the best of it, then it shall be counted to the Levites as the increase of the threshingfloor, and as the increase of the winepress.

31 et comedetis eas in omnibus locis vestris, tam vos quam familiæ vestræ: quia pretium est pro ministerio, quo servitis in tabernaculo testimonii.

And ye shall eat it in every place, ye and your households: for it is your reward for your service in the tabernacle of the congregation.

32 Et non peccabitis super hoc, egregia vobis et pinguia reservantes ne polluatis oblationes filiorum Israel, et moriamini.

And ye shall bear no sin by reason of it, when ye have offered from it the best of it: neither shall ye pollute the holy things of the children of Israel, lest ye die.