Numbers 3
The Levites Taken in Place of the Firstborn
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Priesthood Profiles
3:1These are the generations of Aaron and Moses on the day when the Lord spoke with Moses on Mount Sinai.
3:2These are the names of Aaron’s sons: Nadab the firstborn, Abihu, Eleazar, and Ithamar.
3:3These are the names of Aaron’s sons, the anointed priests whose hands were consecrated for priestly service.
3:4Nadab and Abihu died before the Lord when they offered alien fire before the Lord in the wilderness of Sinai. They had no children. Eleazar and Ithamar served as priests with Aaron their father.
The Purpose of the Levites
3:5The Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
3:6Take the tribe of Levi and stand them before Aaron the priest, and they shall minister to him.
3:7They shall keep his charges and the charges of the sons of Israel before the Tent of Testimony, performing the work of the Tent.
3:8They shall keep all the furnishings of the Tent of Testimony and the charges of the sons of Israel, according to all the work of the Tent.
3:9Give the Levites to Aaron and his sons, the priests. They are given to Me as a gift from the sons of Israel.
3:10Appoint Aaron and his sons over the Tent of Testimony. They shall guard their priesthood, everything concerning the altar, and what is inside the curtain. An outsider who touches shall die.
3:11The Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
3:12Look, I have taken the Levites from among the sons of Israel in place of every firstborn who opens the womb among the sons of Israel. They shall be their ransom, and the Levites shall be Mine.
3:13For every firstborn is Mine. On the day I struck down every firstborn in the land of Egypt, I consecrated to Myself every firstborn in Israel, human and livestock alike. They shall be Mine. I am the Lord.
Levite Census
3:14The Lord spoke to Moses in the wilderness of Sinai, saying:
3:15Register the sons of Levi by their ancestral houses, divisions, and families. Register every male from one month old and upward.
3:16Moses and Aaron registered them by the voice of the Lord, as the Lord instructed them.
3:17These were the sons of Levi by their names: Gershon, Kohath, and Merari.
3:18These are the names of Gershon’s sons by their divisions: Libni and Shimei.
3:19The sons of Kohath by their divisions: Amram, Izhar, Hebron, and Uzziel.
3:20The sons of Merari by their divisions: Mahli and Mushi. These are the divisions of the Levites by their ancestral houses.
Gershon: The Western Camp
3:21To Gershon belonged the division of Libni and the division of Shimei. These are the divisions of Gershon.
3:22Those registered, counting every male from one month old and upward, numbered seven thousand five hundred.
3:23The sons of Gershon shall camp behind the Tent, toward the sea.
3:24The ruler of the ancestral house of the division of Gershon is Eliasaph son of Lael.
3:25The charge of the sons of Gershon in the Tent of Testimony is the Tent, the covering, and the covering at the door of the Tent of Testimony,
3:26The hangings of the courtyard, the curtain at the gate of the courtyard by the Tent, and the remaining things for all its work.
Kohath: The Southern Camp
3:27To Kohath belonged the Amramite, Izharite, Hebronite, and Uzzielite divisions. These are the divisions of Kohath.
3:28Counting every male from one month old and upward, there were eight thousand six hundred, keeping charge of the holy things.
3:29The divisions of the sons of Kohath shall camp beside the Tent toward the southwest.
3:30The ruler of the ancestral house of the divisions of Kohath is Elizaphan son of Uzziel.
3:31Their charge is the ark, the table, the lampstand, the altars, the holy utensils with which they minister, the covering, and all their work.
3:32The ruler over the rulers of the Levites is Eleazar son of Aaron the priest, appointed to keep charge of the holy things.
Merari: The Northern Camp
3:33To Merari belonged the division of Mahli and the division of Mushi. These are the divisions of Merari.
3:34Those registered, counting every male from one month old and upward, numbered six thousand fifty.
3:35The ruler of the ancestral house of the division of Merari is Zuriel son of Abihail. They shall camp beside the Tent toward the north.
3:36The appointed charge of the sons of Merari is the capitals of the Tent, its bars, pillars, and bases, all their furnishings, and their work,
3:37The pillars around the courtyard, their bases, pegs, and cords.
Moses and Aaron: The Eastern Camp
3:38Those camping before the Tent of Testimony on the east are Moses, Aaron, and his sons, keeping charge of the sanctuary on behalf of the sons of Israel. An outsider who touches shall die.
3:39All those registered among the Levites, whom Moses and Aaron registered by the voice of the Lord by their divisions, every male from one month old and upward, were twenty-two thousand.
The Redemption of the Firstborn
3:40The Lord said to Moses, saying: Register every firstborn male among the sons of Israel from one month old and upward, and take their number by name.
3:41Take the Levites for Me—I am the Lord—in place of every firstborn among the sons of Israel, and the livestock of the Levites in place of every firstborn among the livestock of the sons of Israel.
3:42Moses registered every firstborn among the sons of Israel, as the Lord commanded.
3:43All the firstborn males, counted by name from one month old and upward, numbered twenty-two thousand two hundred seventy-three.
3:44The Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
3:45Take the Levites in place of every firstborn among the sons of Israel, and the Levites’ livestock in place of their livestock. The Levites shall be Mine. I am the Lord.
3:46For the ransom of the two hundred seventy-three firstborn sons of Israel who exceed the number of Levites,
3:47Take five shekels per head, using the sacred didrachm; the shekel is twenty obols.
3:48Give the silver to Aaron and his sons as the ransom for those who exceed their number.
3:49Moses took the silver, the ransom of those in excess, for the redemption of the Levites.
3:50From the firstborn of the sons of Israel he took the silver: one thousand three hundred sixty-five sanctuary shekels.
3:51Moses gave the ransom of those in excess to Aaron and his sons by the voice of the Lord, as the Lord instructed Moses.
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Saints Translation · Liturgical reading edition · V1 · working draft awaiting specialist review.