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¶ These also are the generations of Aaron and of Moses in the day that the LORD spoke with Moses in Mount Sinai.

And these are the names of the sons of Aaron: Nadab, the firstborn, and Abihu, Eleazar, and Ithamar.

These are the names of the sons of Aaron, anointed priests, whose hands he filled to administer the priesthood.

But Nadab and Abihu died before the LORD, when they offered strange fire before the LORD, in the wilderness of Sinai, and they had no sons; and Eleazar and Ithamar exercised the priesthood in the sight of Aaron, their father.

And the LORD spoke unto Moses, saying,

Bring the tribe of Levi near and present them before Aaron, the priest, that they may minister unto him.

And they shall keep his commandment and the commandment of the whole congregation before the tabernacle of the testimony, to minister in the service of the tabernacle.

And they shall keep all the instruments of the tabernacle of the testimony and the charge of the sons of Israel, to minister in the service of the tabernacle.

And thou shalt give the Levites unto Aaron and to his sons; they are completely given unto him out of the sons of Israel.

10 And thou shalt appoint Aaron and his sons that they shall guard their priesthood; and the stranger that comes near shall be put to death.

11 And the LORD spoke unto Moses, saying,

12 Behold, I have taken the Levites from among the sons of Israel instead of all the firstborn that open the womb among the sons of Israel; therefore the Levites shall be mine;

13 because all the firstborn are mine; from the day that I smote all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, I sanctified unto me all the firstborn in Israel, both of men and of animals; they shall be mine: I am the LORD.

14 ¶ The LORD also spoke unto Moses in the wilderness of Sinai, saying,

15 Number the sons of Levi by the houses of their fathers, by their families; thou shalt number every male from a month old and upward.

16 And Moses numbered them according to the word of the LORD, as he was commanded.

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

18 And these are the names of the sons of Gershon by their families: Libni and Shimei.

19 And the sons of Kohath by their families: Amram, Izehar, Hebron, and Uzziel.

20 And the sons of Merari by their families: Mahli and Mushi. These are the families of the Levites according to the houses of their fathers.

21 Of Gershon was the family of Libni and the family of Shimei; these are the families of Gershon.

22 Those that were numbered of them, according to the number of all the males, from a month old and upward, those that were numbered of them were seven thousand five hundred.

23 The families of Gershon shall pitch behind the tabernacle to the west;

24 and the prince of the house of the father of the Gershonites, Eliasaph, son of Lael.

25 And the charge of the sons of Gershon in the tabernacle of the testimony shall be the tabernacle and the tent, the covering thereof, and the hanging for the door of the tabernacle of the testimony,

26 and the hangings of the court and the curtain for the door of the court, which is by the tabernacle and by the altar round about, and the cords of it for all the service thereof.

27 And of Kohath was the family of Amram and the family of Izehar and the family of Hebron and the family of Uzziel; these are the families of the Kohathites.

28 In the number of all the males, from a month old and upward, were eight thousand six hundred, keeping the charge of the sanctuary.

29 The families of the sons of Kohath shall pitch on the side of the tabernacle towards the Negev;

30 and the prince of the house of the father of the families of Kohath, Elizaphan, son of Uzziel.

31 And their charge shall be the ark and the table and the lampstand and the altars and the vessels of the sanctuary with which they minister, and the veil, with all its service.

32 And Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, shall be principal over the princes of the Levites and have the oversight of those that keep the charge of the sanctuary.

33 Of Merari was the family of Mahli and the family of Mushi; these are the families of Merari.

34 And those that were numbered of them, according to the number of all the males, from a month old and upward, were six thousand two hundred;

35 and the prince of the house of the father of the families of Merari, Zuriel the son of Abihail: these shall pitch on the side of the tabernacle to the Aquilon.

36 And under the custody and charge of the sons of Merari shall be the boards of the tabernacle and the bars thereof and the pillars thereof and the sockets thereof and all the instruments thereof, with all its service,

37 and the pillars of the court round about and their sockets and their stakes and their cords.

38 And those that encamp before the tabernacle toward the east, before the tabernacle of the testimony towards the sunrise, shall be Moses and Aaron and his sons, keeping the charge of the sanctuary for the charge of the sons of Israel; and the stranger that comes near shall be put to death.

39 All that were numbered of the Levites, whom Moses and Aaron, according to the word of the LORD, numbered by their families, all the males from a month old and upward, were twenty-two thousand.

40 ¶ And the LORD said unto Moses, Number all the firstborn of the males of the sons of Israel from a month old and upward and take the number of their names.

41 And thou shalt take the Levites for me (I am the LORD) instead of all the firstborn among the sons of Israel and the animals of the Levites instead of all the firstborn among the animals of the sons of Israel.

42 And Moses numbered, as the LORD commanded him, all the firstborn among the sons of Israel.

43 And all the firstborn males by the number of names, from a month old and upward, of those that were numbered of them, were twenty-two thousand two hundred seventy-three.

44 And the LORD spoke unto Moses, saying,

45 Take the Levites instead of all the firstborn among the sons of Israel and the animals of the Levites instead of their animals, and the Levites shall be mine; I am the LORD.

46 And for the ransoms of the two hundred seventy-three of the firstborn of the sons of Israel, who are more than the Levites,

47 thou shalt take five shekels apiece by the poll, after the shekel of the sanctuary shalt thou take them (the shekel is of twenty gerahs).

48 And thou shalt give the money, of the ransoms of the odd number of them, unto Aaron and to his sons.

49 And Moses took the ransom money of those that were over and above the ones that were redeemed by the Levites

50 and received of the firstborn of the sons of Israel, in money, a thousand three hundred and sixty-five shekels, after the shekel of the sanctuary.

51 And Moses gave the money of the ransoms unto Aaron and to his sons, according to the word of the LORD, as the LORD had commanded Moses.

The Levites

This is the account of the family of Aaron and Moses(A) at the time the Lord spoke to Moses at Mount Sinai.(B)

The names of the sons of Aaron were Nadab the firstborn(C) and Abihu, Eleazar and Ithamar.(D) Those were the names of Aaron’s sons, the anointed priests,(E) who were ordained to serve as priests. Nadab and Abihu, however, died before the Lord(F) when they made an offering with unauthorized fire before him in the Desert of Sinai.(G) They had no sons, so Eleazar and Ithamar(H) served as priests during the lifetime of their father Aaron.(I)

The Lord said to Moses, “Bring the tribe of Levi(J) and present them to Aaron the priest to assist him.(K) They are to perform duties for him and for the whole community(L) at the tent of meeting by doing the work(M) of the tabernacle. They are to take care of all the furnishings of the tent of meeting, fulfilling the obligations of the Israelites by doing the work of the tabernacle. Give the Levites to Aaron and his sons;(N) they are the Israelites who are to be given wholly to him.[a] 10 Appoint Aaron(O) and his sons to serve as priests;(P) anyone else who approaches the sanctuary is to be put to death.”(Q)

11 The Lord also said to Moses, 12 “I have taken the Levites(R) from among the Israelites in place of the first male offspring(S) of every Israelite woman. The Levites are mine,(T) 13 for all the firstborn are mine.(U) When I struck down all the firstborn in Egypt, I set apart for myself every firstborn in Israel, whether human or animal. They are to be mine. I am the Lord.”(V)

14 The Lord said to Moses in the Desert of Sinai,(W) 15 “Count(X) the Levites by their families and clans. Count every male a month old or more.”(Y) 16 So Moses counted them, as he was commanded by the word of the Lord.

17 These were the names of the sons of Levi:(Z)

Gershon,(AA) Kohath(AB) and Merari.(AC)

18 These were the names of the Gershonite clans:

Libni and Shimei.(AD)

19 The Kohathite clans:

Amram, Izhar, Hebron and Uzziel.(AE)

20 The Merarite clans:(AF)

Mahli and Mushi.(AG)

These were the Levite clans, according to their families.

21 To Gershon(AH) belonged the clans of the Libnites and Shimeites;(AI) these were the Gershonite clans. 22 The number of all the males a month old or more who were counted was 7,500. 23 The Gershonite clans were to camp on the west, behind the tabernacle.(AJ) 24 The leader of the families of the Gershonites was Eliasaph son of Lael. 25 At the tent of meeting the Gershonites were responsible for the care of the tabernacle(AK) and tent, its coverings,(AL) the curtain at the entrance(AM) to the tent of meeting,(AN) 26 the curtains of the courtyard(AO), the curtain at the entrance to the courtyard surrounding the tabernacle and altar,(AP) and the ropes(AQ)—and everything(AR) related to their use.

27 To Kohath(AS) belonged the clans of the Amramites, Izharites, Hebronites and Uzzielites;(AT) these were the Kohathite(AU) clans. 28 The number of all the males a month old or more(AV) was 8,600.[b] The Kohathites were responsible(AW) for the care of the sanctuary.(AX) 29 The Kohathite clans were to camp on the south side(AY) of the tabernacle. 30 The leader of the families of the Kohathite clans was Elizaphan(AZ) son of Uzziel. 31 They were responsible for the care of the ark,(BA) the table,(BB) the lampstand,(BC) the altars,(BD) the articles(BE) of the sanctuary used in ministering, the curtain,(BF) and everything related to their use.(BG) 32 The chief leader of the Levites was Eleazar(BH) son of Aaron, the priest. He was appointed over those who were responsible(BI) for the care of the sanctuary.(BJ)

33 To Merari belonged the clans of the Mahlites and the Mushites;(BK) these were the Merarite clans.(BL) 34 The number of all the males a month old or more(BM) who were counted was 6,200. 35 The leader of the families of the Merarite clans was Zuriel son of Abihail; they were to camp on the north side of the tabernacle.(BN) 36 The Merarites were appointed(BO) to take care of the frames of the tabernacle,(BP) its crossbars,(BQ) posts,(BR) bases, all its equipment, and everything related to their use,(BS) 37 as well as the posts of the surrounding courtyard(BT) with their bases, tent pegs(BU) and ropes.

38 Moses and Aaron and his sons were to camp to the east(BV) of the tabernacle, toward the sunrise, in front of the tent of meeting.(BW) They were responsible for the care of the sanctuary(BX) on behalf of the Israelites. Anyone else who approached the sanctuary was to be put to death.(BY)

39 The total number of Levites counted(BZ) at the Lord’s command by Moses and Aaron according to their clans, including every male a month old or more, was 22,000.(CA)

40 The Lord said to Moses, “Count all the firstborn Israelite males who are a month old or more(CB) and make a list of their names.(CC) 41 Take the Levites for me in place of all the firstborn of the Israelites,(CD) and the livestock of the Levites in place of all the firstborn of the livestock of the Israelites. I am the Lord.”(CE)

42 So Moses counted all the firstborn of the Israelites, as the Lord commanded him. 43 The total number of firstborn males a month old or more,(CF) listed by name, was 22,273.(CG)

44 The Lord also said to Moses, 45 “Take the Levites in place of all the firstborn of Israel, and the livestock of the Levites in place of their livestock. The Levites are to be mine.(CH) I am the Lord.(CI) 46 To redeem(CJ) the 273 firstborn Israelites who exceed the number of the Levites, 47 collect five shekels[c](CK) for each one, according to the sanctuary shekel,(CL) which weighs twenty gerahs.(CM) 48 Give the money for the redemption(CN) of the additional Israelites to Aaron and his sons.”(CO)

49 So Moses collected the redemption money(CP) from those who exceeded the number redeemed by the Levites. 50 From the firstborn of the Israelites(CQ) he collected silver weighing 1,365 shekels,[d](CR) according to the sanctuary shekel. 51 Moses gave the redemption money to Aaron and his sons, as he was commanded by the word of the Lord.

Footnotes

  1. Numbers 3:9 Most manuscripts of the Masoretic Text; some manuscripts of the Masoretic Text, Samaritan Pentateuch and Septuagint (see also 8:16) to me
  2. Numbers 3:28 Hebrew; some Septuagint manuscripts 8,300
  3. Numbers 3:47 That is, about 2 ounces or about 58 grams
  4. Numbers 3:50 That is, about 35 pounds or about 16 kilograms