³³ But ^(A)the Levites were not listed among the people of Israel, as the Lord commanded Moses.

^57 (A)This was the list of the Levites according to their clans: of Gershon, the clan of the Gershonites; of Kohath, the clan of the Kohathites; of Merari, the clan of the Merarites. ⁵⁸ These are the clans of Levi: the clan of the Libnites, the clan of the Hebronites, the clan of the Mahlites, the clan of the Mushites, the clan of the Korahites. And Kohath was the father of Amram.

⁶² And those listed were ^(A)23,000, every male from a month old and upward. For ^(B)they were not listed among the people of Israel, because ^(C)there was no inheritance given to them among the people of Israel.

The Sons of Aaron

3 These are the generations of Aaron and Moses at the time when the Lord spoke with Moses on Mount Sinai. ² These are the names of the sons of Aaron: ^(A)Nadab the firstborn, and Abihu, Eleazar, and Ithamar. ³ These are the names of the sons of Aaron, ^(B)the anointed priests, ^(C)whom he ordained to serve as priests. ^4 (D)But Nadab and Abihu died before the Lord when they offered unauthorized fire before the Lord in the wilderness of Sinai, and they had no children. So Eleazar and Ithamar served as priests in the lifetime of Aaron their father.

Duties of the Levites

⁵ And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, ^6 (E)“Bring the tribe of Levi near, and set them before Aaron the priest, that they may minister to him. ⁷ They shall keep guard over him and over the whole congregation before the tent of meeting, ^(F)as they minister at the tabernacle. ⁸ They shall guard all the furnishings of the tent of meeting, and keep guard over the people of Israel as they minister at the tabernacle. ⁹ And ^(G)you shall give the Levites to Aaron and his sons; they are ^(H)wholly given to him from among the people of Israel. ¹⁰ And you shall appoint Aaron and his sons, and ^(I)they shall guard their priesthood. But if ^(J)any outsider comes near, he shall be put to death.”

¹¹ And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, ¹² “Behold, ^(K)I have taken the Levites from among the people of Israel instead of every firstborn who opens the womb among the people of Israel. The Levites shall be mine, ¹³ for ^(L)all the firstborn are mine. ^(M)On the day that I struck down all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, I consecrated for my own all the firstborn in Israel, both of man and of beast. They shall be mine: I am the Lord.”

¹⁴ And the Lord spoke to Moses in the wilderness of Sinai, saying, ¹⁵ “List the sons of Levi, by fathers' houses and by clans; ^(N)every male from a month old and upward you shall list.” ¹⁶ So Moses listed them according to the word of the Lord, as he was commanded. ^17 (O)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 clans: ^(P)Libni and Shimei. ¹⁹ And the sons of Kohath by their clans: ^(Q)Amram, Izhar, Hebron, and Uzziel. ²⁰ And the sons of Merari by their clans: ^(R)Mahli and Mushi. These are the clans of the Levites, by their fathers' houses.

²¹ To Gershon belonged the clan of the Libnites and the clan of the Shimeites; these were the clans of the Gershonites. ²² Their listing according to the number of all the males from a month old and upward was^[a] 7,500. ^23 (S)The clans of the Gershonites were to camp behind the tabernacle on the west, ²⁴ with Eliasaph, the son of Lael as chief of the fathers' house of the Gershonites. ²⁵ And the ^(T)guard duty of the sons of Gershon in the tent of meeting involved ^(U)the tabernacle, ^(V)the tent with ^(W)its covering, ^(X)the screen for the entrance of the tent of meeting, ^26 (Y)the hangings of the court, ^(Z)the screen for the door of the court that is around the tabernacle and the altar, and ^(AA)its cords—all the service connected with these.

²⁷ To Kohath belonged the clan of the ^(AB)Amramites and the clan of the Izharites and the clan of the Hebronites and the clan of the Uzzielites; these are the clans of the Kohathites. ²⁸ According to the number of all the males, from a month old and upward, there were 8,600, keeping guard over the sanctuary. ²⁹ The clans of the sons of Kohath were to camp on the south side of the tabernacle, ³⁰ with ^(AC)Elizaphan the son of Uzziel as chief of the fathers' house of the clans of the Kohathites. ³¹ And their guard duty involved ^(AD)the ark, ^(AE)the table, ^(AF)the lampstand, ^(AG)the altars, the vessels of the sanctuary with which the priests minister, and ^(AH)the screen; all the service connected with these. ³² And Eleazar the son of Aaron the priest was to be chief over the chiefs of the Levites, and to have oversight of those who kept guard over the sanctuary.

³³ To Merari belonged the clan of the Mahlites and the clan of the Mushites: these are the clans of Merari. ³⁴ Their listing according to the number of all the males from a month old and upward was 6,200. ³⁵ And the chief of the fathers' house of the clans of Merari was Zuriel the son of Abihail. They were to camp on the north side of the tabernacle. ^36 (AI)And the appointed guard duty of the sons of Merari involved the ^(AJ)frames of the tabernacle, ^(AK)the bars, ^(AL)the pillars, the bases, and all their accessories; all the service connected with these; ³⁷ also ^(AM)the pillars around the court, with their bases and ^(AN)pegs and ^(AO)cords.

³⁸ Those who were to camp before the tabernacle on the east, before the tent of meeting toward the sunrise, were Moses and Aaron and his sons, ^(AP)guarding the sanctuary itself, to protect^[b] the people of Israel. And any outsider who came near was to be put to death. ³⁹ All those listed among the Levites, whom Moses and Aaron listed at the commandment of the Lord, by clans, all the males from a month old and upward, were ^(AQ)22,000.

Redemption of the Firstborn

⁴⁰ And the Lord said to Moses, “List all the firstborn males of the people of Israel, from a month old and upward, taking the number of their names. ^41 (AR)And you shall take the Levites for me—I am the Lord—instead of all the firstborn among the people of Israel, and the cattle of the Levites instead of all the firstborn among the cattle of the people of Israel.” ⁴² So Moses listed all the firstborn among the people of Israel, as the Lord commanded him. ⁴³ And all the firstborn males, according to the number of names, from a month old and upward as listed were 22,273.

⁴⁴ And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, ^45 (AS)“Take the Levites instead of all the firstborn among the people of Israel, and the cattle of the Levites instead of their cattle. The Levites shall be mine: I am the Lord. ⁴⁶ And ^(AT)as the redemption price for the 273 of the firstborn of the people of Israel, over and above the number of the male Levites, ⁴⁷ you shall take ^(AU)five shekels^[c] per head; you shall take them according to ^(AV)the shekel of the sanctuary (the shekel of twenty gerahs^[d]), ⁴⁸ and give the money to Aaron and his sons as the redemption price for those who are over.” ⁴⁹ So Moses took the redemption money from those who were over and above those redeemed by the Levites. ⁵⁰ From the firstborn of the people of Israel he took the money, ^(AW)1,365 shekels, by the shekel of the sanctuary. ⁵¹ And Moses ^(AX)gave the redemption money to Aaron and his sons, according to the word of the Lord, as the Lord commanded Moses.

Duties of the Kohathites, Gershonites, and Merarites

4 The Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying, ² “Take a census of the sons of Kohath from among the sons of Levi, by their clans and their fathers' houses, ^3 (A)from thirty years old up to fifty years old, all who can come on duty, to do the work in the tent of meeting. ⁴ This is the service of the sons of Kohath in the tent of meeting: ^(B)the most holy things. ⁵ When the camp is to set out, Aaron and his sons shall go in and take down ^(C)the veil of the screen and cover ^(D)the ark of the testimony with it. ⁶ Then they shall put on it a covering of goatskin^[a] and spread on top of that a cloth all of blue, and shall put in its ^(E)poles. ⁷ And over the ^(F)table of the bread of the Presence they shall spread a cloth of blue and put on it the plates, the dishes for incense, the bowls, and the flagons for the drink offering; ^(G)the regular showbread also shall be on it. ⁸ Then they shall spread over them a cloth of scarlet and cover the same with a covering of goatskin, and shall ^(H)put in its poles. ⁹ And they shall take a cloth of blue and cover ^(I)the lampstand for the light, with its lamps, its tongs, its trays, and all the vessels for oil with which it is supplied. ¹⁰ And they shall put it with all its utensils in a covering of goatskin and put it on the carrying frame. ¹¹ And over ^(J)the golden altar they shall spread a cloth of blue and cover it with a covering of goatskin, and shall put in its poles. ¹² And they shall take all ^(K)the vessels of the service that are used in the sanctuary and put them in a cloth of blue and cover them with a covering of goatskin and put them on the carrying frame. ¹³ And they shall take away the ashes from the altar and spread a purple cloth over it. ¹⁴ And they shall put on it all the utensils of the altar, which are used for the service there, the fire pans, the forks, the shovels, and the basins, all the utensils of the altar; and they shall spread on it a covering of goatskin, and shall put in its poles. ¹⁵ And when Aaron and his sons have finished covering the sanctuary and all the furnishings of the sanctuary, as the camp sets out, after that ^(L)the sons of Kohath shall come to carry these, ^(M)but they must not touch the holy things, lest they die. These are the things of the tent of meeting that the sons of Kohath are to carry.

¹⁶ “And Eleazar the son of Aaron the priest shall have charge of ^(N)the oil for the light, the ^(O)fragrant incense, ^(P)the regular grain offering, and ^(Q)the anointing oil, with the oversight of the whole tabernacle and all that is in it, of the sanctuary and its vessels.”

¹⁷ The Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying, ¹⁸ “Let not the tribe of the clans of the Kohathites be destroyed from among the Levites, ¹⁹ but deal thus with them, that they may live and not die when they come near to ^(R)the most holy things: Aaron and his sons shall go in and appoint them each to his task and to his burden, ^20 (S)but they shall not go in to look on the holy things even for a moment, lest they die.”

²¹ The Lord spoke to Moses, saying, ²² “Take a census of the sons of Gershon also, by their fathers' houses and by their clans. ^23 (T)From thirty years old up to fifty years old, you shall list them, all who can ^(U)come to do duty, to do service in the tent of meeting. ²⁴ This is the service of the clans of the Gershonites, in serving and bearing burdens: ^25 (V)they shall carry ^(W)the curtains of the tabernacle and the tent of meeting with ^(X)its covering and the covering of goatskin that is on top of it and the screen for the entrance of the tent of meeting ²⁶ and the hangings of the court and the screen for the entrance of the gate of the court that is around the tabernacle and the altar, and their cords and all the equipment for their service. And they shall do all that needs to be done with regard to them. ²⁷ All the service of the sons of the Gershonites shall be at the command of Aaron and his sons, in all that they are to carry and in all that they have to do. And you shall assign to their charge all that they are to carry. ²⁸ This is the service of the clans of the sons of the Gershonites in the tent of meeting, and their guard duty is to be ^(Y)under the direction of Ithamar the son of Aaron the priest.

²⁹ “As for the sons of Merari, you shall list them by their clans and their fathers' houses. ^30 (Z)From thirty years old up to fifty years old, you shall list them, everyone who can come on duty, to do the service of the tent of meeting. ³¹ And ^(AA)this is what they are charged to carry, as the whole of their service in the tent of meeting: the frames of the tabernacle, with its bars, pillars, and bases, ³² and the pillars around the court with their bases, pegs, and cords, with all their equipment and all their accessories. And you shall ^(AB)list by name the objects that they are required to carry. ³³ This is the service of the clans of the sons of Merari, the whole of their service in the tent of meeting, ^(AC)under the direction of Ithamar the son of Aaron the priest.”

³⁴ And Moses and Aaron and the chiefs of the congregation listed the sons of the Kohathites, by their clans and their fathers' houses, ^35 (AD)from thirty years old up to fifty years old, everyone who could come on duty, for service in the tent of meeting; ³⁶ and those listed by clans were 2,750. ^37 (AE)This was the list of the clans of the Kohathites, all who served in the tent of meeting, whom Moses and Aaron listed according to the commandment of the Lord by Moses.

³⁸ Those listed of the sons of Gershon, by their clans and their fathers' houses, ^39 (AF)from thirty years old up to fifty years old, everyone who could come on duty for service in the tent of meeting— ⁴⁰ those listed by their clans and their fathers' houses were 2,630. ^41 (AG)This was the list of the clans of the sons of Gershon, all who served in the tent of meeting, whom Moses and Aaron listed according to the commandment of the Lord.

⁴² Those listed of the clans of the sons of Merari, by their clans and their fathers' houses, ^43 (AH)from thirty years old up to fifty years old, everyone who could come on duty, for service in the tent of meeting— ⁴⁴ those listed by clans were 3,200. ^45 (AI)This was the list of the clans of the sons of Merari, whom Moses and Aaron listed according to the commandment of the Lord by Moses.

⁴⁶ All those who were listed of the Levites, whom Moses and Aaron and the chiefs of Israel listed, by their clans and their fathers' houses, ^47 (AJ)from thirty years old up to fifty years old, everyone who could come to do the service of ministry and the service of bearing burdens in the tent of meeting, ⁴⁸ those listed were 8,580. ⁴⁹ According to the commandment of the Lord through Moses they were listed, ^(AK)each one with his task of serving or carrying. Thus they were listed by him, ^(AL)as the Lord commanded Moses.

Descendants of Levi

6 ^{[a] (A)}The sons of Levi: Gershon, Kohath, and Merari. ^2 (B)The sons of Kohath: Amram, Izhar, Hebron, and Uzziel. ^3 (C)The children of Amram: Aaron, Moses, and Miriam. ^(D)The sons of Aaron: Nadab, Abihu, Eleazar, and Ithamar. ^4 (E)(F)Eleazar fathered ^(G)Phinehas, Phinehas fathered Abishua, ⁵ Abishua fathered Bukki, Bukki fathered Uzzi, ⁶ Uzzi fathered Zerahiah, Zerahiah fathered ^(H)Meraioth, ⁷ Meraioth fathered Amariah, Amariah fathered Ahitub, ^8 (I)Ahitub fathered ^(J)Zadok, Zadok fathered Ahimaaz, ⁹ Ahimaaz fathered Azariah, Azariah fathered Johanan, ¹⁰ and Johanan fathered Azariah (^(K)it was he who served as priest ^(L)in the house that Solomon built in Jerusalem). ^11 (M)Azariah fathered ^(N)Amariah, Amariah fathered Ahitub, ¹² Ahitub fathered Zadok, Zadok fathered ^(O)Shallum, ¹³ Shallum fathered ^(P)Hilkiah, Hilkiah fathered Azariah, ¹⁴ Azariah fathered ^(Q)Seraiah, Seraiah fathered Jehozadak; ¹⁵ and ^(R)Jehozadak went into exile when the Lord sent Judah and Jerusalem into exile ^(S)by the hand of Nebuchadnezzar.

^16 [b] The ^(T)sons of Levi: Gershom, Kohath, and Merari. ¹⁷ And these are the names of the sons of Gershom: ^(U)Libni and Shimei. ^18 (V)The sons of Kohath: Amram, Izhar, Hebron and Uzziel. ^19 (W)The sons of Merari: Mahli and Mushi. These are the clans of the Levites according to their fathers. ^20 (X)Of Gershom: Libni his son, ^(Y)Jahath his son, Zimmah his son, ²¹ Joah his son, Iddo his son, Zerah his son, Jeatherai his son. ^22 (Z)The sons of Kohath: Amminadab his son, Korah his son, Assir his son, ²³ Elkanah his son, Ebiasaph his son, Assir his son, ²⁴ Tahath his son, Uriel his son, Uzziah his son, and Shaul his son. ²⁵ The sons of Elkanah: Amasai and Ahimoth, ²⁶ Elkanah his son, Zophai his son, Nahath his son, ²⁷ Eliab his son, Jeroham his son, Elkanah his son. ²⁸ The sons of Samuel: Joel^[c] his firstborn, the second Abijah.^{[d] 29 (AA)}The sons of Merari: Mahli, Libni his son, Shimei his son, Uzzah his son, ³⁰ Shimea his son, Haggiah his son, and Asaiah his son.

³¹ These are the men ^(AB)whom David put in charge of the service of song in the house of the Lord ^(AC)after the ark rested there. ³² They ministered with song before the tabernacle of the tent of meeting until Solomon built the house of the Lord in Jerusalem, and they performed their service according to their order. ³³ These are the men who served and their sons. Of the sons of the Kohathites: Heman the singer the son of Joel, son of ^(AD)Samuel, ³⁴ son of Elkanah, son of Jeroham, son of Eliel, son of Toah, ³⁵ son of Zuph, son of Elkanah, son of Mahath, son of Amasai, ³⁶ son of Elkanah, son of Joel, son of Azariah, son of Zephaniah, ³⁷ son of Tahath, son of Assir, son of Ebiasaph, son of Korah, ³⁸ son of Izhar, son of Kohath, son of Levi, son of Israel; ³⁹ and his brother ^(AE)Asaph, who stood on his right hand, namely, Asaph the son of Berechiah, son of Shimea, ⁴⁰ son of Michael, son of Baaseiah, son of Malchijah, ⁴¹ son of Ethni, son of Zerah, son of Adaiah, ⁴² son of Ethan, son of Zimmah, son of Shimei, ⁴³ son of Jahath, son of Gershom, son of Levi. ⁴⁴ On the left hand were their brothers, the sons of Merari: Ethan the son of Kishi, son of Abdi, son of Malluch, ⁴⁵ son of Hashabiah, son of Amaziah, son of Hilkiah, ⁴⁶ son of Amzi, son of Bani, son of Shemer, ⁴⁷ son of Mahli, son of Mushi, son of Merari, son of Levi. ⁴⁸ And their brothers the Levites were appointed for all the service of the tabernacle of the house of God.

⁴⁹ But Aaron and his sons made offerings ^(AF)on the altar of burnt offering and on ^(AG)the altar of incense for all the work of the Most Holy Place, and ^(AH)to make atonement for Israel, according to all that Moses the servant of God had commanded. ^50 (AI)These are the sons of Aaron: Eleazar his son, Phinehas his son, Abishua his son, ⁵¹ Bukki his son, Uzzi his son, Zerahiah his son, ⁵² Meraioth his son, Amariah his son, Ahitub his son, ⁵³ Zadok his son, Ahimaaz his son.

⁵⁴ These are their dwelling places according to their ^(AJ)settlements within their borders: to the sons of Aaron of the ^(AK)clans of Kohathites, for theirs was the first lot, ⁵⁵ to them they gave Hebron in the land of Judah and its surrounding pasturelands, ^56 (AL)but the fields of the city and its villages they gave to Caleb the son of Jephunneh. ^57 (AM)To the sons of Aaron they gave the cities of refuge: Hebron, Libnah with its pasturelands, Jattir, Eshtemoa with its pasturelands, ⁵⁸ Hilen with its pasturelands, Debir with its pasturelands, ⁵⁹ Ashan with its pasturelands, and Beth-shemesh with its pasturelands; ⁶⁰ and from the tribe of Benjamin, Gibeon,^[e] Geba with its pasturelands, Alemeth with its pasturelands, and Anathoth with its pasturelands. All their cities throughout their clans were thirteen.

^61 (AN)To the rest of the Kohathites were given by lot out of the clan of the tribe, out of the half-tribe, the half of Manasseh, ten cities. ⁶² To the Gershomites according to their clans were allotted thirteen cities out of the tribes of Issachar, Asher, Naphtali and Manasseh in Bashan. ^63 (AO)To the Merarites according to their clans were allotted twelve cities out of the tribes of Reuben, Gad, and Zebulun. ^64 (AP)So the people of Israel gave the Levites the cities with their pasturelands. ⁶⁵ They gave by lot out of the tribes of Judah, Simeon, and Benjamin ^(AQ)these cities that are mentioned by name.

^66 (AR)And some of the clans of the sons of Kohath had cities of their territory out of the tribe of Ephraim. ⁶⁷ They were given the cities of refuge: Shechem with its pasturelands in the hill country of Ephraim, Gezer with its pasturelands, ^68 (AS)Jokmeam with its pasturelands, Beth-horon with its pasturelands, ⁶⁹ Aijalon with its pasturelands, Gath-rimmon with its pasturelands, ⁷⁰ and out of the half-tribe of Manasseh, Aner with its pasturelands, and Bileam with its pasturelands, for the rest of the clans of the Kohathites.

^71 (AT)To the Gershomites were given out of the clan of the half-tribe of Manasseh: Golan in Bashan with its pasturelands and ^(AU)Ashtaroth with its pasturelands; ⁷² and out of the tribe of Issachar: Kedesh with its pasturelands, Daberath with its pasturelands, ⁷³ Ramoth with its pasturelands, and Anem with its pasturelands; ⁷⁴ out of the tribe of Asher: Mashal with its pasturelands, Abdon with its pasturelands, ⁷⁵ Hukok with its pasturelands, and Rehob with its pasturelands; ⁷⁶ and out of the tribe of Naphtali: Kedesh in Galilee with its pasturelands, Hammon with its pasturelands, and Kiriathaim with its pasturelands. ^77 (AV)To the rest of the Merarites were allotted out of the tribe of Zebulun: ^(AW)Rimmono with its pasturelands, ^(AX)Tabor with its pasturelands, ⁷⁸ and ^(AY)beyond the Jordan at Jericho, on the east side of the Jordan, out of the tribe of Reuben: Bezer in the wilderness with its pasturelands, Jahzah with its pasturelands, ⁷⁹ Kedemoth with its pasturelands, and Mephaath with its pasturelands; ⁸⁰ and out of the tribe of Gad: ^(AZ)Ramoth in Gilead with its pasturelands, ^(BA)Mahanaim with its pasturelands, ^81 (BB)Heshbon with its pasturelands, and ^(BC)Jazer with its pasturelands.