| New King James Version | New Living Translation |
| 1And the LORD spoke to Moses, saying: | 1The LORD said to Moses, |
| 2“Speak to Aaron, and say to him, ‘When you arrange the lamps, the seven lamps shall give light in front of the lampstand.’ ” | 2“Give Aaron the following instructions: When you set up the seven lamps in the lampstand, place them so their light shines forward in front of the lampstand.” |
| 3And Aaron did so; he arranged the lamps to face toward the front of the lampstand, as the LORD commanded Moses. | 3So Aaron did this. He set up the seven lamps so they reflected their light forward, just as the LORD had commanded Moses. |
| 4Now this workmanship of the lampstand was hammered gold; from its shaft to its flowers it was hammered work. According to the pattern which the LORD had shown Moses, so he made the lampstand. | 4The entire lampstand, from its base to its decorative blossoms, was made of beaten gold. It was built according to the exact design the LORD had shown Moses. The Levites Dedicated |
| 5Then the LORD spoke to Moses, saying: | 5Then the LORD said to Moses, |
| 6“Take the Levites from among the children of Israel and cleanse them ceremonially. | 6“Now set the Levites apart from the rest of the people of Israel and make them ceremonially clean. |
| 7Thus you shall do to them to cleanse them: Sprinkle water of purification on them, and let them shave all their body, and let them wash their clothes, and so make themselves clean. | 7Do this by sprinkling them with the water of purification, and have them shave their entire body and wash their clothing. Then they will be ceremonially clean. |
| 8Then let them take a young bull with its grain offering of fine flour mixed with oil, and you shall take another young bull as a sin offering. | 8Have them bring a young bull and a grain offering of choice flour moistened with olive oil, along with a second young bull for a sin offering. |
| 9And you shall bring the Levites before the tabernacle of meeting, and you shall gather together the whole congregation of the children of Israel. | 9Then assemble the whole community of Israel, and present the Levites at the entrance of the Tabernacle. |
| 10So you shall bring the Levites before the LORD, and the children of Israel shall lay their hands on the Levites; | 10When you present the Levites before the LORD, the people of Israel must lay their hands on them. |
| 11and Aaron shall offer the Levites before the LORD like a wave offering from the children of Israel, that they may perform the work of the LORD. | 11Raising his hands, Aaron must then present the Levites to the LORD as a special offering from the people of Israel, thus dedicating them to the LORD’s service. |
| 12Then the Levites shall lay their hands on the heads of the young bulls, and you shall offer one as a sin offering and the other as a burnt offering to the LORD, to make atonement for the Levites. | 12“Next the Levites will lay their hands on the heads of the young bulls. Present one as a sin offering and the other as a burnt offering to the LORD, to purify the Levites and make them right with the LORD. |
| 13“And you shall stand the Levites before Aaron and his sons, and then offer them like a wave offering to the LORD. | 13Then have the Levites stand in front of Aaron and his sons, and raise your hands and present them as a special offering to the LORD. |
| 14Thus you shall separate the Levites from among the children of Israel, and the Levites shall be Mine. | 14In this way, you will set the Levites apart from the rest of the people of Israel, and the Levites will belong to me. |
| 15After that the Levites shall go in to service the tabernacle of meeting. So you shall cleanse them and offer them like a wave offering. | 15After this, they may go into the Tabernacle to do their work, because you have purified them and presented them as a special offering. |
| 16For they are wholly given to Me from among the children of Israel; I have taken them for Myself instead of all who open the womb, the firstborn of all the children of Israel. | 16“Of all the people of Israel, the Levites are reserved for me. I have claimed them for myself in place of all the firstborn sons of the Israelites; I have taken the Levites as their substitutes. |
| 17For all the firstborn among the children of Israel are Mine, both man and beast; on the day that I struck all the firstborn in the land of Egypt I sanctified them to Myself. | 17For all the firstborn males among the people of Israel are mine, both of people and of animals. I set them apart for myself on the day I struck down all the firstborn sons of the Egyptians. |
| 18I have taken the Levites instead of all the firstborn of the children of Israel. | 18Yes, I have claimed the Levites in place of all the firstborn sons of Israel. |
| 19And I have given the Levites as a gift to Aaron and his sons from among the children of Israel, to do the work for the children of Israel in the tabernacle of meeting, and to make atonement for the children of Israel, that there be no plague among the children of Israel when the children of Israel come near the sanctuary.” | 19And of all the Israelites, I have assigned the Levites to Aaron and his sons. They will serve in the Tabernacle on behalf of the Israelites and make sacrifices to purify the people so no plague will strike them when they approach the sanctuary.” |
| 20Thus Moses and Aaron and all the congregation of the children of Israel did to the Levites; according to all that the LORD commanded Moses concerning the Levites, so the children of Israel did to them. | 20So Moses, Aaron, and the whole community of Israel dedicated the Levites, carefully following all the LORD’s instructions to Moses. |
| 21And the Levites purified themselves and washed their clothes; then Aaron presented them like a wave offering before the LORD, and Aaron made atonement for them to cleanse them. | 21The Levites purified themselves from sin and washed their clothes, and Aaron lifted them up and presented them to the LORD as a special offering. He then offered a sacrifice to purify them and make them right with the LORD. |
| 22After that the Levites went in to do their work in the tabernacle of meeting before Aaron and his sons; as the LORD commanded Moses concerning the Levites, so they did to them. | 22After that the Levites went into the Tabernacle to perform their duties, assisting Aaron and his sons. So they carried out all the commands that the LORD gave Moses concerning the Levites. |
| 23Then the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, | 23The LORD also instructed Moses, |
| 24“This is what pertains to the Levites: From twenty-five years old and above one may enter to perform service in the work of the tabernacle of meeting; | 24“This is the rule the Levites must follow: They must begin serving in the Tabernacle at the age of twenty-five, |
| 25and at the age of fifty years they must cease performing this work, and shall work no more. | 25and they must retire at the age of fifty. |
| 26They may minister with their brethren in the tabernacle of meeting, to attend to needs, but they themselves shall do no work. Thus you shall do to the Levites regarding their duties.” | 26After retirement they may assist their fellow Levites by serving as guards at the Tabernacle, but they may not officiate in the service. This is how you must assign duties to the Levites.” |
| The Holy Bible, New King James Version, Copyright © 1982 Thomas Nelson. All rights reserved. | Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved. |
|
