Numbers 18
18
The Duties of the Priests and Levities
1Yahweh said to Aaron, “You, your sons, and your family with you will bear the guilt of the sanctuary, and you and your sons with you will bear the guilt of your priesthood. 2Moreover, bring your brothers with you, the tribe of Levi the tribe of your father, that they may be joined to you and minister to you, you and your sons with you before the tent of testimony. 3They will keep your responsibility and the responsibility of all the tent, only they may not come near the vessels of the sanctuary and the altar, so both you and they will not die. 4They will be joined to you, and they will keep the responsibility of the tent of assembly for the entire service of the tent; a stranger may not come near you. 5You will keep the responsibility of the sanctuary and the responsibility of the altar, and there will no longer be wrath on the Israelites.#Literally “sons/children of Israel” 6Look, I myself have chosen your brothers the Levites from the midst of the children. They are a gift to you given from Yahweh to perform the work of the tent of assembly. 7But you with your sons will keep your priesthood to perform your priestly duties for everything at the altar#Or “for all the things of the altar” and for the area behind the curtain.#Literally “the house of the curtain” I give you the priesthood as a gift, but the stranger who approaches will be put to death.”
Portions for the Priests
8Yahweh spoke to Aaron, “Behold, I myself have given to you the responsibility of my contributions for all the holy objects of the Israelites;#Literally “sons/children of Israel” I have given them as a portion to you and your sons as an eternal decree. 9This will be for you from the sanctuary of the holy things from the fire; all of their offerings, from every grain offering, from every sin offering, and from every guilt offering which they will bring to me is a most holy thing#Literally “a holy object of holiness” for you and your sons. 10You will eat it in the most holy place;#Alternatively “as a holy object of holiness” every male will eat it. It will be a holy object to you. 11This is also for you: the contribution of their gift of the wave offerings of the children Israel. I have given them to you and your sons and your daughters with you as an eternal decree; whoever is clean in your house may eat it. 12All the finest olive oil and all the finest new wine and their best grain that they have given to Yahweh, I have given them to you. 13The firstfruits of all that is in their land that they present to Yahweh will be for you; whoever is clean in your house may eat it. 14All consecrated possessions#Hebrew “possession” in Israel will be for you. 15All the first offspring of a womb of any creature that they offer to Yahweh, whether human or animal, will be yours; you will surely redeem the firstborn of the human and the unclean firstborn of the animal. 16As to their price of redemption, from a one-month-old#Literally “a son of a month” you will redeem them according to your proper value, five shekels of silver according to the shekel of the sanctuary, which is twenty gerah. 17Only the firstborn of an ox or the firstborn of a sheep or the firstborn of a goat you will not redeem; they are holy. Their blood you will sprinkle over the altar, and their fat you will turn into smoke as an offering made by fire, a fragrance of appeasement for Yahweh. 18But their flesh will be for you like the breast section of the wave offering, and it will be for you like the right upper thigh. 19All the contributions of holiness that the Israelites#Literally “sons/children of Israel” offer to Yahweh I have given to you and your sons and your daughters with you as an eternal decree; it is an eternal covenant of salt before#Literally “in the presence of” Yahweh to you and your offspring with you.” 20Then Yahweh said to Aaron, “You will not receive an inheritance in their land, and there will not be a plot of ground for you in the midst of the Israelites.#Literally “sons/children of Israel”
21“Behold, I have given to the descendants#Or “sons” of Levi every tithe in Israel as an inheritance in return for their service, which they are doing, the work of the tent of assembly. 22The Israelites#Literally “sons/children of Israel” will not come near again to the tent of assembly, or they will bear sin#The NRSV translates “they will incur guilt” and die. 23The Levites#Hebrew “Levite” will perform the service of the tent of assembly, and they will bear their guilt, an eternal decree for all your generations. But they will not receive an inheritance in the midst of the Israelites#Literally “sons/children of Israel” 24because the tithes#Hebrew “tithe” of the Israelites#Literally “sons/children of Israel” that are offered#Hebrew “raised up” to Yahweh as a contribution, I have given to the Levites as an inheritance; therefore I said to them, ‘They will not receive an inheritance in the midst of the Israelites.’ ”#Literally “sons/children of Israel”
25Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying, 26“You will speak to the Levites and say to them, ‘When you receive the tithe from the Israelites#Literally “sons/children of Israel” that I have given to you from them for your inheritance, you will present#Literally “you will raise up” a contribution from it to Yahweh, a tithe from a tithe. 27Your contribution will be credited to you like the grain from the threshing floor and like the produce from the press. 28So you will present#Literally “you will raise up” your own contribution to Yahweh from all your tithes that you receive from the Israelites;#Literally “sons/children of Israel” from it you will give the contribution of Yahweh to Aaron the priest. 29From all your gifts you will present#Literally “you will raise up” every contribution of Yahweh, from all its fat, the part that is sacred.’ 30You will say to them, ‘When you are presenting#Literally “you are raising up” its fat, the rest will be credited to the Levites like a yield of the threshing floor and like a yield from the press. 31You may eat it anywhere, you and your household, because it is a wage in return for your service in the tent of assembly. 32You will not bear any sin because you have presented#Literally “you have raised up” its fat; you will not defile the holy objects of the Israelites,#Literally “sons/children of Israel” or you will die.’ ”
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Numbers 18: LEB
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Numbers 18
18
Duties of Priests and Levites
1Then the Lord said to Aaron: “You, your sons, and your relatives from the tribe of Levi will be held responsible for any offenses related to the sanctuary. But you and your sons alone will be held responsible for violations connected with the priesthood.
2“Bring your relatives of the tribe of Levi—your ancestral tribe—to assist you and your sons as you perform the sacred duties in front of the Tabernacle of the Covenant.#18:2 Or Tabernacle of the Testimony. 3But as the Levites go about all their assigned duties at the Tabernacle, they must be careful not to go near any of the sacred objects or the altar. If they do, both you and they will die. 4The Levites must join you in fulfilling their responsibilities for the care and maintenance of the Tabernacle,#18:4 Hebrew the Tent of Meeting; also in 18:6, 21, 22, 23, 31. but no unauthorized person may assist you.
5“You yourselves must perform the sacred duties inside the sanctuary and at the altar. If you follow these instructions, the Lord’s anger will never again blaze against the people of Israel. 6I myself have chosen your fellow Levites from among the Israelites to be your special assistants. They are a gift to you, dedicated to the Lord for service in the Tabernacle. 7But you and your sons, the priests, must personally handle all the priestly rituals associated with the altar and with everything behind the inner curtain. I am giving you the priesthood as your special privilege of service. Any unauthorized person who comes too near the sanctuary will be put to death.”
Support for the Priests and Levites
8The Lord gave these further instructions to Aaron: “I myself have put you in charge of all the holy offerings that are brought to me by the people of Israel. I have given all these consecrated offerings to you and your sons as your permanent share. 9You are allotted the portion of the most holy offerings that is not burned on the fire. This portion of all the most holy offerings—including the grain offerings, sin offerings, and guilt offerings—will be most holy, and it belongs to you and your sons. 10You must eat it as a most holy offering. All the males may eat of it, and you must treat it as most holy.
11“All the sacred offerings and special offerings presented to me when the Israelites lift them up before the altar also belong to you. I have given them to you and to your sons and daughters as your permanent share. Any member of your family who is ceremonially clean may eat of these offerings.
12“I also give you the harvest gifts brought by the people as offerings to the Lord—the best of the olive oil, new wine, and grain. 13All the first crops of their land that the people present to the Lord belong to you. Any member of your family who is ceremonially clean may eat this food.
14“Everything in Israel that is specially set apart for the Lord#18:14 The Hebrew term used here refers to the complete consecration of things or people to the Lord, either by destroying them or by giving them as an offering. also belongs to you.
15“The firstborn of every mother, whether human or animal, that is offered to the Lord will be yours. But you must always redeem your firstborn sons and the firstborn of ceremonially unclean animals. 16Redeem them when they are one month old. The redemption price is five pieces of silver#18:16 Hebrew 5 shekels [2 ounces or 57 grams] of silver. (as measured by the weight of the sanctuary shekel, which equals twenty gerahs).
17“However, you may not redeem the firstborn of cattle, sheep, or goats. They are holy and have been set apart for the Lord. Sprinkle their blood on the altar, and burn their fat as a special gift, a pleasing aroma to the Lord. 18The meat of these animals will be yours, just like the breast and right thigh that are presented by lifting them up as a special offering before the altar. 19Yes, I am giving you all these holy offerings that the people of Israel bring to the Lord. They are for you and your sons and daughters, to be eaten as your permanent share. This is an eternal and unbreakable covenant#18:19 Hebrew a covenant of salt. between the Lord and you, and it also applies to your descendants.”
20And the Lord said to Aaron, “You priests will receive no allotment of land or share of property among the people of Israel. I am your share and your allotment. 21As for the tribe of Levi, your relatives, I will compensate them for their service in the Tabernacle. Instead of an allotment of land, I will give them the tithes from the entire land of Israel.
22“From now on, no Israelites except priests or Levites may approach the Tabernacle. If they come too near, they will be judged guilty and will die. 23Only the Levites may serve at the Tabernacle, and they will be held responsible for any offenses against it. This is a permanent law for you, to be observed from generation to generation. The Levites will receive no allotment of land among the Israelites, 24because I have given them the Israelites’ tithes, which have been presented as sacred offerings to the Lord. This will be the Levites’ share. That is why I said they would receive no allotment of land among the Israelites.”
25The Lord also told Moses, 26“Give these instructions to the Levites: When you receive from the people of Israel the tithes I have assigned as your allotment, give a tenth of the tithes you receive—a tithe of the tithe—to the Lord as a sacred offering. 27The Lord will consider this offering to be your harvest offering, as though it were the first grain from your own threshing floor or wine from your own winepress. 28You must present one-tenth of the tithe received from the Israelites as a sacred offering to the Lord. This is the Lord’s sacred portion, and you must present it to Aaron the priest. 29Be sure to give to the Lord the best portions of the gifts given to you.
30“Also, give these instructions to the Levites: When you present the best part as your offering, it will be considered as though it came from your own threshing floor or winepress. 31You Levites and your families may eat this food anywhere you wish, for it is your compensation for serving in the Tabernacle. 32You will not be considered guilty for accepting the Lord’s tithes if you give the best portion to the priests. But be careful not to treat the holy gifts of the people of Israel as though they were common. If you do, you will die.”
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