Numbers 18

¹And the Lord said to Aaron: “You, and your sons, and the house of your father with you, shall carry the iniquity of the Sanctuary. And you and your sons together shall bear the sins of your priesthood.

²But take to yourselves also your brothers from the tribe of Levi, and the scepter of your father, and may they be prepared, and may they minister to you. Then you and your sons shall minister in the tabernacle of the testimony.

³And the Levites shall stand watch by your precepts, and for all the works of the tabernacle; yet in such a manner that they shall not approach the vessels of the Sanctuary and of the altar, lest both they die, and you perish, at the same time.

⁴But they may be with you, and they may watch over the care of the tabernacle and all its ceremonies. A foreigner shall not be mixed with you.

⁵Watch over the care of the Sanctuary, and over the ministry of the altar, lest an indignation may rise over the sons of Israel.

⁶I have given your brothers, the Levites, to you from the midst of the sons of Israel, and I have delivered them as a gift to the Lord, in order to serve in the ministries of his tabernacle.

⁷But as for you and your sons: guard the priesthood. For all that pertains to the service of the altar and of what is beyond the veil shall be exercised by the priests. If any outsider will approach, he shall be killed.”

⁸And the Lord said to Aaron: “Behold, I have given you custody of my first-fruits. Everything that is sanctified by the sons of Israel I have delivered to you and your sons, for the office of the priesthood, by everlasting ordinances.

⁹Therefore, you shall receive these, from the things that are sanctified and offered to the Lord. Every offering, and sacrifice, and whatever is repaid to me, on behalf of sin and also for offenses, and which becomes the Holy of holies, shall be for you and for your sons.

¹⁰You shall eat it in the Sanctuary. Only the males shall eat from it, because it has been consecrated for you.

¹¹But the first-fruits, which the sons of Israel shall vow and offer, I have given to you, and to your sons, as well as to your daughters, by a perpetual right. Whoever is clean in your house shall eat them.

¹²All the innermost of the oil, and of the wine, and of the grain, whatever first-fruits they offer to the Lord, I have given to you.

¹³All the first of the crops, which the soil produces and which are carried to the Lord, shall fall to your use. Whoever is clean in your house shall eat them.

¹⁴All that the sons of Israel shall repay by vow shall be yours.

¹⁵Whatever goes out first from the womb, of all flesh, which they offer to the Lord, whether from men or from cattle, shall be your right; yet only in so far as, for the firstborn of man, you shall accept a price. And every animal that is unclean you shall cause to be redeemed.

¹⁶And its redemption shall be, after one month, five shekels of silver, by the weight of the Sanctuary. A shekel has twenty obols.

¹⁷But the firstborn of a cow, or of a sheep, or of a goat, you shall not cause to be redeemed, because they have been sanctified to the Lord. Thus, their blood you shall pour out upon the altar, and their fat you shall burn as a most sweet odor to the Lord.

¹⁸Yet truly, the flesh shall fall to your use, just as the consecrated breast and the right shoulder shall be yours.

¹⁹All the first-fruits of the Sanctuary, which the sons of Israel offer to the Lord, I have given to you and to your sons as well as to your daughters, as a perpetual right. It is an everlasting covenant of salt before the Lord, for you and for your sons.”

²⁰And the Lord said to Aaron: “In their land, you shall possess nothing; neither shall you have a portion among them. I am your portion and your inheritance in the midst of the sons of Israel.

²¹But I have given, to the sons of Levi, all the tithes of Israel as a possession, for the ministry by which they serve me in the tabernacle of the covenant,

²²so that the sons of Israel may no longer approach to the tabernacle, nor commit deadly sin.

²³Only the sons of Levi may serve me in the tabernacle and may carry the sins of the people. It shall be an everlasting ordinance in your generations. They shall possess nothing else;

²⁴being content with the oblation of tithes, which I have separated for their uses and necessities.”

²⁵And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:

²⁶“Instruct the Levites, and also declare to them: When you will receive, from the sons of Israel, the tithes, which I have given to you, offer their first-fruits to the Lord, that is, the tenth part of a tenth,

²⁷so that it may be accounted to you as an oblation of the first-fruits, as much from the threshing floors as from the oil and wine presses.

²⁸And offer the first-fruits of everything, from which you receive tithes, to the Lord, and give them to Aaron the priest.

²⁹Everything which you shall offer from the tithes, and which you shall separate as gifts to the Lord, shall be the finest and most select.

³⁰And you shall say to them: ‘If you offer the noble and the better of the tithes, it shall be accounted to you as if you had given from the first-fruits of the threshing floor and of the oil and wine presses.’

³¹And you shall eat these in all your places, both you and your families, because it is your price for the ministry, by which you serve in the tabernacle of the testimony.

³²And you shall not sin in this way: by reserving the excellent and fat things for yourselves, lest you pollute the oblations of the sons of Israel, and lest you die.”

Numbers 18

¹And the Lord said to Aaron: Thou, and thy sons, and thy father's house with thee shall bear the iniquity of the sanctuary: and thou and thy sons with thee shall bear the sins of your priesthood.

²And take with thee thy brethren also of the tribe of Levi, and the sceptre of thy father, and let them be ready in hand, and minister to thee: but thou and thy sons shall minister in the tabernacle of the testimony.

³And the Levites shall watch to do thy commands, and about all the works of the tabernacle: only they shall not come nigh the vessels of the sanctuary nor the altar, lest both they die, and you also perish with them.

⁴But let them be with thee, and watch in the charge of the tabernacle, and in all the ceremonies thereof. A stranger shall not join himself with you.

⁵Watch ye in the charge of the sanctuary, and in the ministry of the altar: lest indignation rise upon the children of Israel.

⁶I have given you your brethren the Levites from among the children of Israel, and have delivered them for a gift to the Lord, to serve in the ministries of the tabernacle.

⁷But thou and thy sons look ye to the priesthood: and all things that pertain to the service of the altar, and that are within the veil, shall be executed by the priests. If any stranger shall approach, he shall be slain.

⁸And the Lord said to Aaron: Behold I have given thee the charge of my firstfruits. All things that are sanctified by the children of Israel, I have delivered to thee and to thy sons for the priestly office, by everlasting ordinances.

⁹These therefore shalt thou take of the things that are sanctified, and are offered to the Lord. Every offering, and sacrifice, and whatsoever is rendered to me for sin and for trespass, and becometh holy of holies, shall be for thee and thy sons.

¹⁰Thou shalt eat it in the sanctuary: the males only shall eat thereof, because it is a consecrated thing to thee.

¹¹But the firstfruits, which the children of Israel shall vow and offer, I have given to thee, and to thy sons, and to thy daughters, by a perpetual law. He that is clean in thy house, shall eat them.

¹²All the best of the oil, and of the wine, and of the corn, whatsoever firstfruits they offer to the Lord, I have given them to thee.

¹³All the firstripe of the fruits, that the ground bringeth forth, and which are brought to the Lord, shall be for thy use: he that is clean in thy house, shall eat them.

¹⁴Every thing that the children of Israel shall give by vow, shall be thine.

¹⁵Whatsoever is firstborn of all flesh, which they offer to the Lord, whether it be of men, or of beasts, shall belong to thee: only for the firstborn of man thou shalt take a price, and every beast that is unclean thou shalt cause to be redeemed,

¹⁶And the redemption of it shall be after one month, for five sicles of silver, by the weight of the sanctuary. A sicle hath twenty obols.

¹⁷But the firstling of a cow, and of a sheep and of a goat thou shalt not cause to be redeemed, because they are sanctified to the Lord. Their blood only thou shalt pour upon the altar, and their fat thou shalt burn for a most sweet odour to the Lord.

¹⁸But the flesh shall fall to thy use, as the consecrated breast, and the right shoulder shall be thine.

¹⁹All the firstfruits of the sanctuary which the children of Israel offer to the Lord, I have given to thee and to thy sons and daughters, by a perpetual ordinance. It is a covenant of salt for ever before the Lord, to thee and to thy sons.

²⁰And the Lord said to Aaron: You shall possess nothing in their land, neither shall you have a portion among them: I am thy portion and inheritance in the midst of the children of Israel.

²¹And I have given to the sons of Levi all the tithes of Israel for a possession, for the ministry wherewith they serve me in the tabernacle of the covenant:

²²That the children of Israel may not approach any more to the tabernacle, nor commit deadly sin,

²³But only the sons of Levi may serve me in the tabernacle, and bear the sins of the people. It shall be an everlasting ordinance in your generations. They shall not possess any other thing,

²⁴But be content with the oblation or tithes, which I have separated for their uses and necessities.

²⁵And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:

²⁶Command the Levites, and declare unto them: When you shall receive of the children of Israel the tithes, which I have given you, offer the firstfruits of them to the Lord, that is to say, the tenth part of the tenth:

²⁷That it may be reckoned to you as an oblation of firstfruits, as well of the barnfloors as of the winepresses:

²⁸And of all the things of which you receive tithes, offer the firstfruits to the Lord, and give them to Aaron the priest.

²⁹All the things that you shall offer of the tithes, and shall separate for the gifts of the Lord, shall be the best and choicest things.

³⁰And thou shalt say to them: If you offer all the goodly and the better things of the tithes, it shall be reckoned to you as if you had given the firstfruits of the barnfloor and the winepress:

³¹And you shall eat them in all your places, both you and your families: because it is your reward for the ministry, wherewith you serve in the tabernacle of the testimony.

³²And you shall not sin in this point, by reserving the choicest and fat things to yourselves, lest you profane the oblations of the children of Israel, and die.