Old Testament · Law

Numbers chapter 18

Yahweh said to Aaron, “You, your sons, and the rest of your father’s tribe will connected to . And you and your sons with you will bear the consequences for any violations connected to your priesthood.”“Bring your relatives from the — your father’s tribe — along with you, so they can join you and serve alongside you while you and your sons minister before the .”“They will carry out duties for you and for the whole tent. But they must not come near or the altar, or both they and you will die.”“They will join with you and take care of the — handling all the work connected to the tent. No may come near you.”“You will take charge of and of the altar, so that against the Israelites again.”“Look, I myself have your fellow Levites from among the Israelites , , to do the work of the Tent of Meeting.”“But you and your sons — only you — will handle the priestly duties at the altar and . I am giving you the . Any unauthorized person who comes near will be put to death.”Then Yahweh said to Aaron, “Look, I am putting you in charge of my . Everything the Israelites bring , I am giving to you and your sons as your .”“This is what will be yours from the offerings that , the part kept back from the fire: every offering they bring, whether grain offerings, , or , all of it belongs to God alone, and it belongs to you and your sons.”“You must eat it as something that . may eat it. Treat it as belonging to God.”“This also belongs to you: the contribution portions from all the Israelites’ . I am giving them to you, your sons, and your daughters as a permanent provision. Everyone in your household who is may eat them.”“All olive oil, the best new wine, and the best grain — the they give to Yahweh — I am giving them to you.”“The of everything in their land that they bring to Yahweh will be yours. Everyone in your household who is ritually clean may eat it.”“Everything in Israel that has been belongs to you.”“Every of any creature — human or animal — that is presented to Yahweh will be yours. But you must always every firstborn human, and you must buy back every firstborn of an unclean animal.”“The buy-back price for a month-old child is , measured by , which is twenty gerahs per piece.”“But you must not buy back a firstborn cow, sheep, or goat. . You will and burn their fat as a fire offering, a to Yahweh.”“But the meat belongs to you, just like the and the right thigh — those are yours too.”“Every contribution the Israelites lift up to Yahweh , I am giving to you, your sons, and your daughters as a permanent provision. This is a before Yahweh for you and your descendants.”Yahweh said to Aaron, “You will not receive any land inheritance among the Israelites, and you won’t own any portion of land. among the Israelites.”“As for the Levites — I am giving them in Israel as their inheritance, in return for the work they do serving at the Tent of Meeting.”“From now on, the other Israelites must not come near the Tent of Meeting, or they will .”“The Levites themselves will do the work of the Tent of Meeting and bear responsibility for any violations connected to it. This is a : the Levites will receive no land inheritance among the Israelites.”“Because I am giving the Levites the tenth portion that the Israelites to Yahweh, that is their inheritance. That’s why I told them they would not receive a land inheritance among the Israelites.”Yahweh said to Moses,“Tell the Levites: ‘When you receive the tenth portion from the Israelites that I am giving you as your inheritance, you must lift out as a contribution to Yahweh.’”“Your contribution will be as if it were grain from the or juice from the winepress.”“In this same way, you too must to Yahweh from every tenth portion you receive from the Israelites. You will give Yahweh’s contribution from it to Aaron the priest.”“From everything given to you, you must lift out the full contribution due to Yahweh, taking it from , .”“Tell them: ‘Once you have , the remainder will be credited to the Levites as produce from the threshing floor and the winepress.’”“You and your households may eat the rest of it anywhere — it is in return for your service at the Tent of Meeting.”“And once you have lifted out the best portion, . But do not what the Israelites have given God , or you will die.”