| English Standard Version | New Living Translation |
| 1These are the generations of Aaron and Moses at the time when the LORD spoke with Moses on Mount Sinai. | 1This is the family line of Aaron and Moses as it was recorded when the LORD spoke to Moses on Mount Sinai: |
| 2These are the names of the sons of Aaron: Nadab the firstborn, and Abihu, Eleazar, and Ithamar. | 2The names of Aaron’s sons were Nadab (the oldest), Abihu, Eleazar, and Ithamar. |
| 3These are the names of the sons of Aaron, the anointed priests, whom he ordained to serve as priests. | 3These sons of Aaron were anointed and ordained to minister as priests. |
| 4But 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. | 4But Nadab and Abihu died in the LORD’s presence in the wilderness of Sinai when they burned before the LORD the wrong kind of fire, different than he had commanded. Since they had no sons, this left only Eleazar and Ithamar to serve as priests with their father, Aaron. |
| 5And the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, | 5Then the LORD said to Moses, |
| 6“Bring the tribe of Levi near, and set them before Aaron the priest, that they may minister to him. | 6“Call forward the tribe of Levi, and present them to Aaron the priest to serve as his assistants. |
| 7They shall keep guard over him and over the whole congregation before the tent of meeting, as they minister at the tabernacle. | 7They will serve Aaron and the whole community, performing their sacred duties in and around the Tabernacle. |
| 8They shall guard all the furnishings of the tent of meeting, and keep guard over the people of Israel as they minister at the tabernacle. | 8They will also maintain all the furnishings of the sacred tent, serving in the Tabernacle on behalf of all the Israelites. |
| 9And you shall give the Levites to Aaron and his sons; they are wholly given to him from among the people of Israel. | 9Assign the Levites to Aaron and his sons. They have been given from among all the people of Israel to serve as their assistants. |
| 10And you shall appoint Aaron and his sons, and they shall guard their priesthood. But if any outsider comes near, he shall be put to death.” | 10Appoint Aaron and his sons to carry out the duties of the priesthood. But any unauthorized person who goes too near the sanctuary must be put to death.” |
| 11And the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, | 11And the LORD said to Moses, |
| 12“Behold, 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, | 12“Look, I have chosen the Levites from among the Israelites to serve as substitutes for all the firstborn sons of the people of Israel. The Levites belong to me, |
| 13for all the firstborn are mine. 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.” | 13for all the firstborn males are mine. On the day I struck down all the firstborn sons of the Egyptians, I set apart for myself all the firstborn in Israel, both of people and of animals. They are mine; I am the LORD.” Registration of the Levites |
| 14And the LORD spoke to Moses in the wilderness of Sinai, saying, | 14The LORD spoke again to Moses in the wilderness of Sinai. He said, |
| 15“List the sons of Levi, by fathers’ houses and by clans; every male from a month old and upward you shall list.” | 15“Record the names of the members of the tribe of Levi by their families and clans. List every male who is one month old or older.” |
| 16So Moses listed them according to the word of the LORD, as he was commanded. | 16So Moses listed them, just as the LORD had commanded. |
| 17And these were the sons of Levi by their names: Gershon and Kohath and Merari. | 17Levi had three sons, whose names were Gershon, Kohath, and Merari. |
| 18And these are the names of the sons of Gershon by their clans: Libni and Shimei. | 18The clans descended from Gershon were named after two of his descendants, Libni and Shimei. |
| 19And the sons of Kohath by their clans: Amram, Izhar, Hebron, and Uzziel. | 19The clans descended from Kohath were named after four of his descendants, Amram, Izhar, Hebron, and Uzziel. |
| 20And the sons of Merari by their clans: Mahli and Mushi. These are the clans of the Levites, by their fathers’ houses. | 20The clans descended from Merari were named after two of his descendants, Mahli and Mushi. These were the Levite clans, listed according to their family groups. |
| 21To Gershon belonged the clan of the Libnites and the clan of the Shimeites; these were the clans of the Gershonites. | 21The descendants of Gershon were composed of the clans descended from Libni and Shimei. |
| 22Their listing according to the number of all the males from a month old and upward was7,500.00 | 22There were 7,500 males one month old or older among these Gershonite clans. |
| 23The clans of the Gershonites were to camp behind the tabernacle on the west, | 23They were assigned the area to the west of the Tabernacle for their camp. |
| 24with Eliasaph, the son of Lael as chief of the fathers’ house of the Gershonites. | 24The leader of the Gershonite clans was Eliasaph son of Lael. |
| 25And the guard duty of the sons of Gershon in the tent of meeting involved the tabernacle, the tent with its covering, the screen for the entrance of the tent of meeting, | 25These two clans were responsible to care for the Tabernacle, including the sacred tent with its layers of coverings, the curtain at its entrance, |
| 26the hangings of the court, the screen for the door of the court that is around the tabernacle and the altar, and its cords—all the service connected with these. | 26the curtains of the courtyard that surrounded the Tabernacle and altar, the curtain at the courtyard entrance, the ropes, and all the equipment related to their use. |
| 27To Kohath belonged the clan of the 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. | 27The descendants of Kohath were composed of the clans descended from Amram, Izhar, Hebron, and Uzziel. |
| 28According to the number of all the males, from a month old and upward, there were 8,600, keeping guard over the sanctuary. | 28There were 8,600 males one month old or older among these Kohathite clans. They were responsible for the care of the sanctuary, |
| 29The clans of the sons of Kohath were to camp on the south side of the tabernacle, | 29and they were assigned the area south of the Tabernacle for their camp. |
| 30with Elizaphan the son of Uzziel as chief of the fathers’ house of the clans of the Kohathites. | 30The leader of the Kohathite clans was Elizaphan son of Uzziel. |
| 31And their guard duty involved the ark, the table, the lampstand, the altars, the vessels of the sanctuary with which the priests minister, and the screen; all the service connected with these. | 31These four clans were responsible for the care of the Ark, the table, the lampstand, the altars, the various articles used in the sanctuary, the inner curtain, and all the equipment related to their use. |
| 32And 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. | 32Eleazar, son of Aaron the priest, was the chief administrator over all the Levites, with special responsibility for the oversight of the sanctuary. |
| 33To Merari belonged the clan of the Mahlites and the clan of the Mushites: these are the clans of Merari. | 33The descendants of Merari were composed of the clans descended from Mahli and Mushi. |
| 34Their listing according to the number of all the males from a month old and upward was 6,200. | 34There were 6,200 males one month old or older among these Merarite clans. |
| 35And 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. | 35They were assigned the area north of the Tabernacle for their camp. The leader of the Merarite clans was Zuriel son of Abihail. |
| 36And the appointed guard duty of the sons of Merari involved the frames of the tabernacle, the bars, the pillars, the bases, and all their accessories; all the service connected with these; | 36These two clans were responsible for the care of the frames supporting the Tabernacle, the crossbars, the pillars, the bases, and all the equipment related to their use. |
| 37also the pillars around the court, with their bases and pegs and cords. | 37They were also responsible for the posts of the courtyard and all their bases, pegs, and ropes. |
| 38Those 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, guarding the sanctuary itself, to protect the people of Israel. And any outsider who came near was to be put to death. | 38The area in front of the Tabernacle, in the east toward the sunrise, was reserved for the tents of Moses and of Aaron and his sons, who had the final responsibility for the sanctuary on behalf of the people of Israel. Anyone other than a priest or Levite who went too near the sanctuary was to be put to death. |
| 39All 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 22,000. | 39When Moses and Aaron counted the Levite clans at the LORD’s command, the total number was 22,000 males one month old or older. Redeeming the Firstborn Sons |
| 40And 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. | 40Then the LORD said to Moses, “Now count all the firstborn sons in Israel who are one month old or older, and make a list of their names. |
| 41And 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.” | 41The Levites must be reserved for me as substitutes for the firstborn sons of Israel; I am the LORD. And the Levites’ livestock must be reserved for me as substitutes for the firstborn livestock of the whole nation of Israel.” |
| 42So Moses listed all the firstborn among the people of Israel, as the LORD commanded him. | 42So Moses counted the firstborn sons of the people of Israel, just as the LORD had commanded. |
| 43And all the firstborn males, according to the number of names, from a month old and upward as listed were 22,273. | 43The number of firstborn sons who were one month old or older was 22,273. |
| 44And the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, | 44Then the LORD said to Moses, |
| 45“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. | 45“Take the Levites as substitutes for the firstborn sons of the people of Israel. And take the livestock of the Levites as substitutes for the firstborn livestock of the people of Israel. The Levites belong to me; I am the LORD. |
| 46And as the redemption price for the 273 of the firstborn of the people of Israel, over and above the number of the male Levites, | 46There are 273 more firstborn sons of Israel than there are Levites. To redeem these extra firstborn sons, |
| 47you shall take five shekels per head; you shall take them according to the shekel of the sanctuary (the shekel of twenty gerahs), | 47collect five pieces of silver for each of them (each piece weighing the same as the sanctuary shekel, which equals twenty gerahs). |
| 48and give the money to Aaron and his sons as the redemption price for those who are over.” | 48Give the silver to Aaron and his sons as the redemption price for the extra firstborn sons.” |
| 49So Moses took the redemption money from those who were over and above those redeemed by the Levites. | 49So Moses collected the silver for redeeming the firstborn sons of Israel who exceeded the number of Levites. |
| 50From the firstborn of the people of Israel he took the money, 1,365 shekels, by the shekel of the sanctuary. | 50He collected 1,365 pieces of silver on behalf of these firstborn sons of Israel (each piece weighing the same as the sanctuary shekel). |
| 51And Moses gave the redemption money to Aaron and his sons, according to the word of the LORD, as the LORD commanded Moses. | 51And Moses gave the silver for the redemption to Aaron and his sons, just as the LORD had commanded. |
| ESV Text Edition: 2016. The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®) copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. The ESV® text has been reproduced in cooperation with and by permission of Good News Publishers. Unauthorized reproduction of this publication is prohibited. 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. |
|
