Bible in 90 Days

¹⁵ “So make the Levites pure. And present them as an offering. Then they may come to work at the Meeting Tent. ¹⁶ They will be given to me from the Israelites. I have taken them for myself. They are mine instead of the firstborn son of every Israelite woman. ¹⁷ Every firstborn male in Israel—man or animal—is mine. I killed all the firstborn in Egypt. So now I set them aside for myself. ¹⁸ I have taken the Levites instead of all the firstborn sons in Israel. ¹⁹ I have chosen the Levites from all the Israelites. And I have given them to Aaron and his sons. They will serve all the Israelites at the Meeting Tent. They will help remove the Israelites’ sins so they will belong to God. Then no disaster will strike the Israelites when they approach the Holy Place.”

²⁰ So Moses, Aaron and all the Israelites obeyed the Lord. They did with the Levites what the Lord commanded Moses. ²¹ The Levites made themselves clean and washed their clothes. Then Aaron presented them as an offering to the Lord. Aaron also removed their sins so they would be pure for the Lord. ²² After that, the Levites came to the Meeting Tent to work. Aaron and his sons told them what to do. They did with the Levites what the Lord commanded Moses.

²³ The Lord said to Moses, ²⁴ “This command is for the Levites. Every man 25 years old or older must come to the Meeting Tent. They all have a job to do in the work there. ²⁵ At the age of 50, he must retire from his job. He doesn’t have to work again. ²⁶ He may help his fellow Levites with their work at the Meeting Tent. But he must not do the work himself. This is the way you are to give the Levites their jobs.”

The Passover

9 The Lord spoke to Moses in the Desert of Sinai. This was in the first month of the second year after the Israelites left Egypt. He said, ² “Tell the Israelites to celebrate the Passover at the appointed time. ³ That appointed time is the fourteenth day of this month. They should celebrate it at twilight. They must obey all the rules about it.”

⁴ So Moses told the Israelites to celebrate the Passover. ⁵ And so they did. It was in the Desert of Sinai at twilight. This was on the fourteenth day of the first month. The Israelites did everything just as the Lord commanded Moses.

⁶ But some of the people could not celebrate the Passover on that day. They were unclean because of a dead body. So they went to Moses and Aaron that day. ⁷ They said to Moses, “We are unclean because of a dead body. But why should we be kept from offering gifts to the Lord at this appointed time? Why can’t we join the other Israelites?”

⁸ Moses said to them, “Wait. I will find out what the Lord says about you.”

⁹ Then the Lord said to Moses, ¹⁰ “Tell the Israelites this: ‘You or your descendants might become unclean because of a dead body. Or, you might be away on a trip during the Passover. Still celebrate the Lord’s Passover. ¹¹ But celebrate it at twilight on the fourteenth day of the second month. Eat the lamb with bitter herbs and bread made without yeast. ¹² Don’t leave any of it until the next morning. Don’t break any of its bones. When you celebrate the Passover, follow all the rules. ¹³ Anyone who is clean and is not away on a trip must eat the Passover. If he doesn’t, he must be separated from his people. He did not give an offering to the Lord at the appointed time. He must be punished for his sin.

¹⁴ “‘A foreigner among you may celebrate the Lord’s Passover. But he must follow all the rules. You must have the same rules for foreigners as you have for yourselves.’”

The Cloud Above the Tent

¹⁵ On the day the Holy Tent was set up, a cloud covered it. (The Holy Tent was also called the Tent of the Agreement.) From dusk until dawn the cloud above the Tent looked like fire. ¹⁶ The cloud stayed above the Tent. At night it looked like fire. ¹⁷ When the cloud moved from its place over the Tent, the Israelites moved. Wherever the cloud stopped, the Israelites camped. ¹⁸ So the Israelites moved at the Lord’s command. And they camped at his command. While the cloud stayed over the Tent, they stayed in place. ¹⁹ Sometimes the cloud stayed over the Tent for a long time. The Israelites obeyed the Lord and did not move. ²⁰ Sometimes the cloud was over it only a few days. At the Lord’s command the people camped. And at his command they moved. ²¹ Sometimes the cloud stayed only from dusk until dawn. When the cloud lifted the next morning, the people moved. When the cloud lifted, day or night, the people moved. ²² The cloud might stay over the Tent for two days, a month or a year. As long as it stayed, the people would camp. But when the cloud lifted, they moved. ²³ At the Lord’s command the people camped. And at his command they moved. They obeyed the Lord’s order that he commanded through Moses.

The Silver Trumpets

10 The Lord said to Moses, ² “Make two trumpets of hammered silver. Use them to call the people together and to march out of camp. ³ When both trumpets are blown, the people should gather. They should gather before you at the entrance to the Meeting Tent. ⁴ If you blow only one trumpet, the leaders should meet before you. ⁵ When you blow the trumpets once, the tribes camping on the east should move. ⁶ When you blow them again, the tribes camping on the south should move. The sound will tell them to move. ⁷ When you want to gather the people, blow the trumpets. But don’t blow them the same way.

⁸ “Aaron’s sons, the priests, should blow the trumpets. This is a law for you and your descendants from now on. ⁹ You might be fighting an enemy who attacks you in your own land. Blow the trumpets. The Lord your God will remember you. He will save you from your enemies. ¹⁰ Also blow your trumpets at happy times. Blow them during your feasts and at New Moon festivals. Blow them over your burnt offerings and fellowship offerings. They will help you remember your God. I am the Lord your God.”

The Israelites Move Camp

¹¹ The cloud lifted from the Tent of the Agreement. This was on the twentieth day of the second month of the second year. ¹² So the Israelites moved from the Desert of Sinai. They moved until the cloud stopped in the Desert of Paran. ¹³ This was their first time to move. They did it as the Lord had commanded Moses.

¹⁴ The divisions from the camp of Judah moved first under their flag. Nahshon son of Amminadab was the commander. ¹⁵ Nethanel son of Zuar was over the division of the tribe of Issachar. ¹⁶ Eliab son of Helon was over the division of the tribe of Zebulun. ¹⁷ Then the Meeting Tent was taken down. The Gershonites and Merarites, who carried it, moved next.

¹⁸ Then came the divisions from the camp of Reuben under their flag. Elizur son of Shedeur was the commander. ¹⁹ Shelumiel son of Zurishaddai was over the division of the tribe of Simeon. ²⁰ Eliasaph son of Deuel was over the division of the tribe of Gad. ²¹ Then came the Kohathites. They carried the holy things. The Holy Tent was to be set up before they arrived.

²² Next came the divisions from the camp of Ephraim under their flag. Elishama son of Ammihud was the commander. ²³ Gamaliel son of Pedahzur was over the division of the tribe of Manasseh. ²⁴ Abidan son of Gideoni was over the division of the tribe of Benjamin.

²⁵ The last ones were the rear guard for all the tribes. These were the divisions from the camp of Dan under their flag. Ahiezer son of Ammishaddai was the commander. ²⁶ Pagiel son of Ocran was over the division of the tribe of Asher. ²⁷ Ahira son of Enan was over the division of the tribe of Naphtali. ²⁸ This was the order the Israelite divisions marched in when they moved.

²⁹ Hobab was the son of Reuel the Midianite. Reuel, who is also called Jethro, was Moses’ father-in-law. Moses said to Hobab, “We are moving to the land God promised to give us. Come with us. We will be good to you. The Lord has promised good things to Israel.”

³⁰ But Hobab answered, “No, I will not go. I will go back to my own land where I was born.”

³¹ But Moses said, “Please don’t leave us. You know where we can camp in the desert. You can be our guide. ³² Come with us. We will share with you all the good things the Lord gives us.” ³³ So they left the mountain of the Lord. The Ark of the Lord’s Covenant went in front of the people. For three days they looked for a place to camp. ³⁴ The Lord’s cloud was over them during the day when they left their camp.

³⁵ When the Ark of the Covenant left the camp, Moses always said,

³⁶ And when the Ark of the Covenant was set down, Moses always said,

Fire from the Lord

11 The people complained to the Lord about their troubles. When he heard them, he became angry. Fire from the Lord burned among the people. It burned the edge of the camp. ² So the people cried out to Moses. He prayed to the Lord, and the fire stopped burning. ³ So that place was called Taberah.^[a] The people named it that because the Lord’s fire had burned among them.

The 70 Older Leaders

⁴ Some troublemakers among them wanted better food. Soon all the Israelites began complaining. They said, “We want meat! ⁵ We remember the fish we ate for free in Egypt. We also had cucumbers, melons, leeks, onions and garlic. ⁶ But now we have lost our appetite. We never see anything but this manna!”

⁷ The manna was like small white seeds. ⁸ The people would go to gather it. Then they ground it in handmills. Or they crushed it between stones. They cooked it in a pot or made cakes with it. It tasted like bread baked with olive oil. ⁹ When the dew fell on the camp each night, so did the manna.

¹⁰ Moses heard every family crying. They stood in the entrances of their tents. The Lord became very angry. And Moses got upset. ¹¹ He asked the Lord, “Why have you brought me this trouble? I’m your servant. What have I done wrong? Why did you make me responsible for all these people? ¹² I am not the father of all these people. I didn’t give birth to them. Why do you make me carry them to the land you promised to our ancestors? Must I carry them in my arms as a nurse carries a baby? ¹³ Where can I get meat for all these people? They keep crying to me, ‘We want meat!’ ¹⁴ I can’t take care of all these people alone. It is too much for me. ¹⁵ If you are going to continue doing this to me, then kill me now. If you like me, put me to death. Then I won’t have any more troubles.”

¹⁶ The Lord said to Moses, “Bring me 70 of Israel’s elders. Pick men you know are leaders among the people. Bring them to the Meeting Tent. Have them stand there with you. ¹⁷ I will come down and speak with you there. I will take some of the Spirit that is in you. And I will give it to them. They will help you care for the people. Then you will not have to care for them alone.

¹⁸ “Tell the people this: ‘Make yourselves holy. Tomorrow you will eat meat. The Lord heard you cry, “We want meat! We were better off in Egypt!” So now the Lord will give you meat to eat. ¹⁹ You will not eat it for just 1, 2, 5, 10 or even 20 days. ²⁰ You will eat that meat for a whole month. You will eat it until it comes out your nose. You will hate it. This is because you have rejected the Lord. He is here with you. But you have cried to him. You said, “Why did we ever leave Egypt?”’”

²¹ Moses said, “Lord, here are 600,000 men standing around me. And you say, ‘I will give them enough meat to eat for a month!’ ²² If we killed all the sheep and cattle, that would not be enough. If we caught all the fish in the sea, that would not be enough.”

²³ But the Lord said to Moses, “Do you think I’m weak? You will see if I can do what I say.”

²⁴ So Moses went out to the people. He told them what the Lord had said. Moses gathered 70 of the elders together. He had them stand around the Tent. ²⁵ Then the Lord came down in the cloud and spoke to Moses. The Lord took some of the Spirit Moses had. And he gave it to the 70 leaders. With the Spirit in them, they prophesied, but just that one time.

²⁶ Two men named Eldad and Medad were also listed as leaders. But they did not go to the Tent. They stayed in the camp. The Spirit was given to them. So they prophesied in the camp. ²⁷ A young man ran to Moses. He said, “Eldad and Medad are prophesying in the camp.”

²⁸ Joshua son of Nun said, “Moses, my master, stop them!” (Since he was a young boy, Joshua had been Moses’ assistant.)

²⁹ But Moses answered, “Are you afraid for me? I wish all the Lord’s people could prophesy. I wish the Lord would give his Spirit to all of them!” ³⁰ Then Moses and the leaders of Israel went back to the camp.

The Quail Come

³¹ The Lord sent a strong wind from the sea. It blew quail into the area all around the camp. The quail were about three feet above the ground. There were quail a day’s walk in any direction. ³² The people went out and gathered quail. They gathered all that day, that night and the next day. Everyone gathered at least 60 bushels. Then they spread them around the camp. ³³ But the Lord became very angry. He gave the people a terrible sickness. This came while the meat was still in their mouths. ³⁴ So the people named that place Kibroth Hattaavah.^[b] They named it that because there they buried those who wanted other food.

³⁵ From Kibroth Hattaavah the people went to stay at Hazeroth.

Miriam and Aaron Speak Against Moses’ Wife

12 Miriam and Aaron began to talk against Moses, who had married a Cushite. ² They said to themselves, “Is Moses the only one the Lord speaks through? Doesn’t he speak through us?” And the Lord heard this.

³ (Now Moses was very humble. He was the least proud person on earth.)

⁴ So the Lord suddenly spoke to Moses, Aaron and Miriam. He said, “All three of you come to the Meeting Tent now.” So they went. ⁵ The Lord came down in a pillar of cloud. He stood at the entrance to the Tent. He called to Aaron and Miriam, and they both came near. ⁶ He said, “Listen to my words:

⁹ The Lord was very angry with them, but he left.

¹⁰ The cloud lifted from the Tent. Then Aaron turned toward Miriam. She was as white as snow. She had a harmful skin disease. ¹¹ Aaron said to Moses, “Please, my master, forgive us for our foolish sin. ¹² Don’t let her be like a baby who is born dead. (Sometimes a baby is born with half of its flesh eaten away.)”

¹³ So Moses cried out to the Lord, “God, please heal her!”

¹⁴ The Lord answered Moses, “If her father had spit in her face, she would have been shamed for seven days. So put her outside the camp for seven days. After that, she may come back.” ¹⁵ So Miriam was shut outside of the camp for seven days. And the people did not move on until she came back.

¹⁶ After that, the people left Hazeroth. And they camped in the Desert of Paran.

The Spies Explore Canaan

13 The Lord said to Moses, ² “Send men to explore the land of Canaan. I will give that land to the Israelites. Send one leader from each tribe.”

³ So Moses obeyed the Lord’s command. He sent the Israelite leaders out from the Desert of Paran. ⁴ These are their names: from the tribe of Reuben, Shammua son of Zaccur; ⁵ from the tribe of Simeon, Shaphat son of Hori; ⁶ from the tribe of Judah, Caleb son of Jephunneh; ⁷ from the tribe of Issachar, Igal son of Joseph; ⁸ from the tribe of Ephraim, Hoshea son of Nun; ⁹ from the tribe of Benjamin, Palti son of Raphu; ¹⁰ from the tribe of Zebulun, Gaddiel son of Sodi; ¹¹ from the tribe of Manasseh (a tribe of Joseph), Gaddi son of Susi; ¹² from the tribe of Dan, Ammiel son of Gamalli; ¹³ from the tribe of Asher, Sethur son of Michael; ¹⁴ from the tribe of Naphtali, Nahbi son of Vophsi; ¹⁵ from the tribe of Gad, Geuel son of Maki.

¹⁶ These are the names of the men Moses sent to explore the land. (Moses gave Hoshea son of Nun the new name Joshua.)

¹⁷ Moses sent them to explore Canaan. He said, “Go through southern Canaan and then into the mountains. ¹⁸ See what the land looks like. Are the people who live there strong or weak? Are there a few or many? ¹⁹ What kind of land do they live in? Is it good or bad? What about the towns they live in—do they have walls, or are they open like camps? ²⁰ What about the soil? Is it fertile or poor? Are there trees there? Try to bring back some of the fruit from that land.” (It was the season for the first grapes.)

²¹ So they went up and explored the land. They went from the Desert of Zin all the way to Rehob by Lebo Hamath. ²² They went through the southern area to Hebron. That is where Ahiman, Sheshai and Talmai lived. They were the descendants of Anak. (The city of Hebron had been built seven years before Zoan in Egypt.) ²³ In the Valley of Eshcol, they cut off a branch of a grapevine. It had one bunch of grapes on it. They carried that branch on a pole between two of them. They also got some pomegranates and figs. ²⁴ They call that place the Valley of Eshcol.^[c] That is because the Israelites cut off the bunch of grapes there. ²⁵ After 40 days of exploring the land, the men returned to the camp.

²⁶ They came back to Moses and Aaron and all the Israelites at Kadesh. This was in the Desert of Paran. The men reported to them and showed everybody the fruit from the land. ²⁷ They told Moses, “We went to the land where you sent us. It is a land where much food grows! Here is some of its fruit. ²⁸ But the people who live there are strong. Their cities are walled and large. We even saw some Anakites there. ²⁹ The Amalekites live in the southern area. The Hittites, Jebusites and Amorites live in the mountains. The Canaanites live near the sea and along the Jordan River.”

³⁰ Then Caleb told the people near Moses to be quiet. Caleb said, “We should go up and take the land for ourselves. We can do it.”

³¹ But the men who had gone with him said, “We can’t attack those people. They are stronger than we are.” ³² And those men gave the Israelites a bad report about the land they explored. They said, “The land would eat us up. All the people we saw are very tall. ³³ We saw the Nephilim people there. (The Anakites come from the Nephilim people.) We felt like grasshoppers. And we looked like grasshoppers to them.”

The People Complain Again

14 That night all the people in the camp began crying loudly. ² All the Israelites complained against Moses and Aaron. All the people said to them, “We should have died in Egypt. Or we should have died in the desert. ³ Why is the Lord bringing us to this land? We will be killed with swords. Our wives and children will be taken away. We would be better off going back to Egypt.” ⁴ They said to each other, “Let’s get a leader and go back to Egypt.”

⁵ Then Moses and Aaron bowed facedown in front of all the Israelites gathered there. ⁶ Joshua son of Nun and Caleb son of Jephunneh were among those who had explored the land. They tore their clothes. ⁷ They said to all of the Israelites, “The land we went to explore is very good. ⁸ If the Lord is pleased with us, he will lead us into that land. He will give us that land where much food grows. ⁹ Don’t turn against the Lord! Don’t be afraid of the people in that land! We will chew them up. They have no protection, but we have the Lord. So don’t be afraid of them.”

¹⁰ Then all the people talked about killing them with stones. But the glory of the Lord appeared at the Meeting Tent to the Israelites. ¹¹ The Lord said to Moses, “How long will these people ignore me? How long will it be before they believe me? I have done miracles among them. ¹² I will give them a terrible sickness. I will destroy them. But I will make you into a great nation. It will be stronger than they are.”

¹³ Then Moses said to the Lord, “The Egyptians will hear about it! You brought these people from there by your great power. ¹⁴ And the Egyptians will tell this to those who live in this land. They have already heard about you, Lord. They know that you are with your people. And they know you were seen face to face. They know your cloud stays over your people. They know you lead your people with that cloud during the day and with fire at night. ¹⁵ The nations have heard about your power. If you put to death your people all at once, the nations will talk. They will say, ¹⁶ ‘The Lord was not able to bring them into the land he promised them. So he killed them in the desert.’

¹⁷ “So show your strength now, my Lord. Do what you said. You said: ¹⁸ ‘The Lord doesn’t become angry quickly. The Lord has great love. The Lord forgives sin and law breaking. He has great mercy. But the Lord does not forget to punish guilty people. When parents sin, he will also punish their children. He will punish their grandchildren, great-grandchildren and great-great-grandchildren.’ ¹⁹ Show your great love. Forgive these people’s sin. Forgive them as you have from the time they left Egypt until now.”

²⁰ The Lord answered, “I have forgiven them as you asked. ²¹ But, as surely as I live, I make this promise. As surely as my glory fills the whole earth, I make this promise. ²² All these men saw my glory. They saw the miracles I did in Egypt and in the desert. But they disobeyed me and tested me 10 times. ²³ So not one will see the land I promised to their ancestors. No one who angered me will see that land. ²⁴ But my servant Caleb has a different spirit. He follows me completely. So I will bring him into the land he has already seen. And his children will own that land. ²⁵ The Amalekites and the Canaanites are living in the valleys. So leave tomorrow and go back. Follow the desert road toward the Gulf of Aqaba.”

The Lord Punishes the People

²⁶ The Lord said to Moses and Aaron, ²⁷ “How long will these evil people complain about me? I have heard these Israelites’ grumbling and complaining. ²⁸ So tell them, ‘This is what the Lord says. I heard what you said. As surely as I live, I will do those things to you. ²⁹ You will die in this desert. Every one of you who is 20 years old or older and who was counted with the people will die. You complained against me, the Lord. ³⁰ Not one of you will enter and live in the land I promised to you. Only Caleb son of Jephunneh and Joshua son of Nun will go in. ³¹ You said that your children would be taken away. But I will bring them into the land. They will enjoy what you refused. ³² As for you, you will die in this desert. ³³ Your children will be shepherds here for 40 years. They will suffer because you were not loyal. They will suffer until you lie dead in the desert. ³⁴ For 40 years you will suffer for your sins. That is a year for each of the 40 days you explored the land. You will know me as your enemy.’ ³⁵ I, the Lord, have spoken. I will certainly do these things to all these evil people. They have come together against me. So they will all die here in this desert.”

³⁶ The men Moses had sent to explore the land had returned. They had spread complaints among all the Israelites. They had given a bad report about the land. ³⁷ They were responsible for the bad report. So the Lord killed them with a terrible sickness. ³⁸ Only two of the men did not die. They were Joshua son of Nun and Caleb son of Jephunneh.

³⁹ When Moses told these things to the Israelites, they were very sad. ⁴⁰ Early the next morning they started to go toward the beginning of the mountains. They said, “We have sinned. We will go where the Lord told us.”

⁴¹ But Moses said, “Why are you disobeying the Lord’s command? You will not win! ⁴² Don’t go. The Lord is not with you. You will be beaten by your enemies. ⁴³ You will run into the Amalekites and Canaanites. They will kill you with swords. You have turned away from the Lord. He will not be with you.”

⁴⁴ But they were proud. They went toward the beginning of the mountains. But Moses and the Ark of the Covenant with the Lord did not leave the camp. ⁴⁵ The Amalekites and the Canaanites who lived in those mountains came down. And they attacked the Israelites. They beat them back all the way to Hormah.

Rules About Sacrifices

15 The Lord said to Moses, ² “Speak to the people of Israel. Say to them, ‘You will enter a land that I am giving you as a home. ³ There give the Lord offerings made by fire. These may be from your herds or flocks. And the smell will be pleasing to the Lord. These offerings may be burnt offerings or sacrifices for special promises. They may be offerings which are gifts to the Lord. Or they may be festival offerings. ⁴ And the one who brings his offering shall also give the Lord a grain offering. It should be two quarts of fine flour mixed with one quart of olive oil. ⁵ Each time you offer a lamb as a burnt offering or sacrifice, also prepare a quart of wine. This is a drink offering.

⁶ “‘If you are giving a male sheep, also prepare a grain offering. It should be four quarts of fine flour mixed with one and one-fourth quarts of olive oil. ⁷ Also prepare one and one-fourth quarts of wine. This is a drink offering. Offer it to the Lord. Its smell is pleasing to him.

⁸ “‘You might prepare a young bull as a burnt offering or sacrifice. This might be for a fellowship offering or for a special promise to the Lord. ⁹ Bring a grain offering with the bull. It should be six quarts of fine flour mixed with two quarts of olive oil. ¹⁰ Also bring two quarts of wine as a drink offering. This offering is made by fire. And its smell will be pleasing to the Lord. ¹¹ Prepare each bull or male sheep, lamb or young goat this way. ¹² Do this for every one of the animals you bring.

¹³ “‘All citizens must do these things in this way. And the smell of their offerings by fire will be pleasing to the Lord. ¹⁴ From now on foreigners will live among you. They will make offerings by fire so the smell will be pleasing to the Lord. They must offer them the same way you do. ¹⁵ The law is the same for you and for foreigners. It will be a law from now on. You and the foreigners are alike before the Lord. ¹⁶ The teachings and rules are the same for you and for the foreigners among you.’”

¹⁷ The Lord said to Moses, ¹⁸ “Tell the Israelites: ‘You are going to another land. I am taking you there. ¹⁹ When you eat the food there, offer part of it to the Lord. ²⁰ Offer a loaf of bread from the first of your grain. That will be your offering from the threshing floor. ²¹ From now on offer to the Lord the first part of your grain.

²² “‘Now what if you forget to obey any of these commands the Lord gave Moses? ²³ These are the Lord’s commands given to you through Moses. They began the day the Lord gave them to you. And they will continue from now on. ²⁴ But you might forget to obey one of these commands. The people might not remember the command. Then all the people must offer a young bull as a burnt offering. Its smell is pleasing to the Lord. By law you must also give the grain offering and the drink offering with it. And you must bring a male goat as a sin offering.

²⁵ “‘The priest will remove that sin for all the Israelites so they will belong to God. They are forgiven. They didn’t know they were sinning. For the wrong they did they brought offerings to the Lord. They brought an offering by fire and a sin offering. ²⁶ All of the people of Israel and the foreigners living among them will be forgiven. No one meant to do wrong.

²⁷ “‘Just one person might sin without meaning to. He must bring a year-old female goat for a sin offering. ²⁸ The priest will remove the sin of the person who sinned without meaning to. That person will belong to the Lord again. He will be forgiven. ²⁹ The same teaching is for everyone who sins without meaning to. It is the same for those born Israelites and for foreigners living among you.

³⁰ “‘But anyone who sins on purpose is against the Lord. That person must be separated from his people. It is the same for someone born among you or a foreigner. ³¹ That person has turned against the Lord’s word. He has not obeyed the Lord’s commands. He must surely be separated from the others. He is guilty.’”

A Man Worked on the Sabbath

³² This happened when the Israelites were still in the desert. They found a man gathering wood on the Sabbath day. ³³ Those who found him gathering wood brought him to Moses and Aaron and all the people. ³⁴ They held the man under guard. They did not know what to do with him. ³⁵ Then the Lord said to Moses, “The man must die. All the people must kill him with stones outside the camp.” ³⁶ So the people took him outside the camp. They killed him with stones as the Lord commanded Moses.

The Tassels

³⁷ The Lord said to Moses, ³⁸ “Speak to the Israelites. Tell them this: ‘Tie several pieces of thread together. And tie them to the corners of your clothes. Put a blue thread in each one of these tassels. Wear them from now on. ³⁹ You will have these tassels to look at. They will remind you of the Lord’s commands. Then you will obey them. And you won’t follow what your bodies want and what your eyes wish for. ⁴⁰ Remember to obey all my commands. Then you will be God’s holy people. ⁴¹ I am the Lord your God. I brought you out of Egypt to be your God. I am the Lord your God.’”

Korah, Dathan, Abiram and On

16 Korah, Dathan, Abiram and On turned against Moses. (Korah was the son of Izhar. Izhar was the son of Kohath, and Kohath was the son of Levi. Dathan and Abiram were brothers, the sons of Eliab. And On was the son of Peleth.) Dathan, Abiram and On were from the tribe of Reuben. ² These 4 men gathered 250 other Israelite men and challenged Moses. They were well-known leaders chosen by the community. ³ They came as a group to speak to Moses and Aaron. The men said, “You have gone too far. All the people are holy. Every one of them is holy. And the Lord is with them. So why do you put yourselves above all the people?”

⁴ When Moses heard this, he bowed facedown. ⁵ Then he said to Korah and all his followers: “Tomorrow morning the Lord will show who belongs to him. The Lord will bring the one who is holy near to him. The Lord will bring to himself the person he chooses. ⁶ So Korah, you and all your followers do this: Get some pans for burning incense. ⁷ Tomorrow put fire and incense in them. Then take them before the Lord. He will choose the man who is holy. You Levites have gone too far.”

⁸ Moses also said to Korah, “Listen, you Levites. ⁹ The God of Israel has separated you from the rest of the Israelites. He brought you near to himself. You do the work in the Lord’s Holy Tent. You stand before all the Israelites and serve them. Isn’t that enough? ¹⁰ The Lord has brought you and all your fellow Levites near to himself. Now you want to be priests. ¹¹ You and your followers have joined together against the Lord. Your complaint is not against Aaron.”

¹² Then Moses called Dathan and Abiram, the sons of Eliab. But they said, “We will not come! ¹³ You have brought us out of a land where much food grows. You brought us to the desert to kill us. And now you want to order us around. ¹⁴ You haven’t brought us into a land where much food grows. You haven’t given us any land with fields and vineyards. Will you put out the eyes of these men? No! We will not come!”

¹⁵ Then Moses became very angry. He said to the Lord, “Don’t accept their gifts. I have not taken anything from them, not even a donkey. I have not done wrong to any of them.”

¹⁶ Then Moses said to Korah, “You and all your followers must stand before the Lord tomorrow. And Aaron will stand there with you and them. ¹⁷ Each of you must take your pan and put incense in it. Present these 250 pans before the Lord. You and Aaron must also present your pans.” ¹⁸ So each man got his pan and put burning incense in it. Then they stood with Moses and Aaron at the entrance to the Meeting Tent. ¹⁹ Korah gathered all his followers who were against Moses and Aaron. And they stood at the entrance to the Meeting Tent. Then the glory of the Lord appeared to everyone.

²⁰ The Lord said to Moses and Aaron, ²¹ “Move away from these men. In a minute I will destroy them.”

²² But Moses and Aaron bowed facedown. They cried out, “God, you are the God over the spirits of all people. Please don’t be angry with this whole group. Only one man has really sinned.”

²³ Then the Lord said to Moses, ²⁴ “Tell everyone to move away from the tents of Korah, Dathan and Abiram.”

²⁵ Moses stood and went to Dathan and Abiram. The elders of Israel followed him. ²⁶ Moses warned the people, “Move away from the tents of these evil men! Don’t touch anything of theirs. If you do, you will be destroyed because of their sins.” ²⁷ So they moved away from the tents of Korah, Dathan and Abiram. Dathan and Abiram were standing outside their tents with their wives, children and little babies.

²⁸ Then Moses said, “Now you will know that the Lord has sent me to do all these things. It was not my idea. ²⁹ If these men die a normal death—the way men usually die—then the Lord did not really send me. ³⁰ But if the Lord does something new, you will know they have insulted the Lord. The earth will open and swallow them. Alive, they will go to where the dead are. And everything that belongs to them will go with them.”

³¹ When Moses finished saying these things, the ground under the men opened up. ³² The earth seemed to open its mouth and swallow them. All their families, all Korah’s men and everything they owned went down. ³³ They were buried alive, going to where the dead are. And everything they owned went with them. Then the earth closed over them. They died and were gone from the community. ³⁴ The people of Israel around them heard their screams. They ran away and said, “The earth will swallow us, too!”

³⁵ Then a fire came down from the Lord. It destroyed the 250 men who had presented the incense.

³⁶ The Lord said to Moses, ³⁷ “Tell Eleazar son of Aaron, the priest, to take all the incense pans out of the fire. Have him scatter the coals. But the incense pans are still holy. ³⁸ These men sinned and lost their lives. Take their pans and hammer them into flat sheets. Cover the altar with them. They are holy because they were presented to the Lord. It will be a sign to the Israelites.”

³⁹ So Eleazar the priest gathered all the bronze pans. These were the pans brought by the men who were burned up. Eleazar had the pans hammered into flat sheets to put on the altar. ⁴⁰ This is what the Lord had commanded him through Moses. These sheets were to remind the Israelites that only descendants of Aaron should burn incense before the Lord. Anyone else would die like Korah and his followers.

Aaron Saves the People

⁴¹ The next day all the Israelites complained against Moses and Aaron. They said, “You have killed the Lord’s people.”

⁴² The people gathered to complain against Moses and Aaron. But when they turned toward the Meeting Tent, the cloud covered it. The glory of the Lord appeared. ⁴³ Then Moses and Aaron went in front of the Meeting Tent.

⁴⁴ The Lord said to Moses, ⁴⁵ “Move away from these people. In a minute I am going to destroy them.” So Moses and Aaron bowed facedown.

⁴⁶ Then Moses said to Aaron, “Get your pan. Put fire from the altar and incense in it. Hurry to the people and remove their sin. The Lord is angry with them. The sickness has already started.” ⁴⁷ So Aaron did as Moses said. He ran to the middle of all the people. The sickness had already started among them. So Aaron offered the incense to remove their sin. ⁴⁸ He stood between the living and the dead. And the sickness stopped there. ⁴⁹ But 14,700 people died from that sickness. There were also those who died because of Korah. ⁵⁰ Then Aaron went back to Moses at the entrance to the Meeting Tent. The terrible sickness had been stopped.

Aaron’s Walking Stick Buds

17 The Lord said to Moses, ² “Speak to the people of Israel. Get 12 walking sticks from them. Get 1 from the leader of each tribe. Write the name of each man on his stick. ³ On the stick from Levi, write Aaron’s name. There must be 1 stick for the head of each tribe. ⁴ Put them in the Meeting Tent. Place them in front of the Ark of the Covenant, where I meet with you. ⁵ I will choose one man. His stick will begin to grow leaves. And I will stop the Israelites from always complaining against you.”

⁶ So Moses spoke to the Israelites. Each of the 12 leaders gave him a walking stick. And Aaron’s walking stick was among them. ⁷ Moses put them before the Lord in the Tent of the Agreement.

⁸ The next day Moses entered the Tent. He saw that Aaron’s stick had grown leaves. (It stood for the family of Levi.) It had even budded, blossomed and produced almonds. ⁹ So Moses brought out to the Israelites all the walking sticks from the Lord’s presence. They all looked, and each man took back his stick.

¹⁰ Then the Lord said to Moses, “Put Aaron’s walking stick back. Put it in front of the Ark of the Covenant. It will be a sign to these people who are always turning against me. This will stop their complaining against me. Now they won’t die.” ¹¹ So Moses obeyed what the Lord commanded him.

¹² The people of Israel said to Moses, “We are going to die! We are lost. We are all lost! ¹³ Anyone who even comes near the Holy Tent of the Lord will die. Will we all die?”

The Work of the Priests and Levites

18 The Lord said to Aaron, “You, your sons and your family are now responsible for any wrongs done against the Holy Place. You and your sons are responsible for any wrongs done against the priests. ² Bring with you your fellow Levites from your tribe. They will help you and your sons serve in the Tent of the Agreement. ³ They are under your control. They will do all the work that needs to be done in the Tent. But they must not go near the things in the Holy Place or near the altar. If they do, both you and they will die. ⁴ They will join you. They will take care of the Meeting Tent. They must do the work at the Tent. No one else may come near you.

⁵ “You must take care of the Holy Place and the altar. Then I won’t become angry with the Israelites again. ⁶ I myself chose your fellow Levites from among the Israelites. They are a gift given for you to the Lord. Their work is at the Meeting Tent. ⁷ But only you and your sons may serve as priests. Only you may serve at the altar or go behind the curtain. I am giving you this gift of serving as a priest. Anyone else who comes near the Holy Place will be put to death.”

⁸ Then the Lord said to Aaron, “I myself make you responsible for the offerings given to me. All the holy offerings that the Israelites give to me, I give to you. They are for you and your sons as your share. They will be your continual portion. ⁹ Your share of the holy offerings is that part which is not burned. The people will bring me gifts as most holy offerings. These are grain or sin or penalty offerings. These will be set apart for you and your sons. ¹⁰ You must eat it in a most holy place. Any male may eat it. But you must respect it as holy.

¹¹ “I also give you the offerings the Israelites present to me. I give these to you and your sons and daughters. This is your share. Anyone in your family who is clean may eat it.

¹² “And I give you all the best olive oil and all the best new wine and grain. This is what the Israelites give to me, the Lord. These are the first things they harvest. ¹³ They bring to the Lord all the first things they harvest. They will be yours. Anyone in your family who is clean may eat these things.

¹⁴ “Everything in Israel that is given to the Lord is yours. ¹⁵ The first one born to any family will be offered to the Lord. This is true for both men and animals. And that will be yours. But you must make a payment for every firstborn son and every firstborn animal that is unclean. ¹⁶ When they are one month old, you must make a payment for them. The cost will be two ounces of silver as set by the Holy Place measure.

¹⁷ “But you must not make a payment for the firstborn ox or sheep or goat. Those animals are holy. Sprinkle their blood on the altar and burn their fat. This is an offering made by fire. The smell is pleasing to the Lord. ¹⁸ But the meat will be yours. Also the breast that is presented and the right thigh will be yours. ¹⁹ Anything the Israelites present as holy gifts I, the Lord, give to you. It goes to you, your sons and daughters. It is your continual portion. This is a lasting promise before the Lord to you and your children forever.”

²⁰ The Lord also said to Aaron, “You will not inherit any of the land. And you will not own any land among the other people. I will be yours. Out of all the Israelites, only you will inherit me.

²¹ “The people of Israel will give a tenth of what they make. I give that tenth to the Levites. This is their payment for the work they do serving at the Meeting Tent. ²² But the other Israelites must never go near the Meeting Tent. If they do, they will die for their sin. ²³ Only the Levites should work in the Meeting Tent. They are responsible for any sins against it. This is a rule from now on. The Levites will not get any land among the other Israelites. ²⁴ But the Israelites will give a tenth of everything they make to me. And I will give that tenth to the Levites. That is why I said about the Levites: ‘They will not get any land among the Israelites.’”

²⁵ The Lord said to Moses, ²⁶ “Speak to the Levites. Tell them: ‘You will receive a tenth of everything the Israelites make. I give that to you. But you must give a tenth of that back to the Lord. ²⁷ I will accept your offering just as much as I accept the offerings from others. They give new grain or new wine. ²⁸ In this way you will present an offering to the Lord as the other Israelites do. You will receive a tenth from the Israelites. Then you will give a tenth of that to Aaron the priest as the Lord’s share. ²⁹ Choose the best and holiest part from what you are given. This is the portion you must give to the Lord.’

³⁰ “Say to the Levites: ‘When you present the best it will be accepted as much as the grain and wine from the other people. ³¹ You and your families may eat all that is left anywhere. This is your pay for your work in the Meeting Tent. ³² And if you always give the best part to the Lord, you will never be guilty. If you do not sin against the holy offerings of the Israelites, you will not die.’”

The Offering for Cleansing

19 The Lord said to Moses and Aaron, ² “These are the teachings that the Lord commanded. Tell the Israelites to get a young red cow. It must not have anything wrong with it. It must not have been worked. ³ Give the cow to Eleazar the priest. He will take it outside the camp and kill it. ⁴ Then Eleazar the priest must put some of the blood on his finger. He must sprinkle it seven times toward the front of the Meeting Tent. ⁵ Then the whole cow must be burned while he watches. The skin, the meat, the blood and the intestines must all be burned. ⁶ Then the priest must take a cedar stick, a hyssop branch and a red string. He must throw them onto the burning cow. ⁷ Then the priest must wash himself and his clothes with water. After that, he may come back into the camp. But he will be unclean until evening. ⁸ The man who burns the cow must wash himself and his clothes in water. He will be unclean until evening.

⁹ “Then someone who is clean will collect the ashes from the cow. He will put them in a clean place outside the camp. The Israelites will use these ashes in a special ceremony to cleanse away sin. ¹⁰ The man who collected the cow’s ashes must wash his clothes. He will be unclean until evening. This is a lasting rule. It is for the Israelites and for the foreigners among them.

¹¹ “Whoever touches a dead body will be unclean for seven days. ¹² He must wash himself with this water. He must do this on the third day and on the seventh day. Then he will be clean. But if he does not wash himself on the third day and the seventh day, he cannot be clean. ¹³ Whoever touches a dead body is unclean. If he stays unclean and goes to the Lord’s Holy Tent, it becomes unclean. So he must be separated from Israel. If the cleansing water is not sprinkled on him, he will stay unclean.

¹⁴ “This is the teaching about someone who dies in his tent. Anyone in the tent or who enters it will be unclean for seven days. ¹⁵ And every open jar or pot without a cover becomes unclean. ¹⁶ If anyone touches someone who was killed by a sword or who died a natural death, he is unclean. If he touches a human bone or a grave, he is unclean. He will be unclean for seven days.

¹⁷ “So you must use the ashes from the burnt offering to make that person clean again. Pour fresh water over the ashes into a jar. ¹⁸ A clean person must take a hyssop branch and dip it into the water. Then he must sprinkle it over the tent and its objects. And he must sprinkle the people who were there. He must sprinkle anyone who touched a bone or the body of someone who was killed. He must sprinkle anyone who touched a dead person or a grave. ¹⁹ Then someone who is clean must sprinkle this water on the unclean person. He must do this on the third day and on the seventh day. On the seventh day that person becomes clean. He must wash his clothes and take a bath. He will be clean that evening. ²⁰ If anyone who is unclean does not become clean, he must be separated from the community. He was not sprinkled with the cleansing water. He stays unclean. He could make the Holy Tent unclean. ²¹ This is a lasting rule. Whoever sprinkles the cleansing water must also wash his clothes. Anyone who touches the water will be unclean until evening. ²² Anyone the unclean person touches becomes unclean. And whoever touches him will be unclean until evening.”

Water from the Rock

20 In the first month all the people of Israel arrived at the Desert of Zin. They stayed at Kadesh. There Miriam died and was buried. ² There was no water for the people. So they came together against Moses and Aaron. ³ They argued with Moses. They said, “We should have died in front of the Lord as our brothers did. ⁴ Why did you bring the Lord’s people into this desert? Are we and our animals to die here? ⁵ Why did you bring us from Egypt to this terrible place? It has no grain, figs or pomegranates. And there’s no water to drink!”

⁶ So Moses and Aaron left the people. Then they went to the entrance of the Meeting Tent. They bowed facedown. And the glory of the Lord appeared to them. ⁷ The Lord said to Moses, ⁸ “You and your brother Aaron should gather the people. Also take your walking stick. Speak to that rock in front of them. Then water will flow from it. Give that water to the people and their animals.”

⁹ So Moses took the stick from in front of the Lord. He did as the Lord had said. ¹⁰ He and Aaron gathered the people in front of the rock. Then Moses said, “Now listen to me, you complainers! Do you want us to bring water out of this rock?” ¹¹ Then Moses lifted his hand and hit the rock twice with his stick. Water began pouring out. And the people and their animals drank it.

¹² But the Lord said to Moses and Aaron, “You did not believe me. You did not honor me as holy before the people. So you will not lead them into the land I will give them.”

¹³ These are the waters of Meribah.^[d] Here the Israelites argued with the Lord. And the Lord showed them he was holy.

Edom Will Not Let Israel Pass

¹⁴ From Kadesh, Moses sent messengers to the king of Edom. He said, “Your brothers, the Israelites, say to you: You know about all the troubles we have had. ¹⁵ Our ancestors went down into Egypt. And we lived there for many years. The people of Egypt were cruel to our ancestors. ¹⁶ But we cried out to the Lord. He heard us and sent us an angel to bring us out of Egypt.

“Now we are here at Kadesh, a town on the edge of your land. ¹⁷ Please let us pass through your country. We will not touch any fields of grain or vineyards. We will not drink water from the wells. We will travel only along the king’s road. We will not turn right or left until we have passed through your country.”

¹⁸ But the king of Edom answered: “You may not pass through here. If you try, I will come and meet you with swords.”

¹⁹ The Israelites answered: “We will go along the main road. If our animals drink any of your water, we will pay for it. We only want to walk through. That’s all.”

²⁰ But he answered: “You may not pass through here.”

Then the Edomites went out to meet the Israelites with a large and powerful army. ²¹ The Edomites refused to let them pass through their country. So the Israelites turned back.

Aaron Dies

²² All the Israelites moved from Kadesh to Mount Hor. ²³ It was near the border of Edom. The Lord said to Moses and Aaron, ²⁴ “Aaron will die. He will not enter the land that I’m giving to the Israelites. This is because you both acted against my command at the waters of Meribah. ²⁵ Take Aaron and his son Eleazar up on Mount Hor. ²⁶ Take off Aaron’s special clothes and put them on his son Eleazar. Aaron will die there. He will join his ancestors.”

²⁷ Moses obeyed the Lord’s command. They climbed up Mount Hor. All the people saw them go. ²⁸ Moses took off Aaron’s clothes. He put them on Aaron’s son Eleazar. Then Aaron died there on top of the mountain. And Moses and Eleazar came back down the mountain. ²⁹ Then all the people learned that Aaron was dead. So everyone in Israel cried for him for 30 days.

War with the Canaanites

21 The Canaanite king of Arad lived in the southern area. He heard that the Israelites were coming on the road to Atharim. So he attacked them and captured some of them. ² Then the Israelites made this promise to the Lord: “If you will help us defeat these people, we will completely destroy their cities.” ³ The Lord listened to the Israelites. And he let them defeat the Canaanites. The Israelites completely destroyed the Canaanites and their cities. So the place was named Hormah.^[e]

The Bronze Snake

⁴ The Israelites left Mount Hor and went on the road toward the Gulf of Aqaba. They did this to go around the country of Edom. But the people became impatient on the way. ⁵ They grumbled at God and Moses. They said, “Why did you bring us out of Egypt? We will die in this desert! There is no bread! There is no water! And we hate this terrible food!”

⁶ So the Lord sent them poisonous snakes. They bit the people, and many of the Israelites died. ⁷ The people came to Moses and said, “We sinned when we grumbled at you and the Lord. Pray that the Lord will take away these snakes.” So Moses prayed for the people.