1 T hen the Lord said to Aaron: “You and your sons and your father’s house with you shall bear the iniquity related to the sanctuary, and you and your sons with you shall bear the iniquity associated with your priesthood.

The Lord said to Aaron, “You and your sons and those of your father’s house will carry the guilt for any sin done in the meeting tent. And you and your sons with you will carry the guilt of any sin of the religious leaders.

2 A lso bring with you your brethren of the tribe of Levi, the tribe of your father, that they may be joined with you and serve you while you and your sons are with you before the tabernacle of witness.

Bring with you your brothers also, the family of Levi, the family of your father. Then they may join you and help you while you and your sons are in front of the meeting tent of the Law.

3 T hey shall attend to your needs and all the needs of the tabernacle; but they shall not come near the articles of the sanctuary and the altar, lest they die—they and you also.

They will help you and help in doing all the work of the tent. But they must not come near the objects of the meeting tent and the altar, or both they and you will die.

4 T hey shall be joined with you and attend to the needs of the tabernacle of meeting, for all the work of the tabernacle; but an outsider shall not come near you.

They will join you and help do all the work of the meeting tent. But no one else may come near you.

5 A nd you shall attend to the duties of the sanctuary and the duties of the altar, that there may be no more wrath on the children of Israel.

You must do the work of the meeting tent and the work of the altar, so there will no longer be anger on the people of Israel.

6 B ehold, I Myself have taken your brethren the Levites from among the children of Israel; they are a gift to you, given by the Lord, to do the work of the tabernacle of meeting.

See, I Myself have taken your brothers the Levites from among the people of Israel. They are a gift to you, given to the Lord, to do the work for the meeting tent.

7 T herefore you and your sons with you shall attend to your priesthood for everything at the altar and behind the veil; and you shall serve. I give your priesthood to you as a gift for service, but the outsider who comes near shall be put to death.” Offerings for Support of the Priests

But you and your sons with you will do the religious work, in all that has to do with the altar and inside the curtain. I am giving you the work of being the religious leader as a gift. Anyone else who comes near the holy objects will be put to death.” Gifts for the Religious Leaders

8 A nd the Lord spoke to Aaron: “Here, I Myself have also given you charge of My heave offerings, all the holy gifts of the children of Israel; I have given them as a portion to you and your sons, as an ordinance forever.

Then the Lord said to Aaron, “Now see, I am giving you all the gifts brought to Me that are not burned on the altar. I am giving them to you as a share, and to your sons as a share forever.

9 T his shall be yours of the most holy things reserved from the fire: every offering of theirs, every grain offering and every sin offering and every trespass offering which they render to Me, shall be most holy for you and your sons.

This will be yours from the most holy gifts, kept from the fire: every gift of theirs, even every grain gift, every sin gift and every guilt gift, which they bring to Me. They will be most holy for you and your sons.

10 I n a most holy place you shall eat it; every male shall eat it. It shall be holy to you.

You will eat it as the most holy gifts. Every male will eat it. It will be holy to you.

11 “ This also is yours: the heave offering of their gift, with all the wave offerings of the children of Israel; I have given them to you, and your sons and daughters with you, as an ordinance forever. Everyone who is clean in your house may eat it.

And this is yours: their gift that is lifted up and all the wave gifts of the people of Israel. I am giving them to you and to your sons and daughters with you, as a share forever. Everyone in your house who is clean may eat it.

12 “ All the best of the oil, all the best of the new wine and the grain, their firstfruits which they offer to the Lord, I have given them to you.

I give to you all the best of the oil and all the best of the wine and of the grain, the first-fruits of what they give to the Lord.

13 W hatever first ripe fruit is in their land, which they bring to the Lord, shall be yours. Everyone who is clean in your house may eat it.

The first-fruits ready to eat of all that is in their land, which they bring to the Lord, will be yours. Everyone in your house who is clean may eat it.

14 “ Every devoted thing in Israel shall be yours.

Everything in Israel that has been set apart to the Lord will be yours.

15 “ Everything that first opens the womb of all flesh, which they bring to the Lord, whether man or beast, shall be yours; nevertheless the firstborn of man you shall surely redeem, and the firstborn of unclean animals you shall redeem.

Every first-born of all flesh, man or animal, which they give to the Lord, will be yours. But you must pay the price and make free the first-born of man and the first-born of animals that are unclean.

16 A nd those redeemed of the devoted things you shall redeem when one month old, according to your valuation, for five shekels of silver, according to the shekel of the sanctuary, which is twenty gerahs.

You must make them free when they are one month old. The price to free them will be five large pieces of silver, the price decided upon at the meeting tent. One large piece of silver is worth twenty small pieces of silver.

17 B ut the firstborn of a cow, the firstborn of a sheep, or the firstborn of a goat you shall not redeem; they are holy. You shall sprinkle their blood on the altar, and burn their fat as an offering made by fire for a sweet aroma to the Lord.

But do not free the first-born of a bull or sheep or goat. For they are holy. You will put their blood on the altar and burn their fat as a gift by fire, a pleasing smell to the Lord.

18 A nd their flesh shall be yours, just as the wave breast and the right thigh are yours.

But their meat will be yours, like the breast of a wave gift and like the right thigh are yours.

19 “ All the heave offerings of the holy things, which the children of Israel offer to the Lord, I have given to you and your sons and daughters with you as an ordinance forever; it is a covenant of salt forever before the Lord with you and your descendants with you.”

I have given to you and your sons and daughters, for a share forever, all the holy gifts which the people of Israel bring to the Lord. It is an agreement of salt forever before the Lord for you and your children with you.”

20 T hen the Lord said to Aaron: “You shall have no inheritance in their land, nor shall you have any portion among them; I am your portion and your inheritance among the children of Israel. Tithes for Support of the Levites

Then the Lord said to Aaron, “You will have no share in their land. You will not own any part of land among them. I am your part and your share among the people of Israel.

21 “ Behold, I have given the children of Levi all the tithes in Israel as an inheritance in return for the work which they perform, the work of the tabernacle of meeting.

“See, I have given a tenth part of everything in Israel to the Levites, in return for the work they do, the work of the meeting tent.

22 H ereafter the children of Israel shall not come near the tabernacle of meeting, lest they bear sin and die.

The people of Israel must not come near the meeting tent again, or they will be guilty of sin and die.

23 B ut the Levites shall perform the work of the tabernacle of meeting, and they shall bear their iniquity; it shall be a statute forever, throughout your generations, that among the children of Israel they shall have no inheritance.

Only the Levites may do the work around the meeting tent, and they will carry their sin. It will be a Law forever for all your children-to-come. And they will have no land among the people of Israel.

24 F or the tithes of the children of Israel, which they offer up as a heave offering to the Lord, I have given to the Levites as an inheritance; therefore I have said to them, ‘Among the children of Israel they shall have no inheritance.’” The Tithe of the Levites

For I have given to the Levites one-tenth part of what the people of Israel give to the Lord. This is why I have said of them, ‘They will have no land among the people of Israel.’”

25 T hen the Lord spoke to Moses, saying,

Then the Lord said to Moses,

26 “ Speak thus to the Levites, and say to them: ‘When you take from the children of Israel the tithes which I have given you from them as your inheritance, then you shall offer up a heave offering of it to the Lord, a tenth of the tithe.

“Say to the Levites, ‘When you take from the people of Israel the tenth which I have given you from them for your share, then give a gift from it to the Lord. Give one-tenth part of the tenth.

27 A nd your heave offering shall be reckoned to you as though it were the grain of the threshing floor and as the fullness of the winepress.

And your gift will be to you as if it were the grain from the grain-floor or all the wine from the crushed grapes.

28 T hus you shall also offer a heave offering to the Lord from all your tithes which you receive from the children of Israel, and you shall give the Lord ’s heave offering from it to Aaron the priest.

So you must give a gift to the Lord from the tenth of what you receive from the people of Israel. And from it you must give the Lord’s gift to Aaron the religious leader.

29 O f all your gifts you shall offer up every heave offering due to the Lord, from all the best of them, the consecrated part of them.’

Out of all the gifts to you, you must give every gift that should go to the Lord, from all the best of them. Give the holy part from them.’

30 T herefore you shall say to them: ‘When you have lifted up the best of it, then the rest shall be accounted to the Levites as the produce of the threshing floor and as the produce of the winepress.

“And say to them, ‘When you have given the best part of it, the rest of it will be to you as if it were the grain from the grain-floor and the wine from the crushed grapes.

31 Y ou may eat it in any place, you and your households, for it is your reward for your work in the tabernacle of meeting.

You and those of your houses may eat it in any place. For it is your pay for your work in the meeting tent.

32 A nd you shall bear no sin because of it, when you have lifted up the best of it. But you shall not profane the holy gifts of the children of Israel, lest you die.’”

You will not be guilty because of it, when you have given the best of it. But do not make unclean the holy gifts of the people of Israel, or you will die.’”