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1 Chronicles 23 2
David assembled all the leaders of Israel, along with the priests and the Levites.
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Numbers 3:1-4
Now these are the records of Aaron and Moses when the LORD spoke with Moses on Mount Sinai.These are the names of the sons of Aaron: Nadab, the firstborn, and Abihu, Eleazar, and Ithamar.These are the names of the sons of Aaron, the anointed priests, whom he consecrated to minister as priests.Nadab and Abihu died before the LORD when they offered strange fire before the LORD in the wilderness of Sinai, and they had no children. So Eleazar and Ithamar ministered as priests in the presence of Aaron their father.
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Numbers 18:1-32
The LORD said to Aaron,“ You and your sons and your tribe with you must bear the iniquity of the sanctuary, and you and your sons with you must bear the iniquity of your priesthood.“ Bring with you your brothers, the tribe of Levi, the tribe of your father, so that they may join with you and minister to you while you and your sons with you are before the tent of the testimony.They must be responsible to care for you and to care for the entire tabernacle. However, they must not come near the furnishings of the sanctuary and the altar, or both they and you will die.They must join with you, and they will be responsible for the care of the tent of meeting, for all the service of the tent, but no unauthorized person may approach you.You will be responsible for the care of the sanctuary and the care of the altar, so that there will be no more wrath on the Israelites.I myself have chosen your brothers the Levites from among the Israelites. They are given to you as a gift from the LORD, to perform the duties of the tent of meeting.But you and your sons with you are responsible for your priestly duties, for everything at the altar and within the curtain. And you must serve. I give you the priesthood as a gift for service; but the unauthorized person who approaches must be put to death.”The LORD spoke to Aaron,“ See, I have given you the responsibility for my raised offerings; I have given all the holy things of the Israelites to you as your priestly portion and to your sons as a perpetual ordinance.Of all the most holy offerings reserved from the fire this will be yours: Every offering of theirs, whether from every grain offering or from every purification offering or from every reparation offering which they bring to me, will be most holy for you and for your sons.You are to eat it as a most holy offering; every male may eat it. It will be holy to you.“ And this is yours: the raised offering of their gift, along with all the wave offerings of the Israelites. I have given them to you and to your sons and daughters with you as a perpetual ordinance. Everyone who is ceremonially clean in your household may eat of it.“ All the best of the olive oil and all the best of the wine and of the wheat, the first fruits of these things that they give to the LORD, I have given to you.And whatever first ripe fruit in their land they bring to the LORD will be yours; everyone who is ceremonially clean in your household may eat of it.“ Everything devoted in Israel will be yours.The firstborn of every womb which they present to the LORD, whether human or animal, will be yours. Nevertheless, the firstborn sons you must redeem, and the firstborn males of unclean animals you must redeem.And those that must be redeemed you are to redeem when they are a month old, according to your estimation, for five shekels of silver according to the sanctuary shekel( which is twenty gerahs).But you must not redeem the firstborn of a cow or a sheep or a goat; they are holy. You must splash their blood on the altar and burn their fat for an offering made by fire for a pleasing aroma to the LORD.And their meat will be yours, just as the breast and the right hip of the raised offering is yours.All the raised offerings of the holy things that the Israelites offer to the LORD, I have given to you, and to your sons and daughters with you, as a perpetual ordinance. It is a covenant of salt forever before the LORD for you and for your descendants with you.”The LORD spoke to Aaron,“ You will have no inheritance in their land, nor will you have any portion of property among them– I am your portion and your inheritance among the Israelites.See, I have given the Levites all the tithes in Israel for an inheritance, for their service which they perform– the service of the tent of meeting.No longer may the Israelites approach the tent of meeting, or else they will bear their sin and die.But the Levites must perform the service of the tent of meeting, and they must bear their iniquity. It will be a perpetual ordinance throughout your generations that among the Israelites the Levites have no inheritance.But I have given to the Levites for an inheritance the tithes of the Israelites that are offered to the LORD as a raised offering. That is why I said to them that among the Israelites they are to have no inheritance.”The LORD spoke to Moses:“ You are to speak to the Levites, and you must tell them,‘ When you receive from the Israelites the tithe that I have given you from them as your inheritance, then you are to offer up from it as a raised offering to the LORD a tenth of the tithe.And your raised offering will be credited to you as though it were grain from the threshing floor or as new wine from the winepress.Thus you are to offer up a raised offering to the LORD of all your tithes which you receive from the Israelites; and you must give the LORD’s raised offering from it to Aaron the priest.From all your gifts you must offer up every raised offering due the LORD, from all the best of it, and the holiest part of it.’“ Therefore you will say to them,‘ When you offer up the best of it, then it will be credited to the Levites as the product of the threshing floor and as the product of the winepress.And you may eat it in any place, you and your household, because it is your wages for your service in the tent of meeting.And you will bear no sin concerning it when you offer up the best of it. And you must not profane the holy things of the Israelites, or else you will die.’”
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Numbers 8:5-26
Then the LORD spoke to Moses:“ Take the Levites from among the Israelites and purify them.And do this to them to purify them: Sprinkle water of purification on them; then have them shave all their body and wash their clothes, and so purify themselves.Then they are to take a young bull with its grain offering of fine flour mixed with olive oil; and you are to take a second young bull for a purification offering.You are to bring the Levites before the tent of meeting and assemble the entire community of the Israelites.Then you are to bring the Levites before the LORD, and the Israelites are to lay their hands on the Levites;and Aaron is to offer the Levites before the LORD as a wave offering from the Israelites, that they may do the work of the LORD.When the Levites lay their hands on the heads of the bulls, offer the one for a purification offering and the other for a whole burnt offering to the LORD, to make atonement for the Levites.You are to have the Levites stand before Aaron and his sons, and then offer them as a wave offering to the LORD.And so you are to separate the Levites from among the Israelites, and the Levites will be mine.“ After this, the Levites will go in to do the work of the tent of meeting. So you must cleanse them and offer them like a wave offering.For they are entirely given to me from among the Israelites. I have taken them for myself instead of all who open the womb, the firstborn sons of all the Israelites.For all the firstborn males among the Israelites are mine, both humans and animals; when I destroyed all the firstborn in the land of Egypt I set them apart for myself.So I have taken the Levites instead of all the firstborn sons among the Israelites.I have given the Levites as a gift to Aaron and his sons from among the Israelites, to do the work for the Israelites in the tent of meeting, and to make atonement for the Israelites, so there will be no plague among the Israelites when the Israelites come near the sanctuary.”So Moses and Aaron and the entire community of the Israelites did this with the Levites. According to all that the LORD commanded Moses concerning the Levites, this is what the Israelites did with them.The Levites purified themselves and washed their clothing; then Aaron presented them like a wave offering before the LORD, and Aaron made atonement for them to purify them.After this, the Levites went in to do their work in the tent of meeting before Aaron and before his sons. As the LORD had commanded Moses concerning the Levites, so they did.Then the LORD spoke to Moses:“ This is what pertains to the Levites: At the age of twenty-five years and upward one may begin to join the company in the work of the tent of meeting,and at the age of fifty years they must retire from performing the work and may no longer work.They may assist their colleagues in the tent of meeting, to attend to needs, but they must do no work. This is the way you must establish the Levites regarding their duties.”
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1 Chronicles 25 1-1 Chronicles 25 26
David and the army officers selected some of the sons of Asaph, Heman, and Jeduthun to prophesy as they played stringed instruments and cymbals. The following men were assigned this responsibility:From the sons of Asaph: Zaccur, Joseph, Nethaniah, and Asarelah. The sons of Asaph were supervised by Asaph, who prophesied under the king’s supervision.From the sons of Jeduthun: Gedaliah, Zeri, Jeshaiah, Hashabiah, and Mattithiah– six in all, under supervision of their father Jeduthun, who prophesied as he played a harp, giving thanks and praise to the LORD.From the sons of Heman: Bukkiah, Mattaniah, Uzziel, Shebuel, Jerimoth, Hananiah, Hanani, Eliathah, Giddalti, Romamti-Ezer, Joshbekashah, Mallothi, Hothir, and Mahazioth.All these were the sons of Heman, the king’s prophet. God had promised him these sons in order to make him prestigious. God gave Heman fourteen sons and three daughters.All of these were under the supervision of their fathers; they were musicians in the LORD’s temple, playing cymbals and stringed instruments as they served in God’s temple. Asaph, Jeduthun, and Heman were under the supervision of the king.They and their relatives, all of them skilled and trained to make music to the LORD, numbered two hundred eighty-eight.They cast lots to determine their responsibilities– oldest as well as youngest, teacher as well as student.The first lot went to Asaph’s son Joseph and his relatives and sons– twelve in all, the second to Gedaliah and his relatives and sons– twelve in all,the third to Zaccur and his sons and relatives– twelve in all,the fourth to Izri and his sons and relatives– twelve in all,the fifth to Nethaniah and his sons and relatives– twelve in all,the sixth to Bukkiah and his sons and relatives– twelve in all,the seventh to Jesharelah and his sons and relatives– twelve in all,the eighth to Jeshaiah and his sons and relatives– twelve in all,the ninth to Mattaniah and his sons and relatives– twelve in all,the tenth to Shimei and his sons and relatives– twelve in all,the eleventh to Azarel and his sons and relatives– twelve in all,the twelfth to Hashabiah and his sons and relatives– twelve in all,the thirteenth to Shubael and his sons and relatives– twelve in all,the fourteenth to Mattithiah and his sons and relatives– twelve in all,the fifteenth to Jerimoth and his sons and relatives– twelve in all,the sixteenth to Hananiah and his sons and relatives– twelve in all,the seventeenth to Joshbekashah and his sons and relatives– twelve in all,the eighteenth to Hanani and his sons and relatives– twelve in all,the nineteenth to Mallothi and his sons and relatives– twelve in all,
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Numbers 16:9-10
Does it seem too small a thing to you that the God of Israel has separated you from the community of Israel to bring you near to himself, to perform the service of the tabernacle of the LORD, and to stand before the community to minister to them?He has brought you near and all your brothers, the sons of Levi, with you. Do you now seek the priesthood also?
