At that time the Lord set the tribe of Levi apart. He appointed them to carry the ark of the covenant of the Lord. He wanted them to serve him. He told them to bless the people in his name. And they still do it today.

那时，耶和华将利未支派分别出来，抬耶和华的约柜，又侍立在耶和华面前侍奉他，奉他的名祝福，直到今日。

那时，耶和华将利未支派分别出来，抬耶和华的约柜，又侍立在耶和华面前事奉他，奉他的名祝福，直到今日。

那时，耶和华将利未支派分别出来，抬耶和华的约柜，又侍立在耶和华面前事奉他，奉他的名祝福，直到今日。

那时，耶和华把利未支派分别出来，派他们抬祂的约柜，站立在祂面前事奉祂，奉祂的名祝福，至今未变。

那时，耶和华把利未支派分别出来，叫他们抬耶和华的约柜，侍立在耶和华面前事奉他，并且奉他的名祝福，直到今日。

那時，耶和華將利未支派分別出來，擡耶和華的約櫃，又侍立在耶和華面前事奉他，奉他的名祝福，直到今日。

那時，耶和華將利未支派分別出來，抬耶和華的約櫃，又侍立在耶和華面前事奉他，奉他的名祝福，直到今日。

那時，耶和華將利未支派分別出來，抬耶和華的約櫃，又侍立在耶和華面前事奉他，奉他的名祝福，直到今日。

那時，耶和華把利未支派分別出來，派他們抬祂的約櫃，站立在祂面前事奉祂，奉祂的名祝福，至今未變。

那時，耶和華把利未支派分別出來，叫他們抬耶和華的約櫃，侍立在耶和華面前事奉他，並且奉他的名祝福，直到今日。

那時永恆主將利未族派分別出來，來抬永恆主的約櫃，來站在永恆主面前伺候他，來奉他的名祝福，直到今日還這樣行。

時、耶和華區別利未支派、使舁耶和華約匱、立於耶和華前、以崇事之、奉其名而禱祝、迄於今日、

當時耶和華、區別利未支派、使舁耶和華約匱、立於其前、以奉事之、籲其名而頌禱、即以今日之事為證。

當時主區別利未支派、使舁主之約匱、立於主前以奉事之、託主之名為民祝福、直至今日、

At that time the Lord set apart the tribe of Levi to carry the ark of the covenant of the Lord, to stand before the Lord to minister and to pronounce blessings in his name, as they still do today.

At that time the Lord set apart the tribe of Levi to carry the ark of the covenant of the Lord to stand before the Lord to minister to him and to bless in his name, to this day.

At that time the Lord set apart the tribe of Levi to carry the Ark of the Lord’s Covenant, and to stand before the Lord as his ministers, and to pronounce blessings in his name. These are their duties to this day.

“ At that time the LORD set apart the tribe of Levi to carry the ark of the LORD’s covenant, to stand before the LORD to serve him, and to pronounce blessings in his name, as it is today.

At that time the Lord singled out the tribe of Levi to carry the ark of the covenant of the Lord, to stand before the Lord to serve Him and to bless in His name, until this day.

At that time the Lord separated the tribe of Levi to bear the ark of the covenant of the Lord, to stand before the Lord to minister to Him and to bless in His name, to this day.

At that time Jehovah set apart the tribe of Levi, to bear the ark of the covenant of Jehovah, to stand before Jehovah to minister unto him, and to bless in his name, unto this day.

“ At that time the Lord set apart the tribe of Levi to carry the ark of the Lord’s covenant, to stand before Yahweh to serve Him, and to pronounce blessings in His name, as it is today.

At that time the LORD separated the tribe of Levi, to bear the ark of the covenant of the LORD, to stand before the LORD to minister unto him, and to bless in his name, unto this day.

At that time the LORD set apart the tribe of Levi to carry the ark of the LORD’s covenant, to stand before the LORD to serve him, and to formulate blessings in his name, as they do to this very day.

At that time Yahweh set apart the tribe of Levi to bear the ark of Yahweh’s covenant, to stand before Yahweh to minister to him, and to bless in his name, to this day.

The priests, who are sons of Levi, will step forward. The Lord your God has chosen them to serve him. He wants them to bless the people in his name. He wants them to decide all cases that have to do with people arguing and attacking others.

The Lord your God has chosen the Levites and their sons after them to serve him in his name always. He hasn’t chosen priests from any of your other tribes.

“ Aaron and his sons must cover all the holy things that belong to the holy tent. Only then are the men of Kohath to come and carry everything. They must do so only when the camp is ready to move. But they must not touch the holy things. If they do, they will die. The men of Kohath must carry everything in the tent of meeting.

“ Bring the men of the tribe of Levi to Aaron the priest. They will help him.

You did not choose me. Instead, I chose you. I appointed you so that you might go and bear fruit that will last. I also appointed you so that the Father will give you what you ask for. He will give you whatever you ask for in my name.

“ Tell Aaron and his sons,‘ Here is how I want you to bless the Israelites. Say to them,“‘ “May the Lord bless you and take good care of you.May the Lord smile on you and be gracious to you.May the Lord look on you with favor and give you peace.” ’

The Lord spoke to Aaron. He said,“ You, your sons and your family are in charge of the sacred tent. You will be responsible for sins connected with the tent. And you and your sons alone will be responsible for sins connected with the office of priest.Bring the Levites from your tribe to join you. They will help you when you and your sons serve at the tent of meeting. That is where the tablets of the covenant law are kept.The Levites will work for you. They must do everything that needs to be done at the tent. But they must not go near anything that belongs to the sacred tent. And they must not go near the altar. If they do, they and you will die.They will help you take care of the tent of meeting. They will join you in all the work at the tent. No one else can come near you there.“ You will be responsible for taking care of the sacred tent and the altar. Then I will not be angry with the Israelites again.I myself have chosen the Levites. I have chosen them from among the Israelites. They are a gift to you. I have set them apart to do the work at the tent of meeting.But only you and your sons can serve as priests. Only you and your sons can work with everything at the altar and behind the curtain. I am letting you serve as priests. It is a gift from me. Anyone else who comes near the sacred tent must be put to death.”Then the Lord spoke to Aaron. He said,“ I have put you in charge of the offerings brought to me. The Israelites will give me holy offerings. I will give all their offerings to you and your sons. They are the part that belongs to you. They are your share for all time to come.You will have a part of the very holy offerings. It is the part not burned in the fire. That part belongs to you and your sons. You will have a part of all the gifts the people bring me as very holy offerings. It does not matter whether they are grain offerings or sin offerings or guilt offerings.Eat your part as something that is very holy. Every male will eat it. You must consider it holy.“ Part of the gifts the Israelites bring as wave offerings will be set aside. That part will also belong to you. I will give it to you and your sons and daughters. It is your share for all time to come. Everyone in your home who is‘ clean’ can eat it.“ I will give you all the finest olive oil and grain the people give me. And I will give you all the finest fresh wine they give me. They give all those things as the first share of their harvest.All the first shares of the harvest they bring me will belong to you. Everyone in your home who is‘ clean’ can eat it.“ Everything in Israel that is set apart to me belongs to you.Offer to me every male born first to its mother. It belongs to you. That includes humans and animals alike. But you must buy back every oldest son. Suppose certain animals are‘ unclean.’ Then you must buy back every male born first to its mother.When they are a month old, you must buy them back. You must pay the price to buy them back. The price is set at two ounces of silver. It must be weighed out according to the standard weights used in the sacred tent.“ But you must not buy back any male calf, sheep or goat born first. They are holy. Splash their blood against the altar. And burn their fat as a food offering. Its smell pleases me.The meat will belong to you. It is just like the breast and the right thigh of the wave offering. Those parts belong to you.Part of the holy offerings the Israelites bring to me will be set aside. No matter what it is, I will give it to you and your sons and daughters. It is your share for all time to come. It is a covenant of salt from me. The salt means that the covenant will last for all time to come for you and your children.”The Lord spoke to Aaron. He said,“ You will not receive any part of the land I am giving to Israel. You will not have any share among them. I am your share. I am what you will receive among the Israelites.“ The Israelites will give me a tenth of everything they produce. And I will give it to the Levites. They serve at the tent of meeting. I will give them the tenth for the work they do there.From now on the Israelites must not go near the tent of meeting. If they do, they will be punished for their sin. They will die.The Levites will do the work at the tent of meeting. They will be responsible for any sins connected with the tent. This is a law that will last for all time to come. The Levites will not receive any share among the Israelites.Instead, I will give the Levites the tenth as their share. It is the tenth that the Israelites bring me as an offering. That is why I said the Levites would not have any share of land among the Israelites.”The Lord said to Moses,“ Speak to the Levites. Say to them,‘ You will receive the tenth from the Israelites. I will give it to you as your share. When I do, you must give a tenth of that tenth as an offering to the Lord.Your offering will be considered as if you gave grain from a threshing floor. It will be considered as juice from a winepress.In that way, you also will bring an offering to the Lord. You will bring it from the tenth you receive from the Israelites. You must give the Lord’ s part to the priest Aaron. You must bring it from the tenth you receive.You must bring to the Lord a part of everything given to you. It must be the best and holiest part.’“ Say to the Levites,‘ You must bring the best part. Then it will be considered as if you gave grain from a threshing floor. It will be considered as juice from a winepress.You and your families can eat the rest of it anywhere. It is your pay for your work at the tent of meeting.Bring the best part of what you receive. Then you will not be guilty of holding anything back. You will not make the holy offerings of the Israelites“ unclean.” You will not die.’ ”

God had helped the Levites who were carrying the ark of the covenant of the Lord. So seven bulls and seven rams were sacrificed.

Then Aaron lifted up his hands toward the people. He gave them a blessing. He had already sacrificed the sin offering, the burnt offering and the friendship offering. So he stepped down from the altar.

But the families of the tribe of Levi were not counted along with the others.The Lord had spoken to Moses. He had said,“ You must not count the men from the tribe of Levi. Do not include them when you list the other men of Israel.Instead, put the Levites in charge of the holy tent. That is where the tablets of the covenant law are kept. The Levites will be in charge of everything that belongs to the holy tent. They must carry the tent and everything that belongs to it. They must take care of it. They must set up camp around it.When the holy tent must be moved, the Levites must take it down. And when the tent must be set up, the Levites must do it. Anyone else who approaches it must be put to death.The Israelites must set up their tents by military groups. All of them must be in their own camps under their own flags.But the Levites must set up their tents around the holy tent. That’s where the tablets of the covenant law are kept. Then I will not be angry with the community of Israel. The Levites will be responsible for taking care of the tent.”

He said to them,“ You are the leaders of the families of Levi. You and the other Levites must set yourselves apart to serve the Lord and his people. You must carry up the ark of the Lord. He is the God of Israel. Put the ark in the place I’ve prepared for it.Remember when the anger of the Lord our God broke out against us? That’s because it wasn’t you Levites who tried to carry up the ark the first time. We didn’t ask the Lord how to do it in the way the law requires.”So the priests and Levites set themselves apart. Then they carried up the ark of the Lord. He is the God of Israel.This time the Levites used the poles to carry on their shoulders the ark of God. That’s what Moses had commanded in keeping with the word of the Lord.

So the Lord says to Jeremiah,“ If you turn away from your sins, I will heal you. And then you will be able to serve me. Speak words that are worthy, not worthless. Then you will be speaking for me. Let these people turn to you. But you must not turn to them.

The God of Israel has separated you from the rest of the community of Israel. He has brought you near him to work at the Lord’ s holy tent. He has given you to the people so that you can serve them. Isn’t all that enough for you?He has already brought you and all the other Levites near him. But now you want to be priests too.

The priests and Levites gave their blessing to the people. God heard them. Their prayer reached all the way to heaven. It’s the holy place where God lives.

While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit spoke.“ Set apart Barnabas and Saul for me,” he said.“ I have appointed them to do special work.”

Someone might show that they don’t respect the judge. Or they will show that they don’t respect the priest. The priest will serve the Lord your God at the place God will choose. If anyone doesn’t show respect for these people, that person must be put to death. Remove that evil person from Israel.

They might serve in my temple. They might be in charge of its gates. They might kill the burnt offerings and sacrifices for the people. And they might stand in front of the people and serve them in other ways.

The priests brought the ark of the Lord’ s covenant law to its place in the Most Holy Room of the temple. They put it under the wings of the cherubim.

Here is the story of the family line of Aaron and Moses. It belongs to the time when the Lord spoke to Moses at Mount Sinai.Aaron’s oldest son was Nadab. Aaron’s other sons were Abihu, Eleazar and Ithamar.Those were the names of Aaron’s sons. They were the anointed priests. They were given authority to serve the Lord as priests.But Nadab and Abihu made an offering to the Lord by using fire that wasn’t allowed. So they died in front of him. That happened in the Desert of Sinai. They didn’t have any sons. Only Eleazar and Ithamar served as priests while their father Aaron was living.

“ But the priests must approach me to serve me. They are Levites from Zadok’s family line. They guarded my temple when the people of Israel turned away from me. These priests must serve me by offering sacrifices of fat and blood,” announces the Lord and King.

“ Here is what you must do to set apart Aaron and his sons to serve me as priests. Get a young bull and two rams. They must not have any flaws.Get the finest wheat flour. Make round loaves of bread that do not have yeast in them. Make thick loaves of bread that do not have yeast in them. Mix olive oil into the thick loaves of bread. Also make thin loaves of bread that do not have yeast in them. Brush the thin loaves with olive oil.Put everything in a basket. Offer them along with the bull and the two rams.Then bring Aaron and his sons to the entrance to the tent of meeting. Wash them with water.Take the inner robe, the outer robe of the linen apron, the apron itself and the chest cloth. Dress Aaron in them. Take the skillfully made waistband and tie the apron on him with it.Put the turban on his head. Connect the sacred plate to the turban.Take the anointing oil and pour it on his head.Bring his sons and dress them in their inner robes.Put caps on their heads. Tie belts on Aaron and his sons. The work of the priests belongs to them. This is my law that will last for all time to come.“ Then you must prepare Aaron and his sons to serve me.“ Bring the bull to the front of the tent of meeting. Have Aaron and his sons place their hands on its head.Kill it in front of the Lord at the entrance to the tent of meeting.Dip your finger into some of the bull’s blood. Put it on the horns that stick out from the upper four corners of the altar. Pour the rest of it out at the base of the altar.Then take all the fat on the inside parts. Take the long part of the liver. Get both kidneys with the fat on them. And burn all of it on the altar.But burn the bull’s meat, hide and guts outside the camp. It is a sin offering.“ Get one of the rams. Have Aaron and his sons place their hands on its head.Kill it. Take the blood and splash it against the sides of the altar.Cut the ram into pieces. Wash the inside parts and the legs. Put them with the head and the other pieces.Then burn the whole ram on the altar. It is a burnt offering to me. It has a pleasant smell. It is a food offering presented to the Lord.“ Get the other ram. Have Aaron and his sons place their hands on its head.Kill it. Put some of its blood on the right earlobes of Aaron and his sons. Put some on the thumbs of their right hands. Also put some on the big toes of their right feet. Then splash the blood against the sides of the altar.Get some of the blood from the altar. Also get some of the anointing oil. Sprinkle both of them on Aaron and his clothes and on his sons and their clothes. Then he and his sons and their clothes will be set apart to serve the Lord.“ Here is what you must take from this second ram. Take the fat, the fat tail and the fat around the inside parts. Take the long part of the liver. Also take both kidneys with the fat on them, and the right thigh. It is the ram you must use when you prepare the priests to serve the Lord.Get one round loaf of bread and one thick loaf of bread with olive oil mixed in. Also get one thin loaf of bread. Take them from the basket of bread made without yeast. It is the one in front of the Lord.Put all these things in the hands of Aaron and his sons. Tell them to lift them up and wave them in front of the Lord as a wave offering.Then take all these things from their hands. Burn them on the altar along with the burnt offering. Its smell pleases the Lord. It is a food offering presented to the Lord.Get the breast of the ram used when you prepare Aaron to serve the Lord. Wave it in front of the Lord as a wave offering. It will be your share of the meat.“ Here are the parts of the second ram that belong to Aaron and his sons. You must set apart the breast that was waved and the thigh that was offered.It will be the regular share from the Israelites for Aaron and his sons. The people must give it to the Lord from their friendship offerings.“ Aaron’s sacred clothes will belong to his sons who will come after him. Then they can wear them when you anoint them and prepare them to serve the Lord.The son who comes after Aaron as priest must wear them seven days. He will come and serve in the Holy Room in the tent of meeting.“ Get the ram sacrificed when you prepare Aaron and his sons to serve the Lord. Cook the meat in a sacred place.Aaron and his sons must eat the ram’s meat. And they must eat the bread in the basket. They must eat all of it at the entrance to the tent of meeting.These are the offerings to pay for their sins. They must eat them. The offerings must be made when Aaron and his sons are set apart and prepared to serve the Lord. No one else can eat them. They are sacred.When you prepare Aaron and his sons to serve me, you will sacrifice the ram and the bread. If any parts of the ram or bread are left until morning, burn them up. They must not be eaten. They are sacred.“ Do everything I have commanded you to do for Aaron and his sons. Take seven days when you prepare them to serve the Lord.Sacrifice a bull each day. It is a sin offering to pay for their sins. Make the altar pure. Pour olive oil on it to set it apart.Take seven days to make the altar pure. Set it apart. Then the altar will be a very holy place. Anything that touches it will be holy.

I, Paul, am writing this letter. I serve Christ Jesus. I have been appointed to be an apostle. God set me apart to tell others his good news.

All the elders of Israel arrived. Then the Levites picked up the ark and carried it.They brought up the ark. They also brought up the tent of meeting and all the sacred things in the tent. The priests, who were Levites, carried up everything.

The Lord said to Moses,“ Say to Aaron,‘ Set up the seven lamps. They will light up the area in front of the lampstand.’ ”So Aaron did it. He set up the lamps so that they faced forward on the lampstand. He did just as the Lord had commanded Moses.The lampstand was made out of hammered gold. From its base to its blooms it was made out of hammered gold. The lampstand was made exactly like the pattern the Lord had shown Moses.The Lord spoke to Moses. He said,“ Take the Levites from among all the Israelites. Make them‘ clean’ in the usual way.Here is how to make them pure. Sprinkle the special water on them. Then have them shave their whole bodies. Also have them wash their clothes. That is how they will make themselves pure.Have them get a young bull along with its grain offering. The offering must be made out of the finest flour mixed with olive oil. Then you must get a second young bull. You must sacrifice it as a sin offering.Bring the Levites to the front of the tent of meeting. Gather the whole community of Israel together.You must bring the Levites to me. The Israelites must place their hands on them.Aaron must bring the Levites to me. They are a wave offering from the Israelites. That is how they will be set apart to do my work.“ Then I want the Levites to place their hands on the heads of the bulls. They must sacrifice one bull as a sin offering to me. And they must sacrifice the other as a burnt offering. The blood of the bulls will pay for the sin of the Levites.Have the Levites stand in front of Aaron and his sons. Then give them as a wave offering to me.That is how I want you to set apart the Levites from the other Israelites. The Levites will belong to me.“ Make the Levites pure. Give them to me as a wave offering. Then they must come to do their work at the tent of meeting.They are the Israelites who will be given to me completely. I have taken them to be my own. I have taken them in place of every son born first in his family in Israel.Every male born first in Israel belongs to me. That is true whether it is a human or an animal. In Egypt I struck down all the males born first to their mothers. Then I set apart for myself all the males born first in Israel.And I have taken the Levites in place of all the sons born first in Israel.I have given the Levites as gifts to Aaron and his sons. I have taken them from among all the Israelites. I have appointed them to do the work at the tent of meeting. They will do it in place of the Israelites. That is how they will keep the Israelites from being guilty when they go near the sacred tent. Then no plague will strike the Israelites when they go near the tent.”So Moses and Aaron and all the Israelites did with the Levites just as the Lord had commanded Moses.The Levites made themselves pure. They washed their clothes. Then Aaron gave them to the Lord as a wave offering. That’s how he paid for their sin to make them pure.After that, the Levites came to do their work at the tent of meeting. They worked under the direction of Aaron and his sons. And so Moses and Aaron and the whole community of Israel did with the Levites just as the Lord had commanded Moses.The Lord said to Moses,“ Here is what the Levites must do. Men 25 years old or more must come and take part in the work at the tent of meeting.But when they reach the age of 50, they must not work any longer. They must stop doing their regular work.They can help their brothers with their duties at the tent of meeting. But they themselves should not do the work. That is how you must direct the Levites to do their work.”

So the Levites don’t need to carry the holy tent anymore. They don’t need to carry any of its objects anymore. Those were the things that were used to serve there.”

All the elders of Israel arrived. Then the priests picked up the ark and carried it.They brought up the ark of the Lord. They also brought up the tent of meeting and all the sacred things in the tent. The priests and Levites carried everything up.

You who serve in the house of the Lord, praise him. You who serve in the courtyards of the temple of our God, praise him.

But God set me apart from before the time I was born. He showed me his grace by appointing me. He was pleased

Lift up your hands in the temple and praise the Lord.

So,“ Come out from among them and be separate, says the Lord. Do not touch anything that is not pure and‘ clean.’ Then I will receive you.”( Isaiah 52:11; Ezekiel 20:34, 41)

If your gift is serving, then serve. If it is teaching, then teach.

Then he placed the turban on Aaron’s head. On the front of the turban he put the gold plate. It was a sacred crown. Moses did everything just as the Lord had commanded him.

They were responsible for taking care of the ark of the covenant law. They took care of the table for the holy bread. They took care of the lampstand and the two altars. They took care of the things used for serving in the sacred tent. They also took care of the inner curtain. In fact, they had to take care of everything connected with the use of all those things.

My sons, don’t fail to obey the Lord. He has chosen you to stand in front of him and work for him. He wants you to serve him and burn incense to him.”