1 Now these are the records of the generations of Aaron and Moses at the time when the Lord spoke with Moses on Mount Sinai. 2 These then are the names of the sons of Aaron: Nadab the firstborn, and Abihu, Eleazar and Ithamar. 3 These are the names of the sons of Aaron, the anointed priests, whom he ordained to serve as priests. 4 But Nadab and Abihu died in the presence of the Lord when they offered strange fire before the Lord in the wilderness of Sinai; and they had no children. So Eleazar and Ithamar served as priests in the lifetime of their father Aaron.
5 Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 6 “Bring the tribe of Levi forward and present them before Aaron the priest, that they may serve him. 7 They shall perform the duties for him and for the whole congregation in front of the tent of meeting, to do the service of the tabernacle. 8 They shall also take care of all the furnishings of the tent of meeting, along with the duties of the sons of Israel, to do the service of the tabernacle. 9 So you shall assign the Levites to Aaron and to his sons; they are exclusively assigned to him from the sons of Israel. 10 So you shall appoint Aaron and his sons that they may keep their priesthood, but the layman who comes near shall be put to death.”
11 Again the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 12 “Now, behold, I have taken the Levites from among the sons of Israel instead of every firstborn, the firstborn of the womb among the sons of Israel. So the Levites shall be Mine. 13 For all the firstborn are Mine; on the day that I fatally struck all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, I sanctified to Myself all the firstborn in Israel, from the human firstborn to animals. They shall be Mine; I am the Lord.”
14 Then the Lord spoke to Moses in the wilderness of Sinai, saying, 15 “Count the sons of Levi by their fathers’ households, by their families; every male from a month old and upward you shall count.” 16 So Moses counted them according to the word of the Lord, just as he had been commanded. 17 These, then, are the sons of Levi by their names: Gershon, Kohath, and Merari. 18 And these are the names of the sons of Gershon by their families: Libni and Shimei; 19 and the sons of Kohath by their families: Amram and Izhar, Hebron and Uzziel; 20 and the sons of Merari by their families: Mahli and Mushi. These are the families of the Levites according to their fathers’ households.
21 Of Gershon was the family of the Libnites and the family of the Shimeites; these were the families of the Gershonites. 22 Their numbered men, in the counting of every male from a month old and upward, their numbered men were 7,500. 23 The families of the Gershonites were to camp behind the tabernacle westward, 24 and the leader of the fathers’ households of the Gershonites: Eliasaph the son of Lael.
25 Now the duties of the sons of Gershon in the tent of meeting included the tabernacle and the tent, its covering, and the curtain for the entrance of the tent of meeting, 26 and the curtains of the courtyard, the curtain for the entrance of the courtyard which is around the tabernacle and the altar, and its ropes, according to all the service concerning them.
27 Of Kohath was the family of the Amramites, the family of the Izharites, the family of the Hebronites, and the family of the Uzzielites; these were the families of the Kohathites. 28 In the counting of every male from a month old and upward, there were 8,600, performing the duties of the sanctuary. 29 The families of the sons of Kohath were to camp on the south side of the tabernacle, 30 and the leader of the fathers’ households of the Kohathite families: Elizaphan the son of Uzziel. 31 Now their duties included the ark, the table, the lampstand, the altars, the utensils of the sanctuary with which they minister, the curtain, and all the service concerning them; 32 and Eleazar the son of Aaron the priest was the head of the leaders of Levi, and he had the supervision of those who performed the duties of the sanctuary.
33 Of Merari was the family of the Mahlites and the family of the Mushites; these were the families of Merari. 34 Their numbered men in the counting of every male from a month old and upward: 6,200. 35 And the leader of the fathers’ households of the families of Merari was Zuriel the son of Abihail. They were to camp on the northward side of the tabernacle. 36 Now the appointment of duties of the sons of Merari included the framework of the tabernacle, its bars, its pillars, its bases, all its equipment, and all the service concerning them, 37 and the pillars around the courtyard with their bases, their pegs, and their ropes.
38 Now those who were to camp in front of the tabernacle eastward, in front of the tent of meeting toward the sunrise, were Moses and Aaron and his sons, performing the duties of the sanctuary for the obligation of the sons of Israel; but the layman coming near was to be put to death. 39 All the numbered men of the Levites, whom Moses and Aaron counted at the command of the Lord by their families, every male from a month old and upward, were twenty-two thousand.
40 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Count every firstborn male of the sons of Israel from a month old and upward, and make a list of their names. 41 And you shall take the Levites for Me—I am the Lord—instead of all the firstborn among the sons of Israel; and the cattle of the Levites in place of all the firstborn among the cattle of the sons of Israel.” 42 So Moses counted all the firstborn among the sons of Israel, just as the Lord had commanded him; 43 and all the firstborn males, by the number of names from a month old and upward for their numbered men, were 22,273.
44 Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 45 “Take the Levites in place of all the firstborn among the sons of Israel, and the cattle of the Levites in place of their cattle. And the Levites shall be Mine; I am the Lord. 46 And as a redemption price for the 273 of the firstborn of the sons of Israel who are in excess of the number of the Levites, 47 you shall take five shekels apiece, per head; you shall take them in terms of the shekel of the sanctuary (the shekel is twenty gerahs), 48 and you shall give the money, the redemption price of those who are in excess among them, to Aaron and to his sons.” 49 So Moses took the redemption money from those who were in excess of the number of those redeemed by the Levites; 50 from the firstborn of the sons of Israel he took the money in terms of the shekel of the sanctuary, 1,365. 51 Then Moses gave the redemption money to Aaron and to his sons, at the command of the Lord, just as the Lord had commanded Moses.
1 Do not get upset because of evildoers,
Do not be envious of wrongdoers.
2 For they will wither quickly like the grass,
And decay like the green plants.
3 Trust in the Lord and do good;
Live in the land and cultivate faithfulness.
4 Delight yourself in the Lord;
And He will give you the desires of your heart.
5 Commit your way to the Lord,
Trust also in Him, and He will do it.
6 He will bring out your righteousness as the light,
And your judgment as the noonday.
7 Rest in the Lord and wait patiently for Him;
Do not get upset because of one who is successful in his way,
Because of the person who carries out wicked schemes.
8 Cease from anger and abandon wrath;
Do not get upset; it leads only to evildoing.
9 For evildoers will be eliminated,
But those who wait for the Lord, they will inherit the land.
10 Yet a little while and the wicked person will be no more;
And you will look carefully for his place and he will not be there.
11 But the humble will inherit the land
And will delight themselves in abundant prosperity.
12 The wicked plots against the righteous,
And gnashes at him with his teeth.
13 The Lord laughs at him,
For He sees that his day is coming.
14 The wicked have drawn the sword and bent their bow
To take down the afflicted and the needy,
To kill off those who are upright in conduct.
15 Their sword will enter their own heart,
And their bows will be broken.
16 Better is the little of the righteous
Than the abundance of many wicked.
17 For the arms of the wicked will be broken,
But the Lord sustains the righteous.
18 The Lord knows the days of the blameless,
And their inheritance will be forever.
19 They will not be ashamed in the time of evil,
And in the days of famine they will have plenty.
20 But the wicked will perish;
And the enemies of the Lord will be like the glory of the pastures,
They vanish—like smoke they vanish away.
21 The wicked borrows and does not pay back,
But the righteous is gracious and gives.
22 For those blessed by Him will inherit the land,
But those cursed by Him will be eliminated.
23 The steps of a man are established by the Lord,
And He delights in his way.
24 When he falls, he will not be hurled down,
Because the Lord is the One who holds his hand.
25 I have been young and now I am old,
Yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken
Or his descendants begging for bread.
26 All day long he is gracious and lends,
And his descendants are a blessing.
27 Turn from evil and do good,
So that you will dwell forever.
28 For the Lord loves justice
And does not abandon His godly ones;
They are protected forever,
But the descendants of the wicked will be eliminated.
29 The righteous will inherit the land
And dwell in it forever.
30 The mouth of the righteous utters wisdom,
And his tongue speaks justice.
31 The Law of his God is in his heart;
His steps do not slip.
32 The wicked spies upon the righteous
And seeks to kill him.
33 The Lord will not leave him in his hand
Or let him be condemned when he is judged.
34 Wait for the Lord and keep His way,
And He will exalt you to inherit the land;
When the wicked are eliminated, you will see it.
35 I have seen a wicked, violent person
Spreading himself like a luxuriant tree in its native soil.
36 Then he passed away, and behold, he was no more;
I searched for him, but he could not be found.
37 Observe the blameless person, and look at the upright;
For the person of peace will have a future.
38 But wrongdoers will altogether be destroyed;
The future of the wicked will be eliminated.
39 But the salvation of the righteous is from the Lord;
He is their strength in time of trouble.
40 The Lord helps them and rescues them;
He rescues them from the wicked and saves them,
Because they take refuge in Him.
1 The Song of Songs, which is Solomon’s.
2 “May he kiss me with the kisses of his mouth!
For your love is sweeter than wine.
3 Your oils have a pleasing fragrance,
Your name is like purified oil;
Therefore the young women love you.
4 Draw me after you and let’s run together!
The king has brought me into his chambers.”
“We will rejoice in you and be joyful;
We will praise your love more than wine.
Rightly do they love you.”
5 “I am black and beautiful,
You daughters of Jerusalem,
Like the tents of Kedar,
Like the curtains of Solomon.
6 Do not stare at me because I am dark,
For the sun has tanned me.
My mother’s sons were angry with me;
They made me caretaker of the vineyards,
But I have not taken care of my own vineyard.
7 Tell me, you whom my soul loves,
Where do you pasture your flock,
Where do you have it lie down at noon?
For why should I be like one who veils herself
Beside the flocks of your companions?”
8 “If you yourself do not know,
Most beautiful among women,
Go out on the trail of the flock,
And pasture your young goats
By the tents of the shepherds.
9 “To me, my darling, you are like
My mare among the chariots of Pharaoh.
10 Your cheeks are delightful with jewelry,
Your neck with strings of beads.”
11 “We will make for you jewelry of gold
With beads of silver.”
12 “While the king was at his table,
My perfume gave forth its fragrance.
13 My beloved is to me a pouch of myrrh
Which lies all night between my breasts.
14 My beloved is to me a cluster of henna blossoms
In the vineyards of Engedi.”
15 “How beautiful you are, my darling,
How beautiful you are!
Your eyes are like doves.”
16 “How handsome you are, my beloved,
And so delightful!
Indeed, our bed is luxuriant!
17 The beams of our house are cedars,
Our rafters, junipers.
1 God, after He spoke long ago to the fathers in the prophets in many portions and in many ways, 2 in these last days has spoken to us in His Son, whom He appointed heir of all things, through whom He also made the world. 3 And He is the radiance of His glory and the exact representation of His nature, and upholds all things by the word of His power. When He had made purification of sins, He sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, 4 having become so much better than the angels, to the extent that He has inherited a more excellent name than they.
5 For to which of the angels did He ever say,
“You are My Son,
Today I have fathered You”?
And again,
“I will be a Father to Him
And He will be a Son to Me”?
6 And when He again brings the firstborn into the world, He says,
“And let all the angels of God worship Him.”
7 And regarding the angels He says,
“He makes His angels winds,
And His ministers a flame of fire.”
8 But regarding the Son He says,
“Your throne, God, is forever and ever,
And the scepter of righteousness is the scepter of His kingdom.
9 You have loved righteousness and hated lawlessness;
Therefore God, Your God, has anointed You
With the oil of joy above Your companions.”
10 And,
“You, Lord, in the beginning laid the foundation of the earth,
And the heavens are the works of Your hands;
11 They will perish, but You remain;
And they all will wear out like a garment,
12 And like a robe You will roll them up;
Like a garment they will also be changed.
But You are the same,
And Your years will not come to an end.”
13 But to which of the angels has He ever said,
“Sit at My right hand,
Until I make Your enemies
A footstool for Your feet”?
14 Are they not all ministering spirits, sent out to provide service for the sake of those who will inherit salvation?
