The Father Appoints His Priests and Levites
18 1 Our Father said to Aaron, "You, your sons, and your father's house will bear the guilt of the sanctuary; you and your sons will bear the guilt of your priesthood." 2 Bring your brothers too — the tribe of Levi, your father's tribe — to join and serve you, you and your sons, before the tent of the testimony. 3 They must keep your duties and all the tent's duties, but not approach the sanctuary's sacred objects or the altar, or both they and you will die. 4 They will join you and keep the charge of the tent of meeting, all its service — no outsider may come near you.
5 Guard the sanctuary and altar, so wrath never again falls on Israel's people. 6 I have taken your fellow Levites from Israel's sons—a gift to you, given to me, to serve at the tent of meeting. 7 You and your sons must guard your priesthood in all matters of the altar and behind the inner curtain; serve there. I give your priesthood as a gift; any outsider who approaches must be put to death.
The Father Provides for His Servants
8 Our Father said to Aaron, "I have given you charge of my contributions, all the holy gifts of Israel's people. I have given them to you as a portion, and to your sons as a permanent share." 9 This is yours from the most holy things kept from the fire: all their offerings—every grain offering, every sin offering, and every guilt offering they bring me—are most holy, for you and your sons. 10 Eat it in the most holy place; every male may eat it — it is holy to you.
11 This too is yours: the contribution from their gifts, all Israel's wave offerings. I've given them to you, your sons, your daughters with you—a permanent law. Anyone clean in your house may eat it. 12 The best of the oil, new wine, and grain — the firstfruits they give me — I give you. 13 The first produce of their land, brought to me, is yours. Anyone clean in your house may eat it.
14 Every devoted thing in Israel shall be yours. 15 Every firstborn of human or animal offered to me is yours—but redeem the firstborn of humans, and redeem the firstborn of unclean animals. 16 Redeem them at one month old for five shekels of silver, by the sanctuary standard.
17 But the firstborn cow, sheep, or goat you must not buy back—they are holy. Splash their blood on the altar, burn their fat as a food offering, a pleasing aroma to me. 18 But their flesh is yours, as the wave-offering breast and right thigh are yours. 19 All the holy offerings Israel brings me I give you, your sons and daughters with you, as a lasting share. It is a salt covenant forever before me, for you and your offspring with you. a a v19 A covenant of salt was an unbreakable, everlasting agreement — salt preserves and never spoils, symbolizing permanence.
20 Our Father said to Aaron, "You will have no inheritance in their land, no portion among them. I am your portion and inheritance among Israel's sons."
21 I have given the Levites all the tenth in Israel as inheritance in exchange for the service they perform, the service of the tent of meeting. 22 The Israelites must no longer approach the tent of meeting, or they will bear guilt and die. 23 But the Levites will serve at the tent of meeting and bear their own guilt. This is a permanent law for your generations: they get no inheritance among Israel's people. 24 For the tenth Israel's people present to me as a contribution, I have given the Levites as their inheritance. So I have told them: they will have no inheritance among Israel's people.
25 Our Father spoke to Moses, saying,
26 Speak to the Levites and tell them: When you take the tenth I have given you from Israel's people as your inheritance, bring a contribution from it to me — a tenth of the tenth. 27 Your contribution will count for you as grain from the threshing floor, as full produce from the winepress. 28 You too must present a contribution to me from all your tenth taken from Israel's people, giving from it my contribution to Aaron the priest. 29 From all your gifts, present every offering to me — from each, the best and holiest part.
30 So tell them: when you offer its best part, it counts for the Levites as produce of the threshing floor and winepress. 31 Eat it anywhere, you and your households — it is your wage for your service in the tent of meeting. 32 You incur no guilt from it once you have offered its best part. But you must not desecrate the holy things of Israel's sons, or you will die.
