Numbers 8 · Parashat Behaalotecha

And the Lord spoke to Moshe, saying,

Speak to Aharon, and say to him, When thou lightest the lamps, the seven lamps shall give light towards the body of the candlestick.

And Aharon did so; he lighted its lamps over against the body of the candlestick, as the Lord commanded Moshe.

And this was the work of the candlestick: it was of beaten gold, from its shaft, to its flowers, it was beaten work: according to the pattern which the Lord had shown Moshe, so he made the candlestick.

And the Lord spoke to Moshe, saying,

Take the Levites from among the children of Yisra᾽el, and cleanse them.

And thus shalt thou do to them, to cleanse them: Sprinkle water of purifying on them, and let them shave all their flesh, and let them wash their clothes, and so make themselves clean.

Then let them take a young bullock with its meal offering, even fine flour mingled with oil, and another young bullock shalt thou take for a sin offering.

And thou shalt bring the Levites before the Tent of Meeting: and thou shalt gather the whole assembly of the children of Yisra᾽el together:

and thou shalt bring the Levites before the Lord: and the children of Yisra᾽el shall put their hands upon the Levites:

and Aharon shall offer the Levites before the Lord for an offering of the children of Yisra᾽el, that they may execute the service of the Lord.

And the Levites shall lay their hands upon the heads of the bullocks: and thou shalt offer the one for a sin offering, and the other for a burnt offering, to the Lord, to make atonement for the Levites.

And thou shalt set the Levites before Aharon, and before his sons, and offer them for a wave offering to the Lord.

Thus shalt thou separate the Levites from among the children of Yisra᾽el: and the Levites shall be mine.

And after that shall the Levites go in to do the service of the Tent of Meeting: and thou shalt cleanse them, and offer them for an offering.

For they are wholly given to me from among the children of Yisra᾽el; instead of such as open every womb, the firstborn of all the children of Yisra᾽el, have I taken them to me.

For all the firstborn of the children of Yisra᾽el are mine, both man and beast: on the day that I smote every firstborn in the land of Miżrayim I sanctified them for myself.

And I have taken the Levites for all the firstborn of the children of Yisra᾽el.

And I have given the Levites as a gift to Aharon and to his sons from among the children of Yisra᾽el, to do the service of the children of Yisra᾽el in the Tent of Meeting, and to make atonement for the children of Yisra᾽el: that there be no plague among the children of Yisra᾽el, when the children of Yisra᾽el come near to the sanctuary.

And Moshe, and Aharon, and all the congregation of the children of Yisra᾽el did to the Levites according to all that the Lord commanded Moshe concerning the Levites, so did the children of Yisra᾽el to them.

And the Levites were purified, and they washed their clothes; and Aharon offered them as an offering before the Lord; and Aharon made atonement for them to cleanse them.

And after that, the Levites went in to do their service in the Tent of Meeting before Aharon, and before his sons: as the Lord had commanded Moshe concerning the Levites, so they did to them.

And the Lord spoke to Moshe, saying,

This is that which belongs to the Levites: from twenty five years old and upward they shall go in to wait upon the service of the Tent of Meeting:

and from the age of fifty years they shall go out of the ranks of the service, and shall serve no more:

but shall minister with their brothers in the Tent of Meeting, to keep the charge, and shall do no service. Thus shalt thou do to the Levites as regards their charge.