Numbers 8:12–26

¹²Next the Levites are to lay their hands on the heads of the bulls. Sacrifice one as a sin offering and the other as a burnt offering to the Lord, to make atonement for the Levites.^j

¹³“You are to have the Levites stand before Aaron and his sons, and you are to present them before the Lord as a presentation offering. ¹⁴In this way you are to separate the Levites from the rest of the Israelites so that the Levites will belong to me.^{k 15}After that the Levites may come to serve at the tent of meeting, once you have ceremonially cleansed them and presented them as a presentation offering.^{l 16}For they have been exclusively assigned to me from the Israelites.^m I have taken them for myself in place of all who come first from the womb, every Israelite firstborn.^{n 17}For every firstborn among the Israelites is mine, both man and animal. I consecrated them to myself^o on the day I struck down every firstborn in the land of Egypt. ¹⁸But I have taken the Levites in place of every firstborn among the Israelites. ¹⁹From the Israelites, I have given the Levites exclusively to Aaron and his sons to perform the work for the Israelites at the tent of meeting and to make atonement on their behalf, so that no plague will come against the Israelites when they approach the sanctuary.”^p

²⁰Moses, Aaron, and the entire Israelite community did this to the Levites. The Israelites did everything to them the Lord commanded Moses regarding the Levites. ²¹The Levites purified themselves and washed their clothes; then Aaron presented^A them before the Lord as a presentation offering. Aaron also made atonement for them to cleanse them ceremonially. ²²After that, the Levites came to do their work at the tent of meeting in the presence of Aaron and his sons. So they did to them as the Lord had commanded Moses concerning the Levites.

²³The Lord spoke to Moses: ²⁴“In regard to the Levites: From twenty-five years old or more, a man enters the service in the work at the tent of meeting.^{q 25}But at fifty years old he is to retire from his service in the work and no longer serve. ²⁶He may assist his brothers to fulfill responsibilities^A at the tent of meeting,^r but he must not do the work. This is how you are to deal with the Levites regarding their duties.”