Numbers 19:1–10

Ashes of the Red Heifer

19And Yahweh spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying, ²“This is the decree of the law that Yahweh has commanded, saying, ‘Speak to the Israelites^a and let them take to you a red heifer without a physical defect, on which a yoke has not been placed.^{b 3}And you will give it to Eleazar the priest, and it will be brought^c out to a place outside the camp, and it will be slaughtered^d in his presence. ⁴Then Eleazar the priest will take some of its blood on his finger and spatter it toward the mouth of the tent of assembly seven times. ⁵The heifer will be burned^e in his sight; its skin, its meat, and its blood, in addition to its offal, will burn. ⁶The priest will take cedar wood, hyssop, and crimson thread, and he will throw them in the midst of the burning heifer.^{f 7}The priest will wash his garments and his body in the water, and afterward he will come to the camp; the priest will be unclean until the evening. ⁸The one who burns it will wash his garments and his body in water; he will be unclean until the evening. ⁹A clean man will gather the ashes of the heifer, and he will put them in a clean place outside the camp;^g it will be for the community of the Israelites^h as a requirement for waters of impurity; it is a purification offering. ¹⁰The one who gathers the ashes of the heifer will wash his garments; he will be unclean until evening. It will be an eternal decree for the Israelitesⁱ and for one who dwells as an alien in their midst.