Numbers 16

¹¹Woe to them! They have traveled the path of Cain; they have rushed for profit into the error of Balaam; they have perished in Korah’s rebellion.

⁶and what He did in the midst of all the Israelites to Dathan and Abiram, the sons of Eliab the Reubenite, when the earth opened its mouth and swallowed them, their households, their tents, and every living thing that belonged to them.

²¹The sons of Izhar were Korah, Nepheg, and Zichri.

³“Our father died in the wilderness, but he was not among the followers of Korah who gathered together against the Lord. Instead, he died because of his own sin, and he had no sons.

⁹and the sons of Eliab were Nemuel, Dathan, and Abiram. It was Dathan and Abiram, chosen by the congregation, who rebelled against Moses and Aaron with the followers of Korah who rebelled against the Lord.

¹⁰And the earth opened its mouth and swallowed them along with Korah, whose followers died when the fire consumed 250 men. They serve as a warning sign.

³Reuben, you are my firstborn, my might, and the beginning of my strength, excelling in honor, excelling in power.

⁴Uncontrolled as the waters, you will no longer excel, because you went up to your father’s bed, onto my couch, and defiled it.

⁹and the sons of Eliab were Nemuel, Dathan, and Abiram. It was Dathan and Abiram, chosen by the congregation, who rebelled against Moses and Aaron with the followers of Korah who rebelled against the Lord.

¹⁰They exposed her nakedness, seized her sons and daughters, and put her to the sword. Thus she became a byword among women, and they executed judgment against her.

²⁴These were the heads of their families: Epher, Ishi, Eliel, Azriel, Jeremiah, Hodaviah, and Jahdiel. They were mighty men of valor, famous men, and heads of their families.

⁴The Nephilim were on the earth in those days—and afterward as well—when the sons of God had relations with the daughters of men. And they bore them children who became the mighty men of old, men of renown.

¹⁶These men were appointed from the congregation; they were the leaders of the tribes of their fathers, the heads of the clans of Israel.

³⁰From Ephraim: 20,800 mighty men of valor, famous among their own clans.

¹⁶In the camp they envied Moses, as well as Aaron, the holy one of the Lord.

¹⁴And they will tell it to the inhabitants of this land. They have already heard that You, O Lord, are in the midst of this people, that You, O Lord, have been seen face to face, that Your cloud stands over them, and that You go before them in a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night.

⁶And unto Me you shall be a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.’ These are the words that you are to speak to the Israelites.”

⁵¹You stiff-necked people with uncircumcised hearts and ears! You always resist the Holy Spirit, just as your fathers did.

⁷and tomorrow you are to place fire and incense in them in the presence of the Lord. Then the man the Lord chooses will be the one who is holy. It is you sons of Levi who have taken too much upon yourselves!”

³Thus says the Lord of Hosts, the God of Israel: Correct your ways and deeds, and I will let you live in this place.

⁴Do not trust in deceptive words, saying: ‘This is the temple of the Lord, the temple of the Lord, the temple of the Lord.’

⁵Then Moses and Aaron fell facedown before the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel.

⁶Then Moses and Aaron went from the presence of the assembly to the entrance to the Tent of Meeting. They fell facedown, and the glory of the Lord appeared to them.

⁴⁵“Get away from this congregation so that I may consume them in an instant.” And Moses and Aaron fell facedown.

⁶Then Joshua tore his clothes and fell facedown before the ark of the Lord until evening, as did the elders of Israel; and they all sprinkled dust on their heads.

⁴Blessed is the one You choose and bring near to dwell in Your courts! We are filled with the goodness of Your house, the holiness of Your temple.

⁵The staff belonging to the man I choose will sprout, and I will rid Myself of the constant grumbling of the Israelites against you.”

³Then Moses said to Aaron, “This is what the Lord meant when He said: ‘To those who come near Me I will show My holiness, and in the sight of all the people I will reveal My glory.’” But Aaron remained silent.

¹⁹Nevertheless, God’s firm foundation stands, bearing this seal: “The Lord knows those who are His,” and, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord must turn away from iniquity.”

³They came together against Moses and Aaron and told them, “You have taken too much upon yourselves! For everyone in the entire congregation is holy, and the Lord is in their midst. Why then do you exalt yourselves above the assembly of the Lord?”

²While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, “Set apart for Me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.”

¹Now Aaron’s sons Nadab and Abihu took their censers, put fire in them and added incense, and offered unauthorized fire before the Lord, contrary to His command.

³⁵And fire came forth from the Lord and consumed the 250 men who were offering the incense.

³⁶Then the Lord said to Moses,

¹²Then he must take a censer full of burning coals from the altar before the Lord, and two handfuls of finely ground fragrant incense, and take them inside the veil.

¹³He is to put the incense on the fire before the Lord, and the cloud of incense will cover the mercy seat above the Testimony, so that he will not die.

²¹Then Elijah approached all the people and said, “How long will you waver between two opinions? If the Lord is God, follow Him. But if Baal is God, follow him.” But the people did not answer a word.

²²Then Elijah said to the people, “I am the only remaining prophet of the Lord, but Baal has four hundred and fifty prophets.

⁴⁶Moses said to Aaron, “Take your censer, place fire from the altar in it, and add incense. Go quickly to the congregation and make atonement for them, because wrath has come out from the Lord; the plague has begun.”

⁴⁷So Aaron took the censer as Moses had ordered and ran into the midst of the assembly. And seeing that the plague had begun among the people, he offered the incense and made atonement for the people.

³They came together against Moses and Aaron and told them, “You have taken too much upon yourselves! For everyone in the entire congregation is holy, and the Lord is in their midst. Why then do you exalt yourselves above the assembly of the Lord?”

⁵Then he said to Korah and all his followers, “Tomorrow morning the Lord will reveal who belongs to Him and who is holy, and He will bring that person near to Himself. The one He chooses He will bring near to Himself.

²³When Jesus returned to the temple courts and began to teach, the chief priests and elders of the people came up to Him. “By what authority are You doing these things?” they asked. “And who gave You this authority?”

²⁴“I will also ask you one question,” Jesus replied, “and if you answer Me, I will tell you by what authority I am doing these things.

¹³But we should always thank God for you, brothers who are loved by the Lord, because God chose you from the beginning to be saved by the sanctification of the Spirit and by faith in the truth.

⁹But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God’s own possession, to proclaim the virtues of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.

¹⁷When Ahab saw Elijah, he said to him, “Is that you, O troubler of Israel?”

¹⁸“I have not troubled Israel,” Elijah replied, “but you and your father’s house have, for you have forsaken the commandments of the Lord and have followed the Baals.

¹³Then Isaiah said, “Hear now, O house of David! Is it not enough to try the patience of men? Will you try the patience of my God as well?

⁸At that time the Lord set apart the tribe of Levi to carry the ark of the covenant of the Lord, to stand before the Lord to serve Him, and to pronounce blessings in His name, as they do to this day.

¹⁰Surely the Levites who wandered away from Me when Israel went astray, and who wandered away from Me after their idols, will bear the consequences of their iniquity.

¹¹Yet they shall be ministers in My sanctuary, having charge of the gates of the temple and ministering there. They shall slaughter the burnt offerings and other sacrifices for the people and stand before them to minister to them.

⁵³But the Levites are to camp around the tabernacle of the Testimony and watch over it, so that no wrath will fall on the congregation of Israel. So the Levites are responsible for the tabernacle of the Testimony.”

⁴⁴And on that same day men were appointed over the rooms that housed the supplies, contributions, firstfruits, and tithes. The portions specified by the Law for the priests and Levites were gathered into these storerooms from the fields of the villages, because Judah rejoiced over the priests and Levites who were serving.

⁶“Bring the tribe of Levi and present them to Aaron the priest to assist him.

¹⁰Be devoted to one another in brotherly love. Outdo yourselves in honoring one another.

⁷But only you and your sons shall attend to your priesthood for everything concerning the altar and what is inside the veil, and you are to perform that service. I am giving you the work of the priesthood as a gift, but any outsider who comes near the sanctuary must be put to death.”

³Do nothing out of selfish ambition or empty pride, but in humility consider others more important than yourselves.

²⁴A dispute also arose among the disciples as to which of them should be considered the greatest.

¹⁰So you shall appoint Aaron and his sons to carry out the duties of the priesthood; but any outsider who approaches the tabernacle must be put to death.”

²¹“What do you want?” He inquired. She answered, “Declare that in Your kingdom one of these two sons of mine may sit at Your right hand, and the other at Your left.”

²²“You do not know what you are asking,” Jesus replied. “Can you drink the cup I am going to drink?” “We can,” the brothers answered.

²So the people contended with Moses, “Give us water to drink.” “Why do you contend with me?” Moses replied. “Why do you test the Lord?”

⁷and in the morning you will see the Lord’s glory, because He has heard your grumbling against Him. For who are we, that you should grumble against us?”

⁸And Moses added, “The Lord will give you meat to eat this evening and bread to fill you in the morning, for He has heard your grumbling against Him. Who are we? Your grumblings are not against us but against the Lord.”

³They came together against Moses and Aaron and told them, “You have taken too much upon yourselves! For everyone in the entire congregation is holy, and the Lord is in their midst. Why then do you exalt yourselves above the assembly of the Lord?”

⁵What then is Apollos? And what is Paul? They are servants through whom you believed, as the Lord has assigned to each his role.

²⁰Truly, truly, I tell you, whoever receives the one I send receives Me, and whoever receives Me receives the One who sent Me.”

¹⁶Whoever listens to you listens to Me; whoever rejects you rejects Me; and whoever rejects Me rejects the One who sent Me.”

⁹If a wise man goes to court with a fool, there will be raving and laughing with no resolution.

⁸Yet in the same way these dreamers defile their bodies, reject authority, and slander glorious beings.

¹³Submit yourselves for the Lord’s sake to every human institution, whether to the king as the supreme authority,

¹⁴or to governors as those sent by him to punish those who do wrong and to praise those who do right.

⁵The people will oppress one another, man against man, neighbor against neighbor; the young will rise up against the old, and the base against the honorable.

³⁵This Moses, whom they had rejected with the words, ‘Who made you ruler and judge?’ is the one whom God sent to be their ruler and redeemer through the angel who appeared to him in the bush.

⁵We remember the fish we ate freely in Egypt, along with the cucumbers, melons, leeks, onions, and garlic.

¹⁴But the man replied, “Who made you ruler and judge over us? Are you planning to kill me as you killed the Egyptian?” Then Moses was afraid and thought, “This thing I have done has surely become known.”

³“If only we had died by the Lord’s hand in the land of Egypt!” they said. “There we sat by pots of meat and ate our fill of bread, but you have brought us into this desert to starve this whole assembly to death!”

²³After a long time, the king of Egypt died. The Israelites groaned and cried out under their burden of slavery, and their cry for deliverance from bondage ascended to God.

²The kings of the earth take their stand and the rulers gather together, against the Lord and against His Anointed One:

³“Let us break Their chains and cast away Their cords.”

²⁴But I have told you that you will inherit their land, since I will give it to you as an inheritance—a land flowing with milk and honey. I am the Lord your God, who has set you apart from the peoples.

²¹Then the Philistines seized him, gouged out his eyes, and brought him down to Gaza, where he was bound with bronze shackles and forced to grind grain in the prison.

²But Nahash the Ammonite replied, “I will make a treaty with you on one condition, that I may put out everyone’s right eye and bring reproach upon all Israel.”

⁸Every daughter who possesses an inheritance from any Israelite tribe must marry within a clan of the tribe of her father, so that every Israelite will possess the inheritance of his fathers.

⁹No inheritance may be transferred from one tribe to another, for each tribe of Israel must retain its inheritance.”

¹⁷And I have promised to bring you up out of your affliction in Egypt, into the land of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites—a land flowing with milk and honey.’

¹¹but in the seventh year you must let it rest and lie fallow, so that the poor among your people may eat from the field and the wild animals may consume what they leave. Do the same with your vineyard and olive grove.

⁴while Abel brought the best portions of the firstborn of his flock. And the Lord looked with favor on Abel and his offering,

⁵but He had no regard for Cain and his offering. So Cain became very angry, and his countenance fell.

²Make room for us in your hearts. We have wronged no one, we have corrupted no one, we have exploited no one.

¹⁵But I have not used any of these rights. And I am not writing this to suggest that something be done for me. Indeed, I would rather die than let anyone nullify my boast.

¹⁹As Moses approached the camp and saw the calf and the dancing, he burned with anger and threw the tablets out of his hands, shattering them at the base of the mountain.

³Now Moses was a very humble man, more so than any man on the face of the earth.

⁶You, Korah, and all your followers are to do as follows: Take censers,

⁷and tomorrow you are to place fire and incense in them in the presence of the Lord. Then the man the Lord chooses will be the one who is holy. It is you sons of Levi who have taken too much upon yourselves!”

⁷Now present yourselves, so that I may confront you before the Lord with all the righteous acts He has done for you and your fathers.

³Here I am. Bear witness against me before the Lord and before His anointed: Whose ox or donkey have I taken? Whom have I cheated or oppressed? From whose hand have I accepted a bribe and closed my eyes? Tell me, and I will restore it to you.”

⁶You, Korah, and all your followers are to do as follows: Take censers,

⁷and tomorrow you are to place fire and incense in them in the presence of the Lord. Then the man the Lord chooses will be the one who is holy. It is you sons of Levi who have taken too much upon yourselves!”

¹⁴Remind the believers of these things, charging them before God to avoid quarreling over words, which succeeds only in leading the listeners to ruin.

⁷Now present yourselves, so that I may confront you before the Lord with all the righteous acts He has done for you and your fathers.

¹⁰But the whole congregation threatened to stone Joshua and Caleb. Then the glory of the Lord appeared to all the Israelites at the Tent of Meeting.

⁴²But when the congregation gathered against them, Moses and Aaron turned toward the Tent of Meeting, and suddenly the cloud covered it and the glory of the Lord appeared.

²³Moses and Aaron then entered the Tent of Meeting. When they came out, they blessed the people, and the glory of the Lord appeared to all the people.

⁷and in the morning you will see the Lord’s glory, because He has heard your grumbling against Him. For who are we, that you should grumble against us?”

¹⁰And as Aaron was speaking to the whole congregation of Israel, they looked toward the desert, and there in a cloud the glory of the Lord appeared.

⁵and the Lord came down in a pillar of cloud, stood at the entrance to the Tent, and summoned Aaron and Miriam. When both of them had stepped forward,

⁴⁵“Get away from this congregation so that I may consume them in an instant.” And Moses and Aaron fell facedown.

¹⁰Now leave Me alone, so that My anger may burn against them and consume them. Then I will make you into a great nation.”

⁵For the Lord had said to Moses, “Tell the Israelites, ‘You are a stiff-necked people. If I should go with you for a single moment, I would destroy you. Now take off your jewelry, and I will decide what to do with you.’”

¹⁹How suddenly they are laid waste, completely swept away by terrors!

⁴Then I heard another voice from heaven say: “Come out of her, My people, so that you will not share in her sins or contract any of her plagues.

¹⁷“Therefore come out from among them and be separate, says the Lord. Touch no unclean thing, and I will receive you.”

¹⁶“May the Lord, the God of the spirits of all flesh, appoint a man over the congregation

¹This is the burden of the word of the Lord concerning Israel. Thus declares the Lord, who stretches out the heavens and lays the foundation of the earth, who forms the spirit of man within him:

¹⁰The life of every living thing is in His hand, as well as the breath of all mankind.

⁹Furthermore, we have all had earthly fathers who disciplined us, and we respected them. Should we not much more submit to the Father of our spirits and live?

⁷before the dust returns to the ground from which it came and the spirit returns to God who gave it.

²³Abraham stepped forward and said, “Will You really sweep away the righteous with the wicked?

²⁴What if there are fifty righteous ones in the city? Will You really sweep it away and not spare the place for the sake of the fifty righteous ones who are there?

²¹“Separate yourselves from this congregation so that I may consume them in an instant.”

²⁵Then the Lord came down in the cloud and spoke to him, and He took some of the Spirit that was on Moses and placed that Spirit on the seventy elders. As the Spirit rested on them, they prophesied—but they never did so again.

³⁰Then Moses returned to the camp, along with the elders of Israel.

¹⁶Then the Lord said to Moses, “Bring Me seventy of the elders of Israel known to you as leaders and officers of the people. Bring them to the Tent of Meeting and have them stand there with you.

¹⁷And I will come down and speak with you there, and I will take some of the Spirit that is on you and put that Spirit on them. They will help you bear the burden of the people, so that you do not have to bear it by yourself.

¹¹Depart, depart, go out from there! Touch no unclean thing; come out from it, purify yourselves, you who carry the vessels of the Lord.

⁴Then I heard another voice from heaven say: “Come out of her, My people, so that you will not share in her sins or contract any of her plagues.

¹⁷“Therefore come out from among them and be separate, says the Lord. Touch no unclean thing, and I will receive you.”

⁵¹So they shook the dust off their feet in protest against them and went to Iconium.

²²Do not be too quick in the laying on of hands and thereby share in the sins of others. Keep yourself pure.

²⁰But Peter replied, “May your silver perish with you, because you thought you could buy the gift of God with money!

¹⁰Then adorn yourself with majesty and splendor, and clothe yourself with honor and glory.

¹¹Unleash the fury of your wrath; look on every proud man and bring him low.

¹⁸Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall.

¹⁴Therefore hear the word of the Lord, O scoffers who rule this people in Jerusalem.

¹²Before his downfall a man’s heart is proud, but humility comes before honor.

³⁰Now when Jehu arrived in Jezreel, Jezebel heard of it. So she painted her eyes, adorned her head, and looked down from a window.

³¹And as Jehu entered the gate, she asked, “Have you come in peace, O Zimri, murderer of your master?”

⁴God is wise in heart and mighty in strength. Who has resisted Him and prospered?

³⁸For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but to do the will of Him who sent Me.

¹²“I will surely be with you,” God said, “and this will be the sign to you that I have sent you: When you have brought the people out of Egypt, all of you will worship God on this mountain.”

¹⁷Now, O son of man, set your face against the daughters of your people who prophesy out of their own imagination. Prophesy against them

¹⁶This is what the Lord of Hosts says: “Do not listen to the words of the prophets who prophesy to you. They are filling you with false hopes. They speak visions from their own minds, not from the mouth of the Lord.

¹¹Believe Me that I am in the Father and the Father is in Me—or at least believe on account of the works themselves.

³⁶But I have testimony more substantial than that of John. For the works that the Father has given Me to accomplish—the very works I am doing—testify about Me that the Father has sent Me.

²⁸But Micaiah replied, “If you ever return safely, the Lord has not spoken through me.” Then he added, “Take heed, all you people!”

²²O Daughter of Zion, your punishment is complete; He will not prolong your exile. But He will punish your iniquity, O Daughter of Edom; He will expose your sins.

⁹Should I not punish them for these things?” declares the Lord. “Should I not avenge Myself on such a nation as this?

¹⁹For the fates of both men and beasts are the same: As one dies, so dies the other—they all have the same breath. Man has no advantage over the animals, since everything is futile.

¹⁵and further, that in His anger He has not punished or taken much notice of folly!

²⁷But Micaiah replied, “If you ever return safely, the Lord has not spoken through me.” Then he added, “Take heed, all you people!”

¹⁵Let death seize them by surprise; let them go down to Sheol alive, for evil is with them in their homes.

³³They went down alive into Sheol with all they owned. The earth closed over them, and they vanished from the assembly.

³Does not disaster come to the unjust and calamity to the workers of iniquity?

¹²It is I who made the earth and created man upon it. It was My hands that stretched out the heavens, and I ordained all their host.

⁷I form the light and create the darkness; I bring prosperity and create calamity. I, the Lord, do all these things.

²¹For the Lord will rise up as at Mount Perazim. He will rouse Himself as in the Valley of Gibeon, to do His work, His strange work, and to perform His task, His disturbing task.

¹⁷The earth opened up and swallowed Dathan; it covered the assembly of Abiram.

¹⁸Then fire blazed through their company; flames consumed the wicked.

³“Our father died in the wilderness, but he was not among the followers of Korah who gathered together against the Lord. Instead, he died because of his own sin, and he had no sons.

⁶and what He did in the midst of all the Israelites to Dathan and Abiram, the sons of Eliab the Reubenite, when the earth opened its mouth and swallowed them, their households, their tents, and every living thing that belonged to them.

¹⁰And the earth opened its mouth and swallowed them along with Korah, whose followers died when the fire consumed 250 men. They serve as a warning sign.

¹¹However, the line of Korah did not die out.

¹¹However, the line of Korah did not die out.

¹⁷The earth opened up and swallowed Dathan; it covered the assembly of Abiram.

¹⁶But the earth helped the woman and opened its mouth to swallow up the river that the dragon had poured from his mouth.

²²The descendants of Kohath: Amminadab his son, Korah his son, Assir his son,

¹⁴Therefore Sheol enlarges its throat and opens wide its enormous jaws, and down go Zion’s nobles and masses, her revelers and carousers!

³“Our father died in the wilderness, but he was not among the followers of Korah who gathered together against the Lord. Instead, he died because of his own sin, and he had no sons.

⁹Sheol beneath is eager to meet you upon your arrival. It stirs the spirits of the dead to greet you—all the rulers of the earth. It makes all the kings of the nations rise from their thrones.

¹⁵But you will be brought down to Sheol, to the lowest depths of the Pit.

¹⁵Do not let the floods engulf me or the depths swallow me up; let not the Pit close its mouth over me.

³⁰All the leaders of the north and all the Sidonians are there; they went down in disgrace with the slain, despite the terror of their might. They lie uncircumcised with those slain by the sword and bear their shame with those who descend to the Pit.

⁷Answer me quickly, O Lord; my spirit fails. Do not hide Your face from me, or I will be like those who descend to the Pit.

¹⁸“Son of man, wail for the multitudes of Egypt, and consign her and the daughters of the mighty nations to the depths of the earth with those who descend to the Pit:

¹²Then the Israelites declared to Moses, “Look, we are perishing! We are lost; we are all lost!

¹³Anyone who comes near the tabernacle of the Lord will die. Are we all going to perish?”

⁵You will flee by My mountain valley, for it will extend to Azal. You will flee as you fled from the earthquake in the days of Uzziah king of Judah. Then the Lord my God will come, and all the holy ones with Him.

³The peoples flee the thunder of Your voice; the nations scatter when You rise.

¹⁵Then the kings of the earth, the nobles, the commanders, the rich, the mighty, and every slave and free man hid in the caves and among the rocks of the mountains.

¹⁶And they said to the mountains and the rocks, “Fall on us and hide us from the face of the One seated on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb.

¹⁰And the earth opened its mouth and swallowed them along with Korah, whose followers died when the fire consumed 250 men. They serve as a warning sign.

²So fire came out from the presence of the Lord and consumed them, and they died in the presence of the Lord.

¹⁸Then fire blazed through their company; flames consumed the wicked.

¹Soon the people began to complain about their hardship in the hearing of the Lord, and when He heard them, His anger was kindled, and fire from the Lord blazed among them and consumed the outskirts of the camp.

²And the people cried out to Moses, and he prayed to the Lord, and the fire died down.

²a rebellion against Moses, along with 250 men of Israel renowned as leaders of the congregation and representatives in the assembly.

¹⁷Each man is to take his censer, place incense in it, and present it before the Lord—250 censers. You and Aaron are to present your censers as well.”

²⁸Nothing that a man sets apart to the Lord from all he owns—whether a man, an animal, or his inherited land—can be sold or redeemed; everything so devoted is most holy to the Lord.

¹⁸So each man took his censer, put fire and incense in it, and stood with Moses and Aaron at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting.

⁷and tomorrow you are to place fire and incense in them in the presence of the Lord. Then the man the Lord chooses will be the one who is holy. It is you sons of Levi who have taken too much upon yourselves!”

⁸I will set My face against that man and make him a sign and a proverb; I will cut him off from among My people. Then you will know that I am the Lord.

²The terror of a king is like the roar of a lion; whoever provokes him forfeits his own life.

⁶if He condemned the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah to destruction, reducing them to ashes as an example of what is coming on the ungodly;

¹⁰And the earth opened its mouth and swallowed them along with Korah, whose followers died when the fire consumed 250 men. They serve as a warning sign.

²³Then King Solomon swore by the Lord: “May God punish me, and ever so severely, if Adonijah has not made this request at the expense of his life.

¹⁰The Lord said to Moses, “Put Aaron’s staff back in front of the Testimony, to be kept as a sign for the rebellious, so that you may put an end to their grumbling against Me, lest they die.”

¹⁰So you shall appoint Aaron and his sons to carry out the duties of the priesthood; but any outsider who approaches the tabernacle must be put to death.”

⁴They are to join you and attend to the duties of the Tent of Meeting, doing all the work at the Tent; but no outsider may come near you.

⁵And you shall attend to the duties of the sanctuary and of the altar, so that wrath may not fall on the Israelites again.

¹⁶But when Uzziah became powerful, his arrogance led to his own destruction. He was unfaithful to the Lord his God, for he entered the temple of the Lord to burn incense on the altar of incense.

¹⁷Then Azariah the priest, along with eighty brave priests of the Lord, went in after him.

⁷And Aaron is to burn fragrant incense on it every morning when he tends the lamps.

⁸When Aaron sets up the lamps at twilight, he must burn the incense perpetually before the Lord for the generations to come.

³⁸Moses, Aaron, and Aaron’s sons were to camp to the east of the tabernacle, toward the sunrise, before the Tent of Meeting. They were to perform the duties of the sanctuary as a service on behalf of the Israelites; but any outsider who approached the sanctuary was to be put to death.

¹⁰No one outside a priest’s family may eat the sacred offering, nor may the guest of a priest or his hired hand eat it.

¹Now Korah son of Izhar, the son of Kohath son of Levi, along with some Reubenites—Dathan and Abiram, sons of Eliab, and On son of Peleth—conducted

²a rebellion against Moses, along with 250 men of Israel renowned as leaders of the congregation and representatives in the assembly.

²⁵They grumbled in their tents and did not listen to the voice of the Lord.

²⁶So He raised His hand and swore to cast them down in the wilderness,

²All the Israelites grumbled against Moses and Aaron, and the whole congregation said to them, “If only we had died in the land of Egypt, or if only we had died in this wilderness!

²³So He said He would destroy them—had not Moses His chosen one stood before Him in the breach to divert His wrath from destroying them.

¹¹Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me.

¹¹O Lord, Your hand is upraised, but they do not see it. They will see Your zeal for Your people and be put to shame. The fire set for Your enemies will consume them!

¹⁹When Korah had gathered his whole assembly against them at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting, the glory of the Lord appeared to the whole congregation.

⁶Then Moses and Aaron went from the presence of the assembly to the entrance to the Tent of Meeting. They fell facedown, and the glory of the Lord appeared to them.

²³Moses and Aaron then entered the Tent of Meeting. When they came out, they blessed the people, and the glory of the Lord appeared to all the people.

¹⁶and the glory of the Lord settled on Mount Sinai. For six days the cloud covered it, and on the seventh day the Lord called to Moses from within the cloud.

¹⁰But the whole congregation threatened to stone Joshua and Caleb. Then the glory of the Lord appeared to all the Israelites at the Tent of Meeting.

¹⁰And as Aaron was speaking to the whole congregation of Israel, they looked toward the desert, and there in a cloud the glory of the Lord appeared.

²¹“Separate yourselves from this congregation so that I may consume them in an instant.”

²²But Moses and Aaron fell facedown and said, “O God, the God of the spirits of all flesh, when one man sins, will You be angry with the whole congregation?”

²⁴“Tell the congregation to move away from the dwellings of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram.”

¹⁶When David lifted up his eyes and saw the angel of the Lord standing between heaven and earth, with a drawn sword in his hand stretched out over Jerusalem, David and the elders, clothed in sackcloth, fell facedown.

²⁶And he warned the congregation, “Move away now from the tents of these wicked men. Do not touch anything that belongs to them, or you will be swept away because of all their sins.”

⁶Then Moses and Aaron went from the presence of the assembly to the entrance to the Tent of Meeting. They fell facedown, and the glory of the Lord appeared to them.

³⁹Going a little farther, He fell facedown and prayed, “My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me. Yet not as I will, but as You will.”

¹⁹And I have given the Levites as a gift to Aaron and his sons from among the Israelites, to perform the service 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.”

⁶Then Moses said to Aaron and his sons Eleazar and Ithamar, “Do not let your hair become disheveled and do not tear your garments, or else you will die, and the Lord will be angry with the whole congregation. But your brothers, the whole house of Israel, may mourn on account of the fire that the Lord has ignited.

²⁴Joab son of Zeruiah began to count the men but did not finish. For because of this census wrath came upon Israel, and the number was not entered in the Book of the Chronicles of King David.

³³But while the meat was still between their teeth, before it was chewed, the anger of the Lord burned against the people, and the Lord struck them with a severe plague.

⁶Then one of the seraphim flew to me, and in his hand was a glowing coal that he had taken with tongs from the altar.

⁷And with it he touched my mouth and said: “Now that this has touched your lips, your iniquity is removed and your sin is atoned for.”

⁵And you shall attend to the duties of the sanctuary and of the altar, so that wrath may not fall on the Israelites again.

⁶Just then an Israelite man brought to his family a Midianite woman in the sight of Moses and the whole congregation of Israel while they were weeping at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting.

⁷On seeing this, Phinehas son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, got up from the assembly, took a spear in his hand,

⁴⁶Moses said to Aaron, “Take your censer, place fire from the altar in it, and add incense. Go quickly to the congregation and make atonement for them, because wrath has come out from the Lord; the plague has begun.”

²⁹So they provoked the Lord to anger with their deeds, and a plague broke out among them.

¹⁰Yet it was the Lord’s will to crush Him and to cause Him to suffer; and when His soul is made a guilt offering, He will see His offspring, He will prolong His days, and the good pleasure of the Lord will prosper in His hand.

¹¹After the anguish of His soul, He will see the light of life and be satisfied. By His knowledge My righteous Servant will justify many, and He will bear their iniquities.

²¹Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.

¹⁰He will teach Your ordinances to Jacob and Your law to Israel; he will set incense before You and whole burnt offerings on Your altar.

¹¹Bless his substance, O Lord, and accept the work of his hands. Smash the loins of those who rise against him, and of his foes so they can rise no more.”

³⁰But Phinehas stood and intervened, and the plague was restrained.

⁸followed the Israelite into the tent, and drove the spear through both of them—through the Israelite and on through the belly of the woman. So the plague against the Israelites was halted,

⁹but those who died in the plague numbered 24,000.

²⁵And there he built an altar to the Lord and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings. Then the Lord answered the prayers on behalf of the land, and the plague upon Israel was halted.

²⁴But because Jesus lives forever, He has a permanent priesthood.

²⁵Therefore He is able to save completely those who draw near to God through Him, since He always lives to intercede for them.

²⁶And there he built an altar to the Lord and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings. He called upon the Lord, who answered him with fire from heaven on the altar of burnt offering.

²⁷Then the Lord spoke to the angel, who put his sword back into its sheath.

¹⁶Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man has great power to prevail.

³²and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed them and their households—all Korah’s men and all their possessions.

³³They went down alive into Sheol with all they owned. The earth closed over them, and they vanished from the assembly.

⁹but those who died in the plague numbered 24,000.

²⁸Anyone who rejected the law of Moses died without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses.

²⁹How much more severely do you think one deserves to be punished who has trampled on the Son of God, profaned the blood of the covenant that sanctified him, and insulted the Spirit of grace?

²⁵See to it that you do not refuse Him who speaks. For if the people did not escape when they refused Him who warned them on earth, how much less will we escape if we reject Him who warns us from heaven?

¹⁴So the Lord sent a plague upon Israel, and seventy thousand men of Israel fell dead.

¹We must pay closer attention, therefore, to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away.

²For if the message spoken by angels was binding, and every transgression and disobedience received its just punishment,

⁴³Then Moses and Aaron went to the front of the Tent of Meeting,

²⁶And there he built an altar to the Lord and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings. He called upon the Lord, who answered him with fire from heaven on the altar of burnt offering.

²⁷Then the Lord spoke to the angel, who put his sword back into its sheath.