The Wilderness Years

These are the ones counted from the K'hat families of all those serving in the tent of meeting, whom Moshe and Aharon enumerated, in keeping with the order given by ADONAI through Moshe.

The census of the descendants of Gershon, by their clans and families,

all those between thirty and fifty years old who were part of the corps serving in the tent of meeting,

yielded 2,630, registered by their clans and families.

These are the ones counted from the families of the descendants of Gershon of all those serving in the tent of meeting, whom Moshe and Aharon enumerated, in keeping with the order given by ADONAI.

The census of the families of the descendants of M'rari, by their clans and families,

all those between thirty and fifty years old who were part of the corps serving in the tent of meeting,

yielded 3,200, registered by their families.

These are the ones counted from the families of the descendants of M'rari, whom Moshe and Aharon enumerated, in keeping with the order given by ADONAI through Moshe.

The census of the L'vi'im, whom Moshe, Aharon and the leaders of Isra'el enumerated by their clans and families,

all those between thirty and fifty years old who were part of those working to serve and working to carry loads in the tent of meeting,

yielded a total of 8,580 persons.

According to ADONAI's order they were appointed by Moshe, each one to his specific service or work. They were also enumerated, as ADONAI had ordered Moshe.

ADONAI said to Moshe,

"Order the people of Isra'el to expel from the camp everyone with tzara'at, everyone with a discharge and whoever is unclean because of touching a corpse.

Both male and female you must expel; put them outside the camp; so that they won't defile their camp, where I live among you."

The people of Isra'el did this and put them outside the camp - the people of Isra'el did what ADONAI had said to Moshe.

ADONAI said to Moshe,

"Tell the people of Isra'el, 'When a man or woman commits any kind of sin against another person and thus breaks faith with ADONAI, he incurs guilt.

He must confess the sin which he has committed; and he must make full restitution for his guilt, add twenty percent and give it to the victim of his sin.

But if the person has no relative to whom restitution can be made for the guilt, then what is given in restitution for guilt will belong to ADONAI, that is, to the cohen - in addition to the ram of atonement through which atonement is made for him.

"'Every contribution which the people of Isra'el consecrate and present to the cohen will belong to him.

Anything an individual consecrates will be his own [to allocate among the cohanim], but what a person gives to the cohen will belong to him.'"

ADONAI said to Moshe,

"Tell the people of Isra'el, 'If a man's wife goes astray and is unfaithful to him;