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the Week of Proper 12 / Ordinary 17
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Bible in Basic English

Numbers 8:21

And the Levites were made clean from sin, and their clothing was washed, and Aaron gave them for a wave offering before the Lord; and Aaron took away their sin and made them clean.

Bible Study Resources

Concordances:

- Nave's Topical Bible - Atonement;   Levites;   Priest;   Purification;  

Dictionaries:

- American Tract Society Bible Dictionary - Levites;   Baker Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology - Building;   Fausset Bible Dictionary - Hilkiah;   Holman Bible Dictionary - Bull;   Purity-Purification;   Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible - Numbers, Book of;   Priests and Levites;   Red Heifer;   Morrish Bible Dictionary - Levites ;   Watson's Biblical & Theological Dictionary - Government of the Hebrews;  

Encyclopedias:

- Condensed Biblical Cyclopedia - Events of the Encampment;   Moses, the Man of God;   The Jewish Encyclopedia - Hafṭarah;  

Parallel Translations

Hebrew Names Version
The Levites purified themselves from sin, and they washed their clothes; and Aharon offered them for a wave offering before the LORD; and Aharon made atonement for them to cleanse them.
King James Version
And the Levites were purified, and they washed their clothes; and Aaron offered them as an offering before the Lord ; and Aaron made an atonement for them to cleanse them.
Lexham English Bible
And the Levites purified themselves, and they washed their garments, and Aaron offered them as a wave offering before Yahweh; and Aaron made atonement for them to purify them.
New Century Version
The Levites made themselves clean and washed their clothes. Then Aaron presented them as an offering to the Lord . He also removed their sins so they would be pure.
New English Translation
The Levites purified themselves and washed their clothing; then Aaron presented them like a wave offering before the Lord , and Aaron made atonement for them to purify them.
Amplified Bible
The Levites, too, purified themselves from sin and they washed their clothes; and Aaron presented them as a wave offering before the LORD, and Aaron made atonement for them to cleanse them.
New American Standard Bible
The Levites, too, purified themselves from sin and washed their clothes; and Aaron presented them as a wave offering before the LORD. Aaron also made atonement for them to cleanse them.
Geneva Bible (1587)
So the Leuites were purified, and washed their clothes, and Aaron offred them as a shake offring before the Lord, and Aaron made an atonement for them, to purifie them.
Legacy Standard Bible
The Levites, too, purified themselves from sin and washed their clothes; and Aaron presented them as a wave offering before Yahweh. Aaron also made atonement for them to cleanse them.
Contemporary English Version
The Levites sprinkled themselves with the water of forgiveness and washed their clothes. Then Aaron brought them to the altar and offered sacrifices to forgive their sins and make them acceptable to the Lord .
Complete Jewish Bible
The L'vi'im purified themselves and washed their clothes. Then Aharon offered them as a holy gift before Adonai and made atonement for them in order to cleanse them.
Darby Translation
And the Levites purified themselves from sin, and they washed their garments; and Aaron offered them as a wave-offering before Jehovah; and Aaron made atonement for them to cleanse them.
Easy-to-Read Version
The Levites washed themselves and their clothes. Then Aaron gave them to the Lord as special offerings. Aaron gave the offerings that covered their sins and made them pure.
English Standard Version
And the Levites purified themselves from sin and washed their clothes, and Aaron offered them as a wave offering before the Lord , and Aaron made atonement for them to cleanse them.
George Lamsa Translation
And the Levites were purified, and they washed their clothes; and Aaron offered them as an offering before the LORD; and Aaron made an atonement for them and cleansed them.
Good News Translation
The Levites purified themselves and washed their clothes, and Aaron dedicated them as a special gift to the Lord . He also performed the ritual of purification for them.
Christian Standard Bible®
The Levites purified themselves and washed their clothes; then Aaron presented them before the Lord as a presentation offering. Aaron also made atonement for them to cleanse them ceremonially.
Literal Translation
And the Levites cleansed themselves, and washed their garments. And Aaron waved them as a wave offering before Jehovah; and Aaron atoned for them, to cleanse them.
Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
And they purified the Leuites, and wa?shed their clothes. And Aaron waued them before the LORDE, and made attoment for them, that they might be cleane.
American Standard Version
And the Levites purified themselves from sin, and they washed their clothes: and Aaron offered them for a wave-offering before Jehovah; and Aaron made atonement for them to cleanse them.
Bishop's Bible (1568)
And the Leuites were purified, and wasshed their clothes: And Aaron waued them as a waue offeryng before the Lorde, and made an attonement for them, to cleanse them.
JPS Old Testament (1917)
And the Levites purified themselves, and they washed their clothes; and Aaron offered them for a sacred gift before the LORD; and Aaron made atonement for them to cleanse them.
King James Version (1611)
And the Leuites were purified, and they washed their clothes: and Aaron offered them as an offering before the Lord, and Aaron made an atonement for them to cleanse them.
Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
So the Levites purified themselves and washed their garments; and Aaron presented them as a gift before the Lord, and Aaron made atonement for them to purify them.
English Revised Version
And the Levites purified themselves from sin, and they washed their clothes; and Aaron offered them for a wave offering before the LORD; and Aaron made atonement for them to cleanse them.
Berean Standard Bible
The Levites purified themselves and washed their clothes, and Aaron presented them as a wave offering before the LORD. Aaron also made atonement for them to cleanse them.
Wycliffe Bible (1395)
And thei weren clensid, and thei waischiden her clothis; and Aaron reiside hem in the siyt of the Lord, and preiede for hem,
Young's Literal Translation
And the Levites cleanse themselves, and wash their garments, and Aaron waveth them a wave-offering before Jehovah, and Aaron maketh atonement for them to cleanse them,
Update Bible Version
And the Levites purified themselves from sin, and they washed their clothes: and Aaron offered them for a wave-offering before Yahweh; and Aaron made atonement for them to cleanse them.
Webster's Bible Translation
And the Levites were purified, and they washed their clothes; and Aaron offered them [as] an offering before the LORD; and Aaron made an atonement for them to cleanse them.
World English Bible
The Levites purified themselves from sin, and they washed their clothes; and Aaron offered them for a wave offering before Yahweh; and Aaron made atonement for them to cleanse them.
New King James Version
And the Levites purified themselves and washed their clothes; then Aaron presented them like a wave offering before the LORD, and Aaron made atonement for them to cleanse them.
New Living Translation
The Levites purified themselves from sin and washed their clothes, and Aaron lifted them up and presented them to the Lord as a special offering. He then offered a sacrifice to purify them and make them right with the Lord .
New Life Bible
The Levites made themselves pure, putting away their sin. And they washed their clothes. Aaron gave them as a wave gift before the Lord. He did what had to be done to pay for their sin so they would be clean.
New Revised Standard
The Levites purified themselves from sin and washed their clothes; then Aaron presented them as an elevation offering before the Lord , and Aaron made atonement for them to cleanse them.
J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
And the Levites accepted the cleansing from sin and washed their clothes, and Aaron offered them as a wave-offering before Yahweh, - and Aaron put a propitiatory-covering over them to make them pure.
Douay-Rheims Bible
And they were purified, and washed their garments. And Aaron lifted them up in the sight of the Lord, and prayed for them,
Revised Standard Version
And the Levites purified themselves from sin, and washed their clothes; and Aaron offered them as a wave offering before the LORD, and Aaron made atonement for them to cleanse them.
New American Standard Bible (1995)
The Levites, too, purified themselves from sin and washed their clothes; and Aaron presented them as a wave offering before the LORD. Aaron also made atonement for them to cleanse them.

Contextual Overview

5 And the Lord said to Moses, 6 Take the Levites out from among the children of Israel and make them clean. 7 And this is how you are to make them clean: let the holy water which takes away sin be put on them, and let the hair all over their bodies be cut off with a sharp blade, and let their clothing be washed and their bodies made clean. 8 Then let them take a young ox and its meal offering, crushed grain mixed with oil, and take another ox for a sin-offering. 9 And make the Levites come forward in front of the Tent of meeting, and let all the children of Israel come together: 10 And you are to take the Levites before the Lord: and the children of Israel are to put their hands on them: 11 And Aaron is to give the Levites to the Lord as a wave offering from the children of Israel, so that they may do the Lord's work. 12 And the Levites are to put their hands on the heads of the oxen, and one of the oxen is to be offered for a sin-offering and the other for a burned offering to the Lord to take away the sin of the Levites. 13 Then the Levites are to be put before Aaron and his sons, to be offered as a wave offering to the Lord. 14 So you are to make the Levites separate from the children of Israel, and the Levites will be mine.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

were purified: Numbers 8:7, Numbers 19:12, Numbers 19:19

offered: Numbers 8:11-13, Numbers 8:15, Numbers 3:12

Aaron made: Numbers 8:12

Reciprocal: Exodus 19:10 - wash Leviticus 14:11 - General Numbers 8:13 - offer them

Cross-References

Genesis 3:17
And to Adam he said, Because you gave ear to the voice of your wife and took of the fruit of the tree which I said you were not to take, the earth is cursed on your account; in pain you will get your food from it all your life.
Genesis 4:12
No longer will the earth give you her fruit as the reward of your work; you will be a wanderer in flight over the earth.
Genesis 5:29
And he gave him the name of Noah, saying, Truly, he will give us rest from our trouble and the hard work of our hands, because of the earth which was cursed by God.
Genesis 6:5
And the Lord saw that the sin of man was great on the earth, and that all the thoughts of his heart were evil.
Genesis 6:17
For truly, I will send a great flow of waters over the earth, for the destruction from under the heaven of all flesh in which is the breath of life; everything on the earth will come to an end.
Genesis 8:1
And God kept Noah in mind, and all the living things and the cattle which were with him in the ark: and God sent a wind over the earth, and the waters went down.
Genesis 8:2
And the fountains of the deep and the windows of heaven were shut, and the rain from heaven was stopped.
Genesis 8:3
And the waters went slowly back from the earth, and at the end of a hundred and fifty days the waters were lower.
Genesis 8:6
Then, after forty days, through the open window of the ark which he had made,
Genesis 8:7
Noah sent out a raven, which went this way and that till the waters were gone from the earth.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

And the Levites were purified,.... From sin, by the sprinkling of the sin water, or water of purification on them, Numbers 8:7;

and they washed their clothes; that they might have no defilement about them, neither in their bodies, nor in their garments:

and Aaron offered them [as] an offering before the Lord; a wave offering, as in Numbers 8:11;

and Aaron made an atonement for them to cleanse them; by offering the sacrifices for them, Numbers 8:12.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

The Levites could only undertake their duties Numbers 3:0; Numbers 4:0 after the formal exchange of the Levites for the first-born Numbers 3:44-51.

The distinction between the “consecration” of the priests Leviticus 8:0 and the less solemn “purification” Numbers 8:21 of the Levites is marked. These rites of purification are similar to those incumbent on the priests of Egypt.

Numbers 8:7

Water of purifying - literally, “sin water:” i. e. water to cleanse from sin; no doubt taken from the laver of the sanctuary, which was used by the priests for purification before they went into the tabernacle to minister (compare Numbers 5:17; Exodus 30:18 ff).

The “sprinkling” of so large a body of men could have been only general, but tokens of individual purification are specified (compare also Leviticus 14:8).

Numbers 8:8

The two bullocks were “to make an atonement for the Levites,” and therefore are presented in their name. These offerings are similar to those prescribed in Leviticus 8:14 ff at the consecration of the priests, except that the burnt-offering was on that occasion a ram. The larger victim corresponds to the larger number of the Levites.

Numbers 8:10

The children of Israel - i. e. through the heads of their tribes, who Numbers 7:2 no doubt acted for their tribesmen. This act, the distinguishing feature of the ceremony, represented the transfer to the Levites of the sacred duties originally incumbent on the whole people.

Numbers 8:11

Offer ... offering - Compare the margin Aaron pointed to the Levites, and then waved his hands, indicating (compare Leviticus 7:30 note) that the offering was dedicated to God, and, again, by grant from Him, withdrawn for the use of the priests.

Numbers 8:19

Make an atonement for the children of Israel - i. e. by performing those services which were due from the children of Israel; the omission of which by the children of Israel would, but for the interposition of the Levites, have called down “wrath” from God, or Numbers 1:53 “plague.” The institution of the Levites was an extension of that mediatorial system which the people themselves, terrified at the direct manifestations to them of the divine presence, desired; see Deuteronomy 5:25. Further, it is suggested to us here as an act of mercy on the part of God; yet even the priests and Levites themselves were not always sufficiently heedful and reverent. Compare Numbers 17:10; Leviticus 10:1 ff; 2 Samuel 6:6 following.

Numbers 8:21

Were purified - Rather, purified themselves; as directed in Numbers 8:7.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse Numbers 8:21. And Aaron made an atonement for them — Though the Levites had been most solemnly consecrated to the Lord's service, and though all legal washings and purifications were duly performed on the occasion, yet they could not approach God till an atonement had been made for them. How strange is it, after all these significations, of the will and purpose of God relative to man, that any priest or any people will attempt to draw nigh to God without an atonement! As sure as God hath spoken it, there is no entrance into the holiest but through the blood of Jesus, Hebrews 10:19-20.


 
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