¹⁷ Since many in the crowd had not consecrated themselves, the Levites had to kill^(A) the Passover lambs for all those who were not ceremonially clean and could not consecrate their lambs^[a] to the Lord.

³⁴ The priests, however, were too few to skin all the burnt offerings;^(A) so their relatives the Levites helped them until the task was finished and until other priests had been consecrated,^(B) for the Levites had been more conscientious in consecrating themselves than the priests had been.

³ He said to the Levites, who instructed^(A) all Israel and who had been consecrated to the Lord: “Put the sacred ark in the temple that Solomon son of David king of Israel built. It is not to be carried about on your shoulders. Now serve the Lord your God and his people Israel. ⁴ Prepare yourselves by families in your divisions,^(B) according to the instructions written by David king of Israel and by his son Solomon.

⁵ “Stand in the holy place with a group of Levites for each subdivision of the families of your fellow Israelites, the lay people. ⁶ Slaughter the Passover lambs, consecrate yourselves^(C) and prepare the lambs for your fellow Israelites, doing what the Lord commanded through Moses.”

⁶ Take care of them until the fourteenth day of the month,^(A) when all the members of the community of Israel must slaughter them at twilight.^(B)