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Numbers 3:38-40
New King James Version
Numbers 3:38-40
New King James Version
38 (A)Moreover those who were to camp before the tabernacle on the east, before the tabernacle of meeting, were Moses, Aaron, and his sons, (B)keeping charge of the sanctuary, (C)to meet the needs of the children of Israel; but (D)the outsider who came near was to be put to death. 39 (E)All who were numbered of the Levites, whom Moses and Aaron numbered at the commandment of the Lord, by their families, all the males from a month old and above, were twenty-two thousand.
Levites Dedicated Instead of the Firstborn
40 Then the Lord said to Moses: (F)“Number[a] all the firstborn males of the children of Israel from a month old and above, and take the number of their names.
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- Numbers 3:40 Take a census of
Numbers 3:38-40
English Standard Version
Numbers 3:38-40
English Standard Version
38 Those who were to camp before the tabernacle on the east, before the tent of meeting toward the sunrise, were Moses and Aaron and his sons, (A)guarding the sanctuary itself, to protect[a] the people of Israel. And any outsider who came near was to be put to death. 39 All those listed among the Levites, whom Moses and Aaron listed at the commandment of the Lord, by clans, all the males from a month old and upward, were (B)22,000.
Redemption of the Firstborn
40 And the Lord said to Moses, “List all the firstborn males of the people of Israel, from a month old and upward, taking the number of their names.
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- Numbers 3:38 Hebrew guard
Numbers 3:38-40
New International Version
Numbers 3:38-40
New International Version
38 Moses and Aaron and his sons were to camp to the east(A) of the tabernacle, toward the sunrise, in front of the tent of meeting.(B) They were responsible for the care of the sanctuary(C) on behalf of the Israelites. Anyone else who approached the sanctuary was to be put to death.(D)
39 The total number of Levites counted(E) at the Lord’s command by Moses and Aaron according to their clans, including every male a month old or more, was 22,000.(F)
40 The Lord said to Moses, “Count all the firstborn Israelite males who are a month old or more(G) and make a list of their names.(H)
New King James Version (NKJV) 
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
English Standard Version (ESV) 
The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. ESV Text Edition: 2025.
New International Version (NIV) 
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.