And early ¹  in the morning they went up to the crest of the hill country, ²  saying, “Here we are, and we will go up to the place that the Lord commanded, ³  for we have sinned.” ⁴ 

but we will maintain ourselves in armed readiness ¹  and go before the Israelites until whenever we have brought them to their place. Our descendants will be living in fortified towns as a protection against ²  the inhabitants of the land.

“‘And its drink offering must be one quarter of a hin for each lamb. ¹  You must pour out the strong drink ²  as a drink offering to the Lord in the holy place.

“Then the tent of meeting with the camp of the Levites will travel in the middle of the camps. They will travel in the same order as they camped, each in his own place ¹  under his standard.

“If a young ¹  woman who is still living ²  in her father’s house makes a vow to the Lord or places herself under an obligation,

These six towns will be places of refuge for the Israelites, and for the foreigner, and for the settler among them, so that anyone who kills any person accidentally may flee there.

“‘Then a man who is ceremonially clean must gather up the ashes of the red heifer and put them in a ceremonially clean place outside the camp. They must be kept ¹  for the community of the Israelites for use in the water of purification ²  – it is a purification for sin. ³ 

¹ Moses said to Hobab son of Reuel, the Midianite, Moses’ father-in-law, ²  “We are journeying to the place about which the Lord said, ‘I will give it to you.’ Come with us and we will treat you well, ³  for the Lord has promised good things ⁴  for Israel.”

Then they must place on it all its implements with which they serve there – the trays, the meat forks, the shovels, the basins, and all the utensils of the altar – and they must spread on it a covering of fine leather, and then insert its poles. ¹ 

So Aaron did ¹  as Moses commanded ²  and ran into the middle of the assembly, where the plague was just beginning among the people. So he placed incense on the coals and made atonement for the people.

And when the Jubilee of the Israelites is to take place, ¹  their inheritance will be added to the inheritance of the tribe into which they marry. So their inheritance will be taken away from the inheritance of our ancestral tribe.” ² 

Then Moses said to Aaron, “Take the censer, put burning coals from the altar in it, place incense on it, and go quickly into the assembly and make atonement for them, for wrath has gone out from the Lord – the plague has begun!”

You must divide the land by lot for an inheritance among your families. To a larger group you must give a larger inheritance, and to a smaller group you must give a smaller inheritance. Everyone’s inheritance must be in the place where his lot falls. You must inherit according to your ancestral ¹  tribes.

Balaam got up and departed and returned to his home, ¹  and Balak also went his way.

So I have taken the Levites instead of all the firstborn sons among the Israelites.

Moses recorded their departures ¹  according to their journeys, by the commandment ²  of the Lord; now these are their journeys according to their departures.

¹ Now the Reubenites and the Gadites possessed a very large number of cattle. When they saw that the lands of Jazer and Gilead were ideal for cattle, ² 

So now, go back where you came from! ¹  I said that I would greatly honor you; but now the Lord has stood in the way of your honor.”

You are to eat it as a most holy offering; every male may eat it. It will be holy to you.

Then they must put over it a covering of fine leather ¹  and spread over that a cloth entirely of blue, and then they must insert its poles.