Appoint the Levites over the tabernacle of the testimony, all its furnishings, and everything in it. They are to transport the tabernacle and all its articles, take care of it, and camp around it.

“The Israelites are to camp by their military divisions, each man with his encampment and under his banner.

The Levites are to camp around the tabernacle of the testimony and watch over it, so that no wrath will fall on the Israelite community.”

“The Israelites are to camp under their respective banners beside the flags of their ancestral houses. They are to camp around the tent of meeting at a distance from it:

Judah’s military divisions will camp on the east side toward the sunrise under their banner. The leader of the descendants of Judah is Nahshon son of Amminadab.

The tribe of Issachar will camp next to it. The leader of the Issacharites is Nethanel son of Zuar.

Reuben’s military divisions will camp on the south side under their banner. The leader of the Reubenites is Elizur son of Shedeur.

The tribe of Simeon will camp next to it. The leader of the Simeonites is Shelumiel son of Zurishaddai.

The tent of meeting is to move out with the Levites’ camp, which is in the middle of the camps. They are to move out just as they camp, each in his place, with their banners.

Ephraim’s military divisions will camp on the west side under their banner. The leader of the Ephraimites is Elishama son of Ammihud.

Dan’s military divisions will camp on the north side under their banner. The leader of the Danites is Ahiezer son of Ammishaddai.

The tribe of Asher will camp next to it. The leader of the Asherites is Pagiel son of Ochran.

The Libnite clan and the Shimeite clan came from Gershon; these were the Gershonite clans.

The Amramite clan, the Izharite clan, the Hebronite clan, and the Uzzielite clan came from Kohath; these were the Kohathites.

The Mahlite clan and the Mushite clan came from Merari; these were the Merarite clans.

Moses, Aaron, and his sons, who performed the duties of the sanctuary as a service on behalf of the Israelites, camped in front of the tabernacle on the east, in front of the tent of meeting toward the sunrise. Any unauthorized person who came near it was to be put to death.

Whenever the camp is about to move on, Aaron and his sons are to go in, take down the screening veil, and cover the ark of the testimony with it.

“Aaron and his sons are to finish covering the holy objects and all their equipment whenever the camp is to move on. The Kohathites will come and carry them, but they are not to touch the holy objects or they will die. These are the transportation duties of the Kohathites regarding the tent of meeting.

“Command the Israelites to send away anyone from the camp who is afflicted with a skin disease, anyone who has a bodily discharge, or anyone who is defiled because of a corpse.

You must send away both male or female; send them outside the camp, so that they will not defile their camps where I dwell among them.”

The Israelites did this, sending them outside the camp. The Israelites did as the Lord instructed Moses.

After that, the Levites came to do their work at the tent of meeting in the presence of Aaron and his sons. So they did to them as the Lord had commanded Moses concerning the Levites.

But there were some men who were unclean because of a human corpse, so they could not observe the Passover on that day. These men came before Moses and Aaron the same day

Sometimes the cloud remained over the tabernacle for only a few days. They would camp at the Lord’s command and set out at the Lord’s command.

The military divisions of the camp of Judah with their banner set out first, and Nahshon son of Amminadab was over Judah’s divisions.

The military divisions of the camp of Reuben with their banner set out, and Elizur son of Shedeur was over Reuben’s division.

Next the military divisions of the camp of Ephraim with their banner set out, and Elishama son of Ammihud was over Ephraim’s division.

The military divisions of the camp of Dan with their banner set out, serving as rear guard for all the camps, and Ahiezer son of Ammishaddai was over Dan’s division.

“Please don’t leave us,” Moses said, “since you know where we should camp in the wilderness, and you can serve as our eyes.

Meanwhile, the cloud of the Lord was over them by day when they set out from the camp.

When it came to rest, he would say:

Return, Lord,
to the countless thousands of Israel.

Now the people began complaining openly before the Lord about hardship. When the Lord heard, His anger burned, and fire from the Lord blazed among them and consumed the outskirts of the camp.

When the dew fell on the camp at night, the manna would fall with it.

Two men had remained in the camp, one named Eldad and the other Medad; the Spirit rested on them—they were among those listed, but had not gone out to the tent—and they prophesied in the camp.

A young man ran and reported to Moses, “Eldad and Medad are prophesying in the camp.”

Then Moses returned to the camp along with the elders of Israel.

A wind sent by the Lord came up and blew quail in from the sea; it dropped them at the camp all around, three feet off the ground, about a day’s journey in every direction.

The people were up all that day and night and all the next day gathering the quail—the one who took the least gathered 50 bushels—and they spread them out all around the camp.

Then the Lord descended in a pillar of cloud, stood at the entrance to the tent, and summoned Aaron and Miriam. When the two of them came forward,

The Lord answered Moses, “If her father had merely spit in her face, wouldn’t she remain in disgrace for seven days? Let her be confined outside the camp for seven days; after that she may be brought back in.”

So Miriam was confined outside the camp for seven days, and the people did not move on until Miriam was brought back in.

They went up through the Negev and came to Hebron, where Ahiman, Sheshai, and Talmai, the descendants of Anak, were living. Hebron was built seven years before Zoan in Egypt.

When they came to the Valley of Eshcol, they cut down a branch with a single cluster of grapes, which was carried on a pole by two men. They also took some pomegranates and figs.

But they dared to go up the ridge of the hill country, even though the ark of the Lord’s covenant and Moses did not leave the camp.

Then the Amalekites and Canaanites who lived in that part of the hill country came down, attacked them, and routed them as far as Hormah.

Then the Lord told Moses, “The man is to be put to death. The entire community is to stone him outside the camp.”

So the entire community brought him outside the camp and stoned him to death, as the Lord had commanded Moses.

They came together against Moses and Aaron and told them, “You have gone too far! Everyone in the entire community is holy, and the Lord is among them. Why then do you exalt yourselves above the Lord’s assembly?”

So they got away from the dwellings of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram. Meanwhile, Dathan and Abiram came out and stood at the entrance of their tents with their wives, children, and infants.

Fire also came out from the Lord and consumed the 250 men who were presenting the incense.

Give it to Eleazar the priest, and he will have it brought outside the camp and slaughtered in his presence.

Then the priest must wash his clothes and bathe his body in water; after that he may enter the camp, but he will remain ceremonially unclean until evening.

“A man who is clean is to gather up the cow’s ashes and deposit them outside the camp in a ceremonially clean place. The ashes must be kept by the Israelite community for preparing the water to remove impurity; it is a sin offering.

Yet Edom insisted, “You must not travel through.” And they came out to confront them with a large force of heavily-armed people.

After they set out from Kadesh, the entire Israelite community came to Mount Hor.

After Moses removed Aaron’s garments and put them on his son Eleazar, Aaron died there on top of the mountain. Then Moses and Eleazar came down from the mountain.

The people then came to Moses and said, “We have sinned by speaking against the Lord and against you. Intercede with the Lord so that He will take the snakes away from us.” And Moses interceded for the people.

But Sihon would not let Israel travel through his territory. Instead, he gathered his whole army and went out to confront Israel in the wilderness. When he came to Jahaz, he fought against Israel.

For fire came out of Heshbon,
a flame from the city of Sihon.
It consumed Ar of Moab,
the lords of Arnon’s heights.

Then they turned and went up the road to Bashan, and Og king of Bashan came out against them with his whole army to do battle at Edrei.

The elders of Moab and Midian departed with fees for divination in hand. They came to Balaam and reported Balak’s words to him.

Then God came to Balaam and asked, “Who are these men with you?”

They came to Balaam and said to him, “This is what Balak son of Zippor says: ‘Let nothing keep you from coming to me,

God came to Balaam at night and said to him, “Since these men have come to summon you, get up and go with them, but you must only do what I tell you.”

The Angel of the Lord asked him, “Why have you beaten your donkey these three times? Look, I came out to oppose you, because what you are doing is evil in My sight.

So Balaam went with Balak, and they came to Kiriath-huzoth.

In the morning, Balak took Balaam and brought him to Bamoth-baal. From there he saw the outskirts of the people’s camp.

Then Balak said to him, “Please come with me to another place where you can see them. You will only see the outskirts of their camp; you won’t see all of them. From there, put a curse on them for me.”

An Israelite man came bringing a Midianite woman to his relatives in the sight of Moses and the whole Israelite community while they were weeping at the entrance to the tent of meeting.

For they attacked you with the treachery that they used against you in the Peor incident. They did the same in the case involving their sister Cozbi, daughter of the Midianite leader who was killed the day the plague came at Peor.”

“Take a census of those 20 years old or more, as the Lord had commanded Moses and the Israelites who came out of the land of Egypt.”

But if her husband cancels them on the day he hears about it, nothing that came from her lips, whether her vows or her obligation, is binding. Her husband has canceled them, and the Lord will absolve her.

They brought the prisoners, animals, and spoils of war to Moses, Eleazar the priest, and the Israelite community at the camp on the plains of Moab by the Jordan across from Jericho.

Moses, Eleazar the priest, and all the leaders of the community went to meet them outside the camp.

“Yet they are the ones who, at Balaam’s advice, incited the Israelites to unfaithfulness against the Lord in the Peor incident, so that the plague came against the Lord’s community.

“You are to remain outside the camp for seven days. All of you and your prisoners who have killed a person or touched the dead are to purify yourselves on the third day and the seventh day.

On the seventh day wash your clothes, and you will be clean. After that you may enter the camp.”

So the Gadites and Reubenites came to Moses, Eleazar the priest, and the leaders of the community and said:

‘Because they did not follow Me completely, none of the men 20 years old or more who came up from Egypt will see the land I swore to give Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob—

They departed from Marah and came to Elim. There were 12 springs of water and 70 date palms at Elim, so they camped there.