NAS - Numbers Chapters 9 to 10

9 The Passover

¹Thus the LORD spoke to Moses in the wilderness of Sinai, in the first month of the second year after they had come out of the land of Egypt, saying, ²"Now, let the sons of Israel observe the Passover at its appointed time. ³"On the fourteenth day of this month, at twilight, you shall observe it at its appointed time; you shall observe it according to all its statutes and according to all its ordinances." ⁴So Moses told the sons of Israel to observe the Passover. ⁵They observed the Passover in the first month, on the fourteenth day of the month, at twilight, in the wilderness of Sinai; according to all that the LORD had commanded Moses, so the sons of Israel did. ⁶But there were some men who were unclean because of the dead person, so that they could not observe Passover on that day; so they came before Moses and Aaron on that day. ⁷Those men said to him, "Though we are unclean because of the dead person, why are we restrained from presenting the offering of the LORD at its appointed time among the sons of Israel?" ⁸Moses therefore said to them, "Wait, and I will listen to what the LORD will command concerning you."

⁹Then the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, ¹⁰"Speak to the sons of Israel, saying, `If any one of you or of your generations becomes unclean because of a dead person, or is on a distant journey, he may, however, observe the Passover to the LORD. ¹¹`In the second month on the fourteenth day at twilight, they shall observe it; they shall eat it with unleavened bread and bitter herbs. ¹²`They shall leave none of it until morning, nor break a bone of it; according to all the statute of the Passover they shall observe it. ¹³`But the man who is clean and is not on a journey, and yet neglects to observe the Passover, that person shall then be cut off from his people, for he did not present the offering of the LORD at its appointed time. That man will bear his sin. ¹⁴`If an alien sojourns among you and observes the Passover to the LORD, according to the statute of the Passover and according to its ordinance, so he shall do; you shall have one statute, both for the alien and for the native of the land.'"

The Cloud on the Tabernacle

¹⁵Now on the day that the tabernacle was erected the cloud covered the tabernacle, the tent of the testimony, and in the evening it was like the appearance of fire over the tabernacle, until morning. ¹⁶So it was continuously; the cloud would cover it by day, and the appearance of fire by night. ¹⁷Whenever the cloud was lifted from over the tent, afterward the sons of Israel would then set out; and in the place where the cloud settled down, there the sons of Israel would camp. ¹⁸At the command of the LORD the sons of Israel would set out, and at the command of the LORD they would camp; as long as the cloud settled over the tabernacle, they remained camped. ¹⁹Even when the cloud lingered over the tabernacle for many days, the sons of Israel would keep the LORD'S charge and not set out. ²⁰If sometimes the cloud remained a few days over the tabernacle, according to the command of the LORD they remained camped. Then according to the command of the LORD they set out. ²¹If sometimes the cloud remained from evening until morning, when the cloud was lifted in the morning, they would move out; or if it remained in the daytime and at night, whenever the cloud was lifted, they would set out. ²²Whether it was two days or a month or a year that the cloud lingered over the tabernacle, staying above it, the sons of Israel remained camped and did not set out; but when it was lifted, they did set out. ²³At the command of the LORD they camped, and at the command of the LORD they set out; they kept the LORD'S charge, according to the command of the LORD through Moses.

10 The Silver Trumpets

¹The LORD spoke further to Moses, saying, ²"Make yourself two trumpets of silver, of hammered work you shall make them; and you shall use them for summoning the congregation and for having the camps set out. ³"When both are blown, all the congregation shall gather themselves to you at the doorway of the tent of meeting. ⁴"Yet if only one is blown, then the leaders, the heads of the divisions of Israel, shall assemble before you. ⁵"But when you blow an alarm, the camps that are pitched on the east side shall set out. ⁶"When you blow an alarm the second time, the camps that are pitched on the south side shall set out; an alarm is to be blown for them to set out. ⁷"When convening the assembly, however, you shall blow without sounding an alarm. ⁸"The priestly sons of Aaron, moreover, shall blow the trumpets; and this shall be for you a perpetual statute throughout your generations. ⁹"When you go to war in your land against the adversary who attacks you, then you shall sound an alarm with the trumpets, that you may be remembered before the LORD your God, and be saved from your enemies. ¹⁰"Also in the day of your gladness and in your appointed feasts, and on the first days of your months, you shall blow the trumpets over your burnt offerings, and over the sacrifices of your peace offerings; and they shall be as a reminder of you before your God. I am the LORD your God."

The Tribes Leave Sinai

¹¹Now in the second year, in the second month, on the twentieth of the month, the cloud was lifted from over the tabernacle of the testimony; ¹²and the sons of Israel set out on their journeys from the wilderness of Sinai. Then the cloud settled down in the wilderness of Paran. ¹³So they moved out for the first time according to the commandment of the LORD through Moses. ¹⁴The standard of the camp of the sons of Judah, according to their armies, set out first, with Nahshon the son of Amminadab, over its army, ¹⁵and Nethanel the son of Zuar, over the tribal army of the sons of Issachar; ¹⁶and Eliab the son of Helon over the tribal army of the sons of Zebulun.

¹⁷Then the tabernacle was taken down; and the sons of Gershon and the sons of Merari, who were carrying the tabernacle, set out. ¹⁸Next the standard of the camp of Reuben, according to their armies, set out with Elizur the son of Shedeur, over its army, ¹⁹and Shelumiel the son of Zurishaddai over the tribal army of the sons of Simeon, ²⁰and Eliasaph the son of Deuel was over the tribal army of the sons of Gad.

²¹Then the Kohathites set out, carrying the holy objects; and the tabernacle was set up before their arrival. ²²Next the standard of the camp of the sons of Ephraim, according to their armies, was set out, with Elishama the son of Ammihud over its army, ²³and Gamaliel the son of Pedahzur over the tribal army of the sons of Manasseh; ²⁴and Abidan the son of Gideoni over the tribal army of the sons of Benjamin.

²⁵Then the standard of the camp of the sons of Dan, according to their armies, which formed the rear guard for all the camps, set out, with Ahiezer the son of Ammishaddai over its army, ²⁶and Pagiel the son of Ochran over the tribal army of the sons of Asher; ²⁷and Ahira the son of Enan over the tribal army of the sons of Naphtali. ²⁸This was the order of march of the sons of Israel by their armies as they set out.

²⁹Then Moses said to Hobab the son of Reuel the Midianite, Moses' father-in-law, "We are setting out to the place of which the LORD said, `I will give it to you'; come with us and we will do you good, for the LORD has promised good concerning Israel." ³⁰But he said to him, "I will not come, but rather will go to my own land and relatives." ³¹Then he said, "Please do not leave us, inasmuch as you know where we should camp in the wilderness, and you will be as eyes for us. ³²"So it will be, if you go with us, that whatever good the LORD does for us, we will do for you."

³³Thus they set out from the mount of the LORD three days' journey, with the ark of the covenant of the LORD journeying in front of them for the three days, to seek out a resting place for them. ³⁴The cloud of the LORD was over them by day when they set out from the camp.

³⁵Then it came about when the ark set out that Moses said, "Rise up, O LORD! And let Your enemies be scattered, And let those who hate You flee before You." ³⁶When it came to rest, he said, "Return, O LORD, To the myriad thousands of Israel."