English Standard Version
Numbers 18:7
7And you and your sons with you shall guard your priesthood for all that concerns the altar and that is within the veil; and you shall serve. I give your priesthood as a gift, and any outsider who comes near shall be put to death."
Numbers 18:7 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)Therefore thou and thy sons with thee shall keep your priest’s office for every thing of the altar, and within the vail; and ye shall serve: I have given your priest’s office unto you as a service of gift: and the stranger that cometh nigh shall be put to death.
- New International Version (NIV)But only you and your sons may serve as priests in connection with everything at the altar and inside the curtain. I am giving you the service of the priesthood as a gift. Anyone else who comes near the sanctuary is to be put to death.”
- New King James Version (NKJV)Therefore you and your sons with you shall attend to your priesthood for everything at the altar and behind the veil; and you shall serve. I give your priesthood to you as a gift for service, but the outsider who comes near shall be put to death.”
- New Living Translation (NLT)But you and your sons, the priests, must personally handle all the priestly rituals associated with the altar and with everything behind the inner curtain. I am giving you the priesthood as your special privilege of service. Any unauthorized person who comes too near the sanctuary will be put to death.”
Context of Numbers 18:7
5And you shall keep guard over the sanctuary and over the altar, that there may never again be wrath on the people of Israel. 6And behold, I have taken your brothers the Levites from among the people of Israel. They are a gift to you, given to the Lord, to do the service of the tent of meeting. And you and your sons with you shall guard your priesthood for all that concerns the altar and that is within the veil; and you shall serve. I give your priesthood as a gift, and any outsider who comes near shall be put to death." 8Then the Lord spoke to Aaron, "Behold, I have given you charge of the contributions made to me, all the consecrated things of the people of Israel. I have given them to you as a portion and to your sons as a perpetual due. 9This shall be yours of the most holy things, reserved from the fire: every offering of theirs, every grain offering of theirs and every sin offering of theirs and every guilt offering of theirs, which they render to me, shall be most holy to you and to your sons.
Read all of Numbers 18Numbers 18:7 word by word
וְאַתָּ֣ה וּבָנֶ֣יךָ אִ֠תְּךָ תִּשְׁמְר֨וּ אֶת־כְּהֻנַּתְכֶ֜ם לְכָל־דְּבַ֧ר הַמִּזְבֵּ֛חַ וּלְמִבֵּ֥ית לַפָּרֹ֖כֶת וַעֲבַדְתֶּ֑ם עֲבֹדַ֣ת מַתָּנָ֗ה אֶתֵּן֙ אֶת־כְּהֻנַּתְכֶ֔ם וְהַזָּ֥ר הַקָּרֵ֖ב יוּמָֽת׃ סRead the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- Therefore thou and thy sonsבֵּןbên · son: childH1121
- with thee shall keepשָׁמַרshâmar · to keep: guardH8104
- your priest’s officeכְּהֻנָּהkehûnnâh · priesthoodH3550
- for every thingדָּבָרdâbâr · word: thingH1697
- of the altarמִזְבֵּחַmizbêach · altarH4196
- and withinבַּ֫יִתbayith · house: insideH1004
- the vailפָּרֹ֫כֶתpôreketh · curtainH6532
- and ye shall serveעָבַד‛âbad · to serve: ministerH5647
- I have givenנָתַןnâthan · to give: giveH5414
- a serviceעֲבֹדָה‛ăbôdâh ‛ăbôdâh · service: ministryH5656
- of giftמַתָּנָהmattânâh · giftH4979
- and the strangerזוּרzûr · be a strangerH2114
- that cometh nighקָרֵבqârêb · approachingH7131
- shall be put to deathמוּתmûth · to dieH4191
Cross-references for Numbers 18:7
- Numbers 18:5And you shall keep guard over the sanctuary and over the altar, that there may never again be wrath on the people of Israel.
- Numbers 3:10And you shall appoint Aaron and his sons, and they shall guard their priesthood. But if any outsider comes near, he shall be put to death."
- Leviticus 16:2and the Lord said to Moses, "Tell Aaron your brother not to come at any time into the Holy Place inside the veil, before the mercy seat that is on the ark, so that he may not die. For I will appear in the cloud over the mercy seat.
- Hebrews 9:3Behind the second curtain was a second section called the Most Holy Place,
- Numbers 16:5and he said to Korah and all his company, "In the morning the Lord will show who is his, and who is holy, and will bring him near to him. The one whom he chooses he will bring near to him.
- 1 Samuel 2:28Did I choose him out of all the tribes of Israel to be my priest, to go up to my altar, to burn incense, to wear an ephod before me? I gave to the house of your father all my offerings by fire from the people of Israel.
- John 3:27John answered, "A person cannot receive even one thing unless it is given him from heaven.
- Romans 15:15But on some points I have written to you very boldly by way of reminder, because of the grace given me by God
- Ephesians 3:8To me, though I am the very least of all the saints, this grace was given, to preach to the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ,
- Hebrews 5:4And no one takes this honor for himself, but only when called by God, just as Aaron was.
- Numbers 18:4They shall join you and keep guard over the tent of meeting for all the service of the tent, and no outsider shall come near you.
- Numbers 3:38Those 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, guarding the sanctuary itself, to protect the people of Israel. And any outsider who came near was to be put to death.
- Numbers 16:40to be a reminder to the people of Israel, so that no outsider, who is not of the descendants of Aaron, should draw near to burn incense before the Lord, lest he become like Korah and his company—as the Lord said to him through Moses.
Commentaries on Numbers 18:7
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 7any outsider … must be put to death: This verse warned all Israelites to avoid areas where God did not allow them to be. God prohibited access to certain holy places for those not qualified in a religious sense. Only the holiest members of the community could access these holy areas. Ignoring this rule meant risking one's life because it violated God's holiness (see also 1:51, 53; 3:10, 29–38; 4:1–20).Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 2-72-7. thy brethren also of the tribe of Levi--The departments of the sacred office, to be filled respectively by the priests and Levites, are here assigned to each. To the priests was committed the charge of the sanctuary and the altar, while the Levites were to take care of everything else about the tabernacle. The Levites were to attend the priests as servants--bestowed on them as "gifts" to aid in the service of the tabernacle--while the high and…Read the comment
Topics related to Numbers 18:7
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Numbers 18
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Rashi on Tanakh
- Calvin’s Commentaries
- Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
- John Wesley’s Notes
- Darby Translation Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
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Commentaries