Numbers 8

1 And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying,2 Speak unto Aaron, and say unto him, When thou lightest the lamps, the seven lamps shall give light over against the candlestick.3 And Aaron did so; he lighted the lamps thereof over against the candlestick, as the Lord commanded Moses.4 And this work of the candlestick was of beaten gold, unto the shaft thereof, unto the flowers thereof, was beaten work: according unto the pattern which the Lord had shewed Moses, so he made the candlestick.

5 And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying,6 Take the Levites from among the children of Israel, and cleanse them.7 And thus shalt thou do unto them, to cleanse them: Sprinkle water of purifying upon them, and let them shave all their flesh, and let them wash their clothes, and so make themselves clean.s8 Then let them take a young bullock with his meat offering, even fine flour mingled with oil, and another young bullock shalt thou take for a sin offering.9 And thou shalt bring the Levites before the tabernacle of the congregation: and thou shalt gather the whole assembly of the children of Israel together:10 And thou shalt bring the Levites before the Lord: and the children of Israel shall put their hands upon the Levites:11 And Aaron shall offer the Levites before the Lord for an offering of the children of Israel, that they may execute the service of the Lord.sss12 And the Levites shall lay their hands upon the heads of the bullocks: and thou shalt offer the one for a sin offering, and the other for a burnt offering, unto the Lord, to make an atonement for the Levites.13 And thou shalt set the Levites before Aaron, and before his sons, and offer them for an offering unto the Lord.14 Thus shalt thou separate the Levites from among the children of Israel: and the Levites shall be mine.15 And after that shall the Levites go in to do the service of the tabernacle of the congregation: and thou shalt cleanse them, and offer them for an offering.16 For they are wholly given unto me from among the children of Israel; instead of such as open every womb, even instead of the firstborn of all the children of Israel, have I taken them unto me.17 For all the firstborn of the children of Israel are mine, both man and beast: on the day that I smote every firstborn in the land of Egypt I sanctified them for myself.18 And I have taken the Levites for all the firstborn of the children of Israel.19 And I have given the Levites as a gift to Aaron and to his sons from among the children of Israel, to do the service of the children of Israel in the tabernacle of the congregation, and to make an atonement for the children of Israel: that there be no plague among the children of Israel, when the children of Israel come nigh unto the sanctuary.s20 And Moses, and Aaron, and all the congregation of the children of Israel, did to the Levites according unto all that the Lord commanded Moses concerning the Levites, so did the children of Israel unto them.21 And the Levites were purified, and they washed their clothes; and Aaron offered them as an offering before the Lord; and Aaron made an atonement for them to cleanse them.22 And after that went the Levites in to do their service in the tabernacle of the congregation before Aaron, and before his sons: as the Lord had commanded Moses concerning the Levites, so did they unto them.

23 And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying,24 This is it that belongeth unto the Levites: from twenty and five years old and upward they shall go in to wait upon the service of the tabernacle of the congregation:s25 And from the age of fifty years they shall cease waiting upon the service thereof, and shall serve no more:s26 But shall minister with their brethren in the tabernacle of the congregation, to keep the charge, and shall do no service. Thus shalt thou do unto the Levites touching their charge.

Psalm 44

To the chief Musician for the sons of Korah, Maschil.

1 We have heard with our ears, O God, our fathers have told us, what work thou didst in their days, in the times of old.s2 How thou didst drive out the heathen with thy hand, and plantedst them; how thou didst afflict the people, and cast them out.3 For they got not the land in possession by their own sword, neither did their own arm save them: but thy right hand, and thine arm, and the light of thy countenance, because thou hadst a favour unto them.4 Thou art my King, O God: command deliverances for Jacob.5 Through thee will we push down our enemies: through thy name will we tread them under that rise up against us.6 For I will not trust in my bow, neither shall my sword save me.7 But thou hast saved us from our enemies, and hast put them to shame that hated us.8 In God we boast all the day long, and praise thy name for ever. Selah.

9 But thou hast cast off, and put us to shame; and goest not forth with our armies.10 Thou makest us to turn back from the enemy: and they which hate us spoil for themselves.11 Thou hast given us like sheep appointed for meat; and hast scattered us among the heathen.s12 Thou sellest thy people for nought, and dost not increase thy wealth by their price.s13 Thou makest us a reproach to our neighbours, a scorn and a derision to them that are round about us.14 Thou makest us a byword among the heathen, a shaking of the head among the people.15 My confusion is continually before me, and the shame of my face hath covered me,16 For the voice of him that reproacheth and blasphemeth; by reason of the enemy and avenger.

17 All this is come upon us; yet have we not forgotten thee, neither have we dealt falsely in thy covenant.18 Our heart is not turned back, neither have our steps declined from thy way;s19 Though thou hast sore broken us in the place of dragons, and covered us with the shadow of death.20 If we have forgotten the name of our God, or stretched out our hands to a strange god;21 Shall not God search this out? for he knoweth the secrets of the heart.22 Yea, for thy sake are we killed all the day long; we are counted as sheep for the slaughter.23 Awake, why sleepest thou, O Lord? arise, cast us not off for ever.24 Wherefore hidest thou thy face, and forgettest our affliction and our oppression?25 For our soul is bowed down to the dust: our belly cleaveth unto the earth.26 Arise for our help, and redeem us for thy mercies' sake.s

Song of Solomon 6

1 Whither is thy beloved gone, O thou fairest among women? whither is thy beloved turned aside? that we may seek him with thee.2 My beloved is gone down into his garden, to the beds of spices, to feed in the gardens, and to gather lilies.3 I am my beloved's, and my beloved is mine: he feedeth among the lilies.

4 Thou art beautiful, O my love, as Tirzah, comely as Jerusalem, terrible as an army with banners.5 Turn away thine eyes from me, for they have overcome me: thy hair is as a flock of goats that appear from Gilead.s6 Thy teeth are as a flock of sheep which go up from the washing, whereof every one beareth twins, and there is not one barren among them.7 As a piece of a pomegranate are thy temples within thy locks.8 There are threescore queens, and fourscore concubines, and virgins without number.9 My dove, my undefiled is but one; she is the only one of her mother, she is the choice one of her that bare her. The daughters saw her, and blessed her; yea, the queens and the concubines, and they praised her.

10 Who is she that looketh forth as the morning, fair as the moon, clear as the sun, and terrible as an army with banners?

11 I went down into the garden of nuts to see the fruits of the valley, and to see whether the vine flourished, and the pomegranates budded.12 Or ever I was aware, my soul made me like the chariots of Amminadib.ss13 Return, return, O Shulamite; return, return, that we may look upon thee. What will ye see in the Shulamite? As it were the company of two armies.s

Hebrews 6

1 Therefore leaving the principles of the doctrine of Christ, let us go on unto perfection; not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works, and of faith toward God,2 Of the doctrine of baptisms, and of laying on of hands, and of resurrection of the dead, and of eternal judgment.3 And this will we do, if God permit.4 For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Ghost,5 And have tasted the good word of God, and the powers of the world to come,6 If they shall fall away, to renew them again unto repentance; seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open shame.7 For the earth which drinketh in the rain that cometh oft upon it, and bringeth forth herbs meet for them by whom it is dressed, receiveth blessing from God:8 But that which beareth thorns and briers is rejected, and is nigh unto cursing; whose end is to be burned.9 But, beloved, we are persuaded better things of you, and things that accompany salvation, though we thus speak.10 For God is not unrighteous to forget your work and labour of love, which ye have shewed toward his name, in that ye have ministered to the saints, and do minister.11 And we desire that every one of you do shew the same diligence to the full assurance of hope unto the end:12 That ye be not slothful, but followers of them who through faith and patience inherit the promises.13 For when God made promise to Abraham, because he could swear by no greater, he sware by himself,14 Saying, Surely blessing I will bless thee, and multiplying I will multiply thee.15 And so, after he had patiently endured, he obtained the promise.16 For men verily swear by the greater: and an oath for confirmation is to them an end of all strife.17 Wherein God, willing more abundantly to shew unto the heirs of promise the immutability of his counsel, confirmed it by an oath:18 That by two immutable things, in which it was impossible for God to lie, we might have a strong consolation, who have fled for refuge to lay hold upon the hope set before us:19 Which hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and stedfast, and which entereth into that within the veil;20 Whither the forerunner is for us entered, even Jesus, made an high priest for ever after the order of Melchisedec.