民數記8:1-26

8:1 耶和華曉諭摩西說：
8:2 「你告訴亞倫說：點燈的時候，七盞燈都要向燈臺前面發光。」
8:3 亞倫便這樣行。他點燈臺上的燈，使燈向前發光，是照耶和華所吩咐摩西的。
8:4 這燈臺的做法是用金子錘出來的，連座帶花都是錘出來的。摩西製造燈臺，是照耶和華所指示的樣式。
8:5 耶和華曉諭摩西說：
8:6 「你從以色列人中選出利未人來，潔淨他們。
8:7 潔淨他們當這樣行：用除罪水彈在他們身上，又叫他們用剃頭刀刮全身，洗衣服，潔淨自己。
8:8 然後叫他們取一隻公牛犢，並同獻的素祭，就是調油的細麵；你要另取一隻公牛犢作贖罪祭。
8:9 將利未人奉到會幕前，招聚以色列全會眾。
8:10 將利未人奉到耶和華面前，以色列人要按手在他們頭上。
8:11 亞倫也將他們奉到耶和華面前，為以色列人當作搖祭，使他們好辦耶和華的事。
8:12 利未人要按手在那兩隻牛的頭上；你要將一隻作贖罪祭，一隻作燔祭，獻給耶和華，為利未人贖罪。
8:13 你也要使利未人站在亞倫和他兒子面前，將他們當作搖祭奉給耶和華。
8:14 「這樣，你從以色列人中將利未人分別出來，利未人便要歸我。
8:15 此後利未人要進去辦會幕的事，你要潔淨他們，將他們當作搖祭奉上；
8:16 因為他們是從以色列人中全然給我的，我揀選他們歸我，是代替以色列人中一切頭生的。
8:17 以色列人中一切頭生的，連人帶牲畜，都是我的。我在埃及地擊殺一切頭生的那天，將他們分別為聖歸我。
8:18 我揀選利未人代替以色列人中一切頭生的。
8:19 我從以色列人中將利未人當作賞賜給亞倫和他的兒子，在會幕中辦以色列人的事，又為以色列人贖罪，免得他們挨近聖所，有災殃臨到他們中間。」
8:20 摩西、亞倫，並以色列全會眾便向利未人如此行。凡耶和華指著利未人所吩咐摩西的，以色列人就向他們這樣行。
8:21 於是利未人潔淨自己，除了罪，洗了衣服；亞倫將他們當作搖祭奉到耶和華面前，又為他們贖罪，潔淨他們。
8:22 然後利未人進去，在亞倫和他兒子面前，在會幕中辦事。耶和華指著利未人怎樣吩咐摩西，以色列人就怎樣向他們行了。
8:23 耶和華曉諭摩西說：
8:24 「利未人是這樣：從二十五歲以外，他們要前來任職，辦會幕的事。
8:25 到了五十歲要停工退任，不再辦事，
8:26 只要在會幕裡，和他們的弟兄一同伺候，謹守所吩咐的，不再辦事了。至於所吩咐利未人的，你要這樣向他們行。」

 The Lord said to Moses, ² “Speak to Aaron and say to him, ‘When you set up the lamps, see that all seven light up the area in front of the lampstand.’”

³ Aaron did so; he set up the lamps so that they faced forward on the lampstand, just as the Lord commanded Moses. ⁴ This is how the lampstand was made: It was made of hammered gold—from its base to its blossoms. The lampstand was made exactly like the pattern the Lord had shown Moses.

⁵ The Lord said to Moses: ⁶ “Take the Levites from among all the Israelites and make them ceremonially clean. ⁷ To purify them, do this: Sprinkle the water of cleansing on them; then have them shave their whole bodies and wash their clothes. And so they will purify themselves. ⁸ Have them take a young bull with its grain offering of the finest flour mixed with olive oil; then you are to take a second young bull for a sin offering.^{[a] 9} Bring the Levites to the front of the tent of meeting and assemble the whole Israelite community. ¹⁰ You are to bring the Levites before the Lord, and the Israelites are to lay their hands on them. ¹¹ Aaron is to present the Levites before the Lord as a wave offering from the Israelites, so that they may be ready to do the work of the Lord.

¹² “Then the Levites are to lay their hands on the heads of the bulls, using one for a sin offering to the Lord and the other for a burnt offering, to make atonement for the Levites. ¹³ Have the Levites stand in front of Aaron and his sons and then present them as a wave offering to the Lord. ¹⁴ In this way you are to set the Levites apart from the other Israelites, and the Levites will be mine.

¹⁵ “After you have purified the Levites and presented them as a wave offering, they are to come to do their work at the tent of meeting. ¹⁶ They are the Israelites who are to be given wholly to me. I have taken them as my own in place of the firstborn, the first male offspring from every Israelite woman. ¹⁷ Every firstborn male in Israel, whether human or animal, is mine. When I struck down all the firstborn in Egypt, I set them apart for myself. ¹⁸ And I have taken the Levites in place of all the firstborn sons in Israel. ¹⁹ From among all the Israelites, I have given the Levites as gifts to Aaron and his sons to do the work at the tent of meeting on behalf of the Israelites and to make atonement for them so that no plague will strike the Israelites when they go near the sanctuary.”

²⁰ Moses, Aaron and the whole Israelite community did with the Levites just as the Lord commanded Moses. ²¹ The Levites purified themselves and washed their clothes. Then Aaron presented them as a wave offering before the Lord and made atonement for them to purify them. ²² After that, the Levites came to do their work at the tent of meeting under the supervision of Aaron and his sons. They did with the Levites just as the Lord commanded Moses.

²³ The Lord said to Moses, ²⁴ “This applies to the Levites: Men twenty-five years old or more shall come to take part in the work at the tent of meeting, ²⁵ but at the age of fifty, they must retire from their regular service and work no longer. ²⁶ They may assist their brothers in performing their duties at the tent of meeting, but they themselves must not do the work. This, then, is how you are to assign the responsibilities of the Levites.”

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    將燈檯與利未人放在一起，也就是要告訴我們，上帝要揀選人來作為祂的燈，在世界是代表祂向人宣告上帝的心意，因為上帝不願意人被罪惡和死亡所轄制，總要讓人透過基督進入永生！

    保羅也勸勉基督徒說：「因為你們立志行事都是上帝在你們心裡運行，為要成就他的美意。凡所行的，都不要發怨言，起爭論，使你們無可指摘，誠實無偽，在這彎曲悖謬的世代作上帝無瑕疵的兒女。你們顯在這世代中，好像明光照耀，將生命的道表明出來，叫我在基督的日子好誇我沒有空跑，也沒有徒勞。」（腓立比書2:13-16）

    也因為這樣，我們當求聖靈大大的動工，讓我們配得作上帝的金燈檯，在這樣彎曲悖逆的世代，因為我們信靠主耶穌的人，都是光明之子，是要勝過黑暗的，彰顯上帝的榮光！