Aaron’s Staff Buds

17 ^[a]Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, ² “Speak to the sons of Israel, and obtain from them a staff for each father’s household: twelve staffs, from all their leaders for their fathers’ households. You shall write each man’s name on his staff, ³ and write Aaron’s name on the staff of Levi; for there is to be one staff for the head of each of their fathers’ households. ⁴ You shall then leave them in the tent of meeting in front of ^(A)the testimony, where I meet with you. ⁵ And it will come about that the staff of ^(B)the man whom I choose will sprout. So I will relieve Myself of the grumblings of the sons of Israel, who are grumbling against you.” ⁶ So Moses spoke to the sons of Israel, and all their leaders gave him a staff, one for each leader, for their fathers’ households, twelve staffs in all, with the staff of Aaron among their staffs. ⁷ Then Moses left the staffs before the Lord in ^(C)the tent of the testimony.

⁸ Now on the next day Moses went into the tent of the testimony; and behold, ^(D)Aaron’s staff for the house of Levi had sprouted and produced buds and bloomed with blossoms, and it yielded ripe almonds. ⁹ Moses then brought out all the staffs from the presence of the Lord to all the sons of Israel; and they looked, and each man took his staff. ¹⁰ But the Lord said to Moses, “Put the staff of Aaron ^(E)back in front of the testimony ^[b]to be kept as a sign against the ^[c](F)rebels, so that you may put an end to their grumblings against Me and they do not die.” ¹¹ Moses did so; just as the Lord had commanded him, so he did.

¹² Then the sons of Israel spoke to Moses, saying, “^(G)Behold, we are passing away, we are perishing, we are all perishing! ^13 (H)Everyone who comes near, who comes near to the tabernacle of the Lord, must die. Are we to perish completely?”