The Budding of Aaron’s Staff
1 Then theLordsaid to Moses,
2 “Tell the people of Israel to bring you twelve wooden staffs, one from each leader of Israel’s ancestral tribes, and inscribe each leader’s name on his staff.
3 Inscribe Aaron’s name on the staff of the tribe of Levi, for there must be one staff for the leader of each ancestral tribe.
4 Place these staffs in the Tabernacle in front of the Ark containing the tablets of the Covenant,where I meet with you.
5 Buds will sprout on the staff belonging to the man I choose. Then I will finally put an end to the people’s murmuring and complaining against you.”
6 So Moses gave the instructions to the people of Israel, and each of the twelve tribal leaders, including Aaron, brought Moses a staff.
7 Moses placed the staffs in theLord’s presence in the Tabernacle of the Covenant.
8 When he went into the Tabernacle of the Covenant the next day, he found that Aaron’s staff, representing the tribe of Levi, had sprouted, budded, blossomed, and produced ripe almonds!
9 When Moses brought all the staffs out from theLord’s presence, he showed them to the people. Each man claimed his own staff.
10 And theLordsaid to Moses: “Place Aaron’s staff permanently before the Ark of the Covenantto serve as a warning to rebels. This should put an end to their complaints against me and prevent any further deaths.”
11 So Moses did as theLordcommanded him.
12 Then the people of Israel said to Moses, “Look, we are doomed! We are dead! We are ruined!
13 Everyone who even comes close to the Tabernacle of theLorddies. Are we all doomed to die?”
—https://api-cdn.youversionapi.com/audio-bible-youversionapi/6/32k/NUM/17-24d216ae249c728b25ba1fef228acebc.mp3?version_id=116—