Aaron’s Staff Buds
And the LORD spoke to Moses, saying,
“Speak to the sons of Israel, and take from them a staff for each fathers’ house — from all their leaders, by their fathers’ houses, twelve staffs. Each man’s name you shall write on his staff.
And Aaron’s name you shall write on the staff of Levi — for there is one staff for the head of their fathers’ house.
And you shall lay them in the Tent of Meeting before the testimony, where I meet with you.
And it shall be that the staff of the man whom I choose shall sprout; and I will quiet from upon me the grumblings of the sons of Israel, which they grumble against you.”
And Moses spoke to the sons of Israel, and all their leaders gave him a staff for each leader, a staff for each leader by their fathers’ houses — twelve staffs; and the staff of Aaron was among their staffs.
And Moses laid the staffs before the LORD in the tent of the testimony.
And it was on the next day, that Moses went into the tent of the testimony — and look, the staff of Aaron for the house of Levi had sprouted: it had put forth a sprout, and blossomed a blossom, and ripened almonds.
And Moses brought out all the staffs from before the LORD to all the sons of Israel; and they looked, and each man took his staff.
And the LORD said to Moses, “Put back the staff of Aaron before the testimony, to be kept as a sign to the sons of rebellion — that you may end their grumblings against me, so that they do not die.”
And Moses did so; as the LORD had commanded him, so he did.
And the sons of Israel said to Moses, saying, “Look — we perish, we are lost; all of us are lost.
Everyone who comes near, who comes near to the Dwelling of the LORD, dies. Shall we come to an end, perishing?”