Numbers 18:1-18

¹And the Lord seide to Aaron, Thou, and thi sones, and the hows of thi fadir with thee, schulen bere the wickidnesse of the seyntuarie; and thou and thi sones togidere schulen suffre the synnes of youre preesthod.

²But also take thou with thee thi britheren of the lynage of Leuy, and the power of thi fadir, and be thei redi, that thei mynystre to thee. Forsothe thou and thi sones schulen mynystre in the tabernacle of witnessyng;

³and the dekenes schulen wake at thi comaundementis, and at alle werkis of the tabernacle; so oneli that thei neiye not to the vessels of seyntuarie, and to the autir, lest bothe thei dien, and ye perischen togidere.

⁴Forsothe be thei with thee, and wake thei in the kepyngis of the tabernacle, and in alle the cerymonyes therof. An alien schal not be meddlid with you.

⁵Wake ye in the kepyng of the seyntuarie, and in the seruyce of the auter, lest indignacioun rise on the sones of Israel.

⁶Lo! Y haue youun `to you youre britheren, dekenes, fro the myddis of the sones of Israel, and Y haue youe a fre yifte to the Lord, that thei serue in the seruyces of his tabernacle.

⁷Forsothe thou and thi sones, kepe youre preesthod; and alle thingis that perteynen to the ournyng of the auter, and ben with ynne the veil, schulen be mynystrid bi preestis; if ony straunger neiyeth, he schal be slayn.

⁸The Lord spak to Aaron, Lo! Y haue youe to thee the kepyng of my firste fruytis; Y haue youe to thee and to thi sones alle thingis, that ben halewid of the sones of Israel, for preestis office euerlastynge lawful thingis.

⁹Therfor thou schalt take these thingis of tho thingis that ben halewid, and ben offrid to the Lord; ech offryng, and sacrifice, and what euer thing is yoldun to me for synne and for trespas, and cometh in to hooli of hooli thingis, schal be thin and thi sones.

¹⁰Thou schalt ete it in the seyntuarie; malis oneli schulen ete therof, for it is halewid to the Lord.

¹¹Forsothe Y haue youe to thee, and to thi sones and douytris, bi euerlastynge riyt, the firste fruytis whiche the sones of Israel a vowen and offren; he that is clene in thin hous, schal ete tho.

¹²Y yaf to thee al the merowe of oile, and of wyn, and of wheete, what euer thing of the firste fruytis thei schulen offre to the Lord.

¹³Alle the bigynnyngis of fruytis whiche the erthe bryngith forth, and ben brouyt to the Lord, schulen falle in to thin vsis; he that is cleene in thin hous, schal ete of tho.

¹⁴Al thing which the sones of Israel yelden bi avow, schal be thin.

¹⁵What euer thing `schal breke out first of the wombe of al fleisch, which fleisch thei offren to the Lord, whether it is of men, ethir of beestis, it schal be of thi riyt; so oneli that thou take prijs for the firste gendrid child of man, and that thou make ech beeste which is vncleene to be bouyt ayen;

¹⁶whos ayenbiyng schal be aftir o monethe, for fyue siclis of siluer, bi the weiyte of seyntuarie; a sicle hath xx. halpens.

¹⁷Forsothe thou schalt not make the firste gendrid of oxe, and of scheep, and of goet, to be ayen bouyt, for tho ben halewid to the Lord; oneli thou schalt schede the blood of tho on the auter, and thou schalt brenne the ynnere fatnesse in to swettist odour to the Lord.

¹⁸Forsothe the fleischis schulen falle in to thin vss, as the brest halewid and the riyt schuldur, schulen be thine.