The priests, the prophets, and all the people heard Jeremiah say these things in the Lord’s temple.

Then the prophet Jeremiah responded to the prophet Hananiah in the presence of the priests and all the people who were standing in the Lord’s temple.

could my covenant with my servant David and my covenant with the Levites ever be broken. So David will by all means always have a descendant to occupy his throne as king and the Levites will by all means always have priests who will minister before me. ¹ 

you will give a young bull for a sin offering to the Levitical priests who are descended from Zadok, who approach me to minister to me, declares the sovereign Lord.

Get dressed ¹  and lament, you priests! Wail, you who minister at the altar! Come, spend the night in sackcloth, you servants of my God, because no one brings grain offerings or drink offerings to the temple of your God anymore. ² 

Then Haggai asked, “If a person who is ritually unclean because of touching a dead body ¹  comes in contact with one of these items, will it become unclean?” The priests answered, “It will be unclean.”

He brought all the priests from the cities of Judah and ruined ¹  the high places where the priests had offered sacrifices, from Geba to Beer Sheba. ²  He tore down the high place of the goat idols ³  situated at the entrance of the gate of Joshua, the city official, on the left side of the city gate.

But he did not purchase the land of the priests because the priests had an allotment from Pharaoh and they ate from their allotment that Pharaoh gave them. That is why they did not sell their land.

So Joseph made it a statute, ¹  which is in effect ²  to this day throughout the land of Egypt: One-fifth belongs to Pharaoh. Only the land of the priests did not become Pharaoh’s.

Then the one presenting the offering ¹  must slaughter the bull ²  before the Lord, and the sons of Aaron, the priests, must present the blood and splash ³  the blood against the sides of the altar which is at the entrance of the Meeting Tent.

Then he must bring it to the sons of Aaron, the priests, and the priest ¹  must scoop out from there a handful of its choice wheat flour and some of its olive oil in addition to all of its frankincense, and the priest must offer its memorial portion ²  up in smoke on the altar – it is ³  a gift of a soothing aroma to the Lord.

“When someone has ¹  a swelling ²  or a scab ³  or a bright spot ⁴  on the skin of his body ⁵  that may become a diseased infection, ⁶  he must be brought to Aaron the priest or one of his sons, the priests. ⁷ 

Then the Levitical priests ¹  will approach (for the Lord your God has chosen them to serve him and to pronounce blessings in his name, ²  and to decide ³  every judicial verdict ⁴ )

Then Moses wrote down this law and gave it to the Levitical priests, who carry the ark of the Lord’s covenant, and to all Israel’s elders.

Joshua told the priests, “Pick up the ark of the covenant and pass on ahead of the people.” So they picked up the ark of the covenant and went ahead of the people.

When the feet ¹  of the priests carrying the ark of the Lord, the Ruler ²  of the whole earth, touch ³  the water of the Jordan, the water coming downstream toward you will stop flowing and pile up.” ⁴ 

When the ones carrying the ark reached the Jordan and the feet of the priests carrying the ark touched the surface ¹  of the water – (the Jordan is at flood stage all during harvest time) ²  –

The priests carrying the ark of the covenant of the Lord stood firmly on dry ground in the middle of the Jordan. All Israel crossed over on dry ground until the entire nation was on the other side. ¹ 

Instruct them, ‘Pick up twelve stones from the middle of the Jordan, from the very place where the priests ¹  stand firmly, and carry them over with you and put them in the place where you camp tonight.’”

Joshua also set up twelve stones ¹  in the middle of the Jordan in the very place where the priests carrying the ark of the covenant stood. They remain there to this very day.