Deuteronomy 18:1-8 King James Version (KJV)

1 The priests the Levites, and all the tribe of Levi, shall have no part nor inheritance with Israel: they shall eat the offerings of the LORD made by fire, and his inheritance.

2 Therefore shall they have no inheritance among their brethren: the LORD is their inheritance, as he hath said unto them.

3 And this shall be the priest's due from the people, from them that offer a sacrifice, whether it be ox or sheep; and they shall give unto the priest the shoulder, and the two cheeks, and the maw.

4 The firstfruit also of thy corn, of thy wine, and of thine oil, and the first of the fleece of thy sheep, shalt thou give him.

5 For the LORD thy God hath chosen him out of all thy tribes, to stand to minister in the name of the LORD, him and his sons for ever.

6 And if a Levite come from any of thy gates out of all Israel, where he sojourned, and come with all the desire of his mind unto the place which the LORD shall choose;

7 Then he shall minister in the name of the LORD his God, as all his brethren the Levites do, which stand there before the LORD.

8 They shall have like portions to eat, beside that which cometh of the sale of his patrimony.


Deuteronomy 18:1-8 King James Version with Strong's Concordance (STRONG)

1 The priests H3548 the Levites, H3881 and all the tribe H7626 of Levi, H3878 shall have no part H2506 nor inheritance H5159 with Israel: H3478 they shall eat H398 the offerings H801 of the LORD H3068 made by fire, H801 and his inheritance. H5159

2 Therefore shall they have no inheritance H5159 among H7130 their brethren: H251 the LORD H3068 is their inheritance, H5159 as he hath said H1696 unto them.

3 And this shall be the priest's H3548 due H4941 from the people, H5971 from them that offer H2076 a sacrifice, H2077 whether it be ox H7794 or sheep; H7716 and they shall give H5414 unto the priest H3548 the shoulder, H2220 and the two cheeks, H3895 and the maw. H6896

4 The firstfruit H7225 also of thy corn, H1715 of thy wine, H8492 and of thine oil, H3323 and the first H7225 of the fleece H1488 of thy sheep, H6629 shalt thou give H5414 him.

5 For the LORD H3068 thy God H430 hath chosen H977 him out of all thy tribes, H7626 to stand H5975 to minister H8334 in the name H8034 of the LORD, H3068 him and his sons H1121 for ever. H3117

6 And if a Levite H3881 come H935 from any H259 of thy gates H8179 out of all Israel, H3478 where he sojourned, H1481 and come H935 with all the desire H185 of his mind H5315 unto the place H4725 which the LORD H3068 shall choose; H977

7 Then he shall minister H8334 in the name H8034 of the LORD H3068 his God, H430 as all his brethren H251 the Levites H3881 do, which stand H5975 there before H6440 the LORD. H3068

8 They shall have like portions H2506 to eat, H398 beside that which cometh of the sale H4465 of his patrimony. H1


Deuteronomy 18:1-8 American Standard (ASV)

1 The priests the Levites, `even' all the tribe of Levi, shall have no portion nor inheritance with Israel: they shall eat the offerings of Jehovah made by fire, and his inheritance.

2 And they shall have no inheritance among their brethren: Jehovah is their inheritance, as he hath spoken unto them.

3 And this shall be the priests' due from the people, from them that offer a sacrifice, whether it be ox or sheep, that they shall give unto the priest the shoulder, and the two cheeks, and the maw.

4 The first-fruits of thy grain, of thy new wine, and of thine oil, and the first of the fleece of thy sheep, shalt thou give him.

5 For Jehovah thy God hath chosen him out of all thy tribes, to stand to minister in the name of Jehovah, him and his sons for ever.

6 And if a Levite come from any of thy gates out of all Israel, where he sojourneth, and come with all the desire of his soul unto the place which Jehovah shall choose;

7 then he shall minister in the name of Jehovah his God, as all his brethren the Levites do, who stand there before Jehovah.

8 They shall have like portions to eat, besides that which cometh of the sale of his patrimony.


Deuteronomy 18:1-8 Young's Literal Translation (YLT)

1 `There is not to the priests the Levites -- all the tribe of Levi -- a portion and inheritance with Israel; fire-offerings of Jehovah, even His inheritance, they eat,

2 and he hath no inheritance in the midst of his brethren; Jehovah Himself `is' his inheritance, as He hath spoken to him.

3 `And this is the priest's right from the people, from those sacrificing a sacrifice, whether ox or sheep, he hath even given to the priest the leg, and the two cheeks, and the stomach;

4 the first of thy corn, of thy new wine, and of thine oil, and the first of the fleece of thy flock, thou dost give to him;

5 for on him hath Jehovah thy God fixed, out of all thy tribes, to stand to serve in the name of Jehovah, He and his sons continually.

6 `And when the Levite cometh from one of thy cities out of all Israel, where he hath sojourned, and hath come with all the desire of his soul unto the place which Jehovah doth choose,

7 then he hath ministered in the name of Jehovah his God, like all his brethren, the Levites, who are standing there before Jehovah,

8 portion as portion they do eat, apart from his sold things, with the fathers.


Deuteronomy 18:1-8 Darby English Bible (DARBY)

1 The priests, the Levites, [and] the whole tribe of Levi, shall have no portion nor inheritance with Israel: Jehovah's offerings by fire, and his inheritance shall they eat,

2 but they shall have no inheritance among their brethren: Jehovah, he is their inheritance, as he hath said unto them.

3 And this shall be the priest's due from the people, from them that sacrifice a sacrifice, whether ox, or sheep: they shall give unto the priest the shoulder, and the jawbones, and the maw.

4 The firstfruits [also] of thy corn, of thy new wine, and of thine oil, and the firstfruits of the shearing of thy sheep, shalt thou give him;

5 for Jehovah thy God hath chosen him out of all thy tribes, that he may stand to serve in the name of Jehovah, he and his sons continually.

6 And if the Levite shall come from one of thy gates out of all Israel, where he sojourneth, and shall come according to all the desire of his soul unto the place which Jehovah will choose,

7 and shall serve in the name of Jehovah his God, as all his brethren the Levites that stand there before Jehovah,

8 -- they shall have like portions to eat, besides that which he hath sold of his patrimony.


Deuteronomy 18:1-8 World English Bible (WEB)

1 The priests the Levites, [even] all the tribe of Levi, shall have no portion nor inheritance with Israel: they shall eat the offerings of Yahweh made by fire, and his inheritance.

2 They shall have no inheritance among their brothers: Yahweh is their inheritance, as he has spoken to them.

3 This shall be the priests' due from the people, from those who offer a sacrifice, whether it be ox or sheep, that they shall give to the priest the shoulder, and the two cheeks, and the maw.

4 The first fruits of your grain, of your new wine, and of your oil, and the first of the fleece of your sheep, shall you give him.

5 For Yahweh your God has chosen him out of all your tribes, to stand to minister in the name of Yahweh, him and his sons for ever.

6 If a Levite comes from any of your gates out of all Israel, where he lives as a foreigner, and comes with all the desire of his soul to the place which Yahweh shall choose;

7 then he shall minister in the name of Yahweh his God, as all his brothers the Levites do, who stand there before Yahweh.

8 They shall have like portions to eat, besides that which comes of the sale of his patrimony.


Deuteronomy 18:1-8 Bible in Basic English (BBE)

1 The priests, the Levites, that is, all the tribe of Levi, will have no part or heritage with Israel: their food and their heritage will be the offerings of the Lord made by fire.

2 And they will have no heritage among their countrymen: the Lord is their heritage, as he has said to them.

3 And this is to be the priests' right: those who make an offering of a sheep or an ox are to give to the priest the top part of the leg and the two sides of the head and the stomach.

4 And in addition you are to give him the first of your grain and wine and oil, and the first wool cut from your sheep.

5 For he, and his sons after him for ever, have been marked out by the Lord your God from all your tribes, to do the work of priests in the name of the Lord.

6 And if a Levite, moved by a strong desire, comes from any town in all Israel where he is living to the place marked out by the Lord;

7 Then he will do the work of a priest in the name of the Lord his God, with all his brothers the Levites who are there before the Lord.

8 His food will be the same as theirs, in addition to what has come to him as the price of his property.

Commentary on Deuteronomy 18 Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible


CHAPTER 18

De 18:1-8. The Lord Is the Priests' and the Levites' Inheritance.

1. The priests the Levites … shall eat the offerings—As the tribe of Levi had no inheritance allotted them like the other tribes but were wholly consecrated to the priestly office, their maintenance was to arise from tithes, first-fruits, and certain portions of the oblations presented on the altar, which God having by express appointment reserved to Himself made over, after being offered, to His ministers.

3. this shall be the priest's due from the people—All who offered sacrifices of thanksgiving or peace offerings (Le 7:31-33) were ordered to give the breast and shoulder as perquisites to the priests. Here "the two cheeks" or head and "the maw" or stomach, deemed anciently a great dainty, are specified. But whether this is a new injunction, or a repetition of the old with the supplement of more details, it is not easy to determine.

6-8. if a Levite … come with all the desire of his mind—It appears that the Levites served in rotation from the earliest times; but, from their great numbers, it was only at infrequent intervals they could be called into actual service. Should any Levite, however, under the influence of eminent piety, resolve to devote himself wholly and continually to the sacred duties of the sanctuary, he was allowed to realize his ardent wishes; and as he was admitted to a share of the work, so also to a share of the remuneration. Though he might have private property, that was to form no ground for withholding or even diminishing his claim to maintenance like the other ministering priests. The reason or principle of the enactment is obvious (1Co 9:13). At the same time, while every facility was afforded for the admission of such a zealous and self-denying officer, this admission was to be in an orderly manner: he was to minister "as all his brethren"—that is, a Gershonite with Gershonites; a Merarite with Merarites; so that there might be no derangement of the established courses.

De 18:9-14. The Abominations of the Nations Are to Be Avoided.

9-14. thou shalt not learn to do after the abominations of those nations—(See on Le 18:21; Le 19:26; Le 19:31; Le 20:4). In spite of this express command, the people of Canaan, especially the Philistines, were a constant snare and stumbling block to the Israelites, on account of their divinations and superstitious practices.

De 18:15-19. Christ the Prophet Is to Be Heard.

15-19. The Lord thy God will raise up unto thee a prophet—The insertion of this promise, in connection with the preceding prohibition, might warrant the application (which some make of it) to that order of true prophets whom God commissioned in unbroken succession to instruct, to direct, and warn His people; and in this view the purport of it is, "There is no need to consult with diviners and soothsayers, as I shall afford you the benefit of divinely appointed prophets, for judging of whose credentials a sure criterion is given" (De 18:20-22). But the prophet here promised was pre-eminently the Messiah, for He alone was "like unto Moses" (see on De 34:10) "in His mediatorial character; in the peculiar excellence of His ministry; in the number, variety, and magnitude of His miracles; in His close and familiar communion with God; and in His being the author of a new dispensation of religion." This prediction was fulfilled fifteen hundred years afterwards and was expressly applied to Jesus Christ by Peter (Ac 3:22, 23), and by Stephen (Ac 7:37).

19. whosoever will not hearken unto my words which he shall speak in my name, I will require it of him—The direful consequences of unbelief in Christ, and disregard of His mission, the Jewish people have been experiencing during eighteen hundred years.