Numbers 9

1 The Lord spoke to Moses in the wilderness of Sinai, in the second year after they had come out of the land of Egypt, in the first month. He said, 2 “Speak, and let the children of Israel keep the Passover at its appointed time. 3 On the fourteenth day of the first month, at evening, you are to keep it at its appointed time; you are to keep it according to its law and according to its rule.” 4 So Moses told the children of Israel to sacrifice the Passover, 5 on the fourteenth day of the first month, in the wilderness of Sinai. As the Lord had ordered Moses, so the children of Israel did.

6 And there were men who were unclean through a dead body and could not keep the Passover on that day, and they came before Moses and Aaron that day. 7 And those men said to Moses, 7 “We are unclean through a dead body. Why should we be kept from bringing the gift to the Lord at its appointed time, among the children of Israel?” 8 And Moses said to them, 8 “Stand there, and I will hear what charge the Lord gives about you.”

9 And the Lord spoke to Moses. He said, 10 “Speak to the children of Israel: If any man among you or among your descendants is unclean through a dead body, or is far away on a journey, he is still to keep the Passover to the Lord — 11 in the second month, on the fourteenth day, in the evening. They are to make it then, and eat it with bread without yeast and bitter herbs. 12 They are not to leave any of it until morning, and they are not to break a bone of it. They are to sacrifice it according to the rule of the Passover. [a] 13 But any man who is clean, and is not far away on a journey, and fails to keep the Passover — that soul will be destroyed from among his people, because he did not bring the gift to the Lord at its appointed time. That man will bear his own sin. 14 And if a newcomer comes to you in your land and keeps the Passover to the Lord, he is to keep it according to the law of the Passover and according to its rule. There is to be one law for you, for the newcomer and for the one born in the land.”

15 On the day the tent was pitched, the cloud covered the tent, the place of the witness; and in the evening there was over the tent what looked like fire, until morning. 16 That is how it always was: the cloud covered it by day, and what looked like fire by night. 17 And when the cloud went up from the tent, then after that the children of Israel set out; and wherever the cloud settled, there the children of Israel camped. 18 At the Lord's decree the children of Israel camped, and at the Lord's decree they set out. All the days the cloud overshadowed the tent, the children of Israel stayed camped. 19 And when the cloud stayed drawn over the tent for many days, the children of Israel kept the charge of God and did not set out. 20 And it happened that when the cloud covered the tent a set number of days, at the Lord's word they camped and at the Lord's decree they set out. [b] 21 And it happened that when the cloud stayed from evening until morning and went up in the morning, then they set out; by day or by night, when the cloud went up, they set out. 22 When the cloud went on overshadowing the tent a whole month, the children of Israel stayed camped and did not move on. 23 For at the Lord's decree they set out. They kept the charge of the Lord, at the Lord's decree, by the hand of Moses.