Numbers 19:1-10

1 God spoke to Moses and Aaron:
2 "This is the rule from the Revelation that God commands: Tell the People of Israel to get a red cow, a healthy specimen, ritually clean, that has never been in harness.
3 Present it to Eleazar the priest, then take it outside the camp and butcher it while he looks on.
4 Eleazar will take some of the blood on his finger and splash it seven times in the direction of the Tent of Meeting.
5 "Then under Eleazar's supervision burn the cow, the whole thing - hide, meat, blood, even its dung.
6 The priest then will take a stick of cedar, some sprigs of hyssop, and a piece of scarlet material and throw them on the burning cow.
7 Afterwards the priest must wash his clothes and bathe well with water. He can then come into the camp but he remains ritually unclean until evening.
8 The man who burns the cow must also wash his clothes and bathe with water. He also is unclean until evening.
9 "Then a man who is ritually clean will gather the ashes of the cow and place them in a ritually clean place outside the camp. The congregation of Israel will keep them to use in the Water-of-Cleansing, an Absolution-Offering.
10 "The man who gathered up the ashes must scrub his clothes; he is ritually unclean until evening. This is to be a standing rule for both native-born Israelites and foreigners living among them.
Published by permission. Originally published by NavPress in English as THE MESSAGE: The Bible in Contemporary Language copyright 2002 by Eugene Peterson. All rights reserved.