The Seventy Elders

¹⁶ So the Lord said to Moses: “Gather to Me ^(A)seventy men of the elders of Israel, whom you know to be the elders of the people and ^(B)officers over them; bring them to the tabernacle of meeting, that they may stand there with you.

¹⁷ Then I will come down and talk with you there. ^(A)I will take of the Spirit that is upon you and will put the same upon them; and they shall bear the burden of the people with you, that you may not bear it yourself alone.

²⁴ So Moses went out and told the people the words of the Lord, and he ^(A)gathered the seventy men of the elders of the people and placed them around the tabernacle.

²⁵ Then the Lord came down in the cloud, and spoke to him, and took of the Spirit that was upon him, and placed the same upon the seventy elders; and it happened, ^(A)when the Spirit rested upon them, that ^(B)they prophesied, ^[a]although they never did so again.

²⁶ But two men had remained in the camp: the name of one was Eldad, and the name of the other Medad. And the Spirit rested upon them. Now they were among those listed, but who ^(A)had not gone out to the tabernacle; yet they prophesied in the camp.

²⁷ And a young man ran and told Moses, and said, “Eldad and Medad are prophesying in the camp.”

²⁸ So Joshua the son of Nun, Moses’ assistant, one of his choice men, answered and said, “Moses my lord, ^(A)forbid them!”

²⁹ Then Moses said to him, “Are you ^[a]zealous for my sake? ^(A)Oh, that all the Lord’s people were prophets and that the Lord would put His Spirit upon them!”