Numbers 4
1 Then Yahweh said to Moses/me,
The Lord told Moses and Aaron,
2 “Write down the names of the men who belong to the clans descended from Levi.
“Register the descendants of Kohath from the tribe of Levi, according to their family and father's line.
3 Write the names of the men who are between 30 and 50 years old. These will be men who will work at the Sacred Tent.
Count men aged thirty to fifty—all who are entitled to do the work of serving in the Tent of Meeting.
4 “The work of these descendants of Kohath will be [to take care of] the sacred items [that are used when the people worship] at the Sacred Tent.
This work that they are to do in the Tent of Meetings involves the things that are most holy.
5 When you Israelis move to another location, Aaron and his sons must enter the tent to take down the curtain that separates the Very Holy Place from the other part of the Sacred Tent. They must cover the sacred chest with that curtain.
Whenever you move camp, Aaron and his sons will go in, take down the veil, and place it over the Ark of the Testimony.
6 Then they must cover that with a nice covering made from the skins of goats. Over that they must spread a blue cloth. Then they must insert into the rings on the chest the poles [for carrying it].
On top of this they are to put a fine leather covering, spread a cloth of solid blue over it, and then insert its carrying poles.
7 “Then they must put a blue cloth over the table on which the priests put the sacred bread. On top of the cloth they must put the bowls [for incense], the pans, the other dishes, the jars for [the wine that will be] offered as a sacrifice, and the sacred bread.
Have them spread a blue cloth over the table of the Presence as well, and put the plates and cups on it, as well as the bowls and jugs for the drink offering. The current bread offering is to stay on it.
8 Over all of this they must spread a scarlet/red cloth. Finally, they must put on top a nice covering made from the skins of goats. Then they must insert into the [rings at the corners of] the tables the poles [for carrying it].
Over everything they are to spread a crimson cloth, next a fine leather covering, and then insert its carrying poles.
9 “Then with another blue cloth they must cover the lampstand, the lamps, the lamp snuffers, the trays, and the special jars of [olive] oil [to burn in the lamps].
Using a blue cloth, they are to cover the lampstand of light, together with its lamps, wick tongs, and trays, as well as the jars of olive oil used to fill them.
10 They must cover the lampstand and all the other items with a nice covering made from the skins of goats. They must place all these things on a frame for carrying them.
Then have them wrap it together with all its utensils inside a fine leather covering and place it on the carrying frame.
11 “Then they must spread another blue cloth over the gold altar [which is used for burning] incense. Over this they must spread a nice covering made from the skins of goats. Then they must insert into [the rings of] that altar the poles for carrying it.
They are to spread a blue cloth over the gold altar, cover it with fine leather, and then insert its carrying poles.
12 “They must take all the other items that are inside the Sacred Tent and wrap them in a blue cloth, cover that with a nice covering made from the skins of goats, and place all that on a frame for carrying it.
They are to place all the utensils used for the service in the sanctuary in a blue cloth, cover them with fine leather, and place them on the carrying frame.
13 “Then they must remove the ashes from the altar [on which they have burned sacrifices]. Then they must cover the altar with a purple cloth.
Have them clean the ashes from the bronze altar and spread a purple cloth over it,
14 Then they must spread on top of the cloth all the items used at the altar—the pans [for carrying the hot coals], the meat forks, the shovels, the bowls [for containing the blood to sprinkle on the people], and all the other containers. Then they must spread over all those things a nice covering made from the skins of goats. Then they must insert into [the rings at the sides of] the altar the poles [for carrying it].
and put on it all the equipment used in the services on the altar: the firepans, meat forks, shovels, and sprinkling bowls. Spread over it a fine leather covering and then insert its carrying poles.
15 “Then Aaron and his sons have finished covering all these sacred things, the Israeli people will be ready to move [to a new location]. The descendants of Kohath must come and carry all the sacred things to [the next place] where you Israelis will set up your tents. But the descendants of Kohath must not touch any of these sacred items, because they will [immediately] die [if they touch them]. They are the ones who will carry these things, [but they must not touch them].
Once Aaron and his sons have finished covering these holy things and all the equipment connected with them, when the camp is ready to move, the priests of the Kohath family are to come and carry them. But they are forbidden to touch anything holy, otherwise they'll die. These are their responsibilities for moving the Tent of Meeting.
16 “Aaron’s son Eleazar will have the work of taking care of the [olive] oil for the lamps, the nice-smelling incense, the grain which will be burned on the altar each day, and the [olive] oil for anointing [the priests]. Eleazar is the one who will supervise the work that is done at the Sacred Tent and the men who take care of everything that is in it.”
Eleazar, son of Aaron the priest, is to supervise obtaining olive oil for the lamps, the aromatic incense, the daily grain offering, and the anointing oil. He is in charge of the whole Tabernacle and everything in it—all the holy things and equipment.”
17 “Then Yahweh said to Aaron and Moses/me,
The Lord told Moses and Aaron,
18 “When the descendants of Kohath approach the sacred items in the Sacred Tent [to take them to another location], Aaron and his sons must always go in with them and show each of them what work to do and what things to carry. But the descendants of Kohath must not enter the Sacred Tent [at any other time] and look at the things that are in it. If they do that, I will get rid of all the descendants of Kohath.”
“Make sure the families of Kohath are not wiped out from the Levites.
This is what you have to do so that they'll live and won't die by getting too close to something holy. Aaron and his sons must go in and tell each of them what they have to do and what they have to carry.
But they must not to go in and look at the things that are most holy, even for just a moment, otherwise they'll die.”
21 Yahweh also said to Moses/me,
The Lord told Moses,
22 “Write down the names of all the men who belong to the clans descended from the Gershon [division of the descendants of Levi].
“Register the descendants of Gershon, according to their family and father's line
23 Write the names of the men who are between 30 and 50 years old. They will be men who will also work at the Sacred Tent.
Count men aged thirty to fifty—all who are entitled to do the work of serving in the Tent of Meeting.
24 “This is the work that they must do and the things that they must carry [when you move to a new location]:
This is how the families of Gershon will serve in terms of working and carrying:
25 They must carry the curtains of the Sacred Tent; they must carry the Sacred Tent and all the things that cover it, including the nice outer covering made from skins of goats, and the curtain which is at the entrance of the Sacred Tent.
Have them carry the Tabernacle curtains, the Tent of Meeting with its fine leather covering, the curtains for the entrance to the Tent of Meeting,
26 They must also carry the curtains that form the wall that surrounds the courtyard that surrounds the Sacred Tent and the altar, the curtain that is at the entrance to the courtyard, and the ropes [that fasten the curtains]. They must also do the packing and loading of these things.
the courtyard curtains, the curtain at the entrance to the courtyard surrounding the Tabernacle and altar, the ropes, and everything connected with their use. The families of Gershon are responsible for everything required involving these items.
27 Aaron and his sons will supervise the work of all the descendants of Gershom. That work includes carrying those things and doing other work that is necessary for moving them. They must tell each of the descendants of Gershom what things they must carry.
All that they do is to be under the supervision of Aaron and his sons—all their work and carrying assignments. You are to tell them all they are required to carry.
28 Those are the tasks that you must give to the men who belong to the clans descended from Gershom. Aaron’s son Ithamar is the one who will supervise their work.
These are their responsibilities for moving the Tent of Meeting, carried out under the direction of Ithamar, son of Aaron the priest.
29 Count also the men who belong to the clans descended from Levi’s son Merari.
Register the descendants of Merari, according to their family and father's line.
30 Write the names of the men who are between 30 and 50 years old. They will be men who will also work at the Sacred Tent.
Count men aged thirty to fifty—all who are entitled to do the work of serving in the Tent of Meeting.
31 Their work will be to carry the frames that hold up the tent, the crossbars, the posts [that hold up the curtains], and the bases.
This is how they will serve in handling the Tent of Meeting: they are to carry the frames of the Tabernacle with its crossbars, posts, and stands,
32 They must also carry the posts for [the curtains that form the walls of] the courtyard and the bases for the posts, the tent pegs, and the ropes [to fasten the curtains]. Tell each man what things he must carry.
the posts of the surrounding courtyard with their stands, tent pegs, and ropes, all their equipment and everything connected with their use. You are to tell them by name what they are responsible for carrying.
33 Those are the tasks that the descendants of Merari must do at the Sacred Tent. Aaron’s son Ithamar is the one who will supervise them.”
These are their responsibilities for all their work in moving the Tent of Meeting, carried out under the direction of Ithamar, son of Aaron the priest.”
34 So Aaron and Moses/I and the Israeli leaders counted the descendants of Kohath, writing also the names of their clans and family groups.
Moses, Aaron, and the Israelite leaders registered the families of Kohath according to their family and father's line.
35 They/We counted all the men who were between 30 and 50 years old who were able to work at the Sacred Tent.
They counted men aged thirty to fifty—all who were entitled to do the work of serving in the Tent of Meeting.
36 The total was 2,750 men.
The total by families was 2,750.
37 They were the descendants of Kohath who [were able to] work at the Sacred Tent. Aaron and Moses/I counted them just as Yahweh had commanded Moses/me.
This was the total of the families of Kohath—all who were entitled to do the work of serving in the Tent of Meeting. Moses and Aaron registered them in accordance with the Lord's instructions to Moses.
38 They/We also counted the descendants of Gershon, writing also the names of their clans and family groups.
The families of Gershon were counted, according to their family and father's line,
39 They/We counted all the men who were between 30 and 50 years old who were able to work at the Sacred Tent.
men aged thirty to fifty—all who were entitled to do the work of serving in the Tent of Meeting.
40 The total was 2,630 men.
The total by families and father's line was 2,630.
41 They were the descendants of Gershon who [were able to] work at the Sacred Tent. Aaron and Moses/I counted them as Yahweh had commanded.
This was the total of the families of Gershon —all who were entitled to do the work of serving in the Tent of Meeting. They were registered by Moses and Aaron in accordance with the Lord's instructions.
42 They/We also counted the descendants of Merari, writing also the names of their clans and family groups.
The families of Merari were counted, according to their family and father's line,
43 They/We counted all the men who were between 30 and 50 years old who were able to work at the Sacred Tent.
men aged thirty to fifty—all who were entitled to do the work of serving in the Tent of Meeting.
44 The total was 3,200 men.
The total by families was 3,200.
45 They were the descendants of Merari who [were able to] work. Aaron and Moses/I counted them as Yahweh had commanded Moses/me.
This was the total of the families of Merari registered by Moses and Aaron in accordance with the Lord's instructions.
46 So Aaron and Moses/I and the Israeli leaders counted all the descendants of Levi, writing also the names of their clans and family groups.
This is how Moses, Aaron, and the Israelite leaders registered all the Levites according to their family and father's line.
47 They/We counted all the men who were between 30 and 50 years old. They were ones who [were able to] work at the Sacred Tent and who carried the tent and everything that was connected with it.
They counted men aged thirty to fifty—all who were entitled to do the work of serving in the Tent of Meeting and carrying it.
48 The total was 8,580 men.
The sum total was 8,580.
49 They/We completed the counting [of all the descendants of Levi], as Yahweh had commanded Moses/me. And they/we told each man what work he was to do and what things he must carry [when they moved to a new location].
It was in response to the Lord's instructions that they were registered by Moses. Each of those registered were told what to do and what to carry, as the Lord had ordered Moses.
