Numbers 4
New King James Version
Duties of the Sons of Kohath
4 Then the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying: 2 “Take a census of the sons of (A)Kohath from among the children of Levi, by their families, by their fathers’ house, 3 (B)from thirty years old and above, even to fifty years old, all who enter the service to do the work in the tabernacle of meeting.
4 (C)“This is the service of the sons of Kohath in the tabernacle of meeting, relating to (D)the most holy things: 5 When the camp prepares to journey, Aaron and his sons shall come, and they shall take down (E)the covering veil and cover the (F)ark of the Testimony with it. 6 Then they shall put on it a covering of badger skins, and spread over that a cloth entirely of (G)blue; and they shall insert (H)its poles.
7 “On the (I)table of showbread they shall spread a blue cloth, and put on it the dishes, the pans, the bowls, and the [a]pitchers for pouring; and the (J)showbread[b] shall be on it. 8 They shall spread over them a scarlet cloth, and cover the same with a covering of badger skins; and they shall insert its poles. 9 And they shall take a blue cloth and cover the (K)lampstand of the light, (L)with its lamps, its wick-trimmers, its trays, and all its oil vessels, with which they service it. 10 Then they shall put it with all its utensils in a covering of badger skins, and put it on a carrying beam.
11 “Over (M)the golden altar they shall spread a blue cloth, and cover it with a covering of badger skins; and they shall insert its poles. 12 Then they shall take all the (N)utensils of service with which they minister in the sanctuary, put them in a blue cloth, cover them with a covering of badger skins, and put them on a carrying beam. 13 Also they shall take away the ashes from the altar, and spread a purple cloth over it. 14 They shall put on it all its implements with which they minister there—the firepans, the forks, the shovels, the [c]basins, and all the utensils of the altar—and they shall spread on it a covering of badger skins, and insert its poles. 15 And when Aaron and his sons have finished covering the sanctuary and all the furnishings of the sanctuary, when the camp is set to go, then (O)the sons of Kohath shall come to carry them; (P)but they shall not touch any holy thing, lest they die.
“(Q)These are the things in the tabernacle of meeting which the sons of Kohath are to carry.
16 “The appointed duty of Eleazar the son of Aaron the priest is (R)the oil for the light, the (S)sweet incense, (T)the daily grain offering, the (U)anointing oil, the oversight of all the tabernacle, of all that is in it, with the sanctuary and its furnishings.”
17 Then the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying: 18 “Do not cut off the tribe of the families of the Kohathites from among the Levites; 19 but do this in regard to them, that they may live and not die when they approach (V)the most holy things: Aaron and his sons shall go in and [d]appoint each of them to his service and his task. 20 (W)But they shall not go in to watch while the holy things are being covered, lest they die.”
Duties of the Sons of Gershon
21 Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: 22 “Also take a census of the sons of (X)Gershon, by their fathers’ house, by their families. 23 (Y)From thirty years old and above, even to fifty years old, you shall number them, all who enter to perform the service, to do the work in the tabernacle of meeting. 24 This is the (Z)service of the families of the Gershonites, in serving and carrying: 25 (AA)They shall carry the (AB)curtains of the tabernacle and the tabernacle of meeting with its covering, the covering of (AC)badger skins that is on it, the screen for the door of the tabernacle of meeting, 26 the screen for the door of the gate of the court, the hangings of the court which are around the tabernacle and altar, and their cords, all the furnishings for their service and all that is made for these things: so shall they serve.
27 “Aaron and his sons shall [e]assign all the service of the sons of the Gershonites, all their tasks and all their service. And you shall [f]appoint to them all their tasks as their duty. 28 This is the service of the families of the sons of Gershon in the tabernacle of meeting. And their duties shall be (AD)under the [g]authority of Ithamar the son of Aaron the priest.
Duties of the Sons of Merari
29 “As for the sons of (AE)Merari, you shall number them by their families and by their fathers’ house. 30 (AF)From thirty years old and above, even to fifty years old, you shall number them, everyone who enters the service to do the work of the tabernacle of meeting. 31 And (AG)this is (AH)what they must carry as all their service for the tabernacle of meeting: (AI)the boards of the tabernacle, its bars, its pillars, its sockets, 32 and the pillars around the court with their sockets, pegs, and cords, with all their furnishings and all their service; and you shall (AJ)assign to each man by name the items he must carry. 33 This is the service of the families of the sons of Merari, as all their service for the tabernacle of meeting, under the [h]authority of Ithamar the son of Aaron the priest.”
Census of the Levites
34 (AK)And Moses, Aaron, and the leaders of the congregation numbered the sons of the Kohathites by their families and by their fathers’ house, 35 from thirty (AL)years old and above, even to fifty years old, everyone who entered the service for work in the tabernacle of meeting; 36 and those who were numbered by their families were two thousand seven hundred and fifty. 37 These were the ones who were numbered of the families of the Kohathites, all who might serve in the tabernacle of meeting, whom Moses and Aaron numbered according to the commandment of the Lord by the hand of Moses.
38 And those who were numbered of the sons of Gershon, by their families and by their fathers’ house, 39 from thirty years old and above, even to fifty years old, everyone who entered the service for work in the tabernacle of meeting— 40 those who were numbered by their families, by their fathers’ house, were two thousand six hundred and thirty. 41 (AM)These are the ones who were numbered of the families of the sons of Gershon, of all who might serve in the tabernacle of meeting, whom Moses and Aaron numbered according to the commandment of the Lord.
42 Those of the families of the sons of Merari who were numbered, by their families, by their fathers’ [i]house, 43 from thirty years old and above, even to fifty years old, everyone who entered the service for work in the tabernacle of meeting— 44 those who were numbered by their families were three thousand two hundred. 45 These are the ones who were numbered of the families of the sons of Merari, whom Moses and Aaron numbered (AN)according to the word of the Lord by the hand of Moses.
46 All who were (AO)numbered of the Levites, whom Moses, Aaron, and the leaders of Israel numbered, by their families and by their fathers’ houses, 47 (AP)from thirty years old and above, even to fifty years old, everyone who came to do the work of service and the work of bearing burdens in the tabernacle of meeting— 48 those who were numbered were eight thousand five hundred and eighty.
49 According to the commandment of the Lord they were numbered by the hand of Moses, (AQ)each according to his service and according to his task; thus were they numbered by him, (AR)as the Lord commanded Moses.
Footnotes
- Numbers 4:7 jars for the drink offering
- Numbers 4:7 Lit. continual bread
- Numbers 4:14 bowls
- Numbers 4:19 assign
- Numbers 4:27 command
- Numbers 4:27 assign
- Numbers 4:28 Lit. hand
- Numbers 4:33 Lit. hand
- Numbers 4:42 household
Numbers 4
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
The Kohathites
4 The Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying, 2 “Take a census of the Kohathites separate from the other Levites, by their clans and their ancestral houses, 3 from thirty years old up to fifty years old, all who qualify to do work relating to the tent of meeting.(A) 4 The service of the Kohathites relating to the tent of meeting concerns the most holy things.
5 “When the camp is to set out, Aaron and his sons shall go in and take down the screening curtain and cover the ark of the covenant with it; 6 then they shall put on it a covering of fine leather[a] and spread over that a cloth all of blue and put its poles in place.(B) 7 Over the table of the Presence they shall spread a blue cloth and put on it the plates, the dishes for incense, the bowls, and the flagons for the drink offering; the regular bread also shall be on it;(C) 8 then they shall spread over them a crimson cloth and cover it with a covering of fine leather[b] and put its poles in place. 9 They shall take a blue cloth and cover the lampstand for the light, with its lamps, its snuffers, its trays, and all the vessels for oil with which it is supplied,(D) 10 and they shall put it with all its utensils in a covering of fine leather[c] and put it on the carrying frame. 11 Over the golden altar they shall spread a blue cloth and cover it with a covering of fine leather[d] and put its poles in place,(E) 12 and they shall take all the utensils of the service that are used in the sanctuary and put them in a blue cloth and cover them with a covering of fine leather[e] and put them on the carrying frame. 13 They shall take away the ashes from the altar and spread a purple cloth over it, 14 and they shall put on it all the utensils of the altar, which are used for the service there, the firepans, the forks, the shovels, and the basins, all the utensils of the altar, and they shall spread on it a covering of fine leather[f] and put its poles in place. 15 When Aaron and his sons have finished covering the sanctuary and all the furnishings of the sanctuary, as the camp sets out, after that the Kohathites shall come to carry these, but they must not touch the holy things, or they will die. These are the things of the tent of meeting that the Kohathites are to carry.(F)
16 “Eleazar son of Aaron the priest shall have charge of the oil for the light, the fragrant incense, the regular grain offering, and the anointing oil, the oversight of all the tabernacle and all that is in it, in the sanctuary and in its utensils.”(G)
17 Then the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying, 18 “You must not let the tribe of the clans of the Kohathites be destroyed from among the Levites. 19 This is how you shall deal with them in order that they may live and not die when they come near the most holy things: Aaron and his sons shall go in and assign each to a particular task or burden.(H) 20 But the Kohathites[g] must not go in to look on the holy things even for a moment, or they will die.”
The Gershonites and Merarites
21 Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 22 “Take a census of the Gershonites also, by their ancestral houses and by their clans; 23 from thirty years old up to fifty years old you shall enroll them, all who qualify to do work in the tent of meeting.(I) 24 This is the service of the clans of the Gershonites, in serving and bearing burdens: 25 They shall carry the curtains of the tabernacle, and the tent of meeting with its covering, and the outer covering of fine leather[h] that is on top of it, and the screen for the entrance of the tent of meeting,(J) 26 and the hangings of the court, and the screen for the entrance of the gate of the court that is around the tabernacle and the altar, and their cords, and all the equipment for their service, and they shall do all that needs to be done with regard to them. 27 All the service of the Gershonites shall be at the command of Aaron and his sons, in all that they are to carry and in all that they have to do, and you shall assign to them as duties all that they are to carry.(K) 28 This is the service of the clans of the Gershonites relating to the tent of meeting, and their duties are to be under the oversight of Ithamar son of Aaron the priest.
29 “As for the Merarites, you shall enroll them by their clans and their ancestral houses; 30 from thirty years old up to fifty years old you shall enroll them, everyone who qualifies to do the work of the tent of meeting.(L) 31 This is their duty to carry, as the whole of their service in the tent of meeting: the frames of the tabernacle, with its bars, pillars, and bases,(M) 32 and the pillars of the court all around with their bases, pegs, and cords, with all their equipment and all their related service, and you shall assign by name the objects that they are required to carry. 33 This is the service of the clans of the Merarites, the whole of their service relating to the tent of meeting, under the hand of Ithamar son of Aaron the priest.”(N)
Census of the Levites
34 So Moses and Aaron and the leaders of the congregation enrolled the Kohathites, by their clans and their ancestral houses,(O) 35 from thirty years old up to fifty years old, everyone who qualified for work relating to the tent of meeting, 36 and their enrollment by clans was two thousand seven hundred fifty. 37 This was the enrollment of the clans of the Kohathites, all who served at the tent of meeting, whom Moses and Aaron enrolled according to the commandment of the Lord by Moses.(P)
38 The enrollment of the Gershonites, by their clans and their ancestral houses,(Q) 39 from thirty years old up to fifty years old, everyone who qualified for work relating to the tent of meeting— 40 their enrollment by their clans and their ancestral houses was two thousand six hundred thirty. 41 This was the enrollment of the clans of the Gershonites, all who served at the tent of meeting, whom Moses and Aaron enrolled according to the commandment of the Lord.(R)
42 The enrollment of the clans of the Merarites, by their clans and their ancestral houses, 43 from thirty years old up to fifty years old, everyone who qualified for work relating to the tent of meeting, 44 and their enrollment by their clans was three thousand two hundred. 45 This is the enrollment of the clans of the Merarites, whom Moses and Aaron enrolled according to the commandment of the Lord by Moses.(S)
46 All those who were enrolled of the Levites, whom Moses and Aaron and the leaders of Israel enrolled, by their clans and their ancestral houses, 47 from thirty years old up to fifty years old, all who qualified to do the work of service and the work of bearing burdens relating to the tent of meeting,(T) 48 and their enrollment was eight thousand five hundred eighty. 49 According to the commandment of the Lord through Moses, they were appointed to their several tasks of serving or carrying; thus they were enrolled by him, as the Lord commanded Moses.
Numbers 4
International Children’s Bible
The Jobs of the Kohath Family
4 The Lord said to Moses and Aaron, 2 “Count the Kohathites among the Levites. Count them by family groups and families. 3 Count the men from 30 to 50 years old. They will serve in the Meeting Tent.
4 “They are responsible for the most holy things in the Meeting Tent. 5 When the Israelites move, Aaron and his sons must go into the Holy Tent. They are to take down the curtain. Then they must cover the Ark of the Covenant with it. 6 Over this they must put a covering made from fine leather. Then they must spread the solid blue cloth over it. And they must put the poles in the rings on the Ark of the Covenant.
7 “Then they must spread a blue cloth over the table. This is the table for the bread that shows we are in God’s presence. They must put the plates, spoons, bowls and the jars for drink offerings on the table. They must leave the bread on the table. 8 Then they must put a red cloth over all of these things. They must cover everything with fine leather. Then they must put the poles in place.
9 “With a blue cloth they must cover the lampstand, its lamps, its wick trimmers and trays. They must cover all the jars for the oil used in the lamps. 10 Then they must wrap everything in fine leather. They must put all these things on a frame for carrying them.
11 “They must spread a blue cloth over the gold altar. Then they must cover it with fine leather. They must put its poles in place.
12 “They must gather everything used for serving in the Holy Place. They must wrap them in a blue cloth. Then they must cover that with fine leather. They must put these things on a frame for carrying them.
13 “They must clean the ashes off the bronze altar. Then they must spread a purple cloth over it. 14 They must gather all the things used for serving at the altar. These are the pans for carrying the fire, meat forks, shovels and bowls. They must put them on the bronze altar. Then they must spread a covering of fine leather over it. They must put the carrying poles in the rings on the altar.
15 “When the camp is ready to move, have Aaron and his sons cover all the holy things. Then the Kohathites may go in and carry away those things. This way they won’t touch the holy things and die. It is the Kohathites’ job to carry the things that are in the Meeting Tent.
16 “Eleazar son of Aaron, the priest, will be responsible for the Holy Tent. And he is responsible for everything in it: the oil for the lamp, the sweet-smelling incense, the continual grain offering and the oil used to appoint priests and things to the Lord’s service.”
17 The Lord said to Moses and Aaron, 18 “Don’t let the Kohathites be destroyed from the Levites. 19 Do this for the Kohathites. Then they may go near the Most Holy Place and not die. Aaron and his sons must go in and show each Kohathite what to do. And they must show each man what to carry. 20 The Kohathites must not enter and look at the holy things, even for a second. If they do, they will die.”
The Jobs of the Gershon Family
21 The Lord said to Moses, 22 “Count the Gershonites by families and family groups. 23 Count the men from 30 to 50 years old. Everyone has a job to do in the Meeting Tent.
24 “This is what the Gershonite family groups must do and what they must carry. 25 They must carry the pieces of cloth of the Holy Tent and Meeting Tent. They must also carry its covering and the covering made from fine leather. And they must carry the curtains for the entrance to the Meeting Tent. 26 They must carry the curtains of the courtyard that goes around the Holy Tent and the altar. They must carry the curtain for the entry to the courtyard and the ropes and all the things used with the curtains. They must do everything connected with these things. 27 Aaron and his sons are in charge of what the Gershonites do or carry. You tell them what they are responsible for carrying. 28 This is the work of the Gershonite family group at the Meeting Tent. Ithamar son of Aaron, the priest, will direct their work.
The Jobs of the Merari Family
29 “Count the Merarite families and family groups. 30 Count the men from 30 to 50 years old. They will work at the Meeting Tent. 31 It is their job to carry the frame of the Meeting Tent, the crossbars, the posts and bases. 32 They must also carry the posts that go around the courtyard. They must carry the bases, tent pegs and ropes. And they must carry everything that is used with the poles around the courtyard. Tell each man exactly what to carry. 33 This is the work the Merarites will do for the Meeting Tent. Ithamar son of Aaron, the priest, will direct their work.”
The Levite Families
34 Moses, Aaron and the leaders of Israel counted the Kohathites by families and family groups. 35 The men from 30 to 50 years old were to work at the Meeting Tent. 36 The family group had 2,750 men. 37 This was the total of the Kohath family group who worked at the Meeting Tent. Moses and Aaron counted them as the Lord had commanded Moses.
38 Also, the Gershon family group was counted by families and family groups. 39 The men from 30 to 50 years old were given work at the Meeting Tent. 40 The families and family groups had 2,630 men. 41 This was the total of the Gershon family group who worked at the Meeting Tent. Moses and Aaron counted them as the Lord had commanded.
42 Also, the men in the families and family groups of the Merari family were counted. 43 The men from 30 to 50 years old were to work at the Meeting Tent. 44 The family group had 3,200 men. 45 This was the total of the Merari family group. Moses and Aaron counted them as the Lord had commanded Moses.
46 So Moses, Aaron and the leaders of Israel counted all the Levites. They counted them by families and family groups. 47 The men from 30 to 50 were given work at the Meeting Tent. They also carried the Tent. 48 The total number of these men was 8,580. 49 Each man was counted as the Lord had commanded Moses. Each man was given his work and told what to carry. This was as the Lord had commanded Moses.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
New Revised Standard Version, Updated Edition. Copyright © 2021 National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
The Holy Bible, International Children’s Bible® Copyright© 1986, 1988, 1999, 2015 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission.