Numbers 4
Young's Literal Translation
4 And Jehovah speaketh unto Moses, and unto Aaron, saying,
2 `Take up the sum of the sons of Kohath from the midst of the sons of Levi, by their families, by the house of their fathers;
3 from a son of thirty years and upward, even till a son of fifty years, every one going in to the host, to do work in the tent of meeting.
4 `This [is] the service of the sons of Kohath in the tent of meeting, the holy of holies:
5 that Aaron and his sons have come in, in the journeying of the camp, and have taken down the vail of the hanging, and have covered with it the ark of the testimony;
6 and have put on it a covering of badger skin, and have spread a garment completely of blue above, and have placed its staves.
7 `And on the table of the presence they spread a garment of blue, and have put on it the dishes, and the spoons, and the bowls, and the cups of the libation, and the bread of continuity is on it,
8 and they have spread over them a garment of scarlet, and have covered it with a covering of badger skin, and have placed its staves,
9 and have taken a garment of blue, and have covered the candlestick of the lamp, and its lights, and its snuffers, and its snuff-dishes, and all its oil vessels wherewith they minister to it;
10 and they have put it and all its vessels unto a covering of badger skin, and have put [it] on the bar.
11 `And on the golden altar they spread a garment of blue, and have covered it with a covering of badger skin, and have placed its staves;
12 and have taken all the vessels of ministry wherewith they minister in the sanctuary, and have put [them] unto a garment of blue, and have covered them with a covering of badger skin, and have put [them] on the bar,
13 and have removed the ashes of the altar, and have spread over it a garment of purple;
14 and have put on it all its vessels wherewith they minister about it, the censers, the hooks, and the shovels, and the bowls, all the vessels of the altar, and have spread on it a covering of badger skin, and have placed its staves:
15 `And Aaron hath finished -- his sons also -- covering the sanctuary, and all the vessels of the sanctuary, in the journeying of the camp, and afterwards do the sons of Kohath come in to bear [it], and they do not come unto the holy thing, that they have died; these [things are] the burden of the sons of Kohath in the tent of meeting.
16 `And the oversight of Eleazar, son of Aaron the priest, [is] the oil of the lamp, and the spice-perfume, and the present of continuity, and the anointing oil, the oversight of all the tabernacle, and of all that [is] in it, in the sanctuary, and in its vessels.'
17 And Jehovah speaketh unto Moses and unto Aaron, saying,
18 `Ye do not cut off the tribe of the families of the Kohathite from the midst of the Levites;
19 but this do to them, and they have lived, and do not die in their drawing nigh the holy of holies: -- Aaron and his sons go in, and have set them, each man to his service, and unto his burden,
20 and they go not in to see when the holy thing is swallowed, that they have died.'
21 And Jehovah speaketh unto Moses, saying,
22 `Take up the sum of the sons of Gershon also by the house of their fathers, by their families;
23 from a son of thirty years and upward, till a son of fifty years thou dost number them, every one who is going in to serve the host, to do the service in the tent of meeting.
24 `This [is] the service of the families of the Gershonite, to serve -- and for burden,
25 and they have borne the curtains of the tabernacle, and the tent of meeting, its covering, and the covering of the badger [skin] which [is] on it above, and the vail at the opening of the tent of meeting,
26 and the hangings of the court, and the vail at the opening of the gate of the court which [is] by the tabernacle, and by the altar round about, and their cords, and all the vessels of their service, and all that is made for them -- and they have served.
27 `By the command of Aaron and his sons is all the service of the sons of the Gershonite in all their burden, and in all their service; and ye have laid a charge on them concerning the charge of all their burden.
28 This [is] the service of the families of the sons of the Gershonite in the tent of meeting; and their charge [is] under the hand of Ithamar son of Aaron the priest.
29 `The sons of Merari, by their families, by the house of their fathers, thou dost number them;
30 from a son of thirty years and upward even unto a son of fifty years thou dost number them, every one who is going in to the host, to do the service of the tent of meeting.
31 `And this [is] the charge of their burden, of all their service in the tent of meeting; the boards of the tabernacle, and its bars, and its pillars, and its sockets,
32 and the pillars of the court round about, and their sockets, and their pins, and their cords, of all their vessels, and of all their service; and by name ye do number the vessels of the charge of their burden.
33 `This [is] the service of the families of the sons of Merari, for all their service, in the tent of meeting, by the hand of Ithamar son of Aaron the priest.'
34 And Moses numbereth -- Aaron also, and the princes of the company -- the sons of the Kohathite, by their families, and by the house of their fathers,
35 from a son of thirty years and upward even unto a son of fifty years, every one who is going in to the host, for service in the tent of meeting,
36 and their numbered ones, by their families, are two thousand seven hundred and fifty.
37 These [are] those numbered of the families of the Kohathite, every one who is serving in the tent of meeting, whom Moses and Aaron numbered, by the command of Jehovah, by the hand of Moses.
38 And those numbered of the sons of Gershon, by their families, and by the house of their fathers,
39 from a son of thirty years and upward even unto a son of fifty years, every one who is going in to the host, for service in the tent of meeting,
40 even their numbered ones, by their families, by the house of their fathers, are two thousand and six hundred and thirty.
41 These [are] those numbered of the families of the sons of Gershon, every one who is serving in the tent of meeting, whom Moses and Aaron numbered by the command of Jehovah.
42 And those numbered of the families of the sons of Merari, by their families, by the house of their fathers,
43 from a son of thirty years and upward even unto a son of fifty years, every one who is going in to the host, for service in the tent of meeting,
44 even their numbered ones, by their families, are three thousand and two hundred.
45 These [are] those numbered of the families of the sons of Merari, whom Moses and Aaron numbered, by the command of Jehovah, by the hand of Moses.
46 All those numbered, whom Moses numbered -- Aaron also, and the princes of Israel -- of the Levites, by their families, and by the house of their fathers,
47 from a son of thirty years and upward even unto a son of fifty years, every one who is going in to do the work of the service, even the service of burden in the tent of meeting,
48 even their numbered ones are eight thousand and five hundred and eighty;
49 by the command of Jehovah hath [one] numbered them, by the hand of Moses, each man by his service, and by his burden, with his numbered ones, as Jehovah hath commanded Moses.
Numbers 4
Lexham English Bible
The Census of the Kohathites
4 Yahweh spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying, 2 “Take a census[a] of the descendants[b] of Kohath from the midst of the descendants[c] of Levi, according to their clans and their families,[d] 3 from thirty years old[e] and above, up to fifty years old,[f] everyone who comes to the service to do the work in the tent of assembly. 4 This is the work of the descendants[g] of Kohath in the tent of assembly, concerning the holiness of the sanctuary: 5 When setting out the camp, Aaron and his sons will go and lower the curtain of the covering and cover with it the ark of the testimony.[h] 6 They will put on it a covering of fine leather,[i] and they will spread a cloth of perfect blue over it, and they will place its poles. 7 And over the table of the presence they will spread out a blue cloth and put on it the plates, dishes, and libation bowls, and the pitchers of the libation; and the bread of continuity will be on it. 8 They will spread over it a scarlet cloth, and they will cover it with a covering of fine leather,[j] and they will place its poles. 9 They will take a blue cloth and cover the lampstand for the light source, its lamps, a pair of its tongs, its small pans, and all the vessels of its oil with which they attend to it. 10 They will put it and all its vessels inside a covering of fine leather[k] and put it on the carrying frame. 11 Over the altar of gold they will spread a blue cloth, and they will cover it with a covering of fine leather[l] and place its poles. 12 They will take all the vessels of the cultic service with which they serve in the sanctuary and put them on a blue cloth, and they will cover them with a covering of fine leather;[m] and they will put them on the carrying frame. 13 They will remove the fat-soaked ashes from the altar and spread a purple cloth over it; 14 they will put on it all the vessels with which they serve, the fire pans, forks, shovels, and bowls—all the vessels of the altar. They will spread on it a covering of fine leather;[n] and they will place its poles. 15 And when Aaron and his sons have finished covering the sanctuary and all the vessels of the sanctuary when the camp sets out, the descendants[o] of Kohath will come after to carry these, but they must not touch the sanctuary, or they will die. These are the load of the descendants[p] of Kohath in the tent of assembly.
16 “Eleazar son of Aaron the priest is to supervise the oil of the light source, the incense, the regular grain offering,[q] the oil of anointment, the supervision of all the tabernacle and all that is in it, in the sanctuary and in its vessels.”
17 Yahweh spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying, 18 “You must not cut off the tribe of the clan of the Kohathites[r] from the midst of the Levites. 19 Do this to them and they will live and not die when they come near the most holy things. Aaron and his sons will go and appoint them, each one to his task and burden. 20 But they must not go and look for a moment[s] at the holy objects.”
21 Yahweh spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying, 22 “Take a census[t] of the descendants[u] of Gershon also, according to their families[v] and clans, 23 from those twenty years old[w] and above until fifty years old;[x] you will muster[y] them, all who come to help to do the work of the tent of assembly. 24 This is the work of the clans of the Gershonites:[z] to serve and to carry. 25 They will carry the curtains of the tabernacle and the tent of assembly and its covering and the covering of fine leather,[aa] which is on top of it,[ab] and the curtain of the doorway of the tent of assembly, 26 and the curtains of the courtyard, and the covering for the doorway of the gate of the courtyard, which is all around on the tabernacle and altar, and their cords and all the vessels of their work; and all that is done to them they will do. 27 And all the work of the descendants[ac] of the Gershonites[ad] will be at the command[ae] of Aaron and his sons, for all they are to carry and for all their work, and you will appoint to them responsibility for all they are to carry. 28 This is the work of the clan of the descendants[af] of the Gershonites[ag] in the tent of assembly, and their responsibility lies under the direction[ah] of Ithamar son of Aaron the priest.
29 “For the descendants[ai] of Merari according to their clans, according to their families,[aj] you will muster[ak] them; 30 from those thirty years old[al] and above until fifty years old;[am] you will muster[an] them, all who come to do the work of the tent of assembly. 31 And this is the responsibility of those who are to carry,[ao] all their work in the tent of assembly: the frames of the tabernacle and its bars, pillars, and bases, 32 and the pillars of the courtyard all around, and their bases, pegs, and cords, with all their vessels and for all their work. You will appoint by name the vessels that they are responsible to carry. 33 This is the work of the clan of the descendants[ap] of Merari, for all their work in the tent of assembly under the direction[aq] of Ithamar son of Aaron the priest.”
34 And Moses and Aaron mustered the leaders of the community according to the house of their families,[ar] 35 from those thirty years old[as] and above until fifty years old;[at] everyone who comes to the service to work in the tent of assembly, 36 the ones counted[au] were two thousand seven hundred and fifty. 37 These were those counted of the clans of the Kohathites,[av] everyone who served in the tent of assembly whom Moses and Aaron mustered[aw] according to the command[ax] of Yahweh by the hand of Moses.[ay]
38 And the descendants[az] of Gershon counted according to their clans and according to their families,[ba] 39 from those thirty years old[bb] and above until fifty years old,[bc] everyone who comes to the service to work in the tent of assembly; 40 the ones counted,[bd] according to their clans, according to their families,[be] were two thousand six hundred and thirty. 41 These were those counted of the clans of the descendants[bf] of Gershon, everyone who serves in the tent of assembly whom Moses and Aaron mustered[bg] according to the command[bh] of Yahweh.
42 Those counted of the clans of the descendants[bi] of Merari according to their clans, according to their families,[bj] 43 from those thirty years old[bk] and above until fifty years old,[bl] everyone who comes to the service to work in the tent of assembly, 44 the ones counted,[bm] according to their clans, were three thousand two hundred. 45 These were those counted of the clans of the descendants[bn] of Merari, whom Moses and Aaron mustered[bo] according to the command[bp] of Yahweh by the hand of Moses.[bq]
46 All those counted of the Levites whom Moses and Aaron and all the leaders of Israel mustered[br] according to their clans, according to their families,[bs] 47 from those thirty years old[bt] and above until fifty years old,[bu] everyone who comes to the service to do the work of the service carrying in the tent of assembly, 48 the ones counted[bv] were eighty thousand five hundred and eighty. 49 According to the command[bw] of Yahweh by the hand of Moses[bx] they were mustered,[by] each man according to his service and according to their[bz] service and according to their[ca] burden; and so they were counted by him just as Yahweh commanded Moses.
Footnotes
- Numbers 4:2 Literally “and lift up the number of”
- Numbers 4:2 Or “sons”
- Numbers 4:2 Or “sons”
- Numbers 4:2 Literally “the house of their fathers”
- Numbers 4:3 Literally “a son of thirty years”
- Numbers 4:3 Literally “a son of fifty years”
- Numbers 4:4 Or “sons”
- Numbers 4:5 Or “the ark of the covenant”
- Numbers 4:6 Literally “the hide of a sea cow”
- Numbers 4:8 Literally “the hide of a sea cow”
- Numbers 4:10 Literally “the hide of a sea cow”
- Numbers 4:11 Literally “the hide of a sea cow”
- Numbers 4:12 Literally “the hide of a sea cow”
- Numbers 4:14 Literally “the hide of a sea cow”
- Numbers 4:15 Or “sons”
- Numbers 4:15 Or “sons”
- Numbers 4:16 Literally “the grain offering of continuity”
- Numbers 4:18 Hebrew “Kohathite”
- Numbers 4:20 Literally “as devouring”
- Numbers 4:22 Literally “And lift up the number of”
- Numbers 4:22 Or “sons”
- Numbers 4:22 Literally “the house of their fathers”
- Numbers 4:23 Literally “a son of twenty years”
- Numbers 4:23 Literally “a son of fifty years”
- Numbers 4:23 Or “count,” or “summon,” or “enroll”
- Numbers 4:24 Hebrew “Gershonite”
- Numbers 4:25 Literally “the hide of a sea cow”
- Numbers 4:25 Literally “is above upon it”
- Numbers 4:27 Or “sons”
- Numbers 4:27 Hebrew “Gershonite”
- Numbers 4:27 Literally “the mouth”
- Numbers 4:28 Or “sons”
- Numbers 4:28 Hebrew “Gershonite”
- Numbers 4:28 Literally “in the hand”
- Numbers 4:29 Or “sons”
- Numbers 4:29 Literally “the house of their fathers”
- Numbers 4:29 Or “count,” or “summon,” or “enroll”
- Numbers 4:30 Literally “a son of thirty years”
- Numbers 4:30 Literally “a son of fifty years”
- Numbers 4:30 Or “count,” or “summon,” or “enroll”
- Numbers 4:31 Literally “them carrying”
- Numbers 4:33 Or “sons”
- Numbers 4:33 Literally “in the hand”
- Numbers 4:34 Literally “the house of their fathers”
- Numbers 4:35 Literally “a son of thirty years”
- Numbers 4:35 Literally “a son of fifty years”
- Numbers 4:36 Literally “the ones counted of them,” or “the ones mustered of them”
- Numbers 4:37 Hebrew “Kohathite”
- Numbers 4:37 Or “counted,” or “summoned,” or “enrolled”
- Numbers 4:37 Literally “the mouth”
- Numbers 4:37 Or “through Moses”
- Numbers 4:38 Or “sons”
- Numbers 4:38 Literally “the house of their fathers”
- Numbers 4:39 Literally “a son of thirty years”
- Numbers 4:39 Literally “a son of fifty years”
- Numbers 4:40 Literally “the ones counted of them,” or “the ones mustered of them”
- Numbers 4:40 Literally “the house of their fathers”
- Numbers 4:41 Or “sons”
- Numbers 4:41 Or “counted,” or “summoned,” or “enrolled”
- Numbers 4:41 Literally “the mouth”
- Numbers 4:42 Or “sons”
- Numbers 4:42 Literally “the house of their fathers”
- Numbers 4:43 Literally “thirty years and above”
- Numbers 4:43 Literally “a son of fifty years”
- Numbers 4:44 Literally “the ones counted of them,” or “the ones mustered of them”
- Numbers 4:45 Or “sons”
- Numbers 4:45 Or “counted,” or “summoned,” or “enrolled”
- Numbers 4:45 Literally “the mouth”
- Numbers 4:45 Or “through Moses”
- Numbers 4:46 Or “counted,” or “summoned,” or “enrolled”
- Numbers 4:46 Literally “the house of their fathers”
- Numbers 4:47 Literally “a son of thirty years”
- Numbers 4:47 Literally “a son of fifty years”
- Numbers 4:48 Literally “the ones counted of them,” or “the ones mustered of them”
- Numbers 4:49 Literally “the mouth”
- Numbers 4:49 Or “through Moses”
- Numbers 4:49 Hebrew “he mustered”
- Numbers 4:49 Hebrew “his”
- Numbers 4:49 Hebrew “his”
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
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Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
