Numbers 4
Modern English Version
Duties of the Kohathites
4 And the Lord spoke to Moses and to Aaron, saying: 2 Take the sum of the sons of Kohath from among the sons of Levi, after their families, by the house of their fathers, 3 from thirty years old and older, even to fifty years old, all that enter into the host, to do the work in the tent of meeting.
4 This will be the service of the sons of Kohath in the tent of meeting, concerning the holiest things. 5 And when the camp sets out, Aaron will come, and his sons, and they will take down the covering curtain, and cover the ark of the testimony with it, 6 and will put on it the covering of porpoise skins, and will spread over it a cloth completely of blue, and will put in its poles.
7 Upon the table of showbread they will spread a cloth of blue, and put the dishes on it, and the spoons, and the bowls, and covers to cover it, and the showbread will be on it. 8 And they will spread on them a cloth of scarlet, and cover the same with a covering of porpoise skins, and will put in its poles.
9 They will take a cloth of blue, and cover the lampstand of the light, and its lamps, and its tongs, and its snuff dishes, and all its oil vessels, with which they minister to it. 10 And they will put it and all its vessels within a covering of porpoise skins and will put it on a carrying pole.
11 Upon the golden altar they will spread a cloth of blue, and cover it with a covering of porpoise skins, and will put in its poles.
12 And they will take all the instruments of ministry, with which they minister in the sanctuary, and put them in a cloth of blue, and cover them with a covering of porpoise skins, and will put them on a carrying pole.
13 And they will take away the ashes from the altar and spread a purple cloth on it. 14 They shall put on it all the instruments with which they minister there, the censers, the flesh hooks, the shovels, the basins, all the utensils of the altar. And they will spread on it a covering of porpoise skins and insert its poles.
15 When Aaron and his sons have finished covering the sanctuary, and all the instruments of the sanctuary, as the camp is to set out, after that, the sons of Kohath will come to carry it. But they will not touch any holy thing, lest they die. These things are the burden of the sons of Kohath in the tent of meeting.
16 To the office of Eleazar, Aaron the priest’s son, pertains the oil for the light, and the sweet incense, and the daily grain offering, and the anointing oil, and the oversight of all the tabernacle, and of all that is in it, in the sanctuary, and in the instruments thereof.
17 The Lord spoke to Moses and to Aaron, saying: 18 Do not cut the tribe of the families of the Kohathites from among the Levites. 19 But do this to them, that they may live and not die, when they approach the most holy things. Aaron and his sons will go in, and appoint each one to his service and to his burden. 20 But they will not go in to see when the holy things are covered, lest they die.
Duties of the Gershonites
21 The Lord spoke to Moses, saying: 22 Take also the sum of the sons of Gershon, throughout the houses of their fathers, by their families. 23 From thirty years old and older to fifty years old you will number them, all that enter in to perform the service, to do the work in the tent of meeting.
24 This is the service of the families of the Gershonites, to serve, and to work. 25 And they will carry the curtains of the tabernacle, and the tent of meeting, its covering, and the covering of the porpoise skins that is on it, and the hanging for the door of the tent of meeting, 26 and the hangings of the courtyard, and the hanging for the opening of the gate of the courtyard, which is by the tabernacle and by the altar all around, and their cords, and all the instruments of their service, and all that is made for them. So they will serve. 27 At the appointment of Aaron and his sons will be all the service of the sons of the Gershonites, in all their burdens, and in all their service. And you shall assign to them all their tasks as their duty. 28 This is the service of the families of the sons of Gershon in the tent of meeting. And their charge will be under the hand of Ithamar the son of Aaron the priest.
Duties of the Merarites
29 As for the sons of Merari, you will number them by their families, by the house of their fathers. 30 From thirty years old and older, even to fifty years old, you will number them, everyone who enters into the service, to do the work of the tent of meeting. 31 This is the charge of their burden, according to all their service in the tent of meeting. The boards of the tabernacle, and its bars thereof, and its pillars, and its sockets, 32 and the pillars of the court round about, and their sockets, and their pins, and their cords, with all their instruments, and with all their service, and by name you will list the instruments of the charge of their burden. 33 This is the service of the families of the sons of Merari, according to all their service, in the tent of meeting, under the hand of Ithamar the son of Aaron the priest.
Census of the Levites
34 Moses, Aaron, and the leaders of the congregation numbered the sons of the Kohathites by their families, and by the house of their fathers, 35 from thirty years old and older to fifty years old, everyone who entered into the service, for the work in the tent of meeting. 36 And those who were numbered by their families were two thousand seven hundred and fifty. 37 These were the ones listed of the families of the Kohathites, all who might do service in the tent of meeting, which Moses and Aaron numbered according to the commandment of the Lord by the hand of Moses.
38 Those who were numbered of the sons of Gershon, throughout their families, and by the house of their fathers, 39 from thirty years old and older to fifty years old, everyone who entered into the service, for the work in the tent of meeting, 40 even those who were numbered of them, throughout their families, by the house of their fathers, were two thousand six hundred and thirty. 41 These were the ones listed by the families of the sons of Gershon, of all who might do service in the tent of meeting, whom Moses and Aaron numbered according to the commandment of the Lord.
42 Those who were numbered of the families of the sons of Merari, throughout their families, by the house of their fathers, 43 from thirty years old and older to fifty years old, everyone who entered into the service, for the work in the tent of meeting, 44 even those who were numbered by their families, were three thousand two hundred. 45 These were the ones listed of the families of the sons of Merari, whom Moses and Aaron numbered according to the word of the Lord by the hand of Moses.
46 All those who were numbered of the Levites, whom Moses, Aaron, and the leaders of Israel numbered, by their families, and by the house of their fathers, 47 from thirty years old and older to fifty years old, everyone who came to do the service of the ministry, and the service of the work in the tent of meeting, 48 even 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, each according to his service, and according to his burden.
Thus they were numbered by him, as the Lord commanded Moses.
Numbers 4
New Living Translation
Duties of the Kohathite Clan
4 Then the Lord said to Moses and Aaron, 2 “Record the names of the members of the clans and families of the Kohathite division of the tribe of Levi. 3 List all the men between the ages of thirty and fifty who are eligible to serve in the Tabernacle.[a]
4 “The duties of the Kohathites at the Tabernacle will relate to the most sacred objects. 5 When the camp moves, Aaron and his sons must enter the Tabernacle first to take down the inner curtain and cover the Ark of the Covenant[b] with it. 6 Then they must cover the inner curtain with fine goatskin leather and spread over that a single piece of blue cloth. Finally, they must put the carrying poles of the Ark in place.
7 “Next they must spread a blue cloth over the table where the Bread of the Presence is displayed, and on the cloth they will place the bowls, ladles, jars, pitchers, and the special bread. 8 They must spread a scarlet cloth over all of this, and finally a covering of fine goatskin leather on top of the scarlet cloth. Then they must insert the carrying poles into the table.
9 “Next they must cover the lampstand with a blue cloth, along with its lamps, lamp snuffers, trays, and special jars of olive oil. 10 Then they must cover the lampstand and its accessories with fine goatskin leather and place the bundle on a carrying frame.
11 “Next they must spread a blue cloth over the gold incense altar and cover this cloth with fine goatskin leather. Then they must attach the carrying poles to the altar. 12 They must take all the remaining furnishings of the sanctuary and wrap them in a blue cloth, cover them with fine goatskin leather, and place them on the carrying frame.
13 “They must remove the ashes from the altar for sacrifices and cover the altar with a purple cloth. 14 All the altar utensils—the firepans, meat forks, shovels, basins, and all the containers—must be placed on the cloth, and a covering of fine goatskin leather must be spread over them. Finally, they must put the carrying poles in place. 15 The camp will be ready to move when Aaron and his sons have finished covering the sanctuary and all the sacred articles. The Kohathites will come and carry these things to the next destination. But they must not touch the sacred objects, or they will die. So these are the things from the Tabernacle that the Kohathites must carry.
16 “Eleazar son of Aaron the priest will be responsible for the oil of the lampstand, the fragrant incense, the daily grain offering, and the anointing oil. In fact, Eleazar will be responsible for the entire Tabernacle and everything in it, including the sanctuary and its furnishings.”
17 Then the Lord said to Moses and Aaron, 18 “Do not let the Kohathite clans be destroyed from among the Levites! 19 This is what you must do so they will live and not die when they approach the most sacred objects. Aaron and his sons must always go in with them and assign a specific duty or load to each person. 20 The Kohathites must never enter the sanctuary to look at the sacred objects for even a moment, or they will die.”
Duties of the Gershonite Clan
21 And the Lord said to Moses, 22 “Record the names of the members of the clans and families of the Gershonite division of the tribe of Levi. 23 List all the men between the ages of thirty and fifty who are eligible to serve in the Tabernacle.
24 “These Gershonite clans will be responsible for general service and carrying loads. 25 They must carry the curtains of the Tabernacle, the Tabernacle itself with its coverings, the outer covering of fine goatskin leather, and the curtain for the Tabernacle entrance. 26 They are also to carry the curtains for the courtyard walls that surround the Tabernacle and altar, the curtain across the courtyard entrance, the ropes, and all the equipment related to their use. The Gershonites are responsible for all these items. 27 Aaron and his sons will direct the Gershonites regarding all their duties, whether it involves moving the equipment or doing other work. They must assign the Gershonites responsibility for the loads they are to carry. 28 So these are the duties assigned to the Gershonite clans at the Tabernacle. They will be directly responsible to Ithamar son of Aaron the priest.
Duties of the Merarite Clan
29 “Now record the names of the members of the clans and families of the Merarite division of the tribe of Levi. 30 List all the men between the ages of thirty and fifty who are eligible to serve in the Tabernacle.
31 “Their only duty at the Tabernacle will be to carry loads. They will carry the frames of the Tabernacle, the crossbars, the posts, and the bases; 32 also the posts for the courtyard walls with their bases, pegs, and ropes; and all the accessories and everything else related to their use. Assign the various loads to each man by name. 33 So these are the duties of the Merarite clans at the Tabernacle. They are directly responsible to Ithamar son of Aaron the priest.”
Summary of the Registration
34 So Moses, Aaron, and the other leaders of the community listed the members of the Kohathite division by their clans and families. 35 The list included all the men between thirty and fifty years of age who were eligible for service in the Tabernacle, 36 and the total number came to 2,750. 37 So this was the total of all those from the Kohathite clans who were eligible to serve at the Tabernacle. Moses and Aaron listed them, just as the Lord had commanded through Moses.
38 The Gershonite division was also listed by its clans and families. 39 The list included all the men between thirty and fifty years of age who were eligible for service in the Tabernacle, 40 and the total number came to 2,630. 41 So this was the total of all those from the Gershonite clans who were eligible to serve at the Tabernacle. Moses and Aaron listed them, just as the Lord had commanded.
42 The Merarite division was also listed by its clans and families. 43 The list included all the men between thirty and fifty years of age who were eligible for service in the Tabernacle, 44 and the total number came to 3,200. 45 So this was the total of all those from the Merarite clans who were eligible for service. Moses and Aaron listed them, just as the Lord had commanded through Moses.
46 So Moses, Aaron, and the leaders of Israel listed all the Levites by their clans and families. 47 All the men between thirty and fifty years of age who were eligible for service in the Tabernacle and for its transportation 48 numbered 8,580. 49 When their names were recorded, as the Lord had commanded through Moses, each man was assigned his task and told what to carry.
And so the registration was completed, just as the Lord had commanded Moses.
The Holy Bible, Modern English Version. Copyright © 2014 by Military Bible Association. Published and distributed by Charisma House.
Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
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