Numbers 4

1 Then the LORD said to Moses and Aaron,

And the LORD spoke to Moses and to Aaron, saying,

2 “Take a census of the Kohathites among the Levites by their clans and families,

Take the sum of the sons of Kohath from among the sons of Levi, after their families, by the house of their fathers;

3 men from thirty to fifty years old—everyone who is qualified to serve in the work at the Tent of Meeting.

From thirty years old and upward, even until fifty years old, all that enter into the host, to do the work in the tabernacle of the congregation.

4 This service of the Kohathites at the Tent of Meeting regards the most holy things.

This [shall be] the service of the sons of Kohath in the tabernacle of the congregation, [about] the most holy things.

5 Whenever the camp sets out, Aaron and his sons are to go in, take down the veil of the curtain, and cover the ark of the Testimony with it.

And when the camp moveth forward, Aaron shall come, and his sons, and they shall take down the covering vail, and cover the ark of testimony with it:

6 They are to place over this a covering of fine leather, spread a solid blue cloth over it, and insert its poles.

And shall put on it the covering of badgers' skins, and shall spread over [it] a cloth wholly of blue, and shall put in the staffs of it.

7 Over the table of the Presence they are to spread a blue cloth and place the plates and cups on it, along with the bowls and pitchers for the drink offering. The regular bread offering is to remain on it.

And upon the table of show-bread they shall spread a cloth of blue, and put on it the dishes, and the spoons, and the bowls, and covers to cover with: and the continual bread shall be upon it.

8 And they shall spread a scarlet cloth over them, cover them with fine leather, and insert the poles.

And they shall spread upon them a cloth of scarlet, and cover the same with a covering of badgers' skins, and shall put in the staffs of it.

9 They are to take a blue cloth and cover the lampstand used for light, together with its lamps, wick trimmers, and trays, as well as the jars of oil with which to supply it.

And they shall take a cloth of blue, and cover the candlestick 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 Then they shall wrap it and all its utensils inside a covering of fine leather and put it on the carrying frame.

And they shall put it, and all its vessels, within a covering of badgers' skins, and shall put [it] upon a bar.

11 Over the gold altar they are to spread a blue cloth, cover it with fine leather, and insert the poles.

And upon the golden altar they shall spread a cloth of blue, and cover it with a covering of badgers' skins, and shall put to it its staffs.

12 They are to take all the utensils for serving in the sanctuary, place them in a blue cloth, cover them with fine leather, and put them on the carrying frame.

And they shall 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 badgers' skins, and shall put [them] on a bar.

13 Then they shall remove the ashes from the bronze altar, spread a purple cloth over it,

And they shall take away the ashes from the altar, and spread a purple cloth upon it:

14 and place on it all the vessels used to serve there: the firepans, meat forks, shovels, and sprinkling bowls—all the equipment of the altar. They are to spread over it a covering of fine leather and insert the poles.

And they shall put upon it all its vessels, with which they minister about it, [even] the censers, the flesh-hooks, and the shovels, and the basins, all the vessels of the altar; and they shall spread upon it a covering of badgers' skins, and put to it its staffs.

15 When Aaron and his sons have finished covering the holy objects and all their equipment, as soon as the camp is ready to move, the Kohathites shall come and do the carrying. But they must not touch the holy objects, or they will die. These are the transportation duties of the Kohathites regarding the Tent of Meeting.

And when Aaron and his sons have made an end of covering the sanctuary, and all the vessels of the sanctuary, as the camp is to move forward; after that, the sons of Kohath shall come to bear [it]: but they shall not touch [any] holy thing, lest they die. These [things are] the burden of the sons of Kohath in the tabernacle of the congregation.

16 Eleazar son of Aaron the priest shall oversee the oil for the light, the fragrant incense, the daily grain offering, and the anointing oil. He has oversight of the entire tabernacle and everything in it, including the holy objects and their utensils.”

And to the office of Eleazar the son of Aaron the priest [pertain] the oil for the light, and the sweet incense, and the daily meat-offering, and the anointing oil, [and] the oversight of all the tabernacle, and of all that [is] in it, in the sanctuary, and in its vessels.

17 Then the LORD said to Moses and Aaron,

And the LORD spoke to Moses and to Aaron, saying,

18 “Do not allow the Kohathite tribal clans to be cut off from among the Levites.

Cut ye not off the tribe of the families of the Kohathites from among the Levites:

19 In order that they may live and not die when they come near the most holy things, do this for them: Aaron and his sons are to go in and assign each man his task and what he is to carry.

But thus do to them, that they may live, and not die, when they approach to the most holy things: Aaron and his sons shall go in, and appoint them every one to his service and to his burden:

20 But the Kohathites are not to go in and look at the holy objects, even for a moment, or they will die.”

But they shall not go in to see when the holy things are covered, lest they die.

21 And the LORD said to Moses,

And the LORD spoke to Moses, saying,

22 “Take a census of the Gershonites as well, by their families and clans,

Take also the sum of the sons of Gershon, throughout the house of their fathers, by their families;

23 from thirty to fifty years old, counting everyone who comes to serve in the work at the Tent of Meeting.

From thirty years old and upward until fifty years old shalt thou number them; all that enter in to perform the service, to do the work in the tabernacle of the congregation.

24 This is the service of the Gershonite clans regarding work and transport:

This [is] the service of the families of the Gershonites, to serve, and for burdens:

25 They are to carry the curtains of the tabernacle, the Tent of Meeting with the covering of fine leather over it, the curtains for the entrance to the Tent of Meeting,

And they shall bear the curtains of the tabernacle, and the tabernacle of the congregation, its covering, and the covering of the badgers' skins that [is] above upon it, and the hanging for the door of the tabernacle of the congregation,

26 the curtains of the courtyard, and the curtains for the entrance at the gate of the courtyard that surrounds the tabernacle and altar, along with their ropes and all the equipment for their service. The Gershonites will do all that needs to be done with these items.

And the hangings of the court, and the hanging for the door of the gate of the court, which [is] by the tabernacle and by the altar round about, and their cords, and all the instruments of their service, and all that is made for them: so shall they serve.

27 All the service of the Gershonites—all their transport duties and other work—is to be done at the direction of Aaron and his sons; you are to assign to them all that they are responsible to carry.

At the appointment of Aaron and his sons shall be all the service of the sons of the Gershonites, in all their burdens, and in all their service: and ye shall appoint to them in charge all their burdens.

28 This is the service of the Gershonite clans at the Tent of Meeting, and their duties shall be under the direction of Ithamar son of Aaron the priest.

This [is] the service of the families of the sons of Gershon in the tabernacle of the congregation: and their charge [shall be] under the hand of Ithamar the son of Aaron the priest.

29 As for the sons of Merari, you are to number them by their clans and families,

As for the sons of Merari, thou shalt number them after their families, by the house of their fathers;

30 from thirty to fifty years old, counting everyone who comes to serve in the work of the Tent of Meeting.

From thirty years old and upward even to fifty years old shalt thou number them, every one that entereth into the service, to do the work of the tabernacle of the congregation.

31 This is the duty for all their service at the Tent of Meeting: to carry the frames of the tabernacle with its crossbars, posts, and bases,

And this [is] the charge of their burden, according to all their service in the tabernacle of the congregation; the boards of the tabernacle, and its bars, and its pillars, and its sockets,

32 and the posts of the surrounding courtyard with their bases, tent pegs, and ropes, including all their equipment and everything related to their use. You shall assign by name the items that they are responsible to carry.

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 ye shall reckon the instruments of the charge of their burden.

33 This is the service of the Merarite clans according to all their work at the Tent of Meeting, under the direction of Ithamar son of Aaron the priest.”

This [is] the service of the families of the sons of Merari, according to all their service, in the tabernacle of the congregation, under the hand of Ithamar the son of Aaron the priest.

34 So Moses, Aaron, and the leaders of the congregation numbered the Kohathites by their clans and families,

And Moses and Aaron and the chief of the congregation numbered the sons of the Kohathites after their families, and after the house of their fathers,

35 everyone from thirty to fifty years old who came to serve in the work at the Tent of Meeting.

From thirty years old and upward even to fifty years old, every one that entereth into the service, for the work in the tabernacle of the congregation:

36 And those numbered by their clans totaled 2,750.

And those that were numbered of them by their families were two thousand seven hundred and fifty.

37 These were counted from the Kohathite clans, everyone who could serve at the Tent of Meeting. Moses and Aaron numbered them according to the command of the LORD through Moses.

These [were] they that were numbered of the families of the Kohathites, all that might do service in the tabernacle of the congregation, whom Moses and Aaron numbered according to the commandment of the LORD by the hand of Moses.

38 Then the Gershonites were numbered by their clans and families,

And those that were numbered of the sons of Gershon, throughout their families, and by the house of their fathers,

39 everyone from thirty to fifty years old who came to serve in the work at the Tent of Meeting.

From thirty years old and upward even to fifty years old, every one that entereth into the service, for the work in the tabernacle of the congregation,

40 And those numbered by their clans and families totaled 2,630.

Even those that were numbered of them, throughout their families, by the house of their fathers, were two thousand and six hundred and thirty.

41 These were counted from the Gershonite clans who served at the Tent of Meeting, whom Moses and Aaron counted at the LORD’s command.

These [are] they that were numbered of the families of the sons of Gershon, of all that might do service in the tabernacle of the congregation, whom Moses and Aaron numbered according to the commandment of the LORD.

42 And the Merarites were numbered by their clans and families,

And those that were numbered of the families of the sons of Merari, throughout their families, by the house of their fathers,

43 everyone from thirty to fifty years old who came to serve in the work at the Tent of Meeting.

From thirty years old and upward even to fifty years old, every one that entereth into the service for the work in the tabernacle of the congregation,

44 The men registered by their clans numbered 3,200.

Even those that were numbered of them after their families, were three thousand and two hundred.

45 These were counted from the Merarite clans, whom Moses and Aaron numbered at the LORD’s command through Moses.

These [are] those that were numbered 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 So Moses, Aaron, and the leaders of Israel numbered by their clans and families all the Levites

All those that were numbered of the Levites, whom Moses and Aaron and the chief of Israel numbered, after their families, and after the house of their fathers,

47 from thirty to fifty years old who came to do the work of serving and carrying the Tent of Meeting.

From thirty years old and upward even to fifty years old, every one that came to do the service of the ministry, and the service of the burden in the tabernacle of the congregation,

48 And the number of men was 8,580.

Even those that were numbered of them, were eight thousand and five hundred and eighty.

49 At the LORD’s command they were numbered through Moses and each one was assigned his work and burden, as the LORD had commanded Moses.

According to the commandment of the LORD they were numbered by the hand of Moses, every one according to his service, and according to his burden: thus were they numbered by him, as the LORD commanded Moses.