Numbers 4

1 And Yhwh spake unto Moses and unto Aaron, saying,

The Lord told Moses and Aaron,

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

“Register the descendants of Kohath from the tribe of Levi, according to their family and father's line.

3 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.

Count men aged thirty to fifty—all who are entitled to do the work of serving in the Tent of Meeting.

4 This shall be the service of the sons of Kohath in the tabernacle of the congregation, about the most holy things:

This work that they are to do in the Tent of Meetings involves the things that are most holy.

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

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 And shall put thereon the covering of badgers’ skins, and shall spread over it a cloth wholly of blue, and shall put in the staves thereof.

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 And upon the table of shewbread they shall spread a cloth of blue, and put thereon the dishes, and the spoons, and the bowls, and covers to cover withal: and the continual bread shall be thereon:

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 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 staves thereof.

Over everything they are to spread a crimson cloth, next a fine leather covering, and then insert its carrying poles.

9 And they shall take a cloth of blue, and cover the lampstand of the light, and his lamps, and his tongs, and his snuffdishes, and all the oil vessels thereof, wherewith they minister unto it:

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 And they shall put it and all the vessels thereof within a covering of badgers’ skins, and shall put it upon a bar.

Then have them wrap it together with all its utensils inside a fine leather covering and place it on the carrying frame.

11 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 the staves thereof:

They are to spread a blue cloth over the gold altar, cover it with fine leather, and then insert its carrying poles.

12 And they shall take all the instruments of ministry, wherewith 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:

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

Have them clean the ashes from the bronze altar and spread a purple cloth over it,

14 And they shall put upon it all the vessels thereof, wherewith they minister about it, even the censers, the fleshhooks, and the shovels, and the basons, all the vessels of the altar; and they shall spread upon it a covering of badgers’ skins, and put to the staves of 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 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 set 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.

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 And to the office of Eleazar the son of Aaron the priest pertaineth 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 therein is, in the sanctuary, and in the vessels thereof.

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 And Yhwh spake unto Moses and unto Aaron, saying,

The Lord told Moses and Aaron,

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

“Make sure the families of Kohath are not wiped out from the Levites.

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

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.

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

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 And Yhwh spake unto Moses, saying,

The Lord told Moses,

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

“Register the descendants of Gershon, according to their family and father's line

23 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.

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 service of the families of the Gershonites, to serve, and for burdens:

This is how the families of Gershon will serve in terms of working and carrying:

25 And they shall bear the curtains of the tabernacle, and the tabernacle of the congregation, his 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,

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 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.

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 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 unto them in charge all their burdens.

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 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.

These are their responsibilities for moving the Tent of Meeting, carried out under the direction of Ithamar, son of Aaron the priest.

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

Register the descendants of Merari, according to their family and father's line.

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

Count men aged thirty to fifty—all who are entitled to do the work of serving in the Tent of Meeting.

31 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 the bars thereof, and the pillars thereof, and sockets thereof,

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 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.

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 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.

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 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,

Moses, Aaron, and the Israelite leaders registered the families of Kohath according to their family and father's line.

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

They counted men aged thirty to fifty—all who were entitled to do the work of serving in the Tent of Meeting.

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

The total by families was 2,750.

37 These were they that were numbered of the families of the Kohathites, all that might do service in the tabernacle of the congregation, which Moses and Aaron did number according to the commandment of Yhwh by the hand of Moses.

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

The families of Gershon were counted, according to their family and father's line,

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

men aged thirty to fifty—all who were entitled to do the work of serving in the Tent of Meeting.

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

The total by families and father's line was 2,630.

41 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 did number according to the commandment of Yhwh.

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

The families of Merari were counted, according to their family and father's line,

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

men aged thirty to fifty—all who were entitled to do the work of serving in the Tent of Meeting.

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

The total by families was 3,200.

45 These be those that were numbered of the families of the sons of Merari, whom Moses and Aaron numbered according to the word of Yhwh by the hand of Moses.

This was the total of the families of Merari registered by Moses and Aaron in accordance with the Lord's instructions.

46 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,

This is how Moses, Aaron, and the Israelite leaders registered all the Levites according to their family and father's line.

47 From thirty years old and upward even unto 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,

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

The sum total was 8,580.

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

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.