Numbers 4

1Yahweh said to Moses and Aaron,

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

3all the men from thirty years old up to fifty years old who come to serve by doing work in the tent of meeting.

4This is the service of the Kohathites in the tent of meeting: the most holy things.

5When the camp is to set out, Aaron and his sons are to go in and take down the screening curtain and cover the ark of the testimony with it.

6Then they are to put over it a covering of fine leather, spread a cloth entirely of blue on top, and put its poles in place.

7Over the table of the Presence they are to spread a blue cloth and put on it the plates, the dishes, the bowls, and the pitchers for the drink offering; the regular bread is to remain on it.

8They are to spread a scarlet cloth over these, cover it with a covering of fine leather, and put its poles in place.

9They are to take a blue cloth and cover the lampstand for the light, with its lamps, its wick trimmers, its trays, and all the oil jars used in tending it.

10They are to put it and all its utensils into a covering of fine leather and put it on a carrying frame.

11Over the gold altar they are to spread a blue cloth, cover it with a covering of fine leather, and put its poles in place.

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

13They are to remove the ashes from the altar and spread a purple cloth over it.

14They are to put on it all the utensils used in serving at it—the firepans, the forks, the shovels, and the basins, all the utensils of the altar—and spread a covering of fine leather over it, and put its poles in place.

15When Aaron and his sons have finished covering the holy objects and all the holy furnishings, as the camp is setting out, then the Kohathites are to come and carry them. But they must not touch the holy things, or they will die. These are the things in the tent of meeting that the Kohathites are to carry.

16Eleazar son of Aaron the priest is to be responsible for the oil for the light, the fragrant incense, the regular grain offering, and the anointing oil. He is to be responsible for the whole tabernacle and everything in it, the sanctuary and its furnishings.”

17Yahweh said to Moses and Aaron,

18“Do not let the tribe of the Kohathite clans be cut off from among the Levites.

19Do this for them, so that they may live and not die when they come near the most holy things: Aaron and his sons are to go in and assign each of them his work and what he is to carry.

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

21Yahweh said to Moses,

22“Take a census of the Gershonites also, by their ancestral houses and their clans.

23Register all the men from thirty years old up to fifty years old who come to serve by doing work in the tent of meeting.

24This is the service of the Gershonite clans, in serving and in carrying:

25They are to carry the curtains of the tabernacle and the tent of meeting, its covering and the covering of fine leather on top of it, the screen for the entrance of the tent of meeting,

26the hangings of the courtyard, the screen for the entrance of the gate of the courtyard that surrounds the tabernacle and the altar, their cords, and all the equipment for their service. They are to do all the work connected with these things.

27All the service of the Gershonites, all their carrying and all their work, is to be done at the direction of Aaron and his sons. You are to assign them responsibility for everything they are to carry.

28This is the service of the Gershonite clans at the tent of meeting. Their duties are to be under the direction of Ithamar son of Aaron the priest.

29As for the Merarites, register them by their clans and ancestral houses.

30Register all the men from thirty years old up to fifty years old who come to serve by doing the work of the tent of meeting.

31This is what they are responsible to carry, as all their service at the tent of meeting: the frames of the tabernacle, its crossbars, its posts, and its bases,

32and the posts of the surrounding courtyard with their bases, tent pegs, and cords, with all their equipment and everything connected with their use. Assign by name the items each man is responsible to carry.

33This is the service of the Merarite clans, all their service at the tent of meeting, under the direction of Ithamar son of Aaron the priest.”

34So Moses and Aaron and the leaders of the congregation registered the Kohathites by their clans and ancestral houses,

35all the men from thirty years old up to fifty years old who came to serve by working in the tent of meeting.

36Those registered by their clans numbered 2,750.

37These were those registered from the Kohathite clans, all who served in the tent of meeting, whom Moses and Aaron registered at Yahweh’s command through Moses.

38The Gershonites were registered by their clans and ancestral houses,

39all the men from thirty years old up to fifty years old who came to serve by working in the tent of meeting.

40Those registered by their clans and ancestral houses numbered 2,630.

41These were those registered from the Gershonite clans, all who served in the tent of meeting, whom Moses and Aaron registered at Yahweh’s command.

42The Merarite clans were registered by their clans and ancestral houses,

43all the men from thirty years old up to fifty years old who came to serve by working in the tent of meeting.

44Those registered by their clans numbered 3,200.

45These were those registered from the Merarite clans, whom Moses and Aaron registered at Yahweh’s command through Moses.

46All the Levites whom Moses and Aaron and the leaders of Israel registered by their clans and ancestral houses,

47all the men from thirty years old up to fifty years old who came to do the work of serving and the work of carrying at the tent of meeting—

48those registered numbered 8,580.

49At Yahweh’s command through Moses they were registered, each man assigned his work and what he was to carry. So they were registered, as Yahweh had commanded Moses.