Numbers - Chapter 4

¹ Yahweh spoke to Moses and said:

² 'Take a census by clans and families of the Levites descended from Kohath:

³ all the men between thirty and fifty years of age and eligible for military service, who will have their duties in the Tent of Meeting.

⁴ 'These are the duties of the Kohathites: looking after those things that are especially holy.

⁵ 'When camp is broken, Aaron and his sons must come and take down the screening curtain, and cover the ark of the Testimony with it.

⁶ Over this, they will put a covering of fine leather, over which they will spread a cloth entirely of violet-purple. They will then fix the poles to the ark.

⁷ 'Over the offertory table they will spread a violet cloth, and on it put the dishes, cups, bowls and libation jars; the bread of permanent offering will also be on it.

⁸ Over these they will spread a scarlet cloth and cover the whole with a covering of fine leather. They will then fix the poles to the table.

⁹ 'They will then take a violet cloth and cover the lamp-stand, its lamps, snuffers, trays and all the oil jars used for it,

¹⁰ and will lay it and all its accessories in a covering of fine leather and put it on the litter.

¹¹ 'Over the golden altar they will spread a violet cloth, and cover that with a covering of fine leather. They will then fix the poles to it.

¹² 'They will then take all the other objects used in the service of the sanctuary, put them in a violet cloth, with a covering of fine leather, and put it all on the litter.

¹³ 'When they have removed the ashes from the altar, they will spread a scarlet cloth over it,

¹⁴ and on this place all the objects used in the liturgy, the fire pans, hooks, scoops, sprinkling basins and all the altar accessories. Over this they will spread a covering of fine leather. They will then fix the poles to it.

¹⁵ 'Once Aaron and his sons have finished covering the holy things and all their accessories at the breaking of camp, the Kohathites will come and carry them, but without touching any of the holy things on pain of death. Such is the load for the Kohathites in the Tent of Meeting.

¹⁶ But Eleazar, son of Aaron the priest, is responsible for looking after the oil for the light, the fragrant incense, the daily cereal offering and the anointing oil, and for supervising the entire Dwelling and everything in it, the holy things and their accessories.'

¹⁷ Yahweh spoke to Moses and said:

¹⁸ 'You must not let the group of Kohathite clans be lost to the rest of the Levites.

¹⁹ But deal with them in this way, so that they may survive and not incur death by approaching those things that are especially holy. Aaron and his sons will go in and assign to each of them his task and load,

²⁰ in such a way that they have no need to incur the death penalty by going in and setting eyes on the holy things, even for an instant.'

²¹ Yahweh spoke to Moses and said:

²² 'Take a census of the Gershonites by families and clans, too:

²³ all the men between thirty and fifty years of age, eligible for military service, who will have their duties in the Tent of Meeting.

²⁴ 'These are the duties of the Gershonite clans, their functions and their loads.

²⁵ They will carry the curtaining of the Dwelling, the Tent of Meeting with its covering and the covering of fine leather that goes over it, the screen for the entrance to the Tent of Meeting,

²⁶ the curtaining of the court, the screen for the entrance to the court surrounding the Dwelling and the altar, the cords, all the accessories for worship, and all the necessary equipment. 'They will be responsible for these things.

²⁷ All the duties of the Gershonites, their functions and their loads, will be carried out under the direction of Aaron and his sons: you will see that they fulfil their charge.

²⁸ Such are the duties of the Gershonite clans in the Tent of Meeting. Their work will be supervised by Ithamar, son of Aaron the priest.

²⁹ 'You will take a census of the Merarites by clans and families.

³⁰ You will take a census of all the men between thirty and fifty years of age, eligible for military service, who will have their duties in the Tent of Meeting.

³¹ 'The load they carry and the duties incumbent on them in the Tent of Meeting will be as follows: the framework of the Dwelling, its cross-bars, poles and sockets,

³² the poles round the court with their sockets, pegs, cords and all their tackle. You will draw up a list of their names with the loads for which each is responsible.

³³ 'Such are the duties of the Merarite clans. All their duties in the Tent of Meeting will be supervised by Ithamar, son of Aaron the priest.'

³⁴ Moses, Aaron and the leaders of the community took a census of the Kohathites by clans and families:

³⁵ all the men between thirty and fifty years of age, eligible for military service, for duties in the Tent of Meeting.

³⁶ The number of men counted in their clans came to two thousand seven hundred and fifty.

³⁷ Such was the total number of men in the Kohathite clans who were eligible for duties in the Tent of Meeting and whom Moses and Aaron counted at Yahweh's bidding through Moses.

³⁸ A census was taken of the Gershonites by clans and families:

³⁹ all the men between thirty and fifty years of age, eligible for military service, for duties in the Tent of Meeting.

⁴⁰ The number of men counted in their clans and families came to two thousand six hundred and thirty.

⁴¹ Such was the total number of men in the Gershonite clans who were eligible for duties in the Tent of Meeting, and whom Moses and Aaron counted at Yahweh's bidding.

⁴² A census was taken of the Merarite clans by clans and families:

⁴³ all the men between thirty and fifty years of age, eligible for military service, for duties in the Tent of Meeting.

⁴⁴ The number of men counted in their clans came to three thousand two hundred.

⁴⁵ Such was the total number of men in the Merarite clans, whom Moses and Aaron counted at Yahweh's bidding through Moses.

⁴⁶ The total number of Levites whom Moses, Aaron and the leaders of Israel counted in their clans and families,

⁴⁷ all the men between thirty and fifty years of age, eligible for religious duties and for those of transporting the Tent of Meeting

⁴⁸ came to eight thousand five hundred and eighty.

⁴⁹ At Yahweh's bidding through Moses, a census was taken of them and each man was assigned his duty and load. And so the census was conducted by Moses as Yahweh had ordered him.

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