4 The Lord said to Moses and Aaron, 2 ‘Write a list of the people in Kohath's clan in their families. That list must be separate from the list of the other Levites. 3 Record the men who can work in the Tent of Meeting. Record them if they are between 30 and 50 years old.
4 These men must take care of everything that is most holy in the Tent of Meeting. 5 When the people are ready to move, Aaron and his sons must go into the Tent of Meeting. They must take down the curtain that is in front of the Covenant Box. They must cover the Covenant Box with the curtain. 6 Then they must cover the curtain with good leather. On the top of that, they must put a blue cloth. Then, they must put the poles through the rings, so that they can carry the Covenant Box.
7 They must put a blue cloth over the table for the special bread. The bread must remain on the table. They must put on the cloth the plates, bowls and dishes. They must also put on it the jars for the wine that they offer to me. 8 Then they must cover all those things with a red cloth. On the top of the red cloth, they must put good leather. Then they must fix the poles to the table, so that they can carry it.
9 They must cover the lampstand and its tools with a blue cloth. They must also cover the jars for the oil with the blue cloth. 10 Then they must cover all this with good leather. They must carry it on a board.
11 They must cover the gold altar with a blue cloth. They must cover the blue cloth with good leather. Then they must fix the poles to the altar, so that they can carry it. 12 They must cover all the tools from God's Holy Tent with a blue cloth. They must cover the blue cloth with good leather. They must carry all this on a board.
13 They must remove the ashes from the bronze altar. They must cover the bronze altar with a purple cloth. 14 They must put all the tools on top of it. That includes the plates for the fire, the forks for the meat, the spades and the bowls. They must cover all that with good leather. Then they must put the poles through the rings on the altar, so that they can carry it.
15 When the camp is ready to move, the men from Kohath's clan must be ready to carry all those things. But they must wait until Aaron and his sons have covered God's Holy Tent and all its holy things. The men from Kohath's clan must not touch the holy things. They will die if they touch the holy things. These are the jobs of Kohath's clan. They must carry the things from the Tent of Meeting when the Israelites travel.
16 Eleazar, who is the son of Aaron the priest, must keep the oil for the light. He must keep the incense and the grain offering. He must keep the special oil. The special oil is a mark on everything that God chooses. Eleazar must take care of the whole Tent of Meeting. He must work with God's Holy Tent and with everything in it.’
17 Then the Lord said to Moses and Aaron, 18 ‘You must not cause the end of Kohath's clan from among the Levites. 19 Do not let the men in that clan die. That will happen if they come near to the most holy things. You must do this: Aaron and his sons must go into the Tent of Meeting. They will tell each man the work that he must do. And they must tell each man the things that he must carry. 20 But the men from Kohath's clan must not look at anything that is holy, even for a moment. If they do look at those things, they will die.’
21 Then the Lord said to Moses, 22 ‘Also write a list of the people in Gershon's clan in their families. 23 Record the men who can work in the Tent of Meeting. Record them if they are between 30 and 50 years old.
24 The work of the men in Gershon's clan is to carry everything. 25 The men from that clan must carry the curtains of God's Tent. And they must carry the Tent of Meeting with the thing that covers it. And they must carry the good leather that covers all that. And they must carry the curtain for the place where people go into the Tent of Meeting. 26 They must carry the curtains of the yard that is round God's Tent. Also, they must carry the curtain and ropes for the place where people go into the yard. That is the yard that is round God's Tent and the altar. The men from Gershon's clan must carry all the tools that belong with those curtains. They must do everything that all those things need. 27 The men in Gershon's clan must do everything that Aaron and his sons ask them to do. Aaron and his sons must tell them the things that they should carry. And they must tell them everything that they should do. 28 That is the work for the Tent of Meeting that the descendants of Gershon must do. Ithamar, the son of Aaron the priest, will tell them the things that they must do.’
29 Also God said to Moses, ‘Write a list of the people in Merari's clan in their families. 30 Record the men who can work in the Tent of Meeting. Record them if they are between 30 and 50 years old. 31 This is the work of the men in Merari's clan. They must carry the wood parts that hold the Tent of Meeting, and its poles. They must carry its pillars and its bases. 32 And they must carry the pillars, bases, pegs and ropes for the yard that is round God's Tent. And the men in Merari's clan must keep all the tools that belong with those things safe. Each man in Merari's clan must take care of something. Tell each man which things he must carry. 33 That is the work of the descendants of Merari in the Tent of Meeting. Ithamar, the son of Aaron the priest, will tell them the things that they must do.’
34 So Moses, Aaron and the people's leaders recorded the names of Kohath's descendants in their clans and in their families. 35 They recorded the men who could work in the Tent of Meeting. They recorded them if they were between 30 and 50 years old. 36 They recorded them in clans. There were 2,750 men. 37 Moses and Aaron recorded the descendants of Kohath who worked at the Tent of Meeting. The Lord had told Moses that they must do that.
38 Moses and Aaron also recorded the names of Gershon's descendants in their clans and in their families. 39 They recorded the men who could work in the Tent of Meeting. They recorded them if they were between 30 and 50 years old. 40 They recorded them in clans and families. There were 2,630 men. 41 Moses and Aaron recorded the descendants of Gershon who worked at the Tent of Meeting. The Lord had told Moses that they must do that.
42 Moses and Aaron also recorded the names of Merari's descendants in their clans and in their families. 43 They counted all the men who worked in the Tent of Meeting. They counted them if they were between 30 and 50 years old. 44 They recorded them in clans. There were 3,200 men. 45 Moses and Aaron recorded the descendants of Merari who worked at the Tent of Meeting. The Lord had told Moses that they must do that.
46 Moses, Aaron and the people's leaders recorded the names of the Levites in their clans and in their families. 47 They counted all the men who worked in the Tent of Meeting. And they counted all the men who carried any of its things. They counted them if they were between 30 and 50 years old. 48 There were 8,580 Levites in the list. 49 They told each man the things that he must do. Or they told him what he must carry. Moses recorded all their names. The Lord had told him that he must do that.
4 The Lord said to Moses and Aaron, 2 “Count the men in the families of the Kohath family group. (The Kohath family group is a part of Levi’s family group.) 3 Count all the men from 30 to 50 years old who come to serve. These men will work in the Meeting Tent. 4 Their job is to take care of the most holy things in the Meeting Tent.
5 “When the Israelites travel to a new place, Aaron and his sons must go into the Meeting Tent and take down the curtain and cover the Box of the Agreement with it. 6 Then they must cover all of this with covering made from fine leather. Then they must spread the solid blue cloth over the leather and put the poles in the rings on the Holy Box.
7 “Then they must spread a blue cloth over the holy table. Then they must put the plates, spoons, bowls, and the jars for drink offerings on the table. Put the special bread on the table. 8 Then you must put a red cloth over all these things, cover everything with fine leather, and put the poles in the rings of the table.
9 “Then they must cover the lampstand and its lamps with a blue cloth. They must also cover all the things used to keep the lamps burning and all the jars of oil that are used in the lamps. 10 Then wrap everything in fine leather. Then they must put all these things on poles used for carrying them.
11 “They must spread a blue cloth over the golden altar. They must cover that with fine leather. Then they must put the poles for carrying it in the rings on the altar.
12 “Then they must gather together all the special things that are used for worship in the Holy Place. They must gather them together and wrap them in a blue cloth. Then they must cover that with fine leather. They must put these things on a frame for carrying them.
13 “They must clean the ashes out of the bronze altar and spread a purple cloth over it. 14 Then they must gather together all the things that are used for worship at the altar. These are the firepans, forks, shovels, and the bowls. They must put these things on the bronze altar. Then they must spread a covering of fine leather over the altar and put the poles for carrying it in the rings on the altar.
15 “Aaron and his sons must finish covering all the holy things in the Holy Place. Then the men from the Kohath family can go in and begin carrying these things. In this way they will not touch the holy things and die.
16 “Eleazar son of Aaron the priest will be responsible for the Holy Tent. He will be responsible for everything in it, including the holy things. He will be responsible for the oil for the lamp, the sweet-smelling incense, the daily offering, [ a ] and the anointing oil.”
17 The Lord said to Moses and Aaron, 18 “Be careful! Don’t let these Kohathite men be destroyed. 19 You must do these things so that the Kohathite men can go near the most holy things and not die. Aaron and his sons must go in and show each Kohathite man what to do and what to carry. 20 If you don’t do this, the Kohathite men might go in and look at the holy things. If they look at these things, even for a moment, they must die.”
21 The Lord said to Moses, 22 “Count all the people of the Gershon family. List them by family and family group. 23 Count all the men who are from 30 to 50 years old who come to serve. These men will have the job of caring for the Meeting Tent.
24 “This is what the Gershonite family must do and the things they must carry: 25 They must carry the curtains of the Holy Tent, the Meeting Tent, its covering, and the covering made from fine leather. They must also carry the curtain at the entrance of the Meeting Tent. 26 They must carry the curtains of the courtyard that are around the Holy Tent and the altar. And they must carry the curtain for the entrance of the courtyard. They must also carry all the ropes and all the things that are used with the curtains. The Gershonite men will be responsible for anything that needs to be done with these things. 27 Aaron and his sons will watch all the work that is done. Everything the Gershonites carry and the other work they do will be watched by Aaron and his sons. You must tell them what they are responsible for carrying. 28 This is the work that the men of the Gershonite family group must do for the Meeting Tent. Ithamar son of Aaron the priest will be responsible for their work.”
29 “Count all the men in the families and family groups in the Merari family group. 30 Count all the men who are from 30 to 50 years old and come to serve. These men will do a special work for the Meeting Tent. 31 When you travel, it is their job to carry the frames of the Meeting Tent. They must carry the braces, the posts, and the bases. 32 They must also carry the posts that are around the courtyard. They must carry the bases, the tent pegs, the ropes, and everything that is used for the poles around the courtyard. List the names and tell each man exactly what he must carry. 33 This is what the people from the Merari family will do to serve in the work for the Meeting Tent. Ithamar son of Aaron the priest will be responsible for their work.”
34 Moses, Aaron, and the leaders of the Israelites counted the Kohathites. They counted them by families and family groups. 35 They counted all the men from 30 to 50 years old who were able to serve. These men were given special work to do for the Meeting Tent.
36 There were 2750 men in the Kohath family group who were qualified to do this work. 37 So these men from the Kohath family group were given their special work to do for the Meeting Tent. Moses and Aaron did this the way the Lord had told Moses to do.
38 Also, the Gershonite family group was counted. 39 All the men from 30 to 50 years old who qualified to serve were counted. These men were given their special work to do for the Meeting Tent. 40 There were 2630 men in the families of the Gershon family group who were qualified. 41 So these men from the Gershon family group were given their special work to do for the Meeting Tent. Moses and Aaron did this the way the Lord had told Moses to do.
42 Also, the men in the families and family groups of the Merari family were counted. 43 All the men from 30 to 50 years old who qualified to serve were counted. These men were given their special work to do for the Meeting Tent. 44 There were 3200 men in the families of the Merari family group who were qualified. 45 So these men from the Merari family group were given their special work. Moses and Aaron did this the way the Lord told Moses to do.
46 So Moses, Aaron, and the leaders of the Israelites counted all the people in Levi’s family group. They had counted each family and each family group. 47 All the men between the ages of 30 and 50 who qualified to serve were counted. These men were given a special work to do for the Meeting Tent. They did the work of carrying the Meeting Tent when they traveled. 48 The total number was 8580. 49 Each man was counted just as the Lord commanded Moses. Each man was given his own work and told what he must carry just as the Lord had said.
4 And the Lord spake unto Moses and unto 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 upward even until fifty years old, all that enter into the host, to do the work in the tabernacle of the congregation.
4 This shall be the service of the sons of Kohath in the tabernacle of the congregation, about the most holy things:
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:
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.
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:
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.
9 And they shall take a cloth of blue, and cover the candlestick of the light, and his lamps, and his tongs, and his snuffdishes, and all the oil vessels thereof, wherewith they minister unto it:
10 And they shall put it and all the vessels thereof within a covering of badgers' skins, and shall put it upon a bar.
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:
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:
13 And they shall take away the ashes from the altar, and spread a purple cloth thereon:
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.
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.
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 meat 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.
17 And the Lord spake unto Moses and unto Aaron saying,
18 Cut ye not off the tribe of the families of the Kohathites from among 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:
20 But they shall not go in to see when the holy things are covered, lest they die.
21 And the Lord spake unto 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 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 families of the Gershonites, to serve, and for burdens:
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,
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.
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.
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.
29 As for the sons of Merari, thou shalt number them after their families, by the house of their fathers;
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.
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,
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.
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.
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,
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:
36 And those that were numbered of them by their families were two thousand seven hundred and fifty.
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 the Lord by the hand of Moses.
38 And those that were numbered of the sons of Gershon, throughout their families, and by the house of their fathers,
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,
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.
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 the Lord .
42 And those that 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 upward even unto fifty years old, every one that entereth into the service, for the work in the tabernacle of the congregation,
44 Even those that were numbered of them after their families, were three thousand and two hundred.
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 the Lord by the hand of Moses.
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,
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.
48 Even those that were numbered of them, were eight thousand and five hundred and fourscore,
49 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 of him, as the Lord commanded Moses.
4 Then the Lord spoke to Moses and to Aaron, saying, 2 “Take a [ a ] census of the [ b ] descendants of Kohath from among the sons of Levi, by their families, by their fathers’ households, 3 from ( A ) thirty years old and upward, even to fifty years old, everyone who can enter the service of ministry to do work in the tent of meeting. 4 This is the work of the [ c ] descendants of Kohath in the tent of meeting, concerning the most holy things.
5 “When the camp sets out, Aaron and his sons shall go in and take down ( B ) the veil of the curtain, and cover the ( C ) ark of the testimony with it; 6 and they shall place a ( D ) covering of [ d ] fine leather on it, and spread over it a cloth of pure [ e ] violet, and insert its carrying poles. 7 Over the table of the bread of the Presence they shall also spread a cloth of violet and put on it the dishes, the pans, the sacrificial bowls, and the jugs for the drink offering; and ( E ) the continual bread shall be on it. 8 And they shall spread over them a cloth of scarlet material , and cover the same with a covering of fine leather, and they shall insert its carrying poles. 9 Then they shall take a violet cloth and cover the ( F ) lampstand for the light, ( G ) along with its lamps, its tongs, its trays, and all its oil containers, by which they attend to it; 10 and they shall put it and all its utensils in a covering of fine leather, and put it on the carrying [ f ] bars. 11 Over the golden altar they shall spread a violet cloth, and cover it with a covering of fine leather, and they shall insert its carrying poles; 12 and they shall take all the utensils of service, with which they serve in the sanctuary, and put them in a violet cloth and cover them with a covering of fine leather, and put them on the carrying [ g ] bars. 13 Then they shall clean away the [ h ] ashes from the ( H ) altar, and spread a purple cloth over it. 14 They shall also put on it all its utensils by which they serve in connection with it: the firepans, the forks, shovels, and the basins, all the utensils of the altar; and they shall spread a cover of fine leather over it and insert its carrying poles. 15 When Aaron and his sons have finished covering the holy objects and all the furnishings of the sanctuary, when the camp is to set out, after that the sons of Kohath shall come to carry them by the poles , so that they will not touch the holy objects ( I ) and die. These are the [ i ] things in the tent of meeting that the sons of Kohath are to carry.
16 “Now the responsibility of Eleazar the son of Aaron the priest is ( J ) the oil for the light, the ( K ) fragrant incense, ( L ) the continual grain offering, and ( M ) the anointing oil—the responsibility of all the [ j ] tabernacle and everything that is in it, with the sanctuary and its furnishings.”
17 Then the Lord spoke to Moses and to Aaron, saying, 18 “Do not let the tribe of the families of the Kohathites be eliminated from among the Levites. 19 Rather, do this for them so that they will live and ( N ) not die when they approach the most holy objects : Aaron and his sons shall go in and assign each of them to his work and to his load; 20 but ( O ) they shall not come in to see the holy objects even for a moment, or they will die.”
21 Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 22 “Take a [ k ] census of the sons of Gershon [ l ] also, by their fathers’ households, by their families; 23 from ( P ) thirty years old and upward to fifty years old you shall [ m ] count them: all who can enter to perform service, to do the work in the tent of meeting. 24 This is the service of the families of the Gershonites, in serving and in carrying: 25 they shall carry ( Q ) the curtains of the tabernacle and the tent of meeting with its covering and ( R ) the covering of fine leather that is on top of it, and the curtain for the entrance of the tent of meeting, 26 and ( S ) the curtains of the courtyard, the curtain for the entrance of the gate of the courtyard that is around the tabernacle and the altar, and their ropes and all the equipment for their service; and everything that is to be done [ n ] by them, [ o ] they shall perform. 27 All the service of the sons of the Gershonites, that is, all their loads and all their work, shall be performed at the [ p ] command of Aaron and his sons; and you shall assign to them as a duty all their loads. 28 This is the service of the families of the sons of the Gershonites in the tent of meeting; and their duties shall be [ q ] under the direction of Ithamar the son of Aaron the priest.
29 “ As for the sons of Merari, you shall count them by their families, by their fathers’ households; 30 from ( T ) thirty years old and upward, even to fifty years old, you shall count them, everyone who can enter the service to do the work of the tent of meeting. 31 Now this is the duty of their loads, for all their service in the tent of meeting: the boards of the tabernacle, its bars, its pillars, and its bases, 32 and the pillars around the courtyard and their bases, their pegs, and their ropes, with all their equipment and with all their service; and you shall assign by names of the men the items [ r ] that each is to carry. 33 This is the service of the families of the sons of Merari, according to all their service in the tent of meeting, [ s ] under the direction of Ithamar the son of Aaron the priest.”
34 So Moses, Aaron, and the leaders of the congregation counted the sons of the Kohathites by their families and by their fathers’ households, 35 from ( U ) thirty years old and upward even to fifty years old, everyone who could enter the service for work in the tent of meeting. 36 Their numbered men by their families were 2,750. 37 These were the numbered men of the Kohathite families, everyone who was serving in the tent of meeting, whom Moses and Aaron counted according to the [ t ] commandment of the Lord [ u ] through Moses.
38 And the numbered men of the sons of Gershon by their families and by their fathers’ households, 39 from thirty years old and upward even to fifty years old, everyone who could enter the service for work in the tent of meeting— 40 their numbered men by their families, by their fathers’ households, were 2,630. 41 These were the numbered men of the families of the sons of Gershon, everyone who was serving in the tent of meeting, whom Moses and Aaron counted according to the [ v ] commandment of the Lord .
42 And the numbered men of the families of the sons of Merari by their families, by their fathers’ households, 43 from ( V ) thirty years old and upward even to fifty years old, everyone who could enter the service for work in the tent of meeting— 44 their numbered men by their families were 3,200. 45 These were the numbered men of the families of the sons of Merari, whom Moses and Aaron counted according to the [ w ] commandment of the Lord [ x ] through Moses.
46 All the numbered men of the Levites, whom Moses, Aaron, and the leaders of Israel counted, by their families and by their fathers’ households, 47 from thirty years old and upward even to fifty years old, everyone who could enter to do the work of service and the work of carrying in the tent of meeting— 48 their numbered men were ( W ) 8,580. 49 According to the [ y ] commandment of the Lord [ z ] through Moses, they ( X ) were counted, everyone by his serving or carrying; so these were his numbered men, just as the Lord had commanded Moses.
4 The Lord said to Moses and Aaron: 2 “Take a census ( A ) of the Kohathite branch of the Levites by their clans and families. 3 Count ( B ) all the men from thirty to fifty years of age ( C ) who come to serve in the work at the tent of meeting.
4 “This is the work ( D ) of the Kohathites ( E ) at the tent of meeting: the care of the most holy things. ( F ) 5 When the camp is to move, ( G ) Aaron and his sons are to go in and take down the shielding curtain ( H ) and put it over the ark of the covenant law. ( I ) 6 Then they are to cover the curtain with a durable leather, [ a ] ( J ) spread a cloth of solid blue over that and put the poles ( K ) in place.
7 “Over the table of the Presence ( L ) they are to spread a blue cloth and put on it the plates, dishes and bowls, and the jars for drink offerings; ( M ) the bread that is continually there ( N ) is to remain on it. 8 They are to spread a scarlet cloth over them, cover that with the durable leather and put the poles ( O ) in place.
9 “They are to take a blue cloth and cover the lampstand that is for light, together with its lamps, its wick trimmers and trays, ( P ) and all its jars for the olive oil used to supply it. 10 Then they are to wrap it and all its accessories in a covering of the durable leather and put it on a carrying frame. ( Q )
11 “Over the gold altar ( R ) they are to spread a blue cloth and cover that with the durable leather and put the poles ( S ) in place.
12 “They are to take all the articles ( T ) used for ministering in the sanctuary, wrap them in a blue cloth, cover that with the durable leather and put them on a carrying frame. ( U )
13 “They are to remove the ashes ( V ) from the bronze altar ( W ) and spread a purple cloth over it. 14 Then they are to place on it all the utensils ( X ) used for ministering at the altar, including the firepans, ( Y ) meat forks, ( Z ) shovels ( AA ) and sprinkling bowls. ( AB ) Over it they are to spread a covering of the durable leather and put the poles ( AC ) in place.
15 “After Aaron and his sons have finished covering the holy furnishings and all the holy articles, and when the camp is ready to move, ( AD ) only then are the Kohathites ( AE ) to come and do the carrying. ( AF ) But they must not touch the holy things ( AG ) or they will die. ( AH ) The Kohathites are to carry those things that are in the tent of meeting.
16 “Eleazar ( AI ) son of Aaron, the priest, is to have charge of the oil for the light, ( AJ ) the fragrant incense, ( AK ) the regular grain offering ( AL ) and the anointing oil. He is to be in charge of the entire tabernacle and everything in it, including its holy furnishings and articles.”
17 The Lord said to Moses and Aaron, 18 “See that the Kohathite tribal clans are not destroyed from among the Levites. 19 So that they may live and not die when they come near the most holy things, ( AM ) do this for them: Aaron and his sons ( AN ) are to go into the sanctuary and assign to each man his work and what he is to carry. ( AO ) 20 But the Kohathites must not go in to look ( AP ) at the holy things, even for a moment, or they will die.”
21 The Lord said to Moses, 22 “Take a census also of the Gershonites by their families and clans. 23 Count all the men from thirty to fifty years of age ( AQ ) who come to serve in the work at the tent of meeting.
24 “This is the service of the Gershonite clans in their carrying and their other work: 25 They are to carry the curtains of the tabernacle, ( AR ) that is, the tent of meeting, ( AS ) its covering ( AT ) and its outer covering of durable leather, the curtains for the entrance to the tent of meeting, 26 the curtains of the courtyard surrounding the tabernacle and altar, ( AU ) the curtain for the entrance to the courtyard, ( AV ) the ropes and all the equipment ( AW ) used in the service of the tent. The Gershonites are to do all that needs to be done with these things. 27 All their service, whether carrying or doing other work, is to be done under the direction of Aaron and his sons. ( AX ) You shall assign to them as their responsibility ( AY ) all they are to carry. 28 This is the service of the Gershonite clans ( AZ ) at the tent of meeting. Their duties are to be under the direction of Ithamar ( BA ) son of Aaron, the priest.
29 “Count ( BB ) the Merarites by their clans and families. ( BC ) 30 Count all the men from thirty to fifty years of age who come to serve in the work at the tent of meeting. 31 As part of all their service at the tent, they are to carry the frames of the tabernacle, its crossbars, posts and bases, ( BD ) 32 as well as the posts of the surrounding courtyard with their bases, tent pegs, ropes, ( BE ) all their equipment and everything related to their use. Assign to each man the specific things he is to carry. 33 This is the service of the Merarite clans as they work at the tent of meeting under the direction of Ithamar ( BF ) son of Aaron, the priest.”
34 Moses, Aaron and the leaders of the community counted the Kohathites ( BG ) by their clans and families. 35 All the men from thirty to fifty years of age ( BH ) who came to serve in the work at the tent of meeting, 36 counted by clans, were 2,750. 37 This was the total of all those in the Kohathite clans ( BI ) who served at the tent of meeting. Moses and Aaron counted them according to the Lord ’s command through Moses.
38 The Gershonites ( BJ ) were counted by their clans and families. 39 All the men from thirty to fifty years of age who came to serve in the work at the tent of meeting, 40 counted by their clans and families, were 2,630. 41 This was the total of those in the Gershonite clans who served at the tent of meeting. Moses and Aaron counted them according to the Lord ’s command.
42 The Merarites were counted by their clans and families. 43 All the men from thirty to fifty years of age ( BK ) who came to serve in the work at the tent of meeting, 44 counted by their clans, were 3,200. 45 This was the total of those in the Merarite clans. ( BL ) Moses and Aaron counted them according to the Lord ’s command through Moses.
46 So Moses, Aaron and the leaders of Israel counted ( BM ) all the Levites by their clans and families. 47 All the men from thirty to fifty years of age ( BN ) who came to do the work of serving and carrying the tent of meeting 48 numbered 8,580. ( BO ) 49 At the Lord ’s command through Moses, each was assigned his work and told what to carry.
Thus they were counted, ( BP ) as the Lord commanded Moses.
