Numbers 4

Numbers 4:1 Yahveh spoke to Moses and Aaron, and this is what he said,

Numbers 4:2 “Take a census of the sons of Kohath from among the sons of Levi, by their clans and their fathers’ houses,

Numbers 4:3 from thirty years old up to fifty years old, all who can come on duty to do the work in the conference tent.

Numbers 4:4 This is the service of the sons of Kohath in the conference tent: the most holy things.

Numbers 4:5 When the camp is preparing to set out, Aaron and his sons will go in and take down the veil of the screen and cover the ark of the reminder with it.

Numbers 4:6 Then they will cover it with goatskin, spread a blue cloth on top of that, and put in its poles.

Numbers 4:7 And over the table of the Face, they will spread a blue cloth and put on it the plates, the dishes for incense, the bowls, and the bottles for the drink offering; the regular bread will also be on it.

Numbers 4:8 Then they will spread a scarlet cloth over them, cover it with goatskin, and put it on its poles.

Numbers 4:9 And they will take a cloth of blue and cover the lampstand for the light, with its lamps, its tongs, its trays, and all the vessels for oil with which it is supplied.

Numbers 4:10 And they will cover it with goatskin and put it on the carrying frame with all its utensils.

Numbers 4:11 And over the golden altar they will spread a cloth of blue and cover it with a covering of goatskin and will put in its poles.

Numbers 4:12 And they will take all the vessels of the service that are used in the sanctuary and put them in a cloth of blue and cover them with a covering of goatskin and put them on the carrying frame.

Numbers 4:13 And they will take away the ashes from the altar and spread a purple cloth over it.

Numbers 4:14 And they will put on it all the utensils of the altar, which are used for the service there, the fire pans, the forks, the shovels, and the basins, all the utensils of the altar; and they will spread on it a covering of goatskin and will put in its poles.

Numbers 4:15 And when Aaron and his sons have finished covering the sanctuary and all the furnishings of the sanctuary, as the camp sets out, after that the sons of Kohath will come to carry these, but they must not touch the holy things, or else they will die. These are the things in the conference tent that the sons of Kohath are to carry.

Numbers 4:16 “And Eleazar the son of Aaron the priest will have charge of the oil for the light, the fragrant incense, the regular tribute offering, and the anointing oil, with the oversight of the whole tabernacle and all that is in it, of the sanctuary and its vessels.”

Numbers 4:17 Yahveh spoke to Moses and Aaron, and this is what he said,

Numbers 4:18 “Do not allow the tribe of the clans of the Kohathites to be eliminated from among the Levites,

Numbers 4:19 but deal in this way with them, so that they may live and not die when they come near to the most holy things: Aaron and his sons will go in and appoint them each to his task and his burden,

Numbers 4:20 but they will not go in to look at the holy things even for a moment, or else they will they die.”

Numbers 4:21 Yahveh spoke to Moses, and this is what he said,

Numbers 4:22 “Take a census of the sons of Gershon also, by their fathers’ houses and by their clans.

Numbers 4:23 From thirty years old up to fifty years old, you will list them, all who can come to do duty, to do service in the conference tent.

Numbers 4:24 This is the service of the clans of the Gershonites, in serving and bearing burdens:

Numbers 4:25 they will carry the curtains of the tabernacle and the conference tent with its covering and the covering of goatskin that is on top of it and the screen for the entrance of the conference tent

Numbers 4:26 and the hangings of the court and the screen for the entrance of the gate of the court that is around the tabernacle and the altar, and their cords and all the equipment for their service. And they will do all that needs to be done with regard to them.

Numbers 4:27 All the service of the sons of the Gershonites will be at the command of Aaron and his sons, in all that they are to carry and in all that they have to do. And you will assign to their charge all that they are to carry.

Numbers 4:28 This is the service of the clans of the sons of the Gershonites in the conference tent, and their guard duty is to be under the direction of Ithamar, the son of Aaron the priest.

Numbers 4:29 “As for the sons of Merari, you will list them by their clans and their fathers’ houses.

Numbers 4:30 From thirty years old up to fifty years old, you will list everyone who can come on duty to do the service of the conference tent.

Numbers 4:31 And this is what they are charged to carry, as the whole of their service in the conference tent: the frames of the tabernacle, with its bars, pillars, and bases,

Numbers 4:32 and the pillars around the court with their bases, pegs, and cords, with all their equipment and all their accessories. And you will list by name the objects that they are required to carry.

Numbers 4:33 This is the service of the clans of the sons of Merari, the whole of their service in the conference tent, under the direction of Ithamar, the son of Aaron, the priest.”

Numbers 4:34 And Moses and Aaron and the chiefs of the congregation mustered the sons of the Kohathites, by their clans and their fathers’ houses,

Numbers 4:35 from thirty years old up to fifty years old, everyone who could come on duty for service in the conference tent;

Numbers 4:36 and those mustered by clans were 2,750.

Numbers 4:37 This was the list of the clans of the Kohathites, all who served in the conference tent, whom Moses and Aaron mustered according to Yahveh’s command by Moses.

Numbers 4:38 Those mustered of the sons of Gershon, by their clans and their fathers’ houses,

Numbers 4:39 from thirty years old up to fifty years old, everyone who could come on duty for service in the conference tent —

Numbers 4:40 those mustered by their clans and their fathers’ houses were 2,630.

Numbers 4:41 This was the list of the clans of the sons of Gershon, all who served in the conference tent, whom Moses and Aaron mustered according to Yahveh’s command.

Numbers 4:42 Those mustered of the clans of the sons of Merari, by their clans and their fathers’ houses,

Numbers 4:43 from thirty years old up to fifty years old, everyone who could come on duty for service in the conference tent —

Numbers 4:44 those mustered by clans were 3,200.

Numbers 4:45 This was the list of the clans of the sons of Merari, whom Moses and Aaron mustered according to Yahveh’s command by Moses.

Numbers 4:46 All those who were mustered of the Levites, whom Moses and Aaron and the chiefs of Israel mustered, by their clans and their fathers’ houses,

Numbers 4:47 from thirty years old up to fifty years old, everyone who could come to do the service of ministry and the service of bearing burdens in the conference tent,

Numbers 4:48 those mustered were 8,580.

Numbers 4:49 According to Yahveh’s command through Moses, they were mustered, each one with his task of serving or carrying. Thus, they were mustered by him, as Yahveh commanded Moses.

Numbers 4 quotes:

“Numbers 3-4 can thus be read negatively as a claim to power by the descendents of Aaron, who wanted the entrance to the tent of meeting for themselves and reserved the other sides for the tribes of Levi. Or, these chapters can be read positively as indicating the Lord’s willingness, here in Israel’s infancy, to step in and settle incipient disputes before they become dangerous. Like the parent who arranges seating in the car before the trip begins, or the captain who arranges accommodations in a ship before the voyage begins, the Lord of Numbers deigns to stoop down, call out names, assign pegs and poles to the people in God’s flock before the march begins.

Jesus reminded the disciples that such arrangements in the kingdom should be left to God: “To sit at my right hand and at my left, this is not mine to grant, but it is for those for whom it has been prepared by my Father” (Matt. 20:23). Could it be that such seating charts await the end because we have never been comfortable or never agreed with the seats given at the beginning? ‘The Lord is getting everything and everyone in order for this march.”

Boyce Richard Nelson. Leviticus and Numbers. 1st ed. Westminster John Knox Press 2008. p. 118.

“Just as they were specifically told where to pitch their tents and how to set up their camp, so they were given specific duties. Moses instructed them to operate always in an orderly fashion. We can apply this to our own lives: when our lives are orderly we have a sense of quietness and peace, and we can function properly.”

Gutzke, Manford George. Plain Talk on Leviticus and Numbers. Zondervan Pub. House., 1981. p. 68.

“The Levites were to serve in substitution for the offering of the firstborn. Additional money payments are authorized should the number of firstborn be redeemed Exceed the number of Levites available (Numbers 3:40-51). The special responsibilities of three Levitical subgroups, the Kohathites, the Gershonites, and the Merarites (4:1-33), are also described and accompanied by a report of a census of their numbers (Numbers 4:34-49).”

March, W. Eugene. Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers. Abingdon Press, 2012. p. 71.

“Although the tribes comprised a unified nation, each had its own identity and unique function.”

Martin, Glen, and Max E. Anders. Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers. Broadman & Holman, 2002. p. 272.

Maranatha Daily Devotional – Tuesday, April 27, 2021

The NUMBERS shelf in Jeff’s library

Day: October 19, 2025

Numbers 4

Numbers 4

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