The LORD spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying, “Take a census of the
sons of Kohath from among the sons of Levi, by their clans and
their fathers' houses, from thirty years old up to fifty years old,
all who can come on duty, to do the work in the tent of meeting.
This is the service of the sons of Kohath in the tent of meeting:
the most holy things. When the camp is to set out, Aaron and his
sons shall go in and take down the veil of the screen and cover the
ark of the testimony with it. Then they shall put on it a covering
of goatskin and spread on top of that a cloth all of blue, and
shall put in its poles. And over the table of the bread of the
Presence they shall spread a cloth of blue and put on it the
plates, the dishes for incense, the bowls, and the flagons for the
drink offering; the regular showbread also shall be on it. Then
they shall spread over them a cloth of scarlet and cover the same
with a covering of goatskin, and shall put in its poles. And they
shall 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. And they shall put it with all its
utensils in a covering of goatskin and put it on the carrying
frame. And over the golden altar they shall spread a cloth of blue
and cover it with a covering of goatskin, and shall put in its
poles. And they shall 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. And they shall take away the ashes from the altar and spread
a purple cloth over it. And they shall 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 shall spread on it a covering of goatskin, and
shall put in its poles. 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 shall come to
carry these, but they must not touch the holy things, lest they
die. These are the things of the tent of meeting that the sons of
Kohath are to carry.
“And Eleazar the son of Aaron the priest shall have charge of the
oil for the light, the fragrant incense, the regular grain
offering, and the anointing oil, with the oversight of the whole
tabernacle and all that is in it, of the sanctuary and its
vessels.”
The LORD spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying, “Let not the tribe of
the clans of the Kohathites be destroyed from among the Levites,
but deal thus with them, that they may live and not die when they
come near to the most holy things: Aaron and his sons shall go in
and appoint them each to his task and to his burden, but they shall
not go in to look on the holy things even for a moment, lest they
die.”
The LORD spoke to Moses, saying, “Take a census of the sons of
Gershon also, by their fathers' houses and by their clans. From
thirty years old up to fifty years old, you shall list them, all
who can come to do duty, to do service in the tent of meeting. This
is the service of the clans of the Gershonites, in serving and
bearing burdens: they shall carry the curtains of the tabernacle
and the tent of meeting with its covering and the covering of
goatskin that is on top of it and the screen for the entrance of
the tent of meeting 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 shall do all that needs to be done with
regard to them. All the service of the sons of the Gershonites
shall 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 shall assign to
their charge all that they are to carry. This is the service of the
clans of the sons of the Gershonites in the tent of meeting, and
their guard duty is to be under the direction of Ithamar the son of
Aaron the priest.
“As for the sons of Merari, you shall list them by their clans
and their fathers' houses. From thirty years old up to fifty years
old, you shall list them, everyone who can come on duty, to do the
service of the tent of meeting. And this is what they are charged
to carry, as the whole of their service in the tent of meeting: the
frames of the tabernacle, with its bars, pillars, and bases, and
the pillars around the court with their bases, pegs, and cords,
with all their equipment and all their accessories. And you shall
list by name the objects that they are required to carry. This is
the service of the clans of the sons of Merari, the whole of their
service in the tent of meeting, under the direction of Ithamar the
son of Aaron the priest.”
And Moses and Aaron and the chiefs of the congregation listed the
sons of the Kohathites, by their clans and their fathers' houses,
from thirty years old up to fifty years old, everyone who could
come on duty, for service in the tent of meeting; and those listed
by clans were 2,750. This was the list of the clans of the
Kohathites, all who served in the tent of meeting, whom Moses and
Aaron listed according to the commandment of the LORD by Moses.
Those listed of the sons of Gershon, by their clans and their
fathers' houses, from thirty years old up to fifty years old,
everyone who could come on duty for service in the tent of
meeting—those listed by their clans and their fathers' houses were
2,630. This was the list of the clans of the sons of Gershon, all
who served in the tent of meeting, whom Moses and Aaron listed
according to the commandment of the LORD.
Those listed of the clans of the sons of Merari, by their clans
and their fathers' houses, from thirty years old up to fifty years
old, everyone who could come on duty, for service in the tent of
meeting—those listed by clans were 3,200. This was the list of the
clans of the sons of Merari, whom Moses and Aaron listed according
to the commandment of the LORD by Moses.
All those who were listed of the Levites, whom Moses and Aaron
and the chiefs of Israel listed, by their clans and their fathers'
houses, 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 tent of meeting, those listed were 8,580. According
to the commandment of the LORD through Moses they were listed, each
one with his task of serving or carrying. Thus they were listed by
him, as the LORD commanded Moses.
