1And Jehovah spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying: 2Take a head count of the sons of Kohath from among the sons of Levi, by their families, by their fathers' house, 3from thirty years old and above, even to fifty years old, all who enter the service to do the work in the tent of meeting. 4This is the service of the sons of Kohath in the tent of meeting, regarding the set apart, holy things: 5When the camp sets out, Aaron and his sons shall come, and they shall take down the covering veil, and cover the ark of the Testimony with it. 6And they shall put on it a covering of badger skins, and spread over that a cloth entirely of violet; and they shall insert its poles. 7On the table of the Bread of the Presence they shall spread a violet cloth, and put on it the dishes, the spoons, the bowls, and the jars for pouring; and the continual bread shall be on it. 8They shall spread over them a scarlet cloth, and cover it with a covering of badger skins; and they shall insert its poles. 9And they shall take a violet cloth and cover the lampstand of the light, with its lamps, its snuffers, its trays, and all its oil vessels, with which they serve it. 10And they shall put it with all its utensils into a covering of badger skins, and put it on a bar. 11Over the golden altar they shall spread a violet cloth, and cover it with a covering of badger skins; and they shall insert its poles. 12And they shall take all the utensils of service with which they minister in the sanctuary, put them in a violet cloth, cover them with a covering of badger skins, and put them on a bar. 13And they shall take away the ashes from the altar, and spread a purple cloth over it. 14They shall put on it all its implements with which they minister there; the firepans, the forks, the shovels, the basins, and all the utensils of the altar; and they shall spread on it a covering of badger skins, and insert its poles. 15And when Aaron and his sons have finished covering the sanctuary and all the furnishings of the sanctuary, when the camp sets out then the sons of Kohath shall come to carry them; but they shall not touch the holy things, lest they die. These are the burdens of the tent of meeting for the sons of Kohath. 16The charge of Eleazar the son of Aaron the priest is the oil for the light, the spiced incense, the continual grain offering, the anointing oil, the oversight of all the tabernacle, of all that is in it, with the sanctuary and its furnishings. 17And Jehovah spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying: 18Do not cut off the tribe of the families of the Kohathites from among the Levites; 19but do this to them, that they may live and not die when they approach the set apart, holy things: Aaron and his sons shall go in and appoint each man to his service and his burden. 20But they shall not go in to watch while the holy things are being covered, that they not die. 21And Jehovah spoke to Moses, saying: 22Also take a head count of the sons of Gershon, by their fathers' house, by their families. 23From thirty years old and above, even to fifty years old, you shall number them, all who enter to perform the service, to do the work in the tent of meeting. 24This is the service of the families of the Gershonites, in serving and the burdens: 25They shall carry the curtains of the tabernacle and the tent of meeting with its covering, the covering of badger skins that is on it, the screen for the door of the tent of meeting, 26the screen for the door of the gate of the court, the hangings of the court which are around the tabernacle and altar, and their cords, all the furnishings for their service and all that is made for these things: thus shall they serve. 27At the mouth of Aaron and his sons shall be all the service of the sons of the Gershonites, all their burdens and all their service. And you shall assign to them the charge of their burdens. 28This is the service of the families of the sons of Gershon in the tent of meeting. And their charge shall be under the hand of Ithamar the son of Aaron the priest. 29As for the sons of Merari, you shall number them by their families and by their fathers' house. 30From thirty years old and above, even to fifty years old, you shall assign them, everyone who enters the service to do the work of the tent of meeting. 31And this is the charge of their burden according to all their service for the tent of meeting: the boards of the tabernacle, its bars, its pillars, its sockets, 32and the pillars around the court with their sockets, pegs, and cords, with all their furnishings and all their service; and you shall assign to each man by name the utensils of the charge of his burden. 33This is the service of the families of the sons of Merari, according to all their service for the tent of meeting, under the hand of Ithamar the son of Aaron the priest. 34And Moses, Aaron, and the leaders of the congregation numbered the sons of the Kohathites by their families and by their fathers' house, 35from thirty years old and above, even to fifty years old, everyone who entered the service for the work in the tent of meeting; 36and those who were numbered by their families were two thousand seven hundred and fifty. 37These were those who were numbered of the families of the Kohathites, all who might serve in the tent of meeting, whom Moses and Aaron numbered at the mouth of Jehovah by the hand of Moses. 38And those who were numbered of the sons of Gershon, by their families and by their fathers' house, 39from thirty years old and above, even to fifty years old, everyone who entered the service for the work in the tent of meeting; 40those who were numbered by their families, by their fathers' house, were two thousand six hundred and thirty. 41These were those who were numbered of the families of the sons of Gershon, of all who might serve in the tent of meeting, whom Moses and Aaron numbered at the mouth of Jehovah. 42And those who were numbered of the families of the sons of Merari, by their families, by their fathers' house, 43from thirty years old and above, even to fifty years old, everyone who entered the service for the work in the tent of meeting; 44those who were numbered by their families were three thousand two hundred. 45These were those who were numbered of the families of the sons of Merari, whom Moses and Aaron numbered at the mouth of Jehovah by the hand of Moses. 46All who were numbered of the Levites, whom Moses, Aaron, and the leaders of Israel numbered, by their families and by their fathers' house, 47from thirty years old and above, even to fifty years old, everyone who came to do the work of service and the work of the burdens in the tent of meeting; 48those who were numbered were eight thousand five hundred and eighty. 49At the mouth of Jehovah they were numbered by the hand of Moses, each man according to his service and according to his burden; thus were they numbered by him, as Jehovah had commanded Moses.
Jamieson Fausset Brown Bible Commentary 2 OF THE LEVITES' SERVICE. (Num. 4:1-49)
sons of Kohath, from thirty years old and upward--This age was specifically fixed (see on
Num 8:24) as the full maturity of bodily energy to perform the laborious duties assigned them in the wilderness, as well as of mental activity to assist in the management of the sacred services. And it was the period of life at which John the Baptist and Christ entered on their respective ministries.
even unto fifty--The term prescribed for active duty was a period of twenty years, at the end of which they were exempted from the physical labors of the office, though still expected to attend in the tabernacle (
Num 8:26).
all that enter into the host--so called from their number, the order and discipline maintained through their ranks, and their special duty as guards of the tabernacle. The Hebrew word, however, signifies also a station or office; and hence the passage may be rendered, "All that enter into the sacerdotal office" (
Num 4:23).
4 This shall be the service of the sons of Kohath, &c.--They are mentioned first, from their close connection with Aaron; and the special department of duty assigned to them during the journeyings of Israel accorded with the charge they had received of the precious contents of the tabernacle. But these were to be previously covered by the common priests, who, as well as the high priest, were admitted on such necessary occasions into the holy place. This was an exception to the general rule, which prohibited the entrance of any but the high priest. But when the cloud removed from the tabernacle, the sanctuary might be entered by the common priests, as to them was reserved the exclusive privilege of packing the sacred utensils; and it was not till the holy things were thus ready for carriage, that the Kohathites were allowed to approach.
5 covering veil--the inner veil, which separated the holy from the most holy place. (See on
Exod 36:35).
6 covering of badgers' skins--(See on
Exod 25:5). The covering, however, referred to was not that of the tabernacle, but one made for the special purpose of protecting the ark.
put in the staves--These golden staves were now taken out. (See on
Exod 25:15, compared with
1Kgs 8:8). The Hebrew word rendered "put in," signifies also "dispose," and probably refers here to their insertion through the openings in the coverings made for receiving them, to preserve them from the touch of the carriers as well as from the influence of the weather. It is worthy of notice that the coverings did not consist of canvas or coarse tarpaulin, but of a kind which united beauty with decency.
7 continual showbread--Though the people were in the wilderness fed upon manna, the sacred loaves were constantly made of corn, which was probably raised in small quantities from the verdant patches of the desert.
10 a bar--or bier, formed of two poles fastened by two cross pieces and borne by two men, after the fashion of a sedan chair.
12 instruments of ministry--the official dress of the priests (
Exod 31:10).
13 shall take away the ashes from the altar, &c.--The necessity of removing ashes from the altar plainly implies that sacrifices were offered in the wilderness (compare
Exod 18:12;
Exod 24:4), though that rebellious race seems frequently to have neglected the duty (
Amos 5:25). No mention is made of the sacred fire; but as, by divine command, it was to be kept constantly burning, it must have been transferred to some pan or brazier under the covering, and borne by the appointed carriers.
15 the sons of Kohath shall come to bear it, but they shall not touch any holy thing, lest they die--The mode of transport was upon the shoulders of the Levites (see on
Num 7:9), although afterwards wheeled vehicles were employed (
2Sam 6:3;
1Chr 15:12). And it was allowed to touch the covering, but not the things covered, on the penalty of death, which was inflicted more than once (
1Sam 6:19;
2Sam 6:6-7). This stern denunciation was designed to inspire a sentiment of deep and habitual reverence in the minds of those who were officially engaged about holy things.
16 to the office of Eleazar . . . pertaineth the oil for the light, and the sweet incense, &c.--He was charged with the special duty of superintending the squadron who were employed in the carrying of the sacred furniture; besides, to his personal care were committed the materials requisite for the daily service, and which it was necessary he should have easily at his command (
Exod 29:38).
17 Cut ye not off the tribe of the families of the Kohathites from among the Levites, &c.--a solemn admonition to Moses and Aaron to beware, lest, by any negligence on their part, disorder and improprieties should creep in, and to take the greatest care that all the parts of this important service be apportioned to the proper parties, lest the Kohathites should be disqualified for their high and honorable duties. The guilt of their death would be incurred by the superintending priest, if he failed to give proper directions or allowed any irreverent familiarity with sacred things.
24 This is the service of the families of the Gershonites, &c.--They were appointed to carry "the curtains of the tabernacle"--that is, the goats' hair covering of the tent--the ten curious curtains and embroidered hangings at the entrance, with their red morocco covering, &c.
28 their charge shall be under the hand of Ithamar the son of Aaron, &c.--The Levites were generally subject to the official command of the priests in doing the ordinary work of the tabernacle. But during the journeyings Eleazar, who was next in succession to his father, took the special charge of the Kohathites [
Num 4:16], while his brother Ithamar had the superintendence of the Gershonites and Merarites [
Num 4:33].
29 As for the sons of Merari--They carried the coarser and heavier appurtenances, which, however, were so important and necessary, that an inventory was kept of them--not only on account of their number and variety, but of their comparative commonness and smallness, which might have led to their being lost or missing through carelessness, inadvertency, or neglect. It was a useful lesson, showing that God disregards nothing pertaining to His service, and that even in the least and most trivial matters, He requires the duty of faithful obedience.
34 Moses and Aaron and the chief of the congregation numbered the sons of the Kohathites, &c.--This enumeration was made on a different principle from that which is recorded in the preceding chapter [
Num 3:15]. That was confined to the males from a month old and upward, while this was extended to all capable of service in the three classes of the Levitical tribe. In considering their relative numbers, the wisdom of Divine Providence appears in arranging that, whereas in the Kohathites and Gershonites, whose burdens were few and easier, there were but about a third part of them which were fit for service; the Merarites, whose burdens were more and heavier, had above one half of them fit for this work [POOLE]. The small population of this tribe, so inferior to that of the other tribes, is attempted to be explained (see on
Num 3:39).