Numbers 4:23-33

23 number thou them from thirty years and above unto fifty years, all that enter and serve in the tabernacle of the bond of peace. (make thou a list of them from thirty years of age up to fifty years old, all who enter to serve in the Tabernacle of the Covenant.)

24 This is the office of the sons of Gershonites, (This is the service of the sons of the Gershonites,)

25 that they bear the curtains of the tabernacle, and the roof, or covering, of the bond of peace, another covering, and the veil of jacinth that shall be above all things, and the tent that hangeth in the entry of the tabernacle of the bond of peace; (that they carry the curtains of the Tabernacle, and the Tent of the Tabernacle of the Covenant, another cover, the leather cover that shall be on top of it, and the curtain that hangeth in the entrance to the Tabernacle of the Covenant;)

26 and the curtains of the great entry, and the veil in the entry, that is before the tabernacle (by compass). (and the curtains of the courtyard, that is all around the Tabernacle, and the curtain at the entrance to the courtyard.)

27 When Aaron commandeth and his sons, the sons of Gershon shall bear all things that pertain to the altar, the cords, and the vessels, or instruments, of their service; and all they shall know, to what charge they ought to be bound. (And when Aaron and his sons command, the sons of Gershon shall carry all the things that pertain to the altar, and the cords, and the vessels, or the instruments, of their service; and they all shall know, what each of them ought to carry.)

28 This is the office of the families of Gershonites, in the tabernacle of [the] bond of peace (This is the service of the Gershonite families in the Tabernacle of the Covenant); and they shall be under the hand of Ithamar, the son of Aaron, [the] priest.

29 Also thou shalt number the sons of Merari, by the families and houses of their fathers,

30 from thirty years and above unto fifty years, all that enter to the office of their service, and to the adorning of the bond of peace of witnessing. (from thirty years of age up to fifty years old, all who enter to serve in the Tabernacle of the Covenant, that is, in the Tabernacle of the Witnessing.)

31 These be their charges; they shall bear the tables of the tabernacle, and the bars thereof, the pillars, and their foundaments (and their foundations, or their bases);

32 also the pillars of the great entry by compass, with their foundaments, and their stakes, and their cords (and the pillars all around the courtyard, with their bases, and their stakes, and their cords); and they shall take all the instruments and the purtenance of the tabernacle, by number, and so they shall bear them.

33 This is the office of the family of Merarites, and the service in the tabernacle of the bond of peace (These be the duties of the Merarite family, in their service in the Tabernacle of the Covenant); and they shall be under the hand of Ithamar, the son of Aaron, the priest.

Numbers 4:23-33 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO NUMBERS 4

This chapter relates an order to number the Levites fit for business, and gives an account of the time and age when they should enter into service, and how long they should continue therein, Nu 4:1-3; what their particular service should be; and first of the Kohathites, Nu 4:4-20; next of the Gershonites, Nu 4:21-28; and then of the Merarites, Nu 4:29-33; after which Moses and Aaron, with the chief of the congregation, numbered each of them, even as many as were at the age fit for service, as the Kohathites, Nu 4:34-37; the Gershonites, Nu 4:38-41; the Merarites, Nu 4:42-45; the sum total of which is given, Nu 4:46-49.