Numbers 4:1–20

The Duties of the Levite Clan of Kohath

4The Lord told Moses ²to take a census of the Levite clan of Kohath by sub-clans and families, ³and to register all the men between the ages of 30 and 50 who were qualified to work in the Tent of the Lord’s presence. ⁴Their service involves the most holy things.

⁵The Lord gave Moses the following instructions. When it is time to break camp, Aaron and his sons shall enter the Tent, take down the curtain in front of the Covenant Box, and cover the Box with it. ⁶They shall put a fine leather cover over it, spread a blue cloth on top, and then insert the carrying poles.

⁷They shall spread a blue cloth over the table for the bread offered to the Lord and put on it the dishes, the incense bowls, the offering bowls, and the jars for the wine offering. There shall always be bread on the table. ⁸They shall spread a red cloth over all this, put a fine leather cover over it, and then insert the carrying poles.

⁹They shall take a blue cloth and cover the lamp-stand, with its lamps, tongs, trays, and all the olive oil containers. ¹⁰They shall wrap it and all its equipment in a fine leather cover and place it on a carrying frame.

¹¹Next they shall spread a blue cloth over the gold altar, put a fine leather cover over it, and then insert the carrying poles. ¹²They shall take all the utensils used in the Holy Place, wrap them in a blue cloth, put a fine leather cover over them, and place them on a carrying frame. ¹³They shall remove the greasy ashes from the altar and spread a purple cloth over it. ¹⁴They shall put on it all the equipment used in the service at the altar: firepans, hooks, shovels, and basins. Then they shall put a fine leather cover over it and insert the carrying poles. ¹⁵When it is time to break camp, the clan of Kohath shall come to carry the sacred objects only after Aaron and his sons have finished covering them and all their equipment. The clan of Kohath must not touch the sacred objects, or they will die.

These are the responsibilities of the clan of Kohath whenever the Tent is moved.

¹⁶Eleazar son of Aaron the priest shall be responsible for the whole Tent and for the oil for the lamps, the incense, the grain offerings, the anointing oil, and everything else in the Tent that has been consecrated to the Lord.

¹⁷The Lord said to Moses and Aaron, ¹⁸“Do not let the clan of Kohath ¹⁹be killed by coming near these most sacred objects. To prevent this happening, Aaron and his sons shall go in and assign each man his task and tell him what to carry. ²⁰But if the Kohathites enter the Tent and see the priests preparing the sacred objects for moving,^a they will die.”