Numbers 4:17-49

17Then the Lord said to Moses and Aaron,

18‘You must not cause the end of Kohath's clan from among the Levites.

19Do not let the men in that clan die. That will happen if they come near to the most holy things. You must do this: Aaron and his sons must go into the Tent of Meeting. They will tell each man the work that he must do. And they must tell each man the things that he must carry.

20But the men from Kohath's clan must not look at anything that is holy, even for a moment. If they do look at those things, they will die.’

21Then the Lord said to Moses,

22‘Also write a list of the people in Gershon's clan in their families.

23Record the men who can work in the Tent of Meeting. Record them if they are between 30 and 50 years old.

24The work of the men in Gershon's clan is to carry everything.

25The men from that clan must carry the curtains of God's Tent. And they must carry the Tent of Meeting with the thing that covers it. And they must carry the good leather that covers all that. And they must carry the curtain for the place where people go into the Tent of Meeting.

26They must carry the curtains of the yard that is round God's Tent. Also, they must carry the curtain and ropes for the place where people go into the yard. That is the yard that is round God's Tent and the altar. The men from Gershon's clan must carry all the tools that belong with those curtains. They must do everything that all those things need.

27The men in Gershon's clan must do everything that Aaron and his sons ask them to do. Aaron and his sons must tell them the things that they should carry. And they must tell them everything that they should do.

28That is the work for the Tent of Meeting that the descendants of Gershon must do. Ithamar, the son of Aaron the priest, will tell them the things that they must do.’

29Also God said to Moses, ‘Write a list of the people in Merari's clan in their families.

30Record the men who can work in the Tent of Meeting. Record them if they are between 30 and 50 years old.

31This is the work of the men in Merari's clan. They must carry the wood parts that hold the Tent of Meeting, and its poles. They must carry its pillars and its bases.

32And they must carry the pillars, bases, pegs and ropes for the yard that is round God's Tent. And the men in Merari's clan must keep all the tools that belong with those things safe. Each man in Merari's clan must take care of something. Tell each man which things he must carry.

33That is the work of the descendants of Merari in the Tent of Meeting. Ithamar, the son of Aaron the priest, will tell them the things that they must do.’

34So Moses, Aaron and the people's leaders recorded the names of Kohath's descendants in their clans and in their families.

35They recorded the men who could work in the Tent of Meeting. They recorded them if they were between 30 and 50 years old.

36They recorded them in clans. There were 2,750 men.

37Moses and Aaron recorded the descendants of Kohath who worked at the Tent of Meeting. The Lord had told Moses that they must do that.

38Moses and Aaron also recorded the names of Gershon's descendants in their clans and in their families.

39They recorded the men who could work in the Tent of Meeting. They recorded them if they were between 30 and 50 years old.

40They recorded them in clans and families. There were 2,630 men.

41Moses and Aaron recorded the descendants of Gershon who worked at the Tent of Meeting. The Lord had told Moses that they must do that.

42Moses and Aaron also recorded the names of Merari's descendants in their clans and in their families.

43They counted all the men who worked in the Tent of Meeting. They counted them if they were between 30 and 50 years old.

44They recorded them in clans. There were 3,200 men.

45Moses and Aaron recorded the descendants of Merari who worked at the Tent of Meeting. The Lord had told Moses that they must do that.

46Moses, Aaron and the people's leaders recorded the names of the Levites in their clans and in their families.

47They counted all the men who worked in the Tent of Meeting. And they counted all the men who carried any of its things. They counted them if they were between 30 and 50 years old.

48There were 8,580 Levites in the list.

49They told each man the things that he must do. Or they told him what he must carry. Moses recorded all their names. The Lord had told him that he must do that.