⁷ They shall keep guard over him and over the whole congregation before the tent of meeting, ^(A)as they minister at the tabernacle. ⁸ They shall guard all the furnishings of the tent of meeting, and keep guard over the people of Israel as they minister at the tabernacle.

Materials for the Tabernacle

²¹ These are the records of the tabernacle, ^(A)the tabernacle of the testimony, as they were recorded at the commandment of Moses, the responsibility of the Levites ^(B)under the direction of Ithamar the son of Aaron the priest.

¹⁵ 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 ^(A)the sons of Kohath shall come to carry these, ^(B)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.

¹⁶ “And Eleazar the son of Aaron the priest shall have charge of ^(C)the oil for the light, the ^(D)fragrant incense, ^(E)the regular grain offering, and ^(F)the anointing oil, with the oversight of the whole tabernacle and all that is in it, of the sanctuary and its vessels.”

¹⁷ The Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying, ¹⁸ “Let not the tribe of the clans of the Kohathites be destroyed from among the Levites, ¹⁹ but deal thus with them, that they may live and not die when they come near to ^(G)the most holy things: Aaron and his sons shall go in and appoint them each to his task and to his burden, ^20 (H)but they shall not go in to look on the holy things even for a moment, lest they die.”

²¹ The Lord spoke to Moses, saying, ²² “Take a census of the sons of Gershon also, by their fathers' houses and by their clans. ^23 (I)From thirty years old up to fifty years old, you shall list them, all who can ^(J)come to do duty, to do service in the tent of meeting. ²⁴ This is the service of the clans of the Gershonites, in serving and bearing burdens: ^25 (K)they shall carry ^(L)the curtains of the tabernacle and the tent of meeting with ^(M)its covering and the covering of goatskin that is on top of it and the screen for the entrance of the tent of meeting ²⁶ 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. ²⁷ 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. ²⁸ 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 ^(N)under the direction of Ithamar the son of Aaron the priest.

²⁹ “As for the sons of Merari, you shall list them by their clans and their fathers' houses. ^30 (O)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. ³¹ And ^(P)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, ³² and the pillars around the court with their bases, pegs, and cords, with all their equipment and all their accessories. And you shall ^(Q)list by name the objects that they are required to carry. ³³ This is the service of the clans of the sons of Merari, the whole of their service in the tent of meeting, ^(R)under the direction of Ithamar the son of Aaron the priest.”