Numbers 4:15
New International Version
“After Aaron and his sons have finished covering the holy furnishings and all the holy articles, and when the camp is ready to move, only then are the Kohathites to come and do the carrying. But they must not touch the holy things or they will die. The Kohathites are to carry those things that are in the tent of meeting.

New Living Translation
The camp will be ready to move when Aaron and his sons have finished covering the sanctuary and all the sacred articles. The Kohathites will come and carry these things to the next destination. But they must not touch the sacred objects, or they will die. So these are the things from the Tabernacle that the Kohathites must carry.

English Standard Version
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 the sons of Kohath shall come to carry these, 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.

Berean Standard Bible
When Aaron and his sons have finished covering the holy objects and all their equipment, as soon as the camp is ready to move, the Kohathites shall come and do the carrying. But they must not touch the holy objects, or they will die. These are the transportation duties of the Kohathites regarding the Tent of Meeting.

King James Bible
And when Aaron and his sons have made an end of covering the sanctuary, and all the vessels of the sanctuary, as the camp is to set forward; after that, the sons of Kohath shall come to bear it: but they shall not touch any holy thing, lest they die. These things are the burden of the sons of Kohath in the tabernacle of the congregation.

New King James Version
And when Aaron and his sons have finished covering the sanctuary and all the furnishings of the sanctuary, when the camp is set to go, then the sons of Kohath shall come to carry them; but they shall not touch any holy thing, lest they die. “These are the things in the tabernacle of meeting which the sons of Kohath are to carry.

New American Standard Bible
When Aaron and his sons have finished covering the holy objects and all the furnishings of the sanctuary, when the camp is to set out, after that the sons of Kohath shall come to carry them by the poles, so that they will not touch the holy objects and die. These are the things in the tent of meeting that the sons of Kohath are to carry.

NASB 1995
“When Aaron and his sons have finished covering the holy objects and all the furnishings of the sanctuary, when the camp is to set out, after that the sons of Kohath shall come to carry them, so that they will not touch the holy objects and die. These are the things in the tent of meeting which the sons of Kohath are to carry.

NASB 1977
“And when Aaron and his sons have finished covering the holy objects and all the furnishings of the sanctuary, when the camp is to set out, after that the sons of Kohath shall come to carry them, so that they may not touch the holy objects and die. These are the things in the tent of meeting which the sons of Kohath are to carry.

Legacy Standard Bible
When Aaron and his sons have finished covering the holy objects and all the furnishings of the sanctuary, when the camp is to set out, after that the sons of Kohath shall come to carry them, so that they will not touch the holy objects and die. These are the things in the tent of meeting which the sons of Kohath are to carry.

Amplified Bible
When Aaron and his sons have finished covering the sanctuary and all its furniture, as the camp sets out, after all that [is done, but not before], the sons of Kohath shall come to carry them [using the poles], so that they do not touch the holy things, and die. These are the things in the Tent of Meeting (tabernacle) which the sons of Kohath are to carry.

Christian Standard Bible
“Aaron and his sons are to finish covering the holy objects and all their equipment whenever the camp is to move on. The Kohathites will come and carry them, but they are not to touch the holy objects or they will die. These are the transportation duties of the Kohathites regarding the tent of meeting.

Holman Christian Standard Bible
Aaron and his sons are to finish covering the holy objects and all their equipment whenever the camp is to move on. The Kohathites will come and carry them, but they are not to touch the holy objects or they will die. These are the transportation duties of the Kohathites regarding the tent of meeting.”

American Standard Version
And when Aaron and his sons have made an end of covering the sanctuary, and all the furniture of the sanctuary, as the camp is set forward; after that, the sons of Kohath shall come to bear it: but they shall not touch the sanctuary, lest they die. These things are the burden of the sons of Kohath in the tent of meeting.

Aramaic Bible in Plain English
And when Ahron has finished and his sons covering the holy place and all the garments of Holiness when he picked up camp, then the sons of Qahath shall enter to pick up, that they shall not touch Holiness and die; these are the removals of the sons of Qahath that are in the Time Tent.

Brenton Septuagint Translation
And Aaron and his sons shall finish covering the holy things, and all the holy vessels, when the camp begins to move; and afterwards the sons of Caath shall go in to take up the furniture; but shall not touch the holy things, lest they die: these shall the sons of Caath bear in the tabernacle of witness.

Contemporary English Version
When the camp is ready to be moved, the Kohathites will be responsible for carrying the sacred objects and the furnishings of the sacred tent. But Aaron and his sons must have already covered those things so the Kohathites won't touch them and die.

Douay-Rheims Bible
And when Aaron and his sons have wrapped up the sanctuary and the vessels thereof at the removing of the camp, then shall the sons of Caath enter in to carry the things wrapped up: and they shall not touch the vessels of the sanctuary, lest they die. These are the burdens of the sons of Caath: in the tabernacle of the covenant:

English Revised Version
And when Aaron and his sons have made an end of covering the sanctuary, and all the furniture of the sanctuary, as the camp is to set forward; after that, the sons of Kohath shall come to bear it: but they shall not touch the sanctuary, lest they die. These things are the burden of the sons of Kohath in the tent of meeting.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
"When Aaron and his sons have finished covering the holy things and the camp is ready to move, the Kohathites will come to carry all the holy articles. They must never touch the holy things, or they will die. The Kohathites will carry all the things from the tent of meeting.

Good News Translation
When 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 Kohath clan must not touch the sacred objects, or they will die. These are the responsibilities of the Kohath clan whenever the Tent is moved.

International Standard Version
"When Aaron and his sons have finished covering the sanctuary and all the utensils of the sanctuary, and the camp is about to travel, then the descendants of Kohath are to come and carry them, but they are not to touch the most sacred objects, so they won't die. These are the duties of the descendants of Kohath at the Tent of Meeting."

JPS Tanakh 1917
And when Aaron and his sons have made an end of covering the holy furniture, and all the holy vessels, as the camp is to set forward--after that, the sons of Kohath shall come to bear them; but they shall not touch the holy things, lest they die. These things are the burden of the sons of Kohath in the tent of meeting.

Literal Standard Version
And Aaron has finished—his sons also—covering the holy place, and all the vessels of the holy place, in the journeying of the camp, and afterward the sons of Kohath come in to carry [it], and they do not come to the holy thing, lest they have died; these [things are] the burden of the sons of Kohath in the Tent of Meeting.

Majority Standard Bible
When Aaron and his sons have finished covering the holy objects and all their equipment, as soon as the camp is ready to move, the Kohathites shall come and do the carrying. But they must not touch the holy objects, or they will die. These are the transportation duties of the Kohathites regarding the Tent of Meeting.

New American Bible
Only after Aaron and his sons have finished covering the sacred objects and all their utensils on breaking camp, can the Kohathites enter to carry them. But they shall not touch the sacred objects; if they do they will die. These, then, are the objects in the tent of meeting that the Kohathites shall carry.

NET Bible
"When Aaron and his sons have finished covering the sanctuary and all the furnishings of the sanctuary, when the camp is ready to journey, then the Kohathites will come to carry them; but they must not touch any holy thing, or they will die. These are the responsibilities of the Kohathites with the tent of meeting.

New Revised Standard Version
When Aaron and his sons have finished covering the sanctuary and all the furnishings of the sanctuary, as the camp sets out, after that the Kohathites shall come to carry these, but they must not touch the holy things, or they will die. These are the things of the tent of meeting that the Kohathites are to carry.

New Heart English Bible
"When Aaron and his sons have finished covering the sanctuary, and all the furniture of the sanctuary, as the camp moves forward; after that, the sons of Kohath shall come to carry it: but they shall not touch the sanctuary, lest they die. These things are the burden of the sons of Kohath in the Tent of Meeting.

Webster's Bible Translation
And when Aaron and his sons have made an end of covering the sanctuary, and all the vessels of the sanctuary, as the camp is to move forward; after that, the sons of Kohath shall come to bear it: but they shall not touch any holy thing, lest they die. These things are the burden of the sons of Kohath in the tabernacle of the congregation.

World English Bible
“When Aaron and his sons have finished covering the sanctuary and all the furniture of the sanctuary, as the camp moves forward; after that, the sons of Kohath shall come to carry it; but they shall not touch the sanctuary, lest they die. The sons of Kohath shall carry these things belonging to the Tent of Meeting.

Young's Literal Translation
And Aaron hath finished -- his sons also -- covering the sanctuary, and all the vessels of the sanctuary, in the journeying of the camp, and afterwards do the sons of Kohath come in to bear it, and they do not come unto the holy thing, that they have died; these things are the burden of the sons of Kohath in the tent of meeting.

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
The Duties of the Kohathites
14and place on it all the vessels used to serve there: the firepans, meat forks, shovels, and sprinkling bowls—all the equipment of the altar. They are to spread over it a covering of fine leather and insert the poles. 15When Aaron and his sons have finished covering the holy objects and all their equipment, as soon as the camp is ready to move, the Kohathites shall come and do the carrying. But they must not touch the holy objects, or they will die. These are the transportation duties of the Kohathites regarding the Tent of Meeting. 16Eleazar son of Aaron the priest shall oversee the oil for the light, the fragrant incense, the daily grain offering, and the anointing oil. He has oversight of the entire tabernacle and everything in it, including the holy objects and their utensils.”…

Cross References
Exodus 27:7
The poles are to be inserted into the rings so that the poles are on two sides of the altar when it is carried.

Leviticus 16:13
He is to put the incense on the fire before the LORD, and the cloud of incense will cover the mercy seat above the Testimony, so that he will not die.

Numbers 1:50
Instead, you are to appoint the Levites over the tabernacle of the Testimony, all its furnishings, and everything in it. They shall carry the tabernacle and all its articles, care for it, and camp around it.

Numbers 1:51
Whenever the tabernacle is to move, the Levites are to take it down, and whenever it is to be pitched, the Levites are to set it up. Any outsider who goes near it must be put to death.

Numbers 3:31
Their duties were the ark, the table, the lampstand, the altars, the articles of the sanctuary used with them, and the curtain--all the service for these items.

Numbers 4:14
and place on it all the vessels used to serve there: the firepans, meat forks, shovels, and sprinkling bowls--all the equipment of the altar. They are to spread over it a covering of fine leather and insert the poles.

Numbers 4:19
In order that they may live and not die when they come near the most holy things, do this for them: Aaron and his sons are to go in and assign each man his task and what he is to carry.


Treasury of Scripture

And when Aaron and his sons have made an end of covering the sanctuary, and all the vessels of the sanctuary, as the camp is to set forward; after that, the sons of Kohath shall come to bear it: but they shall not touch any holy thing, lest they die. These things are the burden of the sons of Kohath in the tabernacle of the congregation.

after that

Numbers 7:9
But unto the sons of Kohath he gave none: because the service of the sanctuary belonging unto them was that they should bear upon their shoulders.

Numbers 10:21
And the Kohathites set forward, bearing the sanctuary: and the other did set up the tabernacle against they came.

Deuteronomy 31:9
And Moses wrote this law, and delivered it unto the priests the sons of Levi, which bare the ark of the covenant of the LORD, and unto all the elders of Israel.

they shall

Numbers 3:38
But those that encamp before the tabernacle toward the east, even before the tabernacle of the congregation eastward, shall be Moses, and Aaron and his sons, keeping the charge of the sanctuary for the charge of the children of Israel; and the stranger that cometh nigh shall be put to death.

Exodus 19:12
And thou shalt set bounds unto the people round about, saying, Take heed to yourselves, that ye go not up into the mount, or touch the border of it: whosoever toucheth the mount shall be surely put to death:

1 Samuel 6:19
And he smote the men of Bethshemesh, because they had looked into the ark of the LORD, even he smote of the people fifty thousand and threescore and ten men: and the people lamented, because the LORD had smitten many of the people with a great slaughter.

these things

Numbers 3:30,31
And the chief of the house of the father of the families of the Kohathites shall be Elizaphan the son of Uzziel…

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Aaron Bear Burden Camp Carry Covering Die End Finished Forward Furniture Holy Kohath Meeting Moves Sanctuary Tent Touch Vessels
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Aaron Bear Burden Camp Carry Covering Die End Finished Forward Furniture Holy Kohath Meeting Moves Sanctuary Tent Touch Vessels
Numbers 4
1. The age at which the Levites were to serve, and the duration of the service
4. The duty of the Kohathites
16. The charge of Eleazar
17. The office of the priests
21. The duty of the Gershonites
29. Of the Merarites
34. The number of the Kohathites
38. Of the Gershonites
42. And of the Merarites














(15) And all the vessels of the sanctuary.--No mention is here made of the laver (Exodus 30:18). The LXX. and the Samaritan text supply a statement respecting the covering and conveyance of the brazen laver. The clause in the LXX. is as follows :--"And they shall take a purple cloth, and cover the laver and its foot (or base), and they shall put it into a blue cover of skin, and put it on bars." There is no sufficient ground. however, for supposing that the present Hebrew text is deficient in this place; and it seems more probable to suppose that the laver was not to be covered during its transport.

After that, the sons of Kohath shall come to bear it.--Better, to bear, or carry--viz., the whole of the vessels of ministry which had been previously enumerated. The distinction between the service of the priests and that of the Levites in regard to the removal of the Tabernacle and its furniture is here clearly marked.

But they shall not touch any holy thing, lest they die.--The word which is rendered "any holy thing" may here, as elsewhere, denote the sanctuary. This injunction is repeated in Numbers 18:3. We find in 2Samuel 6:6-7 an instance of the fatal result of the violation of this command by Uzzah, who being, as is most probable, a Levite, and of the family of Kohath, ought to have been acquainted with the law respecting the removal of the Ark. It is obvious that the Kohathites, as the immediate assistants of the priests, in regard to the vessels of the Sanctuary, were specially exposed to the risk of violating the law by touching the most holy things.

Verse 15. - These things are the burden of the sons of Kohath. One thing which the Kohathites almost certainly had to carry is omitted here, possibly because it was carried without any cover at all, and was not regarded as of equal sanctity with the rest. Anyhow, the omission is very remarkable, and may have been accidental. It is supplied by the Septuagint and the Samaritan text in the following addition to verse 14: "And they shall take a purple cloth, and cover the laver and its foot, and they shall put it into a hyacinthine cover of skin, and put it on bars." The burdens of the Kohathites were six, not counting the laver and its foot:

(1) the ark;

(2) the table of shewbread;

(3) the candelabrum; . . .

Parallel Commentaries ...


Hebrew
When Aaron
אַֽהֲרֹן־ (’a·hă·rōn-)
Noun - proper - masculine singular
Strong's 175: Aaron -- an elder brother of Moses

and his sons
וּ֠בָנָיו (ū·ḇā·nāw)
Conjunctive waw | Noun - masculine plural construct | third person masculine singular
Strong's 1121: A son

have finished
וְכִלָּ֣ה (wə·ḵil·lāh)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Piel - Conjunctive perfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 3615: To be complete, at an end, finished, accomplished, or spent

covering
לְכַסֹּ֨ת (lə·ḵas·sōṯ)
Preposition-l | Verb - Piel - Infinitive construct
Strong's 3680: To plump, fill up hollows, to cover

the holy objects
הַקֹּ֜דֶשׁ (haq·qō·ḏeš)
Article | Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 6944: A sacred place, thing, sanctity

and all
כָּל־ (kāl-)
Noun - masculine singular construct
Strong's 3605: The whole, all, any, every

their equipment,
כְּלֵ֣י (kə·lê)
Noun - masculine plural construct
Strong's 3627: Something prepared, any apparatus

as soon as the camp
הַֽמַּחֲנֶה֒ (ham·ma·ḥă·neh)
Article | Noun - common singular
Strong's 4264: An encampment, an army

is ready to move,
בִּנְסֹ֣עַ (bin·sō·a‘)
Preposition-b | Verb - Qal - Infinitive construct
Strong's 5265: To pull up, the tent-pins, start on a, journey

the Kohathites
בְנֵי־ (ḇə·nê-)
Noun - masculine plural construct
Strong's 1121: A son

shall come
יָבֹ֤אוּ (yā·ḇō·’ū)
Verb - Qal - Imperfect - third person masculine plural
Strong's 935: To come in, come, go in, go

and do the carrying.
לָשֵׂ֔את (lā·śêṯ)
Preposition-l | Verb - Qal - Infinitive construct
Strong's 5375: To lift, carry, take

But they must not
וְלֹֽא־ (wə·lō-)
Conjunctive waw | Adverb - Negative particle
Strong's 3808: Not, no

touch
יִגְּע֥וּ (yig·gə·‘ū)
Verb - Qal - Imperfect - third person masculine plural
Strong's 5060: To touch, lay the hand upon, to reach, violently, to strike

the holy objects,
הַקֹּדֶשׁ֮ (haq·qō·ḏeš)
Article | Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 6944: A sacred place, thing, sanctity

or they will die.
וָמֵ֑תוּ (wā·mê·ṯū)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Qal - Conjunctive perfect - third person common plural
Strong's 4191: To die, to kill

These
אֵ֛לֶּה (’êl·leh)
Pronoun - common plural
Strong's 428: These, those

are the transportation duties
מַשָּׂ֥א (maś·śā)
Noun - masculine singular construct
Strong's 4853: A burden, tribute, porterage, an utterance, chiefly a, doom, singing, mental, desire

of the Kohathites
בְנֵֽי־ (ḇə·nê-)
Noun - masculine plural construct
Strong's 1121: A son

regarding the Tent
בְּאֹ֥הֶל (bə·’ō·hel)
Preposition-b | Noun - masculine singular construct
Strong's 168: A tent

of Meeting.
מוֹעֵֽד׃ (mō·w·‘êḏ)
Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 4150: Appointed time, place, or meeting


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OT Law: Numbers 4:15 When Aaron and his sons have finished (Nu Num.)
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