🔢WEB · Numbers 4:18
What does Numbers 4:18 mean?
"“Don’t cut off the tribe of the families of the Kohathites from among the Levites;"
— Numbers 4:18 (World English Bible)
Surrounding context
“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.
“The duty of Eleazar the son of Aaron the priest shall be the oil for the light, the sweet incense, the continual meal offering, and the anointing oil, the requirements of all the tabernacle, and of all that is in it, the sanctuary, and its furnishings.”
Yahweh spoke to Moses and to Aaron, saying,
“Don’t cut off the tribe of the families of the Kohathites from among the Levites;
but thus do to them, that they may live, and not die, when they approach to the most holy things: Aaron and his sons shall go in, and appoint them everyone to his service and to his burden;
but they shall not go in to see the sanctuary even for a moment, lest they die.”
Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying,
Explanation
Numbers 4:18 records God's instruction to Moses and Aaron, warning them to take great care that the Kohathite families of the Levites are not "cut off" — that is, destroyed or wiped out — from among their fellow Levites. In plain language, this is a solemn caution: the way this particular group of Levites carries out their duties must be handled with such care that their lives are not endangered or lost in the process.
To understand the context, we need to look at the surrounding passage. Numbers 4 describes the specific responsibilities given to the three Levite clans — the Gershonites, Kohathites, and Merarites — in transporting the tabernacle and its furnishings whenever Israel moved camp during the wilderness journey. The Kohathites were assigned the most sacred task: carrying the ark of the covenant, the table of the bread of the Presence, the lampstand, the altars, and other holy items (Numbers 4:4-15). Because these objects were so holy, direct contact with them, or even seeing them uncovered, could bring death. Verses 17-20 make clear that Aaron and his sons had to first cover and prepare all these holy items before the Kohathites approached to carry them; the Kohathites themselves were forbidden to touch the holy things directly or look at them once uncovered, "lest they die" (v. 20). Moses and Aaron, as leaders, b
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