🔢WEB · Numbers 4:27
What does Numbers 4:27 mean?
"At the commandment of Aaron and his sons shall be all the service of the sons of the Gershonites, in all their burden, and in all their service; and you shall appoint their duty to them in all their responsibilities."
— Numbers 4:27 (World English Bible)
Surrounding context
“This is the service of the families of the Gershonites, in serving and in bearing burdens:
they shall carry the curtains of the tabernacle, and the Tent of Meeting, its covering, and the covering of sealskin that is above on it, and the screen for the door of the Tent of Meeting,
and the hangings of the court, and the screen for the door of the gate of the court, which is by the tabernacle and around the altar, and their cords, and all the instruments of their service, and whatever shall be done with them. They shall serve in there.
At the commandment of Aaron and his sons shall be all the service of the sons of the Gershonites, in all their burden, and in all their service; and you shall appoint their duty to them in all their responsibilities.
This is the service of the families of the sons of the Gershonites in the Tent of Meeting: and their duty shall be under the hand of Ithamar the son of Aaron the priest.
“As for the sons of Merari, you shall count them by their families, by their fathers’ houses;
you shall count them from thirty years old and upward even to fifty years old, everyone who enters on the service, to do the work of the Tent of Meeting.
Explanation
Numbers 4:27 comes in the middle of a detailed set of instructions concerning the organization and duties of the Levites, the tribe set apart to serve in the tabernacle. In plain language, the verse says that the Gershonite Levites were not free to work according to their own judgment. Whatever tasks they carried out—whether the physical labor of carrying tabernacle materials or other assigned service—had to be done under the direct command of Aaron the high priest and his sons, the priests. Moses (through whom God gave these instructions) was told to assign their specific duties and responsibilities, but the ongoing supervision of that work belonged to the priestly leadership.
The historical context is the wilderness period after Israel's exodus from Egypt, as the nation traveled toward the Promised Land carrying the tabernacle with them. The book of Numbers records God's instructions to Moses for organizing the twelve tribes and the Levites for this journey. Numbers chapter 4 specifically deals with the Levitical clans—the Kohathites, Gershonites, and Merarites—and their distinct responsibilities in transporting the tabernacle and its furnishings whenever the camp moved. The Gershonites were assigned to carry the tabernacle's coverings, curtains, and hangings (described earlier in the chapter), heavy and important components of the sac
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