Numbers 4:15

¹³ And they shall take away the ashes from the altar, and spread a purple cloth thereon:

¹⁴ And they shall put upon it all the vessels thereof, wherewith they minister about it, even the censers, the fleshhooks, and the shovels, and the basons, all the vessels of the altar; and they shall spread upon it a covering of badgers’ skins, and put to the staves of it.

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.

¹⁶ And to the office of Eleazar the son of Aaron the priest pertaineth the oil for the light, and the sweet incense, and the daily meat offering, and the anointing oil, and the oversight of all the tabernacle, and of all that therein is, in the sanctuary, and in the vessels thereof.

¹⁷ And the LORD spake unto Moses and unto Aaron, saying,

This was said to Israel at a particular time, so it is wise to read it together with the surrounding text. Do read the surrounding verses too, because the context often says more than a single verse.

Compare

BSB: 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.
KJV: 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.
WEB: “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.
ASV: 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.
DARBY: And when Aaron and his sons have ended covering the sanctuary, and all the utensils of the sanctuary, when the camp setteth forward, then afterwards the sons of Kohath shall come to carry it; but they shall not touch the holy things, lest they die. This is what the sons of Kohath have to carry in the tent of meeting.
BLB: And [when] Aaron and his sons have finished covering the sanctuary and all the furnishings of the sanctuary, when is set to go the camp, after that the sons of Kohath shall come to carry [them]; and they shall not touch unto any holy thing, lest they die. These [are] the things that are to carry the sons of Kohath in the Tent of Meeting.

ÅB: Når så Aron og hans sønner ved leirens oppbrudd er ferdig med å dekke over helligdommen og alle helligdommens redskaper, så skal Kahats barn komme og bære; men de må ikke røre ved helligdommen, for at de ikke skal dø. Dette er det Kahats barn har å bære av det som hører til sammenkomstens telt.
OTB: Etter at Aron og hans sønner har fullført å dekke de hellige gjenstandene og alle møblene i helligdommen, når leiren er klar til å flytte, skal Kehatittene komme for å bære dem, men de må ikke røre de hellige tingene, ellers vil de dø. Dette er gjenstandene i sammenkomstens telt som Kehatittene skal bære.
B1930: Når så Aron og hans sønner ved leirens opbrudd er ferdig med å dekke over helligdommen og alle helligdommens redskaper, så skal Kahats barn komme og bære; men de må ikke røre ved helligdommen, forat de ikke skal dø. Dette er det Kahats barn har å bære av det som hører til sammenkomstens telt.

Study notes (Tyndale)

Original text and word study

Cross references

2 Samuel 6:6–7
And when they came to Nachon’s threshingfloor, Uzzah put forth his hand to the ark of God, and took hold of it; for the oxen shook it.
Read in context
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.
Read in context
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.
Read in context
Numbers 10:21
And the Kohathites set forward, bearing the sanctuary: and the other did set up the tabernacle against they came.
Read in context
1 Chronicles 13:9–10
And when they came unto the threshingfloor of Chidon, Uzza put forth his hand to hold the ark; for the oxen stumbled.
Read in context
1 Chronicles 15:2
Then David said, None ought to carry the ark of God but the Levites: for them hath the LORD chosen to carry the ark of God, and to minister unto him for ever.
Read in context
1 Samuel 6:19
And he smote the men of Beth-shemesh, 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.
Read in context
Joshua 4:10
For the priests which bare the ark stood in the midst of Jordan, until every thing was finished that the LORD commanded Joshua to speak unto the people, according to all that Moses commanded Joshua: and the people hasted and passed over.
Read in context