Numbers 4:15

These are the amounts of materials used for the tabernacle, even the Tabernacle of the Testimony, as they were counted, according to the commandment of Moses, for the service of the Levites, by the hand of Ithamar, the son of Aaron the priest.

When they came to the threshing floor of Nacon, Uzzah reached for God’s ark, and took hold of it; for the cattle stumbled.

When they came to Chidon’s threshing floor, Uzza put out his hand to hold the ark; for the oxen stumbled.

Yahweh said to Moses, “Go down, warn the people, lest they break through to Yahweh to gaze, and many of them perish.

Moses said to Yahweh, “The people can’t come up to Mount Sinai, for you warned us, saying, ‘Set bounds around the mountain, and sanctify it.’ ”

Moses wrote all Yahweh’s words, then rose up early in the morning and built an altar at the base of the mountain, with twelve pillars for the twelve tribes of Israel.

But the Levites shall encamp around the Tabernacle of the Testimony, that there may be no wrath on the congregation of the children of Israel. The Levites shall be responsible for the Tabernacle of the Testimony.”

You shall appoint Aaron and his sons, and they shall keep their priesthood, but the stranger who comes near shall be put to death.”

The tabernacle was taken down; and the sons of Gershon and the sons of Merari, who bore the tabernacle, went forward.

They shall keep your commands and the duty of the whole Tent; only they shall not come near to the vessels of the sanctuary and to the altar, that they not die, neither they nor you.

Yahweh’s anger burned against Uzzah; and God struck him there for his error; and he died there by God’s ark.

Zadok the son of Ahitub and Ahimelech the son of Abiathar were priests, Seraiah was scribe,

Behold, Zadok also came, and all the Levites with him, bearing the ark of the covenant of God; and they set down God’s ark; and Abiathar went up, until all the people finished passing out of the city.

King Solomon and all the congregation of Israel, who were assembled to him, were with him before the ark, sacrificing sheep and cattle, that could not be counted or numbered for multitude.

These were the sons of Levi after their fathers’ houses, even the heads of the fathers’ houses of those who were counted individually, in the number of names by their polls, who did the work for the service of Yahweh’s house, from twenty years old and upward.

They shall not come near to me, to execute the office of priest to me, nor to come near to any of my holy things, to the things that are most holy; but they will bear their shame, and their abominations which they have committed.

After these things I looked, and the temple of the tabernacle of the testimony in heaven was opened.

When he finished speaking with him on Mount Sinai, he gave Moses the two tablets of the covenant, stone tablets, written with God’s finger.

Yahweh said to Moses, “Write these words; for in accordance with these words I have made a covenant with you and with Israel.”

but appoint the Levites over the Tabernacle of the Testimony, and over all its furnishings, and over all that belongs to it. They shall carry the tabernacle and all its furnishings; and they shall take care of it, and shall encamp around it.

Those who encamp on the east side toward the sunrise shall be of the standard of the camp of Judah, according to their divisions. The prince of the children of Judah shall be Nahshon the son of Amminadab.

“Then the Tent of Meeting shall set out, with the camp of the Levites in the middle of the camps. As they encamp, so shall they set out, every man in his place, by their standards.

They shall keep his requirements, and the requirements of the whole congregation before the Tent of Meeting, to do the service of the tabernacle.

But to the sons of Kohath he gave none, because the service of the sanctuary belonged to them; they carried it on their shoulders.

Joshua spoke to the priests, saying, “Take up the ark of the covenant, and cross over before the people.” They took up the ark of the covenant, and went before the people.

All Israel, with their elders, officers, and judges, stood on both sides of the ark before the Levitical priests, who carried the ark of Yahweh’s covenant, the foreigner as well as the native; half of them in front of Mount Gerizim, and half of them in front of Mount Ebal, as Moses the servant of Yahweh had commanded at the first, that they should bless the people of Israel.

Sheva was scribe, and Zadok and Abiathar were priests,

and that they should keep the duty of the Tent of Meeting, the duty of the holy place, and the duty of the sons of Aaron their brothers, for the service of Yahweh’s house.

The king called for Jehoiada the chief, and said to him, “Why haven’t you required of the Levites to bring in the tax of Moses the servant of Yahweh, and of the assembly of Israel, out of Judah and out of Jerusalem, for the Tent of the Testimony?”

He said to the Levites who taught all Israel, who were holy to Yahweh, “Put the holy ark in the house which Solomon the son of David king of Israel built. It will no longer be a burden on your shoulders. Now serve Yahweh your God, and his people Israel.

He said, “Don’t come close. Take off your sandals, for the place you are standing on is holy ground.”

“The children of Israel shall encamp every man by his own standard, with the banners of their fathers’ houses. They shall encamp around the Tent of Meeting at a distance from it.”

Their duty shall be the ark, the table, the lamp stand, the altars, the vessels of the sanctuary with which they minister, the screen, and all its service.

Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying,

This is the duty of their burden, according to all their service in the Tent of Meeting: the tabernacle’s boards, its bars, its pillars, its sockets,

According to the commandment of Yahweh they were counted by Moses, everyone according to his service and according to his burden. Thus they were counted by him, as Yahweh commanded Moses.

The Kohathites set forward, bearing the sanctuary. The others set up the tabernacle before they arrived.

Henceforth the children of Israel shall not come near the Tent of Meeting, lest they bear sin, and die.

At that time Yahweh set apart the tribe of Levi to bear the ark of Yahweh’s covenant, to stand before Yahweh to minister to him, and to bless in his name, to this day.

It shall be, when he sits on the throne of his kingdom, that he shall write himself a copy of this law in a book, out of that which is before the Levitical priests.

Moses wrote this law and delivered it to the priests the sons of Levi, who bore the ark of Yahweh’s covenant, and to all the elders of Israel.

When Moses had finished writing the words of this law in a book, until they were finished,

One of the sons of Ahimelech, the son of Ahitub, named Abiathar, escaped, and fled after David.

They brought it out of Abinadab’s house, which was in the hill, with God’s ark; and Ahio went before the ark.

All the elders of Israel came, and the priests picked up the ark.

They carried God’s ark on a new cart, and brought it out of Abinadab’s house; and Uzza and Ahio drove the cart.

Yahweh’s anger burned against Uzza, and he struck him, because he put his hand on the ark; and he died there before God.

Also the Levites will no longer need to carry the tabernacle and all its vessels for its service.”

You shall set bounds to the people all around, saying, ‘Be careful that you don’t go up onto the mountain, or touch its border. Whoever touches the mountain shall be surely put to death.

They shall eat those things with which atonement was made, to consecrate and sanctify them; but a stranger shall not eat of it, because they are holy.

He put the poles into the rings on the sides of the ark, to bear the ark.

When the tabernacle is to move, the Levites shall take it down; and when the tabernacle is to be set up, the Levites shall set it up. The stranger who comes near shall be put to death.

They shall keep all the furnishings of the Tent of Meeting, and the obligations of the children of Israel, to do the service of the tabernacle.

Those who encamp before the tabernacle eastward, in front of the Tent of Meeting toward the sunrise, shall be Moses, and Aaron and his sons, keeping the requirements of the sanctuary for the duty of the children of Israel. The outsider who comes near shall be put to death.

“This is the service of the sons of Kohath in the Tent of Meeting, regarding the most holy things.

When the camp moves forward, Aaron shall go in with his sons; and they shall take down the veil of the screen, cover the ark of the Testimony with it,

but thus do to them, that they may live, and not die, when they approach the most holy things: Aaron and his sons shall go in and appoint 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.”

“This is the service of the families of the Gershonites, in serving and in bearing burdens:

from thirty years old and upward even to fifty years old, everyone who entered in to do the work of service and the work of bearing burdens in the Tent of Meeting,

to be a memorial to the children of Israel, to the end that no stranger who isn’t of the offspring of Aaron, would come near to burn incense before Yahweh, that he not be as Korah, and as his company; as Yahweh spoke to him by Moses.

Bring your brothers also, the tribe of Levi, the tribe of your father, near with you, that they may be joined to you, and minister to you; but you and your sons with you shall be before the Tent of the Testimony.

You and your sons with you shall keep your priesthood for everything of the altar, and for that within the veil. You shall serve. I give you the service of the priesthood as a gift. The stranger who comes near shall be put to death.”

and they commanded the people, saying, “When you see the ark of Yahweh your God’s covenant, and the Levitical priests bearing it, then leave your place and follow it.

For the priests who bore the ark stood in the middle of the Jordan until everything was finished that Yahweh commanded Joshua to speak to the people, according to all that Moses commanded Joshua; and the people hurried and passed over.

So the people sent to Shiloh, and they brought from there the ark of the covenant of Yahweh of Armies, who sits above the cherubim; and the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, were there with the ark of the covenant of God.

He struck of the men of Beth Shemesh, because they had looked into Yahweh’s ark, he struck fifty thousand seventy of the men. Then the people mourned, because Yahweh had struck the people with a great slaughter.

When those who bore Yahweh’s ark had gone six paces, he sacrificed an ox and a fattened calf.

After this thing Jeroboam didn’t return from his evil way, but again made priests of the high places from among all the people. Whoever wanted to, he consecrated him, that there might be priests of the high places.

Then David said, “No one ought to carry God’s ark but the Levites. For Yahweh has chosen them to carry God’s ark, and to minister to him forever.”

For because you didn’t carry it at first, Yahweh our God broke out in anger against us, because we didn’t seek him according to the ordinance.”

The children of the Levites bore God’s ark on their shoulders with its poles, as Moses commanded according to Yahweh’s word.

All the elders of Israel came. The Levites took up the ark;

God’s temple that is in heaven was opened, and the ark of the Lord’s covenant was seen in his temple. Lightnings, sounds, thunders, an earthquake, and great hail followed.