Numbers 4:15-4915And 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. 16And 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. 17And the Lord spake unto Moses and unto Aaron, saying, 18Cut ye not off the tribe of the families of the Kohathites from among the Levites: 19But thus do unto them, that they may live, and not die, when they approach unto the most holy things: Aaron and his sons shall go in, and appoint them every one to his service and to his burden: 20But they shall not go in to see when the holy things are covered, lest they die. 21And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying, 22Take also the sum of the sons of Gershon, throughout the houses of their fathers, by their families; 23From thirty years old and upward until fifty years old shalt thou number them; all that enter in to perform the service, to do the work in the tabernacle of the congregation. 24This is the service of the families of the Gershonites, to serve, and for burdens: 25And they shall bear the curtains of the tabernacle, and the tabernacle of the congregation, his covering, and the covering of the badgers' skins that is above upon it, and the hanging for the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, 26And the hangings of the court, and the hanging for the door of the gate of the court, which is by the tabernacle and by the altar round about, and their cords, and all the instruments of their service, and all that is made for them: so shall they serve. 27At the appointment of Aaron and his sons shall be all the service of the sons of the Gershonites, in all their burdens, and in all their service: and ye shall appoint unto them in charge all their burdens. 28This is the service of the families of the sons of Gershon in the tabernacle of the congregation: and their charge shall be under the hand of Ithamar the son of Aaron the priest. 29As for the sons of Merari, thou shalt number them after their families, by the house of their fathers; 30From thirty years old and upward even unto fifty years old shalt thou number them, every one that entereth into the service, to do the work of the tabernacle of the congregation. 31And this is the charge of their burden, according to all their service in the tabernacle of the congregation; the boards of the tabernacle, and the bars thereof, and the pillars thereof, and sockets thereof, 32And the pillars of the court round about, and their sockets, and their pins, and their cords, with all their instruments, and with all their service: and by name ye shall reckon the instruments of the charge of their burden. 33This is the service of the families of the sons of Merari, according to all their service, in the tabernacle of the congregation, under the hand of Ithamar the son of Aaron the priest. 34And Moses and Aaron and the chief of the congregation numbered the sons of the Kohathites after their families, and after the house of their fathers, 35From thirty years old and upward even unto fifty years old, every one that entereth into the service, for the work in the tabernacle of the congregation: 36And those that were numbered of them by their families were two thousand seven hundred and fifty. 37These were they that were numbered of the families of the Kohathites, all that might do service in the tabernacle of the congregation, which Moses and Aaron did number according to the commandment of the Lord by the hand of Moses. 38And those that were numbered of the sons of Gershon, throughout their families, and by the house of their fathers, 39From thirty years old and upward even unto fifty years old, every one that entereth into the service, for the work in the tabernacle of the congregation, 40Even those that were numbered of them, throughout their families, by the house of their fathers, were two thousand and six hundred and thirty. 41These are they that were numbered of the families of the sons of Gershon, of all that might do service in the tabernacle of the congregation, whom Moses and Aaron did number according to the commandment of the Lord. 42And those that were numbered of the families of the sons of Merari, throughout their families, by the house of their fathers, 43From thirty years old and upward even unto fifty years old, every one that entereth into the service, for the work in the tabernacle of the congregation, 44Even those that were numbered of them after their families, were three thousand and two hundred. 45These be those that were numbered of the families of the sons of Merari, whom Moses and Aaron numbered according to the word of the Lord by the hand of Moses. 46All those that were numbered of the Levites, whom Moses and Aaron and the chief of Israel numbered, after their families, and after the house of their fathers, 47From thirty years old and upward even unto fifty years old, every one that came to do the service of the ministry, and the service of the burden in the tabernacle of the congregation, 48Even those that were numbered of them, were eight thousand and five hundred and fourscore. 49According to the commandment of the Lord they were numbered by the hand of Moses, every one according to his service, and according to his burden: thus were they numbered of him, as the Lord commanded Moses. (Numbers 4:15‑49)
THE Kohathites had the sacred privilege of carrying the “most holy things” of the tabernacle, but they were not permitted to touch or even look upon them. “They shall not go in to see when the holy things are covered, lest they die.” Aaron and his sons must first go in and cover those sacred vessels before the Kohathites could take up their service.
Under grace we are privileged to gaze upon the glories of Christ, to worship and adore within the veil; but this is no place for mere curiosity or for the mind of man to be at work. We are solemnly warned against seeking to inquire into the unfathomable mystery of the divine Person of the Lord Jesus Christ.
The rest of the chapter completes the numbering of the Levites with their three branches — Gershon, Merari and Kohath. As to their standing they were all “joined with Aaron,” yet the class of service of each was distinctly different. Nevertheless they were all “striving together.”
We as believers are one with Christ and members one of another, gathered around Him as our Center, each with a distinct service to do for Him. In this we are called to respect each other’s labors and as far as we are able to help on the work of the Lord.
Gershon means “a stranger,” and it was his work to carry the tabernacle coverings on the wilderness march. The Lord Jesus was ever the homeless Stranger down here, and in following Him we partake of His strangership, Just as the sons of Gershon bore those coverings across the desert so it is our privilege to manifest this character of Christ as we travel on through this wilderness world.
Merari means “sorrow,” and his responsibility was the boards, the bars, the pillars, etc. What little satisfaction there would be naturally in setting them up out on the dreary desert! Yet this was his privilege. And it is our privilege too, dear young Christian, to raise a testimony for Christ in the midst of this barren hostile scene. One may experience much sorrow and reproach in doing so, but there will be much joy too in witnessing for Christ. No one knew sorrow like He did; He was the “Man of sorrows,” but soon when He has all His redeemed at home with Himself in the glory He will be the Man of joy forever.
The floor of the tabernacle was the sand of the desert; in the temple, however, the floor was overlaid with gold. When the high priest went into the tabernacle and gazed on those glories and beauties that spoke of Christ his feet still stood on the sands....
Our feet still tread the desert sands of this world, but one day we shall stand upon the street of gold in the New Jerusalem, and gaze into the face of our blessed Saviour. What we have learned of Him in the sorrows and trials of the wilderness will only deepen our joy then and abide eternally.
ML-04/08/1973