Numbers 18:4

They are to join you and attend to the duties of the Tent of Meeting, doing all the work at the Tent; but no outsider may come near you.

Berean Standard Bible

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Study note

Setting — Moses addresses Aaron and the Levites regarding their assigned roles in the Tabernacle service. He delineates their specific responsibilities while establishing strict boundaries to protect the sanctuary.

The words — וְנִלְוּוּ (ve-nilvu) translates literally as "and they will join themselves," and מִשְׁמֶרֶת (mishmeret) means "duty" or "guard." These terms define the Levites' subordinate but essential support role to the priests.

The thread — The restriction on unauthorized access to the Tent of Meeting appears in Numbers 1:51 and 3:10, where outsiders face death for approaching. This boundary theme echoes in 1 Samuel 6:19, where God strikes down Beth-shemesh for improperly handling the ark.

Why it lands — The text demands strict adherence to divinely assigned roles and boundaries within worship. It requires readers to recognize that proximity to the sacred demands obedience, not presumption.

Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.

The Hebrew words

וְנִלְו֣וּve./nil.Vuand/ they will join themselves עָלֶ֔יךָ'a.Lei./khato/ you וְשָֽׁמְר֗וּve./sha.me.Ruand/ they will keep אֶת־'et-<obj.>מִשְׁמֶ֙רֶת֙mish.Me.ret[the] duty of אֹ֣הֶל'O.hel[the] tent of מוֹעֵ֔דmo.'Edmeeting לְכֹ֖לle./Kholto/ all עֲבֹדַ֣ת'a.vo.Dat[the] service of הָאֹ֑הֶלha./'O.helthe/ tent וְזָ֖רve./Zarand/ a stranger לֹא־lo'-not יִקְרַ֥בyik.Ravhe will draw near אֲלֵיכֶֽם׃'a.lei./Khemto/ you

King James Version

And they shall be joined unto thee, and keep the charge of the tabernacle of the congregation, for all the service of the tabernacle: and a stranger shall not come nigh unto you.

Cross-references

Numbers 1:51 Whenever the tabernacle is to move, the Levites are to take it down, and whenever it is to be pitched, the Levites are to set it up. Any outsider who goes near it must be put to death.
Numbers 3:10 So you shall appoint Aaron and his sons to carry out the duties of the priesthood; but any outsider who approaches the tabernacle must be put to death.”
1 Samuel 6:19 But God struck down some of the people of Beth-shemesh because they looked inside the ark of the LORD. He struck down seventy men, and the people mourned because the LORD had struck them with a great slaughter.
2 Samuel 6:6 When they came to the threshing floor of Nacon, Uzzah reached out and took hold of the ark of God, because the oxen had stumbled.