Numbers 1:51-53

1:51 Whenever the tabernacle is to move, ¹  the Levites must take it down, and whenever the tabernacle is to be reassembled, ²  the Levites must set it up. ³  Any unauthorized person ⁴  who approaches it must be killed.

1:52 “The Israelites will camp according to their divisions, each man in his camp, and each man by his standard. 1:53 But the Levites must camp around the tabernacle of the testimony, so that the Lord’s anger ⁵  will not fall on the Israelite community. The Levites are responsible for the care ⁶  of the tabernacle of the testimony.”

Numbers 18:4-7

18:4 They must join ⁷  with you, and they will be responsible for the care of the tent of meeting, for all the service of the tent, but no unauthorized person ⁸  may approach you. 18:5 You will be responsible for the care of the sanctuary and the care of the altar, so that there will be ⁹  no more wrath on the Israelites. 18:6 I myself have chosen ¹⁰  your brothers the Levites from among the Israelites. They are given to you as a gift from the Lord, to perform the duties ¹¹  of the tent of meeting. 18:7 But you and your sons with you are responsible for your priestly duties, for everything at the altar and within the curtain. And you must serve. I give you the priesthood as a gift for service; but the unauthorized person who approaches must be put to death.”

[1:51]  ¹ tn The construction uses the infinitive construct with the temporal preposition; the “tabernacle” is then the following genitive. Literally it is “and in the moving of the tabernacle,” meaning, “when the tabernacle is supposed to be moved,” i.e., when people are supposed to move it. The verb נָסָע (nasa’) means “pull up the tent pegs and move,” or more simply, “journey.”

[1:51]  ² tn Here we have the parallel construction using the infinitive construct in a temporal adverbial clause.

[1:51]  ³ tn Heb “raise it up.”

[1:51]  ⁴ tn The word used here is זָר (zar), normally translated “stranger” or “outsider.” It is most often used for a foreigner, an outsider, who does not belong in Israel, or who, although allowed in the land, may be viewed with suspicion. But here it seems to include even Israelites other than the tribe of Levi.

[1:53]  ⁵ tc Instead of “wrath” the Greek text has “sin,” focusing the emphasis on the human error and not on the wrath of God. This may have been a conscious change to explain the divine wrath.

[1:53]  ⁶ tn The main verb of the clause is the perfect tense with vav (ו) consecutive, וְשָׁמְרוּ (vÿshamÿru) meaning they “shall guard, protect, watch over, care for.” It may carry the same obligatory nuance as the preceding verbs because of the sequence. The object used with this is the cognate noun מִשְׁמֶרֶת (mishmeret): “The Levites must care for the care of the tabernacle.” The cognate intensifies the construction to stress that they are responsible for this care.

[18:4]  ⁷ tn Now the sentence uses the Niphal perfect with a vav (ו) consecutive from the same root לָוָה (lavah).

[18:4]  ⁸ tn The word is “stranger, alien,” but it can also mean Israelites here.

[18:5]  ⁹ tn The clause is a purpose clause, and the imperfect tense a final imperfect.

[18:6]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “taken.”

[18:6]  ¹¹ tn The infinitive construct in this sentence is from עָבַד (’avad), and so is the noun that serves as its object: to serve the service.