Numbers 18:4
in Numbers 18They 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.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And they shall be joined unto thee, and keep the charge of the tent of meeting, for all the service of the Tent: and a stranger shall not come nigh unto you.
KJV
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.
⋯
This verse in Numbers 18
Commentary
6 notes on this verseA commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
A stranger - i. e. every one not a Levite. So in Num 18:7, it denotes each one who was not a priest: compare Num 3:10; Num 16:40.
This site's exposition
shall bear the iniquity of the sanctuary
on Numbers 18:1-4
Chapter 17 closes with Israel crying that every one who comes near the tabernacle dies. This chapter answers that cry by fixing where the danger is carried, and it lays it on Aaron and his sons. Adam Clarke points out the play on the name in verse 2, since Levi comes from a root meaning to be joined, and the Levites are the tribe joined to the priests as their assistants. The word here comes to Aaron directly rather than through Moses, which happens three times in this chapter and rarely anywhere else in the Torah.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening3 voices
), though they must by no means come nigh the vessels of the sanctuary, nor at the altar meddle with the great services of burning the fat and sprinkling the blood.
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — leading-punctuation+unbalanced-parens
And they shall be joined unto thee,....
Many of the Levites had of late set themselves against Aaron, but henceforward God promises that they should be heartily joined to him in interest and affection, and should no more contest with him. It was a good sign to Aaron that God owned him when he inclined the hearts of those concerned to own him too. The Levites are said to be given as a gift to the priests,
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
proposed
The Levites were to attend the priests as servants--bestowed on them as "gifts" to aid in the service of the tabernacle--while the high and dignified office of the priesthood was a "service of gift." "A stranger," that is, one, neither a priest nor a Levite, who should intrude into any departments of the sacred office, should incur the penalty of death.
The words behind it
14 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וְנִלְו֣וּ | venilvu | and they will join themselves | H3867 → | |
| עָלֶ֔יךָ | ʾaleikha | to you | H5921 → | 5755 times |
| וְשָֽׁמְר֗וּ | veshameru | and they will keep | H8104 → | 468 times |
| אֶת־ | ʾet- | <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| מִשְׁמֶ֙רֶת֙ | mishmeret | [the] duty of | H4931 → | 78 times |
| אֹ֣הֶל | ʾohel | [the] tent of | H168 → | 345 times |
| מוֹעֵ֔ד | moed | meeting | H4150 → | 223 times |
| לְכֹ֖ל | lekhol | to all | H3605 → | 5413 times |
| עֲבֹדַ֣ת | ʾavodat | [the] service of | H5656 → | 145 times |
| הָאֹ֑הֶל | haohel | the tent | H168 → | 345 times |
| וְזָ֖ר | vezar | and a stranger | H2114 → | 77 times |
| לֹא־ | lo'- | not | H3808 → | 5168 times |
| יִקְרַ֥ב | yikrav | he will draw near | H7126 → | 280 times |
| אֲלֵיכֶֽם׃ | ʾaleikhem | to you | H413 → | 5510 times |
וְנִלְו֣וּand they will join themselves
venilvuH3867 →
עָלֶ֔יךָto you
ʾaleikhaH5921 →5755 times
וְשָֽׁמְר֗וּand they will keep
veshameruH8104 →468 times
אֶת־<obj.>
ʾet-H853 →10935 times
מִשְׁמֶ֙רֶת֙[the] duty of
mishmeretH4931 →78 times
אֹ֣הֶל[the] tent of
ʾohelH168 →345 times
מוֹעֵ֔דmeeting
moedH4150 →223 times
לְכֹ֖לto all
lekholH3605 →5413 times
עֲבֹדַ֣ת[the] service of
ʾavodatH5656 →145 times
הָאֹ֑הֶלthe tent
haohelH168 →345 times
וְזָ֖רand a stranger
vezarH2114 →77 times
לֹא־not
lo'-H3808 →5168 times
יִקְרַ֥בhe will draw near
yikravH7126 →280 times
אֲלֵיכֶֽם׃to you
ʾaleikhemH413 →5510 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
1 Samuel 6:19But 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…
it leads to
- 2 Samuel 6:7
And the anger of the LORD burned against Uzzah, and God struck him down on the spot for his irreverence, and he died there beside the ark of God.
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Numbers 4:20
But the Kohathites are not to go in and look at the holy objects, even for a moment, or they will die.”
- Exodus 19:21
and the LORD said to him, “Go down and warn the people not to break through to see the LORD, lest many of them perish.
- Numbers 4:15
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…
- 2 Samuel 6:7
Through
Numbers 1:51Whenever 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…
it leads to
- Numbers 3:38
Moses, Aaron, and Aaron’s sons were to camp to the east of the tabernacle, toward the sunrise, before the Tent of Meeting. They were to perform the duties of the sanctuary as a service…
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- 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.”
- Numbers 18:22
No longer may the Israelites come near to the Tent of Meeting, or they will incur guilt and die.
- Numbers 3:38
Through
Numbers 3:10So 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.”
it leads to
- 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…
- Numbers 1:51
Where this verse is studied
On this page
About Numbers

This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.
