And the tabernacle was taken down; and the sons of Gershon and the sons of Merari set forward, bearing the tabernacle.
Parallel translations
- WEB The tabernacle was taken down; and the sons of Gershon and the sons of Merari, who bore the tabernacle, went forward.
- BSB Then the tabernacle was taken down, and the Gershonites and the Merarites set out, transporting it.
- NKJV Then the tabernacle was taken down; and the sons of Gershon and the sons of Merari set out, carrying the tabernacle.
- NASB Then the tabernacle was taken down; and the sons of Gershon and the sons of Merari, who were carrying the tabernacle, set out.
- NLT Then the Tabernacle was taken down, and the Gershonite and Merarite divisions of the Levites were next in the line of march, carrying the Tabernacle with them.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
The tabernacle was taken down and carried forward by the sons of Gershon and Merari. The dwelling of God moved with the people.
Overview
After the lead tribes set out, the Levite families responsible for the tabernacle's structure carried it forward. Placing God's dwelling within the march shows that the Lord's presence traveled at the heart of His people, the central reality of their identity and hope.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 8
- Num 1:51And when the tabernacle setteth forward, the Levites shall take it down: and when the tabernacle is to be pitched, the Levites shall set it up: and the stranger that cometh nigh shall be put to death.
- Num 7:6–8And Moses took the wagons and the oxen, and gave them unto the Levites.
- Num 3:25–26And the charge of the sons of Gershon in the tabernacle of the congregation shall be the tabernacle, and the tent, the covering thereof, and the hanging for the door of the tabernacle of the congregation,
- Num 3:36–37And under the custody and charge of the sons of Merari shall be the boards of the tabernacle, and the bars thereof, and the pillars thereof, and the sockets thereof, and all the vessels thereof, and all that serveth thereto,
- 2 Pet 1:14Knowing that shortly I must put off this my tabernacle, even as our Lord Jesus Christ hath shewed me.
- Num 4:21–33And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,
- Heb 9:11But Christ being come an high priest of good things to come, by a greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this building;
- Heb 12:28Wherefore we receiving a kingdom which cannot be moved, let us have grace, whereby we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear:
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Christ at the center
In the wilderness Christ is the water from the rock, the bronze serpent lifted up that the dying might look and live (John 3:14), and the star and scepter that Balaam saw rising out of Jacob.
How Numbers 10:17 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.