The duties assigned to the sons of Merari were the tabernacle’s frames, crossbars, posts, bases, and all its equipment—all the service for these items,
Parallel translations
- WEB The appointed duty of the sons of Merari shall be the tabernacle’s boards, its bars, its pillars, its sockets, all its instruments, all its service,
- KJV And 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,
- ESV And the appointed guard duty of the sons of Merari involved the frames of the tabernacle, the bars, the pillars, the bases, and all their accessories; all the service connected with these;
- NKJV And the appointed duty of the children of Merari included the boards of the tabernacle, its bars, its pillars, its sockets, its utensils, all the work relating to them,
- NASB Now the appointment of duties of the sons of Merari included the framework of the tabernacle, its bars, its pillars, its bases, all its equipment, and all the service concerning them,
- NLT These two clans were responsible for the care of the frames supporting the Tabernacle, the crossbars, the pillars, the bases, and all the equipment related to their use.
Scripture quotations are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
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 Merarites cared for the tabernacle's boards, bars, pillars, and sockets. They handled the heavy structural framework of God's dwelling.
Overview
Their duty involved the load-bearing components, the boards, bars, pillars, and bases that held the tabernacle together. This labor-intensive work required strength and care to transport and assemble. The sturdy framework that upheld the sanctuary reminds us that God's dwelling among His people rested on a divinely designed structure.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 12
- Exod 26:37Make five posts of acacia wood for the curtain, overlay them with gold hooks, and cast five bronze bases for them.
- Exod 26:32Hang it with gold hooks on four posts of acacia wood, overlaid with gold and standing on four silver bases.
- Exod 26:15–29You are to construct upright frames of acacia wood for the tabernacle.
- Exod 39:33Then they brought the tabernacle to Moses: the tent with all its furnishings, its clasps, its frames, its crossbars, and its posts and bases;
- Exod 38:17–20The bases for the posts were bronze, the hooks and bands were silver, and the plating for the tops of the posts was silver. So all the posts of the courtyard were banded with silver.
- Exod 35:11the tabernacle with its tent and covering, its clasps and frames, its crossbars, posts, and bases;
- Exod 36:36He also made four posts of acacia wood for it and overlaid them with gold, along with gold hooks; and he cast four silver bases for the posts.
- Exod 36:20–34Next, he constructed upright frames of acacia wood for the tabernacle.
- Num 7:8and he gave the Merarites four carts and eight oxen, as their service required, all under the direction of Ithamar son of Aaron the priest.
- Exod 35:18the tent pegs for the tabernacle and for the courtyard, along with their ropes;
- Num 4:29–33As for the sons of Merari, you are to number them by their clans and families,
- Exod 27:9–19You are also to make a courtyard for the tabernacle. On the south side of the courtyard make curtains of finely spun linen, a hundred cubits long on one side,
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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 3:36 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.