Numbers 3:38-39·~1 min
Moses and Aaron
Moses, Aaron, and Aaron's sons camp before the tabernacle on the east and perform the sanctuary's duties for Israel, while outsiders are forbidden to approach. The total number of Levites counted is 22,000.
M38oses, 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 on behalf of the Israelites; but any outsider who approached the sanctuary was to be put to death. 39The total number of Levites that Moses and Aaron counted by their clans at the LORD’s command, including all the males a month old or more, was 22,000.
Section summaryMoses, Aaron, and Aaron's sons camp on the east, before the entrance to the Tent of Meeting, and bear the sanctuary's duties for Israel. The section then closes the census with the full number of Levites counted at the LORD's command.
Role in the chapterThis brief section places the priestly household at the tabernacle's front and restates the boundary against outsiders. It also gathers the dispersed clan totals into a single Levitical number.