Numbers 4:15 (WEB)
“When Aaron and his sons have finished covering the sanctuary and all the furniture of the sanctuary, as the camp moves forward; after that, the sons of Kohath shall come to carry it; but they shall not touch the sanctuary, lest they die. The sons of Kohath shall carry these things belonging to the Tent of Meeting.
As quoted in the map (KJV)
Numbers 4:15 (KJV)
And when Aaron and his sons have made an end of covering the sanctuary, and all the vessels of the sanctuary, as the camp is to set forward; after that, the sons of Kohath shall come to bear it: but they shall not touch any holy thing, lest they die. These things are the burden of the sons of Kohath in the tabernacle of the congregation.
Key words
- הַקֹּדֶשׁhaqqodesh · Hebrew
- 'the holy things' — the ark and the sanctuary furniture.
- נָגַעnaga · Hebrew
- 'touch.' Even the Levites who carry the holy things may not touch them directly.
- וָמֵתוּvametu · Hebrew
- 'lest they die' — the holiness of the ark is lethal to the unauthorised.
Why it matters
The ark was so holy that touching it meant death, a law Uzzah later breaks at the cost of his life (2 Samuel 6:6–7). Pitre uses this to show that the ark's holiness was not decorative but absolute, set apart entirely for God. The reverence and awe owed to the old ark is the backdrop for the reverence the New Testament shows toward Mary, the new ark, and for the holiness such a vessel must have.