Numbers 4:5 (WEB)
When the camp moves forward, Aaron shall go in with his sons; and they shall take down the veil of the screen, cover the ark of the Testimony with it,
As quoted in the map (KJV)
Numbers 4:5–6 (KJV)
5 And when the camp setteth forward, Aaron shall come, and his sons, and they shall take down the covering vail, and cover the ark of testimony with it: 6 And shall put thereon the covering of badgers’ skins, and shall spread over it a cloth wholly of blue, and shall put in the staves thereof.
Key words
- פָּרֹכֶת הַמָּסָךְparokhet hammasakh · Hebrew
- 'the covering vail' — the veil of the Holy of Holies is taken down and wrapped around the Ark before it travels.
- בֶּגֶד כְּלִיל תְּכֵלֶתbeged kelil tekhelet · Hebrew
- 'a cloth wholly of blue' — the outer covering; the Ark is never seen uncovered outside the sanctuary.
- בַּדָּיוbaddav · Hebrew
- 'the staves thereof' — the poles; the Ark is carried only by them, never touched.
Why it matters
Whenever the camp moves, Aaron's sons must veil the Ark, cover it in blue, and set its poles; only then may the Levites carry it, and they may not touch it (4:15). Pitre cites these verses for the Ark's untouchable holiness (p 46), the background to Uzzah's death when the Ark was moved on a cart instead of by its poles. The reverence owed the old Ark is the model for reverence toward the new.