29-30. The Lord said:Moses, find out how many men between thirty and fifty are in the two Levite clans of Merari, but count only those who are able to work at the sacred tent.
31. The Merarites will be responsible for carrying the frames of the tent and its other pieces, including the bars, the posts, the stands,
32. as well as the posts that support the courtyard, together with their stands, tent pegs, and ropes. The Merarites are to be told exactly what objects they are to carry,
33. and Ithamar son of Aaron will make sure they do their work.
34-49. Moses, Aaron, and the other Israelite leaders obeyed the Lord and counted the Levi tribe by families and clans, to find out how many men there were between the ages of thirty and fifty who could work at the sacred tent. There were two thousand seven hundred and fifty Kohathites, two thousand six hundred and thirty Gershonites, and three thousand two hundred Merarites, making a total of eight thousand five hundred and eighty. Then they were all assigned their duties.