But the Levites shall encamp around the tabernacle of the testimony: See verse 50. The conjunction but (literally “and”) introduces a contrast here. In contrast to the rest of the Israelites (verse 52), the Levites will camp immediately around the Tabernacle.

That there may be no wrath upon the congregation of the people of Israel: God wants the Levites to encamp around the Tabernacle, so that the other Israelites do not get close to it and cause him to become angry with them. In some languages it may be necessary to specify that wrath refers to the anger of the LORD. Good News Translation does this by saying “my anger” since the LORD is speaking. Congregation is better rendered “community” (Good News Translation; see verse 2).

And the Levites shall keep charge of the tabernacle of the testimony: Keep charge is literally “guard the guarding” (shamar mishmeret in Hebrew). This verb plus cognate (object) noun construction serves to emphasize the activity of guarding. The Hebrew verb shamar has several possible meanings, depending on the context; here it means “care for, keep watch, guard.” In the Israelite camp the Levites must form the inner circle around the Tabernacle. This protective arrangement is directly related to the overriding concern of the book: how can God, the Holy One, be present among his unholy people (see “Translating Numbers,” page 1).

Quoted with permission from de Regt, Lénart J. and Wendland, Ernst R. A Handbook on Numbers. (UBS Helps for Translators). Miami: UBS, 2016. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .