1 Chronicles 23

When David was old and had lived a long life, he made his son Solomon king over Israel.

1So when David was old and full of days, he made Solomon his son king over Israel.

2He gathered together all the leaders of Israel, along with the priests and the Levites.

2And he gathered together all the princes of Israel, with the priests and the Levites.

NoteThe Levites were the tribe of Levi, set apart for work connected with the sanctuary. Within that tribe, only the descendants of Aaron served as priests, offering sacrifices and burning incense; the rest of the Levites were their assistants, carrying, guarding, singing, and maintaining the building and its equipment. The chapter turns on that distinction.

3The Levites who were thirty years old or older were counted. Counting them one man at a time, the total came to 38,000.

3Now the Levites were numbered from the age of thirty years and upward: and their number by their polls, man by man, was thirty and eight thousand.

NoteThirty was the age at which Levites began sanctuary service in the older law (Numbers 4), which describes the physically demanding job of dismantling and carrying the portable tent. Verse 24 lowers the age to twenty, and verses 25–27 explain why.

4David said, "Of these, 24,000 are to direct the work of the house of the LORD, and 6,000 are to be officials and judges.

4Of which, twenty and four thousand were to set forward the work of the house of the LORD; and six thousand were officers and judges:

Note"The house of the LORD" here means the temple that Solomon has not yet built. David is organizing staff in advance for a building that exists only as a plan and a stockpile of materials.

5Also, 4,000 are to be gatekeepers, and 4,000 are to praise the LORD with the instruments I have made for giving praise."

5Moreover four thousand were porters; and four thousand praised the LORD with the instruments which I made, said David, to praise therewith.

NoteGatekeepers were not simply doorkeepers: they controlled access to the sanctuary and its courts, decided who and what could come in, and were responsible for the storerooms and the treasure kept there.

6David divided the Levites into groups that took turns serving, organized by Levi's sons: Gershon, Kohath, and Merari.

6And David divided them into courses among the sons of Levi, namely, Gershon, Kohath, and Merari.

NoteThe King James word is "courses", rotating shifts. Rather than all serving at once, the divisions took turns on duty in a fixed cycle, so that the sanctuary was always staffed but no family served continuously.

7From the Gershonites came Laadan and Shimei.

7Of the Gershonites were, Laadan, and Shimei.

8The sons of Laadan were Jehiel, who was the first, then Zetham and Joel. That is three.

8The sons of Laadan; the chief was Jehiel, and Zetham, and Joel, three.

9The sons of Shimei were Shelomith, Haziel, and Haran. That is three. These men were the heads of the families descended from Laadan.

9The sons of Shimei; Shelomith, and Haziel, and Haran, three. These were the chief of the fathers of Laadan.

10The sons of Shimei were Jahath, Zina, Jeush, and Beriah. These four were Shimei's sons.

10And the sons of Shimei were, Jahath, Zina, and Jeush, and Beriah. These four were the sons of Shimei.

NoteThis Shimei appears to be a different man from the Shimei of verses 7 and 9, though the text does not say so. The Hebrew of these verses is difficult, and the same name is spelled two ways: "Zina" here and "Zizah" in verse 11.

11Jahath was the first and Zizah the second. But Jeush and Beriah did not have many sons, so they were counted as one family and given one assignment.

11And Jahath was the chief, and Zizah the second: but Jeush and Beriah had not many sons; therefore they were in one reckoning, according to their father’s house.

12The sons of Kohath were Amram, Izhar, Hebron, and Uzziel. That is four.

12The sons of Kohath; Amram, Izhar, Hebron, and Uzziel, four.

13The sons of Amram were Aaron and Moses. Aaron was set apart, he and his sons forever, to keep the most holy things holy, to burn incense before the LORD, to serve him, and to bless people in his name forever.

13The sons of Amram; Aaron and Moses: and Aaron was separated, that he should sanctify the most holy things, he and his sons for ever, to burn incense before the LORD, to minister unto him, and to bless in his name for ever.

NoteBurning incense and pronouncing blessing "in his name" were duties reserved to Aaron's line alone; the blessing referred to is the set formula of Numbers 6:24–26. "Set apart" translates a word meaning separated off for exclusive use, the same idea behind calling something holy.

14As for Moses, the man of God, his sons were counted as part of the tribe of Levi.

14Now concerning Moses the man of God, his sons were named of the tribe of Levi.

Note"Man of God" is a standard title for a prophet, not a comment on Moses' character. The point of the verse is the opposite of praise: Moses' own sons received no special rank and were simply enrolled among ordinary Levites, unlike Aaron's sons, who inherited the priesthood.

15The sons of Moses were Gershom and Eliezer.

15The sons of Moses were, Gershom, and Eliezer.

16Of the sons of Gershom, Shebuel was the first.

16Of the sons of Gershom, Shebuel was the chief.

17Of the sons of Eliezer, Rehabiah was the first. Eliezer had no other sons, but Rehabiah's sons were very many.

17And the sons of Eliezer were, Rehabiah the chief. And Eliezer had none other sons; but the sons of Rehabiah were very many.

18Of the sons of Izhar, Shelomith was the first.

18Of the sons of Izhar; Shelomith the chief.

19Of the sons of Hebron, Jeriah was the first, Amariah the second, Jahaziel the third, and Jekameam the fourth.

19Of the sons of Hebron; Jeriah the first, Amariah the second, Jahaziel the third, and Jekameam the fourth.

20Of the sons of Uzziel, Micah was the first and Jesiah the second.

20Of the sons of Uzziel; Micah the first, and Jesiah the second.

21The sons of Merari were Mahli and Mushi. The sons of Mahli were Eleazar and Kish.

21The sons of Merari; Mahli, and Mushi. The sons of Mahli; Eleazar, and Kish.

NoteThis Kish is not Saul's father, who belonged to the tribe of Benjamin. The name was a common one.

22Eleazar died without any sons; he had only daughters. Their relatives, the sons of Kish, married them.

22And Eleazar died, and had no sons, but daughters: and their brethren the sons of Kish took them.

NoteWhen a man died leaving only daughters, marrying them to relatives within the same tribe kept his land and share from passing to another tribe (the rule set out in Numbers 36). "Their brethren" in the King James means their male relatives, here their cousins.

23The sons of Mushi were Mahli, Eder, and Jeremoth. That is three.

23The sons of Mushi; Mahli, and Eder, and Jeremoth, three.

24These were the descendants of Levi, listed by their families. They were the heads of families, registered by name one man at a time, those twenty years old and older who did the work of serving the house of the LORD.

24These were the sons of Levi after the house of their fathers; even the chief of the fathers, as they were counted by number of names by their polls, that did the work for the service of the house of the LORD, from the age of twenty years and upward.

25For David had said, "The LORD, the God of Israel, has given rest to his people, and Jerusalem is where he dwells forever.

25For David said, The LORD God of Israel hath given rest unto his people, that they may dwell in Jerusalem for ever:

Note"Rest" in this idiom means an end to war and to moving from place to place: a settled land with no enemies pressing on it. It is the standard word for what a king achieves when his campaigns are over.

26So the Levites no longer have to carry the tent of worship or any of the equipment used in its service."

26And also unto the Levites; they shall no more carry the tabernacle, nor any vessels of it for the service thereof.

NoteBefore the temple, Israel's sanctuary was a portable tent that was taken apart, carried, and reassembled at each stopping place, the Levites' original and defining job. A permanent building in Jerusalem abolishes that work, which is why younger men could now be enrolled.

27According to David's final instructions, the Levites were counted from twenty years old and older.

27For by the last words of David the Levites were numbered from twenty years old and above:

28Their job was to assist Aaron's descendants with the service of the house of the LORD. They cared for the courtyards and the side rooms, kept all the holy things clean and fit for use, and did the work of serving God's house.

28Because their office was to wait on the sons of Aaron for the service of the house of the LORD, in the courts, and in the chambers, and in the purifying of all holy things, and the work of the service of the house of God;

Note"Purifying" here is not cleaning in the household sense. Objects used in the sanctuary had to be kept in a state of ritual fitness, and anything that had lost it had to be restored by prescribed procedures before it could be used again. The "chambers" were side rooms built against the temple, used for storage and for the priests on duty.

29They cared for the bread set out before the LORD, the fine flour for the grain offering, the flat bread made without yeast, the baking and the mixing, and all measurements of amount and size.

29Both for the shewbread, and for the fine flour for meat offering, and for the unleavened cakes, and for that which is baked in the pan, and for that which is fried, and for all manner of measure and size;

NoteThe showbread was twelve loaves set out on a table inside the sanctuary and replaced each Sabbath. The grain offering was an offering of flour and oil rather than an animal. Bread made without yeast was required for certain offerings and festivals. The "measure and size" clause refers to the fixed quantities the law prescribed for each of these, the Levites were responsible for getting them right.

30They were also to stand every morning to thank and praise the LORD, and to do the same every evening.

30And to stand every morning to thank and praise the LORD, and likewise at even;

31They were to help present all the burnt offerings to the LORD on the Sabbaths, at the new moons, and at the appointed festivals. They served in the required numbers, following the rule given them, regularly before the LORD.

31And to offer all burnt sacrifices unto the LORD in the sabbaths, in the new moons, and on the set feasts, by number, according to the order commanded unto them, continually before the LORD:

NoteBurnt offerings were animals burned whole on the altar rather than eaten. The new moon, the first day of each lunar month, was a regular holy day, since Israel's calendar ran by the moon. The "set feasts" are the annual festivals fixed by law, chiefly Passover, Weeks, and Booths.

32So the Levites took charge of the Tent of Meeting and of the holy place, and they served under their relatives, Aaron's descendants, in the work of the house of the LORD.

32And that they should keep the charge of the tabernacle of the congregation, and the charge of the holy place, and the charge of the sons of Aaron their brethren, in the service of the house of the LORD.

NoteThe Tent of Meeting was the portable sanctuary of the wilderness years; "the holy place" is the sanctuary building proper, the room housing the lampstand, the incense altar, and the table of showbread. "Keep the charge of" is a King James phrase for holding responsibility for something and standing guard over it.