The In-Dept Study of the Bible
Chronicles 23
1 Now David was old and full of days; and
he made Solomon his son king over Israel.
2 He gathered together all the princes of
Israel, with the priests and the Levites.
3 The Levites were counted from thirty
years old and upward; and their number
by their polls, man by man, was thirtyeight thousand.
4 David said, “Ofthese,twenty-four thousand were to oversee the work of
Yahweh’s house, six thousand were officers and judges,
5 four thousand were doorkeepers, and
four thousand praised Yahweh with the instruments which I made for giving praise.”
6 David divided them into divisions according to the sons of Levi: Gershon, Kohath, and Merari.
7 Of the Gershonites: Ladan and Shimei.
8 The sons of Ladan: Jehiel the chief,
Zetham, and Joel, three.
9 The sons of Shimei: Shelomoth, Haziel,
and Haran, three. These were the heads of
the fathers’ households of Ladan.
10 The sons of Shimei: Jahath, Zina,
Jeush, and Beriah. These four were the
sons of Shimei.
11 Jahath was the chief, and Zizah the
second; but Jeush and Beriah didn’t have
many sons; therefore they became a fathers’ house in one reckoning.
12 The sons of Kohath: Amram, Izhar,
Hebron, and Uzziel, four.
13 The sons of Amram: Aaron and Moses;
and Aaron was separated that he should
sanctify the most holy things, he and his
sons forever, to burn incense before Yahweh, to minister to him, and to bless in his
name forever.
14 But as for Moses the man of God, his
sons were named among the tribe of Levi.
15 The sons of Moses: Gershom and
Eliezer.
16 The sons of Gershom: Shebuel the
chief.
17 The son of Eliezer was Rehabiah the
chief; and Eliezer had no other sons, but
the sons of Rehabiah were very many.
18 The son of Izhar: Shelomith the chief.
19 The sons of Hebron: Jeriah the chief,
Amariah the second, Jahaziel the third,
and Jekameam the fourth.
20 The sons of Uzziel: Micah the chief,
and Isshiah the second.
21 The sons of Merari: Mahli and Mushi.
The sons of Mahli: Eleazar and Kish.
22 Eleazar died, and had no sons, but
daughters only; and their relatives, the
sons of Kish, took them as wives.
23 The sons of Mushi: Mahli, Eder, and
Jeremoth, three.
24 These were the sons of Levi after their
fathers’ houses, even the heads of the fathers’ houses of those who were counted
individually, in the number of names by
their polls, who did the work for the service of Yahweh’s house, from twenty years
old and upward.
25 For David said, “Yahweh, the God of
Israel, has given rest to his people; and he
dwells in Jerusalem forever.
26 Also the Levites will no longer need to
carry the tabernacle and all its vessels for
its service.”
27 For by the last words of David the sons
of Levi were counted, from twenty years
old and upward.
28 For their duty was to wait on the
sons of Aaron for the service of Yahweh’s
house—in the courts, in the rooms, and in
the purifying of all holy things, even the
work of the service of God’s house;
29 for the show bread also, and for the
fine flour for a meal offering, whether
of unleavened wafers, or of that which
is baked in the pan, or of that which is soaked, and for all measurements of quantity and size;
30 and to stand every morning to thank
and praise Yahweh, and likewise in the
evening;
31 and to offer all burnt offerings to Yahweh on the Sabbaths, on the new moons,
and on the set feasts, in number according
to the ordinance concerning them, continually before Yahweh;
32 and that they should keep the duty of
the Tent of Meeting, the duty of the holy
place, and the duty of the sons of Aaron
their brothers for the service of Yahweh’s
house.